bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Hydrologic Response to Land Use Change in a Large Basin in Eastern Amazon
Authors: Dos Santos Vanessa , Laurent François , Abe Camila , Messner François
Published: April 2018

Accelerated land use changes in the Brazilian Amazonian region over the last four decades have raised questions about potential consequences for local hydrology. Under the hypothesis of a lack of frontier governance, projections of future changes in the Amazon basin suggest that 20–30% or more of this basin could be deforested in the next 40 years. This could trigger a cascade of negative impacts on water resources. In this study, we examined how a future conversion of the forest into pasture would influence streamflow and water balance components by using a conceptual and semi-distributed hydrological model in a large (142,000 km2) forested basin: specifically, the Iriri River basin in the Brazilian Amazon. The results showed that the land use change could substantially alter the water balance components of the originally forested basin. For example, an increase of over 57% in pasture areas increased a simulated annual streamflow by ~6.5% and had a significant impact on evapotranspiration, surface runoff, and percolation. Our findings emphasize the importance of protected areas for conservation strategies in the Brazilian Amazonian region.
miR-223-5p Suppresses Tumor Growth and Metastasis in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer by Targeting E2F8
Authors: Dou Liyan , Han Kaiyu , Xiao Mochao , Lv Fuzhen
Published: April 2018

miR-223-5p has been demonstrated to regulate the development and progression of various cancers, such as hepatocellular carcinoma, breast cancer, and gastric carcinoma. However, the role of miR-223-5p in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) requires further investigation. In this study, we found that the expression of miR-223-5p was significantly downregulated in NSCLC tissues and cell lines. Moreover, the expression level of miR-223-5p is negatively correlated with the malignance of NSCLC. We found that overexpression of miR-223-5p remarkably suppressed the proliferation of NSCLC cells in vitro and in vivo. miR-223-5p overexpression also led to reduced migration and invasion in NSCLC cells. Mechanistically, we found that E2F8, a key transcription factor involved in many kinds of biological processes, was a direct target gene of miR-223-5p. Overexpression of miR-223-5p significantly decreased the mRNA and protein levels of E2F8 in NSCLC cells. We also showed that restoration of E2F8 rescued the proliferation, migration, and invasion of miR-223-5p-overexpressing NSCLC cells. Taken together, our findings demonstrated that miR-223-5p suppressed NSCLC progression through targeting E2F8.
RISK ASSESSMENT IN TOURISM SYSTEM USING A FUZZY SET AND DOMINANCE-BASED ROUGH SET
Authors: FARAJI SABOKBAR Hassanali , AYASHI Athareh , HOSSEINI Ali , BANAITIS Audrius , BANAITIENĖ Nerija , AYASHI Raziyeh
Published: April 2018

The purpose of this study is to identify risks, discover rule base structure and the impact of risks by knowledge base system design in one of the Iran tourism destination. Based on tourism system approach, the factors of risks are divided in two dimensions: internal risks and external risks and seven criteria: political, economic, cultural-social, technological, environmental-health, functional and safe-security. Data were analyzed by fuzzy inference system and Dominance-based Rough Set Approach (DRSA) synthesizing to construction of forecasting risk assessment system. Tourists’ perspectives towards the possibilities of risks were first assessed within seven risk factors and converted into a systematic structure within the structure of rough sets. Designing of a fuzzy expert system was dealt with using the created knowledge database. Then, the system’s sensitivity analysis was examined. The results indicate that the system can be a good way to estimate the risks and their fluctuation rates and impacts on the development of tourism destinations. The technological, social, functional and safety-security risks had the highest values in the system designed for minimum travel repeatability. The research suggests that it is important impact of risks and their interaction with each other on the future development of tourism destination.
Brightening and Darkening of the Extended Solar Corona during the Superflares of September 2017
Authors: Goryaev Farid F. , Slemzin Vladimir A. , Rodkin Denis G. , D’Huys Elke , Podladchikova O. , West Matthew J.
Published: April 2018

On 2017 September 6 and 10, the strongest X9.3 and X8.2 flares of the decade occurred in the active region NOAA Active Region 12673. During these flares, the Sun Watcher with Active Pixels and Image Processing (SWAP) telescope on board the Project for Onboard Autonomy 2 (PROBA2) satellite registered the unusual alternate brightening and darkening of the western corona at the heliocentric distances ≈1.2–1.7 R
☉. The X9.3 flare on 2017 September 6 was accompanied by coronal brightening up to 30%–45% at distances ≈1.35–1.7 R
☉. Numerical simulations showed that this brightening might be produced by resonant scattering of the flare radiation by the Fe ix–Fe xi ions in the coronal plasma at the temperature T ∼ 0.8–1 MK, and the densities seriously reduced in comparison with the typical values for the quiet background corona probably moving outward with velocities of 30–40 km s−1. At the maximum of the flare and one hour later, two coronal mass ejections (CMEs) originated, which dimmed the coronal emission in the SWAP 174 Å passband above the western limb by 20%–30%. The X8.2 flare on September 10 was accompanied by a CME, which rose up and progressively dimmed the western part of the corona up to 60%. An hour later the darkening, produced by a global rearrangement of the magnetic field structure and an evacuation of a significant part of the coronal plasma, extended over the complete western limb. A differential emission measure (DEM) analysis showed a decrease in the electron density of the background plasma with T ∼ 1–2 MK at distances 1.24–1.33 R
☉ by 2–3.5 times after the CME. At the same time, an additional DEM peak at T ≈ 0.8 MK appeared, which may be associated with an additional emission in the SWAP passband produced by the flare radiation resonantly scattered by the coronal plasma.
NICER Detection of Strong Photospheric Expansion during a Thermonuclear X-Ray Burst from 4U 1820–30
Authors: Keek L. , Arzoumanian Z. , Chakrabarty D. , Chenevez J. , Gendreau K. C. , Guillot S. , Güver T. , Homan J. , Jaisawal G. K. , LaMarr B. , Lamb F. K. , Mahmoodifar S. , Markwardt C. B. , Okajima T. , Strohmayer T. E. , in ’t Zand J. J. M.
Published: April 2018

The Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) on the International Space Station (ISS) observed strong photospheric expansion of the neutron star in 4U 1820–30 during a Type I X-ray burst. A thermonuclear helium flash in the star’s envelope powered a burst that reached the Eddington limit. Radiation pressure pushed the photosphere out to ∼200 km, while the blackbody temperature dropped to 0.45 keV. Previous observations of similar bursts were performed with instruments that are sensitive only above 3 keV, and the burst signal was weak at low temperatures. NICER's 0.2–12 keV passband enables the first complete detailed observation of strong expansion bursts. The strong expansion lasted only 0.6 s, and was followed by moderate expansion with a 20 km apparent radius, before the photosphere finally settled back down at 3 s after the burst onset. In addition to thermal emission from the neutron star, the NICER spectra reveal a second component that is well fit by optically thick Comptonization. During the strong expansion, this component is six times brighter than prior to the burst, and it accounts for 71% of the flux. In the moderate expansion phase, the Comptonization flux drops, while the thermal component brightens, and the total flux remains constant at the Eddington limit. We speculate that the thermal emission is reprocessed in the accretion environment to form the Comptonization component, and that changes in the covering fraction of the star explain the evolution of the relative contributions to the total flux.
Echinotermes biriba, a new genus and species of soldierless termite from the Colombian and Peruvian Amazon (Termitidae, Apicotermitinae)
Authors: Castro Daniel , Scheffrahn Rudolf H. , Carrijo Tiago F.
Published: April 2018

A new Apicotermitinae genus and speciesEchinotermesbiribais described from workers collected on the Andean-Amazon Piedmont in Colombia and Peru. The enteric valve armature ofEchinotermesbiribaCastro & Scheffrahn,gen. et sp. n.is a remarkably diagnostic character. A Bayesian phylogenetic analysis using the COI gene and including all other Neotropical Apicotermitinae genera, supports the new genus as a distinct terminal.
Faire cours. L’enseignement de la linguistique au temps de Meillet et Saussure
Authors: Bergounioux Gabriel
Published: April 2018

La conception des cours dans l’enseignement supérieur, tels que nous les connaissons, a été empruntée aux universités allemandes. Expérimentée à partir de 1868 à l’École pratique des Hautes Études (ÉPHÉ), l’organisation en séminaire a été illustrée par Saussure, qui suppléait Bréal dans son poste de directeur d’études, et par Meillet qui lui succédera. Tous deux ont composé un traité de linguistique générale, l’un à Genève, l’autre au Collège de France. Le contexte institutionnel, les attentes de l’auditoire et les perspectives d’édition ont décidé de la mise en forme du texte. Meillet préparait un manuel inspiré par les théories comparatistes. Saussure se refusait à publier des leçons qui établissaient les principes du structuralisme. Si les deux publications sont posthumes (en 1916 et en 1995), l’œuvre de Saussure a pris des allures de manuel, tandis que le texte de Meillet n’est plus examiné que par les seuls spécialistes.
Ici et la localisation abstraite
Authors: Huyghe Richard
Published: April 2018

Cet article est consacré aux emplois d’ ici qui ne sont ni spatiaux, ni temporels, ni textuels. Dans ces emplois, ici dénote un contenu informationnel, identifié selon la situation de discours et profilé comme repère de localisation abstraite. Il présente les mêmes propriétés sémantiques que dans ses autres emplois : c’est un déictique indirect, sous-déterminé référentiellement. La localisation abstraite exprimée permet de décrire soit une relation de dépendance entre deux entités conceptuelles, soit une position dans un parcours d’idées. Elle peut s’accompagner d’inférences prédicatives existentielles ou recatégorisantes.
Préparer les familles vulnérables à fréquenter un service de garde éducatif
Authors: Bigras Nathalie , Lehrer Joanne , Quiroz-Saavedra Rodrigo , Gagnon Cynthia , April Johanne , Dion Julie
Published: April 2018

Cette étude longitudinale documente l’évolution des habiletés et des pratiques de communication des parents issus de familles ayant des besoins complexes avant, pendant et après que leur enfant fréquente un service de garde où se déroule un stage novateur. Mis en place au sein d’un programme d’éducation à l’enfance il vise à préparer les futures éducatrices à établir des relations avec les familles, en partenariat avec un centre jeunesse. Seize parents et quatre formatrices ont participé à l’étude. Les données proviennent d’un questionnaire sur les interactions des parents avec le personnel de la Halte-garderie. Les résultats suggèrent que les habiletés relationnelles des parents avec le personnel de la Halte-garderie se sont améliorées entre le début et la fin du programme et que les habilités parentales se sont aussi améliorées de façon significative. La discussion aborde le type de soutien offert aux familles à la Halte-garderie qui influe positivement sur la qualité des relations entretenues entre les étudiantes-stagiaires et les parents en situation de vulnérabilité ainsi qu’entre les parents et leurs enfants.
La socialisation des émotions chez les jeunes enfants : attitudes et croyances des mères et des éducatrices en service de garde
Authors: Desmarais-Gagnon Alexandre , Coutu Sylvain , Lepage Geneviève
Published: April 2018

Notre étude vise à comparer les attitudes (réactions probables face à l’expression des émotions négatives) et les croyances éducatives (philosophies méta-émotionnelles) de 272 mères et de 208 éducatrices travaillant en service de garde. Les résultats de l’étude montrent que tant les mères que les éducatrices valorisent davantage des pratiques éducatives de soutien, d’encouragement et d’accompagnement que des pratiques punitives ou de banalisation du vécu émotionnel de l’enfant. La comparaison des mesures auto-rapportées d’attitudes et de croyances a mis en évidence des différences significatives entre les deux groupes : les mères obtiennent des scores plus élevés que les éducatrices sur les échelles de style émotionnel négatif et des réactions négatives ; les éducatrices obtiennent des scores significativement plus élevés que ceux des mères sur l’échelle de style émotionnel positif. Les résultats suggèrent qu’il existe une certaine cohérence éducative sur le plan des stratégies de socialisation des émotions préconisées dans les familles et les milieux d’accueil préscolaires. L’étude fait aussi ressortir le rôle-conseil que les intervenant-e-s en petite enfance peuvent offrir aux parents dans le contexte d’un partenariat famille-service de garde.
Vivre en centre maternel : le jeune enfant au cœur de la dynamique relationnelle entre sa mère et les professionnel-le-s
Authors: Ganne Claire
Published: April 2018

En France, les établissements d’accueil mère-enfant, appelés également centres maternels, hébergent des femmes enceintes ou accompagnées d’enfant de moins de trois ans, dans le cadre de la protection de l’enfance. Ils ont pour mission d’apporter une aide éducative et psychologique aux femmes hébergées et de les soutenir dans leur relation avec leur enfant. Ce dernier est souvent accueilli en crèche au sein de l’établissement et est au centre des préoccupations des professionnel-le-s. Comment ces interventions sont-elles vécues du côté des mères ? Cet article se base sur 49 entretiens biographiques réalisés auprès de femmes ayant séjourné en centre maternel quelques années. La restitution de leur expérience met en évidence le vécu du suivi éducatif, les configurations dans lesquelles il est perçu comme un soutien ou comme un contrôle, ainsi que la dynamique relationnelle paradoxale qui s’engage parfois.
Les effets de l’inclusion des parties prenantes sur l’innovation dans les projets du secteur public
Authors: Godenhjelm Sebastian , Johanson Jan-Erik
Published: April 2018

La prestation de service public dans les réseaux de collaboration a donné naissance à un recours accru aux projets dans l’administration des politiques et de la prestation de service. Les projets sont censés s’accompagner de mécanismes qui permettent d’assurer une certaine flexibilité et de produire des solutions innovantes. Le présent article a pour but de nous aider à mieux comprendre la collaboration entre les parties prenantes et ses effets sur l’innovation. Nous y analysons l’influence qu’ont les parties prenantes sur la création d’innovations en matière de projets dans 275 projets financés par l’Union européenne au moyen d’analyses du contenu et d’analyses de régression logistique. Les résultats indiquent que si les projets peuvent jouer le rôle de plaques tournantes, où des informations intéressantes sont produites, rares sont ceux qui produisent des innovations. Les réseaux de parties prenantes des projets, la diffusion des connaissances, l’influence des projets ainsi que les sources de conseils sont autant d’éléments qui ont leur importance lorsqu’il s’agit de prédire les innovations des projets. Nous verrons, dans notre conclusion, qu’il y a lieu de remettre en question l’idée exagérément optimiste selon laquelle la collaboration serait un remède à l’absence d’innovation dans le secteur public. Remarques à l’intention des praticiens Les résultats de l’article devraient aider les praticiens à concevoir des projets de développement du secteur public qui encouragent l’innovation. Les résultats indiquent qu’il est bénéfique d’inclure dans l’équipe de projet des représentants des institutions de recherche et d’enseignement étant donné que leur inclusion favorise les possibilités de parvenir à des innovations. Les observations empiriques permettent de mieux comprendre l’innovation dans les projets et indiquent les pratiques à éviter. Nous laissons entendre que lorsqu’elle est correctement gérée, l’inclusion des parties prenantes a une influence sur l’innovation dans les projets du secteur public.
La diffusion de l’innovation dans le gouvernement local en Chine : analyse de la séquence des événements dans le cadre d’un programme de réformes basées sur la performance
Authors: Wu Jiannan , Zhang Pan
Published: April 2018

Le programme de réformes basées sur la performance lancé par la province du Fujian en 2000 a été adopté par beaucoup d’autres provinces chinoises ces douze dernières années, parmi lesquelles celles du Zhejiang, d’Hebei, d’Anhui et du Sichuan. Dans le présent article, nous entendons examiner ce qui a mené à l’adoption de ce programme, et notamment l’influence des incitants à la promotion politique chez les dirigeants et des mécanismes de diffusion. Plus précisément, nous avons recouru à une analyse de la séquence des événements basée sur une régression des probits pour examiner les données de 31 provinces chinoises pour la période 2000–2012. Les résultats indiquent que l’âge relatif des dirigeants et les chances d’être désignés comme membres du Politburo, de même que la distance par rapport aux élections générales, présentent une corrélation négative forte avec l’adoption du programme de réforme, alors que la diffusion descendante présente une corrélation positive forte avec cet aspect. Remarques à l’intention des praticiens Notre étude confirme que le système de la nomenklatura en Chine définit la diffusion des innovations par des mécanismes d’incitation à la promotion politique et des interactions intergouvernementales. Par conséquent, les dynamiques de diffusion de l’innovation sont, dans une certaine mesure, ancrées dans certaines institutions politiques et définies par les contextes politiques. Par ailleurs, le désir de promotions politiques constitue parfois la raison profonde à l’origine des décisions concernant l’adoption éventuelle des innovations ; le renforcement de ces mesures d’incitation en faveur de l’adoption des réformes devient dès lors une stratégie essentielle.
Les biens immobiliers municipaux et les défis du nouveau management public. Pleins feux sur la Roumanie
Authors: Constantin Daniela-Luminita , Mitrut Constantin , Grosu Raluca Mariana , Profiroiu Marius , Iosif Alina Elena
Published: April 2018

Dans les pays en transition et en développement, les biens immobiliers excédentaires pourraient constituer une réponse appropriée au besoin criant de sources locales de recettes pour autant que les exigences du nouveau management public en termes d’efficience, d’efficacité et de qualité des services publics soient bien satisfaites. Nous avons centré notre recherche sur le cas des biens immobiliers des villes roumaines, afin de faire apparaître les problèmes de l’actuel système de gestion des biens immobiliers municipaux (BIM) par rapport à la fois aux conditions générales de la ville et aux caractéristiques du cadre institutionnel et organisationnel. Nous avons utilisé pour ce faire une enquête basée sur un questionnaire, suivie de tests statistiques non paramétriques, ce qui a confirmé l’hypothèse qui souligne l’importance de l’existence d’un plan BIM, d’une stratégie BIM et d’une unité BIM au niveau de la municipalité afin d’assurer une utilisation efficace de ces ressources. Nous avons par ailleurs formulé une série de solutions viables aux problèmes épinglés. Remarques à l’intention des praticiens Notre article souligne le rôle décisif de l’approche stratégique et des instruments correspondants de gestion efficace des biens immobiliers municipaux, et formule quelques recommandations intéressantes pour que l’immobilier municipal devienne une importante source de recettes pour les gouvernements municipaux. Nos observations découlent de celles obtenues dans le cadre du projet financé par l’UE intitulé « Municipal Property Management in South-East European Cities » (PROMISE) de l’université d’études économiques de Bucarest, l’un des treize partenaires participants. Sa contribution a été désignée par l’International Project Management Association parmi les cinq finalistes du concours international « Achievement Award », dans la catégorie Service communautaire/Projet de développement 2013.
Le client mystère : un outil au service de l’évaluation dans le secteur public ?
Authors: Jacob Steve , Schiffino Nathalie , Biard Benjamin
Published: April 2018

La technique du client mystère, à l’origine exclusivement employée dans le secteur privé, est de plus en plus utilisée dans le secteur public. Suite aux réformes de modernisation de l’État, les exercices de reddition de compte et de suivi de la performance se multiplient. Ceux-ci accordent une attention particulière à la qualité des services et à la satisfaction des usagers-clients. L’article apporte une double contribution sur ce thème : méthodologique et substantive. Premièrement, l’article réalise un scoping review de la littérature sur le client mystère. Cette recension permet de présenter la technique du client mystère et son utilisation dans le secteur public. Pour cette investigation bibliométrique, un échantillon de trente-quatre articles a été analysé. Deuxièmement, l’article offre une synthèse de ce que la recherche nous enseigne au sujet de la technique du client mystère, de ses potentialités et limites. Remarque à l’intention des praticiens Cet article décrit l’utilisation de la technique du client mystère dans le secteur. Les domaines pour lesquels des enquêtes mystères sont commanditées sont assez restreints puisqu’il s’agit essentiellement du secteur de la santé. Toutefois, le scoping review souligne l’importance que peut avoir une enquête mystère aux fins de l’évaluation. Ainsi, investiguer d’autres domaines se révèle très intéressant et prometteur pour les pouvoirs publics. Nous retenons également de cette revue de littérature que les défis recensés lors de l’évaluation à l’aide de clients mystères peuvent être surmontés.
Interdisciplinary Collaboration in Medication-Related Falls Prevention in Older Adults
Authors: Huang Lisa , Turner Jazmin , Brandt Nicole J.
Published: April 2018

The older adult population continues to steadily increase. Largely attributed to longer life spans and aging of the Baby Boomer generation, continued growth of this population is expected to affect a multitude of challenging public health concerns. Specifically, falls in older adults are prevalent but overlooked concerns. Health care providers are well-positioned to provide valuable interventions in this aspect. An interdisciplinary, team-based approach of health care providers is required to maximize falls prevention through patient-centered and collaborative care. The current article highlights the implications of inappropriate medication use and the need to improve care coordination to tackle this public health issue affecting older adults. [
Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 44
(4), 11–15.]
Preparing to Be Digital
Authors: Fry Katherine G.
Published: April 2018

Today most media messages are shaped by and circulate within the multi-faceted, always available, participatory communication space called the digital environment. This participatory, de-centralized space indicates a paradigm shift in media and communication, and therefore in the culture at large. In the new paradigm, comprehensive media ecology-infused media literacy is necessary not only in the disciplines of communication and media studies, but across higher education. One media department at a U.S. urban university is beginning to implement a comprehensive five-part model of activist media literacy education as it transitions from traditional media industry training to deeper media literacy-informed education. The five-part model engages core concepts from media ecology, critical cultural studies, and critical pedagogy, with a final goal of educating enlightened media practitioners interested in seeking social change. In the emerging media environment, messages, forms, and new ways of thinking and being ought to be the mandate of twenty-first century higher education.
Digital and Media Literacy in Teacher Education
Authors: Ranieri Maria , Bruni Isabella
Published: April 2018

Media and digital literacy are being increasingly recognized as a fundamental competence for teachers of the twenty-first century, but academic training of future teachers is still far from full implementation of this emerging need. This chapter aims to explore how media and digital literacy education can be integrated into teacher education courses through the presentation of the results of a program on digital storytelling implemented at the University of Florence (Italy) within the framework of the European project e-MEL (e-Media Education Lab, 2014-17). The overall learning process was monitored and evaluated ex-ante, ongoing, and ex-post. This chapter illustrates and discusses the main findings of the experimentation focusing on the effectiveness of the educational activities, the sustainability of training in a blended modality, students' participation and satisfaction, and the transferability of acquired skills. It concludes with some considerations about experience and more general reflections on future research directions.
Building Media Literacy in Higher Education
Authors: Butler Allison , Fuentes-Bautista Martha , Scharrer Erica
Published: April 2018

Through detailed discussion and review of the work done in media literacy in the Department of Communication at the University of Massachusetts, including curricular alignment, engaged scholarship, and a media literacy certificate, this chapter shares how faculty, students, and community partners work together to bring media literacy theory and practice to action. The Department of Communication places a high value on media literacy across its programs and curricula and this chapter describes the department's carefully structured approach to media literacy.
Feature Films as Pedagogy in Higher Education
Authors: Bali Aasita , Pinto Anil Joseph
Published: April 2018

Contemporary education system in India was initiated by the British for the maintenance of their imperial administration. After India became an independent country, conscious efforts were made to overhaul the educational system to produce proper administrators and contributors for Indian polity, economy and culture. To assess dynamics of Indian education, various committees and commissions were formed. It also meant change in education programs, curricula and syllabi to meet national needs and global challenges. Most universities in India have limited infrastructure, thus the role of private or deemed to be university becomes crucial. Christ University attending to the social structure, internationalization and employability demands, offers a number of quality educational programs to ensure employable graduates. This has led the way in devising pedagogy and curricula to align with the global higher education practices. Here we discuss the use of commercial feature film as a pedagogical tool in the classrooms within the Deanery of Humanities and Social Sciences and its implication.
Unlocking the Liberation Doctrine in Media Literacy and Higher Education
Authors: Cubbage Jayne
Published: April 2018

By considering some of the limits of the media literacy movement to date, such as lack of full implementation at colleges and universities and the virtual absence of awareness of media literacy and its concepts among the general population, this chapter provides an overview of the potential themes of liberation and emancipation as they relate to media literacy in higher education environments, and explores the pathways of liberation and education pedagogy by reframing the approach to teaching and learning in the context of critical education, the end of oppression and ultimately increased social justice. The exploration of the intersection of themes of liberation and media literacy, community education and reality pedagogy each play an important role in examining the ways that dominant narratives have factored into the lack of full absorption of media literacy today. This literary analysis seeks to provide suggestions for a pathway forward from the existing quandary.
Stochastic Methods in Microsystems Engineering
Authors: Stanciu Irina
Published: April 2018

The main objective of this chapter is to present a stochastic modeling and simulation methodology for estimating the variation of functional parameters of MEMS devices as a result of fabrication tolerances. The approach used for achieving this objective is to implement in the simulation process the variations of the geometrical parameters caused by the fabrication dispersion as random variables and to model the influence of these variations on the performance of the simulated device. The proposed method is demonstrated using two test structures: a micro-com resonator and a passive micromixer. In each example there are underlined important characteristics of the proposed simulation method: the ability to predict variation ranges of functional parameters, the ability to improve the design in function of the fabrication process, and the possibility of obtaining more precise results than the traditional deterministic methods.
Utilization of Social Networks for Human Resources Purposes
Authors: Haghshenas Maryam , Sadeghzadeh Abouzar
Published: April 2018

Social media is revolutionizing the way people connect and share information. LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and other social media are changing the way we interact, and many organizations are struggling to respond. Given the potential risks and benefits of social media in the workplace, it is critical for managers to develop policies and procedures governing its appropriate use. This chapter identifies key issues and poses strategic questions to help guide managers in making more informed decisions when navigating social media issues in their organizations. After a brief introduction, current most popular social websites and tools are described concisely. Relationships between social media and human resources are then discussed. Utilizing social media in organizations are not without risks, which are thoroughly talked about further along with the benefits of such websites for recruitment. Finally, recommendations are made for companies that are considering utilizing social media and for companies that have already benefitted from such networks to improve their strategies.
One Post and Two Responses
Authors: Alcorn Allison A.
Published: April 2018

This chapter considers the online discussion forum in music education. It begins with an overview of factors leading to faculty frustration with online discussions before considering how discussions fit within the context of several prominent learning theories, including Connectivism and Collaborativism, which specifically address the online platform. Particular challenges are explored and include post lengths, quality, language/style, group size, heated discussion, and faculty involvement in the ongoing conversation. The chapter concludes by offering a “toolbox” of best practice ideas in online discussion. Through use of examples, the section seeks to help faculty move beyond the tried and tired format of one post and two responses.
Sharing Our Narratives on Developing Our Practice in Online Music Pedagogy
Authors: Johnson Carol , Lamothe Virginia Christy , Narita Flávia Motoyama , Clark Imogen N. , Mulholland Joseph E. , Meyers Nicholaus
Published: April 2018

This chapter begins with an introduction focused on the importance of instructor's reflection on his/her teaching practices and pedagogy through the theoretical lens of Schön's work on reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action. Five case narratives are presented that highlight instructors at different entry points into their experiences of teaching music online. The narratives outline significant learning processes that took place as instructors continued on their journey in teaching music online. The implications raised from the narratives identify the need for effective online learning systems for music, institutional support for instructors teaching music online, and a need for online music instructors to have resilience and adaptability when teaching music online. Additionally, the various contexts of teaching music online signals a need for future research in the areas of: active learning for online music courses, appropriate technology tools available with a LMS, and collaborative online music tasks for effective student learning outcomes.
Personalizing Educational Development for Online Music Educators
Authors: Lock Jennifer V.
Published: April 2018

With the growing trend of online music education, how can educational development be more personalized to meet the individual instructor's pedagogical and technological needs? Coaching provides a means to empower online music education instructors to guide their own learning through purposeful and intentional conversations. From a review of the literature, the purpose of this chapter is to examine how and why coaching can be used in fostering robust educational and professional development practices for online music education. Forms of coaching along with elements of a successful coaching program are shared in support of online music education. The chapter concludes with four recommendations to guide coaching practice in support of personalizing learning for instructors and directions for future research.
Teacher Skills in Early Years Education
Authors: Viejo Carmen , Zych Izabela , Llorent Vicente
Published: April 2018

Early years education was found to be a key period for children's development. Children enter the school setting for the first time and are eager to learn as much as possible. At the same time, teachers need to address this demand that, increasingly, exceeds the purely academic boundaries and moves towards the child's holistic development. Therefore, besides academic skills, teachers should also include in their educational practice competencies for prosocial interpersonal relationships and skills to manage social and emotional aspects of life. This should be done without forgetting the academic aspects required in the curriculum. Moreover, all these contents, teaching methodologies, and principles should be adjusted according to children's age and motivation. Thus, skills to design, plan, implement, and evaluate an appropriate curriculum, manage convivencia, and create context and promote children's play are the three key elements of teacher training in early years education.
Early Teacher Training Across European Countries
Authors: Almedina Ma Isabel Amor , Rodríguez Rocío Serrano
Published: April 2018

This chapter presents the evolution of Early Childhood Education in Spain from different educational laws. The progression of these is confirmed as a stage of custody and care until its consideration as an educational stage, which has their owns signs of identity and even a curriculum. Likewise, it is shown that the learning of other languages and the development of technological competences has made Pre-School Education an effective tool for linguistic and cultural diversity. This matter is caused by the social and political changes, which have had a great influence on education. Research and experience confirm that Early Childhood Education is a substantial stage in support of the integral development of children at these ages, in which their benefits are extrapolated and remain over a lifetime.
Children's Play and Development
Authors: Viejo Carmen , Ortega-Ruiz Rosario , Romera Eva M.
Published: April 2018

Play expresses that human beings use activity as the most natural and adaptive way to be in the world. However, children's play had not been a subject of study and theoretical reflection until the beginning of the last century. Fortunately, the spread of developmental and educational psychology has been little by little sensitive to this extraordinary and original activity and the observation, study, and analysis of play have advanced a lot; the scientific development on play advances through the creation of very interesting theories based on the psychodevelopmental nature of play. In addition, in the last decades, an important number of authors stand up for a critical look at the general interpretation according to which children's play is just an enjoyable and relaxing activity: an activity of interest, per se, that plays an essential role in children's cognitive development and creative thinking. Both interpretations are considered in this chapter.
Play and Learning in Early Childhood Education
Authors: Lino Dalila Maria , Parente Cristina
Published: April 2018

The key role of toys and play in early years education has been highlighted by several childhood pedagogues such as Froebel, Montessori, Weikart, and Malaguzzi, among many others. It is consensual among the international educational community that children now spend far more time being instructed and tested in literacy and math than they do learning through play and exploration exercising their bodies and using their imagination. This chapter aims to reflect on the power of play for children's learning and development and to analyze how three pedagogical models—the High Scope, Reggio Emilia, and Montessori—integrate play through their curriculum development. The chapter is organized in several topics, namely (1) the role of play in early childhood education (0 to 6 years); (2) the High Scope curriculum and opportunities given to children to engage in free play and play with purposes; (3) the Reggio Emilia approach: play through 100 languages; (4) the Montessori method, from hands-on activity and self-directed activity to collaborative play; (5) final remarks.
Early Childhood Play With Reclaimed Resources
Authors: Wright Hazel R. , Luff Paulette , Emre Cahide Sevgi
Published: April 2018

Sustainable play practices offer many benefits to young children, developmental and cultural, and these are examined in an English context. The authors claim a shared European heritage for children's play practices; one that has been eroded with the commodification of play materials, the manufacture of commercial toys and games accessible only to the wealthy child. After demonstrating the value of education for sustainable development, the chapter considers how reclaimed resources can be used to promote this end. It discusses a small-scale research project that visited four English early years settings to see whether and how the staff followed sustainable principles. It was found that the approaches of the four settings varied considerably, using resources that spanned the spectrum from commercial to natural, and concluded that more should/could be done to encourage play with reclaimed materials to set children on the path to greater environmental awareness and intercultural harmony.
Trends and Challenges in Enzymatic Bioengineering of Natural Products to Industrially Valuable Products
Authors: Sinha Sujata
Published: April 2018

Bioengineering of natural products to useful products are trending rapidly. These products are cost effective and eco-friendly and fitting into consumer demands of natural and organic. Wastes from industries, agriculture, fishery, dairy, etc. are being investigated for transformation to useful biomolecules for other industries like cosmetics, food supplements/preservation, dairy, etc. Biocatalytic transformation looks promising in the present scenario, but needs intensive research looking for novel enzymes/process and their optimization. Immobilization and scale up is also required for taking this process up to industrial level. Process improvement and downstream processing research for product purification is going on. Some of the areas which look promising are metagenomic screening of novel biocatalysts, gene cloning for overexpression and purification, etc. Bioreactor designing for scale up and simultaneous production and purification of desirable products are also being emphasised. Exploring biological activities after enzymatic reaction is one of the main areas of research nowadays.
Open Educational Resources for Higher Education
Authors: Choi Jessie
Published: April 2018

This chapter offers insights into, the benefits, and the problems behind the use of MOOC courses in the higher education arena. For the last two decades, the education world has been obsessed with the use of technology, particularly with respect to course development and delivery, which has changed the way courses are created and taught. In addition, higher education institutions are now open to knowledge sharing and the role open online programs can play in the new ecosystem is worth looking at. The emergence of open online programs strengthens innovation as co-creation, co-operation, and joint ventures among institutions are now made possible. Nevertheless, more and more research is beginning to highlight the concerns of the development of free open courses. In some cases, such developments are seen as a growth, but in other cases, a threat. This chapter analyses the current situation and suggests ways to better utilize the development.
Saving Democracy
Authors: Niewiadomski Robert , Anderson Dennis
Published: April 2018

The recent rise of populism around the world, often accompanied by nationalism and isolationism, is a trend that presents a serious threat not only to liberal democracies but also to global peace and security. Populist forces have already shown their influence through the British referendum on membership withdrawal from the European Union and the election of Donald J. Trump as the U.S. President in 2016. These two events alone had ripple effects and were felt by the international community. The causes of populism are being currently revisited. It appears that socioeconomic and cultural aspects are key contributors. Even though the persistent existence of populist elements within societies comes from the very core of the democratic experiment, the current trend in social media technologies allowed demagogues to utilize viral deception on a considerable scale. The authors argue that social media technologies could be employed through e-participation to inhibit populism by bolstering civic empowerment, transparency, progressive inclusiveness, fact-based analysis, and informed decision making.
Boosting E-Participation
Authors: Valle-Cruz David , Sandoval-Almazan Rodrigo
Published: April 2018

In this chapter, the authors show two case studies of the use of social media in municipal governments: Lerma, a small municipality with a significant growth, and Metepec, an important municipality of the State of México. The purpose of this chapter is to provide empirical evidence of how social media improves government to citizen relationship and promotes e-participation in municipal governments. The results are based on semi-structured interviews applied to public servants and a survey to evaluate e-government services by citizens. So, the citizen perception is contrasted with public servants' interviews. Citizens consider that electronic procedures and services implemented by their municipalities do not generate value. The efforts of governments should focus on avoiding corruption, making governments transparent, opening data, and properly managing the privacy of information.
Values and Purposes in Digital Pedagogies
Authors: Vivitsou Marianna
Published: April 2018

This chapter aims to use metaphor analysis in order to discuss and analyze the patterns resulting from Finnish and Greek language and science teachers' (N= 8) interviews on how they integrate digital technologies into classroom practices. To this end, the author performs a meta-analysis of findings from two previous studies on teacher's metaphorical thinking. This is done through the theoretical lens of two cognitive science related theories (conceptual metaphor and conceptual integration or blending theory) and a theory originating from philosophy of language (semantic theory of metaphor). To meet the ends of the study, the author examined the input sources that inform the teachers' thinking in order to extract single-scope and double-scope networks of metaphors. In this way, we can see what values and purposes emerge out of the teachers' choices when digital pedagogies are introduced into the classroom practice.
Still Forgotten Teachers in K-12 Online Learning
Authors: Barbour Michael K. , Adelstein David , Morrison Jonathan
Published: April 2018

Like many K-12 online learning programs, the Illinois Virtual High School (IVHS) began by utilizing vendor content to populate its online courses. In its fourth year, the IVHS began a concerted effort to design more of its own online course content internally. The aim of this chapter was to examine the support needed and application of tools used by IVHS course developers. The data consisted of a two-part, web-based survey and telephone interviews that were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inductive analysis. The results showed these developers had a strong desire to use interactive elements in their course as well as working in cooperative teams. Further, developers were opposed to using a forced template, but indicated a need for general structural guidance and additional professional development. Finally, developers recommended that subject matter teacher-developers and multimedia specialists be split into two separate roles, and these individuals work together as a part of a team. Further research should be conducted on the intended use of technology tools requested.
The Politics of E-Learning
Authors: Raisinghani Mahesh S. , Livermore Celia Romm , Rippa Pierluigi
Published: April 2018

The goal of this chapter was to study the political strategies utilized in the context of e-learning. The research is based on the e-learning political strategies (ELPoS) model. The model is based on two dimensions: (1) the direction of the political strategy (upward or downward) and (2) the scope of the political strategy (individual or group based). The model assumes that the interaction between these dimensions will define four different types of e-learning political strategies, which, in turn, will lead to different outcomes. The model is presented in the context of the literature on e-learning and is accompanied with four short case studies that demonstrate its political strategies. The discussion and conclusions section integrates the findings from the case studies and outlines the rules that govern the utilization of political e-learning strategies in different organizational contexts.
Fostering EFL Learners' Reading Comprehension Through a Web-Based Cumulative Sentence Analysis (CSA) System
Authors: Tsai Yea-Ru
Published: April 2018

In this chapter, the author investigated the effects of a web-based cumulative sentence analysis (CSA) instruction on university engineering students' English reading comprehension. The results of two empirical studies were presented. The findings showed that the experimental group achieved a higher level of reading comprehension performance following the instruction. Inter-group comparison also revealed that the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group in the post-test, while no difference was found between these groups in the pre-test. The questionnaire showed the majority of the students have perceived positive learning outcome in reading comprehension after the CSA instruction. The positive correlation between the post-test and online CSA test indicates that learners' syntactic analysis ability can benefit their reading comprehension. By presenting the instructional framework, this study has contributed to the empirical research concerning the effect of syntactic competence on English as a foreign language (EFL) reading comprehension.