nils-herrmann/clean_scirepeval huggingface dataset:
Challenges of Implementing a Top-down Curriculum Innovation in English Language Teaching: Perspectives of Form III English Language Teachers in Kenya

This study investigated the challenges Form III English language teachers face when implementing the revised integrated English language curriculum. A mixed-method descriptive design was used in Eldoret East Sub-County in Kenya. Data was collected through questionnaires, interviews and reflective conversations. Cluster, purposive and random sampling were used to identify 50 study participants. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics while qualitative analysis involved transcriptions of interviews and filed notes which were coded, categorized and patterns and themes identified. The study established that lack of appropriate Teacher Professional Development (TPD), content overload and complexity, non-suitable learner characteristics, inadequate directions in course books on integration and inappropriate pre-service training affected curriculum implementation efforts. The study recommends involvement of teachers in the development of curriculum innovations, organized Continuous TPD, development of materials that support teachers in their implementation and review of assessment procedures.

Field of study: Education
Pierre de Ronsard's Odes and the Law of Poetic Space

T HE Odes of 1550 and 1552 reveal Pierre de Ronsard's ambition to gain entry into the court of Henri II. In the 1550 preface to the Odes, Ronsard does not make the slightest effort to veil his literary and political objectives. He presents his Odes as a poetic challenge to Clement Marot's psalm translations of 1541 and 1543 with the discovery of an equally ancient lyric source, pagan rather than Hebraic, and he mounts an ad hominem attack on the court poet Mellin de Saint-Gelais in order to win Henri's favor. The poetry, however, places in evidence other preoccupations. The Odes describe and problematize the endless wanderings of a poetic subject who seeks to uncover the secrets not only of the ancient world but of the modern one as well.

Field of study: History
Structure of an archaeal homologue of the bacterial Fmu/RsmB/RrmB rRNA cytosine 5-methyltransferase.

One of the modified nucleosides that frequently occurs in rRNAs and tRNAs is 5-methylcytidine (m⁵C). Escherichia coli Fmu/RsmB/RrmB is an S-adenosyl-L-methionine (AdoMet)-dependent methyltransferase that forms m⁵C967 in 16S rRNA. Fmu/RsmB/RrmB homologues exist not only in bacteria but also in archaea and eukarya and constitute a large orthologous group in the RNA:m⁵C methyltransferase family. In the present study, the crystal structure of a homologue of E. coli Fmu/RsmB/RrmB from the archaeon Pyrococcus horikoshii (PH0851) complexed with an AdoMet analogue was determined at 2.55 Å resolution. The structure and sequence of the C-terminal catalytic domain are highly conserved compared with those of E. coli Fmu/RsmB/RrmB. In contrast, the sequence of the N-terminal domain is negligibly conserved between the bacterial and archaeal subfamilies. Nevertheless, the N-terminal domains of PH0851 and E. coli Fmu/RsmB/RrmB are both α-helical and adopt a similar topology. Next to the AdoMet-binding site, a positively charged cleft is formed between the N- and C-terminal domains. This cleft is conserved in the archaeal PH0851 homologues and seems to be suitable for binding the RNA substrate.

Field of study: Chemistry
Humidity effects on the detection of soluble and insoluble nanoparticles in butanol operated condensation particle counters

In this study the impact of humidity on heterogeneous nucleation of n -butanol onto hygroscopic and nonabsorbent charged and neutral particles was investigated using a fast expansion chamber and commercial continuous flow type condensation particle counters (CPCs). More specifically, we measured the activation probability of sodium chloride (NaCl) and silver (Ag) nanoparticles by using n -butanol as condensing liquid with the size analyzing nuclei counter (SANC). In addition, the cutoff diameters of regular butanol-based CPCs for both seed materials under different charging states were measured and compared to SANC results. Our findings reveal a strong humidity dependence of NaCl particles in the sub-10 nm size range since the activation of sodium chloride seeds is enhanced with increasing relative humidity. In addition, negatively charged NaCl particles with a diameter below 3.5 nm reveal a charge-enhanced activation. For Ag seeds this humidity and charge dependence was not observed, underlining the importance of molecular interactions between seed and vapor molecules. Consequently, the cutoff diameter of a butanol-based CPC can be reduced significantly by increasing the relative humidity. This finding suggests that cutoff diameters of butanol CPCs under ambient conditions are likely smaller than corresponding cutoff diameters measured under clean (dry) laboratory conditions. At the same time, we caution that the humidity dependence may lead to wrong interpretations if the aerosol composition is not known.

Field of study: Environmental science
The Ontario Public Does Not Understand the Difference Between Registered Dietitians and Unregulated “Nutritionists”: Results from a Cross-Sectional Mixed Methods Study

Current Ontario healthcare policy permits anyone to use the title “nutritionist” and practice as a clinician regardless of education and training. The title “dietitian,” on the other hand, is protected under the Dietetics Act (1991) for use exclusively by individuals who undergo rigorous education and training in evidence-based nutrition.  The objectives of this study were to: identify whether the Ontario general public understands the difference between a registered dietitian (RD) and an unregulated “nutritionist;” understand experiences with RDs and “nutritionists;” and determine if the current nutrition landscape arising from gaps in healthcare policy has the potential to harm the public.  A cross-sectional mixed methods survey study was carried out using inductive content analysis, descriptive statistics and chi-square tests.  Respondents (n = 402) did not understand the difference between RDs and “nutritionists.” Overall, public experiences have been significantly more positive when nutrition information/advice stemmed from an RD.  This study provides justification for proposed legislative amendments to the Dietetics Act (1991) and the Regulated Health Professions Act (1991). These proposed amendments have been detailed in the full-text manuscript.

Field of study: Medicine, Political science
Methods and resources for climate impacts research achieving synergy

The prediction of climate variability and change requires the use of a range of simulation models. Multiple climate model simulations are needed to sample the inherent uncertainties in seasonal to centennial prediction. Because climate models are computationally expensive, there is a tradeoff between complexity, spatial resolution, simulation length, and ensemble size. The methods used to assess climate impacts are examined in the context of this trade-off. An emphasis on complexity allows simulation of coupled mechanisms, such as the carbon cycle and feedbacks between agricultural land management and climate. In addition to improving skill, greater spatial resolution increases relevance to regional planning. Greater ensemble size improves the sampling of probabilities. Research from major international projects is used to show the importance of synergistic research efforts. The primary climate impact examined is crop yield, although many of the issues discussed are relevant to hydrology and heal...

Field of study: Environmental science
Über den Wahrscheinlichkeitsfluß in der Diracschen Erweiterung der Wellenmechanik

ZusammenfassungDer Wahrscheinlichkeitsfluß scheint in mancher Hinsicht einen Ersatz zu bieten für die in der Wellenmechanik verlorengegangenen Begriffe der Geschwindigkeit und der Bahn der Korpuskeln. — In § 1 werden diese Begriffe für die ebenen Materiewellen (homogene Elektronenstrahlen) eingeführt. Es ist naheliegend, statt der Korpuskelbahnen die Feldlinien des Vektors des Wahrscheinlichkeitsflusses zu benutzen und als Fluggeschwindigkeit das Verhältnis des Betrages des Flußvektors zum Betrag der Wahrscheinlichkeitsdichte zu betrachten; dies führt, auch in der relativistischen Fassung, streng zum de Broglieschen Zusammenhang zwischen der Wellenlänge der Materie welle und dem Impuls der Korpuskeln. — In § 2 wird der Wahrscheinlichkeitsfluß innerhalb der skalaren oder der zweikomponentigen Wellenmechanik eingeführt; da die relativistische Rechnung viel zu kompliziert ist, ist der Grenzübergang zur unendlichen Lichtgeschwindigkeit nützlich. In § 3 wird dann ein Versuch gemacht, mit Hilfe dieser so eingeführten Begriffe die magnetische Ablenkung der Kathodenstrahlen (homogene Elektronenstrahlen) wellenmechanisch zu deuten. Es gelingt die strenge Lösung des Problems anzugeben. Es ergeben sich die Kreisbahnen und die mechanische Bewegungsgleichung. — In § 4 werden Feldlinien des Wahrscheinlichkeitsflusses („Bahnen“) und die Fluggeschwindigkeit im Grundzustand des Wasserstoffatoms und des zweidimensionalen Oszillators untersucht. Für Wasserstoff erhält man Kreise, wobei die Flußgeschwindigkeit gleich der Elektronengeschwindigkeit auf dem ersten Bohrschen Kreis ist.

Field of study: Physics
The Effectiveness of a Proposed Project-Based Program for Teaching Oral Skills to Tenth Grade EFL Students In Jordan and Their Attitudes Towards These Skills

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to investigate the effect of a proposed Project-Based Program on improving the oral performance skills of tenth grade EFL students in Jordan and on their attitudes towards these oral skills. Throughout her experience as a teacher and a supervisor, the researcher noticed that many students find it difficult to communicate orally in English. Even when they were to speak, they look worried, hesitant, and disorganized. The researcher proposed that this could be due to the teaching strategies used, the types of feedback students receive, the types of speaking activities in textbooks, or lack of opportunities to communicate orally. This study may derive its significance from the attempts to highlight the characteristics of Project –Based Program for teaching oral skills of Jordanian schools since these are normally ignored or least attended to by many teachers. The subjects of the study were 80 tenth grade female students who were chosen randomly from Um Nowareh Secondary Public School in Amman during the academic year 2013-2014. Three instruments were used to collect data for the study: An oral performance test (debate), an oral attitudes survey, and a rating scale. To answer those questions, the adjusted mean scores and standard errors were calculated. Multiviriate Analysis of Coveriance (MANCOVA) was also used  to find out if the differrences in the mean scores were statistically significant or not. The results of the study showed that there were statistically significant differences (?= 0.05) in tenth geade EFL students' mean scores with regard to their oral performance and to  their attitudes towards oral skills in English. Those differences were in favor of the students who were taught using project based learning.On the other hand , the results of the study showed that there were no statistically significant differences (?= 0.05) in the oral performance mean scores or attitudes mean scores that can be attributed to the interaction between project-based learning and students’ general level of English(good , avarage, poor ) except with students’ preferences and their total attitudes toward learning and teachng oral skills.Inlight of the results of the study , the researcher recommendes that  more research be conducted to examine the effect of project based learning on developing the non-verbal skills of EFL students at different grade levels. Training workshops for supervisors and teachers are highly recommeded to equip them with the knoweldge and practice needed to apply project-based learning in the oral skills classes. English language curricula planner are also advised to incorporate more project activities into the curriculm.  Project-Based Program (PBP), Conventional method, Oral skills, Oral performance, Oral Performance scale, Attitude, Students' general level of English (GPA) .

Field of study: Education
Hilfer-Prabhakar derivatives and some applications

We present a generalization of Hilfer derivatives in which Riemann–Liouville integrals are replaced by more general Prabhakar integrals. We analyze and discuss its properties. Furthermore, we show some applications of these generalized Hilfer–Prabhakar derivatives in classical equations of mathematical physics such as the heat and the free electron laser equations, and in difference–differential equations governing the dynamics of generalized renewal stochastic processes.

Field of study: Mathematics
CRYSTALLINE ROCKS OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

The crystalline rocks which occupy most of the 40,000 square miles of southern California range in age from Early pre-Cambrian to Quaternary. They include metasediments, plutonics, migmatites, complexes, volcanics, metavolcanics, and dikes. Principal attention is given to the kinds, ages, origin, emplacement, distribution, and correlation of the widespread crystalline rocks. Thirty large areas, representing all important parts of southern California, have been chosen for special study and description. The writer has carried on field work in all these areas, has published papers on eight of them, and describes five of them here for the first time. Ten of the areas have been in part published upon by other workers, and in part reported on by the writer here for the first time. Seven of the areas have been more or less fully published upon by others. The work of others is critically reviewed, and various changes have been made in the light of field and laboratory work by the writer. A chart, representing a more or less preliminary correlation of the principal crystalline rock units of the 30 areas, accompanies the paper. Correlational problems are discussed at length. The occurrence of fossils in various metasedimentary formations has greatly aided in the age determination of associated igneous rocks. Another chart shows 29 chemical analyses of carefully selected igneous rocks, and their calculated modes and norms. Petrographic descriptions of these rocks are given.

Field of study: Geology
A Pattern Analysis of Using Self-Organizing-Maps in a Unspoken Vowel Recognition System Based on Surface Electromyogram

In this paper, we present some results of analysis on surface electromyogram (SEMG) using Self–Organizing–Maps (SOM) algorithm, which is one of neural networks algorithm, for unspoken vowel recognition system. Speech is the most natural way of communication with humans. However, the normal audible speech can not be used by speech handicapped people, for example laryngectomy surgeries or resection of vocal cords. In addition, audible speech can be extremely disturbing to others, for example in libraries, theaters, during meetings and so on. To overcome the limitation, unvoiced communication, which recognizes and synthesize speech by measured of SEMG from a face, has been investigated. Figure 1 shows the proposed unspoken vowel recognition system based on SEMG. Three pairs of Ag-AgCl electrodes were placed on a face and SEMG signals from Orbicularis oris muscle (CH1), Temporal fascia (CH2), and Sternohyoid muscle (CH3) were recorded by one frame was 510ms at the sampling rate of 1kHz. Figure 2 shows examples of SEMG signals of each channel during speaking Japanese vowels from /a/ to /o/. The moving RMS value of the each recorded signal was calculated using moving window of 50 samples over the whole signal. Therefore, max value of 10 coefficients were extracted

Field of study: Computer science
Stability of Trionic States in Zigzag Carbon Nanotubes

The stability of trionic excitations in zigzag carbon nanotubes has been estimated. A trion is shown to be unstable with respect to the ground excitonic state and stable with respect to the excited one. So, trions in nanotubes of this type can be formed by capturing an electron or a hole by an excited exciton. In other words, the trion in a nanotube is an excimer complex, which results in the formation of a system with three energy levels (unexcited exciton– trion–excited exciton).

Field of study: Physics
Enumeration and identification of dominant types of sulfate-reducing bacteria in pulp from a paper-recycling plant: a multiphasic approach.

Multiple independent approaches were applied for monitoring the abundance and identity of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) in pulp of a paper-recycling plant suffering from excessive sulfide emission. The methods applied included most-probable-number (MPN) enumeration of cultivable SRB, rate measurements, FISH and PCR-based retrieval of the functional marker genes dsrA and B (encoding the two major subunits of dissimilatory bisulfite reductase) and 16S rRNA genes. The SRB community was composed of phylogenetically highly different lineages all of low abundance relative to the total microbial community in the pulp, which hampered the applicability of FISH. It was also demonstrated that dsrA- or B-targeted PCR primers commonly used for denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis and real-time PCR analyses were biased. However, using a novel approach combining MPN-PCR and terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of dsrAB amplicons generated from serially diluted DNA extracts allowed the enumeration and identification of the quantitatively most important members of the SRB community. For fast quantification of SRB in the pulp, the dsrAB-MPN-PCR assay and sulfate reduction rate measurements were found to be most suitable.

Field of study: Biology, Environmental science
Spatial reference memory and neocortical neurochemistry vary with the estrous cycle in C57BL/6 mice.

Estrous cycle-related variations of spatial reference memory and neurochemistry in intact female mice were examined. Spatial reference memory was tested in cycling females, ovariectomized (OVX) females, and males by using a 1-day water maze protocol. Choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) activities were measured in the hippocampus and neocortex. Estrus females exhibited worse spatial acquisition and 30-min retention than did proestrus and metestrus females, higher neocortical ChAT activity than proestrus females, and higher neocortical GAD activity than OVX females and males. Neocortical, rather than hippocampal, neurochemistry was more sensitive to hormonal modulation, suggesting that hormonal mediation of neocortical function may play a critical role in regulating spatial reference memory in female mice.

Field of study: Biology, Psychology
A Qualitative Analysis of Common Concerns about Challenges Facing Pharmacy Experiential Education Programs

To qualitatively analyze free-text responses gathered as part of a previously published survey in order to systematically identify common concerns facing pharmacy experiential education (EE) programs.  In 2011, EE directors at all 118 accredited pharmacy schools in the US were asked in a survey to describe the most pressing issues facing their programs. Investigators performed qualitative, thematic analysis of responses and compared results against demographic data (institution type, class size, number of practice sites, number and type of EE faculty member/staff). Expert and novice investigators identified common themes via an iterative process. To check validity, additional expert and novice reviewers independently coded responses. The Cohen kappa coefficient was calculated and showed good agreement between investigators and reviewers.  Seventy-eight responses were received (66% response rate) representing 75% of publicly funded institutions and 71% of schools with class sizes 51-150. Themes identified as common concerns were site capacity, workload/financial support, quality assurance, preceptor development, preceptor stipends, assessment, onboarding, and support/recognition from administration. Good agreement (mean percent agreement 93%, ƙ range=0.59-0.92) was found between investigators and reviewers.  Site capacity for student placements continues to be the foremost concern for many experiential education programs. New concerns about preceptor development and procedures for placing and orienting students at individual practice sites (ie, “onboarding”) have emerged and must be addressed as new accreditation standards are implemented.

Field of study: Education, Medicine
The Press and Brazilian Narratives of Uncle Tom's Cabin: Slavery and the Public Sphere in Rio de Janeiro, ca. 1855

In March 1855, a literary newspaper in Rio de Janeiro printed the first installment of Nísia Floresta's “Páginas de uma vida obscura,” a serialized short story inspired by Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852). Seven more chapters followed, keeping “Páginas” in the public eye for months. The Jornal do Commercio, arguably the national paper of record, mentioned the story in its announcements. Floresta (pseudonym of Dionísia Gonçalves Pinto, 1810–1885) centered her storyline on the Congo-born Domingos, the “Brazilian Tom,” who exemplified the attributes of Christian virtuosity and resignation found in Stowe's internationally famous novel. Set in the nineteenth century, “Páginas” begins with the ten-year-old Domingos's enslavement on the African coast, and highlights the human devastation of the internal slave trade through his movements across Minas Gerais and on to Porto Alegre and Rio de Janeiro. It ends with Domingos's death, at age 54, grief-stricken over his son's recent passing. In part, Floresta's “Páginas” emerged from the Brazilian schoolteacher's longstanding critiques of patriarchy, nation, and education. Twenty years earlier, Floresta had drawn from Mary Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Woman to write Direito das mulheres e injustiça dos homens (1832), a book that went through three editions in its first decade. More directly though, Floresta had connected to the so-called “Tom mania” while living in Paris in 1852. The following year, back in Rio, she wrote a pamphlet on women's education—Opúsculo humanitário (1853)—that parsed key aspects of Uncle Tom's Cabin, among a larger discussion of women's achievements internationally. Two Rio newspapers excerpted the pamphlet, and, boldly, published the chapters focused on Uncle Tom. This attention in the press raised the profile of a book the public already knew to be controversial, as newspapers had earlier carried reports of port authorities seizing shipments of Uncle Tom's Cabin in Rio, Salvador, and Fortaleza. In writing “Páginas,” then, two years after the Opúsculo, Floresta not only carried forward her literary dialogue with Stowe, but also posed the work as a challenge to the status quo. “Páginas” was necessary, she explained, because “slavery is not an issue of concern in the press.” If overstated, given that the topic of slavery was quite prevalent in public discourse, Floresta's assertion nonetheless signals an opportunity for scholars to probe further into the relationship between slavery and the public sphere in the mid nineteenth century. More specifically, it suggests connections to be explored between the press and the early reception of Uncle Tom's Cabin in Brazil, and, more broadly, connections between the representations of slavery in the press, and the institution's enduring legitimacy.

Field of study: History