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Sample records for lymphopoiesis comprehensive progress

  1. Modulation of lymphopoiesis. Comprehensive progress report, January 1, 1991--July 30, 1991

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rosse, C.

    1991-12-31

    During the current project period we have demonstrated correspondence between animal models and in vitro models of modulated lymphopoiesis. Our finding that G-CSF, a growth factor for neutrophil granulocytes, suppresses lymphopoiesis in long term bone marrow cultures (LTBMC) has important implications both for understanding the regulatory mechanisms of hemopoiesis and for clinical use of recombinant growth factors that are beginning to be widely used for the treatment of a variety of diseases. During the present project period we adopted LTBMC systems developed by others for the purposes of our specific aims. Also we developed a novel long term culture system for NK cells. The discovery of a new growth factor, O-CSF, specific for osteoclasts and the establishment of a clonal assay system that provides evidence for a new class of hemopoietic progenitor cells, the osteoclast progenitor, are important contributions. Given the important role T cells play in the immune response and in the regulation of other lymphohemopoietic cell lineages through the lymphokines they secrete, the need for an in vitro system that lends itself to the analysis of T cell maturation and to the testing of factors that may adversely affect T lymphopoiesis cannot be overemphasized. We believe that we can exploit an advantageous set of circumstances that present an excellent opportunity for initiating a focused experimental program for developing such a system. By a systematic and selective analysis of molecular interactions between heterogenous thymic stromal cells and T cell progenitors at different stages of maturation, it will be possible for our program to define the complement of critical cellular interactions on which successive stages of T lymphopoiesis depend. The experiments we propose will lay a rational foundation for the development of a long term culture system for T lymphopoiesis. 24 refs., 7 figs.

  2. Modulation of lymphopoiesis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rosse, C.

    1991-01-01

    During the current project period we have demonstrated correspondence between animal models and in vitro models of modulated lymphopoiesis. Our finding that G-CSF, a growth factor for neutrophil granulocytes, suppresses lymphopoiesis in long term bone marrow cultures (LTBMC) has important implications both for understanding the regulatory mechanisms of hemopoiesis and for clinical use of recombinant growth factors that are beginning to be widely used for the treatment of a variety of diseases. During the present project period we adopted LTBMC systems developed by others for the purposes of our specific aims. Also we developed a novel long term culture system for NK cells. The discovery of a new growth factor, O-CSF, specific for osteoclasts and the establishment of a clonal assay system that provides evidence for a new class of hemopoietic progenitor cells, the osteoclast progenitor, are important contributions. Given the important role T cells play in the immune response and in the regulation of other lymphohemopoietic cell lineages through the lymphokines they secrete, the need for an in vitro system that lends itself to the analysis of T cell maturation and to the testing of factors that may adversely affect T lymphopoiesis cannot be overemphasized. We believe that we can exploit an advantageous set of circumstances that present an excellent opportunity for initiating a focused experimental program for developing such a system. By a systematic and selective analysis of molecular interactions between heterogenous thymic stromal cells and T cell progenitors at different stages of maturation, it will be possible for our program to define the complement of critical cellular interactions on which successive stages of T lymphopoiesis depend. The experiments we propose will lay a rational foundation for the development of a long term culture system for T lymphopoiesis. 24 refs., 7 figs.

  3. An experimental and mathematical analysis of lymphopoiesis dynamics under continuous irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zukhbaya, T.M.; Smirnova, O.A.

    1991-01-01

    A mathematical model describing the dynamics of lymphopoiesis in mammals continuously exposed to ionizing radiation has been developed. It is based on the theory of chalone regulation of hematopoiesis. The model comprises a system of nine differential equations. Results from the model were compared with our experimental data for bone marrow and blood lymphocytes of rats continuously exposed to gamma radiation in a wide range of dose rates. The model reproduces the lymphopoiesis dynamics that we observed in our experiment, in particular, the radiation hormesis at low dose rates, the reduction of lymphopoiesis at intermediate dose rates, and extinction of lymphopoiesis at high dose rates of continuous radiation. The possible explanation of the hormesis is suggested by the framework of the model. The model can be used for predicting the lymphopoiesis dynamics in mammals under continuous irradiation

  4. Extrathymic T Cell Lymphopoiesis

    OpenAIRE

    Guy-Grand, Delphine; Azogui, Orly; Celli, Susanna; Darche, Sylvie; Nussenzweig, Michel C.; Kourilsky, Philippe; Vassalli, Pierre

    2003-01-01

    In the absence of thymopoiesis, T lymphocytes are nevertheless present, mainly in the gut epithelium. Ontogeny of the extrathymic pathway and the extent of its involvement in euthymic mice are controversial. These questions have been addressed by assessing the expression of recombinase activating gene (RAG) through the use of green fluorescent protein RAG2 transgenic mouse models. In athymic mice, T lymphopoiesis occurs mainly in the mesenteric lymph node and less in the Peyer's patches. Onto...

  5. A possible contribution of retinoids to regulation of fetal B lymphopoiesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Xinrong; Welner, Robert S; Kincade, Paul W

    2009-09-01

    We recently found that all trans retinoic acid (ATRA) accelerated B lymphocyte formation. In the current study, we address the question whether retinoids account for the rapid lymphopoiesis that is characteristic of fetal progenitors. Surprisingly, addition of ATRA to fetal liver cultures actually reduced B lymphopoiesis. A pan-retinoid receptor antagonist selectively suppressed lymphocyte formation from fetal and adult progenitors, suggesting some normal contribution of retinoids to this process. Consistent with this role, B lymphopoiesis was compromised in the marrow of mice with prolonged vitamin A deficiency. Recently identified B1 progenitors from adult marrow were similar to adult B2 progenitors in that their differentiation was stimulated by ATRA. The inhibitory response observed with fetal cells was seen when adult progenitors were exposed to high doses in culture or when adult mice were treated with ATRA for 2 wk. In addition to explosive lymphocyte generation, fetal progenitors tend to be less IL-7 dependent than their adult counterparts, but ATRA did not make fetal progenitors IL-7 independent. We conclude that all known categories of B lineage progenitors are responsive to retinoids and probably regulated by these compounds under physiological conditions. Retinoids may account in part for rapid differentiation in fetal life, but not all unique features of fetal progenitors.

  6. Cell Proliferation during Lymphopoiesis in the Thymus of Normal and Continuously Irradiated Mice

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fabrikant, J. I. [Department of Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD (United States)

    1968-08-15

    The patterns of lymphoid cell proliferation in the thymus and spleen in normal and continuously irradiated young C57BL mice have been examined with techniques of flash and repeated labelling with tritiated thymidine and high resolution autoradiography. Changes in percentage labelling indices and labelled mitoses data have provided information on sites and rates of lymphoid cell proliferation in the thymus cortex (reticular cells, large, medium and small lymphocytes) and the spleen white pulp (germinal centre cells, large, medium and small lymphocytes). Labelling rates were fastest in the more primitive cell forms; in both lymphoid organs, the stem-cell labelling - reticular cells and germinal centre cells - reached 100% rapidly, whereas this was not the case for the different lymphocyte populations, and thymic lymphopoiesis was more rapid than splenic lymphopoiesis. Mean cycle times for thymus lymphoid cells were {approx} 12.5 hours for reticular cells, {approx} 9.5 hours for large lymphocytes, and {approx} 10.0 hours for medium and small lymphocytes; in the spleen, representative cycle times were significantly longer. Small lymphocytes were replaced at a greater rate in the thymus than in the spleen. Under continuous {gamma}-irradiation (caesium-137) at 45 rad/day and 75 rad/day for 15 days, there was a progressive depopulation of all lymphoid cell classes, an increase in the relative proportion of the more primitive forms, and a marked decrease in the numbers of small lymphocytes in both tissues. In the thymus and in the spleen, there was an increase in proliferation rates in both stem-cell populations and in all lymphoid cell forms, a decrease in mean cell cycle times to shorter values and a possible reduction in the spread of cell cycle times. In irradiated tissues, there was little evidence for lymphoid cell emigration. Tentative patterns of lymphopoiesis in the normal thymus and spleen based on the autoradiographic data aredescribed and changes in the

  7. A human thymic epithelial cell culture system for the promotion of lymphopoiesis from hematopoietic stem cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beaudette-Zlatanova, Britte C; Knight, Katherine L; Zhang, Shubin; Stiff, Patrick J; Zúñiga-Pflücker, Juan Carlos; Le, Phong T

    2011-05-01

    A human thymic epithelial cell (TEC) line expressing human leukocyte antigen-ABC and human leukocyte antigen-DR was engineered to overexpress murine Delta-like 1 (TEC-Dl1) for the purpose of establishing a human culture system that supports T lymphopoiesis from hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs). Cord blood or bone marrow HPCs were co-cultured with either the parental TEC line expressing low levels of the Notch ligands, Delta-like 1 and Delta-like 4, or with TEC-Dl1 to determine if these cell lines support human lymphopoiesis. In co-cultures with cord blood or bone marrow HPCs, TEC-Dl1 cells promote de novo generation of CD7(pos)CD1a(pos) T-lineage committed cells. Most CD7(pos)CD1a(hi) cells are CD4(pos)CD8(pos) double-positive (DP). We found that TEC-Dl1 cells are insufficient to generate mature CD3(hi) CD4(pos) or CD3(hi) CD8(pos) single-positive (SP) T cells from the CD4(pos)CD8(pos) DP T cells; however, we detected CD3(lo) cells within the DP and SP CD4 and CD8 populations. The CD3(lo) SP cells expressed lower levels of interleukin-2Rα and interleukin-7Rα compared to CD3(lo) DP cells. In contrast to the TEC-Dl1 line, the parental TEC-84 line expressing low levels of human Notch ligands permits HPC differentiation to the B-cell lineage. We report for the first time a human TEC line that supports lymphopoiesis from cord blood and bone marrow HPC. The TEC cell lines described herein provide a novel human thymic stroma model to study the contribution of human leukocyte antigen molecules and Notch ligands to T-cell commitment and maturation and could be utilized to promote lymphopoiesis for immune cell therapy. Copyright © 2011 ISEH - Society for Hematology and Stem Cells. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Elevated Mcl-1 perturbs lymphopoiesis, promotes transformation of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells, and enhances drug resistance

    OpenAIRE

    Campbell, Kirsteen J.; Bath, Mary L.; Turner, Marian L.; Vandenberg, Cassandra J.; Bouillet, Philippe; Metcalf, Donald; Scott, Clare L.; Cory, Suzanne

    2010-01-01

    Diverse human cancers with poor prognosis, including many lymphoid and myeloid malignancies, exhibit high levels of Mcl-1. To explore the impact of Mcl-1 overexpression on the hematopoietic compartment, we have generated vavP-Mcl-1 transgenic mice. Their lymphoid and myeloid cells displayed increased resistance to a variety of cytotoxic agents. Myelopoiesis was relatively normal, but lymphopoiesis was clearly perturbed, with excess mature B and T cells accumulating. Rather than the follicular...

  9. Aryl hydrocarbon receptor activation by 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin impairs human B lymphopoiesis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li, Jinpeng; Phadnis-Moghe, Ashwini S.; Crawford, Robert B.; Kaminski, Norbert E.

    2017-01-01

    The homeostasis of peripheral B cell compartment requires lifelong B lymphopoiesis from hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). As a result, the B cell repertoire is susceptible to disruptions of hematopoiesis. Increasing evidence, primarily from rodent models, shows that the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) regulates hematopoiesis. To study the effects of persistent AHR activation on human B cell development, a potent AHR agonist and known environmental contaminant, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) was utilized. An in vitro B cell development model system was established by co-culturing human cord blood-derived HSCs with irradiated human primary bone marrow stromal cells. Using this in vitro model, we found that TCDD significantly suppressed the total number of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) in a concentration-dependent manner. Cell death analysis demonstrated that the decrease in cell number was not due to cytotoxicity by TCDD. In addition, TCDD markedly decreased CD34 expression on HSPCs. Structure-activity relationship studies using dioxin congeners demonstrated a correlation between the relative AHR binding affinity and the magnitude of decrease in the number of HSPCs and CD34 expression, suggesting that AHR mediates the observed TCDD-elicited changes in HSPCs. Moreover, a significant reduction in lineage committed B cell-derived from HSCs was observed in the presence of TCDD, indicating impairment of human B cell development. Similar effects of TCDD were observed regardless of the use of stromal cells in cultures indicating a direct effect of TCDD on HSCs. Collectively, we demonstrate that AHR activation by TCDD on human HSCs impairs early stages of human B lymphopoiesis.

  10. Immunodeficiency syndromes: Disorder of lymphocytopoiesis caused by environmental agents: Volume 1, comprehensive progress report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rosse, C.

    1988-01-01

    The studies we have performed have provided a substantial database that supports these beliefs. Our work sponsored by DOE has defined experimental tumor systems in which we have known that there is interaction between the bone marrow and certain neoplasms. We have documents that these interactions are important in host responses against tumors, and that certain tumors profoundly alter the production of several types of cells in the lymphopoiesis in an experimental model of graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) that develops as a consequence of bone marrow transplantation between H-2 identical mouse strains that differ in monorhistocompatibility antigens (minor HA). Parallel with the experimental systems that investigated interactions between the bone marrow and tumors, we have maintained an active program concerned with fundamental studies of lymphocyte production and differentation in the bone marrow, thymus, and periphery. The elucidation of the mechanisms that regulate the differentiation program of T, B, and natural killer (NK) cells remains a requisite for understanding at what level carcinogenic and noncarcinogenic environmental factors exert their influence on the lymphomyeloid complex. We have made notable progress with studies concerning the regulation of B lymphocyte production, the maintenance of T cell precursors in the bone marrow and thymus and the cell traffic between these organs, and especially in unravelling the lineage relationship, turnover, and functional heterogeneity of NK cells. 173 refs., 11 figs., 14 tabs

  11. Comprehensive progress report, July 1, 1974-September 30, 1977

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ames, B. N.

    1977-05-01

    Comprehensive research progress for the period July 1974 through September 1977 is reported. The objectives are to develop a set of bacterial strains that can be used to screen pesticides, herbicides, food additives, drugs, etc. for mutagens and to use these strains for investigating the mode of action of various mutagens and in particular for finding mutagens that make specific changes in DNA. (ACR)

  12. Intrathymic lymphopoiesis: stromal cell-associated proliferation of T cells is independent of lymphocyte genotype.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kyewski, B A; Travis, M; Kaplan, H S

    1984-09-01

    We analyzed the genetic restriction of direct cell-cell interactions between thymocytes and a) cortical epithelial cells, b) macrophages, and c) medullary dendritic cells in the mouse thymus. Thymectomized (C3H X C57BL/Ka)F1 hybrid mice were doubly grafted with P1 and P2 neonatal thymus grafts, were lethally irradiated, and were reconstituted with a mixture of P1 and P2 bone marrow cells which differed in the Thy-1 locus. The contributions of both parental inocula to the composition of the free and stromal cell-associated T cell compartments were analyzed separately in thymic grafts of each parental strain. The lymphoid composition in both compartments essentially reflected the peripheral T cell-chimerism in the host. The development of lymphostromal complexes was not restricted by the genotype of the partner cells. Statistical analysis of the distributions of P1 and P2 T cells among free thymocytes and within individual lymphostromal complexes, however, suggests that the T cells of an individual complex are the progeny of oligoclonal proliferation. Thus, both epithelial cells and bone marrow-derived stromal cells seem to be involved in different stages of intrathymic lymphopoiesis.

  13. Stockpiling and Comprehensive Utilization of Red Mud Research Progress

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Dong-Yan; Wu, Chuan-Sheng

    2012-01-01

    With increasing production of red mud, the environmental problems caused by it are increasingly serious, and thus the integrated treatment of red mud is imminent. This article provides an overview of the composition and the basic characteristics of red mud. The research progress of safe stockpiling and comprehensive utilization of red mud is summarized. The safe stockpiling of red mud can be divided into two aspects: the design and safe operation of the stocking yard. The comprehensive utilization of red mud can be further divided into three aspects: the effective recycling of components, resource utilization and application in the field of environmental protection. This paper points out that the main focus of previous studies on red mud stockpiling is cost reproduction and land tenure. The recovery of resources from red mud has a high value-added, but low level industrialization. The use of red mud as a building material and filler material is the most effective way to reduce the stockpiling of red mud. Red mud used for environmental remediation materials is a new hotspot and worth promoting for its simple processing and low cost.

  14. A Biomathematical Model of Lymphopoiesis and Its Application to Acute and Chronic Irradiation Assessment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Shaowen; Cucinotta, Francis A.

    2010-01-01

    After the events of September 11, 2001, there is an increasing concern of the occurrence of radiological terrorism that may result in significant casualties in densely populated areas. Much effort has been made to establish various biomarkers to rapidly assess radiation dose in mass-casualty and population-monitoring scenarios, which are demanded for effective medical management and treatment of the exposed victims. Among these the count of lymphocytes in peripheral blood and their depletion kinetics are the most important early indicators of the severity of the radiation injury. In this study, we examine a biomathematical model of lymphopoiesis which has been successfully utilized to simulate and interpret experimental data of acute and chronic irradiations on rodents [1]. With revised parameters for humans, we find this model can reproduce several sets of clinical lymphocyte data of accident victims over a wide range of absorbed doses. In addition, the absolute lymphocyte counts and the depletion rate constants calculated by this model also show good correlation with the Guskova formula and the Goans model, the two empirical tools which have been widely recognized for early estimation of the exposed dose after radiation accidents [2]. We also use the model to analyze the hematological data of the Techa River residents which were exposed to chronic low-dose irradiation during 1950-1956 [3]. This model can serve as a computational tool in radiation accident management, military operations involving nuclear warfare, radiation therapy, and space radiation risk assessment.

  15. The Wernicke conundrum and the anatomy of language comprehension in primary progressive aphasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mesulam, M-Marsel; Thompson, Cynthia K; Weintraub, Sandra; Rogalski, Emily J

    2015-08-01

    Wernicke's aphasia is characterized by severe word and sentence comprehension impairments. The location of the underlying lesion site, known as Wernicke's area, remains controversial. Questions related to this controversy were addressed in 72 patients with primary progressive aphasia who collectively displayed a wide spectrum of cortical atrophy sites and language impairment patterns. Clinico-anatomical correlations were explored at the individual and group levels. These analyses showed that neuronal loss in temporoparietal areas, traditionally included within Wernicke's area, leave single word comprehension intact and cause inconsistent impairments of sentence comprehension. The most severe sentence comprehension impairments were associated with a heterogeneous set of cortical atrophy sites variably encompassing temporoparietal components of Wernicke's area, Broca's area, and dorsal premotor cortex. Severe comprehension impairments for single words, on the other hand, were invariably associated with peak atrophy sites in the left temporal pole and adjacent anterior temporal cortex, a pattern of atrophy that left sentence comprehension intact. These results show that the neural substrates of word and sentence comprehension are dissociable and that a circumscribed cortical area equally critical for word and sentence comprehension is unlikely to exist anywhere in the cerebral cortex. Reports of combined word and sentence comprehension impairments in Wernicke's aphasia come almost exclusively from patients with cerebrovascular accidents where brain damage extends into subcortical white matter. The syndrome of Wernicke's aphasia is thus likely to reflect damage not only to the cerebral cortex but also to underlying axonal pathways, leading to strategic cortico-cortical disconnections within the language network. The results of this investigation further reinforce the conclusion that the left anterior temporal lobe, a region ignored by classic aphasiology, needs to be

  16. Effects of marrow grafting on preleukemia cells and thymic nurse cells in C57BL/Ka mice after a leukemogenic split-dose irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Defresne, M.P.; Greimers, R.; Lenaerts, P.; Boniver, J.

    1986-01-01

    A split-dose regimen of whole-body irradiation (4 X 175 rad at weekly intervals) induced thymic lymphomas in C57BL/Ka mice after a latent period of 3-9 months. Meanwhile, preleukemia cells arose in the thymus and bone marrow and persisted until the onset of lymphomas. Simultaneously, thymic lymphopoiesis was impaired; thymocyte numbers were subnormal and thymic nurse cells disappeared in a progressive but irreversible fashion. The depletion of these lymphoepithelial complexes, which are normally involved in the early steps of thymic lymphopoiesis, was related to altered prothymocyte activity in bone marrow and to damaged thymic microenvironment, perhaps as a consequence of the presence of preleukemia cells. The grafting of normal bone marrow cells after irradiation prevented the development of lymphomas. However, marrow reconstitution did not inhibit the induction of preleukemia cells. They disappeared from the thymus during the second part of the latent period. At the same time, thymic lymphopoiesis was restored; thymocytes and nurse cell numbers returned to normal as a consequence of the proliferation of grafted marrow-derived cells within the thymus. The results thus demonstrated an intimate relationship between preleukemia cells and an alteration of thymic lymphopoiesis, which particularly involved the nurse cell microenvironment. Some preleukemia cells in marrow-reconstituted, irradiated mice derived from the unirradiated marrow inoculate. Thus these cells acquired neoplastic potential through a factor present in the irradiated tissues. The nature of this indirect mechanism was briefly discussed

  17. Gynecologic Cancer Prevention and Control in the National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program: Progress, Current Activities, and Future Directions

    OpenAIRE

    Stewart, Sherri L.; Lakhani, Naheed; Brown, Phaeydra M.; Larkin, O. Ann; Moore, Angela R.; Hayes, Nikki S.

    2013-01-01

    Gynecologic cancer confers a large burden among women in the United States. Several evidence-based interventions are available to reduce the incidence, morbidity, and mortality from these cancers. The National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program (NCCCP) is uniquely positioned to implement these interventions in the US population. This review discusses progress and future directions for the NCCCP in preventing and controlling gynecologic cancer.

  18. Gynecologic cancer prevention and control in the National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program: progress, current activities, and future directions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stewart, Sherri L; Lakhani, Naheed; Brown, Phaeydra M; Larkin, O Ann; Moore, Angela R; Hayes, Nikki S

    2013-08-01

    Gynecologic cancer confers a large burden among women in the United States. Several evidence-based interventions are available to reduce the incidence, morbidity, and mortality from these cancers. The National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program (NCCCP) is uniquely positioned to implement these interventions in the US population. This review discusses progress and future directions for the NCCCP in preventing and controlling gynecologic cancer.

  19. Quantifying the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dan Ciuriak

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available We assess the outcomes for the negotiating parties in the Trans-Pacific Partnership if the remaining eleven parties go ahead with the agreement as negotiated without the United States, as compared to the outcomes under the original twelve-member agreement signed in October 2016. We find that the eleven-party agreement, now renamed as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP, is a much smaller deal than the twelve-party one, but that some parties do better without the United States in the deal, in particular those in the Western Hemisphere-Canada, Mexico, Chile, and Peru. For the politically relevant medium term, the United States stands to be less well-off outside the TPP than inside. Since provisional deals can be in place for a long time, the results of this study suggest that the eleven parties are better off to implement the CPTPP, leaving aside the controversial governance elements, the implications of which for national interests are unclear and which, in any event, may be substantially affected by parallel bilateral negotiations between individual CPTPP parties and the United States.

  20. Comprehension of concrete and abstract words in semantic variant primary progressive aphasia and Alzheimer's disease: A behavioral and neuroimaging study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Joubert, Sven; Vallet, Guillaume T; Montembeault, Maxime; Boukadi, Mariem; Wilson, Maximiliano A; Laforce, Robert Jr; Rouleau, Isabelle; Brambati, Simona M

    2017-07-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate the comprehension of concrete, abstract and abstract emotional words in semantic variant primary progressive aphasia (svPPA), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and healthy elderly adults (HE) Three groups of participants (9 svPPA, 12 AD, 11 HE) underwent a general neuropsychological assessment, a similarity judgment task, and structural brain MRI. The three types of words were processed similarly in the group of AD participants. In contrast, patients in the svPPA group were significantly more impaired at processing concrete words than abstract words, while comprehension of abstract emotional words was in between. VBM analyses showed that comprehension of concrete words relative to abstract words was significantly correlated with atrophy in the left anterior temporal lobe. These results support the view that concrete words are disproportionately impaired in svPPA, and that concrete and abstract words may rely upon partly dissociable brain regions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Nuclear medicine and imaging research. Quantitative studies in radiopharmaceutical science. Comprehensive progress report, January 1, 1983-June 30, 1985

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beck, R.N.; Cooper, M.D.

    1985-09-01

    This comprehensive report outlines the progress made during the past three years in the areas described below. In all instances, initial studies have been carried out and the technical feasibility of carrying through each study has been demonstrated. The studies described include development of cesium-130 and bromine-75 radioisotope generators, the feasibility of using rubidium-82 as a myocardial imaging agent, and radiochemical preparation of C-11 deoxyglucose. 28 refs. (DT)

  2. From lymphopoiesis to plasma cells differentiation, the age-related modifications of B cell compartment are influenced by "inflamm-ageing".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bulati, Matteo; Caruso, Calogero; Colonna-Romano, Giuseppina

    2017-07-01

    Ageing is a complex process characterized by a general decline in physiological functions with increasing morbidity and mortality. The most important aspect of ageing is the chronic inflammatory status, named "inflamm-ageing", strictly associated with the deterioration of the immune function, termed "immunosenescence". Both are causes of increased susceptibility of elderly to infectious diseases, cancer, dementia, cardiovascular diseases and autoimmunity, and of a decreased response to vaccination. It has been widely demonstrated that ageing has a strong impact on the remodelling of the B cell branch of immune system. The first evident effect is the significant decrease in circulating B cells, primarily due to the reduction of new B cell coming from bone marrow (BM) progenitors, as inflammation directly impacts on B lymphopoiesis. Besides, in aged individuals, there is a shift from naïve to memory immunoglobulins production, accompanied by the impaired ability to produce high affinity protective antibodies against newly encountered antigens. This is accompanied by the increase of expanded clones of B cells, which correlates with poor health status. Age-related modifications also occur in naïve/memory B cells subsets. Indeed, in the elderly, there is a reduction of naïve B cells, accompanied by the expansion of memory B cells that show a senescence-associated phenotype. Finally, elderly show the impaired ability of memory B cells to differentiate into plasma cells. It can be concluded that inflammation is the leading cause of the age-related impairment of B cell compartment, which play certainly a key role in the development of age-related diseases. This makes study of B cells in the aged an important tool for monitoring immunosenescence, chronic inflammatory disorders and the effectiveness of vaccines or pharmacological therapies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Stuck in Neutral: Stalled Progress in Statewide Comprehensive Smoke-Free Laws and Cigarette Excise Taxes, United States, 2000–2014

    Science.gov (United States)

    King, Brian A.; Babb, Stephen D.

    2016-01-01

    Introduction Increasing tobacco excise taxes and implementing comprehensive smoke-free laws are two of the most effective population-level strategies to reduce tobacco use, prevent tobacco use initiation, and protect nonsmokers from secondhand smoke. We examined state laws related to smoke-free buildings and to cigarette excise taxes from 2000 through 2014 to see how implementation of these laws from 2000 through 2009 differs from implementation in more recent years (2010–2014). Methods We used legislative data from LexisNexis, an online legal research database, to examine changes in statewide smoke-free laws and cigarette excise taxes in effect from January 1, 2000, through December 31, 2014. A comprehensive smoke-free law was defined as a statewide law prohibiting smoking in all indoor areas of private work sites, restaurants, and bars. Results From 2000 through 2009, 21 states and the District of Columbia implemented comprehensive smoke-free laws prohibiting smoking in work sites, restaurants, and bars. In 2010, 4 states implemented comprehensive smoke-free laws. The last state to implement a comprehensive smoke-free law was North Dakota in 2012, bringing the total number to 26 states and the District of Columbia. From 2000 through 2009, 46 states and the District of Columbia implemented laws increasing their cigarette excise tax, which increased the national average state excise tax rate by $0.92. However, from 2010 through 2014, only 14 states and the District of Columbia increased their excise tax, which increased the national average state excise tax rate by $0.20. Conclusion The recent stall in progress in enacting and implementing statewide comprehensive smoke-free laws and increasing cigarette excise taxes may undermine tobacco prevention and control efforts in the United States, undercutting efforts to reduce tobacco use, exposure to secondhand smoke, health disparities, and tobacco-related illness and death. PMID:27309417

  4. Motor Speech Phenotypes of Frontotemporal Dementia, Primary Progressive Aphasia, and Progressive Apraxia of Speech

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poole, Matthew L.; Brodtmann, Amy; Darby, David; Vogel, Adam P.

    2017-01-01

    Purpose: Our purpose was to create a comprehensive review of speech impairment in frontotemporal dementia (FTD), primary progressive aphasia (PPA), and progressive apraxia of speech in order to identify the most effective measures for diagnosis and monitoring, and to elucidate associations between speech and neuroimaging. Method: Speech and…

  5. Predicting Second Grade Listening Comprehension Using Prekindergarten Measures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alonzo, Crystle N.; Yeomans-Maldonado, Gloria; Murphy, Kimberly A.; Bevens, Beau

    2016-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine prekindergarten predictors of listening comprehension in second grade. Methods: Within a large, 5-year longitudinal study, children progressing from prekindergarten to second grade were administered a comprehensive set of prekindergarten measures of foundational language skills (vocabulary and…

  6. A Learning Progression for Elementary Students' Functional Thinking

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stephens, Ana C.; Fonger, Nicole; Strachota, Susanne; Isler, Isil; Blanton, Maria; Knuth, Eric; Murphy Gardiner, Angela

    2017-01-01

    In this article we advance characterizations of and supports for elementary students' progress in generalizing and representing functional relationships as part of a comprehensive approach to early algebra. Our learning progressions approach to early algebra research involves the coordination of a curricular framework and progression, an…

  7. Progress in optics

    CERN Document Server

    Wolf, Emil

    2015-01-01

    The Progress in Optics series contains more than 300 review articles by distinguished research workers, which have become permanent records for many important developments, helping optical scientists and optical engineers stay abreast of their fields. Comprehensive, in-depth reviewsEdited by the leading authority in the field

  8. Electroconvulsive Therapy: A Comprehensive Assessment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tayfun Zeren

    2003-08-01

    Full Text Available Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT is one of the most important discoveries of psychiatric treatments. This article comprehensively assesses historical progress, mechanism of actions, practical methods, indications, side effects, complications, drug interactions of ECT and attitudes towards ECT. [Archives Medical Review Journal 2003; 12(4.000: 340-377

  9. Teacher's reading comprehension: Implication for teaching practices

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adriana Benevides Soares

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available A question of interest for educational workers is the reading comprehension process, a fundamental ability for progress in more advanced years of schooling, and its effect on pedagogical practices. This is a study that explores this question. A reading comprehension instrument composed by four structural levels of text and a scale of pedagogical practice composed by four sub-scales involving: cognitive practices with linguistic focus, cognitive practices, affective and motor practices, continuous education, was used. The results of 53 children suggest a slight tendency of teacher to prioritize cognitive practices independently of their reading comprehension level.

  10. Comprehensive modulation of tumor progression and regression with periodic fasting and refeeding circles via boosting IGFBP-3 loops and NK responses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Xiancheng; Lin, Xiaojuan; Li, Meng

    2012-10-01

    Progressive tumor-bearing patients deserve to benefit from more realistic approaches. Here, a study revealed the impact of modified periodic fasting and refeeding regimen on tumor progression or regression with little or no loss of food intake and body weight. Human A549 lung, HepG-2 liver, and SKOV-3 ovary progressive tumor-bearing mice were established and subjected to 4 wk of periodic fasting/refeeding cycles (PFRC), including periodic 1-d fasting/6-d refeeding weekly (protocol 1) and periodic 2-d fasting/5-d refeeding weekly (P2DF/5DR, protocol 2), with ad libitum (AL)-fed hosts as controls. Afterwards, PFRC groups exhibited tumor growth arrest with some tendency towards regression; especially, complete regression of progressive tumors and metastases comprised between 43.75 and 56.25% of tumor-challenged hosts in P2DF/5DR group (P fasting/6-d refeeding weekly groups survived a 4-month study period vs. only 31.25-37.5% in AL control group. Immunological assays and Luminex microarray revealed that tumor growth remission is mainly via natural killer cell (NK) reactivity and cross-regulation of IGF-binding protein-3, IGF/IGF-receptor, and megakaryocyte growth and development factor autocrine and paracrine loops. In vivo cellular and humoral assays indicated that tumor-regressive induction by PFRC protocols could be partly terminated by NK cell and IGF-binding protein-3 blockade or replenishment of IGF-I/-II and megakaryocyte growth and development factor. These findings offer a better understanding of comprehensive modulation of periodic fasting/refeeding strategy on the balance between tumor progression and regression.

  11. Lessons learnt: Observation of Grade 4 reading comprehension teaching in South African schools across the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS 2006 achievement spectrum

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lisa Zimmerman

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The evidence of the huge challenges of literacy development faced by South African learners is primarily gleaned from the results of learners’ external assessments. There is little research which explores, in-depth, the strategies used by teachers to teach reading literacy and reading comprehension specifically. Questions remain about what is going wrong and, most importantly,what can be changed to rectify the poor outcomes of learners. To gain insight into the poor achievement of Grade 4 learners, in South Africa in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS 2006, six case studies were undertaken. Each school case had a different class average achievement profile ranging from low to high on the PIRLS achievement scale.This article presents findings from the observation of Grade 4 reading comprehension lessons in six schools. The comparison of observations of teaching practices aligned to higher achieving schools, against those of lower performing schools, indicates the discrepancies in the quality of teaching reading comprehension across the schools, and reveals potential foci for teacher development. The value of comparative lesson observation for these purposes is highlighted.

  12. Fiscal year 1995 progress in implementing Section 120 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. Ninth annual report to Congress

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1996-09-01

    Congress passed the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) (Public Law 96-510), commonly known as Superfund, in 1980. The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) which amended CERCLA in 1986, added Section 120 regarding the cleanup of contaminated sites at Federal facilities. Under Section 120(e)(5) of CERCLA, each department, agency, or instrumentality of the Federal government responsible for compliance with Section 120 must submit an annual report to Congress concerning its progress in implementing the requirements of Section 120. The report must include information on the progress in reaching Interagency Agreements (IAGs), conducting Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Studies (RI/FSs), and performing remedial action. Federal agencies that own or operate facilities on the National priorities List (NPL) are required to begin an RI/FS for these facilities within 6 months after being placed on the NPL. Remediation of these facilities is addressed in an IAG between the Federal agency, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and in some instances the state within which the facility is located. This report provides the status of ongoing activities being performed in support of CERCLA Section 120 at DOE facilities. This includes activities conducted to reach IAGs and progress in conducting remedial actions.

  13. Fiscal year 1995 progress in implementing Section 120 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. Ninth annual report to Congress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1996-09-01

    Congress passed the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) (Public Law 96-510), commonly known as Superfund, in 1980. The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) which amended CERCLA in 1986, added Section 120 regarding the cleanup of contaminated sites at Federal facilities. Under Section 120(e)(5) of CERCLA, each department, agency, or instrumentality of the Federal government responsible for compliance with Section 120 must submit an annual report to Congress concerning its progress in implementing the requirements of Section 120. The report must include information on the progress in reaching Interagency Agreements (IAGs), conducting Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Studies (RI/FSs), and performing remedial action. Federal agencies that own or operate facilities on the National priorities List (NPL) are required to begin an RI/FS for these facilities within 6 months after being placed on the NPL. Remediation of these facilities is addressed in an IAG between the Federal agency, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and in some instances the state within which the facility is located. This report provides the status of ongoing activities being performed in support of CERCLA Section 120 at DOE facilities. This includes activities conducted to reach IAGs and progress in conducting remedial actions

  14. Theory of Mind and Reading Comprehension in Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Signing Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holmer, Emil; Heimann, Mikael; Rudner, Mary

    2016-01-01

    Theory of Mind (ToM) is related to reading comprehension in hearing children. In the present study, we investigated progression in ToM in Swedish deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) signing children who were learning to read, as well as the association of ToM with reading comprehension. Thirteen children at Swedish state primary schools for DHH children performed a Swedish Sign Language (SSL) version of the Wellman and Liu (2004) ToM scale, along with tests of reading comprehension, SSL comprehension, and working memory. Results indicated that ToM progression did not differ from that reported in previous studies, although ToM development was delayed despite age-appropriate sign language skills. Correlation analysis revealed that ToM was associated with reading comprehension and working memory, but not sign language comprehension. We propose that some factor not investigated in the present study, possibly represented by inference making constrained by working memory capacity, supports both ToM and reading comprehension and may thus explain the results observed in the present study. PMID:27375532

  15. Theory of Mind and Reading Comprehension in Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Signing Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holmer, Emil; Heimann, Mikael; Rudner, Mary

    2016-01-01

    Theory of Mind (ToM) is related to reading comprehension in hearing children. In the present study, we investigated progression in ToM in Swedish deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) signing children who were learning to read, as well as the association of ToM with reading comprehension. Thirteen children at Swedish state primary schools for DHH children performed a Swedish Sign Language (SSL) version of the Wellman and Liu (2004) ToM scale, along with tests of reading comprehension, SSL comprehension, and working memory. Results indicated that ToM progression did not differ from that reported in previous studies, although ToM development was delayed despite age-appropriate sign language skills. Correlation analysis revealed that ToM was associated with reading comprehension and working memory, but not sign language comprehension. We propose that some factor not investigated in the present study, possibly represented by inference making constrained by working memory capacity, supports both ToM and reading comprehension and may thus explain the results observed in the present study.

  16. Theory of Mind and Reading Comprehension in Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Signing Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emil eHolmer

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Theory of Mind (ToM is related to reading comprehension in hearing children. In the present study, we investigated progression in ToM in Swedish deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH signing children who were learning to read, as well as its assocation with reading comprehension. Thirteen children at Swedish state primary schools for DHH children performed a Swedish Sign Language (SSL version of the Wellman and Liu (2004 ToM scale, along with tests of reading comprehension, SSL comprehension, and working memory. Results indicated that ToM progression did not differ from that reported in previous studies, although ToM development was delayed despite age-appropriate sign language skills. Correlation analysis revealed that ToM was associated with reading comprehension and working memory, but not sign language comprehension. We propose that some factor not investigated in the present study, possibly represented by inference making constrained by working memory capacity, supports both ToM and reading comprehension and may thus explain the results observed in the present study.

  17. Fiscal year 1996 progress in implementing Section 120 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. Tenth annual report to Congress

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1997-12-01

    Congress passed the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) (Public Law 96-510), commonly known as Superfund, in 1980. The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) (Public Law 99-499), which amended CERCLA in 1986, added Section 120 regarding the cleanup of contaminated sites at Federal facilities. Under Section 120(e)(5) of CERCLA, each department, agency, or instrumentality of the Federal government responsible for compliance with Section 120 must submit an annual report to Congress concerning its progress in implementing the requirements of Section 120. The report must include information on the progress in reaching Interagency Agreements (IAGs), conducting remedial investigation and feasibility studies (RI/FSs), and performing remedial actions. Federal agencies that own or operate facilities on the National Priorities List (NPL) are required to begin an RI/FS for these facilities within 6 months after being placed on the NPL. Remediation of these facilities is addressed in an IAG between the Federal agency, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and in some instances the state within which the facility is located.

  18. Cardiac rehabilitation: a comprehensive review

    OpenAIRE

    Lear, Scott A; Ignaszewski, Andrew

    2001-01-01

    Abstract Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is a commonly used treatment for men and women with cardiovascular disease. To date, no single study has conclusively demonstrated a comprehensive benefit of CR. Numerous individual studies, however, have demonstrated beneficial effects such as improved risk-factor profile, slower disease progression, decreased morbidity, and decreased mortality. This paper will review the evidence for the use of CR and discuss the implications and limitations of these stu...

  19. Propensity Score–Matched Analysis of Comprehensive Local Therapy for Oligometastatic Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer That Did Not Progress After Front-Line Chemotherapy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sheu, Tommy [University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston, Texas (United States); Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Heymach, John V. [Department of Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Swisher, Stephen G. [Department of Thoracic Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Rao, Ganesh; Weinberg, Jeffrey S. [Department of Neurosurgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Mehran, Reza [Department of Thoracic Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); McAleer, Mary Frances; Liao, Zhongxing [Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Aloia, Thomas A. [Department of Gastrointestinal Surgical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Gomez, Daniel R., E-mail: dgomez@mdanderson.org [Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States)

    2014-11-15

    Purpose: To retrospectively analyze factors influencing survival in patients with non-small cell lung cancer presenting with ≤3 synchronous metastatic lesions. Methods and Materials: We identified 90 patients presenting between 1998 and 2012 with non-small cell lung cancer and ≤3 metastatic lesions who had received at least 2 cycles of chemotherapy followed by surgery or radiation therapy before disease progression. The median number of chemotherapy cycles before comprehensive local therapy (CLT) (including concurrent chemoradiation as first-line therapy) was 6. Factors potentially affecting overall (OS) or progression-free survival (PFS) were evaluated with Cox proportional hazards regression. Propensity score matching was used to assess the efficacy of CLT. Results: Median follow-up time was 46.6 months. Benefits in OS (27.1 vs 13.1 months) and PFS (11.3 months vs 8.0 months) were found with CLT, and the differences were statistically significant when propensity score matching was used (P ≤ .01). On adjusted analysis, CLT had a statistically significant benefit in terms of OS (hazard ratio, 0.37; 95% confidence interval, 0.20-0.70; P ≤ .01) but not PFS (P=.10). In an adjusted subgroup analysis of patients receiving CLT, favorable performance status (hazard ratio, 0.43; 95% confidence interval, 0.22-0.84; P=.01) was found to predict improved OS. Conclusions: Comprehensive local therapy was associated with improved OS in an adjusted analysis and seemed to favorably influence OS and PFS when factors such as N status, number of metastatic lesions, and disease sites were controlled for with propensity score–matched analysis. Patients with favorable performance status had improved outcomes with CLT. Ultimately, prospective, randomized trials are needed to provide definitive evidence as to the optimal treatment approach for this patient population.

  20. Propensity Score–Matched Analysis of Comprehensive Local Therapy for Oligometastatic Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer That Did Not Progress After Front-Line Chemotherapy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sheu, Tommy; Heymach, John V.; Swisher, Stephen G.; Rao, Ganesh; Weinberg, Jeffrey S.; Mehran, Reza; McAleer, Mary Frances; Liao, Zhongxing; Aloia, Thomas A.; Gomez, Daniel R.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: To retrospectively analyze factors influencing survival in patients with non-small cell lung cancer presenting with ≤3 synchronous metastatic lesions. Methods and Materials: We identified 90 patients presenting between 1998 and 2012 with non-small cell lung cancer and ≤3 metastatic lesions who had received at least 2 cycles of chemotherapy followed by surgery or radiation therapy before disease progression. The median number of chemotherapy cycles before comprehensive local therapy (CLT) (including concurrent chemoradiation as first-line therapy) was 6. Factors potentially affecting overall (OS) or progression-free survival (PFS) were evaluated with Cox proportional hazards regression. Propensity score matching was used to assess the efficacy of CLT. Results: Median follow-up time was 46.6 months. Benefits in OS (27.1 vs 13.1 months) and PFS (11.3 months vs 8.0 months) were found with CLT, and the differences were statistically significant when propensity score matching was used (P ≤ .01). On adjusted analysis, CLT had a statistically significant benefit in terms of OS (hazard ratio, 0.37; 95% confidence interval, 0.20-0.70; P ≤ .01) but not PFS (P=.10). In an adjusted subgroup analysis of patients receiving CLT, favorable performance status (hazard ratio, 0.43; 95% confidence interval, 0.22-0.84; P=.01) was found to predict improved OS. Conclusions: Comprehensive local therapy was associated with improved OS in an adjusted analysis and seemed to favorably influence OS and PFS when factors such as N status, number of metastatic lesions, and disease sites were controlled for with propensity score–matched analysis. Patients with favorable performance status had improved outcomes with CLT. Ultimately, prospective, randomized trials are needed to provide definitive evidence as to the optimal treatment approach for this patient population

  1. Comprehensive expression profiling of tumor cell lines identifies molecular signatures of melanoma progression.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Byungwoo Ryu

    2007-07-01

    Full Text Available Gene expression profiling has revolutionized our ability to molecularly classify primary human tumors and significantly enhanced the development of novel tumor markers and therapies; however, progress in the diagnosis and treatment of melanoma over the past 3 decades has been limited, and there is currently no approved therapy that significantly extends lifespan in patients with advanced disease. Profiling studies of melanoma to date have been inconsistent due to the heterogeneous nature of this malignancy and the limited availability of informative tissue specimens from early stages of disease.In order to gain an improved understanding of the molecular basis of melanoma progression, we have compared gene expression profiles from a series of melanoma cell lines representing discrete stages of malignant progression that recapitulate critical characteristics of the primary lesions from which they were derived. Here we describe the unsupervised hierarchical clustering of profiling data from melanoma cell lines and melanocytes. This clustering identifies two distinctive molecular subclasses of melanoma segregating aggressive metastatic tumor cell lines from less-aggressive primary tumor cell lines. Further analysis of expression signatures associated with melanoma progression using functional annotations categorized these transcripts into three classes of genes: 1 Upregulation of activators of cell cycle progression, DNA replication and repair (CDCA2, NCAPH, NCAPG, NCAPG2, PBK, NUSAP1, BIRC5, ESCO2, HELLS, MELK, GINS1, GINS4, RAD54L, TYMS, and DHFR, 2 Loss of genes associated with cellular adhesion and melanocyte differentiation (CDH3, CDH1, c-KIT, PAX3, CITED1/MSG-1, TYR, MELANA, MC1R, and OCA2, 3 Upregulation of genes associated with resistance to apoptosis (BIRC5/survivin. While these broad classes of transcripts have previously been implicated in the progression of melanoma and other malignancies, the specific genes identified within each class

  2. Fiscal Year 1994 progress in implementing Section 120 of the Comprehensive Environmental Rresponse, Compensation, and Liability Act. Eighth annual report to Congress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-07-01

    Congress passed the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) (Public Law 96-510), commonly known as Superfund, in 1980. The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) (Public Law 99-499), which amended CERCLA in 1986, added Section 120 regarding the cleanup of contaminated sites at Federal facilities. Under Section 120(e)(5) of CERCLA, each department, agency, or instrumentality of the Federal government responsible for compliance with Section 120 must submit an annual report to Congress concerning its progress in implementing the requirements of Section 120. The report must include information on the progress in reaching Interagency Agreements (IAGs), conducting Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Studies (RI/FSs), and performing remedial actions. Federal agencies that own or operate facilities on the National Priorities List (NPL) are required to begin an RI/FS for these facilities within 6 months after being placed on the NPL. Remediation of these facilities is addressed in an IAG between the Federal agency, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and in some instances the state within which the facility is located. This report, prepared by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Office of Environmental Management, is being submitted to Congress in accordance with Section 120(e)(5) of CERCLA. It is DOE's Eighth Annual Report to Congress and provides information on DOE's progress in implementing CERCLA Section 120 in Fiscal Year 1994 (FY 94), i.e., from October 1, 1993, to September 30, 1994. In this report the words open-quotes siteclose quotes and open-quotes facilityclose quotes are used interchangeably

  3. Latest research progress on food waste management: a comprehensive review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Shangzhen; Gao, Hetong; Duan, Lunbo

    2018-05-01

    Since a large amount of food supplying is provided as a basic line measuring increasing residents’ life standard, food waste has become progressively numeral considerable. Much attention has been drawn to this problem. This work gave an overview on latest researches about anaerobic digestion, composting, generalized management and other developments on management of food waste. Different technologies were introduced and evaluated. Further views on future research in such a field were proposed.

  4. IQ and Reading Comprehension in Translation Quality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohsen Askari

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Having a deeper understanding of determining factors in the quality of translation is in the interest of almost all scholars of translation studies. Students’ intelligence is being measured constantly in order to determine their aptitude for entering into different programs. However, in translation studies, the variable of intelligence quotient (IQ has been curiously ignored among researchers. This study aimed to explore the strength of both IQ and reading comprehension in predicting translation quality among Iranian translation students.  A sample of forty-six translation students from Alborz University of Qazvin participated in this study. Data were collected using three tests including Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices, Colina’s (2008 componential translation quality rating scheme and the reading comprehension test of IELTS. The results show IQ test scores and reading comprehension significantly predict translation quality assessment. Surprisingly, the most significant finding is that IQ score is by far a better predictor of translation quality than reading comprehension. Overall, it is concluded that translation quality assessment is more of a deeper cognitive function than solely language process, which could lead to more research on cognitive aspects of translation.

  5. Effectiveness of Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs in Reducing Teenage Smoking: A Review

    OpenAIRE

    Wakefield, Melanie A PhD; Chaloupka, Frank J. PhD

    1999-01-01

    This review focuses on the extent to which comprehensive, statewide, tobacco control programs in the United States have induced change in teenage smoking or made progress towards this goal and under what circumstances such programs are likely to be most effective. The sources for this review include published journal articles, reports and documents, rather than any primary data analysis. We review evidence for the extent to which individual strategies that comprise a comprehensive tobacco con...

  6. Comprehensive and Methodical: Diagnostic and Management Approaches to Rapidly Progressive Dementia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mahajan, Supriya; Appleby, Brian S

    2017-09-30

    Purpose of review The sudden emergence of a change in cognitive abilities or behavior is an important symptom that warrants medical evaluation and may represent the early stages of a rapidly progressive dementia (RPD). To correctly ascertain the cause of RPD in a given patient, the clinician must be methodical and knowledgeable about the range of potential causes and must move forward with supportive treatment, and in some cases empiric treatment, based on clinical features alone. Recent findings Significant advances in prion disease biomarkers, the molecular features of rapidly progressive Alzheimer's disease, and new detection of autoimmune limbic encephalitis disease entities have caused a shift in the diagnostic and treatment framework of RPD. Additionally, in the past decade, emerging retrospective data have led to suggested treatments in autoimmune encephalitis that, if instituted early, can protect patients against residual deficits and disease relapse. Summary Here, we provide an integrative clinical and diagnostic treatment approach that is applicable to the various forms of RPD. We have highlighted the clinical features of selected types of RPD that have experienced advances in the last 10-15 years.

  7. Listening comprehension across the adult lifespan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sommers, Mitchell S; Hale, Sandra; Myerson, Joel; Rose, Nathan; Tye-Murray, Nancy; Spehar, Brent

    2011-01-01

    Although age-related declines in perceiving spoken language are well established, the primary focus of research has been on perception of phonemes, words, and sentences. In contrast, relatively few investigations have been directed at establishing the effects of age on the comprehension of extended spoken passages. Moreover, most previous work has used extreme-group designs in which the performance of a group of young adults is contrasted with that of a group of older adults and little if any information is available regarding changes in listening comprehension across the adult lifespan. Accordingly, the goals of the current investigation were to determine whether there are age differences in listening comprehension across the adult lifespan and, if so, whether similar trajectories are observed for age-related changes in auditory sensitivity and listening comprehension. This study used a cross-sectional lifespan design in which approximately 60 individuals in each of 7 decades, from age 20 to 89 yr (a total of 433 participants), were tested on three different measures of listening comprehension. In addition, we obtained measures of auditory sensitivity from all participants. Changes in auditory sensitivity across the adult lifespan exhibited the progressive high-frequency loss typical of age-related hearing impairment. Performance on the listening comprehension measures, however, demonstrated a very different pattern, with scores on all measures remaining relatively stable until age 65 to 70 yr, after which significant declines were observed. Follow-up analyses indicated that this same general pattern was observed across three different types of passages (lectures, interviews, and narratives) and three different question types (information, integration, and inference). Multiple regression analyses indicated that low-frequency pure-tone average was the single largest contributor to age-related variance in listening comprehension for individuals older than 65 yr, but

  8. A comprehensive analysis on preservation patterns of gene co-expression networks during Alzheimer's disease progression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ray, Sumanta; Hossain, Sk Md Mosaddek; Khatun, Lutfunnesa; Mukhopadhyay, Anirban

    2017-12-20

    Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic neuro-degenerative disruption of the brain which involves in large scale transcriptomic variation. The disease does not impact every regions of the brain at the same time, instead it progresses slowly involving somewhat sequential interaction with different regions. Analysis of the expression patterns of the genes in different regions of the brain influenced in AD surely contribute for a enhanced comprehension of AD pathogenesis and shed light on the early characterization of the disease. Here, we have proposed a framework to identify perturbation and preservation characteristics of gene expression patterns across six distinct regions of the brain ("EC", "HIP", "PC", "MTG", "SFG", and "VCX") affected in AD. Co-expression modules were discovered considering a couple of regions at once. These are then analyzed to know the preservation and perturbation characteristics. Different module preservation statistics and a rank aggregation mechanism have been adopted to detect the changes of expression patterns across brain regions. Gene ontology (GO) and pathway based analysis were also carried out to know the biological meaning of preserved and perturbed modules. In this article, we have extensively studied the preservation patterns of co-expressed modules in six distinct brain regions affected in AD. Some modules are emerged as the most preserved while some others are detected as perturbed between a pair of brain regions. Further investigation on the topological properties of preserved and non-preserved modules reveals a substantial association amongst "betweenness centrality" and "degree" of the involved genes. Our findings may render a deeper realization of the preservation characteristics of gene expression patterns in discrete brain regions affected by AD.

  9. The 2001 Comprehensive Review

    CERN Multimedia

    Åkesson, T

    A new approach for CERN to monitor the LHC-experiments' technical and scientific progress was introduced last year: The Comprehensive Reviews. A significant fraction of the full LHCC committee is mobilized during two days to review the complete project status. This event took place for ATLAS during 2-3 of July this year. With a rather exhaustive program we presented our status in 39 talks. It was a demanding and close to impossible task for the referees to comprehend the ATLAS status by listening to this massive amount of information, but from the ATLAS point-of-view we judged it important that the referees were exposed to both the progress and the remaining problem areas. The referees were satisfied with our status; probably more so this year than last year. They judged the main critical issues to be: The schedules of the barrel toroid, the end-cap TRT, the LAr barrel and end-cap A, and the MDTs. The procurement of radiation hard electronics was also thought to be a critical issue. They were informed of ...

  10. Towards a comprehensive theory of monadic effects

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Filinski, Andrzej

    2011-01-01

    It has been more than 20 years since monads were proposed as a unifying concept for computational effects, in both formal semantics and functional programs. Over that period, there has been substantial incremental progress on several fronts within the ensuing research area, including denotational....... Some stronger-than-expected ties between the research topics mentioned above also instill hope that there is indeed a natural, comprehensive theory of monadic effects, waiting to be fully explicated......., and attempts to assess our collective progress towards the goal of a broad yet coherent theory of monadic effects. We are not quite there yet, but intriguingly, many potential ingredients of such a theory have been repeatedly discovered and developed, with only minor variations, in seemingly unrelated contexts...

  11. Research progress in hepatic cavernous hemangiomas: a comprehensive review with graphics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ouyang Yong; Zhang Xuejun; Ouyang Xuehui; Chao Lumeng

    2012-01-01

    The common benign tumor of the liver, cavernous hemangioma, has already been confirmed, both embryologically and pathologically, to be not a neoplasm, but a congenital vascular malformation of the liver which is resulted from the arrested development of hepatic sinusoids at embryologic stage. This paper aims to make a comprehensive description of the cavernous hemangiomas of the liver, including the lesion's blood supply, the hemodynamics, the imaging features, the classification and its interventional therapy. The relevant example illustrations, figures and graphics are accompanied with the text in order to provide the readers with an complete and up-to-date understanding of the hepatic cavernous hemangiomas. (authors)

  12. Progress report 1981 - 1983

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eder, G.; Rauch, H.; Balcar, E.; Buchtela, K.; Schwertfuehrer, W.; Vana, N.

    1984-06-01

    This progress report describes the research activities of the Atom-institute of the Austrian Universities of the period 1981-1983. The chapter headings are: (1) Electron- and X-ray physics, thermoluminescence and archeometry. (2) Nuclear physics. (3) Nuclear techniques, electronics and EDP. (4) Neutron- and solid state physics with neutron scattering, low temperature physics, theoretical solid state physics and preparation technique. (5) Radiation chemistry. (6) Radiation protection and dosimetry. Each chapter gives a comprimated overview about the research work done in the described period, illustrated by diagrams and tables, a comprehensive list of publications, each citation provided with an (mostly English) Abstract and a comprehensive list of thesis, which are completed or under preparation in the corresponding working group. Additional chapters give lists of educational work, verbal presentation, cooperations with other institutions and personnel. An annex of photos gives an additional impression of the institute. (A.N.)

  13. Various Models for Reading Comprehension Process

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Parastoo Babashamsi

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available In recent years reading can be viewed as a process, as a form of thinking, as a true experience, and as a tool subject. As a process, reading includes visual discrimination, independent recognition of word, rhythmic progression along a line of print, precision in the return sweep of the eyes, and adjustment of rate. In the same line, the present paper aims at considering the various models of reading process. Moreover, the paper will take a look at various factors such as schema and vocabulary knowledge which affect reading comprehension process.

  14. Molecular mechanisms of the epithelial transport of toxic metal ions, particularly mercury, cadmium, lead, arsenic, zinc, and copper. Comprehensive progress report, October 1, 1975--December 31, 1978

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wasserman, R.H.

    1978-10-01

    Investigations were undertaken to elucidate the mode of transepithelial transport of potentially toxic metal ions across the gastrointestinal tract, with primary attention given to cadmium, zinc, and arsenic. In addition, the toxic effects of cadmium on the metabolism of vitamin D and calcium have been investigated in some detail. Several approaches have been taken, including studies on the localization of heavy metals in the intestinal mucosa, the effects of cadmium on various parameters of calcium metabolism, the modes of intestinal absorption of cadmium, arsenate, and zinc, and the interactions of heavy metals with each other and with calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin D. Details of these experiments are attached in the Comprehensive Progress Report

  15. Molecular mechanisms of the epithelial transport of toxic metal ions, particularly mercury, cadmium, lead, arsenic, zinc, and copper. Comprehensive progress report, October 1, 1975--December 31, 1978

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wasserman, R. H.

    1978-10-01

    Investigations were undertaken to elucidate the mode of transepithelial transport of potentially toxic metal ions across the gastrointestinal tract, with primary attention given to cadmium, zinc, and arsenic. In addition, the toxic effects of cadmium on the metabolism of vitamin D and calcium have been investigated in some detail. Several approaches have been taken, including studies on the localization of heavy metals in the intestinal mucosa, the effects of cadmium on various parameters of calcium metabolism, the modes of intestinal absorption of cadmium, arsenate, and zinc, and the interactions of heavy metals with each other and with calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin D. Details of these experiments are attached in the Comprehensive Progress Report.

  16. Comprehensive Environmental Management Plan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hjeresen, D.L.

    1994-01-01

    The Environmental Management Program at Los Alamos National Laboratory is in the process of initiating and then implementing a Comprehensive Environmental Management Plan (CEMP). There are several environmental impact and compliance drivers for this initiative. The Los Alamos CEMP is intended to be a flexible, long-range process that predicts, minimizes, treats, and disposes of any waste generated in execution of the Los Alamos mission - even if that mission changes. The CEMP is also intended to improve stakeholder and private sector involvement and access to environmental information. The total quality environmental management (TQEM) process will benchmark Los Alamos to private sector and DOE operations, identify opportunities for improvement, prioritize among opportunities, implement projects, measure progress, and spur continuous improvement in Environmental Management operations

  17. PROGRESS IN ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kadia, Tapan M.; Ravandi, Farhad; O’Brien, Susan; Cortes, Jorge; Kantarjian, Hagop M.

    2014-01-01

    Significant progress has been made in the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Steady gains in clinical research and a renaissance of genomics in leukemia have led to improved outcomes. The recognition of tremendous heterogeneity in AML has allowed individualized treatments of specific disease entities within the context of patient age, cytogenetics, and mutational analysis. The following is a comprehensive review of the current state of AML therapy and a roadmap of our approach to these distinct disease entities. PMID:25441110

  18. Correlation of chromosome patterns in human leukemic cells with exposure to chemicals and/or radiation. Comprehensive progress report, July 1991--June 1994

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rowley, J.D.

    1994-06-01

    This comprehensive progress report provides a synopsis of major research accomplishments during the years of 1991-1994, including the technical aspects of the project. The objectives and accomplishments are as follows: 1. Defining the chromosome segments associated with radiation and chemically-induced leukemogenesis (treatment-related acute myeloid leukemia, t-AML); A. Continued genetic analysis of chromosomes 5 and 7, B. Correlation of treatment with balanced and unbalanced translocations. 2. Cloning the breakpoints in balanced translocations in t-AML; A. Clone the t(9;11) and t(11;19) breakpoints, B. Clone the t(3,21)(q26,q22) breakpoint, C. Determine the relationship of these translocations to prior exposure to topoisomerase II inhibitors. 3. Compare the breakpoint junctions in patients who have the same translocations in t-AML and AML de novo. 4. Map the scaffold attachment regions in the genes that are involved in balanced translocations in t-AML. Plans for the continuation of present objectives and possible new objectives in consideration of past results are also provided.

  19. Comprehensive progress report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Little, J.B.

    1980-01-01

    The goal of this research project during the past three years has been to characterize the effects of alpha radiation in the induction of malignant transformation in vitro. A 238 PuO 2 source was constructed and mounted in a specially designed chamber which allowed uniform alpha particle irradiation of monolayer cultures in 100 mm plastic Petri dishes at a dose-rate of 24 rads/min. The biologic effects were compared with those observed with 220 Kv x-rays. The induction of sister chromatid exchanges (SCE) and gross chromosomal aberrations by alpha radiation was studied in parallel experiments. The maximally effective dose for the induction of SCE by alpha particles was about 5% of that required for x-rays, though the actual frequencies induced were somewhat lower. As in the case of survival and transformation, no decline occurred in the level of chromosome aberrations in alpha-irradiated cells when they were held in the stationary phase of growth after exposure. Finally, preliminary experiments have been initiated to study transformation induced by incorporated radioisotopes of varying LET. 125 IudR, which emits densely ionizing Auger electrons, appears to be several-fold more effective per decay than 3 H-thymidine. These results generally confirm those obtained for external alpha irradiation

  20. Nondestructive Evaluation Program: Progress in 1986

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1987-07-01

    The increasing cost of equipment for power generating plants and the potential increases in productivity and safety available through rapidly developing Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE) technology led EPRI to initiate a Nondestructive Evaluation Program in 1974. To date, the major focus has been on light water reactor inspection problems; however, increased application to other systems is now under way. This report presents a comprehensive review of the EPRI effort in the NDE area. Most of the report consists of contractor-supplied progress reports on each current project. An organizational plan of the program is presented in overview. In addition, organization from several viewpoints is presented, e.g., in-service inspection operators, R and D personnel, and utility representatives. The report summarizes significant progress made since the previous EPRI Special Report NP-4315-SR was issued in May 1986. Section 1 contains information about the program organization, and the sections that follow contain contractor-supplied progress reports of each current project. The progress reports are grouped by plant components - pipe, pressure vessel, steam generator and boiler tubes, and turbine. In addition, Part 6 is devoted to discussions of technology transfer

  1. Developing a universal reading comprehension intervention for mainstream primary schools within areas of social deprivation for children with and without language-learning impairment: a feasibility study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCartney, Elspeth; Boyle, James; Ellis, Sue

    2015-01-01

    Some children in areas of social deprivation in Scotland have lower reading attainment than neighbouring children in less deprived areas, and some of these also have lower spoken language comprehension skills than expected by assessment norms. There is a need to develop effective reading comprehension interventions that fit easily into the school curriculum and can benefit all pupils. A feasibility study of reading comprehension strategies with existing evidence of efficacy was undertaken in three mainstream primary schools within an area of social deprivation in west central Scotland, to decide whether further investigation of this intervention was warranted. Aims were to measure comprehension of spoken language and reading via standardised assessments towards the beginning of the school year (T1) in mainstream primary school classrooms within an area of social deprivation; to have teachers introduce previously-validated text comprehension strategies, and to measure change in reading comprehension outcome measures towards the end of the year (T2). A pre- and post-intervention cohort design was used. Reading comprehension strategies were introduced to staff in participating schools and used throughout the school year as part of on-going reading instruction. Spoken language comprehension was measured by TROG-2 at T1, and reading progress by score changes from T1 to T2 on the WIAT-II(UK) -T reading comprehension scale. Forty-seven pupils in five classes in three primary schools took part: 38% had TROG-2 scores below the 10(th) centile. As a group, children made good reading comprehension progress, with a medium effect size of 0.46. Children with TROG-2 scores below the 10(th) centile had lower mean reading scores than others at T1 and T2, although with considerable overlap. However, TROG-2 did not make a unique contribution to reading progress: children below the 10(th) centile made as much progress as other children. The intervention was welcomed by schools, and the

  2. Comprehensive Care

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Comprehensive Care Share this page Facebook Twitter Email Comprehensive Care Understand the importance of comprehensive MS care ... In this article A complex disease requires a comprehensive approach Today multiple sclerosis (MS) is not a ...

  3. Progress of 90Y generator preparation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yin Bangshun; Li Mingqi; Deng Qimin; Cheng Zuoyong

    2009-01-01

    90 Y is an important radionuclide in radioimmunotherapy. The medical 90 Y is mainly obtained from 90 Y generator through methods of precipitation,coprecipitation, electrodeposition, solvent extraction, chromatography and so on. The progress of 90 Y generator, the advantages and disadvantages of different types of 90 Y generator, and the tendency of 90 Y generator preparation were described respectively. Comprehensive analysis showed that inorganic ion-exchange chromatography will be the main tendency of future 90 Y generator preparation. (authors)

  4. Progress and Impact. A Report of Programs Funded for 1995-96 by the Comprehensive Health Education Act of 1990.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terrill, Jerry L.; Connell, Karen

    During the 1995-96 school year, the Colorado Department of Education supported Comprehensive Health Education Programs as authorized by the Comprehensive Health Education Act of 1990. This report summarizes the projects funded under that grant along with additional observations and recommendations regarding the operation of such grants. Grant…

  5. Radiation carcinogenesis. Comprehensive three-year progress report, 1 May 1972--15 March 1976

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Warren, S.; Gates, O.

    1976-03-01

    Progress is reported on studies on the pathological effects of various doses of x radiation on rats and mice, with emphasis on radioinduced carcinogenesis in parabiont rats with one of the pair exposed to 1000 R of whole body x radiation and the other shielded. Results are included from studies on alterations in metabolic parameters and life span induced by irradiation

  6. Beyond Grand Rounds: A Comprehensive and Sequential Intervention to Improve Identification of Delirium

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramaswamy, Ravishankar; Dix, Edward F.; Drew, Janet E.; Diamond, James J.; Inouye, Sharon K.; Roehl, Barbara J. O.

    2011-01-01

    Purpose of the Study: Delirium is a widespread concern for hospitalized seniors, yet is often unrecognized. A comprehensive and sequential intervention (CSI) aiming to effect change in clinician behavior by improving knowledge about delirium was tested. Design and Methods: A 2-day CSI program that consisted of progressive 4-part didactic series,…

  7. Cognitive training plus a comprehensive psychosocial programme (OPUS) versus the comprehensive psychosocial programme alone for patients with first-episode schizophrenia (the NEUROCOM trial): a study protocol for a centrally randomised, observer-blinded multi-centre clinical trial

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vesterager, Lone; Christensen, Torben Østergaard; Olsen, Birthe B

    2011-01-01

    training integrated in a comprehensive psychosocial programme versus the comprehensive psychosocial programme alone. The cognitive training consists of four modules focusing on attention, executive functioning, learning, and memory. Cognitive training involves computer-assisted training tasks as well...... as practical everyday tasks and calendar training. It takes place twice a week, and every other week the patient and trainer engage in a dialogue on the patient’s cognitive difficulties, motivational goals, and progress in competence level. Cognitive training relies on errorless learning principles...

  8. [The phonological variant of primary progressive aphasia, a single case study].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diesfeldt, H F A

    2011-04-01

    Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) is a neurodegenerative syndrome characterized by an insidious onset and gradual progression of deficits that can involve any aspect of language, including word finding, object naming, fluency, syntax, phonology and word comprehension. The initial symptoms occur in the absence of major deficits in other cognitive domains, including episodic memory, visuospatial abilities and visuoconstruction. According to recent diagnostic guidelines, PPA is typically divided into three variants: nonfluent variant PPA (also termed progressive nonfluent aphasia), semantic variant PPA (also termed semantic dementia) and logopenic/phonological variant PPA (also termed logopenic progressive aphasia). The paper describes a 79-yr old man, who presented with normal motor speech and production rate, impaired single word retrieval and phonemic errors in spontaneous speech and confrontational naming. Confrontation naming was strongly affected by lexical frequency. He was impaired on repetition of sentences and phrases. Reading was intact for regularly spelled words but not for irregular words (surface dyslexia). Comprehension was spared at the single word level, but impaired for complex sentences. He performed within the normal range on the Dutch equivalent of the Pyramids and Palm Trees (PPT) Pictures Test, indicating that semantic processing was preserved. There was, however, a slight deficiency on the PPT Words Test, which appeals to semantic knowledge of verbal associations. His core deficit was interpreted as an inability to retrieve stored lexical-phonological information for spoken word production in spontaneous speech, confrontation naming, repetition and reading aloud.

  9. Progressive changes in the plasma metabolome during malnutrition in juvenile pigs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jiang, Pingping; Stanstrup, Jan; Thymann, Thomas

    2016-01-01

    Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is one of the leading nutrition-related causes of death in children under five years of age. The clinical features of SAM are well documented, but a comprehensive understanding of the development from a normal physiological state to SAM is lacking. Characterising...... the temporal metabolomic change may help to understand the disease progression and to define nutritional rehabilitation strategies. Using a piglet model we hypothesized that a progressing degree of malnutrition induces marked plasma metabolite changes. Four week-old weaned pigs were fed a nutrient...

  10. Radiation-Induced Carotid Artery Stenosis: A Comprehensive Review of the Literature

    OpenAIRE

    Xu, Jiaping; Cao, Yongjun

    2014-01-01

    In recent decades, with the improvement of radiotherapy (RT) technology and comprehensive treatment, the survival rate of head and neck malignancies has gained remarkable progress. Vascular injury and subsequent carotid stenosis following RT, as the backbone of treatment, have received increasing attention. Many investigations have demonstrated that radiation can result in the increase in carotid intima-media thickness, carotid stenosis and consequently lead to a higher risk of cerebrovascula...

  11. Research Progress on Carbon Nanotubes Reinforced Cu-matrix Composites

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    TAO Jing-mei

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available The critical issues of CNTs/Cu composites were reviewed. The preparation techniques of the composites were classified, and the research progress on powder metallurgic methods, electrochemical methods and other methods was summarized, with an emphasis on the relationship between preparation methods and properties. The interfacial characteristic of the CNTs/Cu composites was analyzed, and the research progress and existing problems of mechanical properties, electrical properties, thermal properties and wear and friction properties of the composites were also summarized. It was pointed out that the key to increase the comprehensive properties of the composites is to obtain the homogeneous distribution of CNTs and good interfacial bonding between CNTs and the Cu matrix by improving the preparation methods.

  12. Comprehensive analysis of transport aircraft flight performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Filippone, Antonio

    2008-04-01

    This paper reviews the state-of-the art in comprehensive performance codes for fixed-wing aircraft. The importance of system analysis in flight performance is discussed. The paper highlights the role of aerodynamics, propulsion, flight mechanics, aeroacoustics, flight operation, numerical optimisation, stochastic methods and numerical analysis. The latter discipline is used to investigate the sensitivities of the sub-systems to uncertainties in critical state parameters or functional parameters. The paper discusses critically the data used for performance analysis, and the areas where progress is required. Comprehensive analysis codes can be used for mission fuel planning, envelope exploration, competition analysis, a wide variety of environmental studies, marketing analysis, aircraft certification and conceptual aircraft design. A comprehensive program that uses the multi-disciplinary approach for transport aircraft is presented. The model includes a geometry deck, a separate engine input deck with the main parameters, a database of engine performance from an independent simulation, and an operational deck. The comprehensive code has modules for deriving the geometry from bitmap files, an aerodynamics model for all flight conditions, a flight mechanics model for flight envelopes and mission analysis, an aircraft noise model and engine emissions. The model is validated at different levels. Validation of the aerodynamic model is done against the scale models DLR-F4 and F6. A general model analysis and flight envelope exploration are shown for the Boeing B-777-300 with GE-90 turbofan engines with intermediate passenger capacity (394 passengers in 2 classes). Validation of the flight model is done by sensitivity analysis on the wetted area (or profile drag), on the specific air range, the brake-release gross weight and the aircraft noise. A variety of results is shown, including specific air range charts, take-off weight-altitude charts, payload-range performance

  13. Is the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist a Useful Tool for Monitoring Progress in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Magiati, I.; Moss, J.; Yates, R.; Charman, T.; Howlin, P.

    2011-01-01

    Background: There are few well validated brief measures that can be used to assess the general progress of young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) over time. In the present study, the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) was used as part of a comprehensive assessment battery to monitor the progress of 22 school-aged children…

  14. Editorial summary: findings from a survey on the Danish study progress reform

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sarauw, Laura Louise; Madsen, Simon Ryberg

    The summary presents the key findings from the first comprehensive survey of what students expect of the Danish Study Progress Reform. The summarised report is based on a survey conducted among 4.354 university students, who were asked to assess how they expect to manage their time and prioritise...... their activities in light of the Study Progress Reform’s requirements for faster completion. The survey was distributed in April 2015 as part of a politically independent research project funded by the Danish Council for Independent Research/Humanities (FKK)....

  15. Slowly progressive fluent aphasia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sakurai, Yasuhisa; Momose, Toshimitsu; Watanabe, Toshiaki; Ishikawa, Takashi; Iwata, Makoto; Bando, Mitsuaki.

    1991-01-01

    Three patients with slowly progressive fluent aphasia are reported. One of the patients presented with memory disturbance. They were characterized clinically by having selective deficits in vocabulary, which resulted in impairment of confrontation naming, and auditory comprehension. MRI showed an atrophy not only in the left temporal lobe (including the superior, middle and inferior temporal gyri), hippocampus, parahippocampual gyrus, and fusiform gyrus, but also in the left parietal lobe. I-123 IMP SPECT and F-18 FDG PET were used to determine regional cerebral blood flow and regional cerebral metabolic rate, respectively. In addition to the decreased tracer uptake in the left temporal and/or parietal lobe, a decreased uptake was seen in the bilateral basal ganglia, the inner side of the temporal lobe (including the bilateral hippocampus), the right anterior temporal lobe, and the left thalamus. These findings may deny the previous thought that lesions are localized in slowly progressive fluent aphasia. Furthermore, noticeable difficulty in naming, i.e., patients unable to recognize the right answer, are considered attributable to widespread lesions from the whole left temporal lobe, including the hippocampus, to the right temporal lobe. (N.K.)

  16. Effectiveness of small daily amounts of progressive resistance training for frequent neck/shoulder pain

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Lars; Saervoll, Charlotte A; Mortensen, Ole S

    2011-01-01

    Regular physical exercise is a cornerstone in rehabilitation programs, but adherence to comprehensive exercise remains low. This study determined the effectiveness of small daily amounts of progressive resistance training for relieving neck/shoulder pain in healthy adults with frequent symptoms...

  17. The Comprehensive Approach Concept in Multinational Operations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Neag Mihai-Marcel

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The planning of operations is regulated by documents covering the participation of forces in military actions in a national and multinational context. The process of planning the operations has been adapted to conceptual planning progress. The concept of allied effect-based operations, which was an alternative to old national concepts, has undergone transformations, so the process of planning operations at allied level is currently based on the concept of a comprehensive approach, which is a strategic concept, do not give up effects. The term action-based operations has been replaced by the term “thought-based thinking” and belongs to the general concept of comprehensive approach. If the planning process meant the effects, so the main planning objectives were the effects, then the planning was based on concrete objectives, the effects being maintained for the economy of effort and maximizing efficiency, the main purpose of the effects being the evaluation of the operations. From this point of view, we consider that the concept has not been abandoned, what has changed, it was just the working method, the subject being still topical.

  18. Progress in the last decade in our understanding of primary progressive aphasia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ratnavalli Ellajosyula

    2010-10-01

    Full Text Available Primary progressive aphasia (PPA is a focal neurodegeneration of the brain affecting the language network. Patients can have isolated language impairment for years without impairment in other areas. PPA is classified as primary progressive nonfluent aphasia (PNFA, semantic dementia (SD, and logopenic aphasia, which have distinct patterns of atrophy on neuroimaging. PNFA and SD are included under frontotemporal lobar degenerations. PNFA patients have effortful speech with agrammatism, which is frequently associated with apraxia of speech and demonstrate atrophy in the left Broca′s area and surrounding region on neuroimaging. Patients with SD have dysnomia with loss of word and object (or face meaning with asymmetric anterior temporal lobe atrophy. Logopenic aphasics have word finding difficulties with frequent pauses in conversation, intact grammar, and word comprehension but impaired repetition for sentences. The atrophy is predominantly in the left posterior temporal and inferior parietal regions. Recent studies have described several progranulin mutations on chromosome 17 in PNFA. The three clinical syndromes have a less robust relationship to the underlying pathology, which is heterogeneous and includes tauopathy, ubiquitinopathy, Pick′s disease, corticobasal degeneration, progressive supranuclear palsy, and Alzheimer′s disease. Recent studies, however, seem to indicate that a better characterization of the clinical phenotype (apraxic, agrammatic, semantic, logopenic, jargon increases the predictive value of the underlying pathology. Substantial advances have been made in our understanding of PPAs but developing new biomarkers is essential in making accurate causative diagnoses in individual patients. This is critically important in the development and evaluation of disease-modifying drugs.

  19. A comprehensive comparison of perpendicular distance sampling methods for sampling downed coarse woody debris

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jeffrey H. Gove; Mark J. Ducey; Harry T. Valentine; Michael S. Williams

    2013-01-01

    Many new methods for sampling down coarse woody debris have been proposed in the last dozen or so years. One of the most promising in terms of field application, perpendicular distance sampling (PDS), has several variants that have been progressively introduced in the literature. In this study, we provide an overview of the different PDS variants and comprehensive...

  20. EU stresstest national report of Germany. Progress report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2011-09-15

    The European Council concluded in March that the safety of all EU nuclear plants should be reviewed on the basis of a comprehensive and transparent risk assessment (''stress test''). The German Bundestag (Federal Parliament) called upon the German Federal Government on 17{sup th} March 2011 to conduct a comprehensive review of the safety requirements for the German nuclear power plants. The competent Federal Ministry asked its advisory body, the RSK, to perform this review. The findings of the RSK safety review were presented to the public on 17{sup th} May 2011. ENSREG published the scope and modalities for comprehensive risk and safety assessments of EU nuclear power plants on 13{sup th} May 2011. This ''Declaration of ENSREG'' determines the concept, methodology and time schedule of the EU stress test. The BMU as the federal regulator in Germany asked the Laender authorities to initiate the EU stress tests according to the ENSREG Declaration. The ''stress tests'' were started by all German licensees with the self-commitment to deliver the progress report by 15{sup th} August 2011 and the final report by 31{sup st} October 2011. The structure of the German national report follows mainly the chapters according to the ENSREG Declaration. In addition detailed insights from the broader scope and specific methodology of the RSK safety review are also included in the chapters. In chapter 6 are in particular insights from the RSK safety review related to initiating events caused by man-made hazards, such as an aircraft crash, terrorist attack or cyber attacks. The licensee progress reports and the certificates by the competent federal state regulators reflect an interim state. Further work is planned and should take additional guidance to be given by ENSREG into account. The Federal State authorities have so far reviewed the licensee reports in terms of completeness, the adequate application of the ENSREG

  1. A simulation of 'schedule-cost' progress monitoring system in nuclear power project management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Song Haitao; Huang Zhongping; Zhang Zemin; Wang Zikai

    2010-01-01

    The objective of project management is to find the optimal balance between progress and cost according to the project requirements. Traditional method always manages progress and cost separately. However, domestic and international experience indicated that the interactions between these two factors are crucial in the project implementation. Modern project managers have to manage and maintain a 'Progress - Cost' joint control framework. Such a model is applied into a sub-project of a nuclear power project using Simulink in this paper. It helps to identify and correct the deviations of the project. Earned Value Management is used by the project manager to quantify the cost of the project and progress of implementation. The budget plan value, actual value, earned value are three important parameters to measure cost and progress of the project. The experimental results illustrated that the method gives a more comprehensive performance evaluation of the project. (authors)

  2. Comprehensive approach to diabetic nephropathy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bancha Satirapoj

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available Diabetic nephropathy (DN is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity in patients with diabetes. This complication reflects a complex pathophysiology, whereby various genetic and environmental factors determine susceptibility and progression to end-stage renal disease. DN should be considered in patients with type 1 diabetes for at least 10 years who have microalbuminuria and diabetic retinopathy, as well as in patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes with macroalbuminuria in whom other causes for proteinuria are absent. DN may also present as a falling estimated glomerular filtration rate with albuminuria as a minor presenting feature, especially in patients taking renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system inhibitors (RAASi. The pathological characteristic features of disease are three major lesions: diffuse mesangial expansion, diffuse thickened glomerular basement membrane, and hyalinosis of arterioles. Functionally, however, the pathophysiology is reflected in dysfunction of the mesangium, the glomerular capillary wall, the tubulointerstitium, and the vasculature. For all diabetic patients, a comprehensive approach to management including glycemic and hypertensive control with RAASi combined with lipid control, dietary salt restriction, lowering of protein intake, increased physical activity, weight reduction, and smoking cessation can reduce the rate of progression of nephropathy and minimize the risk for cardiovascular events. This review focuses on the latest published data dealing with the mechanisms, diagnosis, and current treatment of DN.

  3. Case management considerations of progressive dementia in a home setting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pierce, Mary Ellen

    2010-01-01

    Nursing theory, research, and best practice guidelines contribute substantially to the field of dementia care. Interventional plans are challenged most by those dementias considered progressive and deteriorative in nature, requiring ongoing reassessment and modification of care practices as the clinical course changes. The purpose of this article is to provide guidelines for case managers in the development of effective, individualized care plans for clients with progressive dementia residing in a home setting. The application of these guidelines is illustrated through the presentation of an actual case. The practice setting is a private home in the Pacific Northwest. Geriatric case management is provided by an RN case manager. Progressive dementia presents challenges to home care. Professional case management using comprehensive, holistic assessment, collaborative approaches, and best practice fundamentals serve to create an effective, individualized plan of care. The increasing geriatric population presents great opportunities for case managers in strategic management for creating successful home care models in clients with progressive dementia. Use of nursing diagnoses, dementia research, and collaborative approaches with families and other medical providers creates a viable alternative for clients with progressive dementia.

  4. Children's understanding of Aesop's fables: relations to reading comprehension and theory of mind.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pelletier, Janette; Beatty, Ruth

    2015-01-01

    Two studies examined children's developing understanding of Aesop's fables in relation to reading comprehension and to theory of mind. Study 1 included 172 children from Junior Kindergarten through Grade 6 in a school-wide examination of the relation between reading comprehension skills and understanding of Aesop's fables told orally. Study 2 examined the relation between theory of mind and fables understanding among 186 Junior (4-year-old) and Senior (5-year-old) Kindergarten children. Study 1 results showed a developmental progression in fables understanding with children's responses becoming increasingly decontextualized as they were able to extract the life lesson. After general vocabulary, passage comprehension predicted fables understanding. Study 2 results showed a relation between young children's theory of mind development and their understanding of fables. After general vocabulary, second-order theory of mind predicted children's fables understanding. Findings point to the importance of developing mental state awareness in children's ability to judge characters' intentions and to understand the deeper message embedded in fables.

  5. Comprehensive Psychiatric Evaluation

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Facts for Families Guide Facts for Families - Vietnamese Comprehensive Psychiatric Evaluation No. 52; Updated October 2017 Evaluation ... with serious emotional and behavioral problems need a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation. Comprehensive psychiatric evaluations usually require a ...

  6. A home-based comprehensive care model in patients with Multiple Sclerosis: A study pre-protocol [version 1; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lufei Young

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Background Disability is prevalent in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS, leading to difficulty in care access, significant caregiver burden, immense challenges in self-care and great societal burden.  Without highly coordinated, competent and accessible care, individuals living with progressive MS experience psychological distress, poor quality of life, suffer from life-threatening complications, and have frequent but avoidable healthcare utilizations. Unfortunately, current healthcare delivery models present severe limitations in providing easily accessible, patient-centered, coordinated comprehensive care to those with progressive MS. We propose a home-based comprehensive care model (MAHA to address the unmet needs, challenges, and avoidable complications in individuals with progressive MS with disabling disease. Objective The article aims to describe the study design and methods used to implement and evaluate the proposed intervention.   Method The study will use a randomized controlled design to evaluate the feasibility of providing a 24-month, home-based, patient-centered comprehensive care program to improve quality of life, reduce complications and healthcare utilizations overtime (quarterly for 24 months. A transdisciplinary team led by a MS-Comprehensivist will carry out this project. Fifty MS patients will be randomly assigned to the intervention and usual care program using block randomization procedures. We hypothesize that patients in the intervention group will have fewer complications, higher quality of life, greater satisfaction with care, and reduced healthcare utilization. The proposed project is also expected to be financially sustainable in fee-for-service models but best suited for and gain financial success in valued-based care systems.   Discussion This is the first study to examine the feasibility and effectiveness of a home-based comprehensive care management program in MS patients living with progressive

  7. Lower risk of progression from prediabetes to diabetes with health checkup with lifestyle education: Japan Ningen Dock study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Okada, R; Tsushita, K; Wakai, K; Ishizaka, Y; Kato, K; Wada, T; Watanabe, K

    2017-08-01

    To investigate whether the progression from prediabetes to diabetes is lower among those who undertake Ningen Dock (comprehensive health checkups with lifestyle education and doctor's consultation) than those who undertake basic mandatory occupational health checkups. Subjects aged 30-69 years with complete annual data from 2008 to 2012 for either Ningen Dock or basic health checkups were enrolled. Subjects with prediabetes (fasting plasma glucose 100-125 mg/dl or HbA1c 5.7-6.4%) at baseline were selected (14,928 in the comprehensive group and 10,433 in the basic group). The incidence of diabetes (fasting plasma glucose ≥ 126 mg/dl, HbA1c ≥ 6.5% or taking glucose-lowering drugs) and the reduction of risk factors were compared. After 4 years, 3226 cases of diabetes occurred among 25,361 subjects with prediabetes. The incidence of diabetes was lower in the comprehensive group than the basic group (2.9 vs. 3.8 cases/100 person-years, hazard ratio 0.75, 95% confidence interval 0.68-0.81 after adjustment). Moreover, more overweight subjects controlled their body mass index (16.2% vs. 13.2%) and more began a daily exercise habit (11.8% vs. 8.5%) in the comprehensive group than in the basic group. The incidence of diabetes was lower in subjects who could control their weight or start daily exercise at year 1 in the comprehensive group. Progression from prediabetes to diabetes was significantly lower in subjects undertaking a comprehensive health checkup with lifestyle education. Lifestyle education at health checkup for people with prediabetes might prevent progression to diabetes by reducing modifiable risk factors. Copyright © 2017 The Italian Society of Diabetology, the Italian Society for the Study of Atherosclerosis, the Italian Society of Human Nutrition, and the Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Federico II University. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. The Progress of Students Reading Comprehension through Wordless Picture Books

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Romaida Lubis

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Wordless picture book is an unique book that could help the young learner to get their literacy. The content of the wordless picture book must be communicated through the visual of the illustration. This research discusses a case study of how a kid of six years old produce his narrative through wordless picture book. The kid allowed to see and say on the page and then write the words that he has mentioned. Practicing to read repeatedly which increase fluency will improve his reading comprehension and written expression. This research was conducted to make better understand about the sense - making process that happen when a child works with the wordless picture book. Most sentences or texts were made based on the references and experience from daily life either explicitly or implicitly. In reading wordless book, readers faced the variety of visual signs. These sign systems help reader form a type of framework that show their interpretation of the text and helps them build construction of the story. The researcher wanted to make the reader understand better about the strategies that the child use to make sense of wordless text. The reason of this study is to help how a six year old nonreader would give interpretation to visual cues in wordless picture books. Transacting with the visual text in the books helped the child to make sense of the stories. The data were analyzed based on the principles of qualitative content analysis that involve a systematic review of the data, coding, category construction and analysis. The result of this research is the wordless picture books give opportunity to the children to create the story on their own and to bring in their own understanding of the world to the text.

  9. Completion report : Effect of Comprehensive Yogic Breathing program on type 2 diabetes: A randomized control trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V P Jyotsna

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: Yoga has been shown to be benefi cial in diabetes in many studies, though randomized control trials are few. The aim of this randomized control trial was to see the effect of Sudarshan Kriya and related practices (comprehensive yogic breathing program on quality of life, glycemic control, and cardiac autonomic functions in diabetes. Diabetes mellitus is a risk factor for sudden cardiac death. Cardiac autonomic neuropathy has been implicated in the causation of sudden cardiac death. Therefore, a maneuver to prevent progression of cardiac autonomic neuropathy holds signifi cance. Materials and Methods: A total of 120 patients of diabetes on oral medication and diet and exercise advice were randomized into two groups: (1 Continued to receive standard treatment for diabetes. (2 Patients administered comprehensive yogic breathing program and monitored to regularly practice yoga in addition to standard treatment of diabetes. At 6 months, quality of life and postprandial plasma glucose signifi cantly improved in the group practicing yoga compared to baseline, but there was no significant improvement in the fasting plasma glucose and glycated hemoglobin. Results: On per protocol analysis, sympathetic cardiac autonomic functions signifi cantly improved from baseline in the group practicing comprehensive yogic breathing. Conclusion: This randomized control trial points towards the beneficial effect of yogic breathing program in preventing progression of cardiac neuropathy. This has important implications as cardiac autonomic neuropathy has been considered as one of the factors for sudden cardiac deaths.Keywords: comprehensive yogic breathing program, diabetes mellitus, cardiac autonomic function

  10. Fusion plasma theory. Task I. Magnetic confinement fusion plasma theory. Annual progress report, January 1, 1982-December 31, 1982

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Callen, J.D.

    1982-08-01

    The research on this contract over the past year has concentrated on some key tandem mirror confinement and heating issues (barrier trapping current, rf heating, low mode number stability) and on developing a comprehensive neoclassical transport theory for nonaxisymmetric toroidal plasmas (e.g., stellarators). Progress in these and some other miscellaneous areas are summarized briefly in this progress report

  11. Children's hypertext comprehension

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Segers, P.C.J.; Segers, E.; Broek, P. van den

    2017-01-01

    The present chapter gives an overview of the literature on hypertext comprehension, children's hypertext comprehension and individual variation therein, ending with a perspective for future research. Hypertext comprehension requires the reader to make bridging inferences between the different parts

  12. Dynamics of comprehensive physical fitness in artistic gymnasts aged 7-10 years

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandra Boraczyńska

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: The aim of the study was to evaluate the somatic development and comprehensive physical fitness of artistic gymnasts aged 7-10 years. Materials and methods: Gymnasts (n = 307, split up into four age groups performed eight Eurofit tests. The results were evaluated in points according to the development standards prepared in scale T for the Polish girls population. Results : The gymnasts obtained the highest growth rate in balance test - FLB (13 points, arm and shoulder muscular endurance test - BAH (7 points and speed of the upper limb movement test - PLT (4 points out of eight physical fitness tests. Conclusions. High and very high level of performance in the six Eurofit tests and increased total number of points in the subsequent age groups of artistic gymnasts proved high effectiveness of training in shaping the key components of a comprehensive physical fitness in artistic gymnastics - balance, strength, endurance, speed and flexibility. Relatively little progress in isometric hand strength (HGR and standing broad jump (SBJ suggests a significant influence of genetic factors on the level of these abilities. The results provide an objective information useful in optimizing control system of training effects in comprehensive physical fitness and optimization of artistic gymnasts training at the comprehensive stage of sports training.

  13. [Fibromyalgia syndrome after comprehensive treatment of breast cancer: a case report].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ding, Xia; Li, Yan; Cui, Yiyi; Shen, Yingying; Gu, Jianzhong; Guo, Yong

    2016-05-25

    Fibromyalgia syndrome after comprehensive treatment of breast cancer is rare and seldom reported. Here we present a case of a 50-year-old female patient,who was admitted to the hospital because of generalized fibromyalgia for 3 months and brain metastasis after the right breast carcinoma surgery for 1 month, and the clinical diagnosis was brain metastasis from breast carcinoma combined with fibromyalgia syndrome. The fibromyalgia were relieved with proper symptomatic treatment but the patient eventually died of tumor progression.

  14. Evaluating core technology capacity based on an improved catastrophe progression method: the case of automotive industry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Shijia; Liu, Zongwei; Wang, Yue; Zhao, Fuquan

    2017-01-01

    Subjectivity usually causes large fluctuations in evaluation results. Many scholars attempt to establish new mathematical methods to make evaluation results consistent with actual objective situations. An improved catastrophe progression method (ICPM) is constructed to overcome the defects of the original method. The improved method combines the merits of the principal component analysis' information coherence and the catastrophe progression method's none index weight and has the advantage of highly objective comprehensive evaluation. Through the systematic analysis of the influencing factors of the automotive industry's core technology capacity, the comprehensive evaluation model is established according to the different roles that different indices play in evaluating the overall goal with a hierarchical structure. Moreover, ICPM is developed for evaluating the automotive industry's core technology capacity for the typical seven countries in the world, which demonstrates the effectiveness of the method.

  15. Progress report 1982 of the institute of experimental physics of the Leopold Franzens University Innsbruck

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Howorka, F.; Maerk, T.; Lindinger, W.

    1983-01-01

    This progress report describes the scientific work and research results of the department of atomic physics in the institute of experimental physics of the university of Innsbruck for the period of 1982. A comprehensive list of publications of this department is given. (A.N.)

  16. Abnormal language-related oscillatory responses in primary progressive aphasia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. Kielar

    Full Text Available Patients with Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA may react to linguistic stimuli differently than healthy controls, reflecting degeneration of language networks and engagement of compensatory mechanisms. We used magnetoencephalography (MEG to evaluate oscillatory neural responses in sentence comprehension, in patients with PPA and age-matched controls. Participants viewed sentences containing semantically and syntactically anomalous words that evoke distinct oscillatory responses. For age-matched controls, semantic anomalies elicited left-lateralized 8–30 Hz power decreases distributed along ventral brain regions, whereas syntactic anomalies elicited bilateral power decreases in both ventral and dorsal regions. In comparison to controls, patients with PPA showed altered patterns of induced oscillations, characterized by delayed latencies and attenuated amplitude, which were correlated with linguistic impairment measured offline. The recruitment of right hemisphere temporo-parietal areas (also found in controls was correlated with preserved semantic processing abilities, indicating that preserved neural activity in these regions was able to support successful semantic processing. In contrast, syntactic processing was more consistently impaired in PPA, regardless of neural activity patterns, suggesting that this domain of language is particularly vulnerable to the neuronal loss. In addition, we found that delayed peak latencies of oscillatory responses were associated with lower accuracy for detecting semantic anomalies, suggesting that language deficits observed in PPA may be linked to delayed or slowed information processing. Keywords: MEG oscillations, Primary progressive aphasia (PPA, Sentence comprehension

  17. Primary progressive aphasia: A dementia of the language network

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marsel Mesulam

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Primary progressive aphasia (PPA is a clinical syndrome diagnosed when three core criteria are met. First, there should be a language impairment (i.e., aphasia that interferes with the usage or comprehension of words. Second, the neurological work-up should determine that the disease is neurodegenerative, and therefore progressive. Third, the aphasia should arise in relative isolation, without equivalent deficits of comportment or episodic memory. The language impairment can be fluent or non-fluent and may or may not interfere with word comprehension. Memory for recent events is preserved although memory scores obtained in verbally mediated tests may be abnormal. Minor changes in personality and behavior may be present but are not the leading factors that bring the patient to medical attention or that limit daily living activities. This distinctive clinical pattern is most conspicuous in the initial stages of the disease, and reflects a relatively selective atrophy of the language network, usually located in the left hemisphere. There are different clinical variants of PPA, each with a characteristic pattern of atrophy. The underlying neuropathological diseases are heterogeneous and can include Alzheimer's disease as well as frontotemporal lobar degeneration. The clinician's task is to recognize PPA and differentiate it from other neurodegenerative phenotypes, use biomarkers to surmise the nature of the underlying neuropathology, and institute the most fitting multimodal interventions.

  18. 2010 Annual Progress Report: DOE Hydrogen Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2011-02-01

    In the past year, the DOE Hydrogen Program (the Program) made substantial progress toward its goals and objectives. The Program has conducted comprehensive and focused efforts to enable the widespread commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in diverse sectors of the economy. With emphasis on applications that will effectively strengthen our nation's energy security and improve our stewardship of the environment, the Program engages in research, development, and demonstration of critical improvements in the technologies. Highlights of the Program's accomplishments can be found in the sub-program chapters of this report.

  19. Progress on HELIAS systems studies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Warmer, Felix; Beidler, Craig D.; Dinklage, Andreas; Feng, Yuehe; Geiger, Joachim; Schauer, Felix; Turkin, Yuriy; Wolf, Robert; Xanthopoulos, Pavlos [Max-Planck-Institut fuer Plasmaphysik, D-17491 Greifswald (Germany); Kemp, Richard; Knight, Peter; Ward, David [Culham Centre for Fusion Energy, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, OX14 3DB (United Kingdom)

    2015-05-01

    In order to study and design next-step fusion devices such as DEMO, comprehensive systems codes are commonly employed. For the HELIAS-line, stellarator-specific models have been developed, implemented, and verified within the systems code PROCESS. This systems code ansatz is complemented by self-consistent modeling of plasma scenarios employing a predictive 1-D neoclassical transport code which has been augmented with a model for the edge anomalous transport based on 3-D ITG turbulence simulations. This approach is investigated to ultimately allow one to conduct stellarator system studies, develop design points of HELIAS burning plasma devices, and to facilitate a direct comparison between tokamak and stellarator DEMO and power plant designs. The work reports on the progress towards these goals.

  20. Effectiveness of comprehensive tobacco control programmes in reducing teenage smoking in the USA

    OpenAIRE

    Wakefield, M.; Chaloupka, F.

    2000-01-01

    OBJECTIVE—To describe the extent to which comprehensive statewide tobacco control programmes in the USA have made progress toward reducing teenage smoking.
DATA SOURCES—Literature search of Medline for reviews of effectiveness of programme and policy elements, plus journal articles and personal request for copies of publicly released reports and working papers from evaluation staff in each of the state programmes of California, Massachusetts, Arizona, Oregon, and Florida.
STUDY SELECTION—All ...

  1. The DOE Office of Environmental Restoration and Waste Management comprehensive integrated planning process

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aiken, R.J.; Draffin, C.W. Jr.; Pflock, K.T.

    1992-01-01

    This paper reports that comprehensive integrated planning is critical to the ultimate success of the DOE Office of Environmental Restoration and Waste Management's (EM) program because of the significant technical and institutional complexities, the tens of billions of dollars required, the regulatory and fiscal uncertainty, and the multitude of federal, state, and private sector organizations involved. Using the philosophy that sound and forward looking planning should guide budgetary and management decisionmaking, and that clear priorities are essential to program success, EM's comprehensive approach includes strategic planning, the annually updated EM Five-Year Plan, the EM Management Plan, and Site Specific Plans. Roadmaps (which facilitate issue identification and resolution), Activity Data Sheets, prioritization methodologies, and installation-specific Progress Charts are among the tools employed in support of the EM integrated planning process

  2. Research and development at Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe - progress report 1991

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1992-01-01

    The Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe progress report is the 1991 issue of the scientific reports the institution is bound to submitt each year according to para. 13.4 of its articles of partnership. The points of main effort which are discussed reflect the institution's R and D scheme. The summaries submitted by the different institutes and departments are compiled by the topics and fields they deal with. The report gives an account of the progress under each of the KfK R and D projects. This correlation facilitates comparisons between the targets and actual achievements and elucidates the general relation between the individual tasks which often are in the care of several institutes at a time. The departments and institutes and their respective tasks are introduced, and a comprehensive appendix is attached which lists the 1991 publications. (orig./UA) [de

  3. Genetic background in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: A comprehensive review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macaluso, Fabio Salvatore; Maida, Marcello; Petta, Salvatore

    2015-01-01

    In the Western world, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is considered as one of the most significant liver diseases of the twenty-first century. Its development is certainly driven by environmental factors, but it is also regulated by genetic background. The role of heritability has been widely demonstrated by several epidemiological, familial, and twin studies and case series, and likely reflects the wide inter-individual and inter-ethnic genetic variability in systemic metabolism and wound healing response processes. Consistent with this idea, genome-wide association studies have clearly identified Patatin-like phosholipase domain-containing 3 gene variant I148M as a major player in the development and progression of NAFLD. More recently, the transmembrane 6 superfamily member 2 E167K variant emerged as a relevant contributor in both NAFLD pathogenesis and cardiovascular outcomes. Furthermore, numerous case-control studies have been performed to elucidate the potential role of candidate genes in the pathogenesis and progression of fatty liver, although findings are sometimes contradictory. Accordingly, we performed a comprehensive literature search and review on the role of genetics in NAFLD. We emphasize the strengths and weaknesses of the available literature and outline the putative role of each genetic variant in influencing susceptibility and/or progression of the disease. PMID:26494964

  4. Accident progression event tree analysis for postulated severe accidents at N Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wyss, G.D.; Camp, A.L.; Miller, L.A.; Dingman, S.E.; Kunsman, D.M.; Medford, G.T.

    1990-06-01

    A Level II/III probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) has been performed for N Reactor, a Department of Energy (DOE) production reactor located on the Hanford reservation in Washington. The accident progression analysis documented in this report determines how core damage accidents identified in the Level I PRA progress from fuel damage to confinement response and potential releases the environment. The objectives of the study are to generate accident progression data for the Level II/III PRA source term model and to identify changes that could improve plant response under accident conditions. The scope of the analysis is comprehensive, excluding only sabotage and operator errors of commission. State-of-the-art methodology is employed based largely on the methods developed by Sandia for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission in support of the NUREG-1150 study. The accident progression model allows complex interactions and dependencies between systems to be explicitly considered. Latin Hypecube sampling was used to assess the phenomenological and systemic uncertainties associated with the primary and confinement system responses to the core damage accident. The results of the analysis show that the N Reactor confinement concept provides significant radiological protection for most of the accident progression pathways studied

  5. Comprehensive Identification of SUMO2/3 Targets and Their Dynamics during Mitosis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schou, Julie; Kelstrup, Christian D; Hayward, Daniel G

    2014-01-01

    During mitosis large alterations in cellular structures occur rapidly, which to a large extent is regulated by post-translational modification of proteins. Modification of proteins with the small ubiquitin-related protein SUMO2/3 regulates mitotic progression, but few mitotic targets have been...... identified so far. To deepen our understanding of SUMO2/3 during this window of the cell cycle, we undertook a comprehensive proteomic characterization of SUMO2/3 modified proteins in mitosis and upon mitotic exit. We developed an efficient tandem affinity purification strategy of SUMO2/3 modified proteins...... from mitotic cells. Combining this purification strategy with cell synchronization procedures and quantitative mass spectrometry allowed for the mapping of numerous novel targets and their dynamics as cells progressed out of mitosis. This identified RhoGDIα as a major SUMO2/3 modified protein...

  6. Molecular Features of Subtype-Specific Progression from Ductal Carcinoma In Situ to Invasive Breast Cancer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Robert Lesurf

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Breast cancer consists of at least five main molecular “intrinsic” subtypes that are reflected in both pre-invasive and invasive disease. Although previous studies have suggested that many of the molecular features of invasive breast cancer are established early, it is unclear what mechanisms drive progression and whether the mechanisms of progression are dependent or independent of subtype. We have generated mRNA, miRNA, and DNA copy-number profiles from a total of 59 in situ lesions and 85 invasive tumors in order to comprehensively identify those genes, signaling pathways, processes, and cell types that are involved in breast cancer progression. Our work provides evidence that there are molecular features associated with disease progression that are unique to the intrinsic subtypes. We additionally establish subtype-specific signatures that are able to identify a small proportion of pre-invasive tumors with expression profiles that resemble invasive carcinoma, indicating a higher likelihood of future disease progression.

  7. Computerized access to materials data. A progress report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rumble, J. Jr.

    1985-01-01

    As the effort to build a comprehensive computerized materials data system grows, it becomes more obvious that the benefits will be far-reaching. During this workshop, the enthusiasm of the participants grew steadily until the questions became not''What,'' but ''When?''. The engineering community within the United States has banded together many times to advance progress in engineering capability. The computerized materials data system requires such an effort, and the rewards will be substantial. Chapter 3 identifies changes in the use of materials data in the Nuclear Power Industry. Chapter 4 describes the EPRI experience in building computerized materials databases. In Chapter 5, the National Materials Property Data Network is discussed. The next four chapters present summaries of the workshop discussions and its conclusions. Chapter 6 discusses the content of the proposed system, Chapter 7 its size and the data sources, and Chapter 8 the user interfaces and system capabilities. In Chapter 9, ways of making further progress are outlined

  8. Plain packaging: a logical progression for tobacco control in one of the world's ‘darkest markets’

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scollo, Michelle; Bayly, Megan; Wakefield, Melanie

    2015-01-01

    The Australian approach to tobacco control has been a comprehensive one, encompassing mass media campaigns, consumer information, taxation policy, access for smokers to smoking cessation advice and pharmaceutical treatments, protection from exposure to tobacco smoke and regulation of promotion. World-first legislation to standardise the packaging of tobacco was a logical next step to further reduce misleadingly reassuring promotion of a product known for the past 50 years to kill a high proportion of its long-term users. Similarly, refreshed, larger pack warnings which started appearing on packs at the end of 2012 were a logical progression of efforts to ensure that consumers are better informed about the health risks associated with smoking. Regardless of the immediate effects of legislation, further progress will continue to require a comprehensive approach to maintain momentum and ensure that government efforts on one front are not undermined by more vigorous efforts and greater investment by tobacco companies elsewhere. PMID:28407604

  9. Reading Self-Efficacy Predicts Word Reading But Not Comprehension in Both Girls and Boys.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carroll, Julia M; Fox, Amy C

    2016-01-01

    The relationship between cognitive skills and reading has been well-established. However, the role of motivational factors such as self-efficacy in reading progress is less clear. In particular, it is not clear how self-efficacy relates to word level reading versus comprehension, and whether this differs in boys and girls. This study examines the relationship between self-efficacy, word reading and reading comprehension across the range of reading abilities after controlling for reading-related cognitive factors. One hundred and seventy nine children (86 males and 93 females) between 8 and 11 years old completed a self-report measure of reading self-efficacy together with measures of reading comprehension and word reading, working memory, auditory short-term memory, phonological awareness, and vocabulary. Boys and girls showed similar levels of attainment and reading self-efficacy. Reading self-efficacy was associated with word reading, but not with reading comprehension in either boys or girls. It is argued that this may reflect important differences between reading self-efficacy and more general measures of reading motivation and engagement. Reading self-efficacy is an element of reading motivation that is closely associated with a child's perceived attainments in reading and is less susceptible to the gender differences seen in broader measures.

  10. Reading Self-Efficacy Predicts Word Reading But Not Comprehension in Both Girls and Boys

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carroll, Julia M.; Fox, Amy C.

    2017-01-01

    The relationship between cognitive skills and reading has been well-established. However, the role of motivational factors such as self-efficacy in reading progress is less clear. In particular, it is not clear how self-efficacy relates to word level reading versus comprehension, and whether this differs in boys and girls. This study examines the relationship between self-efficacy, word reading and reading comprehension across the range of reading abilities after controlling for reading-related cognitive factors. One hundred and seventy nine children (86 males and 93 females) between 8 and 11 years old completed a self-report measure of reading self-efficacy together with measures of reading comprehension and word reading, working memory, auditory short-term memory, phonological awareness, and vocabulary. Boys and girls showed similar levels of attainment and reading self-efficacy. Reading self-efficacy was associated with word reading, but not with reading comprehension in either boys or girls. It is argued that this may reflect important differences between reading self-efficacy and more general measures of reading motivation and engagement. Reading self-efficacy is an element of reading motivation that is closely associated with a child’s perceived attainments in reading and is less susceptible to the gender differences seen in broader measures. PMID:28144223

  11. Reading Comprehension and Math Skills of Students in Basic Education in Mexico: 2000-2005

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eduardo Backhoff Escudero

    2010-05-01

    Full Text Available After the establishment of the National Institute for Educational Evaluation (INEE in 2002, society demanded to know whether the educational system had progressed during the last five years. In response, the INEE used the National Standards Tests for Mathematics and Reading Comprehension, applied by the Department of Evaluation of the Secretariat of Public Education (SEP in 2000, and again in 2005. The results showed that sixth graders in private, public, rural schools had made a significant advance in mathematics and reading comprehension. Indigenous Education had also advanced considerably in the latter subject. Among junior high schools, only those of the general category showed significant improvement on both tests. Regarding gender, women scored higher than men in reading comprehension, as contrasted with math. In terms of age, it was found that students of an age normal for their scholastic level performed better than those older. The explanations found in the results highlight the differences between the learning opportunities and cultural capital of the families of the different strata and modalities.

  12. Degenerative Jargon Aphasia: Unusual Progression of Logopenic/Phonological Progressive Aphasia?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paolo Caffarra

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Primary progressive aphasia (PPA corresponds to the gradual degeneration of language which can occur as nonfluent/agrammatic PPA, semantic variant PPA or logopenic variant PPA. We describe the clinical evolution of a patient with PPA presenting jargon aphasia as a late feature. At the onset of the disease (ten years ago the patient showed anomia and executive deficits, followed later on by phonemic paraphasias and neologisms, deficits in verbal short-term memory, naming, verbal and semantic fluency. At recent follow-up the patient developed an unintelligible jargon with both semantic and neologistic errors, as well as with severe deficit of comprehension which precluded any further neuropsychological assessment. Compared to healthy controls, FDG-PET showed a hypometabolism in the left angular and middle temporal gyri, precuneus, caudate, posterior cingulate, middle frontal gyrus, and bilaterally in the superior temporal and inferior frontal gyri. The clinical and neuroimaging profile seems to support the hypothesis that the patient developed a late feature of logopenic variant PPA characterized by jargonaphasia and associated with superior temporal and parietal dysfunction.

  13. Comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kruse, Marie; Hochstrasser, Stefan; Zwisler, Ann-Dorthe O

    2006-01-01

    OBJECTIVES: The costs of comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation are established and compared to the corresponding costs of usual care. The effect on health-related quality of life is analyzed. METHODS: An unprecedented and very detailed cost assessment was carried out, as no guidelines existed...... and may be as high as euro 1.877. CONCLUSIONS: Comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation is more costly than usual care, and the higher costs are not outweighed by a quality of life gain. Comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation is, therefore, not cost-effective....

  14. Environment, Safety and Health Progress Assessment of the Hanford Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1992-05-01

    This report documents the result of the US Department of Energy (DOE) Environment, Safety and Health (ES ampersand H) Progress Assessment of the Hanford Site, in Richland, Washington. The assessment, which was conducted from May 11 through May 22, 1992, included a selective-review of the ES ampersand H management systems and programs of the responsible DOE Headquarters Program Offices the DOE Richland Field Office, and the site contractors. The ES ampersand H Progress Assessments are part of the Secretary of Energy's continuing effort to institutionalize line management accountability and the self-assessment process throughout DOE and its contractor organizations. The purpose of the Hanford Site ES ampersand H Progress Assessment is to provide the Secretary with an independent assessment of the adequacy and effectiveness of the DOE and contractor management structures, resources, and systems to address ES ampersand H problems and requirements. They are not intended to be comprehensive compliance assessments of ES ampersand H activities. The point of reference for assessing programs at the Hanford Site was, for the most part, the Tiger Team Assessment of the Hanford Site, which was conducted from May 21 through July 18, 1990. A summary of issues and progress in the areas of environment, safety and health, and management is included

  15. Comprehensive metabolic panel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Metabolic panel - comprehensive; Chem-20; SMA20; Sequential multi-channel analysis with computer-20; SMAC20; Metabolic panel 20 ... Chernecky CC, Berger BJ. Comprehensive metabolic panel (CMP) - blood. In: ... Tests and Diagnostic Procedures . 6th ed. St Louis, MO: ...

  16. Cognitive Correlates of Listening Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Young-Suk; Phillips, Beth

    2014-01-01

    In an effort to understand cognitive foundations of oral language comprehension (i.e., listening comprehension), we examined how inhibitory control, theory of mind, and comprehension monitoring are uniquely related to listening comprehension over and above vocabulary and age. A total of 156 children in kindergarten and first grade from…

  17. Comprehensive Craniospinal Radiation for Controlling Central Nervous System Leukemia

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Walker, Gary V.; Shihadeh, Ferial [Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Kantarjian, Hagop [Department of Leukemia, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Allen, Pamela [Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Rondon, Gabriela; Kebriaei, Partow [Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); O' Brien, Susan [Department of Leukemia, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Kedir, Aziza; Said, Mustefa; Grant, Jonathan D. [Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Thomas, Deborah A. [Department of Leukemia, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Gidley, Paul W. [Department of Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Arzu, Isidora; Pinnix, Chelsea; Reed, Valerie [Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Dabaja, Bouthaina S., E-mail: bdabaja@mdanderson.org [Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States)

    2014-12-01

    Purpose: To determine the benefit of radiation therapy (RT) in resolution of neurologic symptoms and deficits and whether the type of RT fields influences central nervous system (CNS) control in adults with CNS leukemia. Methods and Materials: A total of 163 adults from 1996 to 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. Potential associations between use of radiation and outcome were investigated by univariate and multivariate analysis. Results: The median survival time was 3.8 months after RT. Common presenting symptoms were headache in 79 patients (49%), cranial nerve VII deficit in 46 (28%), and cranial nerve II deficit in 44 (27%). RT was delivered to the base of skull in 48 patients (29%), to the whole brain (WB) in 67 (41%), and to the craniospinal axis (CS) in 48 (29%). Among 149 patients with a total of 233 deficits, resolution was observed in 34 deficits (15%), improvement in 126 deficits (54%), stability in 34 deficits (15%), and progression in 39 deficits (17%). The 12-month CNS progression-free survival was 77% among those receiving CS/WB and 51% among those receiving base of skull RT (P=.02). On multivariate analysis, patients who did not undergo stem cell transplantation after RT and base of skull RT were associated with worse CNS progression-free survival. Conclusions: Improvement or resolution of symptoms occurred in two thirds of deficits after RT. Comprehensive radiation to the WB or CS seems to offer a better outcome, especially in isolated CNS involvement.

  18. Comprehensive Craniospinal Radiation for Controlling Central Nervous System Leukemia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Walker, Gary V.; Shihadeh, Ferial; Kantarjian, Hagop; Allen, Pamela; Rondon, Gabriela; Kebriaei, Partow; O'Brien, Susan; Kedir, Aziza; Said, Mustefa; Grant, Jonathan D.; Thomas, Deborah A.; Gidley, Paul W.; Arzu, Isidora; Pinnix, Chelsea; Reed, Valerie; Dabaja, Bouthaina S.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: To determine the benefit of radiation therapy (RT) in resolution of neurologic symptoms and deficits and whether the type of RT fields influences central nervous system (CNS) control in adults with CNS leukemia. Methods and Materials: A total of 163 adults from 1996 to 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. Potential associations between use of radiation and outcome were investigated by univariate and multivariate analysis. Results: The median survival time was 3.8 months after RT. Common presenting symptoms were headache in 79 patients (49%), cranial nerve VII deficit in 46 (28%), and cranial nerve II deficit in 44 (27%). RT was delivered to the base of skull in 48 patients (29%), to the whole brain (WB) in 67 (41%), and to the craniospinal axis (CS) in 48 (29%). Among 149 patients with a total of 233 deficits, resolution was observed in 34 deficits (15%), improvement in 126 deficits (54%), stability in 34 deficits (15%), and progression in 39 deficits (17%). The 12-month CNS progression-free survival was 77% among those receiving CS/WB and 51% among those receiving base of skull RT (P=.02). On multivariate analysis, patients who did not undergo stem cell transplantation after RT and base of skull RT were associated with worse CNS progression-free survival. Conclusions: Improvement or resolution of symptoms occurred in two thirds of deficits after RT. Comprehensive radiation to the WB or CS seems to offer a better outcome, especially in isolated CNS involvement

  19. Children’s understanding of Aesop’s fables: Relations to reading comprehension and theory of mind

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Janette Patricia Pelletier

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Two studies examined children’s developing understanding of Aesop’s fables in relation to reading comprehension and to theory of mind. Study 1 included 172 children from Junior Kindergarten through Grade 6 in a school-wide examination of the relation between reading comprehension skills and understanding of Aesop’s fables told orally. Study 2 examined the relation between theory of mind and fables understanding among 186 Junior (4-year-old and Senior (5-year-old Kindergarten children. Study 1 results showed a developmental progression in fables understanding with children’s responses becoming increasingly decontextualized as they were able to extract the life lesson. After general vocabulary, passage comprehension predicted fables understanding. Study 2 results showed a relation between young children’s theory of mind development and their understanding of fables. After general vocabulary, second-order theory of mind predicted children’s fables understanding. Findings point to the importance of developing mental state awareness in children’s ability to judge characters’ intentions and to understand the deeper message embedded in fables.

  20. Children’s understanding of Aesop’s fables: relations to reading comprehension and theory of mind

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pelletier, Janette; Beatty, Ruth

    2015-01-01

    Two studies examined children’s developing understanding of Aesop’s fables in relation to reading comprehension and to theory of mind. Study 1 included 172 children from Junior Kindergarten through Grade 6 in a school-wide examination of the relation between reading comprehension skills and understanding of Aesop’s fables told orally. Study 2 examined the relation between theory of mind and fables understanding among 186 Junior (4-year-old) and Senior (5-year-old) Kindergarten children. Study 1 results showed a developmental progression in fables understanding with children’s responses becoming increasingly decontextualized as they were able to extract the life lesson. After general vocabulary, passage comprehension predicted fables understanding. Study 2 results showed a relation between young children’s theory of mind development and their understanding of fables. After general vocabulary, second-order theory of mind predicted children’s fables understanding. Findings point to the importance of developing mental state awareness in children’s ability to judge characters’ intentions and to understand the deeper message embedded in fables. PMID:26500569

  1. IL-15 inhibits pre-B cell proliferation by selectively expanding Mac-1+B220+ NK cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nakajima, Shinsuke; Hida, Shigeaki; Taki, Shinsuke

    2008-01-01

    Natural killer (NK) cells are the cells critical for inhibition of repopulation of allogenic bone marrow cells. However, it is not well known if NK cells affect autologous lymphopoiesis. Here, we observed that NK cells could inhibit pre-B cell proliferation in vitro driven by interleukin (IL)-7 in a manner dependent on IL-15. Interestingly, the great majority of expanding NK cells were Mac-1 + B220 + , a recently identified potent interferon (IFN)-γ producer. Indeed, IFN-γ was produced in those cultures, and pre-B cells lacking IFN-γ receptors, but not those lacking type I IFN receptors, were resistant to such an inhibition. Furthermore, even NK cells from mice lacking β2-microglobulin, which were known to be functionally dampened, inhibited pre-B cell proliferation as well. Thus, activated NK cells, which were expanded selectively by IL-15, could potentially regulate B lymphopoiesis through IFN-γ beyond the selection imposed upon self-recognition

  2. Technical progress in planning organization of the Ostravo-Karwina coal basin, ''Mining Projects of Ostravo''

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Karpeta, B; Kolar, J

    1979-01-01

    Based on the main task of further improvement in labor productivity and improvement in the quality of products, the leading planning organization of the Ostravo-Karwina basin is planning and realizing progressive technological plans based on new equipment. Long-term plans for basin development up to 1990 stipulate a rise in capital investments by 180%, increase in the volume of productivity by 164% with a rise in the number of workers by 142%. Corresponding technical progress in planning is based on an improvement in the system of scientific-technical information, automation and technical equipping of the planning process, improvements in the forms and organizational structure. Organization of specialized research-planning groups to substantiate and to technically-economically evaluate technical progress, and also to develop comprehensive technical assignments is stipulated.

  3. Chronic Progressive Neurodegeneration in a transgenic mouse model of Prion disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nina Fainstein

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Neurodegenerative diseases present pathologically with progressive structural destruction of neurons and accumulation of mis-folded proteins specific for each condition leading to brain atrophy and functional disability. Many animal models exert deposition of pathogenic protein without accompanying neurodegeneration pattern. The lack of a comprehensive model hinders the efforts to develop treatment. We performed longitudinal quantification of cellular, neuronal and synaptic density, as well as of neurogenesis in brains of mice, mimicking for genetic Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease as compared to age matched wild type mice. Mice exhibited a neurodegenerative process indicated by progressive reduction in cortical neurons and synapses, starting at age of 4-6 months, in accordance with neurologic disability. This was accompanied by significant decrease in subventricular/subependymal zone neurogenesis. Although increased hippocampal neurogenesis was detected in mice, a neurodegenerative process of CA1 and CA3 regions associated with impaired hippocampal-dependent memory function was observed. In conclusion, mice exhibit pathological neurodegeneration concomitant with progressive neurological disease, indicating these mice can serve as a model for neurodegenerative diseases.

  4. Chronic Progressive Neurodegeneration in a Transgenic Mouse Model of Prion Disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fainstein, Nina; Dori, Dvir; Frid, Kati; Fritz, Alexa T; Shapiro, Ilona; Gabizon, Ruth; Ben-Hur, Tamir

    2016-01-01

    Neurodegenerative diseases present pathologically with progressive structural destruction of neurons and accumulation of mis-folded proteins specific for each condition leading to brain atrophy and functional disability. Many animal models exert deposition of pathogenic proteins without an accompanying neurodegeneration pattern. The lack of a comprehensive model hinders efforts to develop treatment. We performed longitudinal quantification of cellular, neuronal and synaptic density, as well as of neurogenesis in brains of mice mimicking for genetic Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease as compared to age-matched wild-type mice. Mice exhibited a neurodegenerative process of progressive reduction in cortical neurons and synapses starting at age of 4-6 months, in accord with neurologic disability. This was accompanied by significant decrease in subventricular/subependymal zone neurogenesis. Although increased hippocampal neurogenesis was detected in mice, a neurodegenerative process of CA1 and CA3 regions associated with impaired hippocampal-dependent memory function was observed. In conclusion, mice exhibit pathological neurodegeneration concomitant with neurological disease progression, indicating these mice can serve as a model for neurodegenerative diseases.

  5. The Development of Metaphor Comprehension and Its Relationship with Relational Verbal Reasoning and Executive Function.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carriedo, Nuria; Corral, Antonio; Montoro, Pedro R; Herrero, Laura; Ballestrino, Patricia; Sebastián, Iraia

    2016-01-01

    Our main objective was to analyse the different contributions of relational verbal reasoning (analogical and class inclusion) and executive functioning to metaphor comprehension across development. We postulated that both relational reasoning and executive functioning should predict individual and developmental differences. However, executive functioning would become increasingly involved when metaphor comprehension is highly demanding, either because of the metaphors' high difficulty (relatively novel metaphors in the absence of a context) or because of the individual's special processing difficulties, such as low levels of reading experience or low semantic knowledge. Three groups of participants, 11-year-olds, 15-year-olds and young adults, were assessed in different relational verbal reasoning tasks-analogical and class-inclusion-and in executive functioning tasks-updating information in working memory, inhibition, and shifting. The results revealed clear progress in metaphor comprehension between ages 11 and 15 and between ages 15 and 21. However, the importance of executive function in metaphor comprehension was evident by age 15 and was restricted to updating information in working memory and cognitive inhibition. Participants seemed to use two different strategies to interpret metaphors: relational verbal reasoning and executive functioning. This was clearly shown when comparing the performance of the "more efficient" participants in metaphor interpretation with that of the "less efficient" ones. Whereas in the first case none of the executive variables or those associated with relational verbal reasoning were significantly related to metaphor comprehension, in the latter case, both groups of variables had a clear predictor effect.

  6. Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Technik und Umwelt. Progress report 1994

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-01-01

    The points of main effort which are discussed reflect the institution's R and D scheme. The summaries submitted by the different institutes and departments are compiled by the topics and fields they deal with. The report gives an account of the progress under each of the KfK R and D projects. This correlation facilitates comparisons between the targets and actual achievements and elucidates the general relation between the individual tasks which often are in the care of several institutes at a time. The departments and institutes and their respective tasks are introduced, and a comprehensive appendix is attached which lists the 1994 publications. (orig.) [de

  7. Assessing school-aged children's inference-making: the effect of story test format in listening comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Freed, Jenny; Cain, Kate

    2017-01-01

    Comprehension is critical for classroom learning and educational success. Inferences are integral to good comprehension: successful comprehension requires the listener to generate local coherence inferences, which involve integrating information between clauses, and global coherence inferences, which involve integrating textual information with background knowledge to infer motivations, themes, etc. A central priority for the diagnosis of comprehension difficulties and our understanding of why these difficulties arise is the development of valid assessment instruments. We explored typically developing children's ability to make local and global coherence inferences using a novel assessment of listening comprehension. The aims were to determine whether children were more likely to make the target inferences when these were asked during story presentation versus after presentation of the story, and whether there were any age differences between conditions. Children in Years 3 (n = 29) and 5 (n = 31) listened to short stories presented either in a segmented format, in which questions to assess local and global coherence inferences were asked at specific points during story presentation, or in a whole format, when all the questions were asked after the story had been presented. There was developmental progression between age groups for both types of inference question. Children also scored higher on the global coherence inference questions than the local coherence inference questions. There was a benefit of the segmented format for younger children, particularly for the local inference questions. The results suggest that children are more likely to make target inferences if prompted during presentation of the story, and that this format is particularly facilitative for younger children and for local coherence inferences. This has implications for the design of comprehension assessments as well as for supporting children with comprehension difficulties in the classroom

  8. Quotient-Comprehension Chains

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kenta Cho

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Quotients and comprehension are fundamental mathematical constructions that can be described via adjunctions in categorical logic. This paper reveals that quotients and comprehension are related to measurement, not only in quantum logic, but also in probabilistic and classical logic. This relation is presented by a long series of examples, some of them easy, and some also highly non-trivial (esp. for von Neumann algebras. We have not yet identified a unifying theory. Nevertheless, the paper contributes towards such a theory by introducing the new quotient-and-comprehension perspective on measurement instruments, and by describing the examples on which such a theory should be built.

  9. 27 years of experience with the comprehensive surgical treatment of prune belly syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lopes, R I; Tavares, A; Srougi, M; Dénes, F T

    2015-10-01

    Prune belly syndrome (PBS) presents with three main features: abdominal wall flaccidity, urological abnormalities and cryptorchidism. As a result, urologists must consider the eventual repair of the abdominal wall flaccidity and urinary tract abnormalities, and the mandatory correction of cryptorchidism, as well as decide whether to perform the procedures in a single comprehensive approach or in multiple steps. To report experiences with comprehensive surgical management of prune belly syndrome. From 1987 to 2014, 46 children with PBS were submitted for comprehensive surgical treatment. According to individual needs, treatment aimed to correct the abdominal flaccidity, reconstruct the urinary tract, and perform bilateral orchiopexy and circumcision, which were performed in one procedure. Urinary tract reconstruction was indicated whenever pyelo-ureteral dilatation with evidence of significant stasis and/or vesicoureteral reflux was associated with recurrent urinary tract infections (UTI). Treatment for this cohort included: 44 abdominoplasties, 40 upper urinary tract reconstructions, 44 cystoplasties associated with three appendico-vesicostomies, 46 bilateral orchiopexies and 36 circumcisions. The median age at surgery was 16 months and children were followed for a median of 143 months. Abdominal appearance and tonus were improved in 90% of the children after the primary surgery and 100% after reoperation. Upper urinary tract reconstruction was performed in most children and long-term follow-up showed functional stabilization of the urinary tract in about 90% of the children, with progression to renal failure in 10%. Lower urinary tract reconstruction was performed in most children (95.6%); on late follow-up, continence was observed in 81% of them, while incontinence was present in 19% and usually associated with polyuria. Adequate bladder emptying was possible in most boys (82.6%), while the remaining required clean intermittent catheterization. Pre-operative UTI

  10. The Comprehension Problems of Children with Poor Reading Comprehension despite Adequate Decoding: A Meta-Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spencer, Mercedes; Wagner, Richard K

    2018-06-01

    The purpose of this meta-analysis was to examine the comprehension problems of children who have a specific reading comprehension deficit (SCD), which is characterized by poor reading comprehension despite adequate decoding. The meta-analysis included 86 studies of children with SCD who were assessed in reading comprehension and oral language (vocabulary, listening comprehension, storytelling ability, and semantic and syntactic knowledge). Results indicated that children with SCD had deficits in oral language ( d = -0.78, 95% CI [-0.89, -0.68], but these deficits were not as severe as their deficit in reading comprehension ( d = -2.78, 95% CI [-3.01, -2.54]). When compared to reading comprehension age-matched normal readers, the oral language skills of the two groups were comparable ( d = 0.32, 95% CI [-0.49, 1.14]), which suggests that the oral language weaknesses of children with SCD represent a developmental delay rather than developmental deviance. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

  11. Host microenvironment in breast cancer development: Inflammatory cells, cytokines and chemokines in breast cancer progression: reciprocal tumor–microenvironment interactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ben-Baruch, A

    2003-01-01

    A comprehensive overview of breast cancer development and progression suggests that the process is influenced by intrinsic properties of the tumor cells, as well as by microenvironmental factors. Indeed, in breast carcinoma, an intensive interplay exists between the tumor cells on one hand, and inflammatory cells/cytokines/chemokines on the other. The purpose of the present review is to outline the reciprocal interactions that exist between these different elements, and to shed light on their potential involvement in breast cancer development and progression

  12. On the importance of listening comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hogan, Tiffany P; Adlof, Suzanne M; Alonzo, Crystle N

    2014-06-01

    The simple view of reading highlights the importance of two primary components which account for individual differences in reading comprehension across development: word recognition (i.e., decoding) and listening comprehension. While assessments and interventions for decoding have been the focus of pedagogy in the past several decades, the importance of listening comprehension has received less attention. This paper reviews evidence showing that listening comprehension becomes the dominating influence on reading comprehension starting even in the elementary grades. It also highlights a growing number of children who fail to develop adequate reading comprehension skills, primarily due to deficient listening comprehension skills (i.e., poor comprehenders). Finally we discuss key language influences on listening comprehension for consideration during assessment and treatment of reading disabilities.

  13. Follow-up study on reading comprehension in Down's syndrome: the role of reading skills and listening comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roch, Maja; Florit, Elena; Levorato, Chiara

    2011-01-01

    According to the 'Simple View of Reading', reading comprehension requires some abilities such as reading skill and listening comprehension. Individuals with Down's syndrome show relative strengths in reading skills, mainly in word recognition, where they attain a reading age of about 7-8 years. Compared with word recognition, their reading comprehension is usually delayed by at least 6 months. Poor reading comprehension is paralleled by weak listening comprehension. It is claimed that poor listening comprehension might constrain the development of reading comprehension and, therefore, be a cause for the asynchrony between reading skills and reading comprehension. A follow-up study was carried out in order to analyse the improvements in reading skills, listening and reading text comprehension, and to support the hypothesis of a causal relationship between listening and reading comprehension. Ten children and adolescents with Down's syndrome, aged between 11 years 3 months and 19 years 10 months, were assessed twice over a one-year period as to their reading skills, listening and reading text comprehension. Three main findings emerged: (1) reading skills, on the one hand, and comprehension (both listening and reading), on the other hand, are independent; (2) reading comprehension development is determined mainly by listening comprehension, which in the present study proved to be very poor; and (3) an improvement after a one-year period, even though limited, occurred for all examined abilities except for listening comprehension. The results are discussed in the light of the theoretical framework of the 'Simple View of Reading' and of their relevance for practical and educational issues. © 2011 Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists.

  14. Age-related differences in warning symbol comprehension and training effectiveness: effects of familiarity, complexity, and comprehensibility.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lesch, M F; Horrey, W J; Wogalter, M S; Powell, W R

    2011-10-01

    Age-related changes in selective attention, inhibitory efficiency, and the ability to form new associations suggest that older adults may have greater difficulty with more complex and less comprehensible symbols. We examined comprehension of symbols varying in terms of ratings of familiarity, complexity, and comprehensibility, by younger (aged 18-35) and older (aged 55-70) adults. It was found that older adults have greater difficulty than younger adults in comprehending warning symbols and that accident scenario training improves comprehension. Regression analyses indicated that familiarity and comprehensibility were important in determining performance on the pre-training comprehension test by both younger and older adults. However, training eliminated the effects of stimulus characteristics for younger adults, while older adults' comprehension continued to be significantly influenced by comprehensibility. We suggest that symbol design incorporates cues to knowledge to facilitate the linkage between new knowledge (i.e. the warning symbol) and relevant knowledge in long-term memory. Statement of Relevance: Symbol characteristics play an important role in age-related differences in warning symbol comprehension. To optimise comprehension by older adults, symbols should have a clear relationship with areal-world referent. Alternatively, symbol design could incorporate cues to knowledge to facilitate the linkage between new knowledge and relevant knowledge in long-term memory.

  15. Reading comprehension in Parkinson's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murray, Laura L; Rutledge, Stefanie

    2014-05-01

    Although individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD) self-report reading problems and experience difficulties in cognitive-linguistic functions that support discourse-level reading, prior research has primarily focused on sentence-level processing and auditory comprehension. Accordingly, the authors investigated the presence and nature of reading comprehension in PD, hypothesizing that (a) individuals with PD would display impaired accuracy and/or speed on reading comprehension tests and (b) reading performances would be correlated with cognitive test results. Eleven adults with PD and 9 age- and education-matched control participants completed tests that evaluated reading comprehension; general language and cognitive abilities; and aspects of attention, memory, and executive functioning. The PD group obtained significantly lower scores on several, but not all, reading comprehension, language, and cognitive measures. Memory, language, and disease severity were significantly correlated with reading comprehension for the PD group. Individuals in the early stages of PD without dementia or broad cognitive deficits can display reading comprehension difficulties, particularly for high- versus basic-level reading tasks. These reading difficulties are most closely related to memory, high-level language, and PD symptom severity status. The findings warrant additional research to delineate further the types and nature of reading comprehension impairments experienced by individuals with PD.

  16. Research and development at Karlsruhe Nuclear Research Center. Progress report 1993

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1994-01-01

    The Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe progress report is the 1993 issue of the scientific reports the institution is bound to submitt each year according to para. 13.4 of its articles of partnership. The points of main effort which are discussed reflect the institution's R and D scheme. The summaries submitted by the different institutes and departments are compiled by the topics and fields they deal with. The report gives an account of the progress under each of the KfK R and D projects. This correlation facilitates comparisons between the targets and actual achievements and elucidates the general relation between the individual tasks which often are in the care of several institutes at a time. The departments and institutes and their respective tasks are introduced, and a comprehensive appendix is attached which lists the 1993 publications. (orig.) [de

  17. Overlapping genetic and child-specific nonshared environmental influences on listening comprehension, reading motivation, and reading comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schenker, Victoria J; Petrill, Stephen A

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated the genetic and environmental influences on observed associations between listening comprehension, reading motivation, and reading comprehension. Univariate and multivariate quantitative genetic models were conducted in a sample of 284 pairs of twins at a mean age of 9.81 years. Genetic and nonshared environmental factors accounted for statistically significant variance in listening and reading comprehension, and nonshared environmental factors accounted for variance in reading motivation. Furthermore, listening comprehension demonstrated unique genetic and nonshared environmental influences but also had overlapping genetic influences with reading comprehension. Reading motivation and reading comprehension each had unique and overlapping nonshared environmental contributions. Therefore, listening comprehension appears to be related to reading primarily due to genetic factors whereas motivation appears to affect reading via child-specific, nonshared environmental effects. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Overlapping Genetic and Child-Specific Nonshared Environmental Influences on Listening Comprehension, Reading Motivation, and Reading Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schenker, Victoria J.; Petrill, Stephen A.

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated the genetic and environmental influences on observed associations between listening comprehension, reading motivation, and reading comprehension. Univariate and multivariate quantitative genetic models were conducted in a sample of 284 pairs of twins at a mean age of 9.81 years. Genetic and nonshared environmental factors accounted for statistically significant variance in listening and reading comprehension, and nonshared environmental factors accounted for variance in reading motivation. Furthermore, listening comprehension demonstrated unique genetic and nonshared environmental influences but also had overlapping genetic influences with reading comprehension. Reading motivation and reading comprehension each had unique and overlapping nonshared environmental contributions. Therefore, listening comprehension appears to be related to reading primarily due to genetic factors whereas motivation appears to affect reading via child-specific, nonshared environmental effects. PMID:26321677

  19. A Canine Audience: The Effect of Animal-Assisted Therapy on Reading Progress among Students Identified with Learning Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Griess, Julie Omodio

    2010-01-01

    This study explored the use of animal-assisted therapy with students identified with a learning disability and limited reading success. Initially, reading progress was defined as the participants' comprehension rate obtained from an oral Informal Reading Inventory (IRI) passage. The nature of the Informal Reading Inventory requires the…

  20. Fundamental Reform of Payment for Adult Primary Care: Comprehensive Payment for Comprehensive Care

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berenson, Robert A.; Schoenbaum, Stephen C.; Gardner, Laurence B.

    2007-01-01

    Primary care is essential to the effective and efficient functioning of health care delivery systems, yet there is an impending crisis in the field due in part to a dysfunctional payment system. We present a fundamentally new model of payment for primary care, replacing encounter-based imbursement with comprehensive payment for comprehensive care. Unlike former iterations of primary care capitation (which simply bundled inadequate fee-for-service payments), our comprehensive payment model represents new investment in adult primary care, with substantial increases in payment over current levels. The comprehensive payment is directed to practices to include support for the modern systems and teams essential to the delivery of comprehensive, coordinated care. Income to primary physicians is increased commensurate with the high level of responsibility expected. To ensure optimal allocation of resources and the rewarding of desired outcomes, the comprehensive payment is needs/risk-adjusted and performance-based. Our model establishes a new social contract with the primary care community, substantially increasing payment in return for achieving important societal health system goals, including improved accessibility, quality, safety, and efficiency. Attainment of these goals should help offset and justify the costs of the investment. Field tests of this and other new models of payment for primary care are urgently needed. PMID:17356977

  1. The evolution of primary progressive apraxia of speech.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Josephs, Keith A; Duffy, Joseph R; Strand, Edythe A; Machulda, Mary M; Senjem, Matthew L; Gunter, Jeffrey L; Schwarz, Christopher G; Reid, Robert I; Spychalla, Anthony J; Lowe, Val J; Jack, Clifford R; Whitwell, Jennifer L

    2014-10-01

    Primary progressive apraxia of speech is a recently described neurodegenerative disorder in which patients present with an isolated apraxia of speech and show focal degeneration of superior premotor cortex. Little is known about how these individuals progress over time, making it difficult to provide prognostic estimates. Thirteen subjects with primary progressive apraxia of speech underwent two serial comprehensive clinical and neuroimaging evaluations 2.4 years apart [median age of onset = 67 years (range: 49-76), seven females]. All underwent detailed speech and language, neurological and neuropsychological assessments, and magnetic resonance imaging, diffusion tensor imaging and (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography at both baseline and follow-up. Rates of change of whole brain, ventricle, and midbrain volumes were calculated using the boundary-shift integral and atlas-based parcellation, and rates of regional grey matter atrophy were assessed using tensor-based morphometry. White matter tract degeneration was assessed on diffusion-tensor imaging at each time-point. Patterns of hypometabolism were assessed at the single subject-level. Neuroimaging findings were compared with a cohort of 20 age, gender, and scan-interval matched healthy controls. All subjects developed extrapyramidal signs. In eight subjects the apraxia of speech remained the predominant feature. In the other five there was a striking progression of symptoms that had evolved into a progressive supranuclear palsy-like syndrome; they showed a combination of severe parkinsonism, near mutism, dysphagia with choking, vertical supranuclear gaze palsy or slowing, balance difficulties with falls and urinary incontinence, and one was wheelchair bound. Rates of whole brain atrophy (1.5% per year; controls = 0.4% per year), ventricular expansion (8.0% per year; controls = 3.3% per year) and midbrain atrophy (1.5% per year; controls = 0.1% per year) were elevated (P ≤ 0.001) in all 13

  2. Spectrum of physics comprehension

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blasiak, W; Godlewska, M; Rosiek, R; Wcislo, D

    2012-01-01

    The paper presents the results of research on the relationship between self-assessed comprehension of physics lectures and final grades of junior high school students (aged 13-15), high school students (aged 16-18) and physics students at the Pedagogical University of Cracow, Poland (aged 21). Students' declared level of comprehension was measured during a physics lecture on a prearranged scale of 1-10 with the use of a personal response system designed for the purpose of this experiment. Through the use of this tool, we obtained about 2000 computer records of students' declared comprehension of a 45 min lecture, which we named ‘the spectrum of comprehension’. In this paper, we present and analyse the correlation between students' declared comprehension of the content presented in the lecture and their final learning results. (paper)

  3. The Development of Metaphor Comprehension and Its Relationship with Relational Verbal Reasoning and Executive Function.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nuria Carriedo

    Full Text Available Our main objective was to analyse the different contributions of relational verbal reasoning (analogical and class inclusion and executive functioning to metaphor comprehension across development. We postulated that both relational reasoning and executive functioning should predict individual and developmental differences. However, executive functioning would become increasingly involved when metaphor comprehension is highly demanding, either because of the metaphors' high difficulty (relatively novel metaphors in the absence of a context or because of the individual's special processing difficulties, such as low levels of reading experience or low semantic knowledge. Three groups of participants, 11-year-olds, 15-year-olds and young adults, were assessed in different relational verbal reasoning tasks-analogical and class-inclusion-and in executive functioning tasks-updating information in working memory, inhibition, and shifting. The results revealed clear progress in metaphor comprehension between ages 11 and 15 and between ages 15 and 21. However, the importance of executive function in metaphor comprehension was evident by age 15 and was restricted to updating information in working memory and cognitive inhibition. Participants seemed to use two different strategies to interpret metaphors: relational verbal reasoning and executive functioning. This was clearly shown when comparing the performance of the "more efficient" participants in metaphor interpretation with that of the "less efficient" ones. Whereas in the first case none of the executive variables or those associated with relational verbal reasoning were significantly related to metaphor comprehension, in the latter case, both groups of variables had a clear predictor effect.

  4. Disaster Metrics: A Comprehensive Framework for Disaster Evaluation Typologies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, Diana F; Spencer, Caroline; Boyd, Lee; Burkle, Frederick M; Archer, Frank

    2017-10-01

    framework. This unique, unifying framework has relevance at an international level and is expected to benefit the disaster, humanitarian, and development sectors. The next step is to undertake a validation process that will include international leaders with experience in evaluation, in general, and disasters specifically. This work promotes an environment for constructive dialogue on evaluations in the disaster setting to strengthen the evidence base for interventions across the disaster spectrum. It remains a work in progress. Wong DF , Spencer C , Boyd L , Burkle FM Jr. , Archer F . Disaster metrics: a comprehensive framework for disaster evaluation typologies. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2017;32(5):501-514.

  5. Research Progress of Lung Cancer with Leptomeningeal Metastasis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chunhua MA

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available Leptomeningeal metastases is one of the most serious complications of lung cancer, the patients with poor prognosis. Leptomeningeal metastasis in patients with lack specificity of clinical manifestations. The main clinical performance are the damage of cerebral symptoms, cranial nerve and spinal nerve. The diagnosis primarily based on the history of tumor, clinical symptoms, enhance magnetic resnance image (MRI scan and cerebrospinal fluid cytology. In recent years, new ways of detecting clinically, significantly increase the rate of early detection of leptomeningeal metastases. The effect of comprehensive treatments are still sad. The paper make a review of research progress in pathologic physiology, clinical manifestations, diagnosis methods and treatments of lung cancer with leptomeningeal metastases.

  6. Esophageal stent implantation for the treatment of esophageal strictures: its current situation and research progress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhu Haidong; Guo Jinhe; Teng Gaojun

    2011-01-01

    Esophageal stent implantation has been the most common therapy for the treatment of malignant and benign esophageal stenosis. At present, this technique is widely used in treating advanced esophageal cancerous stricture, refractory esophageal benign stricture and all kinds of esophageal fistulae or perforation. This paper aims to make a comprehensive review of the current situation and research progress of the esophageal stent implantation in clinical practice. (authors)

  7. Ibrutinib inhibits pre-BCR+ B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia progression by targeting BTK and BLK.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Ekaterina; Hurtz, Christian; Koehrer, Stefan; Wang, Zhiqiang; Balasubramanian, Sriram; Chang, Betty Y; Müschen, Markus; Davis, R Eric; Burger, Jan A

    2017-03-02

    Targeting B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling is a successful therapeutic strategy in mature B-cell malignancies. Precursor BCR (pre-BCR) signaling, which is critical during normal B lymphopoiesis, also plays an important role in pre-BCR + B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL). Here, we investigated the activity and mechanism of action of the BTK inhibitor ibrutinib in preclinical models of B-ALL. Pre-BCR + ALL cells were exquisitely sensitive to ibrutinib at therapeutically relevant drug concentrations. In pre-BCR + ALL, ibrutinib thwarted autonomous and induced pre-BCR signaling, resulting in deactivation of PI3K/Akt signaling. Ibrutinib modulated the expression of pre-BCR regulators (PTPN6, CD22, CD72, and PKCβ) and substantially reduced BCL6 levels. Ibrutinib inhibited ALL cell migration toward CXCL12 and beneath marrow stromal cells and reduced CD44 expression. CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing revealed that both BTK and B lymphocyte kinase (BLK) are relevant targets of ibrutinib in pre-BCR + ALL. Consequently, in mouse xenograft models of pre-BCR + ALL, ibrutinib treatment significantly prolonged survival. Combination treatment of ibrutinib with dexamethasone or vincristine demonstrated synergistic activity against pre-BCR + ALL. These data corroborate ibrutinib as a promising targeted agent for pre-BCR + ALL and highlight the importance of ibrutinib effects on alternative kinase targets. © 2017 by The American Society of Hematology.

  8. Cultural Knowledge in News Comprehension

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mathieu, David

    2009-01-01

    This paper presents the main lines of the design and the findings of a reception study on news comprehension. This empirical study is a comparison of the comprehension processes of Danes and French Canadians over a set of news texts from both countries. Comprehension is explored from a cultural...... perspective, through the lens of cognition and pragmatics, revealing the role played by cultural knowledge in comprehension and the underlying relationship between a text and its intended audience. It is argued that recipients ‘problematise’ the news texts, a process by which the texts answer questions...

  9. 2016 Annual Progress Report: DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Satyapal, Sunita [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2017-02-01

    In the past year, the DOE Hydrogen Program (the Program) made substantial progress toward its goals and objectives. The Program has conducted comprehensive and focused efforts to enable the widespread commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in diverse sectors of the economy. With emphasis on applications that will effectively strengthen our nation's energy security and improve our stewardship of the environment, the Program engages in research, development, and demonstration of critical improvements in the technologies. Highlights of the Program's accomplishments can be found in the sub-program chapters of this report.

  10. 2015 Annual Progress Report: DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Popovich, Neil

    2015-12-01

    In the past year, the DOE Hydrogen Program (the Program) made substantial progress toward its goals and objectives. The Program has conducted comprehensive and focused efforts to enable the widespread commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in diverse sectors of the economy. With emphasis on applications that will effectively strengthen our nation's energy security and improve our stewardship of the environment, the Program engages in research, development, and demonstration of critical improvements in the technologies. Highlights of the Program's accomplishments can be found in the sub-program chapters of this report.

  11. 2012 Annual Progress Report: DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2012-12-01

    In the past year, the DOE Hydrogen Program (the Program) made substantial progress toward its goals and objectives. The Program has conducted comprehensive and focused efforts to enable the widespread commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in diverse sectors of the economy. With emphasis on applications that will effectively strengthen our nation's energy security and improve our stewardship of the environment, the Program engages in research, development, and demonstration of critical improvements in the technologies. Highlights of the Program's accomplishments can be found in the sub-program chapters of this report.

  12. A comprehensible need of zinc oxide varistors in electronics technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mehmood, F.S.

    2007-01-01

    A range of varistors, in terms of break down voltage, is required to protect integrated circuits, automotive systems and other modern electronics against transient over-voltages. There is a progressing need for the development and advancement of rugged and reliable varistor capable and proficient of working in harsh and callous environment like automotive Industry where greater than before use of electronics technology has led to improvements in equipment performance and presentation. There is a comprehensible need to combine triumphant and successable models developed at different length scales into an integrated framework that can be used to drive new research and guide experimental efforts and device development. The review of ZnO varistor in particular and metal-oxide varistors (MOVs) in general is presented In this article. (author)

  13. Population Characteristics and Progressive Disability in Neurofibromatosis Type 2.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iwatate, Kensho; Yokoo, Takeshi; Iwatate, Eriko; Ichikawa, Masahiro; Sato, Taku; Fujii, Masazumi; Sakuma, Jun; Saito, Kiyoshi

    2017-10-01

    To characterize the clinical features of patients with neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) and determine prognostic risk factors for progressive disabilities. In this retrospective cohort study of the Japanese national NF2 registry between 2009 and 2013, clinical data (demographic, history, oncologic, and neurologic) of 807 patients with a diagnosis of NF2 were analyzed. The overall severity of neurologic disability was assessed using a comprehensive 25-point scoring system encompassing a wide variety of neurologic deficits. In 587 patients in whom longitudinal disability data were available, multivariate logistic regression was performed to identify risk factors for significant progression of disability. The clinical characteristics of the Japanese NF2 population were heterogeneous. The median age of onset was 24 years (range, 1-80 years), the male:female ratio was 1:1.29, and the initial severity score was 4 (range, 0-22) out of 25 points. A family history of NF2 was present in 33% of the patients. Most frequent clinical features were bilateral cranial nerve VIII nerve sheath tumor (NST) in 87%, spinal NST in 80%, hearing loss in 65%, spinal dysfunction in 50%, intracranial meningioma in 49%, and facial paresis in 36%. The disability score progressed by ≥5 points in 6.1% of patients over the study period. Based on multivariate logistic regression analyses, the significant independent risk factors of progression (P value) included age of onset history (P = 0.007), positive treatment history (P = 0.026), hearing loss (P = 0.014), facial paresis (P = 0.015), blindness (P = 0.011), and hemiparesis (P = 0.025). The Japanese NF2 population has heterogeneous clinical features. Risk factors for progressive disability include younger age of onset, positive family history, positive treatment history, and specific neurologic deficits. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Alcohol consumption and the neoplastic progression in Barrett's esophagus: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhifeng Lou

    Full Text Available PURPOSE: In the developed countries, the incidence of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC is increasing over recent decades. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to arrive at quantitative conclusions about the contribution of alcohol intakes and the progression of Barrett's esophagus. METHODS: A comprehensive, systematic bibliographic search of medical literature published up to Oct 2013 was conducted to identify relevant studies. A meta-analysis was conducted for alcohol consumption on the Barrett's esophagus progression. RESULTS: A total of 882 cases in 6,867 individuals from 14 observational studies were indemnified in this meta-analysis. The result of this current meta-analysis, including 10 case-control and 4 cohort studies, indicated that alcohol consumption was not associated with the neoplastic progression in Barrett's esophagus (RR, 1.17; 95% CI, 0.93-1.48. When stratified by the study designs, no significant association was detected in either high vs low group or ever vs never group. CONCLUSIONS: Alcohol drinking is not associated with risk of neoplastic progression in Barrett's esophagus. Further well designed studies are needed in this area.

  15. Imaging in primary progressive aphasia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abe, K.; Ukita, H.; Yanagihara, T.

    1997-01-01

    Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) presents with aphasia, with or without other minor cognitive dysfunction. We report five patients with PPA to show the correlation between their clinical signs and imaging findings. The patients can be divided into those with nonfluent (group 1) and those with fluent (group 2) aphasia. The characteristic speech impairment was bradylalia in group 1 and word amnesia in group 2. Impairment of comprehension was common but mild in both groups. On MRI, patients in group 1 showed predominantly left frontal and perisylvian atrophy with reduced uptake in the same region on single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) using technetium-99m hexamethyl propyleneamine oxime ( 99m Tc HMPAO). Patients in group 2 showed left temporal atrophy involving the superior, middle and inferior temporal gyri, hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus on MRI and reduced uptake in the same region on SPECT. These findings correlated well with the functional anatomy of speech impairment. (orig.). With 4 figs., 1 tab

  16. Imaging in primary progressive aphasia

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abe, K. [Department of Neurology, Osaka University Medical School, 2-2 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565 (Japan); Ukita, H. [Rehabilitation Service, Osaka University Hospital, Osaka (Japan); Yanagihara, T. [Department of Neurology, Osaka University Medical School, 2-2 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565 (Japan)

    1997-08-01

    Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) presents with aphasia, with or without other minor cognitive dysfunction. We report five patients with PPA to show the correlation between their clinical signs and imaging findings. The patients can be divided into those with nonfluent (group 1) and those with fluent (group 2) aphasia. The characteristic speech impairment was bradylalia in group 1 and word amnesia in group 2. Impairment of comprehension was common but mild in both groups. On MRI, patients in group 1 showed predominantly left frontal and perisylvian atrophy with reduced uptake in the same region on single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) using technetium-99m hexamethyl propyleneamine oxime ({sup 99m}Tc HMPAO). Patients in group 2 showed left temporal atrophy involving the superior, middle and inferior temporal gyri, hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus on MRI and reduced uptake in the same region on SPECT. These findings correlated well with the functional anatomy of speech impairment. (orig.). With 4 figs., 1 tab.

  17. A Comprehensive Literature Review of 50 Years of Fuzzy Set Theory

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cengiz Kahraman

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available fuzzy sets have a great progress in every scientific research area. it found many application areas in both theoretical and practical studies from engineering area to arts and humanities, from computer science to health sciences, and from life sciences to physical sciences. in this paper, a comprehensive literature review on the fuzzy set theory is realized. in the recent years, ordinary fuzzy sets have been extended to new types and these extensions have been used in many areas such as energy, medicine, material, economics and pharmacology sciences. this literature review also analyzes the chronological development of these extensions. in the last section of the paper, we present our interpretations on the future of fuzzy sets.

  18. Quantitative Evaluation of Heavy Duty Machine Tools Remanufacturing Based on Modified Catastrophe Progression Method

    Science.gov (United States)

    shunhe, Li; jianhua, Rao; lin, Gui; weimin, Zhang; degang, Liu

    2017-11-01

    The result of remanufacturing evaluation is the basis for judging whether the heavy duty machine tool can remanufacture in the EOL stage of the machine tool lifecycle management.The objectivity and accuracy of evaluation is the key to the evaluation method.In this paper, the catastrophe progression method is introduced into the quantitative evaluation of heavy duty machine tools’ remanufacturing,and the results are modified by the comprehensive adjustment method,which makes the evaluation results accord with the standard of human conventional thinking.Using the catastrophe progression method to establish the heavy duty machine tools’ quantitative evaluation model,to evaluate the retired TK6916 type CNC floor milling-boring machine’s remanufacturing.The evaluation process is simple,high quantification,the result is objective.

  19. Progress of long coated conductors fabrication with fluorine-free CSD method at SWJTU

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao, Y.; Wang, W.T.; Lei, M.; Pu, M.H.; Zhang, Y.; Cheng, C.H.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • Recent progress on the long coated conductors fabrication by F-free CSD method is presented. • Single buffer and partial-melting technology and slot-die coating methods have been developed. • Reel-to-reel facilities for continuous process have been achieved. -- Abstract: Recent progress on the fabrication of long high-T c superconducting coated conductors with a fluorine-free chemical solution deposition (CSD) method is presented. Developments including such novel methods as single buffer technology, partial-melting process on YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 (YBCO), slot-die coating and drying; reel-to-reel facilities for continuous process have been achieved in the effort on high-T c superconducting coated conductors at SWJTU, which form a comprehensive technology to fabricate long coated tapes with high performances

  20. Progress of long coated conductors fabrication with fluorine-free CSD method at SWJTU

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhao, Y., E-mail: yzhao@swjtu.edu.cn [Key Lab of Advanced Materials Technologies, Key Lab of Magnetic Levitation Technologies and Maglev Trains (Ministry of Education), Superconductivity and New Energy Center (SNEC), Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031 (China); School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2052, NSW (Australia); Wang, W.T.; Lei, M.; Pu, M.H.; Zhang, Y. [Key Lab of Advanced Materials Technologies, Key Lab of Magnetic Levitation Technologies and Maglev Trains (Ministry of Education), Superconductivity and New Energy Center (SNEC), Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031 (China); Cheng, C.H. [School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2052, NSW (Australia)

    2013-10-15

    Highlights: • Recent progress on the long coated conductors fabrication by F-free CSD method is presented. • Single buffer and partial-melting technology and slot-die coating methods have been developed. • Reel-to-reel facilities for continuous process have been achieved. -- Abstract: Recent progress on the fabrication of long high-T{sub c} superconducting coated conductors with a fluorine-free chemical solution deposition (CSD) method is presented. Developments including such novel methods as single buffer technology, partial-melting process on YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7} (YBCO), slot-die coating and drying; reel-to-reel facilities for continuous process have been achieved in the effort on high-T{sub c} superconducting coated conductors at SWJTU, which form a comprehensive technology to fabricate long coated tapes with high performances.

  1. Case in Language Comprehension

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bader, Markus; Lamers, Monique

    2012-01-01

    Research on human language comprehension has been heavily influenced by properties of the English language. Since case plays only a minor role in English, its role for language comprehension has only recently become a topic for extensive research on psycholinguistics. In the psycholinguistic

  2. Listening Comprehension in Middle-Aged Adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sommers, Mitchell S

    2015-06-01

    The purpose of this summary is to examine changes in listening comprehension across the adult lifespan and to identify factors associated with individual differences in listening comprehension. In this article, the author reports on both cross-sectional and longitudinal changes in listening comprehension. Despite significant declines in both sensory and cognitive abilities, listening comprehension remains relatively unchanged in middle-aged listeners (between the ages of 40 and 60 years) compared with young listeners. These results are discussed with respect to possible compensatory factors that maintain listening comprehension despite impaired hearing and reduced cognitive capacities.

  3. The Role of First-Language Listening Comprehension in Second-Language Reading Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Edele, Aileen; Stanat, Petra

    2016-01-01

    Although the simple view of reading and other theories suggest that listening comprehension is an important determinant of reading comprehension, previous research on linguistic transfer has mainly focused on the role of first language (L1) decoding skills in second language (L2) reading. The present study tested the assumption that listening…

  4. Diverse Roles of Inhibitor of Differentiation 2 in Adaptive Immunity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lucille Rankin

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available The helix-loop-helix (HLH transcription factor inhibitor of DNA binding 2 (Id2 has been implicated as a regulator of hematopoiesis and embryonic development. While its role in early lymphopoiesis has been well characterized, new roles in adaptive immune responses have recently been uncovered opening exciting new directions for investigation. In the innate immune system, Id2 is required for the development of mature natural killer (NK cells, lymphoid tissue-inducer (LTi cells, and the recently identified interleukin (IL-22 secreting nonconventional innate lymphocytes found in the gut. In addition, Id2 has been implicated in the development of specific dendritic cell (DC subsets, decisions determining the formation of αβ and γδ T-cell development, NK T-cell behaviour, and in the maintenance of effector and memory CD8+ T cells in peripheral tissues. Here, we review the current understanding of the role of Id2 in lymphopoiesis and in the development of the adaptive immune response required for maintaining immune homeostasis and immune protection.

  5. Benchmarking Successional Progress in a Quantitative Food Web

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boit, Alice; Gaedke, Ursula

    2014-01-01

    ecological theory to form a complete picture of successional progress within a pelagic food web. This comprehensive synthesis may be used as a benchmark for quantifying successional progress in other ecosystems. PMID:24587353

  6. Benchmarking successional progress in a quantitative food web.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alice Boit

    previously disjoint bodies of ecological theory to form a complete picture of successional progress within a pelagic food web. This comprehensive synthesis may be used as a benchmark for quantifying successional progress in other ecosystems.

  7. Benchmarking successional progress in a quantitative food web.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boit, Alice; Gaedke, Ursula

    2014-01-01

    ecological theory to form a complete picture of successional progress within a pelagic food web. This comprehensive synthesis may be used as a benchmark for quantifying successional progress in other ecosystems.

  8. First-grade cognitive abilities as long-term predictors of reading comprehension and disability status.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fuchs, Douglas; Compton, Donald L; Fuchs, Lynn S; Bryant, V Joan; Hamlett, Carol L; Lambert, Warren

    2012-01-01

    In a sample of 195 first graders selected for poor reading performance, the authors explored four cognitive predictors of later reading comprehension and reading disability (RD) status. In fall of first grade, the authors measured the children's phonological processing, rapid automatized naming (RAN), oral language comprehension, and nonverbal reasoning. Throughout first grade, they also modeled the students' reading progress by means of weekly Word Identification Fluency (WIF) tests to derive December and May intercepts. The authors assessed their reading comprehension in the spring of Grades 1-5. With the four cognitive variables and the WIF December intercept as predictors, 50.3% of the variance in fifth-grade reading comprehension was explained: 52.1% of this 50.3% was unique to the cognitive variables, 13.1% to the WIF December intercept, and 34.8% was shared. All five predictors were statistically significant. The same four cognitive variables with the May (rather than December) WIF intercept produced a model that explained 62.1% of the variance. Of this amount, the cognitive variables and May WIF intercept accounted for 34.5% and 27.7%, respectively; they shared 37.8%. All predictors in this model were statistically significant except RAN. Logistic regression analyses indicated that the accuracy with which the cognitive variables predicted end-of-fifth-grade RD status was 73.9%. The May WIF intercept contributed reliably to this prediction; the December WIF intercept did not. Results are discussed in terms of a role for cognitive abilities in identifying, classifying, and instructing students with severe reading problems.

  9. POOR PROGRESS STUDENTS IN LEARNING MATHEMATICS AS SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL-PEDAGOGICAL PROBLEM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vladimir Tatochenko

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to theoretical substantiation of modern methodical system of Mathematics teaching of poor progressing secondary school pupils. A systematic approach to the study of psycho-pedagogical determinants of poor progress of pupils in math was implemented. The dynamic of interfunctional relationship of structure of educational and informative sphere of poor progressing pupils in mathematics was disclosed and scientific understanding of this process was expanded. The introduction in the educational process of didactic methodical and psychologically balanced methodical control system and correction of poor progressing students’ in Maths improves quality indicators of their permanent knowledge and skills. It allows you to discover the fullness, depth and durability of learning at different stages and levels of education, it contributes to correction, management and partly self-management learning process of poor progressing students in Mathematics, excites them to an active mental activity promotes the development of a conscious attitude to their systematic academic work. The essence of “poor progress” phenomena is observed as well as “educational retardation” of school students during teaching mathematics. Target orientation, the resource potential of the real educational process of poor progressing pupils in Mathematics are determined. Contradictions are singled out and pedagogical conditions of results control of learning outcomes of comprehensive school pupils are proved. An attempt to consider the academic failure of schoolchildren in Mathematics in connection with the main categories of didactics – the content and the learning process was made. Certain shortcomings of teaching and learning activities of students in the study of Mathematics are highlighted as poor progressing elements and gaps. The process and content, enriched with the use of NIT, ensuring the formation of key competencies of lagging behind and

  10. Production Practice During Language Learning Improves Comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hopman, Elise W M; MacDonald, Maryellen C

    2018-04-01

    Language learners often spend more time comprehending than producing a new language. However, memory research suggests reasons to suspect that production practice might provide a stronger learning experience than comprehension practice. We tested the benefits of production during language learning and the degree to which this learning transfers to comprehension skill. We taught participants an artificial language containing multiple linguistic dependencies. Participants were randomly assigned to either a production- or a comprehension-learning condition, with conditions designed to balance attention demands and other known production-comprehension differences. After training, production-learning participants outperformed comprehension-learning participants on vocabulary comprehension and on comprehension tests of grammatical dependencies, even when we controlled for individual differences in vocabulary learning. This result shows that producing a language during learning can improve subsequent comprehension, which has implications for theories of memory and learning, language representations, and educational practices.

  11. The Effectiveness of the Barton’s Intervention Program on Reading Comprehension and Reading Attitude of Students with Dyslexia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mihandoost, Zeinab; Elias, Habibah

    2011-01-01

    Objective: The current research tested the differences in reading attitude and reading comprehension in the dyslexic students between the control group and the experimental group following the Barton intervention program. Methods: Dyslexia screening instrument and reading text were employed in order to identify dyslexic students. The population of the study included 138 dyslexic students studying in schools in Ilam, Iran. From this population, 64 students were randomly selected and assigned to an experimental group as well as a control group. The experimental group was taught for 36 sessions, using the Barton’s method at two levels, and ten lessons were provided to improve the reading skill. The reading comprehension and reading attitude instruments were employed for the measurement of the attitude and comprehension before and after the intervention program. Results: The analysis of covariance showed a significant difference between the control group and the experimental group following the Barton intervention program. Conclusion: This study showed that dyslexic students learned to read, and a more direct instruction related to decoding could influence their progress more than the general exposure to education. PMID:24644446

  12. Classification and clinicoradiologic features of primary progressive aphasia (PPA) and apraxia of speech.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Botha, Hugo; Duffy, Joseph R; Whitwell, Jennifer L; Strand, Edythe A; Machulda, Mary M; Schwarz, Christopher G; Reid, Robert I; Spychalla, Anthony J; Senjem, Matthew L; Jones, David T; Lowe, Val; Jack, Clifford R; Josephs, Keith A

    2015-08-01

    The consensus criteria for the diagnosis and classification of primary progressive aphasia (PPA) have served as an important tool in studying this group of disorders. However, a large proportion of patients remain unclassifiable whilst others simultaneously meet criteria for multiple subtypes. We prospectively evaluated a large cohort of patients with degenerative aphasia and/or apraxia of speech using multidisciplinary clinical assessments and multimodal imaging. Blinded diagnoses were made using operational definitions with important differences compared to the consensus criteria. Of the 130 included patients, 40 were diagnosed with progressive apraxia of speech (PAOS), 12 with progressive agrammatic aphasia, 9 with semantic dementia, 52 with logopenic progressive aphasia, and 4 with progressive fluent aphasia, while 13 were unclassified. The PAOS and progressive fluent aphasia groups were least impaired. Performance on repetition and sentence comprehension was especially poor in the logopenic group. The semantic and progressive fluent aphasia groups had prominent anomia, but only semantic subjects had loss of word meaning and object knowledge. Distinct patterns of grey matter loss and white matter changes were found in all groups compared to controls. PAOS subjects had bilateral frontal grey matter loss, including the premotor and supplementary motor areas, and bilateral frontal white matter involvement. The agrammatic group had more widespread, predominantly left sided grey matter loss and white matter abnormalities. Semantic subjects had bitemporal grey matter loss and white matter changes, including the uncinate and inferior occipitofrontal fasciculi, whereas progressive fluent subjects only had left sided temporal involvement. Logopenic subjects had diffuse and bilateral grey matter loss and diffusion tensor abnormalities, maximal in the posterior temporal region. A diagnosis of logopenic aphasia was strongly associated with being amyloid positive (46

  13. Spectrum of Physics Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blasiak, W.; Godlewska, M.; Rosiek, R.; Wcislo, D.

    2012-01-01

    The paper presents the results of research on the relationship between self-assessed comprehension of physics lectures and final grades of junior high school students (aged 13-15), high school students (aged 16-18) and physics students at the Pedagogical University of Cracow, Poland (aged 21). Students' declared level of comprehension was measured…

  14. Preparing for reading comprehension: Fostering text comprehension skills in preschool and early elementary school children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paul van den Brook

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available To understand what they read or hear, children and adults must create a coherent mental representation of presented information. Recent research suggests that the ability to do so starts to develop early –well before reading age- and that early individual differences are predictive of later reading-comprehension performance. In this paper, we review this research and discuss potential applications to early intervention. We then present two exploratory studies in which we examine whether it is feasible to design interventions with early readers (3rd grade and even toddlers (2-3 years old. The interventions employed causal questioning techniques as children listen to orally presented, age-appropriate narratives. Afterwards, comprehension was tested through question answering and recall tasks. Results indicate that such interventions are indeed feasible. Moreover, they suggest that for both toddlers and early readers questions during comprehension are more effective than questions after comprehension. Finally, for both groups higher working memory capacity was related to better comprehension.

  15. 16 CFR 1018.43 - Comprehensive review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 16 Commercial Practices 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Comprehensive review. 1018.43 Section 1018.43 Commercial Practices CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION GENERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE MANAGEMENT Records, Annual Reports and Audits § 1018.43 Comprehensive review. A comprehensive review of all...

  16. Comprehensive rehabilitation of the child with osteogenesis imperfecta.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Binder, H; Conway, A; Hason, S; Gerber, L H; Marini, J; Berry, R; Weintrob, J

    1993-01-15

    Children with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) that results in considerable deformity are often viewed as poor candidates for aggressive physical therapy and rehabilitation. To determine if this view is realistic, we have entered almost 50 children with OI type III and OI type IV into a comprehensive graduated rehabilitation program, based at the National Institutes of Health, but designed to be implemented by continuing involvement of community resources. Children are begun in the program early with emphasis on gain of head and trunk control and progression to sitting and walking, if possible, with the aid of a variety of physical supports, including internal and external bracing. Although not conducted in a randomized fashion, the program's success in bringing children into graded exercise regimes and fostering their increased involvement in school and social situations suggest that aggressive physical therapy and rehabilitation have a major place in the overall care of the infants and children with OI.

  17. Chemical Technology Division: Progress report, January 1, 1987--June 30, 1988

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1989-02-01

    This progress report summarizes the research and development efforts conducted in the Chemical Technology Division (Chem Tech) during the period January 1, 1987, to June 30, 1988. The following major areas are covered: waste management and environmental programs, radiochemical and reactor engineering programs, basic science and technology, Nuclear Regulatory Commission programs, and administrative resources and facilities. The Administrative Summary, an appendix, presents a comprehensive listing of publications, oral presentations, awards and recognitions, and patents of Chem Tech staff members during this period. A staffing level and financial summary and lists of seminars and Chem Tech consultants for the period are also included.

  18. Chemical Technology Division: Progress report, January 1, 1987--June 30, 1988

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1989-02-01

    This progress report summarizes the research and development efforts conducted in the Chemical Technology Division (Chem Tech) during the period January 1, 1987, to June 30, 1988. The following major areas are covered: waste management and environmental programs, radiochemical and reactor engineering programs, basic science and technology, Nuclear Regulatory Commission programs, and administrative resources and facilities. The Administrative Summary, an appendix, presents a comprehensive listing of publications, oral presentations, awards and recognitions, and patents of Chem Tech staff members during this period. A staffing level and financial summary and lists of seminars and Chem Tech consultants for the period are also included

  19. 2011 Annual Progress Report: DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program (Book)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2011-11-01

    In the past year, the DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program (the Program) made substantial progress toward its goals and objectives. The Program has conducted comprehensive and focused efforts to enable the widespread commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in diverse sectors of the economy. With emphasis on applications that will effectively strengthen our nation's energy security and improve our stewardship of the environment, the Program engages in research, development, and demonstration of critical improvements in the technologies. Highlights of the Program's accomplishments can be found in the sub-program chapters of this report.

  20. Research progress of motor function assessments and their clinical applications in Duchenne muscular dystrophy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wei SHI

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD, clinically featured as progressive skeletal muscle atrophy with gradual loss of muscle strength and activity abilities, is the most common genetic muscular disease in children throughout the world. The core and continuous characteristic of DMD is motor dysfunction. Motor function assessments of DMD are now focusing on muscle strength, walking ability, range of motion and ability of activities, still without unified standards. Confirming the comprehensive, scientific, reasonable and accurate evaluation tools for DMD assessment is the premise of research in motor developmental rules of DMD, which will help to better understand the motor progress of DMD and to supply evidences for choosing treatment methods, confirming timing of intervention, assessing effect of treatments and designing rehabilitation plans. DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1672-6731.2015.06.002

  1. A comprehensive economic evaluation of integrated desalination systems, including environmental costs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nisan, S.

    2007-01-01

    Seawater desalination is now widely accepted as an attractive alternative source of freshwater for domestic and industrial uses. Despite the considerable progress made in the relevant technologies desalination, however, remains an energy intensive process in which the energy cost is the paramount factor. Many papers have already been published on desalination economics but a comprehensive study, based on the exhaustive analysis of a combination of energy sources and desalination processes, using state of the art economic models and realistic assumptions, is still quite rare. The aim of this paper is to fulfil this gap with a view to provide clear choices of techno-economic options to decision makers in a wide range of countries be they from the developed regions or emerging countries

  2. Direct and mediated effects of language and cognitive skills on comprehension of oral narrative texts (listening comprehension) for children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Young-Suk Grace

    2016-01-01

    We investigated component language and cognitive skills of oral language comprehension of narrative texts (i.e., listening comprehension). Using the construction-integration model of text comprehension as an overarching theoretical framework, we examined direct and mediated relations of foundational cognitive skills (working memory and attention), foundational language skills (vocabulary and grammatical knowledge), and higher-order cognitive skills (inference, theory of mind, and comprehension monitoring) to listening comprehension. A total of 201 first grade children in South Korea participated in the study. Structural equation modeling results showed that listening comprehension is directly predicted by working memory, grammatical knowledge, inference, and theory of mind and is indirectly predicted by attention, vocabulary, and comprehension monitoring. The total effects were .46 for working memory, .07 for attention, .30 for vocabulary, .49 for grammatical knowledge, .31 for inference, .52 for theory of mind, and .18 for comprehension monitoring. These results suggest that multiple language and cognitive skills make contributions to listening comprehension, and their contributions are both direct and indirect. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. The International Data Centre of the comprehensive nuclear-test-ban treaty: vision and progress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bratt, S.R.

    2001-01-01

    The mission of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty International Data Centre (IDC) is to: (a) acquire data over a Global Communications Infrastructure from a global network of 337 facilities of the International Monitoring Systems (IMS), (b) to process and analyze these data, and (c) to provide the IMS data, IDC products and services to Member States. In effect, the IDC symbolizes a new brand of arms control for the information age, leveraging Internet communications, knowledge-based data fusion, graphical decision support systems and Web-based user interfaces to achieve its mission. During 2000, the IDC was disseminating products based on data from about 90 seismic, hydroacoustic, infrasound and radionuclide stations of the future network. The number of events in the reviewed seismo-acoustic bulletins ranged from 40 to 360 each day. On average, some 200 radionuclide spectra were processed and analysed each month. Users from 45 Member States received an average of close to 18,000 data and product deliveries per month from the IDC. As the IDC continues to prepare for entry-into-force of the CTBT, it will continue to integrate the state-of-the-art in science and technology in order to meet the demands of the increasing volume of new types of IMS data, expanded IDC services, and a growing base of users. (orig.) [de

  4. Informed consent comprehension in African research settings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Afolabi, Muhammed O; Okebe, Joseph U; McGrath, Nuala; Larson, Heidi J; Bojang, Kalifa; Chandramohan, Daniel

    2014-06-01

    Previous reviews on participants' comprehension of informed consent information have focused on developed countries. Experience has shown that ethical standards developed on Western values may not be appropriate for African settings where research concepts are unfamiliar. We undertook this review to describe how informed consent comprehension is defined and measured in African research settings. We conducted a comprehensive search involving five electronic databases: Medline, Embase, Global Health, EthxWeb and Bioethics Literature Database (BELIT). We also examined African Index Medicus and Google Scholar for relevant publications on informed consent comprehension in clinical studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa. 29 studies satisfied the inclusion criteria; meta-analysis was possible in 21 studies. We further conducted a direct comparison of participants' comprehension on domains of informed consent in all eligible studies. Comprehension of key concepts of informed consent varies considerably from country to country and depends on the nature and complexity of the study. Meta-analysis showed that 47% of a total of 1633 participants across four studies demonstrated comprehension about randomisation (95% CI 13.9-80.9%). Similarly, 48% of 3946 participants in six studies had understanding about placebo (95% CI 19.0-77.5%), while only 30% of 753 participants in five studies understood the concept of therapeutic misconception (95% CI 4.6-66.7%). Measurement tools for informed consent comprehension were developed with little or no validation. Assessment of comprehension was carried out at variable times after disclosure of study information. No uniform definition of informed consent comprehension exists to form the basis for development of an appropriate tool to measure comprehension in African participants. Comprehension of key concepts of informed consent is poor among study participants across Africa. There is a vital need to develop a uniform definition for

  5. The Effect of Digital Stories on Enhancing Iranian Pre-intermediate EFL Learners' Listening Comprehension

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nasrin Hadidi Tamjid

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Learning a foreign language is a challenging process in which learners need motivation and encouragement through the use of modern techniques. The present paper investigates the effects digital stories may have on Iranian pre-intermediate EFL learners’ listening comprehension. To this end, the researchers carried out a quasi-experimental research in a language institution in Tabriz (Iran. In total, forty, 11-14-year-old female students participated in this research. Twenty students were in the experimental group and twenty in the control group. The Preliminary English Test (PET was administered at the beginning of the study to check whether all participants were homogeneous in terms of English language proficiency. A pre-test of listening comprehension was designed to gather initial data on the learners' listening skill prior to the treatment. The experimental group was presented with digital stories in a technology-equipped classroom. After the treatment, a post-test was administered to both groups to test the learners' progression in listening comprehension. Then, using an ANCOVA test, the performance of two groups was compared.The findings indicated that the experimental group outperformed the control group in the final test. The results raise interesting issues related to the use of technology in the context of foreign language learning, substantiating the link between technology rich environment and improved language learning.

  6. Comprehension or comprehending? Using Critical Language ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    It is argued that the genre of the school reading comprehension exercise is a prime inculcator of thoughtless and non-interactive reading practices. Doing 'a comprehension' (the word is often nominalised in this manner) and answering the comprehension questions often 'counts as' reading and substitutes for other types of ...

  7. Nuclear medicine and imaging research: instrumentation and quantitative methods of evaluation. Comprehensive progress report, January 1, 1980-January 14, 1983

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beck, R.N.; Cooper, M.C.

    1982-07-01

    Progress is reported for the period January 1980 through January 1983 in the following project areas: (1) imaging systems in nuclear medicine and image evaluation; and (2) methodology for quantitative evaluation of diagnostic performance

  8. Individual differences in reading comprehension : A componential approach to eighth graders’ expository text comprehension

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Welie, C.J.M.

    2017-01-01

    Why do secondary school students differ in their text comprehension? This is an important question because many secondary school students are unable to achieve the level of text comprehension required to enable learning from their school book texts. This thesis contributes to answering this question

  9. Idiom Comprehension in Mandarin-Speaking Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hsieh, Shelley Ching-Yu; Hsu, Chun-Chieh Natalie

    2010-01-01

    This study examines the effect of familiarity, context, and linguistic convention on idiom comprehension in Mandarin speaking children. Two experiments (a comprehension task followed by a comprehension task coupled with a metapragmatic task) were administered to test participants in three age groups (6 and 9-year-olds, and an adult control group).…

  10. Comprehensive Nuclear Test-ban Treaty

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1998-07-01

    The Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty was adopted by the General Assembly on 10 September 1996 (Res/50/245) and was open for signature by all states on 24 September 1996. It will enter into force 180 days after the date of deposit of the instruments of ratification by all states listed in Annex 2 to the Treaty. This document reproduces the text of the Treaty and the Protocol to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Protocol to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty. 4 tabs.

  11. Comprehensive Nuclear Test-ban Treaty

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1998-01-01

    The Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty was adopted by the General Assembly on 10 September 1996 (Res/50/245) and was open for signature by all states on 24 September 1996. It will enter into force 180 days after the date of deposit of the instruments of ratification by all states listed in Annex 2 to the Treaty. This document reproduces the text of the Treaty and the Protocol to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Protocol to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty

  12. Heavy quarkonium: progress, puzzles, and opportunities

    CERN Document Server

    Brambilla, N; Heltsley, B K; Vogt, R; Bodwin, G T; Eichten, E; Frawley, A D; Meyer, A B; Mitchell, R E; Papadimitriou, V; Petreczky, P; Petrov, A A; Robbe, P; Vairo, A; Andronic, A; Arnaldi, R; Artoisenet, P; Bali, G; Bertolin, A; Bettoni, D; Brodzicka, J; Bruno, G E; Caldwell, A; Catmore, J; Chang, C H; Chao, K T; Chudakov, E; Cortese, P; Crochet, P; Drutskoy, A; Ellwanger, U; Faccioli, P; Gabareen Mokhtar, A; Garcia i Tormo, X; Hanhart, C; Harris, F A; Kaplan, D M; Klein, S R; Kowalski, H; Lansberg, J P; Levichev, E; Lombardo, V; Lourenco, C; Maltoni, F; Mocsy, A; Mussa, R; Navarra, F S; Negrini, M; Nielsen, M; Olsen, S L; Pakhlov, P; Pakhlova, G; Peters, K; Polosa, A D; Qian, W; Qiu, J W; Rong, G; Sanchis-Lozano, M A; Scomparin, E; Senger, P; Simon, F; Stracka, S; Sumino, Y; Voloshin, M; Weiss, C; Wohri, H K; Yuan, C Z

    2011-01-01

    A golden age for heavy quarkonium physics dawned a decade ago, initiated by the confluence of exciting advances in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and an explosion of related experimental activity. The early years of this period were chronicled in the Quarkonium Working Group (QWG) CERN Yellow Report (YR) in 2004, which presented a comprehensive review of the status of the field at that time and provided specific recommendations for further progress. However, the broad spectrum of subsequent breakthroughs, surprises, and continuing puzzles could only be partially anticipated. Since the release of the YR, the BESII program concluded only to give birth to BESIII; the $B$-factories and CLEO-c flourished; quarkonium production and polarization measurements at HERA, JLab, and the Tevatron matured; and heavy-ion collisions at RHIC have opened a window on the deconfinement regime. All these experiments leave legacies of quality, precision, and unsolved mysteries for quarkonium physics, and therefore beg for continuing ...

  13. 18 CFR 801.5 - Comprehensive plan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Comprehensive plan. 801... POLICIES § 801.5 Comprehensive plan. (a) The Compact requires that the Commission formulate and adopt a comprehensive plan for the immediate and long-range development and use of the water resources of the basin. (1...

  14. Subordinate clause comprehension and tense/agreement inconsistency in children with specific language impairment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Souto, Sofía M; Leonard, Laurence B; Deevy, Patricia; Fey, Marc E; Bredin-Oja, Shelley L

    2016-01-01

    Several recent studies have suggested that the production errors of children with specific language impairment (SLI) such as The girl singing may be explained by a misinterpretation of grammatical adult input containing a similar structure (e.g., The boy hears the girl singing). Thirteen children with SLI and 13 younger typically developing children with comparable sentence comprehension test scores (TD-COMP) completed a comprehension task to assess their understanding of sentences involving a nonfinite subject-verb sequence in a subordinate clause such as The dad sees the boy running. TD-COMP children were more accurate on subordinate clause items than children with SLI despite similar performance on simple transitive (e.g., The horse sees the cow) and simple progressive (e.g., The cow is eating) items. However, no relationship was found between the SLI group's specific subordinate clause comprehension level and their specific level of auxiliary is production, casting some doubt on this type of structure as a source for inconsistent use of auxiliary is. The reader will learn that children with specific language impairment (SLI): (1) have difficulty understanding complex sentences that include nonfinite subject-verb sequences; (2) that this difficulty is apparent in comparison to younger typically developing peers who have similar scores not only on a sentence comprehension test, but also on simple sentences that correspond to the component parts of the complex sentences; and (3) that this weakness is concurrent with these children's inconsistent use of auxiliary is in production. Although novel verb studies show a clear connection between how children with SLI hear new verbs and how they use them, we do not yet have evidence that this connection is tied to a poor understanding of the input sentences that house the verbs. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. [The glymphatic system: concept, function and research progresses].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Lin-Hui; Wang, Zi-Lan; Chen, Wen-Yue; Chen, Ming-Jia; Xu, Guang-Yin

    2018-02-25

    The glymphatic system is a cerebrospinal fluid-interstitial fluid exchange system dependent on the water channel aquaporin-4 polarized on astrocyte endfeet, which is proposed to account for the clearance of abnormal proteins (e.g. β-amyloid) and metabolites (e.g. lactate) from the brain. Accumulating studies have revealed that glymphatic activity during sleep and general anesthesia is dramatically enhanced, while its function is significantly damaged during aging, traumatic brain injury, Alzheimer's disease, stroke, and diabetes. The glymphatic hypothesis is a breakthrough in the field of neuroscience recently, which would considerably enhance our comprehension on the cerebrospinal fluid circulation and its role in the maintenance of brain homeostasis. In this review, we briefly introduced the conceptualization of glymphatic system, summarized the recent progresses, and prospected its future investigation and potential clinical application.

  16. Reading comprehension difficulties in children with rolandic epilepsy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Currie, Nicola K; Lew, Adina R; Palmer, Tom M; Basu, Helen; De Goede, Christian; Iyer, Anand; Cain, Kate

    2018-03-01

    Difficulties in reading comprehension can arise from either word reading or listening comprehension difficulties, or a combination of the two. We sought to determine whether children with rolandic epilepsy had poor reading comprehension relative to typically developing comparison children, and whether such difficulties were associated with word reading and/or general language comprehension difficulties. In this cross-sectional study, children with rolandic epilepsy (n=25; 16 males, 9 females; mean age 9y 1mo, SD 1y 7mo) and a comparison group (n=39; 25 males, 14 females; mean age 9y 1mo, SD 1y 3mo) completed assessments of reading comprehension, listening comprehension, word/non-word reading, speech articulation, and Non-verbal IQ. Reading comprehension and word reading were worse in children with rolandic epilepsy (F 1,61 =6.89, p=0.011, ηp2=0.10 and F 1,61 =6.84, p=0.011, ηp2=0.10 respectively), with listening comprehension being marginal (F 1,61 =3.81, p=0.055, ηp2=0.06). Word reading and listening comprehension made large and independent contributions to reading comprehension, explaining 70% of the variance. Children with rolandic epilepsy may be at risk of reading comprehension difficulties. Thorough assessment of individual children is required to ascertain whether the difficulties lie with decoding text, or with general comprehension skills, or both. Children with rolandic epilepsy may be at risk of poor reading comprehension. This was related to poor word reading, poor listening comprehension, or both. Reading comprehension interventions should be tailored to the profile of difficulties. © 2017 Mac Keith Press.

  17. Comprehension and production of idioms in dysphasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bush, P G; Drummond, S S

    1985-10-01

    The comprehension and production of idioms was investigated in 10 dysphasic adults. Two different tasks, one comprehension and the other production, were developed. The production task required the subject to verbally explain 15 idioms. The comprehension task necessitated the selection of the correct figurative representation of the idiom from four illustrations: a literal, a literal variation, a figurative, and an unrelated picture. Results indicated no significant correlation between overall comprehension and production performances. No significant difference was found between the comprehension or the production of idioms when type or severity of dysphasia was considered. A significant difference was found, however, in the type of incorrect response, in that subjects selected the literal depiction more often than other foil representations for the comprehension.

  18. For US Students, L2 Reading Comprehension Is Hard Because L2 Listening Comprehension Is Hard, Too

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sparks, Richard; Patton, Jon; Luebbers, Julie

    2018-01-01

    The Simple View of Reading (SVR) model posits that reading is the product of word decoding and language comprehension and that oral language (listening) comprehension is the best predictor of reading comprehension once word-decoding skill has been established. The SVR model also proposes that there are good readers and three types of poor…

  19. A case for the sentence in reading comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scott, Cheryl M

    2009-04-01

    This article addresses sentence comprehension as a requirement of reading comprehension within the framework of the narrow view of reading that was advocated in the prologue to this forum. The focus is on the comprehension requirements of complex sentences, which are characteristic of school texts. Topics included in this discussion are (a) evidence linking sentence comprehension and syntax with reading, (b) syntactic properties of sentences that make them difficult to understand, (c) clinical applications for the assessment of sentence comprehension as it relates to reading, and (d) evidence and methods for addressing sentence complexity in treatment. Sentence complexity can create comprehension problems for struggling readers. The contribution of sentence comprehension to successful reading has been overlooked in models that emphasize domain-general comprehension strategies at the text level. The author calls for the evaluation of sentence comprehension within the context of content domains where complex sentences are found.

  20. Environment, Safety and Health progress assessment of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1993-08-01

    The ES ampersand H Progress Assessments are part of the Department's continuous improvement process throughout DOE and its contractor organizations. The purpose of the INEL ES ampersand H Progress Assessment is to provide the Department with concise independent information on the following: (1) change in culture and attitude related to ES ampersand H activities; (2) progress and effectiveness of the ES ampersand H corrective actions resulting from previous Tiger Team Assessments; (3) adequacy and effectiveness of the ES ampersand H self-assessment programs of the DOE line organizations and the site management and operating contractor; and (4) effectiveness of DOE and contractor management structures, resources, and systems to effectively address ES ampersand H problems. It is not intended that this Progress Assessment be a comprehensive compliance assessments of ES ampersand H activities. The points of reference for assessing programs at the INEL were, for the most part, the 1991 INEL Tiger Team Assessment, the INEL Corrective Action Plan, and recent appraisals and self-assessments of INEL. Horizontal and vertical reviews of the following programmatic areas were conducted: Management: Corrective action program; self-assessment; oversight; directives, policies, and procedures; human resources management; and planning, budgeting, and resource allocation. Environment: Air quality management, surface water management, groundwater protection, and environmental radiation. Safety and Health: Construction safety, worker safety and OSHA, maintenance, packaging and transportation, site/facility safety review, and industrial hygiene

  1. A case of atypical progressive supranuclear palsy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Spaccavento S

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Simona Spaccavento, Marina Del Prete, Angela Craca, Anna Loverre IRCCS Salvatore Maugeri Foundation, Cassano Murge, Bari, Italy Background: Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP is a neurodegenerative extrapyramidal syndrome. Studies have demonstrated that PSP can present clinically as an atypical dementing syndrome dominated by a progressive apraxia of speech (AOS and aphasia. Aim: We aimed to investigate the clinical presentation of PSP, using a comprehensive multidimensional evaluation, and the disease response to various pharmacological treatments. Methods: A 72-year-old right-handed male, with 17 years education, who first presented with aphasia, AOS, depression, apathy, and postural instability at 69 years; a complete neuropsychological evaluation, tapping the different cognitive domains, was performed. Results: Testing revealed a moderate global cognitive deficit (Mini-Mental State Examination test score =20, low memory test scores (story recall, Rey’s 15-word Immediate and Delayed Recall, and poor phonemic and semantic fluency. The patient’s language was characterized by AOS, with slow speech rate, prolonged intervals between syllables and words, decreased articulatory accuracy, sound distortions, and anomia. Behavioral changes, such as depression, anxiety, apathy, and irritability, were reported. The neurological examination revealed supranuclear vertical gaze palsy, poor face miming, and a mild balance deficit. Magnetic resonance imaging showed only widespread cortical atrophy. Single photon emission computed tomography demonstrated left > right frontotemporal cortical abnormalities. After 6 months, a further neuropsychological assessment showed a progression in cognitive deficits, with additional attention deficits. The patient reported frequent falls, but the neurological deficits remained unchanged. Neuroimaging tests showed the same brain involvement. Conclusion: Our case highlights the heterogeneity of the clinical features in

  2. Beneficial uses program. Progress report ending December 31, 1978. [Irradiated sewage sludge

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1979-03-01

    The Beneficial Uses Program is a comprehensive program to develop the necessary technologies for cost-beneficial uses of existing and future surplus radioactive materials. The major portion of the work at Sandia is concentrated in two sub-programs: The Waste Resources Utilization Program and the Separation Technology and Source Development Program. Progress is reported on: (1) the Sandia Irradiator for Dried Sewage Sludge; (2) bacteriology; (3) mycology; (4) virology; (5) animal feeds containing irradiated sewage solids; (6) use of irradiated sewage sludge as fertilizer; and (7) development of /sup 90/Sr and /sup 137/Cs radiation sources obtained from radioactive wastes. (TFD)

  3. FY 2014 Annual Progress Report - Advanced Combustion Engine Research and Development (Book)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2014-11-01

    In the past year, the DOE Hydrogen Program (the Program) made substantial progress toward its goals and objectives. The Program has conducted comprehensive and focused efforts to enable the widespread commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in diverse sectors of the economy. With emphasis on applications that will effectively strengthen our nation's energy security and improve our stewardship of the environment, the Program engages in research, development, and demonstration of critical improvements in the technologies. Highlights of the Program's accomplishments can be found in the sub-program chapters of this report.

  4. A review of teaching second/ foreign language listening comprehension research(Part 5 Text production and comprehension)

    OpenAIRE

    尹, 松

    2002-01-01

    Among the four skills of the language acquisition, it has been pointed out that listening comprehension is the most difficult skill. The research on effective methods of teaching listening comprehension has been carried out from various viewpoints. After introducing the theory of listening comprehension, this review will describe recent trends in the teach-ing of listening as a second/foreign language. This will be done by focusing primarily on schema activator and strategy-instruction in tea...

  5. Pragmatic Comprehension Development through Telecollaboration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rafieyan, Vahid; Sharafi-Nejad, Maryam; Khavari, Zahra; Eng, Lin Siew; Mohamed, Abdul Rashid

    2014-01-01

    Pragmatic comprehension can be ideally developed through contact with target language speakers. This contact can be provided in English as Foreign Language contexts through telecollaboration. To test the actual effect of telecollaboration on the development of pragmatic comprehension, 30 Iranian undergraduates of English as a Foreign Language…

  6. Progressive Conversion from B-rep to BSP for Streaming Geometric Modeling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bajaj, Chandrajit; Paoluzzi, Alberto; Scorzelli, Giorgio

    2006-01-01

    We introduce a novel progressive approach to generate a Binary Space Partition (BSP) tree and a convex cell decomposition for any input triangles boundary representation (B-rep), by utilizing a fast calculation of the surface inertia. We also generate a solid model at progressive levels of detail. This approach relies on a variation of standard BSP tree generation, allowing for labeling cells as in, out and fuzzy, and which permits a comprehensive representation of a solid as the Hasse diagram of a cell complex. Our new algorithm is embedded in a streaming computational framework, using four types of dataflow processes that continuously produce, transform, combine or consume subsets of cells depending on their number or input/output stream. A varied collection of geometric modeling techniques are integrated in this streaming framework, including polygonal, spline, solid and heterogeneous modeling with boundary and decompositive representations, Boolean set operations, Cartesian products and adaptive refinement. The real-time B-rep to BSP streaming results we report in this paper are a large step forward in the ultimate unification of rapid conceptual and detailed shape design methodologies.

  7. Is Word-Problem Solving a Form of Text Comprehension?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fuchs, Lynn S.; Fuchs, Douglas; Compton, Donald L.; Hamlett, Carol L.; Wang, Amber Y.

    2015-01-01

    This study’s hypotheses were that (a) word-problem (WP) solving is a form of text comprehension that involves language comprehension processes, working memory, and reasoning, but (b) WP solving differs from other forms of text comprehension by requiring WP-specific language comprehension as well as general language comprehension. At the start of the 2nd grade, children (n = 206; on average, 7 years, 6 months) were assessed on general language comprehension, working memory, nonlinguistic reasoning, processing speed (a control variable), and foundational skill (arithmetic for WPs; word reading for text comprehension). In spring, they were assessed on WP-specific language comprehension, WPs, and text comprehension. Path analytic mediation analysis indicated that effects of general language comprehension on text comprehension were entirely direct, whereas effects of general language comprehension on WPs were partially mediated by WP-specific language. By contrast, effects of working memory and reasoning operated in parallel ways for both outcomes. PMID:25866461

  8. View of God as benevolent and forgiving or punishing and judgmental predicts HIV disease progression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ironson, Gail; Stuetzle, Rick; Ironson, Dale; Balbin, Elizabeth; Kremer, Heidemarie; George, Annie; Schneiderman, Neil; Fletcher, Mary Ann

    2011-12-01

    This study assessed the predictive relationship between View of God beliefs and change in CD4-cell and Viral Load (VL) in HIV positive people over an extended period. A diverse sample of HIVseropositive participants (N = 101) undergoing comprehensive psychological assessment and blood draws over the course of 4 years completed the View of God Inventory with subscales measuring Positive View (benevolent/forgiving) and Negative View of God (harsh/judgmental/punishing). Adjusting for initial disease status, age, gender, ethnicity, education, and antiretroviral medication (at every 6-month visit), a Positive View of God predicted significantly slower disease-progression (better preservation of CD4-cells, better control of VL), whereas a Negative View of God predicted faster disease-progression over 4 years. Effect sizes were greater than those previously demonstrated for psychosocial variables known to predict HIV-disease-progression, such as depression and coping. Results remained significant even after adjusting for church attendance and psychosocial variables (health behaviors, mood, and coping). These results provide good initial evidence that spiritual beliefs may predict health outcomes.

  9. Online Sentence Comprehension in PPA: Verb-Based Integration and Prediction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jennifer E Mack

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. Impaired language comprehension is frequently observed in primary progressive aphasia (PPA. Word comprehension deficits are characteristic of the semantic variant (PPA-S whereas sentence comprehension deficits are more prevalent in the agrammatic (PPA-G and logopenic (PPA-L variants (Amici et al., 2007; Gorno-Tempini et al., 2011; Thompson et al., 2013. Word and sentence comprehension deficits have also been shown to have distinct neural substrates in PPA (Mesulam, Thompson, Weintraub, & Rogalski, in press. However, little is known about the relationship between word and sentence comprehension processes in PPA, specifically how words are accessed, combined, and used to predict upcoming elements within a sentence. A previous study demonstrated that listeners with stroke-induced agrammatic aphasia rapidly access verb meanings and use them to semantically integrate verb-arguments; however, they show deficits in using verb meanings predictively (Mack, Ji, & Thompson, 2013. The present study tested whether listeners with PPA are able to access verb meanings and to use this information to integrate and predict verb-arguments. Methods. Fifteen adults with PPA (8 with PPA-G, 3 with PPA-L, and 4 with PPA-S and ten age-matched controls participated in two eyetracking experiments. In both experiments, participants heard sentences with restrictive verbs that were semantically compatible with only one object in a four-picture visual array (e.g., eat when the array included a cake and three non-edible objects and unrestrictive verbs (e.g., move that were compatible with all four objects. The verb-based integration experiment tested access to verb meaning and its effects on integration of the direct object (e.g., Susan will eat/move the cake; the verb-based prediction experiment examined prediction of the direct object (e.g., Susan will eat/move the …. The dependent variable was the rate of fixations on the target picture (e.g., the cake in the

  10. The effect of progressive resistance training on lean body mass in post-treatment cancer patients - A systematic review

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lønbro, Simon

    2014-01-01

    Loss of lean body mass is a common problem in many post-treatment cancer patients and may negatively affect physical capacity in terms of maximal muscle strength and functional performance. The purpose of this study was to systematically review the scientific evidence on the effect of progressive...... resistance training on lean body mass in post-treatment cancer patients. A comprehensive literature search was conducted and ultimately 12 studies were included. Methodological quality of the included studies was evaluated using the PEDro scale and the effect of progressive resistance training was reported...... as the range of mean changes among RCTs and non-RCTs. Six RCTs and six non-RCTs were included in the study. In the RCTs the change in lean body mass in the progressive resistance training groups relative to control groups ranged from -0.4% to 3.9%, and in four of six trials the training effect...

  11. Model-based economic evaluation in Alzheimer's disease: a review of the methods available to model Alzheimer's disease progression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Green, Colin; Shearer, James; Ritchie, Craig W; Zajicek, John P

    2011-01-01

    To consider the methods available to model Alzheimer's disease (AD) progression over time to inform on the structure and development of model-based evaluations, and the future direction of modelling methods in AD. A systematic search of the health care literature was undertaken to identify methods to model disease progression in AD. Modelling methods are presented in a descriptive review. The literature search identified 42 studies presenting methods or applications of methods to model AD progression over time. The review identified 10 general modelling frameworks available to empirically model the progression of AD as part of a model-based evaluation. Seven of these general models are statistical models predicting progression of AD using a measure of cognitive function. The main concerns with models are on model structure, around the limited characterization of disease progression, and on the use of a limited number of health states to capture events related to disease progression over time. None of the available models have been able to present a comprehensive model of the natural history of AD. Although helpful, there are serious limitations in the methods available to model progression of AD over time. Advances are needed to better model the progression of AD and the effects of the disease on peoples' lives. Recent evidence supports the need for a multivariable approach to the modelling of AD progression, and indicates that a latent variable analytic approach to characterising AD progression is a promising avenue for advances in the statistical development of modelling methods. Copyright © 2011 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Strategy-based listening and pragmatic comprehension

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Corsetti, Cristiane Ruzicki

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available This article addresses the role of strategy-based listening as an alternative methodological approach to develop pragmatic comprehension in L2 contexts. Pragmatic comprehension refers to the understanding of speech acts and conversational implicatures. Listening comprehension comprises both bottom-up and top-down processes. Strategy-based listening encompasses the activation of pragmatic knowledge through pre-listening activities and the development of specific listening micro-skills. An empirical project which included a classroom project carried out with a group of eight learners preparing for the IELTS examination in 2009 corroborated the following assumptions: in order to achieve listening proficiency, learners need practice in making inferences as semantic and pragmatic inferences are embedded in verbal communication; semantic and pragmatic aspects affecting the meaning of utterances can be highlighted via comprehension activities focusing on specific listening subskills. The results of the classroom project suggested that strategy-based listening is potentially capable of directly enhancing pragmatic comprehension but were inconclusive with regards to pragmatic production

  13. Text comprehension strategy instruction with poor readers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Van den Bos, K.P.; Aarnoudse, C.C.; Brand-Gruwel, S.

    1998-01-01

    The goal of this study was to investigate the effects of teaching text comprehension strategies to children with decoding and reading comprehension problems and with a poor or normal listening ability. Two experiments are reported. Four text comprehension strategies, viz., question generation,

  14. Preparing for reading comprehension: Fostering text comprehension skills in preschool and early elementary school children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paul van den BROEK

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available To understand what they read or hear, children and adults must create a coherent mental representation of presented information. Recent research suggests that the ability to do so starts to develop early –well before reading age- and that early individual differences are predictive of later reading-comprehension performance. In this paper, we review this research and discuss potential applications to early intervention. We then present two exploratory studies in which we examine whether it is feasible to design interventions with early readers (3rd grade and even toddlers (2-3 years old. The interventions employed causal questioning techniques as children listen to orally presented,age-appropriate narratives. Afterwards, comprehension was tested through question answering and recall tasks. Results indicate that such interventions are indeed feasible. Moreover, they suggest thatfor both toddlers and early readers questions during comprehension are more effective than questions after comprehension. Finally, for both groups higher working memory capacity was related to bettercomprehension.

  15. Exploring transcendence in EFL learners’ reading comprehension through computerized dynamic assessment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saman Ebadi

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Derived from Vygotsky’s works, dynamic assessment (DA enables learners to move beyond their current level of functioning through offering needs-sensitized mediation. This study aimed at exploring the learners’ development in novel and increasingly more challenging situations called transcendence (TR in an L2 context focusing on reading comprehension through computerized dynamic assessment (CDA. An overall number of 32 BA TEFL advanced students were selected from among undergraduates of a university in Iran to participate in this study. To fulfil the purpose of the study, the researchers developed Computerized Dynamic Reading Assessment to examine Transcendence (CDRAT software which included reading comprehension CDA tests. To monitor the maintenance of learning in different time intervals, two software programs named CDRAT1 and CDRAT2 were utilized in specific time intervals after the posttest. The results indicated that not only did increased task complexity not lead to regression of students’ development, but also it had an effect on enhancing their development. Thus, transcendence had an effect on the generalizability of the contentions to a great extent. In conclusion, it was disclosed that there is no endpoint to progress and merely gaining a low or high score should not be interpreted as the inability of a special learner to surpass. This would more reinforce the need for applying TR in other future DA studies.

  16. A Comprehensive Validation Methodology for Sparse Experimental Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Norman, Ryan B.; Blattnig, Steve R.

    2010-01-01

    A comprehensive program of verification and validation has been undertaken to assess the applicability of models to space radiation shielding applications and to track progress as models are developed over time. The models are placed under configuration control, and automated validation tests are used so that comparisons can readily be made as models are improved. Though direct comparisons between theoretical results and experimental data are desired for validation purposes, such comparisons are not always possible due to lack of data. In this work, two uncertainty metrics are introduced that are suitable for validating theoretical models against sparse experimental databases. The nuclear physics models, NUCFRG2 and QMSFRG, are compared to an experimental database consisting of over 3600 experimental cross sections to demonstrate the applicability of the metrics. A cumulative uncertainty metric is applied to the question of overall model accuracy, while a metric based on the median uncertainty is used to analyze the models from the perspective of model development by analyzing subsets of the model parameter space.

  17. Child poverty. Ways forward for the paediatrician: A comprehensive overview of poverty reduction strategies requiring paediatric support.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharma, Suparna; Ford-Jones, Elizabeth

    2015-05-01

    The harmful effects of child poverty are well documented. Despite this, progress in poverty reduction in Canada has been slow. A significant gap exists between what is known about eradicating poverty and its implementation. Paediatricians can play an important role in bridging this gap by understanding and advancing child poverty reduction. Establishment of a comprehensive national poverty reduction plan is essential to improving progress. The present review identifies the key components of an effective poverty reduction strategy. These elements include effective poverty screening, promoting healthy child development and readiness to learn, ensuring food and housing security, providing extended health care coverage for the uninsured and using place-based solutions and team-level interventions. Specific economic interventions are also reviewed. Addressing the social determinants of health in these ways is crucial to narrowing disparities in wealth and health so that all children in Canada reach their full potential.

  18. Beneficial Uses Program progress report, period ending December 31, 1976. [Gamma inactivation of microorganisms in sewage sludge

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1977-03-01

    Progress is reported on a comprehensive program to develop the necessary technologies for cost/beneficial uses of existing and future surplus radioactive materials. The major portion of the work was concentrated on the testing of the effectiveness of ..gamma.. sources for the processing of sewage sludge to inactivate enteric viruses and bacteria and the subsequent testing of the biological effects of the treated sludge when used as fertilizer or additives to animal feeds.

  19. Optimizing Visually-Assisted Listening Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kashani, Ahmad Sabouri; Sajjadi, Samad; Sohrabi, Mohammad Reza; Younespour, Shima

    2011-01-01

    The fact that visual aids such as pictures or graphs can lead to greater comprehension by language learners has been well established. Nonetheless, the order of presenting visuals to listeners is left unattended. This study examined listening comprehension from a strategy of introducing visual information, either prior to or during an audio…

  20. Recent progress in the feasibility study for the first nuclear power plant in Indonesia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Subki, I.R.; Iskandar, A.; Supadi, S.

    1994-01-01

    In September 1989 the Indonesian Government decided to perform a Nuclear Power Plant feasibility study, including a comprehensive investigation of Muris site. This presentation reports on the progress to date in the two main components of this study: (a) the non-site studies, covering energy economics, financing, technical and safety aspects, the fuel cycle and waste management as well as general management aspects, and (b) site and environmental studies, covering field investigations, assessment of site selection, site qualification/evaluation, environmental, socio-economic and cultural impacts. The study is carried out under a comprehensive quality assurance programme developed by a consultancy company - NEWJEC Inc., which compiles with IAEA recommendations and was approved by BATAN. A summary of the main results, recommendations and general conclusions is presented. It is estimated that the total investment for the construction of 2 x 900 MWe or 3 x 600 MWe class Nuclear Power Plant units would be around US$7 to US$9 billion. 8 tabs

  1. Direct and Mediated Effects of Language and Cognitive Skills on Comprehension or Oral Narrative Texts (Listening Comprehension) for Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Young-Suk Grace

    2016-01-01

    We investigated component language and cognitive skills of oral language comprehension of narrative texts (i.e., listening comprehension). Using the construction--integration model of text comprehension as an overarching theoretical framework, we examined direct and mediated relations of foundational cognitive skills (working memory and…

  2. Making Progress in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL Lessons: An Indonesian Tertiary Context

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Manafe Novriani Rabeka

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper outlines an attempt to discover students’ progress in both content and language skill in a content and language integrated learning (CLIL lessons at an Indonesia’s higher education context. This is a part of a research conducted at Faculty of Science and Technology of Nusa Cendana University in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara Province. This study employs mixed method approach with 20 participants attending by taking pre-test and post-test as well as joining a focus group interview particularly for 6 students. The tests were aimed at measuring the participants’ comprehension of English as the language of CLIL lesson. They were also used as the tool to evaluate students’ mastery of Mathematics as the content subject. Based on the post-test results, the findings showed that more students made significant progress in content subject in comparison to their achievement in language proficiency. Regarding the interview, the students admitted that their failure to made progress in both subjects were mainly caused by their inadequate level of English. This, therefore, led to rising anxiety among the students to complete the tests.

  3. Classroom Talk for Rigorous Reading Comprehension Instruction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wolf, Mikyung Kim; Crosson, Amy C.; Resnick, Lauren B.

    2004-01-01

    This study examined the quality of classroom talk and its relation to academic rigor in reading-comprehension lessons. Additionally, the study aimed to characterize effective questions to support rigorous reading comprehension lessons. The data for this study included 21 reading-comprehension lessons in several elementary and middle schools from…

  4. [Progress in the spectral library based protein identification strategy].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Derui; Ma, Jie; Xie, Zengyan; Bai, Mingze; Zhu, Yunping; Shu, Kunxian

    2018-04-25

    Exponential growth of the mass spectrometry (MS) data is exhibited when the mass spectrometry-based proteomics has been developing rapidly. It is a great challenge to develop some quick, accurate and repeatable methods to identify peptides and proteins. Nowadays, the spectral library searching has become a mature strategy for tandem mass spectra based proteins identification in proteomics, which searches the experiment spectra against a collection of confidently identified MS/MS spectra that have been observed previously, and fully utilizes the abundance in the spectrum, peaks from non-canonical fragment ions, and other features. This review provides an overview of the implement of spectral library search strategy, and two key steps, spectral library construction and spectral library searching comprehensively, and discusses the progress and challenge of the library search strategy.

  5. Metro Vancouver air quality management plan : progress report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2008-10-15

    The Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) developed an air quality management plan (AQMP) in 2005 as a means of addressing air quality issues in the region. The plan required progress reports every 2 years as well as a comprehensive review every 5 years. The AQMP established goals to minimize risk to public health from air pollution, improve visibility, and minimize the region's contributions to global climatic change by reducing emissions; implementing local air quality management programs; and enhancing air quality information and public awareness. The AQMP also included a sustainability framework for GVRD's policies and regulations related to regional growth, service delivery and political leadership. Regional strategies for solid waste and liquid waste management were developed in 2008. The sustainability framework has developed 3 priority goals: (1) to reduce diesel particulates by 75 per cent from Metro Vancouver corporate sources by 2012, (2) to be carbon neutral by 2012 excluding solid waste operations, and (3) to reduce regional GHGs by 15 per cent by 2015, and 33 per cent by 2020. Progress updates on regional planning efforts for the AQMP were presented. The report also outlined trends and performance measures used by the GVRD, and discussed changes in air quality issues and priorities that have occurred since the AQMP was adopted in 2005. 1 tab., 8 figs.

  6. The Waste Treatment Plant, a Work in Progress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hamel, W. F. Jr.; Duncan, G. M.

    2006-01-01

    There are many challenges in the design and construction of Department of Energy's (DOE) Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) at the Hanford site. The plant is being built to process some 55 million gallons of radioactive waste from 177 underground tanks. Engineering and construction are progressing on this largest project in the DOE complex. This paper describes some of WTP's principal recent challenges and opportunities and how they are being addressed to minimize impact on the project, enhance the capabilities of the facilities, and reduce risk. A significant new development in 2005 was the need to account for higher seismic accelerations than originally specified for the facility structures and equipment. Efforts have centered on continuing design and construction with minimal risk, while the final seismic design spectra was developed. Other challenges include development of an alternative cesium ion exchange resin to minimize the risk from reliance on a single product, implementing advanced analytical techniques to improve laboratory performance, adopting a thinner walled high level waste (HLW) canister to reduce waste volume and mission duration, and commissioning a comprehensive external flowsheet review of the design, along with its underpinning technologies, and projected plant operability. These challenges make it clear that WTP is a work in progress, but the challenges are being successfully resolved as the design and construction move on to completion. (authors)

  7. Metro Vancouver air quality management plan : progress report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2008-10-01

    The Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) developed an air quality management plan (AQMP) in 2005 as a means of addressing air quality issues in the region. The plan required progress reports every 2 years as well as a comprehensive review every 5 years. The AQMP established goals to minimize risk to public health from air pollution, improve visibility, and minimize the region's contributions to global climatic change by reducing emissions; implementing local air quality management programs; and enhancing air quality information and public awareness. The AQMP also included a sustainability framework for GVRD's policies and regulations related to regional growth, service delivery and political leadership. Regional strategies for solid waste and liquid waste management were developed in 2008. The sustainability framework has developed 3 priority goals: (1) to reduce diesel particulates by 75 per cent from Metro Vancouver corporate sources by 2012, (2) to be carbon neutral by 2012 excluding solid waste operations, and (3) to reduce regional GHGs by 15 per cent by 2015, and 33 per cent by 2020. Progress updates on regional planning efforts for the AQMP were presented. The report also outlined trends and performance measures used by the GVRD, and discussed changes in air quality issues and priorities that have occurred since the AQMP was adopted in 2005. 1 tab., 8 figs

  8. Beneficial Uses Program. Progress report, period ending December 31, 1977. [Irradiated sewage sludge

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1978-11-01

    The Beneficial Uses Program is a comprehensive program to develop the necessary technologies for cost-beneficial uses of existing and future surplus radioactive materials. The major portion of the work at Sandia is concentrated in two sub-programs: the Waste Resources Utilization Program and the Separation Technology and Source Development Program. Progress is reported on: (1) the Sandia Irradiator for Dried Sewage Solids; (2) bacteriology; (3) mycology; (4) virology; (5) animal feeds containing irradiated sewage solids; (6) use of irradiated sewage sludge as fertilizer; and (7) development of /sup 90/Sr and /sup 137/Cs radiation sources obtained from radioactive wastes. (TFD)

  9. Beneficial Uses Program. Progress report, period ending March 31, 1979. [Irradiated sewage sludge

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1979-08-01

    The Beneficial Uses Program is a comprehensive program to develop the necessary technologies for cost-beneficial uses of existing and future surplus radioactive materials. The major portion of the work at Sandia is concentrated in two sub-programs: the Waste Resources Utilization Program and the Separation Technology and Source Development Program. Progress is reported on: (1) the Sandia Irradiator for Dried Sewage Solids; (2) bacteriology; (3) mycology; (4) virology; (5) animal feeds containing irradiated sewage solids; (6) use of irradiated sewage sludge as fertilizer; and (7) development of /sup 137/Cs radiation sources obtained from radioactive wastes. (TFD)

  10. [Landscape classification: research progress and development trend].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liang, Fa-Chao; Liu, Li-Ming

    2011-06-01

    Landscape classification is the basis of the researches on landscape structure, process, and function, and also, the prerequisite for landscape evaluation, planning, protection, and management, directly affecting the precision and practicability of landscape research. This paper reviewed the research progress on the landscape classification system, theory, and methodology, and summarized the key problems and deficiencies of current researches. Some major landscape classification systems, e. g. , LANMAP and MUFIC, were introduced and discussed. It was suggested that a qualitative and quantitative comprehensive classification based on the ideology of functional structure shape and on the integral consideration of landscape classification utility, landscape function, landscape structure, physiogeographical factors, and human disturbance intensity should be the major research directions in the future. The integration of mapping, 3S technology, quantitative mathematics modeling, computer artificial intelligence, and professional knowledge to enhance the precision of landscape classification would be the key issues and the development trend in the researches of landscape classification.

  11. Bioethics: why philosophy is essential for progress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Savulescu, Julian

    2015-01-01

    It is the JME's 40th anniversary and my 20th anniversary working in the field. I reflect on the nature of bioethics and medical ethics. I argue that both bioethics and medical ethics together have, in many ways, failed as fields. My diagnosis is that better philosophy is needed. I give some examples of the importance of philosophy to bioethics. I focus mostly on the failure of ethics in research and organ transplantation, although I also consider genetic selection, enhancement, cloning, futility, disability and other topics. I do not consider any topic comprehensively or systematically or address the many reasonable objections to my arguments. Rather, I seek to illustrate why philosophical analysis and argument remain as important as ever to progress in bioethics and medical ethics. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

  12. Eye-orbit NMR imaging: works in progress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cabanis, E.A.; Iba-Zizen, M.T.; Tourbah, A.; Stievenart, J.L.; Nguyen, T.H.; Trocme, P.; Mottier, N.; Thibierge, M.; Haut, J.; Hamard, H.

    1995-01-01

    Progress in brain and eyes magnetic resonance imagery follows improvements in data processing. Most of the 45000 examinations performed since 1984 concerns the head (90%) and a third of them concerns the optic system (from the cornea to the calcarine fissure). The majority of the explorations has been done with a SIGNA GE device (1.5 T, 4 and 5x versions). Image treatment is performed on Advantage Windows stations. Proton spectroscopy is becoming a major tool in myelin evaluation. The spatial resolution of bi-dimensional descriptive anatomy has increased (see for instance the ciliary body and the axonal group of the optical nerve). Problem remains in the fusion of colour or grey scale X-ray scanning images with magnetic resonance images for surface or transparency tri-dimensional analysis of regional anatomy. Dynamic ( 4 D ) anatomy of cone muscles is favourable to the comprehension of theoretical data or precise clinical situations. (J.S.)

  13. Health and Safety Research Division progress report, October 1, 1988--March 31, 1990

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1990-09-01

    The Health and Safety Research Division (HASRD) of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) continues to maintain an outstanding program of basic and applied research displaying a high level of creativity and achievement as documented by awards, publications, professional service, and successful completion of variety of projects. Our focus is on human health and the scientific basis for measurement and assessment of health-related impacts of energy technologies. It is our custom to publish a division progress report every 18 months that summarizes our programmatic progress and other measures of achievement over the reporting period. Since it is not feasible to summarize in detail all of our work over the period covered by this report (October 1, 1988, to March 30, 1990), we intend this document to point the way to the expensive open literature that documents our findings. During the reporting period the Division continued to maintain strong programs in its traditional areas of R ampersand D, but also achieved noteworthy progress in other areas. Much of the Division's work on site characterization, development of new field instruments, compilation of data bases, and methodology development fits into this initiative. Other new work in tunneling microscopy in support of DOE's Human Genome Program and the comprehensive R ampersand D work related to surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy have attained new and exciting results. These examples of our progress and numerous other activities are highlighted in this report

  14. Health and Safety Research Division progress report, October 1, 1988--March 31, 1990

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1990-09-01

    The Health and Safety Research Division (HASRD) of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) continues to maintain an outstanding program of basic and applied research displaying a high level of creativity and achievement as documented by awards, publications, professional service, and successful completion of variety of projects. Our focus is on human health and the scientific basis for measurement and assessment of health-related impacts of energy technologies. It is our custom to publish a division progress report every 18 months that summarizes our programmatic progress and other measures of achievement over the reporting period. Since it is not feasible to summarize in detail all of our work over the period covered by this report (October 1, 1988, to March 30, 1990), we intend this document to point the way to the expensive open literature that documents our findings. During the reporting period the Division continued to maintain strong programs in its traditional areas of R D, but also achieved noteworthy progress in other areas. Much of the Division's work on site characterization, development of new field instruments, compilation of data bases, and methodology development fits into this initiative. Other new work in tunneling microscopy in support of DOE's Human Genome Program and the comprehensive R D work related to surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy have attained new and exciting results. These examples of our progress and numerous other activities are highlighted in this report.

  15. Memory mechanisms supporting syntactic comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caplan, David; Waters, Gloria

    2013-04-01

    Efforts to characterize the memory system that supports sentence comprehension have historically drawn extensively on short-term memory as a source of mechanisms that might apply to sentences. The focus of these efforts has changed significantly in the past decade. As a result of changes in models of short-term working memory (ST-WM) and developments in models of sentence comprehension, the effort to relate entire components of an ST-WM system, such as those in the model developed by Baddeley (Nature Reviews Neuroscience 4: 829-839, 2003) to sentence comprehension has largely been replaced by an effort to relate more specific mechanisms found in modern models of ST-WM to memory processes that support one aspect of sentence comprehension--the assignment of syntactic structure (parsing) and its use in determining sentence meaning (interpretation) during sentence comprehension. In this article, we present the historical background to recent studies of the memory mechanisms that support parsing and interpretation and review recent research into this relation. We argue that the results of this research do not converge on a set of mechanisms derived from ST-WM that apply to parsing and interpretation. We argue that the memory mechanisms supporting parsing and interpretation have features that characterize another memory system that has been postulated to account for skilled performance-long-term working memory. We propose a model of the relation of different aspects of parsing and interpretation to ST-WM and long-term working memory.

  16. Characterizing a neurodegenerative syndrome: primary progressive apraxia of speech.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Josephs, Keith A; Duffy, Joseph R; Strand, Edythe A; Machulda, Mary M; Senjem, Matthew L; Master, Ankit V; Lowe, Val J; Jack, Clifford R; Whitwell, Jennifer L

    2012-05-01

    Apraxia of speech is a disorder of speech motor planning and/or programming that is distinguishable from aphasia and dysarthria. It most commonly results from vascular insults but can occur in degenerative diseases where it has typically been subsumed under aphasia, or it occurs in the context of more widespread neurodegeneration. The aim of this study was to determine whether apraxia of speech can present as an isolated sign of neurodegenerative disease. Between July 2010 and July 2011, 37 subjects with a neurodegenerative speech and language disorder were prospectively recruited and underwent detailed speech and language, neurological, neuropsychological and neuroimaging testing. The neuroimaging battery included 3.0 tesla volumetric head magnetic resonance imaging, [(18)F]-fluorodeoxyglucose and [(11)C] Pittsburg compound B positron emission tomography scanning. Twelve subjects were identified as having apraxia of speech without any signs of aphasia based on a comprehensive battery of language tests; hence, none met criteria for primary progressive aphasia. These subjects with primary progressive apraxia of speech included eight females and four males, with a mean age of onset of 73 years (range: 49-82). There were no specific additional shared patterns of neurological or neuropsychological impairment in the subjects with primary progressive apraxia of speech, but there was individual variability. Some subjects, for example, had mild features of behavioural change, executive dysfunction, limb apraxia or Parkinsonism. Voxel-based morphometry of grey matter revealed focal atrophy of superior lateral premotor cortex and supplementary motor area. Voxel-based morphometry of white matter showed volume loss in these same regions but with extension of loss involving the inferior premotor cortex and body of the corpus callosum. These same areas of white matter loss were observed with diffusion tensor imaging analysis, which also demonstrated reduced fractional anisotropy

  17. Is Word-Problem Solving a Form of Text Comprehension?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fuchs, Lynn S.; Fuchs, Douglas; Compton, Donald L.; Hamlett, Carol L.; Wang, Amber Y.

    2015-01-01

    This study's hypotheses were that (a) word-problem (WP) solving is a form of text comprehension that involves language comprehension processes, working memory, and reasoning, but (b) WP solving differs from other forms of text comprehension by requiring WP-specific language comprehension as well as general language comprehension. At the start of…

  18. A protocol for comprehensive assessment of bulbar dysfunction in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yunusova, Yana; Green, Jordan R; Wang, Jun; Pattee, Gary; Zinman, Lorne

    2011-02-21

    Improved methods for assessing bulbar impairment are necessary for expediting diagnosis of bulbar dysfunction in ALS, for predicting disease progression across speech subsystems, and for addressing the critical need for sensitive outcome measures for ongoing experimental treatment trials. To address this need, we are obtaining longitudinal profiles of bulbar impairment in 100 individuals based on a comprehensive instrumentation-based assessment that yield objective measures. Using instrumental approaches to quantify speech-related behaviors is very important in a field that has primarily relied on subjective, auditory-perceptual forms of speech assessment(1). Our assessment protocol measures performance across all of the speech subsystems, which include respiratory, phonatory (laryngeal), resonatory (velopharyngeal), and articulatory. The articulatory subsystem is divided into the facial components (jaw and lip), and the tongue. Prior research has suggested that each speech subsystem responds differently to neurological diseases such as ALS. The current protocol is designed to test the performance of each speech subsystem as independently from other subsystems as possible. The speech subsystems are evaluated in the context of more global changes to speech performance. These speech system level variables include speaking rate and intelligibility of speech. The protocol requires specialized instrumentation, and commercial and custom software. The respiratory, phonatory, and resonatory subsystems are evaluated using pressure-flow (aerodynamic) and acoustic methods. The articulatory subsystem is assessed using 3D motion tracking techniques. The objective measures that are used to quantify bulbar impairment have been well established in the speech literature and show sensitivity to changes in bulbar function with disease progression. The result of the assessment is a comprehensive, across-subsystem performance profile for each participant. The profile, when compared to

  19. Reading Comprehension Difficulties in Chinese-English Bilingual Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tong, Xiuhong; McBride, Catherine; Shu, Hua; Ho, Connie Suk-Han

    2018-02-01

    The co-occurrence of reading comprehension difficulties for first language (L1) Chinese and second language (L2) English and associated longitudinal cognitive-linguistic correlates in each language were investigated. Sixteen poor comprehenders in English and 16 poor comprehenders in Chinese, 18 poor readers in both, and 18 children with normal performance in both were identified at age 10. The prevalence rate for being poor in both was 52.94%, suggesting that approximately half of children who are at risk for Chinese reading comprehension difficulty are also at risk for English reading comprehension difficulty. Chinese word reading, phonological, and morphological awareness were longitudinal correlates of poor comprehension in Chinese. English word reading and vocabulary were longitudinal correlates of poor comprehension in English. Chinese phonological awareness was an additional correlate of poor comprehension in English. Moreover, poor comprehenders in both Chinese and English showed slower rapid automatized naming scores than the other groups. Findings highlight some factors that might be critical for reading comprehension in L1 Chinese and L2 English; fluency is likely to be a critical part of reading comprehension across languages. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  20. How Do We Motivate Reading Comprehension?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shanahan, Timothy

    1982-01-01

    Considers the nature of motivation and its place in the development of reading comprehension. Uses A. Maslow's hierarchy of motivation as a heuristic for examining the motivational quality of several teaching methods commonly proposed for comprehension instruction. (FL)

  1. The Bronchiectasis Toolbox—A Comprehensive Website for the Management of People with Bronchiectasis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Caroline H. Nicolson

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available While the health burden of bronchiectasis is increasing worldwide, medical and physiotherapy treatment strategies have progressed significantly over the past decade. For this reason, clinicians require readily accessible current evidence based information on the management of this condition. E-learning is a suitable educational forum for the development and maintenance of professional skills, however a comprehensive, evidence based, multidisciplinary website for bronchiectasis was not available. The Bronchiectasis Toolbox at www.bronchiectasis.com.au was developed by a team of clinicians in Australia and New Zealand with extensive experience in bronchiectasis. The content of this website, based on national and international guidelines, is presented under the headings: ‘Bronchiectasis’, ‘Assessment’, ‘Physiotherapy’, ‘Indigenous’, ‘Paediatrics’, and ‘Resources’. Through a blend of multimedia resources, this website provides information to consolidate the knowledge and practical skills for health professionals caring for people with this condition. After launching in 2015 the website has received 64,549 hits from over 100 countries and the videos have been viewed 10,205 times in 89 countries. The Bronchiectasis Toolbox is a comprehensive multidisciplinary resource accessible to health professionals worldwide who manage people with bronchiectasis and is a unique solution to an educational need. Regular updates will ensure that the website continues to be relevant.

  2. Evaluation of use of reading comprehension strategies to improve reading comprehension of adult college students with acquired brain injury.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Griffiths, Gina G; Sohlberg, McKay Moore; Kirk, Cecilia; Fickas, Stephen; Biancarosa, Gina

    2016-01-01

    Adults with mild to moderate acquired brain injury (ABI) often pursue post-secondary or professional education after their injuries in order to enter or re-enter the job market. An increasing number of these adults report problems with reading-to-learn. The problem is particularly concerning given the growing population of adult survivors of ABI. Despite the rising need, empirical evaluation of reading comprehension interventions for adults with ABI is scarce. This study used a within-subject design to evaluate whether adult college students with ABI with no more than moderate cognitive impairments benefited from using reading comprehension strategies to improve comprehension of expository text. Integrating empirical support from the cognitive rehabilitation and special education literature, the researchers designed a multi-component reading comprehension strategy package. Participants read chapters from an introductory-level college anthropology textbook in two different conditions: strategy and no-strategy. The results indicated that reading comprehension strategy use was associated with recall of more correct information units in immediate and delayed free recall tasks; more efficient recall in the delayed free recall task; and increased accuracy recognising statements from a sentence verification task designed to reflect the local and global coherence of the text. The findings support further research into using reading comprehension strategies as an intervention approach for the adult ABI population. Future research needs include identifying how to match particular reading comprehension strategies to individuals, examining whether reading comprehension performance improves further through the incorporation of systematic training, and evaluating texts from a range of disciplines and genres.

  3. Progressivity of health care financing and incidence of service benefits in Ghana.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akazili, James; Garshong, Bertha; Aikins, Moses; Gyapong, John; McIntyre, Di

    2012-03-01

    The National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme was introduced in Ghana in 2004 as a pro-poor financing strategy aimed at removing financial barriers to health care and protecting all citizens from catastrophic health expenditures, which currently arise due to user fees and other direct payments. A comprehensive assessment of the financing and benefit incidence of health services in Ghana was undertaken. These analyses drew on secondary data from the Ghana Living Standards Survey (2005/2006) and from an additional household survey which collected data in 2008 in six districts covering the three main ecological zones of Ghana. Findings show that Ghana's health care financing system is progressive, driven largely by the progressivity of taxes. The national health insurance levy (which is part of VAT) is mildly progressive while NHI contributions by the informal sector are regressive. The distribution of total benefits from both public and private health services is pro-rich. However, public sector district-level hospital inpatient care is pro-poor and benefits of primary-level health care services are relatively evenly distributed. For Ghana to attain an equitable health system and fully achieve universal coverage, it must ensure that the poor, most of whom are not currently covered by the NHI, are financially protected, and it must address the many access barriers to health care.

  4. A comprehensive model for intimate partner violence in South African primary care: action research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joyner Kate

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Despite extensive evidence on the magnitude of intimate partner violence (IPV as a public health problem worldwide, insubstantial progress has been made in the development and implementation of sufficiently comprehensive health services. This study aimed to implement, evaluate and adapt a published protocol for the screening and management of IPV and to recommend a model of care that could be taken to scale in our underdeveloped South African primary health care system. Methods Professional action research utilised a co-operative inquiry group that consisted of four nurses, one doctor and a qualitative researcher. The inquiry group implemented the protocol in two urban and three rural primary care facilities. Over a period of 14 months the group reflected on their experience, modified the protocol and developed recommendations on a practical but comprehensive model of care. Results The original protocol had to be adapted in terms of its expectations of the primary care providers, overly forensic orientation, lack of depth in terms of mental health, validity of the danger assessment and safety planning process, and need for ongoing empowerment and support. A three-tier model resulted: case finding and clinical care provision by primary care providers; psychological, social and legal assistance by ‘IPV champions’ followed by a group empowerment process; and then ongoing community-based support groups. Conclusion The inquiry process led to a model of comprehensive and intersectoral care that is integrated at the facility level and which is now being piloted in the Western Cape, South Africa.

  5. New insights into frequency and contents of fear of cancer progression/recurrence (FOP/FCR) in outpatients with colorectal carcinoma (CRC) receiving oral capecitabine: a pilot study at a comprehensive cancer center.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hefner, Jochen; Berberich, Sara; Lanvers, Elena; Sanning, Maria; Steimer, Ann-Kathrin; Kunzmann, Volker

    2017-01-01

    Fear of cancer progression/recurrence (FOP/FCR) is considered one of the most prevalent sources of distress in cancer survivors and associated with lower quality of life and functional impairment. Detailed measures of FOP/FCR are needed because little is known about the knowledge of FOP/FCR, its associations with the patient-doctor relationship, and the rate of adequate therapy. Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most prevalent cancer entities, and oral capecitabine is widely prescribed as treatment. Therefore, we initiated a pilot study to expand the literature on FOP/FCR in CRC outpatients receiving capecitabine and to generate hypotheses for future investigations. This study included 58 patients treated at a comprehensive cancer center. FOP/FCR was assessed with the Fear of Progression Questionnaire (FOP-Q-SF). Satisfaction with the relationships with doctors was assessed with the Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire-9 (PRDQ-9). Levels of side effects were rated by the patients on a visual analog scale. Clinical data were extracted from the charts. A total of 19 out of 58 patients (36%) suffered from FOP/FCR according to our assessment. Levels of FOP/FCR seemed to be mostly moderate to high. Only four out of the 19 distressed patients (21%) were treated accordingly. Typical side effects of oncological treatment were associated with higher FOP/FCR. Satisfaction with doctor-patient relationships was not associated with FOP/FCR. Regarding single items of FOP/FCR, three out of the five most prevalent fears were associated with close relatives. FOP/FCR occurred frequently in more than one in three patients, but was mostly untreated in this sample of consecutive outpatients with CRC receiving oral capecitabine. In detail, most fears were related to family and friends. In addition to an unmet need of patients, our data indicate sources of distress not considered thus far. If replicated in larger studies, results may help to inform intervention development and

  6. Comprehensive Genomic Profiling of Esthesioneuroblastoma Reveals Additional Treatment Options.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gay, Laurie M; Kim, Sungeun; Fedorchak, Kyle; Kundranda, Madappa; Odia, Yazmin; Nangia, Chaitali; Battiste, James; Colon-Otero, Gerardo; Powell, Steven; Russell, Jeffery; Elvin, Julia A; Vergilio, Jo-Anne; Suh, James; Ali, Siraj M; Stephens, Philip J; Miller, Vincent A; Ross, Jeffrey S

    2017-07-01

    Esthesioneuroblastoma (ENB), also known as olfactory neuroblastoma, is a rare malignant neoplasm of the olfactory mucosa. Despite surgical resection combined with radiotherapy and adjuvant chemotherapy, ENB often relapses with rapid progression. Current multimodality, nontargeted therapy for relapsed ENB is of limited clinical benefit. We queried whether comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) of relapsed or refractory ENB can uncover genomic alterations (GA) that could identify potential targeted therapies for these patients. CGP was performed on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded sections from 41 consecutive clinical cases of ENBs using a hybrid-capture, adaptor ligation based next-generation sequencing assay to a mean coverage depth of 593X. The results were analyzed for base substitutions, insertions and deletions, select rearrangements, and copy number changes (amplifications and homozygous deletions). Clinically relevant GA (CRGA) were defined as GA linked to drugs on the market or under evaluation in clinical trials. A total of 28 ENBs harbored GA, with a mean of 1.5 GA per sample. Approximately half of the ENBs (21, 51%) featured at least one CRGA, with an average of 1 CRGA per sample. The most commonly altered gene was TP53 (17%), with GA in PIK3CA , NF1 , CDKN2A , and CDKN2C occurring in 7% of samples. We report comprehensive genomic profiles for 41 ENB tumors. CGP revealed potential new therapeutic targets, including targetable GA in the mTOR, CDK and growth factor signaling pathways, highlighting the clinical value of genomic profiling in ENB. Comprehensive genomic profiling of 41 relapsed or refractory ENBs reveals recurrent alterations or classes of mutation, including amplification of tyrosine kinases encoded on chromosome 5q and mutations affecting genes in the mTOR/PI3K pathway. Approximately half of the ENBs (21, 51%) featured at least one clinically relevant genomic alteration (CRGA), with an average of 1 CRGA per sample. The most commonly altered

  7. The progressive tax

    OpenAIRE

    Estrada, Fernando

    2010-01-01

    This article describes the argumentative structure of Hayek on the relationship between power to tax and the progressive tax. It is observed throughout its work giving special attention to two works: The Constitution of Liberty (1959) and Law, Legislation and Liberty, vol3; The Political Order of Free People, 1979) Hayek describes one of the arguments most complete information bout SFP progressive tax systems (progressive tax). According to the author the history of the tax progressive system...

  8. 75 FR 32169 - Comprehensive Centers Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-06-07

    ... of proposed waivers were supportive of the Comprehensive Centers program and the proposed waivers... Department to continue promoting this shared oversight by involving OSERS leadership in deliberations about... identification of the valuable contribution of OSERS leadership in supporting the Comprehensive Centers program...

  9. Comprehensive geriatric assessment

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    2007-09-14

    Sep 14, 2007 ... i.e. difficulty performing simple physical and mental tasks necessary for daily life. ... Definition. Comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) is a multidimensional .... The formation of a programme of therapy is decided on.

  10. Cell-based multi-parametric model of cleft progression during submandibular salivary gland branching morphogenesis.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shayoni Ray

    Full Text Available Cleft formation during submandibular salivary gland branching morphogenesis is the critical step initiating the growth and development of the complex adult organ. Previous experimental studies indicated requirements for several epithelial cellular processes, such as proliferation, migration, cell-cell adhesion, cell-extracellular matrix (matrix adhesion, and cellular contraction in cleft formation; however, the relative contribution of each of these processes is not fully understood since it is not possible to experimentally manipulate each factor independently. We present here a comprehensive analysis of several cellular parameters regulating cleft progression during branching morphogenesis in the epithelial tissue of an early embryonic salivary gland at a local scale using an on lattice Monte-Carlo simulation model, the Glazier-Graner-Hogeweg model. We utilized measurements from time-lapse images of mouse submandibular gland organ explants to construct a temporally and spatially relevant cell-based 2D model. Our model simulates the effect of cellular proliferation, actomyosin contractility, cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesions on cleft progression, and it was used to test specific hypotheses regarding the function of these parameters in branching morphogenesis. We use innovative features capturing several aspects of cleft morphology and quantitatively analyze clefts formed during functional modification of the cellular parameters. Our simulations predict that a low epithelial mitosis rate and moderate level of actomyosin contractility in the cleft cells promote cleft progression. Raising or lowering levels of contractility and mitosis rate resulted in non-progressive clefts. We also show that lowered cell-cell adhesion in the cleft region and increased cleft cell-matrix adhesions are required for cleft progression. Using a classifier-based analysis, the relative importance of these four contributing cellular factors for effective cleft

  11. How to assess and improve children's reading comprehension?

    OpenAIRE

    Muijselaar, M.M.L.

    2016-01-01

    Reading comprehension is one of the most important skills children have to acquire during the final years of primary education. It is therefore unfortunate that many children have severe problems with a proper understanding of texts. To design methods that foster children’s reading comprehension, more information about the underlying skills and processes that are involved in reading comprehension is needed. Prerequisites for reading comprehension are the accurate and fast reading of single wo...

  12. Comprehensive Statewide Plan for Postsecondary Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nebraska's Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education, 2016

    2016-01-01

    The constitution and statutes of Nebraska assign the Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education the responsibility for comprehensive planning for postsecondary education in Nebraska. The purpose of the "Comprehensive Plan for Postsecondary Education" is to provide direction for the future of postsecondary education in Nebraska.…

  13. The Effect of Comprehensible Input and Comprehensible Output on the Accuracy and Complexity of Iranian EFL Learners’ Oral Speech

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    omid tabatabaie

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed at investigating the relative impact of comprehensible input and comprehensible output on the development of grammatical accuracy and syntactic complexity of Iranian EFL learners’ oral production. Participants were 60 female EFL learners selected from a whole population pool of 80 based on the standard test of IELTS. To investigate the research questions, the participants were randomly divided into three groups: Input group, output group, and control group. The study involved two phases: the pre-task phase, and the main-task phase. During the pre-task phase, the input group received comprehensible input. In the same phase, the output group was pushed to be engaged in comprehensible output production. The control group neither received input, nor was engaged in output production. In the main-task phase, all subjects performed monologues that were separately recorded, and later transcribed and coded in terms of accuracy and complexity through Bygate's (2001 standard coding system and finally scored. The statistical analysis of the results revealed that while the output group outperformed the input group in grammatical accuracy, the input group proved to be more rigorous and influential in developing speech complexity. The study supports Swain’s (1985 claim that there are roles for comprehensible output that are different from and independent of comprehensible input, and Skehan & Foster's (2001 theory regarding human beings’ limited attentional capacities that can be devoted to one aspect of oral speech at the expense of the other. Generally, it is implied that the most effective way for improving oral speech, based on the literature and the results obtained from this study, is an eclectic approach which conflates both comprehensible input and comprehensible output.

  14. Beneficial Uses Program. Progress report for period ending June 30, 1978. [Irradiated sewage sludge

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1979-01-01

    The Beneficial Uses Program is a comprehensive program to develop the necessary technologies for cost-beneficial uses of existing and future surplus radioactive materials. The major portion of the work at Sandia is concentrated in two sub-programs: the Waste Resources Utilization Program and the Separation Technology and Source Development Program. Progress is reported on: (1) the Sandia Irradiator for Dried Sewage Solids; (2) bacteriology; (3) mycology; (4) virology; (5) animal feeds containing irradiated sewage solids; (6) use of irradiated sewage sludge as fertilizer; and (7) development of /sup 137/Cs radiation sources obtained from radioactive wastes. (TFD)

  15. Markers, Cofactors and Staging Systems in the Study of HIV Disease Progression: A Review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MC Portela

    1997-07-01

    Full Text Available This paper is aimed at providing a comprehensive review of markers, cofactors and staging systems used for HIV disease, focusing on some aspects that nowadays could even be considered historical, and advancing in current issues such as the prognostic value of viral load measurements, viral genotypic and phenotypic characterization, and new HIV disease treatment protocols. CD4+ cell values, combined with the new viral markers mentioned are promising as a parsimonious predictor set for defining both severity and progression. An adequate predictor of patient resource use for planning purposes still needs to be defined

  16. Core components of a comprehensive quality assurance program in anatomic pathology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakhleh, Raouf E

    2009-11-01

    In this article the core components of a comprehensive quality assurance and improvement plan are outlined. Quality anatomic pathology work comes with focus on accurate, timely, and complete reports. A commitment to continuous quality improvement and a systems approach with a persistent effort helps to achieve this end. Departments should have a quality assurance and improvement plan that includes a risk assessment of real and potential problems facing the laboratory. The plan should also list the individuals responsible for carrying out the program with adequate resources, a defined timetable, and annual assessment for progress and future directions. Quality assurance monitors should address regulatory requirements and be organized by laboratory division (surgical pathology, cytology, etc) as well as 5 segments (preanalytic, analytic, postanalytic phases of the test cycle, turn-around-time, and customer satisfaction). Quality assurance data can also be used to evaluate individual pathologists using multiple parameters with peer group comparison.

  17. Comprehensive energy management eco routing & velocity profiles

    CERN Document Server

    Brandstätter, Bernhard

    2017-01-01

    The book discusses the emerging topic of comprehensive energy management in electric vehicles from the viewpoint of academia and from the industrial perspective. It provides a seamless coverage of all relevant systems and control algorithms for comprehensive energy management, their integration on a multi-core system and their reliability assurance (validation and test). Relevant European projects contributing to the evolvement of comprehensive energy management in fully electric vehicles are also included.

  18. When Progressive Disease Does Not Mean Treatment Failure: Reconsidering the Criteria for Progression

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-01-01

    Although progression-based endpoints, such as progression-free survival, are often key clinical trial endpoints for anticancer agents, the clinical meaning of “objective progression” is much less certain. As scrutiny of progression-based endpoints in clinical trials increases, it should be remembered that the Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumors (RECIST) progression criteria were not developed as a surrogate for survival. Now that progression-free survival has come to be an increasingly important trial endpoint, the criteria that define progression deserve critical evaluation to determine whether alternate definitions of progression might facilitate the development of stronger surrogate endpoints and more meaningful trial results. In this commentary, we review the genesis of the criteria for progression, highlight recent data that question their value as a marker of treatment failure, and advocate for several research strategies that could lay the groundwork for a clinically validated definition of disease progression in solid tumor oncology. PMID:22927506

  19. Profiling classroom reading comprehension development practices ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Of specific concern is the lack of representation of the sampled South African learners at the PIRLS international benchmarks, revealing a distinct lack of their development of thinking and reasoning abilities for reading comprehension. To shed light on potential reasons for learners' reading comprehension difficulties, this ...

  20. Executive Dysfunction among Children with Reading Comprehension Deficits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Locascio, Gianna; Mahone, E. Mark; Eason, Sarah H.; Cutting, Laurie E.

    2010-01-01

    Emerging research supports the contribution of executive function (EF) to reading comprehension; however, a unique pattern has not been established for children who demonstrate comprehension difficulties despite average word recognition ability (specific reading comprehension deficit; S-RCD). To identify particular EF components on which children…

  1. How To Tutor Students with Reading Comprehension Problems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parker, Richard; Hasbrouck, Jan E.; Denton, Carolyn

    2002-01-01

    Suggestions for tutoring students with reading comprehension problems include careful selection of books with readable text segments, use of comprehension strategies such as paraphrasing brief sections, and reading to find specific information. Several reading comprehension strategies for students are summarized. (Contains 7 references.) (DB)

  2. The research progress of dual-modality probes for molecular imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cao Feng; Chen Yue

    2010-01-01

    Various imaging modalities have been exploited to investigate the anatomic or functional dissemination of tissues in the body. However, no single imaging modality allows overall structural, functional, and molecular information as each imaging modality has its own unique strengths and weaknesses. The combination of two imaging modalities that investigates the strengths of different methods might offer the prospect of improved diagnostic abilities. As more and more dual-modality imaging system have become clinically adopted, significant progress has been made toward the creation of dual-modality imaging probes, which can be used as novel tools for future multimodality systems. These all-in-one probes take full advantage of two different imaging modalities and could provide comprehensive information for clinical diagnostics. This review discusses the advantages and challenges in developing dual-modality imaging probes. (authors)

  3. Review of evaluation on ecological carrying capacity: The progress and trend of methodology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, S. F.; Xu, Y.; Liu, T. J.; Ye, J. M.; Pan, B. L.; Chu, C.; Peng, Z. L.

    2018-02-01

    The ecological carrying capacity (ECC) has been regarded as an important reference to indicate the level of regional sustainable development since the very beginning of twenty-first century. By a brief review of the main progress in ECC evaluation methodologies in recent five years, this paper systematically discusses the features and differences of these methods and expounds the current states and future development trend of ECC methodology. The result shows that further exploration in terms of the dynamic, comprehensive and intelligent assessment technologies needs to be provided in order to form a unified and scientific ECC methodology system and to produce a reliable basis for environmental-economic decision-makings.

  4. Clinician perspectives of an intensive comprehensive aphasia program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babbitt, Edna M; Worrall, Linda E; Cherney, Leora R

    2013-01-01

    Intensive comprehensive aphasia programs (ICAPs) have increased in number in recent years in the United States and abroad. To describe the experiences of clinicians working in an ICAP. A phenomenological approach was taken. Seven clinicians from 3 ICAPs were interviewed in person or on the phone. Their interviews were transcribed and coded for themes relating to their experiences. Clinicians described 3 major themes. The first theme related to the intensity component of the ICAP that allowed clinicians to provide in-depth treatment and gave them a different perspective with regard to providing treatment and the potential impact on the person with aphasia. The second theme of rewards for the clinicians included learning and support, seeing progress, and developing relationships with their clients and family members. Third, challenges were noted, including the time involved in learning new therapy techniques, patient characteristics such as chronicity of the aphasia, and the difficulty of returning to work in typical clinical settings after having experienced an ICAP. Although there is a potential for bias with the small sample size, this pilot study gives insight into the clinician perspective of what makes working in an ICAP both worthwhile and challenging.

  5. Listening comprehension in preschoolers: the role of memory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Florit, Elena; Roch, Maja; Altoè, Gianmarco; Levorato, Maria Chiara

    2009-11-01

    The current study analyzed the relationship between text comprehension and memory skills in preschoolers. We were interested in verifying the hypothesis that memory is a specific contributor to listening comprehension in preschool children after controlling for verbal abilities. We were also interested in analyzing the developmental path of the relationship between memory skills and listening comprehension in the age range considered. Forty-four, 4-year-olds (mean age = 4 years and 6 months, SD = 4 months) and 40, 5-year-olds (mean age = 5 years and 4 months, SD = 5 months) participated in the study. The children were administered measures to evaluate listening comprehension ability (story comprehension), short-term and working memory skills (forward and backward word span), verbal intelligence and receptive vocabulary. Results showed that both short-term and working memory predicted unique and independent variance in listening comprehension after controlling for verbal abilities, with working memory explaining additional variance over and above short-term memory. The predictive power of memory skills was stable in the age range considered. Results also confirm a strong relation between verbal abilities and listening comprehension in 4- and 5-year-old children.

  6. Measurment and Reporting of Comprehensive Income: Search ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Measurment and Reporting of Comprehensive Income: Search, Challenges, ... of periods of stable and unstable economic situation and satisfies varied users' ... Keywords: Historical accounting; comprehensive income; asset valuation model.

  7. Gestalt Imagery: A Critical Factor in Language Comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bell, Nanci

    1991-01-01

    Lack of gestalt imagery (the ability to create imaged wholes) can contribute to language comprehension disorder characterized by weak reading comprehension, weak oral language comprehension, weak oral language expression, weak written language expression, difficulty following directions, and a weak sense of humor. Sequential stimulation using an…

  8. Waste Isolation Safety Assessment Program. Technical progress report for FY-1978

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brandstetter, A.; Harwell, M.A.; Howes, B.W.; Benson, G.L.; Bradley, D.J.; Raymond, J.R.; Serne, R.J.; Schilling, A.H.

    1979-07-01

    Associated with commercial nuclear power production in the United States is the generation of potentially hazardous radioactive wastes. The Department of Energy (DOE) is seeking to develop nuclear waste isolation systems in geologic formations that will preclude contact with the biosphere of waste radionuclides in concentrations which are sufficient to cause deleterious impact on humans or their environments. Comprehensive analyses of specific isolation systems are needed to assess the expectations of meeting that objective. The Waste Isolation Safety Assessment Program (WISAP) has been established at the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (operated by Battelle Memorial Institute) for developing the capability of making those analyses. Progress on the following tasks is reported: release scenario analysis, waste form release rate analysis, release consequence analysis, sorption-desorption analysis, and societal acceptance analysis

  9. University Students with Poor Reading Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Georgiou, George K.; Das, J. P.

    2015-01-01

    The present study aimed to examine the nature of the working memory and general cognitive ability deficits experienced by university students with a specific reading comprehension deficit. A total of 32 university students with poor reading comprehension but average word-reading skills and 60 age-word-matched controls with no comprehension…

  10. Technology Comprehension - Scaling Making into a National Discipline

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tuhkala, Ari; Nielsen, Nick; Wagner, Marie-Louise

    2018-01-01

    , surveys, and a theme discussion with experienced teachers from the 13 schools. The main takeaways are: First, the teachers did not perceive Technology Comprehension as a distinguished discipline, which calls for more research on how Making is scaled into a national discipline. Second, Technology......We account for the first research results from a government initiated experiment that scales Making to a national discipline. The Ministry of Education, in Denmark, has introduced Technology Comprehension as a new discipline for lower secondary education. Technology Comprehension is first...... Comprehension opens up for interdisciplinary and engaging learning activities, but teachers need scaffolding and support to actualise these opportunities. Third, Technology Comprehension challenges teachers’ existing competencies in relation to the discipline and students’ prerequisites and needs. Teachers need...

  11. Progress Report

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Duer, Karsten

    1999-01-01

    Progress report describing the work carried out by the Danish participant in the ALTSET project in the period January 1999 to July 1999.......Progress report describing the work carried out by the Danish participant in the ALTSET project in the period January 1999 to July 1999....

  12. Progress Report

    Science.gov (United States)

    2018-05-16

    This report summarizes the annual progress of EPA’s Clean Air Markets Programs such as the Acid Rain Program (ARP) and the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR). EPA systematically collects data on emissions, compliance, and environmental effects, these data are highlighted in our Progress Reports.

  13. Nursing supervision for care comprehensiveness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lucieli Dias Pedreschi Chaves

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective: To reflect on nursing supervision as a management tool for care comprehensiveness by nurses, considering its potential and limits in the current scenario. Method: A reflective study based on discourse about nursing supervision, presenting theoretical and practical concepts and approaches. Results: Limits on the exercise of supervision are related to the organization of healthcare services based on the functional and clinical model of care, in addition to possible gaps in the nurse training process and work overload. Regarding the potential, researchers emphasize that supervision is a tool for coordinating care and management actions, which may favor care comprehensiveness, and stimulate positive attitudes toward cooperation and contribution within teams, co-responsibility, and educational development at work. Final considerations: Nursing supervision may help enhance care comprehensiveness by implying continuous reflection on including the dynamics of the healthcare work process and user needs in care networks.

  14. Teaching Listening Comprehension: Bottom-Up Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khuziakhmetov, Anvar N.; Porchesku, Galina V.

    2016-01-01

    Improving listening comprehension skills is one of the urgent contemporary educational problems in the field of second language acquisition. Understanding how L2 listening comprehension works can have a serious influence on language pedagogy. The aim of the paper is to discuss the practical and methodological value of the notion of the perception…

  15. Genetic Alzheimer Disease and Sporadic Dementia With Lewy Bodies: A Comorbidity Presenting as Primary Progressive Aphasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Picková, Tereza; Matěj, Radoslav; Bezdicek, Ondrej; Keller, Jiří; van der Zee, Julie; Van Broeckhoven, Christine; Cséfalvay, Zsolt; Rusina, Robert

    2017-03-01

    We report a 44-year-old woman, with a family history of early-onset dementia, presenting with primary progressive aphasia. This clinically variable syndrome has multiple underlying pathologies, and correlations between clinical manifestations and postmortem neuropathologic findings are controversial. Our patient suffered worsening language impairment with major word-finding difficulties but preserved comprehension. She also developed episodic memory impairment. Her condition progressed to dementia with behavioral changes. Magnetic resonance imaging showed early left perisylvian and bitemporal atrophy. The patient died shortly afterward from colon cancer. Neuropathologic examination revealed advanced early-onset Alzheimer and Lewy body disease, plus a clinically nonrelevant metastasis of her colon cancer in her left parietal lobe. Genetic examination revealed a p.Glu184Asp mutation in the presenilin1 gene. Our findings confirm the importance of a thorough appreciation for the clinical and neuropathologic correlations in patients with atypical neurodegenerative dementias.

  16. How reading comprehension is embodied and why that matters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arthur M. GLENBERG

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Reading comprehension, much like comprehension of situations and comprehension of oral language, is embodied. In all cases, comprehension is the ability to take effective action on the basis ofaffordances related to the body, the physical world, and personal goals and cultural norms. In language contexts, action-based comprehension arises from simulating the linguistic content usingneural and bodily systems of perception, action, and emotion. Within this framework, a new approach to teaching reading comprehension is described: Teach children how to simulate while reading. TheMoved by Reading intervention teaches simulation in two stages. In the first stage, physical manipulation, children manipulate toys to simulate the content of what they are reading. After success in physically manipulating the toys, the children are taught to manipulate the toys in imagination. Research demonstrates that both physical and imagined manipulation leads to large gains in memory and comprehension.

  17. How reading comprehension is embodied and why that matters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arthur M. Glenberg

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available Reading comprehension, much like comprehension of situations and comprehension of oral language, is embodied. In all cases, comprehension is the ability to take effective action on the basis of affordances related to the body, the physical world, and personal goals and cultural norms. In language contexts, action-based comprehension arises from simulating the linguistic content using neural and bodily systems of perception, action, and emotion. Within this framework, a new approach to teaching reading comprehension is described: Teach children how to simulate while reading. The Moved by Reading intervention teaches simulation in two stages. In the first stage, physical manipulation, children manipulate toys to simulate the content of what they are reading. After success in physically manipulating the toys, the children are taught to manipulate the toys in imagination. Research demonstrates that both physical and imagined manipulation leads to large gains in memory and comprehension.

  18. Meta-analysis of gene expression signatures defining the epithelial to mesenchymal transition during cancer progression.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christian J Gröger

    Full Text Available The epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT represents a crucial event during cancer progression and dissemination. EMT is the conversion of carcinoma cells from an epithelial to a mesenchymal phenotype that associates with a higher cell motility as well as enhanced chemoresistance and cancer stemness. Notably, EMT has been increasingly recognized as an early event of metastasis. Numerous gene expression studies (GES have been conducted to obtain transcriptome signatures and marker genes to understand the regulatory mechanisms underlying EMT. Yet, no meta-analysis considering the multitude of GES of EMT has been performed to comprehensively elaborate the core genes in this process. Here we report the meta-analysis of 18 independent and published GES of EMT which focused on different cell types and treatment modalities. Computational analysis revealed clustering of GES according to the type of treatment rather than to cell type. GES of EMT induced via transforming growth factor-β and tumor necrosis factor-α treatment yielded uniformly defined clusters while GES of models with alternative EMT induction clustered in a more complex fashion. In addition, we identified those up- and downregulated genes which were shared between the multitude of GES. This core gene list includes well known EMT markers as well as novel genes so far not described in this process. Furthermore, several genes of the EMT-core gene list significantly correlated with impaired pathological complete response in breast cancer patients. In conclusion, this meta-analysis provides a comprehensive survey of available EMT expression signatures and shows fundamental insights into the mechanisms that are governing carcinoma progression.

  19. 34 CFR 303.321 - Comprehensive child find system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 34 Education 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Comprehensive child find system. 303.321 Section 303... Services Identification and Evaluation § 303.321 Comprehensive child find system. (a) General. (1) Each system must include a comprehensive child find system that is consistent with part B of the Act (see 34...

  20. Painless reading comprehension

    CERN Document Server

    Jones, EdD, Darolyn "Lyn"

    2016-01-01

    Reading comprehension gets easier as students learn what kind of reader they are, discover how to keep facts in their head, and much more. Bonus Online Component: includes additional games, including Beat the Clock, a line match game, and a word scramble.

  1. Financial planning on a comprehensive scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mishra, Simita

    2013-04-01

    Hospitals and health systems that wish to explore the shift to comprehensive care management should: Assess the investments in infrastructure necessary to support comprehensive care management, Gauge the financial implications and set quality and financial goals, Monitor performance using metrics such as patient satisfaction, avoidable admissions, out-of-group referrals, and average length of stay.

  2. Comprehensive hard materials

    CERN Document Server

    2014-01-01

    Comprehensive Hard Materials deals with the production, uses and properties of the carbides, nitrides and borides of these metals and those of titanium, as well as tools of ceramics, the superhard boron nitrides and diamond and related compounds. Articles include the technologies of powder production (including their precursor materials), milling, granulation, cold and hot compaction, sintering, hot isostatic pressing, hot-pressing, injection moulding, as well as on the coating technologies for refractory metals, hard metals and hard materials. The characterization, testing, quality assurance and applications are also covered. Comprehensive Hard Materials provides meaningful insights on materials at the leading edge of technology. It aids continued research and development of these materials and as such it is a critical information resource to academics and industry professionals facing the technological challenges of the future. Hard materials operate at the leading edge of technology, and continued res...

  3. The Impact of Texting on Comprehension

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jamal K. M. Ali

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a study of the effects of texting on English language comprehension. The authors believe that English used in texting causes a lack of comprehension for English speakers, learners, and texters. Wei, Xian-hai and Jiang (2008:3 declare “In Netspeak, there are some newly-created vocabularies, which people cannot comprehend them either from their partial pronunciation or from their figures.” Crystal (2007:23 claims; “variation causes problems of comprehension and acceptability. If you speak or write differently from the way I do, we may fail to understand each other.”  In this paper, the authors conducted a questionnaire at Aligarh Muslim University to ninety respondents from five different Faculties and four different levels. To measure respondents’ comprehension of English texting, the authors gave the respondents abbreviations used by texters and asked them to write the full forms of the abbreviations. The authors found that many abbreviations were not understood, which suggested that most of the respondents did not understand and did not use these abbreviations.

  4. [Progressive visual agnosia].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sugimoto, Azusa; Futamura, Akinori; Kawamura, Mitsuru

    2011-10-01

    Progressive visual agnosia was discovered in the 20th century following the discovery of classical non-progressive visual agnosia. In contrast to the classical type, which is caused by cerebral vascular disease or traumatic injury, progressive visual agnosia is a symptom of neurological degeneration. The condition of progressive visual loss, including visual agnosia, and posterior cerebral atrophy was named posterior cortical atrophy (PCA) by Benson et al. (1988). Progressive visual agnosia is also observed in semantic dementia (SD) and other degenerative diseases, but there is a difference in the subtype of visual agnosia associated with these diseases. Lissauer (1890) classified visual agnosia into apperceptive and associative types, and it in most cases, PCA is associated with the apperceptive type. However, SD patients exhibit symptoms of associative visual agnosia before changing to those of semantic memory disorder. Insights into progressive visual agnosia have helped us understand the visual system and discover how we "perceive" the outer world neuronally, with regard to consciousness. Although PCA is a type of atypical dementia, its diagnosis is important to enable patients to live better lives with appropriate functional support.

  5. Recent progress in gasoline surrogate fuels

    KAUST Repository

    Sarathy, Mani; Farooq, Aamir; Kalghatgi, Gautam T.

    2017-01-01

    Petroleum-derived gasoline is currently the most widely used fuel for transportation propulsion. The design and operation of gasoline fuels is governed by specific physical and chemical kinetic fuel properties. These must be thoroughly understood in order to improve sustainable gasoline fuel technologies in the face of economical, technological, and societal challenges. For this reason, surrogate mixtures are formulated to emulate the thermophysical, thermochemical, and chemical kinetic properties of the real fuel, so that fundamental experiments and predictive simulations can be conducted. Early studies on gasoline combustion typically adopted single component or binary mixtures (n-heptane/isooctane) as surrogates. However, the last decade has seen rapid progress in the formulation and utilization of ternary mixtures (n-heptane/isooctane/toluene), as well as multicomponent mixtures that span the entire carbon number range of gasoline fuels (C4–C10). The increased use of oxygenated fuels (ethanol, butanol, MTBE, etc.) as blending components/additives has also motivated studies on their addition to gasoline fuels. This comprehensive review presents the available experimental and chemical kinetic studies which have been performed to better understand the combustion properties of gasoline fuels and their surrogates. Focus is on the development and use of surrogate fuels that emulate real fuel properties governing the design and operation of engines. A detailed analysis is presented for the various classes of compounds used in formulating gasoline surrogate fuels, including n-paraffins, isoparaffins, olefins, naphthenes, and aromatics. Chemical kinetic models for individual molecules and mixtures of molecules to emulate gasoline surrogate fuels are presented. Despite the recent progress in gasoline surrogate fuel combustion research, there are still major gaps remaining; these are critically discussed, as well as their implications on fuel formulation and engine

  6. Recent progress in gasoline surrogate fuels

    KAUST Repository

    Sarathy, Mani

    2017-12-06

    Petroleum-derived gasoline is currently the most widely used fuel for transportation propulsion. The design and operation of gasoline fuels is governed by specific physical and chemical kinetic fuel properties. These must be thoroughly understood in order to improve sustainable gasoline fuel technologies in the face of economical, technological, and societal challenges. For this reason, surrogate mixtures are formulated to emulate the thermophysical, thermochemical, and chemical kinetic properties of the real fuel, so that fundamental experiments and predictive simulations can be conducted. Early studies on gasoline combustion typically adopted single component or binary mixtures (n-heptane/isooctane) as surrogates. However, the last decade has seen rapid progress in the formulation and utilization of ternary mixtures (n-heptane/isooctane/toluene), as well as multicomponent mixtures that span the entire carbon number range of gasoline fuels (C4–C10). The increased use of oxygenated fuels (ethanol, butanol, MTBE, etc.) as blending components/additives has also motivated studies on their addition to gasoline fuels. This comprehensive review presents the available experimental and chemical kinetic studies which have been performed to better understand the combustion properties of gasoline fuels and their surrogates. Focus is on the development and use of surrogate fuels that emulate real fuel properties governing the design and operation of engines. A detailed analysis is presented for the various classes of compounds used in formulating gasoline surrogate fuels, including n-paraffins, isoparaffins, olefins, naphthenes, and aromatics. Chemical kinetic models for individual molecules and mixtures of molecules to emulate gasoline surrogate fuels are presented. Despite the recent progress in gasoline surrogate fuel combustion research, there are still major gaps remaining; these are critically discussed, as well as their implications on fuel formulation and engine

  7. Comprehensive embryo testing. Experts' opinions regarding future directions: an expert panel study on comprehensive embryo testing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hens, Kristien; Dondorp, Wybo J; Geraedts, Joep P M; de Wert, Guido M

    2013-05-01

    What do scientists in the field of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) and preimplantation genetic screening (PGS) consider to be the future direction of comprehensive embryo testing? Although there are many biological and technical limitations, as well as uncertainties regarding the meaning of genetic variation, comprehensive embryo testing will impact the IVF/PGD practice and a timely ethical reflection is needed. Comprehensive testing using microarrays is currently being introduced in the context of PGD and PGS, and it is to be expected that whole-genome sequencing will also follow. Current ethical and empirical sociological research on embryo testing focuses on PGD as it is practiced now. However, empirical research and systematic reflection regarding the impact of comprehensive techniques for embryo testing is missing. In order to understand the potential of this technology and to be able to adequately foresee its implications, we held an expert panel with seven pioneers in PGD. We conducted an expert panel in October 2011 with seven PGD pioneers from Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany and the UK. Participants expected the use of comprehensive techniques in the context of PGD. However, the introduction of these techniques in embryo testing requires timely ethical reflection as it involves a shift from choosing an embryo without a particular genetic disease (i.e. PGD) or most likely to result in a successful pregnancy (i.e. PGS) to choosing the best embryo based on a much wider set of criteria. Such ethical reflection should take account of current technical and biological limitations and also of current uncertainties with regard to the meaning of genetic variance. However, ethicists should also not be afraid to look into the future. There was a general agreement that embryo testing will be increasingly preceded by comprehensive preconception screening, thus enabling smart combinations of genetic testing. The group was composed of seven participants from

  8. Micro-PNT and Comprehensive PNT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    YANG Yuanxi

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Comprehensive or integrated positioning, navigation and timing is an obvious developing trend following the global navigation satellite system.This paper summarizes the current status of micro-PNT and its developing requirements. The related key technologies are described and the relationship between comprehensive PNT and micro-PNT is analyzed. It is stressed that the comprehensive PNT needs massive infrastructure construction and investment, however, the micro-PNT aims at the integrated applications of high-tech micro sensors. It is different from the current opinions appeared in the literatures, micro-PNT should include multi GNSS integration and micro components of navigation and timing in order to make the PNT outputs refer to a unified coordinate datum and time scale. Micro-PNT focuses on the personalized micro terminal applications. Except for the miniaturization of each PNT component, micro-PNT aims at the deep integration of the micro sensors, adaptive data fusion and self calibration of each component.

  9. The Comprehension Problems for Second-Language Learners with Poor Reading Comprehension Despite Adequate Decoding: A Meta-Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spencer, Mercedes; Wagner, Richard K.

    2017-01-01

    We conducted a meta-analysis of 16 existing studies to examine the nature of the comprehension problems for children who were second-language learners with poor reading comprehension despite adequate decoding. Results indicated that these children had deficits in oral language (d = -0.80), but these deficits were not as severe as their reading…

  10. Dichotic listening performance predicts language comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Asbjørnsen, Arve E; Helland, Turid

    2006-05-01

    Dichotic listening performance is considered a reliable and valid procedure for the assessment of language lateralisation in the brain. However, the documentation of a relationship between language functions and dichotic listening performance is sparse, although it is accepted that dichotic listening measures language perception. In particular, language comprehension should show close correspondence to perception of language stimuli. In the present study, we tested samples of reading-impaired and normally achieving children between 10 and 13 years of age with tests of reading skills, language comprehension, and dichotic listening to consonant-vowel (CV) syllables. A high correlation between the language scores and the dichotic listening performance was expected. However, since the left ear score is believed to be an error when assessing language laterality, covariation was expected for the right ear scores only. In addition, directing attention to one ear input was believed to reduce the influence of random factors, and thus show a more concise estimate of left hemisphere language capacity. Thus, a stronger correlation between language comprehension skills and the dichotic listening performance when attending to the right ear was expected. The analyses yielded a positive correlation between the right ear score in DL and language comprehension, an effect that was stronger when attending to the right ear. The present results confirm the assumption that dichotic listening with CV syllables measures an aspect of language perception and language skills that is related to general language comprehension.

  11. Moving towards cleaner air: a progress report on the air quality strategy for the City of Toronto

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2001-06-01

    The City of Toronto Environmental Plan was adapted in principle by City Council in April 2000. The Plan contains 66 recommendations on land, air, water, governance, sustainability, energy, transportation, green economic development and monitoring. As part of the actions on air, the Plan recommended that the City develop a comprehensive strategy to make Toronto's air clean and free of harmful levels of pollutants. This document reports on progress in the development of this comprehensive air quality standard. Work on the standards was undertaken by an Air Quality Strategy Interdepartmental Working Group (AQSI Working Group) consisting of city departmental representatives, which is one of several working groups reporting to the Toronto Interdepartmental Environmental Team (TIE). While the AQSI Working Group has not yet concluded its work, it is able to report a number of preliminary conclusions. Among them are: implementation of several successful city-wide programs. In this context preliminary indications are that program effectiveness will be limited by the availability of staff and appropriate funding. Policy and legal studies that will provide essential information relating to the legal/jurisdictional context are well underway. Modelling and monitoring of Toronto's air quality are in progress, and will be relied upon for information to guide policy development. Final strategy will have to be formulated in a regional context, in concert with the provincial and federal governments, and will have to take into account trans-boundary (inter-regional, inter-provincial and international) issues

  12. Conceptual Combination During Sentence Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Swinney, David; Love, Tracy; Walenski, Matthew; Smith, Edward E.

    2008-01-01

    This experiment examined the time course of integration of modifier-noun (conceptual) combinations during auditory sentence comprehension using cross-modal lexical priming. The study revealed that during ongoing comprehension, there is initial activation of features of the noun prior to activation of (emergent) features of the entire conceptual combination. These results support compositionality in conceptual combination; that is, they indicate that features of the individual words constituting a conceptual combination are activated prior to combination of the words into a new concept. PMID:17576278

  13. Foundations of reading comprehension in children with intellectual disabilities

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wingerden-Fontein, E.G. van; Segers, P.C.J.; Balkom, L.J.M. van; Verhoeven, L.T.W.

    2017-01-01

    Background Knowledge about predictors for reading comprehension in children with intellectual disabilities (ID) is still fragmented. Aims This study compared reading comprehension, word decoding, listening comprehension, and reading related linguistic and cognitive precursor measures in children

  14. Comprehensive Analysis of Large Sets of Age-Related Physiological Indicators Reveals Rapid Aging around the Age of 55 Years.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lixie, Erin; Edgeworth, Jameson; Shamir, Lior

    2015-01-01

    While many studies show a correlation between chronological age and physiological indicators, the nature of this correlation is not fully understood. To perform a comprehensive analysis of the correlation between chronological age and age-related physiological indicators. Physiological aging scores were deduced using principal component analysis from a large dataset of 1,227 variables measured in a cohort of 4,796 human subjects, and the correlation between the physiological aging scores and chronological age was assessed. Physiological age does not progress linearly or exponentially with chronological age: a more rapid physiological change is observed around the age of 55 years, followed by a mild decline until around the age of 70 years. These findings provide evidence that the progression of physiological age is not linear with that of chronological age, and that periods of mild change in physiological age are separated by periods of more rapid aging. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  15. The effect of progressive resistance training on lean body mass in post-treatment cancer patients – A systematic review

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lønbro, Simon

    2014-01-01

    Loss of lean body mass is a common problem in many post-treatment cancer patients and may negatively affect physical capacity in terms of maximal muscle strength and functional performance. The purpose of this study was to systematically review the scientific evidence on the effect of progressive resistance training on lean body mass in post-treatment cancer patients. A comprehensive literature search was conducted and ultimately 12 studies were included. Methodological quality of the included studies was evaluated using the PEDro scale and the effect of progressive resistance training was reported as the range of mean changes among RCTs and non-RCTs. Six RCTs and six non-RCTs were included in the study. In the RCTs the change in lean body mass in the progressive resistance training groups relative to control groups ranged from −0.4% to 3.9%, and in four of six trials the training effect was significantly larger than the change in the control groups. In the six non-RCTs, the mean change in lean body mass over time ranged from −0.01 to 11.8% which was significant in two of the trials. The included studies reported no or very limited adverse events following progressive resistance training. Based on 12 heterogenic studies there is moderate evidence supporting a positive effect of progressive resistance training on lean body mass in post-treatment cancer patients

  16. Object orientation affects spatial language comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burigo, Michele; Sacchi, Simona

    2013-01-01

    Typical spatial descriptions, such as "The car is in front of the house," describe the position of a located object (LO; e.g., the car) in space relative to a reference object (RO) whose location is known (e.g., the house). The orientation of the RO affects spatial language comprehension via the reference frame selection process. However, the effects of the LO's orientation on spatial language have not received great attention. This study explores whether the pure geometric information of the LO (e.g., its orientation) affects spatial language comprehension using placing and production tasks. Our results suggest that the orientation of the LO influences spatial language comprehension even in the absence of functional relationships. Copyright © 2013 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

  17. Students’ Reading Comprehension Performance with Emotional Literacy-Based Strategy Intervention

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yusfarina Mohd Yussof

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available An effective reading comprehension process demands a strategy to enhance the cognitive ability to digest text information in the effort to elicit meaning contextually. In addition, the role of emotions also influences the efficacy of this process, especially in narrative text comprehension. This quasi-experimental study aims to observe students’ performance in the Reading Comprehension Test resulting from Emotional Literacy-Based Reading Comprehension Strategy (ELBRCS, which is a combination of cognitive and affective strategies. This study involved 90 students, whereby 45 students were clustered in the Experimental Group and received the ELBRCS intervension. The remaining 45 students were placed in the Control Group and underwent the conventional strategy (prevalent classroom method.The students’ reading comprehension performance was measured using the Reading Comprehension Test (RCT. The findings show that the experimental group received a higher score than the control group for RCT. The intervention has successfully increased student’s Reading Comprehension from literal comprehension to higher levels of comprehension i.e. inferential, evaluative and appreciative levels, as indicated by Barret’s Taxonomy.

  18. Instruction of Research-Based Comprehension Strategies in Basal Reading Programs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pilonieta, Paola

    2010-01-01

    Research supports using research-based comprehension strategies; however, comprehension strategy instruction is not highly visible in basal reading programs or classroom instruction, resulting in many students who struggle with comprehension. A content analysis examined which research-based comprehension strategies were presented in five…

  19. Neuroimaging Evidence of Comprehension Monitoring

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Linda Baker

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to synthesize the emerging neuroimaging literature that reveals how the brain responds when readers and listeners encounter texts that demand monitoring of their ongoing comprehension processes. Much of this research has been undertaken by cognitive scientists who do not frame their work in metacognitive terms, and therefore it is less likely to be familiar to psychologists who study metacognition in educational contexts. The important role of metacognition in the development and use of academic skills is widely recognized. Metacognition is typically defined as the awareness and control of one's own cognitive processes. In the domain of reading, the most important metacognitive skill is comprehension monitoring, the evaluation and regulation of comprehension. Readers who monitor their understanding realize when they have encountered difficulty making sense of the text, and they apply error correction procedures to attempt to resolve the difficulty. Metacognition depends on executive control skills that continue to develop into early adulthood, in parallel with the maturation of the executive control regions of the prefrontal cortex. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI and event-related potentials (ERP have been used for some time to study neural correlates of basic reading processes such as word identification, but it is only within recent years that researchers have turned to the higher-level processes of text comprehension. The article describes illustrative studies that reveal changes in neural activity when adults apply lexical, syntactic, or semantic standards to evaluate their understanding.

  20. How language production shapes language form and comprehension

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maryellen C MacDonald

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Language production processes can provide insight into how language comprehension works and language typology—why languages tend to have certain characteristics more often than others. Drawing on work in memory retrieval, motor planning, and serial order in action planning, the Production-Distribution-Comprehension (PDC account links work in the fields of language production, typology, and comprehension: 1 faced with substantial computational burdens of planning and producing utterances, language producers implicitly follow three biases in utterance planning that promote word order choices that reduce these burdens, thereby improving production fluency. 2 These choices, repeated over many utterances and individuals, shape the distributions of utterance forms in language. The claim that language form stems in large degree from producers’ attempts to mitigate utterance planning difficulty is contrasted with alternative accounts in which form is driven by language use more broadly, language acquisition processes, or producers’ attempts to create language forms that are easily understood by comprehenders. 3 Language perceivers implicitly learn the statistical regularities in their linguistic input, and they use this prior experience to guide comprehension of subsequent language. In particular, they learn to predict the sequential structure of linguistic signals, based on the statistics of previously-encountered input. Thus key aspects of comprehension behavior are tied to lexico-syntactic statistics in the language, which in turn derive from utterance planning biases promoting production of comparatively easy utterance forms over more difficult ones. This approach contrasts with classic theories in which comprehension behaviors are attributed to innate design features of the language comprehension system and associated working memory. The PDC instead links basic features of comprehension to a different source: production processes that shape

  1. Use of Meta-comprehensive Strategies to Strengthen Reading Comprehension in Second-Cycle Students from a Public School at Bogotá, Colombia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bibian Alexandra Rodríguez Ribero

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available This research inquired about the effect of a classroom intervention in metacomprehension strategies, specifically self-questioning, on reading comprehension improvement in third and fourth - graders. Reading comprehension was understood as a process that relates content, text and inferences, and is facilitated by metacomprehension or metacognitive processes applied to reading comprehension. The participants were third- and fourth-grade students: the intervention group (which had an initial assessment, and were submitted to classroom intervention in metacomprehension using self-questioning—implemented by the first three authors—, and had a final assessment, and the control group (which had initial assessment, the usual classroom work with other teachers, and final assessment. The Comprensión Lingüística Progresiva (clp, Alliende, Condemarín & Milicic, 2004—a reading comprehension test—and the students’ metacomprehensive strategies questionnaire were administered to students in both groups, in the initial and final assessments. This information was complemented with interview data from other teachers (different from the authors in order to know their perspective on reading comprehension underlying their reading teaching practices. Results showed a rise in reading comprehension tests scores and diversification in the use of metacomprehensive strategies only in the intervention group, and different conceptions of reading comprehension in other teachers, which had nothing to do with metacomprehension strategies.

  2. The role of phonological awareness in reading comprehension

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Silvia Cárnio

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Purpose: to characterize the performance of 4th grade-Elementary School students with and without signs of reading and writing disorders as for phonological awareness and reading comprehension, and also verify possible correlations between them. Methods: 60 children enrolled in the 4th grade of Elementary School from two public schools, whose parents signed the Informed Consent Form, participated in the present study. They were selected and organized in groups, with and without signs of reading and writing disorders. All students were individually assessed regarding their phonological awareness and reading comprehension of sentences and texts through standardized tests. The data underwent statistical analysis. Results: those with signs of reading and writing disorders showed the lowest performance in the reading comprehension of sentences and texts. A correlation was found between phonological awareness and reading comprehension of sentences and texts in both groups. Conclusion: students with no signs of reading and writing disorders had a higher performance in the skills assessed. The correlation found between phonological awareness and reading comprehension of sentences and texts shows not only the importance of metaphonological skills for a proficient reading, but also for a comprehensive one.

  3. Psychological functioning in primary progressive versus secondary progressive multiple sclerosis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vleugels, L; Pfennings, L E; Pouwer, F

    1998-01-01

    Psychological functioning in two types of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients is assessed: primary progressive (PP) and secondary progressive (SP) patients. On the basis of differences in clinical course and underlying pathology we hypothesized that primary progressive patients and secondary...... progressive patients might have different psychological functioning. Seventy patients treated in an MS centre were examined cross-sectionally. Forty had an SP course of MS and 30 a PP course. The 33 male and 37 female patients had a mean age of 48.4 years (SD 11.2) and mean age of onset of MS of 30.7 years...... (SD 11.1). Patients completed questionnaires measuring among others the following aspects of psychological functioning: depression (BDI, SCL-90), anxiety (STAI, SCL-90), agoraphobia (SCL-90), somatic complaints (SCL-90), hostility (SCL-90) and attitude towards handicap (GHAS). Patients with a PP...

  4. Beyond the Story Map: Inferential Comprehension via Character Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    McTigue, Erin; Douglass, April; Wright, Katherine L.; Hodges, Tracey S.; Franks, Amanda D.

    2015-01-01

    Inferential comprehension requires both emotional intelligence and cognitive skills, however instructional comprehension strategies typically underemphasize the emotional contribution. This article documents an intervention used by diverse third grade students which centers on teaching story comprehension through character perspective-taking…

  5. 76 FR 61103 - Medicare Program; Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-10-03

    ...] Medicare Program; Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services... organizations to participate in the Comprehensive Primary Care initiative (CPC), a multipayer model designed to... the Comprehensive Primary Care initiative or the application process. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I...

  6. The level of social relations comprehension and its impact on text comprehension in individuals with autistic spectrum disorder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hana Sotáková

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Background The study was carried out within the research “Reading comprehension – typical development and its risks”. The article contains data from a component study focused on 4th grade students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD who were incorporated into a group of readers with reading comprehension development risks. The main aim was to establish whether variable results in children’s reading and comprehension tests relate to the level of understanding of social relations. Participants and procedure We tested 20 students with ASD in two phases: T1 and T2. Each phase consisted of 2 individual sessions. Under the leadership of a research assistant, during each of these sessions a student would carry out the test focused on general intellectual skills, language skills, reading, and reading comprehension. For students with autistic spectrum disorder the Strange Stories test was added in order to ascertain the level of social relations understanding. Results The results in reading and reading comprehension tests among students with ASD varied significantly. Based on a correlation analysis it was found that the Strange Stories results substantially correlate with tests focused on reading, text comprehension and language skill levels. Conclusions Our research proved the following: the Strange Stories test results show that the level to which an individual is able to understand social relations and social behavior is significantly related to his/her ability to comprehend a text. Consequently, this can influence his/her learning skills as well as the quality of life in society. Cultivation of social abilities, social communication and understanding of social situations and relations is therefore necessary for compensation of autistic spectrum disorder expressions.

  7. Waste Isolation Safety Assessment Program. Technical progress report for FY-1978

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brandstetter, A.; Harwell, M.A.; Howes, B.W.; Benson, G.L.; Bradley, D.J.; Raymond, J.R.; Serne, R.J.; Schilling, A.H.

    1979-07-01

    Associated with commercial nuclear power production in the United States is the generation of potentially hazardous radioactive wastes. The Department of Energy (DOE) is seeking to develop nuclear waste isolation systems in geologic formations that will preclude contact with the biosphere of waste radionuclides in concentrations which are sufficient to cause deleterious impact on humans or their environments. Comprehensive analyses of specific isolation systems are needed to assess the expectations of meeting that objective. The Waste Isolation Safety Assessment Program (WISAP) has been established at the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (operated by Battelle Memorial Institute) for developing the capability of making those analyses. Progress on the following tasks is reported: release scenario analysis, waste form release rate analysis, release consequence analysis, sorption-desorption analysis, and societal acceptance analysis. (DC)

  8. [NEW PROGRESS OF ACELLULAR FISH SKIN AS NOVEL TISSUE ENGINEERED SCAFFOLD].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wei, Xiaojuan; Wang, Nanping; He, Lan; Guo, Xiuyu; Gu, Qisheng

    2016-11-08

    To review the recent research progress of acellular fish skin as a tissue engineered scaffold, and to analyze the feasibility and risk management in clinical application. The research and development, application status of acellular fish skin as a tissue engineered scaffold were comprehensively analyzed, and then several key points were put forward. Acellular fish skin has a huge potential in clinical practice as novel acellular extracellular matrix, but there have been no related research reports up to now in China. As an emerging point of translational medicine, investigation of acellular fish skin is mainly focused on artificial skin, surgical patch, and wound dressings. Development of acellular fish skin-based new products is concerned to be clinical feasible and necessary, but a lot of applied basic researches should be carried out.

  9. Emergency operating procedures guidelines for pressurized water reactors - a progress report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lyon, W.C.

    1984-01-01

    Emergency Operating Procedures (EOPs) contain the instructions the operator will follow to control a nuclear plant whenever a condition exists that potentially jeopardizes the fuel cladding, the reactor coolant system (RCS) pressure boundary, or the containment. The EOPs are prepared from guidelines which contain the major operator instructions that will be in the EOPs. Guidelines have been prepared by owners' groups having Babcock and Wilcox (BandW), Combustion Engineering (CE), General Electric (GE), and Westinghouse (W) plants. These guidelines cover many aspects of full power operation. Future effort is anticipated to complete coverage of transient events, including severe accidents, all power conditions, and shutdown. This paper describes the philosophy which has guided NRC technical review of guidelines, progress achieved in providing comprehensive coverage of emergency conditions for PWRs, and anticipated future technical activities

  10. Big Data Analytics and Machine Intelligence Capability Development at NASA Langley Research Center: Strategy, Roadmap, and Progress

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ambur, Manjula Y.; Yagle, Jeremy J.; Reith, William; McLarney, Edward

    2016-01-01

    In 2014, a team of researchers, engineers and information technology specialists at NASA Langley Research Center developed a Big Data Analytics and Machine Intelligence Strategy and Roadmap as part of Langley's Comprehensive Digital Transformation Initiative, with the goal of identifying the goals, objectives, initiatives, and recommendations need to develop near-, mid- and long-term capabilities for data analytics and machine intelligence in aerospace domains. Since that time, significant progress has been made in developing pilots and projects in several research, engineering, and scientific domains by following the original strategy of collaboration between mission support organizations, mission organizations, and external partners from universities and industry. This report summarizes the work to date in Data Intensive Scientific Discovery, Deep Content Analytics, and Deep Q&A projects, as well as the progress made in collaboration, outreach, and education. Recommendations for continuing this success into future phases of the initiative are also made.

  11. Comprehension of atypical literary text and scholastic achievement

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Božin Aurel A.

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available With the aim of gaining insight into literary text comprehension and the linkage between that comprehension and scholastic achievement during the first years of schooling, a research was conducted on the sample of 152 third and fourth grade pupils from one urban and one rural school. After having read silently a selected atypical excerpt from one literary text, interviewed pupils filled out the questionnaire constructed for the purposes of this research starting from the 11 categories of text comprehension singled out based on the theory of comprehension and interpretation of literary text and the current curriculum. In the first part of the research we applied the Children's orientation scale by Malka Margalit, and school marks were used as a measurement of scholastic achievement. Research results point out that, among other things, inferring on the basis of what has been read poses the greatest difficulty for third and fourth graders, that is, that almost three quarters of them are not capable of determining the meaning of some representative sentences from that text. In the positive sense, it was established that almost three quarters of them perceive beautiful poetic expressions and about 80% of them can at least to a certain extent recognize character descriptions, emotional situations and moods, that is, discover significant facts. Answers to the questions regarding the majority of categories of text comprehension are significantly correlated with scholastic achievement. As expected, the highest correlations between the measures on text comprehension categories are with the marks in native (Serbian language. Partial correlations between the measures on certain categories of text comprehension and measurements of scholastic achievement (excluding the influence of feeling of coherence are not significantly different from bivariate. Based on the obtained data, authors conclude that the utilized system of categories can be a useful tool for

  12. Baseline characteristics predict risk of progression and response to combined medical therapy for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kozminski, Michael A; Wei, John T; Nelson, Jason; Kent, David M

    2015-02-01

    To better risk stratify patients, using baseline characteristics, to help optimise decision-making for men with moderate-to-severe lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) secondary to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) through a secondary analysis of the Medical Therapy of Prostatic Symptoms (MTOPS) trial. After review of the literature, we identified potential baseline risk factors for BPH progression. Using bivariate tests in a secondary analysis of MTOPS data, we determined which variables retained prognostic significance. We then used these factors in Cox proportional hazard modelling to: i) more comprehensively risk stratify the study population based on pre-treatment parameters and ii) to determine which risk strata stood to benefit most from medical intervention. In all, 3047 men were followed in MTOPS for a mean of 4.5 years. We found varying risks of progression across quartiles. Baseline BPH Impact Index score, post-void residual urine volume, serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level, age, American Urological Association Symptom Index score, and maximum urinary flow rate were found to significantly correlate with overall BPH progression in multivariable analysis. Using baseline factors permits estimation of individual patient risk for clinical progression and the benefits of medical therapy. A novel clinical decision tool based on these analyses will allow clinicians to weigh patient-specific benefits against possible risks of adverse effects for a given patient. © 2014 The Authors. BJU International © 2014 BJU International.

  13. Cryobiotechnology of apple (Malus spp.): development, progress and future prospects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Min-Rui; Chen, Long; Teixeira da Silva, Jaime A; Volk, Gayle M; Wang, Qiao-Chun

    2018-05-01

    Cryopreservation provides valuable genes for further breeding of elite cultivars, and cryotherapy improves the production of virus-free plants in Malus spp., thus assisting the sustainable development of the apple industry. Apple (Malus spp.) is one of the most economically important temperate fruit crops. Wild Malus genetic resources and existing cultivars provide valuable genes for breeding new elite cultivars and rootstocks through traditional and biotechnological breeding programs. These valuable genes include those resistant to abiotic factors such as drought and salinity, and to biotic factors such as fungi, bacteria and aphids. Over the last three decades, great progress has been made in apple cryobiology, making Malus one of the most extensively studied plant genera with respect to cryopreservation. Explants such as pollen, seeds, in vivo dormant buds, and in vitro shoot tips have all been successfully cryopreserved, and large Malus cryobanks have been established. Cryotherapy has been used for virus eradication, to obtain virus-free apple plants. Cryopreservation provided valuable genes for further breeding of elite cultivars, and cryotherapy improved the production of virus-free plants in Malus spp., thus assisting the sustainable development of the apple industry. This review provides updated and comprehensive information on the development and progress of apple cryopreservation and cryotherapy. Future research will reveal new applications and uses for apple cryopreservation and cryotherapy.

  14. Comprehensibility and Prosody Ratings for Pronunciation Software Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paul Warren

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available In the context of a project developing software for pronunciation practice and feedback for Mandarin-speaking learners of English, a key issue is how to decide which features of pronunciation to focus on in giving feedback. We used naïve and experienced native speaker ratings of comprehensibility and nativeness to establish the key features affecting comprehensibility of the utterances of a group of Chinese learners of English. Native speaker raters assessed the comprehensibility of recorded utterances, pinpointed areas of difficulty and then rated for nativeness the same utterances, but after segmental information had been filtered out. The results show that prosodic information is important for comprehensibility, and that there are no significant differences between naïve and experienced raters on either comprehensibility or nativeness judgements. This suggests that naïve judgements are a useful and accessible source of data for identifying the parameters to be used in setting up automated feedback.

  15. Comprehensive Education Portfolio with a Career Focus

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kruger, Evonne J.; Holtzman, Diane M.; Dagavarian, Debra A.

    2013-01-01

    There are many types of student portfolios used within academia: the prior learning portfolio, credentialing portfolio, developmental portfolio, capstone portfolio, individual course portfolio, and the comprehensive education portfolio. The comprehensive education portfolio (CEP), as used by the authors, is a student portfolio, developed over…

  16. Building Effective Collaboration in a Comprehensive Approach

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Essens, P.J.M.D.; Thompson, M.T.; Karrasch, A.; Jermalavičius, J.

    2016-01-01

    The Comprehensive Approach (CA) to crisis management operations is an essential element in NATO’s transformation in modern operations. At the Bucharest Summit in April 2008, Allied leaders endorsed an Action Plan for the development and implementation of NATO’s contribution to a Comprehensive

  17. Developmental relations between reading comprehension and reading strategies

    OpenAIRE

    Muijselaar, M.M.L.; Swart, N.M.; Steenbeek-Planting, E.G.; Droop, W.; Verhoeven, L.T.W.; Jong, P.F. de

    2017-01-01

    We examined the developmental relations between knowledge of reading strategies and reading comprehension in a longitudinal study of 312 Dutch children from the beginning of fourth grade to the end of fifth grade. Measures for reading comprehension, reading strategies, reading fluency, vocabulary, and working memory were administered. A structural equation model was constructed to estimate the unique relations between reading strategies and reading comprehension, while controlling for reading...

  18. Improving reading comprehension skills through the SCRATCH program

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Erdal Papatga

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to reveal how reading comprehension skills of elementary fourth graders who have problems in reading comprehension can be improved by means of the SCRATCH program. The study was designed as a participant action research. It was carried out within a 15-week process at an elementary school with middle socio-economic level in the Eskisehir province in the fall term of the 2015-2016 school year. The participants of the study were eight fourth graders who had problems in reading comprehension and were selected based on the criterion sampling method. Different data gathering tools were employed in different stages of the study. These were the Informal Reading Inventory, readability assessment rubric, participant selection form and identification forms for developmental level in reading comprehension for the quantitative data, and observation notes, a researcher diary, video recordings, teacher and student observation notes, and the projects the students prepared using the SCRATCH program for the qualitative data. In the study, the analysis of the quantitative data was done with correlation analysis, and Kendall W Test that shows inter-rater reliability. In addition, the identification forms for developmental level in reading comprehension were used to reveal the improvement in reading comprehension skills, and the Informal Reading Inventory was employed to score these forms. On the other hand, the qualitative data were analysed through the thematic analysis method, and MAXQDA was used for the analysis. As a result of the analyses, it was found that the reading level of the eight students who had problems in reading comprehension went up from the anxiety level to the instructional level in some forms, and even to the independent reading level in other forms; in other words, there was an improvement in the reading comprehension skills of all eight students.

  19. Translating advances in reading comprehension research to educational practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Danielle S. McNamara

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available The authors review five major findings in reading comprehension and their implications for educational practice. First, research suggests that comprehension skills are separable from decoding processes and important at early ages, suggesting that comprehension skills should be targeted early, even before the child learns to read. Second, there is an important distinction between reading processes and products, as well as their causal relationship: processes lead to certain products. Hence, instructional approaches and strategies focusing on processes are needed to improve students’ reading performance (i.e., product. Third, inferences are a crucial component of skilled comprehension. Hence, children need scaffolding and remediation to learn to generate inferences, even when they know little about the text topic. Fourth, comprehension depends on a complex interaction between the reader, the characteristics of the text, and the instructional task, highlighting the need for careful selection of instructional materials for individual students and specific groups of students. Finally, educators may benefit from heightened awareness of the limitations and inadequacies of standardized reading comprehension assessments, as well as the multidimensionality of comprehension to better understand their students’ particular strengths and weaknesses.

  20. Translating advances in reading comprehension research to educational practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Danielle S. McNAMARA

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available The authors review five major findings in reading comprehension and their implications for educational practice. First, research suggests that comprehension skills are separable from decodingprocesses and important at early ages, suggesting that comprehension skills should be targeted early, even before the child learns to read. Second, there is an important distinction between readingprocesses and products, as well as their causal relationship: processes lead to certain products. Hence, instructional approaches and strategies focusing on processes are needed to improve students’reading performance (i.e., product. Third, inferences are a crucial component of skilled comprehension. Hence, children need scaffolding and remediation to learn to generate inferences, even when they know little about the text topic. Fourth, comprehension depends on a complex interaction between the reader, the characteristics of the text, and the instructional task, highlighting the need for careful selection of instructional materials for individual students and specific groups of students. Finally, educators may benefit from heightened awareness of the limitations and inadequacies of standardized reading comprehension assessments, as well as the multidimensionality of comprehension to better understand their students’ particular strengths and weaknesses.

  1. Primary Progressive Aphasia

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... which cause different symptoms. Semantic variant primary progressive aphasia Symptoms include these difficulties: Comprehending spoken or written ... word meanings Naming objects Logopenic variant primary progressive aphasia Symptoms include: Having difficulty retrieving words Frequently pausing ...

  2. Comprehension of Idioms in Turkish Aphasic Participants

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aydin, Burcu; Barin, Muzaffer; Yagiz, Oktay

    2017-01-01

    Brain damaged participants offer an opportunity to evaluate the cognitive and linguistic processes and make assumptions about how the brain works. Cognitive linguists have been investigating the underlying mechanisms of idiom comprehension to unravel the ongoing debate on hemispheric specialization in figurative language comprehension. The aim of…

  3. Changing Student Teachers' Views of Comprehension Instruction ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    At the same time research shows that little, if any, explicit and continuous strategy instruction takes place in classrooms. Reasons seem ... This article reports on the effect of a reading comprehension instruction course on university student teachers' lesson planning, strategy use and views about comprehension instruction.

  4. Reading Comprehension Instruction Practices in Sierra Leone

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hersbach, S.; Denessen, E.J.P.G.; Droop, W.

    2014-01-01

    Aim: In this study an attempt was made to give insight in the way reading comprehension is taught in Sierra Leone. Attention was paid to the didactical strategies and the materials used during reading comprehension instruction. Methodology: Primary school teachers in Sierra Leone (N=43) were

  5. Progressive Business

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christiansen, Christian O.

    2016-01-01

    Guest Post to the Society for U.S. Intellectual History Blog. Brief introduction to the book Progressive Business: An Intellectual History of the Role of Business in American Society, Oxford U.P., 2015.......Guest Post to the Society for U.S. Intellectual History Blog. Brief introduction to the book Progressive Business: An Intellectual History of the Role of Business in American Society, Oxford U.P., 2015....

  6. Executive dysfunction among children with reading comprehension deficits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Locascio, Gianna; Mahone, E Mark; Eason, Sarah H; Cutting, Laurie E

    2010-01-01

    Emerging research supports the contribution of executive function (EF) to reading comprehension; however, a unique pattern has not been established for children who demonstrate comprehension difficulties despite average word recognition ability (specific reading comprehension deficit; S-RCD). To identify particular EF components on which children with S-RCD struggle, a range of EF skills was compared among 86 children, ages 10 to 14, grouped by word reading and comprehension abilities: 24 average readers, 44 with word recognition deficits (WRD), and 18 S-RCD. An exploratory principal components analysis of EF tests identified three latent factors, used in subsequent group comparisons: Planning/ Spatial Working Memory, Verbal Working Memory, and Response Inhibition. The WRD group exhibited deficits (relative to controls) on Verbal Working Memory and Inhibition factors; S-RCD children performed more poorly than controls on the Planning factor. Further analyses suggested the WRD group's poor performance on EF factors was a by-product of core deficits linked to WRD (after controlling for phonological processing, this group no longer showed EF deficits). In contrast, the S-RCD group's poor performance on the planning component remained significant after controlling for phonological processing. Findings suggest reading comprehension difficulties are linked to executive dysfunction; in particular, poor strategic planning/organizing may lead to reading comprehension problems.

  7. Executive Function and Reading Comprehension: A Meta-Analytic Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Follmer, D. Jake

    2018-01-01

    This article presents a meta-analytic review of the relation between executive function and reading comprehension. Results (N = 6,673) supported a moderate positive association between executive function and reading comprehension (r = 0.36). Moderator analyses suggested that correlations between executive function and reading comprehension did not…

  8. Right is not always wrong: DTI and fMRI evidence for the reliance of reading comprehension on language-comprehension networks in the right hemisphere.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horowitz-Kraus, Tzipi; Grainger, Molly; DiFrancesco, Mark; Vannest, Jennifer; Holland, Scott K

    2015-03-01

    The Simple View theory suggests that reading comprehension relies on automatic recognition of words combined with language comprehension. The goal of the current study was to examine the structural and functional connectivity in networks supporting reading comprehension and their relationship with language comprehension within 7-9 year old children using Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) and fMRI during a Sentence Picture Matching task. Fractional Anisotropy (FA) values in the left and right Inferior Longitudinal Fasciculus (ILF) and Superior Longitudinal Fasciculus (SLF), known language-related tracts, were correlated from DTI data with scores from the Woodcock-Johnson III (WJ-III) Passage Comprehension sub-test. Brodmann areas most proximal to white-matter regions with significant correlation to Passage Comprehension scores were chosen as Regions-of-Interest (ROIs) and used as seeds in a functional connectivity analysis using the Sentence Picture Matching task. The correlation between percentile scores for the WJ-III Passage Comprehension subtest and the FA values in the right and left ILF and SLF indicated positive correlation in language-related ROIs, with greater distribution in the right hemisphere, which in turn showed strong connectivity in the fMRI data from the Sentence Picture Matching task. These results support the participation of the right hemisphere in reading comprehension and may provide physiologic support for a distinction between different types of reading comprehension deficits vs difficulties in technical reading.

  9. A comprehensive review of recent studies on pharmacokinetics of traditional Chinese medicines (2014-2017) and perspectives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shi, Peiying; Lin, Xinhua; Yao, Hong

    2018-05-01

    Traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) have a long history for safely treating human diseases. Unlike western medicine, TCMs usually contain multiple components synergistically and holistically acting on the diseases. It remains a big challenge to represent rationally the in vivo process of multiple components of TCMs for understanding the relationship between administration and therapeutic effects. For years, efforts were always made to face the challenge, and the achievements were obvious. Here, we give an comprehensive overview of the recent investigation progress (from 2015 to 2017, except the part of 'integrated pharmacokinetics of TCMs' from 2014 to 2017 and the part of 'reverse pharmacokinetics in drug discovery from natural medicines' in 2014) on pharmacokinetics of TCMs, mainly referring to the following six aspects: (1) classical pharmacokinetic studies on TCMs; (2) absorbed components and metabolites identification of TCMs; (3) pharmacokinetic herb-drug interactions and herb-herb interactions with TCMs; (4) integrated pharmacokinetics of TCMs; (5) pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic combination studies to dissect the action mechanisms of TCMs; and (6) reverse pharmacokinetics in drug discovery from natural medicines. Finally, based on the insights from the recent progress and our latest efforts, we propose new perspectives on the integrated pharmacokinetics of TCMs.

  10. Improving participant comprehension in the informed consent process.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohn, Elizabeth; Larson, Elaine

    2007-01-01

    To critically analyze studies published within the past decade about participants' comprehension of informed consent in clinical research and to identify promising intervention strategies. Integrative review of literature. The Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), PubMed, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched. Inclusion criteria included studies (a) published between January 1, 1996 and January 1, 2007, (b) designed as descriptive or interventional studies of comprehension of informed consent for clinical research, (c) conducted in nonpsychiatric adult populations who were either patients or volunteer participants, (d) written in English, and (e) published in peer-reviewed journals. Of the 980 studies identified, 319 abstracts were screened, 154 studies were reviewed, and 23 met the inclusion criteria. Thirteen studies (57%) were descriptive, and 10 (43%) were interventional. Interventions tested included simplified written consent documents, multimedia approaches, and the use of a trained professional (consent educator) to assist in the consent process. Collectively, no single intervention strategy was consistently associated with improved comprehension. Studies also varied in regard to the definition of comprehension and the tools used to measure it. Despite increasing regulatory scrutiny, deficiencies still exist in participant comprehension of the research in which they participate, as well as differences in how comprehension is measured and assessed. No single intervention was identified as consistently successful for improving participant comprehension, and results indicated that any successful consent process should at a minimum include various communication modes and is likely to require one-to-one interaction with someone knowledgeable about the study.

  11. Understanding stress in the healthy animal - potential paths for progress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Romero, L Michael; Platts, Steven H; Schoech, Stephan J; Wada, Haruka; Crespi, Erica; Martin, Lynn B; Buck, C Loren

    2015-01-01

    Although stress is usually associated with disease, the physiological and behavioral responses to stressors are critical mechanisms of resilience for healthy organisms. A recent workshop comprised of researchers who study healthy humans and both free-living and captive non-human animals identified a number of key roadblocks that are impeding progress in understanding how stress responses integrate into the normal physiology of an animal. These include the lack of: (1) an unambiguous definition of a stress phenotype; (2) a robust biomarker, or suite of biomarkers, to indicate that phenotype; (3) theoretical and quantitative models to predict how humans and other animals will react to stressors; (4) a comprehensive understanding of how individual variability in stress responses arise and (5) an understanding of the transitions between acute and chronic stress responses. Collectively, these deficiencies impair our ability to both assess the physiological status of individuals and develop procedures and techniques to reverse the effects elicited by chronic stress before they become pathological. Workshop participants also identified a number of potential approaches to facilitate progress on these problems. They include: (1) increased use of mathematical models to provide quantitative predictions; (2) use of network theory to expose emergent properties not predicted from traditional approaches; (3) development and deployment of improved sensor technology that will allow long-term, dynamic, non-invasive, multi-factor measurements of suites of stress mediators and (4) the recruitment of scientists with diverse skill sets, such as engineers, bioinformaticians, etc.; and (5) the training of young scientists in the multidisciplinary study of stress. Incorporating these approaches in new research should reinvigorate the study of stress and stimulate progress in understanding both how healthy humans cope with stressors and how other animals, including free-living animals, cope

  12. Comprehension Strategy Gloves.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Newman, Gayle

    2002-01-01

    Describes the idea of creating a glove for each of the comprehension strategies for use with different text structures. Notes that the gloves serve as a multisensory approach by providing visual clues through icons on each finger and the palm. Discusses three different gloves: the prereading glove, the narrative text structure glove, and the…

  13. Progresso tecnico, forme di mercato e disoccupazione. ( Technical progress, market forms and unemployment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. ASIMAKOPULOS A.

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Lo scopo del presente lavoro è triplice . Il primo obiettivo è quello di sottolineare l'importanza delle intuizioni da trovare nel lavoro di Sylos Labini . Il secondo scopo è quello di espandere su di essa distinguendo tra i diversi tipi di progresso tecnico . Infine , il terzo obiettivo è quello di commentare il confronto di Labini di Ricardo e Keynes sulla possibilità di disoccupazione tecnologica . Per quanto riguarda la sua descrizione del progresso tecnologico come " risparmio di lavoro " , l'autore mostra che una descrizione più completa sarebbe più utile per i suoi scopiThe purpose of the present paper is threefold. The first purpose is to emphasise the importance of the insights to be found in Sylos Labini’s work. The second purpose is to expand upon it by distinguishing  between the different types of technical progress. Finally, the third purpose is to comment on Labini’s comparison of Ricardo and Keynes on the possibility of technological unemployment. Regarding his description of technological progress as “labour saving”, the author shows that a more comprehensive description would be more useful for his purposes.JEL: E24, J64, O33

  14. White matter lesion progression

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hofer, Edith; Cavalieri, Margherita; Bis, Joshua C

    2015-01-01

    10 cohorts. To assess the relative contribution of genetic factors to progression of WML, we compared in 7 cohorts risk models including demographics, vascular risk factors plus single-nucleotide polymorphisms that have been shown to be associated cross-sectionally with WML in the current......BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: White matter lesion (WML) progression on magnetic resonance imaging is related to cognitive decline and stroke, but its determinants besides baseline WML burden are largely unknown. Here, we estimated heritability of WML progression, and sought common genetic variants...... associated with WML progression in elderly participants from the Cohorts for Heart and Aging Research in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) consortium. METHODS: Heritability of WML progression was calculated in the Framingham Heart Study. The genome-wide association study included 7773 elderly participants from...

  15. Progress and future directions for remediation of Hanford facilities and contaminated sites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McClain, L.K.; Nemec, J.F.

    1996-01-01

    A great deal of physical progress is being made in the Hanford Environmental Restoration (ER) Project, which is responsible for the portion of work at Hanford that deals with contaminated soil and groundwater, and with inactive nuclear facilities. This work accounts for 10 to 15 percent of the Hanford site budget. (Other US Department of Energy [DOE] programs and contractors are responsible for the high-level liquid waste in underground storage tanks and the spent nuclear fuel). The project open-quotes closed the circleclose quotes on environmental restoration at Hanford this summer when the Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility (ERDF) went into operation and began receiving wastes being excavated from contaminated areas in Hanford's open-quotes 100 Areaclose quotes along the Columbia River. With this milestone event, environmental restoration at Hanford now has a clear path forward: (1) Waste areas along the Columbia River have been identified, volume estimates are being refined, and excavation has started. (2) The million-cubic-yard capacity ERDF is receiving waste from excavation in the 100 Area. (3) Deactivation of the N Reactor will be completed within a year. (4) Numerous other facilities in the 100 Area are being decommissioned, eliminating hazards and reducing the costs of surveillance and maintenance (S ampersand M). (5) A demonstration of long-term protective storage for one of the reactor blocks is in progress. (6) A comprehensive groundwater treatment strategy is in place. This paper describes the Hanford ER project, the progress being made, and the management techniques that are making the project successful

  16. Progressive Pigmentary Purpura

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Category: Share: Yes No, Keep Private Progressive Pigmentary Purpura Share | Progressive pigmentary purpura (we will call it PPP) is a group ... conditions ( Schamberg's disease , Lichenoid dermatitis of Gourgerot-Blum, purpura annularis telangiectodes of Majocchi and Lichen aureus). Schamberg's ...

  17. A History of Rotorcraft Comprehensive Analyses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Wayne

    2013-01-01

    A history of the development of rotorcraft comprehensive analyses is presented. Comprehensive analyses are digital computer programs that calculate the aeromechanical behavior of the rotor and aircraft, bringing together the most advanced models of the geometry, structure, dynamics, and aerodynamics available in rotary wing technology. The development of the major codes of the last five decades from industry, government, and universities is described. A number of common themes observed in this history are discussed.

  18. Comprehensive Teacher Education: A Handbook of Knowledge.

    Science.gov (United States)

    American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, Washington, DC.

    Since 1992, AACTE and the DeWitt Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund have worked in partnership to advance the knowledge base of comprehensive teacher education. The AACTE/DeWitt Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund's Comprehensive Teacher Education National Demonstration Project is grounded in the mutual belief that preparation of classroom teachers must…

  19. 50 CFR 81.14 - Comprehensive plan alternative.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 6 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Comprehensive plan alternative. 81.14 Section 81.14 Wildlife and Fisheries UNITED STATES FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... alternative. In the event that the State elects to operate under a comprehensive fish and wildlife resource...

  20. Are There Gender Differences in Emotion Comprehension? Analysis of the Test of Emotion Comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fidalgo, Angel M; Tenenbaum, Harriet R; Aznar, Ana

    2018-01-01

    This article examines whether there are gender differences in understanding the emotions evaluated by the Test of Emotion Comprehension (TEC). The TEC provides a global index of emotion comprehension in children 3-11 years of age, which is the sum of the nine components that constitute emotion comprehension: (1) recognition of facial expressions, (2) understanding of external causes of emotions, (3) understanding of desire-based emotions, (4) understanding of belief-based emotions, (5) understanding of the influence of a reminder on present emotional states, (6) understanding of the possibility to regulate emotional states, (7) understanding of the possibility of hiding emotional states, (8) understanding of mixed emotions, and (9) understanding of moral emotions. We used the answers to the TEC given by 172 English girls and 181 boys from 3 to 8 years of age. First, the nine components into which the TEC is subdivided were analysed for differential item functioning (DIF), taking gender as the grouping variable. To evaluate DIF, the Mantel-Haenszel method and logistic regression analysis were used applying the Educational Testing Service DIF classification criteria. The results show that the TEC did not display gender DIF. Second, when absence of DIF had been corroborated, it was analysed for differences between boys and girls in the total TEC score and its components controlling for age. Our data are compatible with the hypothesis of independence between gender and level of comprehension in 8 of the 9 components of the TEC. Several hypotheses are discussed that could explain the differences found between boys and girls in the belief component. Given that the Belief component is basically a false belief task, the differences found seem to support findings in the literature indicating that girls perform better on this task.

  1. Subject Comprehension and Critical Thinking: An Intervention for Subject Comprehension and Critical Thinking in Mixed-Academic-Ability University Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bellaera, Lauren; Debney, Lauren; Baker, Sara T.

    2016-01-01

    Subject comprehension and critical thinking are both key goals of higher education. However, while the former is, on the whole, successfully cultivated in undergraduate students, the latter is not. Few empirical studies have investigated the relationship between subject comprehension and critical thinking. In the present article we suggest that…

  2. Reading comprehension of deaf students in regular education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luccas, Marcia Regina Zemella; Chiari, Brasília Maria; Goulart, Bárbara Niegia Garcia de

    2012-01-01

    To evaluate and compare the reading comprehension of deaf students included in regular classrooms of public schools with and without specialized educational support. Observational analytic study with 35 students with sensorineural hearing loss, with and without educational support. All subjects were assessed with the Word Reading Competence Test (WRCT), the Picture-Print Matching Test by Choice (PPMT-C), and the Sentence Reading Comprehension Test (SRCT). In the tests regarding comprehension of words (WRCT and PPMT-C), the results showed no difference in the performance of deaf students who attend and do not attend educational support. Regarding reading comprehension of sentences, the application of the SRCT also did not show differences between the groups of deaf students. A significant correlation was found between age and grade, indicating that the older the students and the higher their educational level, the better their performance in reading sentences. The results indicate that deaf students, regardless of attending educational support, read words better than sentences. There is no difference in reading comprehension between deaf students who receive and do not receive specialized pedagogical monitoring.

  3. The European Union as a Comprehensive Police Actor

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephen Anthony Rozée

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available The European Union (EU has responded to changing security threats by seeking to increase cooperation between the law enforcement agencies of the Member States, granting further powers to Europol and other intelligence-sharing institutions, and by undertaking police missions beyond EU borders. The literature relating to EU policing is generally focused on the ‘internal’ and ‘external’ dimensions, or on specific aspects of police activity. This tendency to concentrate on narrow or isolated areas of policing has led to a significant gap regarding the broader analysis of the EU as a comprehensive police actor. Important questions about the nature of EU policing as a whole, as well as the contribution of policing activities to the EU’s security agenda, remain unexplored in the literature. This article aims to define what is meant by ‘comprehensive policing’ and to indentify criteria by which the comprehensiveness of EU-level policing may be measured. In addition to this, an integrated actorness/police comprehensiveness framework will be presented as a tool for assessing the EU as a comprehensive police actor.

  4. Progressive geometric algorithms

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Alewijnse, S.P.A.; Bagautdinov, T.M.; de Berg, M.T.; Bouts, Q.W.; ten Brink, Alex P.; Buchin, K.A.; Westenberg, M.A.

    2015-01-01

    Progressive algorithms are algorithms that, on the way to computing a complete solution to the problem at hand, output intermediate solutions that approximate the complete solution increasingly well. We present a framework for analyzing such algorithms, and develop efficient progressive algorithms

  5. Progressive geometric algorithms

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Alewijnse, S.P.A.; Bagautdinov, T.M.; Berg, de M.T.; Bouts, Q.W.; Brink, ten A.P.; Buchin, K.; Westenberg, M.A.

    2014-01-01

    Progressive algorithms are algorithms that, on the way to computing a complete solution to the problem at hand, output intermediate solutions that approximate the complete solution increasingly well. We present a framework for analyzing such algorithms, and develop efficient progressive algorithms

  6. Speech comprehension difficulties in chronic tinnitus and its relation to hyperacusis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Veronika Vielsmeier

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available AbstractObjectiveMany tinnitus patients complain about difficulties regarding speech comprehension. In spite of the high clinical relevance little is known about underlying mechanisms and predisposing factors. Here, we performed an exploratory investigation in a large sample of tinnitus patients to (1 estimate the prevalence of speech comprehension difficulties among tinnitus patients, to (2 compare subjective reports of speech comprehension difficulties with objective measurements in a standardized speech comprehension test and to (3 explore underlying mechanisms by analyzing the relationship between speech comprehension difficulties and peripheral hearing function (pure tone audiogram, as well as with co-morbid hyperacusis as a central auditory processing disorder. Subjects and MethodsSpeech comprehension was assessed in 361 tinnitus patients presenting between 07/2012 and 08/2014 at the Interdisciplinary Tinnitus Clinic at the University of Regensburg. The assessment included standard audiological assessment (pure tone audiometry, tinnitus pitch and loudness matching, the Goettingen sentence test (in quiet for speech audiometric evaluation, two questions about hyperacusis, and two questions about speech comprehension in quiet and noisy environments (How would you rate your ability to understand speech?; How would you rate your ability to follow a conversation when multiple people are speaking simultaneously?. Results Subjectively reported speech comprehension deficits are frequent among tinnitus patients, especially in noisy environments (cocktail party situation. 74.2% of all investigated patients showed disturbed speech comprehension (indicated by values above 21.5 dB SPL in the Goettingen sentence test. Subjective speech comprehension complaints (both in general and in noisy environment were correlated with hearing level and with audiologically-assessed speech comprehension ability. In contrast, co-morbid hyperacusis was only correlated

  7. Language Skills in Classical Chinese Text Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lau, Kit-ling

    2018-01-01

    This study used both quantitative and qualitative methods to explore the role of lower- and higher-level language skills in classical Chinese (CC) text comprehension. A CC word and sentence translation test, text comprehension test, and questionnaire were administered to 393 Secondary Four students; and 12 of these were randomly selected to…

  8. Essential Medicines in National Constitutions: Progress Since 2008.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Katrina Perehudoff, S; Toebes, Brigit; Hogerzeil, Hans

    2016-06-01

    A constitutional guarantee of access to essential medicines has been identified as an important indicator of government commitment to the progressive realization of the right to the highest attainable standard of health. The objective of this study was to evaluate provisions on access to essential medicines in national constitutions, to identify comprehensive examples of constitutional text on medicines that can be used as a model for other countries, and to evaluate the evolution of constitutional medicines-related rights since 2008. Relevant articles were selected from an inventory of constitutional texts from WHO member states. References to states' legal obligations under international human rights law were evaluated. Twenty-two constitutions worldwide now oblige governments to protect and/or to fulfill accessibility of, availability of, and/or quality of medicines. Since 2008, state responsibilities to fulfill access to essential medicines have expanded in five constitutions, been maintained in four constitutions, and have regressed in one constitution. Government commitments to essential medicines are an important foundation of health system equity and are included increasingly in state constitutions.

  9. ACADEMIC TRAINING Progress on e+e- Linear Colliders

    CERN Multimedia

    Françoise Benz

    2002-01-01

    27, 28, 29, 30, 31 May LECTURE SERIES from 11.00 to 12.00 hrs - Auditorium, bldg. 500 Progress on e+e- Linear Colliders by P. Zerwas / Desy, D and R. Siemann / Slac, USA Physics issues (P. Zerwas - 27, 28 May)The physics program will be reviewed for e+e- linear colliders in the TeV energy range. At these prospective facilities central issues of particle physics can be addressed, the problem of mass, unification and structure of space-time. In this context the two lectures will focus on analyses of the Higgs mechanism, supersymmetry and extra space dimensions. Moreover, high-precision studies of the top-quark and the gauge boson sector will be discussed. Combined with LHC results, a comprehensive picture can be developed of physics at the electroweak scale and beyond. Designs and technologies (R. Siemann - 29, 30, 31 May) The physics and technologies of high energy linear colliders will be reviewed. Fundamental concepts of linear colliders will be introduced. They will be discussed in: the context of the Sta...

  10. Text comprehension in Czech fourth-grade children with dyslexia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Špačková Klára

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available In the Czech Republic, the concept of dyslexia is used as a global term for various developmental deficiencies relating to reading skills. The criteria used for dyslexia are not clear and intervention is solely focused on word reading training. Not much is known about the pattern and level of reading comprehension abilities among Czech readers. The study examines reading comprehension and its component skills (decoding and listening comprehension abilities in 32 Czech fourth-grade children with a formal diagnosis of dyslexia and their classmates (N=126. In decoding tests, the children with dyslexia surprisingly lagged behind most significantly in a task concerning speed and accuracy in context reading. Contrary to expectations, the children with dyslexia also showed inferiority in a listening comprehension task. In reading comprehension measures, in comparison to the typically developing readers, the children with dyslexia achieved the best results in a oral reading comprehension task. The results are discussed with respect to Czech counselling and educational practice and the need for changes in the current support system and terminology is stressed.

  11. EFFICIENCY OF READING COMPREHENSION TRAINING IN PUPILS LIVING IN POVERTY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Milena Kosak Babuder

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available The results of Slovene and foreign studies reveal the connection between literacy levels and the level of education, employment opportunities and consequent socio-economic status of individuals and families. Reading efficiency relating to reading comprehension is an important element of reading literacy performance. The findings of several authors indicate empirical evidence of the existence of deficits and poor reading comprehension in pupils living in poverty and stress the importance of offsetting deficits and developing reading comprehension. Results of both foreign and Slovene studies indicate that the program of reading comprehension should be implemented in this group of pupils. In the article, we want to present effectiveness of the reading comprehension improvement program in pupils living in poverty. According to the findings of our research, in which we structured and implemented the reading comprehension program for pupils living in poverty with the Metacognitive-intersentential model of reading comprehension, the reading comprehension of the experimental group pupils who participated in the program improved compared to the control group pupils who did not participate in the program. Experimental group pupils also significantly improved correctness of their reading, their vocabulary and skills of verbal expression. When the program ended, we tested its efficiency by applied tests. The results on the manifest variables indicated that the program was good and efficient for pupils who live in poverty and experience reading comprehension problems.

  12. The National Institutes of Health Center for Human Immunology, Autoimmunity, and Inflammation: history and progress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dickler, Howard B; McCoy, J Philip; Nussenblatt, Robert; Perl, Shira; Schwartzberg, Pamela A; Tsang, John S; Wang, Ena; Young, Neil S

    2013-05-01

    The Center for Human Immunology, Autoimmunity, and Inflammation (CHI) is an exciting initiative of the NIH intramural program begun in 2009. It is uniquely trans-NIH in support (multiple institutes) and leadership (senior scientists from several institutes who donate their time). Its goal is an in-depth assessment of the human immune system using high-throughput multiplex technologies for examination of immune cells and their products, the genome, gene expression, and epigenetic modulation obtained from individuals both before and after interventions, adding information from in-depth clinical phenotyping, and then applying advanced biostatistical and computer modeling methods for mining these diverse data. The aim is to develop a comprehensive picture of the human "immunome" in health and disease, elucidate common pathogenic pathways in various diseases, identify and validate biomarkers that predict disease progression and responses to new interventions, and identify potential targets for new therapeutic modalities. Challenges, opportunities, and progress are detailed. Published 2013. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

  13. Comprehensive stroke units: a review of comparative evidence and experience.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, Daniel K Y; Cordato, Dennis; O'Rourke, Fintan; Chan, Daniel L; Pollack, Michael; Middleton, Sandy; Levi, Chris

    2013-06-01

    Stroke unit care offers significant benefits in survival and dependency when compared to general medical ward. Most stroke units are either acute or rehabilitation, but comprehensive (combined acute and rehabilitation) model (comprehensive stroke unit) is less common. To examine different levels of evidence of comprehensive stroke unit compared to other organized inpatient stroke care and share local experience of comprehensive stroke units. Cochrane Library and Medline (1980 to December 2010) review of English language articles comparing stroke units to alternative forms of stroke care delivery, different types of stroke unit models, and differences in processes of care within different stroke unit models. Different levels of comparative evidence of comprehensive stroke units to other models of stroke units are collected. There are no randomized controlled trials directly comparing comprehensive stroke units to other stroke unit models (either acute or rehabilitation). Comprehensive stroke units are associated with reduced length of stay and greatest reduction in combined death and dependency in a meta-analysis study when compared to other stroke unit models. Comprehensive stroke units also have better length of stay and functional outcome when compared to acute or rehabilitation stroke unit models in a cross-sectional study, and better length of stay in a 'before-and-after' comparative study. Components of stroke unit care that improve outcome are multifactorial and most probably include early mobilization. A comprehensive stroke unit model has been successfully implemented in metropolitan and rural hospital settings. Comprehensive stroke units are associated with reductions in length of stay and combined death and dependency and improved functional outcomes compared to other stroke unit models. A comprehensive stroke unit model is worth considering as the preferred model of stroke unit care in the planning and delivery of metropolitan and rural stroke services

  14. Progressive learning in endoscopy simulation training improves clinical performance: a blinded randomized trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grover, Samir C; Scaffidi, Michael A; Khan, Rishad; Garg, Ankit; Al-Mazroui, Ahmed; Alomani, Tareq; Yu, Jeffrey J; Plener, Ian S; Al-Awamy, Mohamed; Yong, Elaine L; Cino, Maria; Ravindran, Nikila C; Zasowski, Mark; Grantcharov, Teodor P; Walsh, Catharine M

    2017-11-01

    A structured comprehensive curriculum (SCC) that uses simulation-based training (SBT) can improve clinical colonoscopy performance. This curriculum may be enhanced through the application of progressive learning, a training strategy centered on incrementally challenging learners. We aimed to determine whether a progressive learning-based curriculum (PLC) would lead to superior clinical performance compared with an SCC. This was a single-blinded randomized controlled trial conducted at a single academic center. Thirty-seven novice endoscopists were recruited and randomized to either a PLC (n = 18) or to an SCC (n = 19). The PLC comprised 6 hours of SBT, which progressed in complexity and difficulty. The SCC included 6 hours of SBT, with cases of random order of difficulty. Both groups received expert feedback and 4 hours of didactic teaching. Participants were assessed at baseline, immediately after training, and 4 to 6 weeks after training. The primary outcome was participants' performance during their first 2 clinical colonoscopies, as assessed by using the Joint Advisory Group Direct Observation of Procedural Skills assessment tool (JAG DOPS). Secondary outcomes were differences in endoscopic knowledge, technical and communication skills, and global performance in the simulated setting. The PLC group outperformed the SCC group during first and second clinical colonoscopies, measured by JAG DOPS (P PLC group had superior technical and communication skills and global performance in the simulated setting (P  .05). Our findings demonstrate the superiority of a PLC for endoscopic simulation, compared with an SCC. Challenging trainees progressively is a simple, theory-based approach to simulation whereby the performance of clinical colonoscopies can be improved. (Clinical trial registration number: NCT02000180.). Copyright © 2017 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. The comprehension of mathematic problems in primary school

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karel Pérez Ariza

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available The paper describes the result of the research project “A study of causes of difficulties in learning comprehension from an interdisciplinary perspective in Camagüey. The main objective of that study is to propose a methodology for the comprehension of mathematic problems in primary school. In designing the methodology, the characteristics of this text variety, basic principle of the theory of reading comprehension and problem solving were taking into account. In this research work several theoretical methods were used —analysis-synthesis, historical-logical, inductive-deductive— to elaborate the theoretical framework, while modeling and system approach in the methodology construction. Additionally, empirical methods were used in order to assess the knowledge about comprehension of mathematic problems; among them observation and analysis of the activity results.

  16. Reactor technology. Progress report, January--March 1978

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Warren, J.L.

    1978-07-01

    Progress is reported in eight program areas. The nuclear Space Electric Power Supply Program examined safety questions in the aftermath of the COSMOS 954 incident, examined the use of thermoelectric converters, examined the neutronic effectiveness of various reflecting materials, examined ways of connecting heat pipes to one another, studied the consequences of the failure of one heat pipe in the reactor core, and did conceptual design work on heat radiators for various power supplies. The Heat Pipe Program reported progress in the design of ceramic heat pipes, new application of heat pipes to solar collectors, and final performance tests of two pipes for HEDL applications. Under the Nuclear Process Heat Program, work continues on computer codes to model a pebble bed high-temperature gas-cooled reactor, adaptation of a set of German reactor calculation codes to use on U.S. computers, and a parametric study of a certain resonance integral required in reactor studies. Under the Nonproliferation Alternative Sources Assessment Program LASL has undertaken an evaluation of a study of gaseous core reactors by Southern Science Applications, Inc. Independently LASL has developed a proposal for a comprehensive study of gaseous uranium-fueled reactor technology. The Plasma Core Reactor Program has concentrated on restacking the beryllium reflector and redesigning the nuclear control system. The status of and experiments on four critical assemblies, SKUA, Godiva IV, Big Ten, and Flattop, are reported. The Nuclear Criticality Safety Program carried out several tasks including conducting a course, doing several annual safety reviews and evaluating the safety of two Nevada test devices. During the quarter one of the groups involved in reactor technology has acquired responsibility for the operation of a Cockroft-Walton accelerator. The present report contains information on the use of machine and improvements being made in its operation

  17. Cues, quantification, and agreement in language comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tanner, Darren; Bulkes, Nyssa Z

    2015-12-01

    We investigated factors that affect the comprehension of subject-verb agreement in English, using quantification as a window into the relationship between morphosyntactic processes in language production and comprehension. Event-related brain potentials (ERPs) were recorded while participants read sentences with grammatical and ungrammatical verbs, in which the plurality of the subject noun phrase was either doubly marked (via overt plural quantification and morphological marking on the noun) or singly marked (via only plural morphology on the noun). Both acceptability judgments and the ERP data showed heightened sensitivity to agreement violations when quantification provided an additional cue to the grammatical number of the subject noun phrase, over and above plural morphology. This is consistent with models of grammatical comprehension that emphasize feature prediction in tandem with cue-based memory retrieval. Our results additionally contrast with those of prior studies that showed no effects of plural quantification on agreement in language production. These findings therefore highlight some nontrivial divergences in the cues and mechanisms supporting morphosyntactic processing in language production and comprehension.

  18. Progress toward an integrated understanding of Parkinson's disease [version 1; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maxime W.C. Rousseaux

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Parkinson's disease (PD is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer's disease, affecting over 10 million individuals worldwide. While numerous effective symptomatic treatments are currently available, no curative or disease-modifying therapies exist. An integrated, comprehensive understanding of PD pathogenic mechanisms will likely address this unmet clinical need. Here, we highlight recent progress in PD research with an emphasis on promising translational findings, including (i advances in our understanding of disease susceptibility, (ii improved knowledge of cellular dysfunction, and (iii insights into mechanisms of spread and propagation of PD pathology. We emphasize connections between these previously disparate strands of PD research and the development of an emerging systems-level understanding that will enable the next generation of PD therapeutics.

  19. Nuclear medicine and imaging research: quantitative studies in radiopharmaceutical science. Comprehensive progress report, January 1, 1980-December 31, 1982

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beck, R.N.; Cooper, M.C.

    1982-06-01

    This 3-y report cites progress in the following areas of radiopharmaceutical research: cyclotron operations; 51 Mn for myocardial localization; 82 Rb for heart imaging; 15 O-labelled H 2 O and molecular oxygen; studies on 11 C-2-deoxyglucose localization; 13 NH 3 measurements of myocardial perfusion; 130 Cs myocardial imaging; heart motion studies; labelled amino acids for pancreatic imaging; 11 C-hexamethonium for cartilage imaging; 11 C-cholic acid pharmacology; blood element labelling with /sup 115m/In; 75 Br studies; extrapolation of animal data to humans; in vivo quantification of radioactivity; fetal and neonatal radiation effects from radiopharmaceuticals administered to pregnant and lactating mice; and verification of MIRD absorbed dose calculations for some organ-incorporated radionuclides

  20. Transarterial chemoembolization with drug-eluting beads for hepatocellular carcinoma: its research progress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao Yan; Han Guohong; Bai Wei; Fan Daiming

    2012-01-01

    Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) has been the main treatment for patients with intermediate-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the clinical application of TACE is limited due to the technical deficiencies, such as uncontrolled local drug delivery and systemic toxicity. Recently, the new drug-eluting beads (DEB), loading with doxorubicin, have be used in the TACE procedures. This new technique can not only maintain the local drug level for quite a long time and thus get a higher objective response, but also decrease the systemic toxicity. Transarterial chemoembolization with drug-eluting beads (DEB-TACE) have already been widely used abroad, and more related clinical trials are underway to clarify its advantages. This paper aims to make a comprehensive review in the respects of its characteristics and the latest research progress in DEB-TACE. (authors)

  1. Readability and comprehensibility of informed consent forms for clinical trials

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anvita Pandiya

    2010-01-01

    A shortened Informed Consent Form, with information that a reasonable person would want to understand along with specific information that the person wants in particular would be a good option to improve understanding or comprehensibility. Additional informational meetings with a qualified person like a counselor could help in comprehension. Questionnaires designed to test comprehension of patient, peer review, patient writing the salient features could help evaluate the comprehensibility of the Informed Consent Form.

  2. Recent Progress in Organic Electrodes for Li and Na Rechargeable Batteries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Sechan; Kwon, Giyun; Ku, Kyojin; Yoon, Kyungho; Jung, Sung-Kyun; Lim, Hee-Dae; Kang, Kisuk

    2018-03-27

    Organic rechargeable batteries, which use organics as electrodes, are excellent candidates for next-generation energy storage systems because they offer design flexibility due to the rich chemistry of organics while being eco-friendly and potentially cost efficient. However, their widespread usage is limited by intrinsic problems such as poor electronic conductivity, easy dissolution into liquid electrolytes, and low volumetric energy density. New types of organic electrode materials with various redox centers or molecular structures have been developed over the past few decades. Moreover, research aimed at enhancing electrochemical properties via chemical tuning has been at the forefront of organic rechargeable batteries research in recent years, leading to significant progress in their performance. Here, an overview of the current developments of organic rechargeable batteries is presented, with a brief history of research in this field. Various strategies for improving organic electrode materials are discussed with respect to tuning intrinsic properties of organics using molecular modification and optimizing their properties at the electrode level. A comprehensive understanding of the progress in organic electrode materials is provided along with the fundamental science governing their performance in rechargeable batteries thus a guide is presented to the optimal design strategies to improve the electrochemical performance for next-generation battery systems. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  3. Work in Progress: Gender and Politics in Late Elizabethan Progress Entertainments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kolkovich, Elizabeth Zeman

    2009-01-01

    This dissertation analyzes the understudied dramatic genre of Elizabethan progress entertainments, the political ideologies it conveys, and especially the female alliances it enacts. Aristocrats staged these outdoor, episodic pageants on their country estates during Elizabeth I's summer "progress" visits, 1575-1602. While previous scholars…

  4. SITE COMPREHENSIVE LISTING (CERCLIS) (Superfund)

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Information System (CERCLIS) (Superfund) Public Access Database contains a selected set of...

  5. Geothermal progress monitor. Progress report No. 1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1979-12-01

    Progress is reported on the following: electrical uses, direct-heat uses, drilling activities, leases, geothermal loan guarantee program, general activities, and legal, institutional, and regulatory activites. (MHR)

  6. Effectiveness of comprehensive tobacco control programmes in reducing teenage smoking in the USA.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wakefield, M; Chaloupka, F

    2000-06-01

    To describe the extent to which comprehensive statewide tobacco control programmes in the USA have made progress toward reducing teenage smoking. Literature search of Medline for reviews of effectiveness of programme and policy elements, plus journal articles and personal request for copies of publicly released reports and working papers from evaluation staff in each of the state programmes of California, Massachusetts, Arizona, Oregon, and Florida. All studies, reports, and commentaries that provided information on aspects of programme implementation and evaluation. Statewide comprehensive programmes show high levels of advertising recall and generally positive improvement in smoking related beliefs and attitudes among teenagers. More fully funded programmes lead to increased mass media campaign advertising and community initiatives; a greater capacity to implement school based smoking prevention programmes; and an increase in the passage of local ordinances that create smoke free indoor environments and reduce cigarette sales to youth. The combination of programme activity and increased tobacco tax reduce cigarette consumption more than expected as a result of price increases alone, and these effects seem to apply to adolescents as well as adults. Programmes are associated with a decline in adult smoking prevalence, with these effects observed to date in California, Massachusetts, and Oregon. Arizona and Florida have yet to examine change in adult prevalence associated with programme exposure. California and Massachusetts have demonstrated relative beneficial effects in teenage smoking prevalence, and Florida has reported promising indications of reduced prevalence. Arizona has yet to report follow up data, and Oregon has found no change in teenage smoking, but has only two years of follow up available. One of the most critical factors in programme success is the extent of programme funding, and consequent level of programme implementation, and the degree to

  7. A predictive study of reading comprehension in third-grade Spanish students.

    Science.gov (United States)

    López-Escribano, Carmen; Elosúa de Juan, María Rosa; Gómez-Veiga, Isabel; García-Madruga, Juan Antonio

    2013-01-01

    The study of the contribution of language and cognitive skills to reading comprehension is an important goal of current reading research. However, reading comprehension is not easily assessed by a single instrument, as different comprehension tests vary in the type of tasks used and in the cognitive demands required. This study examines the contribution of basic language and cognitive skills (decoding, word recognition, reading speed, verbal and nonverbal intelligence and working memory) to reading comprehension, assessed by two tests utilizing various tasks that require different skill sets in third-grade Spanish-speaking students. Linguistic and cognitive abilities predicted reading comprehension. A measure of reading speed (the reading time of pseudo-words) was the best predictor of reading comprehension when assessed by the PROLEC-R test. However, measures of word recognition (the orthographic choice task) and verbal working memory were the best predictors of reading comprehension when assessed by means of the DARC test. These results show, on the one hand, that reading speed and word recognition are better predictors of Spanish language comprehension than reading accuracy. On the other, the reading comprehension test applied here serves as a critical variable when analyzing and interpreting results regarding this topic.

  8. Palliative Care: Delivering Comprehensive Oncology Nursing Care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dahlin, Constance

    2015-11-01

    To describe palliative care as part of comprehensive oncology nursing care. A review of the palliative care, oncology, and nursing literature over the past 10 years. Palliative care is mandated as part of comprehensive cancer care. A cancer diagnosis often results in distress in the physical, psychosocial, spiritual, and emotional domains of care. Oncology nurses are essential in providing palliative care from diagnosis to death to patients with cancer. They address the myriad aspects of cancer. With palliative care skills and knowledge, oncology nurses can provide quality cancer care. There are many opportunities in which oncology nurses can promote palliative care. Oncology nurses must obtain knowledge and skills in primary palliative care to provide comprehensive cancer care. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Progress test utopia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van der Vleuten, Cees; Freeman, Adrian; Collares, Carlos Fernando

    2018-04-01

    This paper discusses the advantages of progress testing. A utopia is described where medical schools would work together to develop and administer progress testing. This would lead to a significant reduction of cost, an increase in the quality of measurement and phenomenal feedback to learner and school. Progress testing would also provide more freedom and resources for more creative in-school assessment. It would be an educationally attractive alternative for the creation of cognitive licensing exams. A utopia is always far away in the future, but by formulating a vision for that future we may engage in discussions on how to get there.

  10. Setting a research agenda for progressive multiple sclerosis: the International Collaborative on Progressive MS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fox, Robert J; Thompson, Alan; Baker, David; Baneke, Peer; Brown, Doug; Browne, Paul; Chandraratna, Dhia; Ciccarelli, Olga; Coetzee, Timothy; Comi, Giancarlo; Feinstein, Anthony; Kapoor, Raj; Lee, Karen; Salvetti, Marco; Sharrock, Kersten; Toosy, Ahmed; Zaratin, Paola; Zuidwijk, Kim

    2012-11-01

    Despite significant progress in the development of therapies for relapsing MS, progressive MS remains comparatively disappointing. Our objective, in this paper, is to review the current challenges in developing therapies for progressive MS and identify key priority areas for research. A collaborative was convened by volunteer and staff leaders from several MS societies with the mission to expedite the development of effective disease-modifying and symptom management therapies for progressive forms of multiple sclerosis. Through a series of scientific and strategic planning meetings, the collaborative identified and developed new perspectives on five key priority areas for research: experimental models, identification and validation of targets and repurposing opportunities, proof-of-concept clinical trial strategies, clinical outcome measures, and symptom management and rehabilitation. Our conclusions, tackling the impediments in developing therapies for progressive MS will require an integrated, multi-disciplinary approach to enable effective translation of research into therapies for progressive MS. Engagement of the MS research community through an international effort is needed to address and fund these research priorities with the ultimate goal of expediting the development of disease-modifying and symptom-relief treatments for progressive MS.

  11. Setting a research agenda for progressive multiple sclerosis: The International Collaborative on Progressive MS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, Alan; Baker, David; Baneke, Peer; Brown, Doug; Browne, Paul; Chandraratna, Dhia; Ciccarelli, Olga; Coetzee, Timothy; Comi, Giancarlo; Feinstein, Anthony; Kapoor, Raj; Lee, Karen; Salvetti, Marco; Sharrock, Kersten; Toosy, Ahmed; Zaratin, Paola; Zuidwijk, Kim

    2012-01-01

    Despite significant progress in the development of therapies for relapsing MS, progressive MS remains comparatively disappointing. Our objective, in this paper, is to review the current challenges in developing therapies for progressive MS and identify key priority areas for research. A collaborative was convened by volunteer and staff leaders from several MS societies with the mission to expedite the development of effective disease-modifying and symptom management therapies for progressive forms of multiple sclerosis. Through a series of scientific and strategic planning meetings, the collaborative identified and developed new perspectives on five key priority areas for research: experimental models, identification and validation of targets and repurposing opportunities, proof-of-concept clinical trial strategies, clinical outcome measures, and symptom management and rehabilitation. Our conclusions, tackling the impediments in developing therapies for progressive MS will require an integrated, multi-disciplinary approach to enable effective translation of research into therapies for progressive MS. Engagement of the MS research community through an international effort is needed to address and fund these research priorities with the ultimate goal of expediting the development of disease-modifying and symptom-relief treatments for progressive MS. PMID:22917690

  12. Improving Listening Comprehension through a Whole-Schema Approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ellermeyer, Deborah

    1993-01-01

    Examines the development of the schema, or cognitive structure, theory of reading comprehension. Advances a model for improving listening comprehension within the classroom through a teacher-facilitated approach which leads students to selecting and utilizing existing schema within a whole-language environment. (MDM)

  13. Developmental Relations Between Reading Comprehension and Reading Strategies

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Muijselaar, M.; Swart, N.M.; Steenbeek-Planting, E.G,.; Droop, M.; Verhoeven, L.; de Jong, P.F.

    2017-01-01

    We examined the developmental relations between knowledge of reading strategies and reading comprehension in a longitudinal study of 312 Dutch children from the beginning of fourth grade to the end of fifth grade. Measures for reading comprehension, reading strategies, reading fluency, vocabulary,

  14. 45 CFR 1306.30 - Provisions of comprehensive child development services.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Provisions of comprehensive child development... Start Program Options § 1306.30 Provisions of comprehensive child development services. (a) All Head Start grantees must provide comprehensive child development services, as defined in the Head Start...

  15. Neuronal basis of speech comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Specht, Karsten

    2014-01-01

    Verbal communication does not rely only on the simple perception of auditory signals. It is rather a parallel and integrative processing of linguistic and non-linguistic information, involving temporal and frontal areas in particular. This review describes the inherent complexity of auditory speech comprehension from a functional-neuroanatomical perspective. The review is divided into two parts. In the first part, structural and functional asymmetry of language relevant structures will be discus. The second part of the review will discuss recent neuroimaging studies, which coherently demonstrate that speech comprehension processes rely on a hierarchical network involving the temporal, parietal, and frontal lobes. Further, the results support the dual-stream model for speech comprehension, with a dorsal stream for auditory-motor integration, and a ventral stream for extracting meaning but also the processing of sentences and narratives. Specific patterns of functional asymmetry between the left and right hemisphere can also be demonstrated. The review article concludes with a discussion on interactions between the dorsal and ventral streams, particularly the involvement of motor related areas in speech perception processes, and outlines some remaining unresolved issues. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Human Auditory Neuroimaging. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. A comprehensive psychiatric service

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wang, A G

    1984-01-01

    A comprehensive psychiatric service was established in 1969 in the Faroe Islands. This service was created as a department of a general hospital. The spheres covered by this department, operating in the midst of the community were: acute and chronic patients, a liaison-psychiatric service...

  17. Recent progress in the clinical application of partial splenic embolization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhou Yaojun; Liu Changjiang; Wang Yaojun

    2012-01-01

    Partial splenic embolization (PSE) is a non-surgical procedure used to treat hypersplenism in various clinical settings and thus to avoid the disadvantages of splenectomy. PSE can be employed for the treatment of a variety of diseases including hypersplenism, thrombocytopenia, portal hypertension, splenic arterial aneurysms, etc. PSE can effectively relieve the splenic artery steal syndrome which occurred after liver transplantation, and therefore significantly improve the blood perfusion of the recipient liver. Besides, PSE can also be adopted to reduce the bleeding risk in patients with esophageal and gastric varices caused by portal hypertension. PSE is beneficial to the improvement of peripheral hematologic parameters, which helps the patients successfully undergo the high-dose chemotherapy or interferon therapy. In addition, PSE possesses potential curative effect for thrombocytopenia related diseases such as chronic idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. This paper aims to make a comprehensive review of the recent progress in the clinical application of partial splenic embolization. (authors)

  18. Justice foundations for the Comprehensive Law Movement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dewhurst, Dale

    2010-01-01

    Authors examining the developing dispute resolution alternatives to the adversarial system have identified nine converging "vectors" or alternatives in what has been termed the Comprehensive Law Movement. These authors have sought to understand how the developing vectors can remain separate and vibrant movements while sharing common ground. Some analyze these developments as being within law and legal practice, others see them as alternative approaches to law, and still others take a combined approach. It will be impossible to understand how these vectors have meaningful differences from law and legal practice if the search is limited to looking within law and legal practice. It will be impossible to understand how these vectors have meaningful commonalities with law and legal practice if the search is limited to looking external to law and legal practice. Instead of comparing the vectors with the adversarial system, higher order criteria are required. What is needed is a comprehensive and internally consistent super-system of norms; one that can be used to evaluate the adversarial system and the evolving vectors on an equal footing. An Aristotelian natural law virtue theory of justice can: (a) provide a functional guiding definition of justice; (b) serve as a comprehensive and internally consistent super-system of norms; and (c) provide the theoretical and evaluative foundation required to clarify the relationships among the adversarial system and the developing vectors. Finally, it will become clear why the Comprehensive Law Movement might be more appropriately conceptualized as the Comprehensive Justice Movement. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Students' Metacomprehension Knowledge: Components That Predict Comprehension Performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zabrucky, Karen M.; Moore, DeWayne; Agler, Lin-Miao Lin; Cummings, Andrea M.

    2015-01-01

    In the present study, we assessed students' metacomprehension knowledge and examined the components of knowledge most related to comprehension of expository texts. We used the Revised Metacomprehension Scale (RMCS) to investigate the relations between students' metacomprehension knowledge and comprehension performance. Students who evaluated and…

  20. How to assess and improve children's reading comprehension?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Muijselaar, M.M.L.

    2016-01-01

    Reading comprehension is one of the most important skills children have to acquire during the final years of primary education. It is therefore unfortunate that many children have severe problems with a proper understanding of texts. To design methods that foster children’s reading comprehension,

  1. The Influence of Working Memory on Listening Comprehension

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    张军

    2008-01-01

    @@ We many notice that in listening classroom, what proficient students complain most is that they can get every word in the listening material but the most difficult thing for them is to keep in mind what they have heard. Although listening comprehension is now widely considered to be of great importance in second language learning and is extensively studied, there has not been enough research on listening comprehensionfrom the language processing perspective. And there is not too much studies involving the concept of memory in listening comprehension,especially the relationship between working memory capacity and listening comprehension.

  2. Reading comprehension skills of young adults with childhood diagnoses of dyslexia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ransby, Marilyn J; Swanson, H Lee

    2003-01-01

    This study explores the contribution of cognitive processes to comprehension skills in adults who suffered from childhood developmental dyslexia (CD). The performance of adults with CD (ages 17 to 23), chronological age-matched (CA) adults, and reading level-matched (RL) children was compared on measures of phonological processing, naming speed, working memory (WM), general knowledge, vocabulary, and comprehension. The results showed that adults with CD scored lower on measures of phonological processing, naming speed, WM, general knowledge, and vocabulary when compared to CA readers but were comparable to RL children on the majority of process measures. Phonological processing, naming speed, vocabulary, general knowledge, and listening comprehension contributed independent variance to reading comprehension accuracy, whereas WM, intelligence, phonological processing, and listening comprehension contributed independent variance to comprehension fluency. Adults with CD scored lower than CA adults and higher than RL children on measures of lexical processing, WM, and listening comprehension when word recognition and intelligence were partialed from the analysis. In summary, constraints in phonological processing and naming speed mediate only some of the influence of high-order processes on reading comprehension. Furthermore, adults with CD experience difficulties in WM, listening comprehension, and vocabulary independently of their word recognition problems and intellectual ability.

  3. Sentence comprehension following moderate closed head injury in adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leikin, Mark; Ibrahim, Raphiq; Aharon-Peretz, Judith

    2012-09-01

    The current study explores sentence comprehension impairments among adults following moderate closed head injury. It was hypothesized that if the factor of syntactic complexity significantly affects sentence comprehension in these patients, it would testify to the existence of syntactic processing deficit along with working-memory problems. Thirty-six adults (18 closed head injury patients and 18 healthy controls matched in age, gender, and IQ) participated in the study. A picture-sentence matching task together with various tests for memory, language, and reading abilities were used to explore whether sentence comprehension impairments exist as a result of a deficit in syntactic processing or of working-memory dysfunction. Results indicate significant impairment in sentence comprehension among adults with closed head injury compared with their non-head-injured peers. Results also reveal that closed head injury patients demonstrate considerable decline in working memory, short-term memory, and semantic knowledge. Analysis of the results shows that memory impairment and syntactic complexity contribute significantly to sentence comprehension difficulties in closed head injury patients. At the same time, the presentation mode (spoken or written language) was found to have no effect on comprehension among adults with closed head injury, and their reading abilities appear to be relatively intact.

  4. Progress Report 1994

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-01-01

    This document is the 1994 annual progress report of the CEA-Direction of Waste Management (DGD). It comprises four chapters. The first chapter is a general presentation of radioactive wastes, of the management of liquid effluents, solid wastes, sealed sources, of the relations with the ANDRA (The French Agency for the Management of Radioactive Wastes), and of the research and development studies in progress for the improvement of waste management. The second chapter concerns the spent fuels and their reprocessing, in particular AGR and PWR type reactor fuels, the ''Caramel'' fuel from Osiris reactor and the cover elements from the Rapsodie reactor core. The long time storage of ancient fuels is also discussed. The third chapter concerns the dismantling of decommissioned installations, the actions in progress and the planning of dismantling actions up to the year 2000. Chapter four is devoted to the management of wastes from the Direction of Military Applications (DAM), the actions in progress in the different DAM centers and the cleansing projects at Marcoule plant. (J.S.). 5 figs., 28 tabs., 21 photos., 3 appendix

  5. Comprehensive Environmental Management Process

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hjeresen, D.L.; Roybal, S.L.

    1994-01-01

    This report contains information about Los Alamos National Laboratory's Comprehensive Environmental Management Plan. The topics covered include: waste minimization, waste generation, environmental concerns, public relations of the laboratory, and how this plan will help to answer to the demands of the laboratory as their mission changes

  6. Do comprehensive schools reduce social mobility?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boliver, Vikki; Swift, Adam

    2011-03-01

    This paper investigates the claim that the shift from a selective to a comprehensive school system had a deleterious effect on social mobility in Great Britain. Using data from the National Child Development Study, we compare the chances, for both class and income mobility, of those who attended different kinds of school. Where media attention focuses exclusively on the chances for upward mobility of those children from lowly origins who were (or would have been) judged worthy of selection into a grammar school, we offer more rounded analyses. We match respondents in a way that helps us to distinguish those inequalities in mobility chances that are due to differences between children from those due to differences between the schools they attended; we look at the effects of the school system on the mobility chances of all children, not merely those from less advantaged origins; and we compare comprehensive- and selective-system schools, not merely comprehensive and grammar schools. After matching, we find, first, that going to a grammar school rather than a comprehensive does not make low-origin children more likely to be upwardly mobile but it helps them move further if they are; second, that grammar schools do not benefit working-class children, in terms of class mobility, more than they benefit service-class children, but, in terms of income mobility, such schools benefit low-income children somewhat more than they benefit higher-income children - that benefit relating only to rather modest and limited movements within the income distribution. Finally, however, the selective system as a whole yields no mobility advantage of any kind to children from any particular origins: any assistance to low-origin children provided by grammar schools is cancelled out by the hindrance suffered by those who attended secondary moderns. Overall, our findings suggest that comprehensive schools were as good for mobility as the selective schools they replaced. © London School of

  7. 42 CFR 441.106 - Comprehensive mental health program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... health and public welfare resources; including— (i) Community mental health centers; (ii) Nursing homes... 42 Public Health 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Comprehensive mental health program. 441.106... Comprehensive mental health program. (a) If the plan includes services in public institutions for mental...

  8. Reading comprehension of deaf children with cochlear implants

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vermeulen, A.M.; Bon, W.H.J. van; Schreuder, R.; Knoors, H.E.T.; Snik, A.F.M.

    2007-01-01

    The reading comprehension and visual word recognition in 50 deaf children and adolescents with at least 3 years of cochlear implant (0) use were evaluated. Their skills were contrasted with reference data of 500 deaf children without CIs. The reading comprehension level in children with CIs was

  9. Second Language Listening Comprehension: A Schema-Theoretic Perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Long, Donna Reseigh

    1989-01-01

    Enormous potential exists for the transfer of listening comprehension theory to second language listening research. The need for such research is highlighted through an exploration of recurring themes in the literature on background knowledge and through application of these themes to second language listening comprehension. (CB)

  10. Mental juggling: when does multitasking impair reading comprehension?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cho, Kit W; Altarriba, Jeanette; Popiel, Maximilian

    2015-01-01

    The present study investigated the conditions under which multitasking impairs reading comprehension. Participants read prose passages (the primary task), some of which required them to perform a secondary task. In Experiment 1, we compared two different types of secondary tasks (answering trivia questions and solving math problems). Reading comprehension was assessed using a multiple-choice test that measured both factual and conceptual knowledge. The results showed no observable detrimental effects associated with multitasking. In Experiment 2, the secondary task was a cognitive load task that required participants to remember a string of numbers while reading the passages. Performance on the reading comprehension test was lower in the cognitive load conditions relative to the no-load condition. The present study delineates the conditions under which multitasking can impair or have no effect on reading comprehension. These results further our understanding of our capacity to multitask and have practical implications in our technologically advanced society in which multitasking has become commonplace.

  11. White Matter Lesion Progression in LADIS

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schmidt, Reinhold; Berghold, Andrea; Jokinen, Hanna

    2012-01-01

    BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: White matter lesion (WML) progression has been advocated as a surrogate marker in intervention trials on cerebral small vessel disease. We assessed the rate of visually rated WML progression, studied correlations between lesion progression and cognition, and estimated sample...... sizes for clinical trials with pure WML progression vs combined WML progression-cognitive outcomes. METHODS: Those 394 participants of the Leukoaraiosis and Disability Study (LADIS) study with magnetic resonance imaging scanning at baseline and 3-year follow-up were analyzed. WML progression rating...

  12. Cognitive and linguistic predictors of reading comprehension in children with intellectual disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Wingerden, Evelien; Segers, Eliane; van Balkom, Hans; Verhoeven, Ludo

    2014-11-01

    A considerable number of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) are able to acquire basic word reading skills. However, not much is known about their achievements in more advanced reading comprehension skills. In the present study, a group of 49 children with ID and a control group of 21 typically developing children with word decoding skills in the normal ranges of first grade were compared in lower level (explicit meaning) and higher level (implicit meaning) reading comprehension abilities. Moreover, in the group of children with ID it was examined to what extent their levels of lower level and higher level reading comprehension could be predicted from their linguistic skills (word decoding, vocabulary, language comprehension) and cognitive skill (nonverbal reasoning). It was found that children with ID were weaker than typically developing children in higher level reading comprehension but not in lower level reading comprehension. Children with ID also performed below the control group on nonverbal reasoning and language comprehension. After controlling for nonverbal reasoning, linguistic skills predicted lower level reading comprehension but not higher level reading comprehension. It can be concluded that children with ID who have basic decoding skill do reasonably well on lower level reading comprehension but continue to have problems with higher level reading comprehension. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. A research on comprehension differences between print and screen reading

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Szu-Yuan Sun

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Since the 1980s, extensive research has been conducted comparing reading comprehension from printed text and computer screens. The conclusions, however, are not very consistent. As reading from computer screens requires a certain degree of individual technical skill, such variables should be objectively taken into consideration when conducting an experiment regarding the comparison between print and screen reading. This study analyses the difference in the level of understanding of the two presentational formats (text on printed pages and hypertext on computer screens for people between 45-54 years of age (i.e. “middleaged” adults. In our experimental findings there were no significant differences between the levels of comprehension for print and screen presentations. With regard to individual differences in gender, age group and educational level, the findings are as follows: gender and education effects on print reading comprehension performance were significant, while those on screen reading comprehension performance were not. For middle-aged computer learners, the main effect of age group on both print and screen reading comprehension performance was insignificant. In contrast, linear texts of traditional paper-based material are better for middle-aged readers’ literal text comprehension, while hypertext is beneficial to their inferential text comprehension. It is also suggested that hypermedia could be used as a cognitive tool for improving middle-aged adults’ inferential abilities on reading comprehension, provided that they were trained adequately to use available computers.

  14. [Comprehension of hazard pictograms of chemical products among cleaning workers].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martí Fernández, Francesc; van der Haar, Rudolf; López López, Juan Carlos; Portell, Mariona; Torner Solé, Anna

    2015-01-01

    To assess the comprehension among cleaning workers of the hazard pictograms as defined by the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) of the United Nations, concerning the classification, labeling and packaging of substances and mixtures. A sample of 118 workers was surveyed on their perception of the GHS hazard pictograms. Comprehensibility was measured by the percentage of correct answers and the degree to which they reflected International Organization for Standardization and American National Standards Institute standards for minimum level of comprehension. The influence of different variables to predict comprehension capacity was assessed using a logistic regression model. Three groups of pictograms could be distinguished which were statistically differentiated by their comprehensibility. Pictograms reflecting "acute toxicity" and "flammable", were described correctly by 94% and 95% of the surveyed population, respectively. For pictograms reflecting "systemic toxicity", "corrosive", "warning", "environment" and "explosive" the frequency of correct answers ranged from 48% to 64%, whereas those for pictograms "oxidizing" and "compressed gas" were interpreted correctly by only 7% of respondents. Prognostic factors for poor comprehension included: not being familiar with the pictograms, not having received training on safe use of chemical products, being an immigrant and being 54 years of age or older. Only two pictograms exceeded minimum standards for comprehension. Training, a tool proven to be effective to improve the correct interpretation of danger symbols, should be encouraged, especially in those groups with greater comprehension difficulties. Copyright belongs to the Societat Catalana de Salut Laboral.

  15. CDC Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs - 2007

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs. Funding. CDC's Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco...

  16. CDC Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs - 2014

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs. Funding. CDC's Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco...

  17. Association for Progressive Communication : Institutional ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Monitoring Progress Toward the Information Society : Digital Divide Index. Orbicom's Digital Divide Index is a rigorous statistical tool for benchmarking access to and use of information and communication technologies (ICT), and monitoring progress toward the... View moreMonitoring Progress Toward the Information ...

  18. Smart Strategy to Boost Students' Reading Comprehension

    OpenAIRE

    Sfafi'i, Muhammad Lukman

    2015-01-01

    Reading as one of language skills plays significant roles in the teaching English as a foreign language. Since the teacher still uses the conventional way to teach reading, students‘ ability in reading comprehension seems still unsatisfactory yet. So, teacher should explore and develop new strategies. One of strategies in reading comprehension that can trigger our students to attain that purpose is SMART (Self Monitoring Approach for Reading and Thinking) strategy. ...

  19. KEMAMPUAN MAHASISWA DALAM MEMBUAT COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pudiyono Pudiyono

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available The aims of the research were to find out (a the level of the students’ ability in making comprehension questions, (b the students’ map of problems in making comprehension questions. The population of the research was all students joining Reading 4 academic year 2016, totaling to 30 students, while the sample was taken from all students. The result of data analysis showed that the average ability of the students, with score more than 70 reached 66.66%. In details, only 4 of the samples (13.33% got no wrong answers or an A. Those who got good achievement (B, considered as majority, amounted to 16 students (53.33%. The participants achieving enough grades (C reached 7 students or 23.33%. The last level achieved in this research was D with the number reaching 3 (10%. The map of problems laid on their inability in identifying between yes/no and WH questions, inverted sentence, choosing the right auxiliary and verbs and their spelling ability. Keyword: comprehension, questions, inversion, problem map, ability

  20. Using Comprehensive Feature Lists to Bias Medical Diagnosis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kulatunga-Moruzi, Chan; Brooks, Lee R.; Norman, Geoffrey R.

    2004-01-01

    Clinicians routinely report fewer features in a case than they subsequently agree are present. The authors report studies that assess the effect of considering a more comprehensive description than physicians usually offer. These comprehensive descriptions were generated from photographs of dermatology and internal medicine and were complete and…

  1. 34 CFR 303.165 - Comprehensive child find system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 34 Education 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Comprehensive child find system. 303.165 Section 303.165 Education Regulations of the Offices of the Department of Education (Continued) OFFICE OF SPECIAL... Requirements § 303.165 Comprehensive child find system. Each application must include— (a) The policies and...

  2. Progress toward universal health coverage in ASEAN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hoang Van Minh

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Background: The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN is characterized by much diversity in terms of geography, society, economic development, and health outcomes. The health systems as well as healthcare structure and provisions vary considerably. Consequently, the progress toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC in these countries also varies. This paper aims to describe the progress toward UHC in the ASEAN countries and discuss how regional integration could influence UHC. Design: Data reported in this paper were obtained from published literature, reports, and gray literature available in the ASEAN countries. We used both online and manual search methods to gather the information and ‘snowball’ further data. Results: We found that, in general, ASEAN countries have made good progress toward UHC, partly due to relatively sustained political commitments to endorse UHC in these countries. However, all the countries in ASEAN are facing several common barriers to achieving UHC, namely 1 financial constraints, including low levels of overall and government spending on health; 2 supply side constraints, including inadequate numbers and densities of health workers; and 3 the ongoing epidemiological transition at different stages characterized by increasing burdens of non-communicable diseases, persisting infectious diseases, and reemergence of potentially pandemic infectious diseases. The ASEAN Economic Community's (AEC goal of regional economic integration and a single market by 2015 presents both opportunities and challenges for UHC. Healthcare services have become more available but health and healthcare inequities will likely worsen as better-off citizens of member states might receive more benefits from the liberalization of trade policy in health, either via regional outmigration of health workers or intra-country health worker movement toward private hospitals, which tend to be located in urban areas. For ASEAN countries, UHC should

  3. Progress toward universal health coverage in ASEAN.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Minh, Hoang; Pocock, Nicola Suyin; Chaiyakunapruk, Nathorn; Chhorvann, Chhea; Duc, Ha Anh; Hanvoravongchai, Piya; Lim, Jeremy; Lucero-Prisno, Don Eliseo; Ng, Nawi; Phaholyothin, Natalie; Phonvisay, Alay; Soe, Kyaw Min; Sychareun, Vanphanom

    2014-01-01

    The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is characterized by much diversity in terms of geography, society, economic development, and health outcomes. The health systems as well as healthcare structure and provisions vary considerably. Consequently, the progress toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in these countries also varies. This paper aims to describe the progress toward UHC in the ASEAN countries and discuss how regional integration could influence UHC. Data reported in this paper were obtained from published literature, reports, and gray literature available in the ASEAN countries. We used both online and manual search methods to gather the information and 'snowball' further data. We found that, in general, ASEAN countries have made good progress toward UHC, partly due to relatively sustained political commitments to endorse UHC in these countries. However, all the countries in ASEAN are facing several common barriers to achieving UHC, namely 1) financial constraints, including low levels of overall and government spending on health; 2) supply side constraints, including inadequate numbers and densities of health workers; and 3) the ongoing epidemiological transition at different stages characterized by increasing burdens of non-communicable diseases, persisting infectious diseases, and reemergence of potentially pandemic infectious diseases. The ASEAN Economic Community's (AEC) goal of regional economic integration and a single market by 2015 presents both opportunities and challenges for UHC. Healthcare services have become more available but health and healthcare inequities will likely worsen as better-off citizens of member states might receive more benefits from the liberalization of trade policy in health, either via regional outmigration of health workers or intra-country health worker movement toward private hospitals, which tend to be located in urban areas. For ASEAN countries, UHC should be explicitly considered to mitigate

  4. Comprehensive Error Rate Testing (CERT)

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented the Comprehensive Error Rate Testing (CERT) program to measure improper payments in the Medicare...

  5. IMPROVING STUDENTS’ READING COMPREHENSION THROUGH IINTERACTIVE READ-ALOUD TECHNIQUE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Edi Santoso

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract: The present study, entitled Improving Students’ Reading Comprehension through Interactive Read-Aloud, attempts to unlock problems found in teaching and reading comprehension through interactive read-aloud in a Senior High School of Sport (SMAN Olah Raga Lampung, in Metro. The findings revealed that students’ reading comprehension improved through interactive read-aloud. The improvement can be seen from the increase of test results, meaning construction, and motivation. The process of reading activities showed that the teacher’s gesture and body language, 20 questions, explain and guess activities were proven to help the students construct meaning from the given texts. In addition, interactive read-aloud is effective to boost students’ motivation to comprehend the texts.   Key words: Reading comprehension, interactive read-aloud.

  6. Reading and listening comprehension and their relation to inattention and hyperactivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cain, Kate; Bignell, Simon

    2014-03-01

    Children with diagnoses of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) frequently have reading problems. To date, it is not clear whether poor reading is associated with both inattention and hyperactivity and also whether poor reading comprehension is the result of poor word reading skills or more general language comprehension weaknesses. We report two studies to examine how reading and listening comprehension skills are related to inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity. Separate groups of 7- to 11-year-olds participated in each study. In both studies, we used teacher ratings of inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity to identify three groups at risk of ADHD: poor attention, high hyperactivity, poor attention and high hyperactivity, and also same-age controls. In Study 1, we explored how inattention and hyperactivity predicted reading after controlling for non-verbal IQ and vocabulary. In Study 2, we compared listening and reading comprehension in these groups. Poor attention was related to poor reading comprehension, although the relation was partially mediated by word reading skill (Study 1). Groups with high hyperactivity had weak listening comprehension relative to reading comprehension (Study 2). These results indicate that the reading comprehension problems of children with attention difficulties are related to poor word reading and that listening comprehension is particularly vulnerable in children at risk of ADHD. © 2013 The British Psychological Society.

  7. APOBEC3G levels predict rates of progression to AIDS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wu Hulin

    2007-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background APOBEC3G (hA3G is a newly discovered cellular factor of innate immunity that inhibits HIV replication in vitro. Whether hA3G conferrs protection against HIV in vivo is not known. To investigate the possible anti-HIV activity of hA3G in vivo, we examined hA3G mRNA abundance in primary human cells isolated from either HIV-infected or HIV-uninfected individuals, and found that hA3G mRNA levels follow a hierarchical order of long-term nonprogressors>HIV-uninfected>Progressors; and, hA3G mRNA abundance is correlated with surrogates of HIV disease progression: viral load and CD4 count. Another group later confirmed that HIV-infected subjects have lower hA3G mRNA levels than HIV-uninfected controls, but did not find correlations between hA3G mRNA levels and viral load or CD4 count. These conflicing results indicate that a more comprehensive, conclusive investigation of hA3G expression levels in various patient cohorts is urgently needed. Presentation of the hypothesis For exploring whether hA3G abundance might influence HIV disease progression, we have formulated a hypothesis that inlcudes two parts: a in vivo, the basal hA3G mRNA expression level per PBMC is a constant – with minor physiologic fluctuations – determined by host genetic and epigenetic elements in a healthy individual; and that the basal hA3G mRNA expression levels in a population follow a Normal (or Gaussian distribution; b that although HIV infects randomly, it results in more rapid disease progression in those with lower hA3G mRNA levels, and slower disease progression in those with higher hA3G mRNA levels. Testing the hypothesis This hypothesis could be tested by a straighforward set of experiments to compare the distribution of hA3G mRNA levels in HIV-uninfected healthy individuals and that in HIV-infected, antiretroviral therapy-naïve subjects who are at early and late stages of infection. Implication of the hypothesis Testing this hypothesis will have

  8. Improving reading comprehension through Reciprocal Teaching Method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Endang Komariah

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available This study is aimed at discovering the benefits of the Reciprocal Teaching Method (RTM in the reading classroom, finding out the achievements of students after four comprehension training sessions of using RTM, and exploring the perceptions of students on the use of RTM. This method uses four comprehension strategies: predicting, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing, to help learners monitor their development of reading comprehension by themselves. Students work in groups of four or five and the members are divided into five roles which are the leader, predictor, clarifier, questioner, and summarizer. The subjects were 24 students from the twelfth grade at a high school in Banda Aceh. Observations, tests, documents and interviews were collected to get the data. The results showed that the students were more active and productive in the reading classroom after RTM sessions and their reading proficiency improved. They learnt how to apply several of the strategies from RTM while reading. The results also showed that they preferred this method for teaching-learning reading compared to the conventional one. Therefore, teachers are suggested to consider using this method for teaching reading that instils the students on how to apply the four comprehension strategies used in reading.

  9. Measuring Speech Comprehensibility in Students with Down Syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoder, Paul J.; Woynaroski, Tiffany; Camarata, Stephen

    2016-01-01

    Purpose: There is an ongoing need to develop assessments of spontaneous speech that focus on whether the child's utterances are comprehensible to listeners. This study sought to identify the attributes of a stable ratings-based measure of speech comprehensibility, which enabled examining the criterion-related validity of an orthography-based…

  10. The effect of listening comprehension skills on students ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This paper presents the report of a study that investigated the effects of listening comprehension skill training on students' performance in Oral English Test. To investigate the effects that the teaching of listening comprehension skills would have on the performance in Oral English test, 82 Senior Secondary School 2 ...

  11. Proverb and idiom comprehension in Alzheimer disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kempler, D; Van Lancker, D; Read, S

    1988-01-01

    Twenty-nine patients diagnosed with Probable Alzheimer Disease were administered tests of word, familiar phrases (idioms and proverbs), and novel phrase comprehension. From the early stage of the disease, patients performed worse at understanding familiar phrases than single words or novel phrases. The results uphold common observations that AD patients have difficulty interpreting abstract meanings. Cognitive variables responsible for poor idiom/proverb comprehension and the clinical implications of this new protocol are discussed.

  12. A review of the studies on listening comprehension in the second language

    OpenAIRE

    Fukuda, Michiko

    2003-01-01

    Few studies have been done on the listening comprehension processing, especially in second language. However, recent studies show that listening comprehension is considered as an active and cognitive process. This paper overviews studies on listening comprehension in the second language by presenting some models of listening comprehension processing. Then, listening comprehension was studied from cognitive psychology and educational point of view. Finally, the direction of future researches o...

  13. Specific Reading Comprehension Disability: Major Problem, Myth, or Misnomer?

    OpenAIRE

    Spencer, Mercedes; Quinn, Jamie M.; Wagner, Richard K.

    2014-01-01

    The goal of the present study was to test three competing hypotheses about the nature of comprehension problems of students who are poor in reading comprehension. Participants in the study were first, second, and third graders, totaling 9 cohorts and over 425,000 participants in all. The pattern of results was consistent across all cohorts: Less than one percent of first- through third-grade students who scored as poor in reading comprehension were adequate in both decoding and vocabulary. Al...

  14. Listening Comprehension Strategies: A Review of the Literature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berne, Jane E.

    2004-01-01

    Numerous studies related to listening comprehension strategies have been published in the past two decades. The present study seeks to build upon two previous reviews of listening comprehension strategies research. Of particular interest in this review are studies dealing with the types of cues used by listeners, the sequence of listening,…

  15. Mining Student Behavior Patterns in Reading Comprehension Tasks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peckham, Terry; McCalla, Gord

    2012-01-01

    Reading comprehension is critical in life-long learning as well as in the workplace. In this paper, we describe how multidimensional k-means clustering combined with Bloom's Taxonomy can be used to determine positive and negative cognitive skill sets with respect to reading comprehension tasks. This information could be used to inform environments…

  16. Rereading Comprehension Pedagogies: Toward a Dialogic Teaching Ethic That Honors Student Sensemaking

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aukerman, Maren

    2013-01-01

    This conceptual essay critiques reading comprehension pedagogies that are part of the current educational landscape. I argue that comprehension pedagogy generally reflects one of three differing orientations, each with its own assumptions about what comprehension is: comprehension-as-outcome pedagogies, which emphasize getting textual meaning…

  17. Slowly progressive fluent aphasia; Clinical features and an imaging study including MRI, SPECT and PET

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sakurai, Yasuhisa; Momose, Toshimitsu; Watanabe, Toshiaki; Ishikawa, Takashi; Iwata, Makoto (Tokyo Univ. (Japan). Faculty of Medicine); Bando, Mitsuaki

    1991-05-01

    Three patients with slowly progressive fluent aphasia are reported. One of the patients presented with memory disturbance. They were characterized clinically by having selective deficits in vocabulary, which resulted in impairment of confrontation naming, and auditory comprehension. MRI showed an atrophy not only in the left temporal lobe (including the superior, middle and inferior temporal gyri), hippocampus, parahippocampual gyrus, and fusiform gyrus, but also in the left parietal lobe. I-123 IMP SPECT and F-18 FDG PET were used to determine regional cerebral blood flow and regional cerebral metabolic rate, respectively. In addition to the decreased tracer uptake in the left temporal and/or parietal lobe, a decreased uptake was seen in the bilateral basal ganglia, the inner side of the temporal lobe (including the bilateral hippocampus), the right anterior temporal lobe, and the left thalamus. These findings may deny the previous thought that lesions are localized in slowly progressive fluent aphasia. Furthermore, noticeable difficulty in naming, i.e., patients unable to recognize the right answer, are considered attributable to widespread lesions from the whole left temporal lobe, including the hippocampus, to the right temporal lobe. (N.K.).

  18. In silico ADME-Tox modeling: progress and prospects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alqahtani, Saeed

    2017-11-01

    Although significant progress has been made in high-throughput screening of absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion, and toxicity (ADME-Tox) properties in drug discovery and development, in silico ADME-Tox prediction continues to play an important role in facilitating the appropriate selection of candidate drugs by pharmaceutical companies prior to expensive clinical trials. Areas covered: This review provides an overview of the available in silico models that have been used to predict the ADME-Tox properties of compounds. It also provides a comprehensive overview and summarization of the latest modeling methods and algorithms available for the prediction of physicochemical characteristics, ADME properties, and drug toxicity issues. Expert opinion: The in silico models currently available have greatly contributed to the knowledge of screening approaches in the early stages of drug discovery and the development process. As the definitive goal of in silico molding is to predict the pharmacokinetics and disposition of compounds in vivo by assembling all kinetic processes within one global model, PBPK models can serve this purpose. However, much work remains to be done in this area to generate more data and input parameters to build more reliable and accurate prediction models.

  19. The complete practitioner: still a work in progress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barnett, Jeffrey E

    2009-11-01

    When one is reflecting on a career as a practitioner, a number of important influences, themes, and elements that contribute to being a successful practitioner are evident. The achievement of this success is not a solitary activity. Many role models and mentors serve as important influences and guides for developing as a professional over the course of one's career. Ultimately, the goal is to aspire to become a complete practitioner. This includes being a passionate professional, clinically competent, a psychotherapist and clinician, an active consumer of research findings, ethical, a role model, a mentor, psychologically healthy, an advocate, a leader, a volunteer, an educator, a scholar, a colleague, a business person and entrepreneur, and an innovator and visionary; focusing on diversity and multicultural competence; and having a comprehensive vision of health. Because the goal of being a complete practitioner is aspirational, one never fully masters each of these roles and attributes but remains a work in progress. Yet, the process of endeavoring to become a complete practitioner is rewarding, gratifying, and meaningful. It is a journey well worth taking. Copyright 2009 by the American Psychological Association

  20. A web-based tool for the Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program (CUSP).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pronovost, Peter J; King, Jay; Holzmueller, Christine G; Sawyer, Melinda; Bivens, Shauna; Michael, Michelle; Haig, Kathy; Paine, Lori; Moore, Dana; Miller, Marlene

    2006-03-01

    An organization's ability to change is driven by its culture, which in turn has a significant impact on safety. The six-step Comprehensive Unit-Based Safety Program (CUSP) is intended to improve local culture and safety. A Web-based project management tool for CUSP was developed and then pilot tested at two hospitals. HOW ECUSP WORKS: Once a patient safety concern is identified (step 3), a unit-level interdisciplinary safety committee determines issue criticality and starts up the projects (step 4), which are managed using project management tools within eCUSP (step 5). On a project's completion, the results are disseminated through a shared story (step 6). OSF St. Joseph's Medical Center-The Medical Birthing Center (Bloomington, Illinois), identified 11 safety issues, implemented 11 projects, and created 9 shared stories--including one for its Armband Project. The Johns Hopkins Hospital (Baltimore) Medical Progressive Care (MPC4) Unit identified 5 safety issues and implemented 4 ongoing projects, including the intravenous (IV) Tubing Compliance Project. The eCUSP tool's success depends on an organizational commitment to creating a culture of safety.

  1. Comprehensive study of psi meson production. Progress report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jones, S.T.; Harms, B.C.

    1985-01-01

    Our first paper under this grant is a calculation of prompt lepton production in upsilon and toponium decay. The results should prove useful in identifying signals for charm or bottom production. Our work has led to some improvement in our understanding of psi production in hadronic interactions, although further work is needed. Attempts to explain the difference between experimental and theoretical rates of psi hadroproduction led to a study of quark-gluon scattering, which proved to have a negative impact on the theoretical cross section once a leading mass singularity was absorbed into the gluon distribution function. Our study of psi production in B meson decays has led to an improvement in the leading-log calculation of this rate, which gives a much more precise prediction of the decay rate. We have also calculated all first-order QCD corrections to this weak process. We are now completing a companion calculation of n/sub c/ production, for which there is presently no data. Dr. Harms and Dr. Cox have collaborated on an attempt to determine the dominant contribution to the difference sigma(pN → psi x) - sigma(anti pN → psi x). The lowest order process contributing to this difference (q anti q → psi GG) has been shown previously to be small. They have calculated the next order process (q anti q → G*G* → psi G) and have apparently uncovered a new example of the violation of the Bloch-Nordsieck mechanism in QCD. Our work outside the realm of QCD has included a new fit to the total pp and anti pp cross sections. Dr. Cox has also been pursuing the question of representations of extended (especially N=8) supersymmetry

  2. Assessing children's inference generation: what do tests of reading comprehension measure?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bowyer-Crane, Claudine; Snowling, Margaret J

    2005-06-01

    Previous research suggests that children with specific comprehension difficulties have problems with the generation of inferences. This raises important questions as to whether poor comprehenders have poor comprehension skills generally, or whether their problems are confined to specific inference types. The main aims of the study were (a) using two commonly used tests of reading comprehension to classify the questions requiring the generation of inferences, and (b) to investigate the relative performance of skilled and less-skilled comprehenders on questions tapping different inference types. The performance of 10 poor comprehenders (mean age 110.06 months) was compared with the performance of 10 normal readers (mean age 112.78 months) on two tests of reading comprehension. A qualitative analysis of the NARA II (form 1) and the WORD comprehension subtest was carried out. Participants were then administered the NARA II, WORD comprehension subtest and a test of non-word reading. The NARA II was heavily reliant on the generation of knowledge-based inferences, while the WORD comprehension subtest was biased towards the retention of literal information. Children identified by the NARA II as having comprehension difficulties performed in the normal range on the WORD comprehension subtests. Further, children with comprehension difficulties performed poorly on questions requiring the generation of knowledge-based and elaborative inferences. However, they were able to answer questions requiring attention to literal information or use of cohesive devices at a level comparable to normal readers. Different reading tests tap different types of inferencing skills. Lessskilled comprehenders have particular difficulty applying real-world knowledge to a text during reading, and this has implications for the formulation of effective intervention strategies.

  3. Comprehensive numerical modelling of tokamaks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cohen, R.H.; Cohen, B.I.; Dubois, P.F.

    1991-01-01

    We outline a plan for the development of a comprehensive numerical model of tokamaks. The model would consist of a suite of independent, communicating packages describing the various aspects of tokamak performance (core and edge transport coefficients and profiles, heating, fueling, magnetic configuration, etc.) as well as extensive diagnostics. These codes, which may run on different computers, would be flexibly linked by a user-friendly shell which would allow run-time specification of packages and generation of pre- and post-processing functions, including workstation-based visualization of output. One package in particular, the calculation of core transport coefficients via gyrokinetic particle simulation, will become practical on the scale required for comprehensive modelling only with the advent of teraFLOP computers. Incremental effort at LLNL would be focused on gyrokinetic simulation and development of the shell

  4. Working memory contributions to reading comprehension components in middle childhood children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chrysochoou, Elisavet; Bablekou, Zoe; Tsigilis, Nikolaos

    2011-01-01

    This study examined working memory contributions to reading comprehension subskills in Greek children (mean age 9 years, 1 month). The phonological loop of the Baddeley and Hitch working memory model was assessed with 3 recall tasks (words, nonwords, and digits) and a word list matching task. The central executive (CE) was assessed with 3 tasks (listening, counting, and backward digit recall). Participants were also given a receptive vocabulary task, a reading fluency task, and written stories accompanied by comprehension questions. Canonical correlation analyses showed that the comprehension variables were related to the CE rather than the phonological loop measures. CE functions were more strongly associated with elaborative inference generation (involving significant offline processing) and comprehension control (involving metacognitive monitoring). Smaller yet significant associations were observed between the CE and the necessary inference and literal comprehension measures, whereas a moderate relationship was found in the case of the simile comprehension variable. Among the CE variables, listening recall demonstrated the highest loading on the canonical function, followed by moderate yet significant counting and backward digit recall loadings. Vocabulary was found to fully mediate several associations between working memory and comprehension measures; however, the relationship between listening recall and elaborative inferences was partly mediated. Reading fluency and, on several occasions, Greek vocabulary knowledge did not mediate the relationships between CE measures and comprehension skills assessed. This study demonstrates the usefulness of CE measures for identifying young children's possible difficulties in carrying out specific reading comprehension processes.

  5. Does a Progressive PIT Stabilize the Economy? A Comparison of Progressive and Flat Taxes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Krajewski Piotr

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the article is to examine the impact of progressive personal income tax rates and the effectiveness of this tax as an automatic economic stabilizer. The assessment of automatic stabilizers is based on the estimates of tax cyclical components. The study shows that the output elasticity of PIT is higher than one, which means that the analysed tax acts relatively efficiently as an automatic stabilizer. However, it was also observed that the tax progressivity is not the main reason of the effectiveness of a progressive PIT as an automatic stabilizer. The study shows that changes in progressive rates of PIT, contrary to widespread opinions, have little effect on the effectiveness of passive fiscal policy. Personal income tax acts as automatic stabilizer mostly due not to the progressive tax rates, but because of the sensitivity of employment to GDP fluctuations.

  6. Comprehensive benefit analysis of regional water resources based on multi-objective evaluation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chi, Yixia; Xue, Lianqing; Zhang, Hui

    2018-01-01

    The purpose of the water resources comprehensive benefits analysis is to maximize the comprehensive benefits on the aspects of social, economic and ecological environment. Aiming at the defects of the traditional analytic hierarchy process in the evaluation of water resources, it proposed a comprehensive benefit evaluation of social, economic and environmental benefits index from the perspective of water resources comprehensive benefit in the social system, economic system and environmental system; determined the index weight by the improved fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (AHP), calculated the relative index of water resources comprehensive benefit and analyzed the comprehensive benefit of water resources in Xiangshui County by the multi-objective evaluation model. Based on the water resources data in Xiangshui County, 20 main comprehensive benefit assessment factors of 5 districts belonged to Xiangshui County were evaluated. The results showed that the comprehensive benefit of Xiangshui County was 0.7317, meanwhile the social economy has a further development space in the current situation of water resources.

  7. 7 CFR 1944.514 - Comprehensive TSA grant projects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 13 2010-01-01 2009-01-01 true Comprehensive TSA grant projects. 1944.514 Section... § 1944.514 Comprehensive TSA grant projects. (a) The rural area to be covered by the TSA project must be...) Consideration of the following items may assist applicants develop TSA projects which meet the needs of low...

  8. Older Adults' Comprehension of Transformational and Deactivation Negation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Margolin, Sara J.

    2015-01-01

    The present research aimed to examine young and older adults' comprehension of negated text to determine the locus of older adults' difficulty in understanding this text construction. Participants were asked to read short passages at their own pace, complete a lexical decision task, and answer a comprehension question about what they had read.…

  9. Progression og underviserkompetencer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lene Tortzen Bager

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available På baggrund af en kvalitativ interviewundersøgelse af undervisere ved Aarhus Universitet lavet i 2012, tematiserer artiklen, hvordan undervisere udvikler deres faglige og pædagogiske kompetencer i forhold til at kunne skabe progression inden for innovation og entreprenørskab forstået enten som didaktik, arbejdsformer i faglige forløb eller som fag på universitetet. I arbejdet med progression er det en udfordring at integrere de nye faglige dimensioner i det kernefaglige felt. Den seneste model for progression inden for innovation og entreprenør-skab siger, at det er den lærendes generelle erfaringsniveau, der er den afgørende progressionsskabende faktor (Progressionsmodellen, Fonden for Entreprenørskab, 2013b. Samtidig skelner international forskning inden for studiekompetenceområdet mellem niveauer, hvor indlejret viden er det mest avancerede kompetenceniveau (Barrie, 2002.Ifølge progressionsmodellen og den nævnte kompetenceforskning er erfaring og dybt integreret læring altså centrale dimensioner i progression. Men hvad er underviserens rolle heri? Underviserens professionelle udviklingsarbejde forekommer at være underbelyst i forhold til, at underviseren er den legitime garant for integrationen af nye faglige dimensioner og for den studerendes kompetenceniveau. Interviewundersøgelsen forholder sig til spørgsmålet om progression gennem de deltagende underviseres beskrivelse af betydningslag i entreprenørskabsbegrebet koblet til de praksisformer i undervisningen, der knytter sig hertil samt et indblik i undervisernes refleksioner over deres kompetenceudviklingsprocesser. Artiklens bidrag til progression er at se underviserens motivation og kompetenceudvikling som forudsætninger herfor.     Based on a qualitative study of five teachers in the Faculty of Arts at Aarhus University that took place during 2012, the article thematizes how teachers develop their professional and educational qualifications in innovation and

  10. 7 CFR 4290.320 - Contents of comprehensive business plan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 15 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Contents of comprehensive business plan. 4290.320... comprehensive business plan. (a) Plan for Developmental Venture Capital investing. The Applicant must describe... of the Applicant's business plan. ...

  11. An investigation of homogeneous and heterogeneous sonochemistry for the destruction of hazardous substances. Progress report, 1996 - 1997

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hua, I.

    1997-01-01

    'The primary objective of this research project is to acquire a deeper fundamental knowledge of acoustic cavitation and cavitation chemistry, and in doing so, to ascertain how ultrasonic irradiation can be more effectively applied to environmental problems. Four on-going projects will be described in this progress report, The first project is the destruction of carbofuran in a Near-Field Acoustical Processor (NAP), and the hydrodynamic characterization of the reactor. The second project is a comprehensive study of how ultrasonic frequency influences sonochemical reaction rates; the substrate it, the preliminary portion of this study has been hydrogen peroxide formation. The third project in progress is destruction of four polychlorinated biphenyls at 20 kHz. Work so far has been at 20 kHz, but the most significant portion of this project will involve a multi-frequency (ultrasonic frequency) study. Finally, the destruction of a pesticide, dichlorvos, during sonication at 500 kHz will be described. Preliminary work during the first year has emphasized determination of kinetics; further work (years 2--3) will be focused upon closing mass balances and identifying transformation products.'

  12. Improving 4th Grade Primary School Students' Reading Comprehension Skills

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bulut, Aydin

    2017-01-01

    The aim of this study was to carry out action research to investigate reading comprehension skills when using the SQ3R reading comprehension strategy. To that end, this strategy was used for improving the reading comprehension skills of 7 primary school 4th grade students who had problems with these skills. An action plan was prepared for 3hours a…

  13. Revisiting Sticht: The Changing Nature of the Relationship between Listening Comprehension and Reading Comprehension among Upper Elementary and Middle School Students over the Last 50 Years

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verlaan, Wolfram; Pearce, Daniel L.; Zeng, Guang

    2017-01-01

    This study investigated the relationship between listening comprehension and reading comprehension to determine if environmental factors might be contributing to a possible change in the equalization age for these two comprehension modalities from what was theorized by Thomas Sticht. The study employed a counterbalanced design to measure the…

  14. THE NATURE OF COMPREHENSION.

    Science.gov (United States)

    CLELAND, DONALD L.

    THE NATURE OF COMPREHENSION IS DEFINED AND CLARIFIED. THE LITERATURE IS SURVEYED TO SHOW THAT THE DEVELOPMENT OF CONCEPTS IS IMPORTANT IN INTELLECTUAL ACTIVITIES. IT IS POINTED OUT THAT CONCEPTS ARE BUILT FROM PERCEPTS, IMAGES, SENSATION, AND MEMORIES, AND THAT THE STEPS WHICH ARE EMPLOYED AS CONCEPTS ARE BUILT AND REFINED AND INCLUDE PERCEIVING,…

  15. Improving Reading Comprehension Skills through the SCRATCH Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papatga, Erdal; Ersoy, Ali

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to reveal how reading comprehension skills of elementary fourth graders who have problems in reading comprehension can be improved by means of the SCRATCH program. The study was designed as a participant action research. It was carried out within a 15- week process at an elementary school with middle socio-economic level…

  16. Gender Agreement Attraction in Russian: Production and Comprehension Evidence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slioussar, Natalia; Malko, Anton

    2016-01-01

    Agreement attraction errors (such as the number error in the example "The key to the cabinets are rusty") have been the object of many studies in the last 20 years. So far, almost all production experiments and all comprehension experiments looked at binary features (primarily at number in Germanic, Romance, and some other languages, in several cases at gender in Romance languages). Among other things, it was noted that both in production and in comprehension, attraction effects are much stronger for some feature combinations than for the others: they can be observed in the sentences with singular heads and plural dependent nouns (e.g.,"The key to the cabinets…"), but not in the sentences with plural heads and singular dependent nouns (e.g., "The keys to the cabinet…"). Almost all proposed explanations of this asymmetry appeal to feature markedness, but existing findings do not allow teasing different approaches to markedness apart. We report the results of four experiments (one on production and three on comprehension) studying subject-verb gender agreement in Russian, a language with three genders. Firstly, we found attraction effects both in production and in comprehension, but, unlike in the case of number agreement, they were not parallel (in production, feminine gender triggered strongest effects, while neuter triggered weakest effects, while in comprehension, masculine triggered weakest effects). Secondly, in the comprehension experiments attraction was observed for all dependent noun genders, but only for a subset of head noun genders. This goes against the traditional assumption that the features of the dependent noun are crucial for attraction, showing the features of the head are more important. We demonstrate that this approach can be extended to previous findings on attraction and that there exists other evidence for it. In total, these findings let us reconsider the question which properties of features are crucial for agreement attraction in

  17. Toward a comprehensive long term nicotine policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gray, N; Henningfield, J E; Benowitz, N L; Connolly, G N; Dresler, C; Fagerstrom, K; Jarvis, M J; Boyle, P

    2005-06-01

    Global tobacco deaths are high and rising. Tobacco use is primarily driven by nicotine addiction. Overall tobacco control policy is relatively well agreed upon but a long term nicotine policy has been less well considered and requires further debate. Reaching consensus is important because a nicotine policy is integral to the target of reducing tobacco caused disease, and the contentious issues need to be resolved before the necessary political changes can be sought. A long term and comprehensive nicotine policy is proposed here. It envisages both reducing the attractiveness and addictiveness of existing tobacco based nicotine delivery systems as well as providing alternative sources of acceptable clean nicotine as competition for tobacco. Clean nicotine is defined as nicotine free enough of tobacco toxicants to pass regulatory approval. A three phase policy is proposed. The initial phase requires regulatory capture of cigarette and smoke constituents liberalising the market for clean nicotine; regulating all nicotine sources from the same agency; and research into nicotine absorption and the role of tobacco additives in this process. The second phase anticipates clean nicotine overtaking tobacco as the primary source of the drug (facilitated by use of regulatory and taxation measures); simplification of tobacco products by limitation of additives which make tobacco attractive and easier to smoke (but tobacco would still be able to provide a satisfying dose of nicotine). The third phase includes a progressive reduction in the nicotine content of cigarettes, with clean nicotine freely available to take the place of tobacco as society's main nicotine source.

  18. The progress and prospects of rural biogas production in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, Ling; Zhao, Lixin; Ren, Changshan; Wang, Fei

    2012-01-01

    Biogas production is an important aspect of China's energy strategy. After decades’ application and research, China biogas has achieved considerable accomplishments. This study presents the progress and prospect of biogas technologies and industry in China. Two biogas patterns exist in China, that is, household-scaled digester for scattered farmers and biogas plant for centralized biogas production. Household-scaled digester which is simple and practical has been widely used and fully developed. Biogas plants have being sprung up with different materials, process and biogas utilization technologies. By the end of 2010, 38.51 million household-scaled digesters, and 27,436 large- and medium-scaled biogas plants for agricultural wastes were built. The calculation result of biogas potential from agricultural wastes shows that those used raw materials account for only 1.90% of the total availability. Chinese government promulgated several laws and policies, and gave financial supports to promote the development of biogas. However, some problems such as inferior equipment technology, imperfect policy incentive hamper its wide application and promotion. With the rapid development of economy and the improvement of rural living condition, China biogas industry is expected to advance toward orientation of scalization, industrialization and commercialization. - Highlights: ► Developing progress of biogas production in China is evaluated comprehensively. ► Status of biogas industrialization is estimated. ► New problems which occurred during rural biogas construction were analyzed. ► Biogas production potentials from agricultural wastes in China were calculated. ► Prospect of China rural biogas is expected.

  19. Hand Specific Representations in Language Comprehension

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Claire eMoody-Triantis

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Theories of embodied cognition argue that language comprehension involves sensory-motor re-enactments of the actions described. However, the degree of specificity of these re-enactments as well as the relationship between action and language remains a matter of debate. Here we investigate these issues by examining how hand-specific information (left or right hand is recruited in language comprehension and action execution. An fMRI study tested right-handed participants in two separate tasks that were designed to be as similar as possible to increase sensitivity of the comparison across task: an action execution go/no-go task where participants performed right or left hand actions, and a language task where participants read sentences describing the same left or right handed actions as in the execution task. We found that language-induced activity did not match the hand-specific patterns of activity found for action execution in primary somatosensory and motor cortex, but it overlapped with pre-motor and parietal regions associated with action planning. Within these pre-motor regions, both right hand actions and sentences elicited stronger activity than left hand actions and sentences - a dominant hand effect -. Importantly, both dorsal and ventral sections of the left pre-central gyrus were recruited by both tasks, suggesting different action features being recruited. These results suggest that (a language comprehension elicits motor representations that are hand-specific and akin to multimodal action plans, rather than full action re-enactments; and (b language comprehension and action execution share schematic hand-specific representations that are richer for the dominant hand, and thus linked to previous motor experience.

  20. Hand specific representations in language comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moody-Triantis, Claire; Humphreys, Gina F; Gennari, Silvia P

    2014-01-01

    Theories of embodied cognition argue that language comprehension involves sensory-motor re-enactments of the actions described. However, the degree of specificity of these re-enactments as well as the relationship between action and language remains a matter of debate. Here we investigate these issues by examining how hand-specific information (left or right hand) is recruited in language comprehension and action execution. An fMRI study tested self-reported right-handed participants in two separate tasks that were designed to be as similar as possible to increase sensitivity of the comparison across task: an action execution go/no-go task where participants performed right or left hand actions, and a language task where participants read sentences describing the same left or right handed actions as in the execution task. We found that language-induced activity did not match the hand-specific patterns of activity found for action execution in primary somatosensory and motor cortex, but it overlapped with pre-motor and parietal regions associated with action planning. Within these pre-motor regions, both right hand actions and sentences elicited stronger activity than left hand actions and sentences-a dominant hand effect. Importantly, both dorsal and ventral sections of the left pre-central gyrus were recruited by both tasks, suggesting different action features being recruited. These results suggest that (a) language comprehension elicits motor representations that are hand-specific and akin to multimodal action plans, rather than full action re-enactments; and (b) language comprehension and action execution share schematic hand-specific representations that are richer for the dominant hand, and thus linked to previous motor experience.

  1. Lesion localization of speech comprehension deficits in chronic aphasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pillay, Sara B; Binder, Jeffrey R; Humphries, Colin; Gross, William L; Book, Diane S

    2017-03-07

    Voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping (VLSM) was used to localize impairments specific to multiword (phrase and sentence) spoken language comprehension. Participants were 51 right-handed patients with chronic left hemisphere stroke. They performed an auditory description naming (ADN) task requiring comprehension of a verbal description, an auditory sentence comprehension (ASC) task, and a picture naming (PN) task. Lesions were mapped using high-resolution MRI. VLSM analyses identified the lesion correlates of ADN and ASC impairment, first with no control measures, then adding PN impairment as a covariate to control for cognitive and language processes not specific to spoken language. ADN and ASC deficits were associated with lesions in a distributed frontal-temporal parietal language network. When PN impairment was included as a covariate, both ADN and ASC deficits were specifically correlated with damage localized to the mid-to-posterior portion of the middle temporal gyrus (MTG). Damage to the mid-to-posterior MTG is associated with an inability to integrate multiword utterances during comprehension of spoken language. Impairment of this integration process likely underlies the speech comprehension deficits characteristic of Wernicke aphasia. © 2017 American Academy of Neurology.

  2. Demyelination versus remyelination in progressive multiple sclerosis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bramow, Stephan; Frischer, Josa M; Lassmann, Hans

    2010-01-01

    The causes of incomplete remyelination in progressive multiple sclerosis are unknown, as are the pathological correlates of the different clinical characteristics of patients with primary and secondary progressive disease. We analysed brains and spinal cords from 51 patients with progressive...... multiple sclerosis by planimetry. Thirteen patients with primary progressive disease were compared with 34 with secondary progressive disease. In patients with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis, we found larger brain plaques, more demyelination in total and higher brain loads of active demyelination...... compared with patients with primary progressive disease. In addition, the brain density of plaques with high-grade inflammation and active demyelination was highest in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis and remained ~18% higher than in primary progressive multiple sclerosis after adjustments...

  3. Development of a competency-based formative progress test with student-generated MCQs: Results from a multi-centre pilot study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wagener, Stefan

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Progress tests provide students feedback on their level of proficiency over the course of their medical studies. Peer-assisted learning and competency-based education have become increasingly important in medical education. Although progress tests have been proven to be useful as a longitudinal feedback instrument, there are currently no progress tests that have been created in cooperation with students or that focus on competency in medical education.In this study, we investigated the extent to which students can be included in the development of a progress test and demonstrated that aspects of knowledge related to competency can be represented on a competency-based progress test.Methods: A two-dimensional blueprint for 144 multiple-choice questions (MCQs covering groups of medical subjects and groups of competency areas was generated by three expert groups for developing the competency-based progress test. A total of 31 students from seven medical schools in Germany actively participated in this exercise. After completing an intensive and comprehensive training programme, the students generated and reviewed the test questions for the competency-based progress test using a separate platform of the ItemManagementSystem (IMS. This test was administered as a formative test to 469 students in a pilot study in November 2013 at eight medical schools in Germany. The scores were analysed for the overall test and differentiated according to the subject groups and competency areas.Results: A pool of more than 200 MCQs was compiled by the students for pilot use, of which 118 student-generated MCQs were used in the progress test. University instructors supplemented this pool with 26 MCQs, which primarily addressed the area of scientific skills. The post-review showed that student-generated MCQs were of high quality with regard to test statistic criteria and content. Overall, the progress test displayed a very high reliability. When the

  4. Effects of energy related activities on the plankton of the Chesapeake Bay. Section 1. Progress report, 1 August 1976--30 September 1977

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Taft, J.L.

    1977-01-01

    Progress is reported on a comprehensive study of the ecology of the Chesapeake Bay estuary system. Emphasis is placed on seasonal variations of initial energy fixation by phytoplankton primary producers and subsequent energy transfer to herbivours and becterial heterotrophs. The impact of chemical and radioactive effluents from electric power plants on the ecology of Chesapeake Bay will be assessed. Data are included on the role of plankton metabolism in regenerating nutrients, nutrient exchange with sediments, and the role of micro-zooplankton in nutrient cycling

  5. Comprehensive neurotoxicity assessment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kulig, B.M.

    1996-01-01

    Significant progress has been made in recent years in terms of both the conceptualization of neurotoxicity assessment strategies as well as in the development of behavioral techniques for evaluating neurotoxic exposures. A tiered approach, for example, has been advocated as an assessment strategy in

  6. Progress as Compositional Lock-Freedom

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Carbone, Marco; Dardha, Ornela; Montesi, Fabrizio

    2014-01-01

    A session-based process satisfies the progress property if its sessions never get stuck when it is executed in an adequate context. Previous work studied how to define progress by introducing the notion of catalysers, execution contexts generated from the type of a process. In this paper, we refine...... such definition to capture a more intuitive notion of context adequacy for checking progress. Interestingly, our new catalysers lead to a novel characterisation of progress in terms of the standard notion of lock-freedom. Guided by this discovery, we also develop a conservative extension of catalysers that does...

  7. Progression from acute to chronic pancreatitis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nøjgaard, Camilla; Becker, Ulrik; Matzen, Peter

    2011-01-01

    Objectives: Knowledge of the natural course of acute pancreatitis (AP) and risk of progression to chronic pancreatitis (CP) is limited. The aims were to describe: (1) the incidence of progression from AP to CP, (2) prognostic factors for progression, and (3) the natural course and mortality.......1%) during follow-up; 48.2% developed from alcoholic AP, 47.0% from idiopathic AP, and 4.8% from other causes. The mortality rate for patients with progressive AP was 2.7 times higher than in patients with nonprogressive acute pancreatitis, and 5.3 to 6.5 times higher than in the background population....... In Cox regression analyses corrected for age, only smoking was of significance for the progression from AP to CP. Conclusions: Acute pancreatitis can progress to CP, not only from alcoholic but also from nonalcoholic AP. Smoking was the strongest risk factor associated with progression. The mortality...

  8. Comprehensive treatment of generalized parodontitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mdinaradze, N

    2006-06-01

    The complexity of pathogenesis of periodontitis makes the use of comprehensive treatment necessary. We observed 60 patients, 20 women and 40 men among them aged from 20 to 50. In the course of parodontitis, we determined the intensity of inflammatory-destructive changes (Pi) in the course of periodontitis, the degree of fang denudation, the depth of gum and parodontal recesses, degree of the teeth becoming loose; we conducted the microbiological study of the oral cavity microflora and drew up an antibiotic graph. We included laser therapy in the comprehensive treatment course of generalized parodontitis. We divided the patients into two groups. The patients of the first group were treated in two stages. We used peridex, composed of chlorhexidine for antiseptic treatment of oral cavity. We used a combined solution of sage, eucalyptus, camomile and calendula to irrigate the oral cavity. At the second stage we used ointment applications with the composition of 3% indometacin, heparin, vitamins, sea-buckthorn oil and antibiotics. In the course of comprehensive treatment of the patients of the II group we included laser therapy. Our interest in the laser beam, as in the means of parodontitis treatment was stimulated by a number of properties of the laser beam and namely, its anti-inflammatory, desensitizing and antibacterial action promotes intensifying the reparation processes and does not entail any complications. The mentioned method has produced the best therapeutic results and has resulted in the reduced treatment period.

  9. The Mouse Tumor Biology Database: A Comprehensive Resource for Mouse Models of Human Cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krupke, Debra M; Begley, Dale A; Sundberg, John P; Richardson, Joel E; Neuhauser, Steven B; Bult, Carol J

    2017-11-01

    Research using laboratory mice has led to fundamental insights into the molecular genetic processes that govern cancer initiation, progression, and treatment response. Although thousands of scientific articles have been published about mouse models of human cancer, collating information and data for a specific model is hampered by the fact that many authors do not adhere to existing annotation standards when describing models. The interpretation of experimental results in mouse models can also be confounded when researchers do not factor in the effect of genetic background on tumor biology. The Mouse Tumor Biology (MTB) database is an expertly curated, comprehensive compendium of mouse models of human cancer. Through the enforcement of nomenclature and related annotation standards, MTB supports aggregation of data about a cancer model from diverse sources and assessment of how genetic background of a mouse strain influences the biological properties of a specific tumor type and model utility. Cancer Res; 77(21); e67-70. ©2017 AACR . ©2017 American Association for Cancer Research.

  10. A comprehensive nuclear test ban

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1985-01-01

    The conclusion of a comprehensive nuclear test ban is of critical importance for the future of arms limitation and disarmament. As the 1980 report of the Secretary-General concluded, a comprehensive nuclear test ban is regarded as the first and most urgent step towards the cessation of the nuclear arms race and, in particular, of its qualitative aspects. It could serve as an important measure for the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, both vertical and horizontal. It would have a major arms limitation impact in that it would make it difficult, if not impossible, to develop new designs of nuclear weapons and would also place constraints on the modification of existing weapon designs. The permanent cessation of all nuclear-weapon tests has long been sought by the world community and its achievement would be an event of great international significance

  11. Effects of Psychological Attention on Pronoun Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arnold, Jennifer E.; Lao, Shin-Yi C.

    2015-01-01

    Pronoun comprehension is facilitated for referents that are focused in the discourse context. Discourse focus has been described as a function of attention, especially shared attention, but few studies have explicitly tested this idea. Two experiments used an exogenous capture cue paradigm to demonstrate that listeners’ visual attention at the onset of a story influences their preferences during pronoun resolution later in the story. In both experiments trial-initial attention modulated listeners’ transitory biases while considering referents for the pronoun, whether it was in response to the capture cue or not. These biases even had a small influence on listeners’ final interpretation of the pronoun. These results provide independently-motivated evidence that the listener’s attention influences the on-line processes of pronoun comprehension. Trial-initial attentional shifts were made on the basis of non-shared, private information, demonstrating that attentional effects on pronoun comprehension are not restricted to shared attention among interlocutors. PMID:26191533

  12. Improving Students' Reading Comprehension in Descriptive Text Through Anticipation Guide

    OpenAIRE

    Nasution, Maya Puspita

    2014-01-01

    This study concerrns with improving students' reading comprehension in descriptive text through anticipation guide.The objective was to investigate improvement of students' reading comprehension by applying anticipation guide. This research was conducted by using action research method. The subject of the study was grade VII students of SMP SWASTA TAMAN HARAPAN MEDAN totalling to 30 students. They were taught reading comprehension by anticipation guide. The instruments for collecting data wer...

  13. Waste management progress report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1997-06-01

    During the Cold War era, when DOE and its predecessor agencies produced nuclear weapons and components, and conducted nuclear research, a variety of wastes were generated (both radioactive and hazardous). DOE now has the task of managing these wastes so that they are not a threat to human health and the environment. This document is the Waste Management Progress Report for the U.S. Department of Energy dated June 1997. This progress report contains a radioactive and hazardous waste inventory and waste management program mission, a section describing progress toward mission completion, mid-year 1997 accomplishments, and the future outlook for waste management

  14. Improving text comprehension strategies in reading and listening settings

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brand-Gruwel, S; Aarnoutse, CAJ; van den Bos, KP

    Traditional intervention programs for children with decoding and reading comprehension problems often focus on remediation of the decoding ability. The goal of this study was to determine whether it is possible to teach these children text comprehension strategies. The subjects were fourth-grade

  15. Opportunities for Collaborative Adaptive Management Progress: Integrating Stakeholder Assessments into Progress Measurement

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jim Berkley

    2013-12-01

    There are differences among stakeholders in the indicators they consider as relevant to the assessment of progress. Elucidating these differences can provide useful information about system components and relationships that are important to public support of a CAM program and progress. One of the sources of differences in progress assessments among stakeholders comes from their diverse perceptions about the desired and current states of the social-ecological systems. Stakeholder behavior can be inconsistent between group and individual settings. Individually they may make plans, based on their assessments, that do not conform to the group plan because of their unique interests and preferences. The results of this study need to be further tested. The framework should be used through multiple cycles to determine whether the information gathered with this approach results in additional progress as compared with past approaches. In particular, it would be helpful to test whether gathering such information resulted in a decrease in stakeholders electing to go outside of the CAM process to get their needs met.

  16. Hanford Site pollution prevention progress report 1999

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    BETSCH, M.D.

    1999-01-01

    The Richland Operations Office (RL) and Office of River Protection (ORP) are pleased to issue the attached Pollution Prevention Progress Report. We have just met the most aggressive waste reduction and A recycling goals to date and are publishing this report to recognize A the site's progress, and to ensure it will sustain success beyond 1 Fiscal Year 2000. This report was designed to inform the been made by RL and ORP in Waste Minimization (WMin) and Pollution Prevention (P2). RL, ORP and their contractors are committed to protecting the environment, and we reiterate pollution prevention should continue to be at the forefront of the environmental cleanup and research efforts. As you read the attached report, we believe you will see a clear demonstration of RL and ORP's outstanding performance as it has been responsible and accountable to the nation, its employees, and the community in which we live and work. commitment that all employees have for environmental stewardship. The report provides useful information about the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE'S) environmental policy and programs, and contains countless examples of waste minimization projects. This year was the first year our site received the White House Closing the Circle in the category of Affirmative Procurement. This Award recognizes our site for designing a comprehensive strategy for achieving 100 percent purchases of the U.S.Environmenta1 Protection Agency designated recycled items. DOE-Headquarters also acknowledged the site in 1999 for its public outreach efforts in communicating pollution prevention to Hanford Site employees and the community. Our site is truly a recognized leader in outreach as it has kept this title for two consecutive years. In previous years, we received the White House Closing the Circle Honorable Mention in Affirmative Procurement and several other National DOE Awards. Through partnership with the local community and stakeholders, the site and its contractors have a clear

  17. Hanford Site pollution prevention progress report; FINAL

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    BETSCH, M.D.

    1999-01-01

    The Richland Operations Office (RL) and Office of River Protection (ORP) are pleased to issue the attached Pollution Prevention Progress Report. We have just met the most aggressive waste reduction and A recycling goals to date and are publishing this report to recognize A the site's progress, and to ensure it will sustain success beyond 1 Fiscal Year 2000. This report was designed to inform the been made by RL and ORP in Waste Minimization (WMin) and Pollution Prevention (P2). RL, ORP and their contractors are committed to protecting the environment, and we reiterate pollution prevention should continue to be at the forefront of the environmental cleanup and research efforts. As you read the attached report, we believe you will see a clear demonstration of RL and ORP's outstanding performance as it has been responsible and accountable to the nation, its employees, and the community in which we live and work. commitment that all employees have for environmental stewardship. The report provides useful information about the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE'S) environmental policy and programs, and contains countless examples of waste minimization projects. This year was the first year our site received the White House Closing the Circle in the category of Affirmative Procurement. This Award recognizes our site for designing a comprehensive strategy for achieving 100 percent purchases of the U.S.Environmenta1 Protection Agency designated recycled items. DOE-Headquarters also acknowledged the site in 1999 for its public outreach efforts in communicating pollution prevention to Hanford Site employees and the community. Our site is truly a recognized leader in outreach as it has kept this title for two consecutive years. In previous years, we received the White House Closing the Circle Honorable Mention in Affirmative Procurement and several other National DOE Awards. Through partnership with the local community and stakeholders, the site and its contractors have a clear

  18. Learning to Estimate Slide Comprehension in Classrooms with Support Vector Machines

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pattanasri, N.; Mukunoki, M.; Minoh, M.

    2012-01-01

    Comprehension assessment is an essential tool in classroom learning. However, the judgment often relies on experience of an instructor who makes observation of students' behavior during the lessons. We argue that students should report their own comprehension explicitly in a classroom. With students' comprehension made available at the slide…

  19. Promoting the Comprehension of Teachers and Students Using Young Adult Literature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henderson, Shannon C.; Buskist, Connie

    2011-01-01

    Adolescents who struggle with reading most often encounter problems with comprehension, rather than the ability to read words. Comprehension is a dynamic process that requires the reader to use multiple strategies as meaning is constructed. To improve the reading comprehension of their students, teachers must be knowledgeable about what…

  20. Proactive and reactive effects of vigorous exercise on learning and vocabulary comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salis, Andrea S

    2013-06-01

    College students (N = 90) were randomly assigned to participate in vigorous, moderate or no physical exercise and vocabulary recall and comprehension learning activities under varying conditions to assess whether or not increased intensities of exercise, performed either before a vocabulary recall and comprehension learning activity (i.e., proactive effect) or after a vocabulary recall and comprehension learning activity (i.e., reactive effect), would improve vocabulary recall and comprehension. The results demonstrated that performing exercise at a vigorous intensity before or after rehearsing for a vocabulary comprehension test improved test results.

  1. Scientific progress as increasing verisimilitude.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niiniluoto, Ilkka

    2014-06-01

    According to the foundationalist picture, shared by many rationalists and positivist empiricists, science makes cognitive progress by accumulating justified truths. Fallibilists, who point out that complete certainty cannot be achieved in empirical science, can still argue that even successions of false theories may progress toward the truth. This proposal was supported by Karl Popper with his notion of truthlikeness or verisimilitude. Popper's own technical definition failed, but the idea that scientific progress means increasing truthlikeness can be expressed by defining degrees of truthlikeness in terms of similarities between states of affairs. This paper defends the verisimilitude approach against Alexander Bird who argues that the "semantic" definition (in terms of truth or truthlikeness alone) is not sufficient to define progress, but the "epistemic" definition referring to justification and knowledge is more adequate. Here Bird ignores the crucial distinction between real progress and estimated progress, explicated by the difference between absolute (and usually unknown) degrees of truthlikeness and their evidence-relative expected values. Further, it is argued that Bird's idea of returning to the cumulative model of growth requires an implausible trick of transforming past false theories into true ones.

  2. Co-Optimization of Fuels & Engines (Co-Optima) Initiative: Recent Progress on Light-Duty Boosted Spark-Ignition Fuels/Engines

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Farrell, John

    2017-07-03

    This presentation reports recent progress on light-duty boosted spark-ignition fuels/engines being developed under the Co-Optimization of Fuels and Engines initiative (Co-Optima). Co-Optima is focused on identifying fuel properties that optimize engine performance, independent of composition, allowing the market to define the best means to blend and provide these fuels. However, in support of this, we are pursuing a systematic study of blendstocks to identify a broad range of feasible options, with the objective of identifying blendstocks that can provide target ranges of key fuel properties, identifying trade-offs on consistent and comprehensive basis, and sharing information with stakeholders.

  3. EMC² = comprehension: A reading strategy instruction framework for all teachers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nanda M Klapwijk

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available Comprehension is a critical part of the reading process, and yet learners continue to struggle with it and teachers continue to neglect it in their teaching. Many reasons exist for the lack of focus on reading comprehension instruction, but for the most part, teachers simply do not seem to view comprehension as part of the reading process, are not able to teach the concept, and are seemingly not taught to do so during their teacher training years. In addition to this, comprehension continues to be viewed as part of 'language teaching', and is therefore viewed as the so-called 'language teacher's' domain. In support of effective comprehension instruction in the unique, multilingual South African education environment, this article proposes a framework for reading strategy instruction, aimed specifically at teachers. The framework was developed from a research study, and refined through subsequent application in a university course as well as a further study. The framework acknowledges that reading is a multifaceted and complex process, and accordingly, provides sufficient structure for teachers. It further addresses the issue of comprehension instruction through the use of selected reading strategies, designed to be applied by all teachers in all subjects in a flexible and easy manner.

  4. Cellular communications a comprehensive and practical guide

    CERN Document Server

    Tripathi, Nishith

    2014-01-01

    Even as newer cellular technologies and standards emerge, many of the fundamental principles and the components of the cellular network remain the same. Presenting a simple yet comprehensive view of cellular communications technologies, Cellular Communications provides an end-to-end perspective of cellular operations, ranging from physical layer details to call set-up and from the radio network to the core network. This self-contained source forpractitioners and students represents a comprehensive survey of the fundamentals of cellular communications and the landscape of commercially deployed

  5. Starring the physiotherapist in the comprehensive health of pregnant

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patricia Guzmán Carrasco

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Increasingly frequent settlement demand by pregnant women as urinary incontinence problems or musculoskeletal pain suffered during this period, which they should continue with their work life as long as possible, so that calls for quality of care often is not.Therefore, to think today, that the role of physiotherapy before the pregnant woman is prepared by learning some exercises at partum, is to limit the intervention of the therapist as an integral member of a multidisciplinary team that can do a job well as preventive care and education in a program of comprehensive health care for women. In this vital stage where they need a progressive and constant adaptation to physiological and anatomical changes throughout pregnancy.The purpose of this protocol is to facilitate the performance of the physiotherapist to prevent and treat musculoskeletal problems like incontinence both, which may occur in the gestational period and cause serious disorders permanently even at the mother.Following these rules will contribute to raising awareness of women to adopt safe practices and postures to prevent back and pelvic pain, learning exercises to relieve these pains if they occur, strengthen the pelvic floor to prevent urinary incontinence and therapeutic measures posture at the onset of carpal tunnel syndrome and other problems such as cramps, vascular and joint instability.

  6. Discovering biological progression underlying microarray samples.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peng Qiu

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available In biological systems that undergo processes such as differentiation, a clear concept of progression exists. We present a novel computational approach, called Sample Progression Discovery (SPD, to discover patterns of biological progression underlying microarray gene expression data. SPD assumes that individual samples of a microarray dataset are related by an unknown biological process (i.e., differentiation, development, cell cycle, disease progression, and that each sample represents one unknown point along the progression of that process. SPD aims to organize the samples in a manner that reveals the underlying progression and to simultaneously identify subsets of genes that are responsible for that progression. We demonstrate the performance of SPD on a variety of microarray datasets that were generated by sampling a biological process at different points along its progression, without providing SPD any information of the underlying process. When applied to a cell cycle time series microarray dataset, SPD was not provided any prior knowledge of samples' time order or of which genes are cell-cycle regulated, yet SPD recovered the correct time order and identified many genes that have been associated with the cell cycle. When applied to B-cell differentiation data, SPD recovered the correct order of stages of normal B-cell differentiation and the linkage between preB-ALL tumor cells with their cell origin preB. When applied to mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation data, SPD uncovered a landscape of ESC differentiation into various lineages and genes that represent both generic and lineage specific processes. When applied to a prostate cancer microarray dataset, SPD identified gene modules that reflect a progression consistent with disease stages. SPD may be best viewed as a novel tool for synthesizing biological hypotheses because it provides a likely biological progression underlying a microarray dataset and, perhaps more importantly, the

  7. Echoic Memory Interference and Comprehension in a Foreign Language.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greenberg, Seth N.; Roscoe, Suzanne

    1988-01-01

    Study of echoic memory interference among students in college introductory Spanish and German courses revealed that students with weaker listening comprehension skills depended more upon vulnerable sensory codes in echoic memory, while students with stronger comprehension relied on stable higher-order codes. (Author/CB)

  8. The Assessment of Reading Comprehension Difficulties for Reading Intervention

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woolley, Gary

    2008-01-01

    There are many environmental and personal factors that contribute to reading success. Reading comprehension is a complex interaction of language, sensory perception, memory, and motivational aspects. However, most existing assessment tools have not adequately reflected the complex nature of reading comprehension. Good assessment requires a…

  9. Physicians’ Progress Notes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bansler, Jørgen; Havn, Erling C.; Mønsted, Troels

    2013-01-01

    in patient care, they have not dealt specifically with the role, structure, and content of the progress notes. As a consequence, CSCW research has not yet taken fully into account the fact that progress notes are coordinative artifacts of a rather special kind, an open-ended chain of prose texts, written...... sequentially by cooperating physicians for their own use as well as for that of their colleagues. We argue that progress notes are the core of the medical record, in that they marshal and summarize the overwhelming amount of data that is available in the modern hospital environment, and that their narrative...... format is uniquely adequate for the pivotal epistemic aspect of cooperative clinical work: the narrative format enables physicians to not only record ‘facts’ but also—by filtering, interpreting, organizing, and qualifying information—to make sense and act concertedly under conditions of uncertainty...

  10. Cognitive Style and EFL Learners’ Listening Comprehension Ability

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mandana Yousefi

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract     The current study aimed to investigate whether, and to what extent, there is a relationship between field independence / dependence cognitive styles and Iranian EFL learners' listening comprehension ability. For this purpose, a sample population of 131 Subjects was randomly selected.  A battery of tests including: a the Group Embedded Figures Test (1971, b the TOFEL listening test (1995, c the listening task preference questionnaire, and d the Michigan ECPE test (1996 were administered. The data analysis showed that the correlation between the TOFEL and the GEFT scores for FD learners (both males and females was significant(r =0.70, and higher scores on the GEFT led to an increase in the FD learners TOFEL scores. Conducting one-way and two-way ANOVAs, it was suggested that while there was a relationship between cognitive style and listening comprehension (F= 18.02 and also no relationship between sex and listening comprehension (F=0.267, the interactional effect was significant (f = 7.03. Therefore, sex can be regarded as a source of performance difference in listening comprehension but not by itself and it seems that the interaction of sex and cognitive style can have a stronger effect on this skill. Regarding the learners’ preference toward the different parts of the TOEFL listening section, most  learners favored the short conversations, informal assessment, and one item/one conversation, however, the FI ones did better on the longer conversations of the second and the third parts of the TOEFL listening test. Keywords: Cognitive style, Field dependence, Field independence, Listening comprehension.

  11. Transitioning from Targeted to Comprehensive Mass Spectrometry Using Genetic Algorithms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jaffe, Jacob D; Feeney, Caitlin M; Patel, Jinal; Lu, Xiaodong; Mani, D R

    2016-11-01

    Targeted proteomic assays are becoming increasingly popular because of their robust quantitative applications enabled by internal standardization, and they can be routinely executed on high performance mass spectrometry instrumentation. However, these assays are typically limited to 100s of analytes per experiment. Considerable time and effort are often expended in obtaining and preparing samples prior to targeted analyses. It would be highly desirable to detect and quantify 1000s of analytes in such samples using comprehensive mass spectrometry techniques (e.g., SWATH and DIA) while retaining a high degree of quantitative rigor for analytes with matched internal standards. Experimentally, it is facile to port a targeted assay to a comprehensive data acquisition technique. However, data analysis challenges arise from this strategy concerning agreement of results from the targeted and comprehensive approaches. Here, we present the use of genetic algorithms to overcome these challenges in order to configure hybrid targeted/comprehensive MS assays. The genetic algorithms are used to select precursor-to-fragment transitions that maximize the agreement in quantification between the targeted and the comprehensive methods. We find that the algorithm we used provided across-the-board improvement in the quantitative agreement between the targeted assay data and the hybrid comprehensive/targeted assay that we developed, as measured by parameters of linear models fitted to the results. We also found that the algorithm could perform at least as well as an independently-trained mass spectrometrist in accomplishing this task. We hope that this approach will be a useful tool in the development of quantitative approaches for comprehensive proteomics techniques. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  12. The Effect of the Reader's Background on Reading Comprehension Performance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bushra Saadoon Mohammed Al-Noori

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available This study aims at measuring the amount of the effect of the reader's background knowledge on performance in reading comprehension tests through the assessment of information gained in reading comprehension (RC tests across-four testing techniques, short answer questions ,true-false items , multiple - choice items , and cloze test and re-test. This technique involves the examinees in two types of tasks, i.e. pre-reading and post -reading task. Two hypotheses have been proposed to achieve the aims of this study. They are  1-There are no significant differences between the pre-reading and post-reading performances of examinees on reading comprehension(RC. 2-There are no significant differences in information gain scores across the different techniques of testing reading comprehension (RC in EFL. To verify the validity of these two hypotheses, a number of statistical procedures have been used such as arithmetical mean, t-test for correlated and independent samples to analyze the performance of third and fourth year College students studying at the Department of English at University of Baghdad /Ibn Rushd College of Education for Humanities on two reading passages taken from TOEFL practice tests (2011. The analysis of the data has shown the following results: 1-The background knowledge has an effect on the performance on reading comprehension (RC. 2-There is a significant difference in students' performance on reading comprehension (RC. 3-The effect of background knowledge is investable on reading comprehension (RC tests, but it can be identified or neutralized. Based on these conclusions, the researcher presented a number of recommendations.

  13. Comprehensive dental management in a Hallermann–Streiff ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    2014-09-24

    Sep 24, 2014 ... During the follow‑up period, rapidly progressive root resorption was ... progressive root resorption was detected in the primary maxillary anterior ... dental literature shows that orthodontic/orthognathic, surgical, prosthetic ...

  14. Relationship between Vocabulary Size and Reading Comprehension Levels of Malaysian Tertiary Students

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angelina Wan Lin Tan

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This study investigated the relationship between vocabulary size and reading comprehension performance among students in a tertiary institution in a Malaysian context and examined the vocabulary size required for students to achieve reading comprehension at various levels of proficiency. The research questions that guided this study were: 1 What is the vocabulary size of second year diploma students studying Mass Communication?; 2 What is the reading comprehension proficiency of second year diploma students studying Mass Communication?; and 3 What vocabulary size is required for different levels of reading comprehension proficiency? This study used the quantitative approach. The participants were 53 Malaysian second-year students at a private university college in Malaysia who were reading for their Diploma in Mass Communication. The instruments used were the Vocabulary Size Test and the IELTS Reading Test (Academic Module. The findings showed that the average vocabulary size of the students was just over 6000 word families and this vocabulary size was generally insufficient for adequate reading comprehension. Students needed an average vocabulary size of about 8000 word families to achieve adequate reading comprehension and about 10000 word families to achieve proficient reading comprehension. Based on the individual student’s performance, this study did not find a linear relationship between vocabulary size and reading comprehension performance, nor was there a threshold vocabulary size for adequate reading comprehension.

  15. Prediction during natural language comprehension

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Willems, R.M.; Frank, S.L.; Nijhof, A.D.; Hagoort, P.; Bosch, A.P.J. van den

    2016-01-01

    The notion of prediction is studied in cognitive neuroscience with increasing intensity. We investigated the neural basis of 2 distinct aspects of word prediction, derived from information theory, during story comprehension. We assessed the effect of entropy of next-word probability distributions as

  16. Constraint Programming for Context Comprehension

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christiansen, Henning

    2014-01-01

    A close similarity is demonstrated between context comprehension, such as discourse analysis, and constraint programming. The constraint store takes the role of a growing knowledge base learned throughout the discourse, and a suitable con- straint solver does the job of incorporating new pieces...

  17. Emergency preparedness: a comprehensive plan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilson, R.H.

    1975-01-01

    The Atlantic Richfield Hanford Company (ARHCO) has developed comprehensive plans for coping with emergencies ranging from criticality to civil disturbance. A unique notification system provides for immediate contact with key personnel by using a central communications center, crash alarm warning networks, and a continuing telephone cascade notification system. There is also the capability of immediately contacting other contractor key personnel. Certain jobs have been predetermined as necessary for coping with an emergency. An emergency staff consisting of responsible management, with alternates, has been preselected to automatically fill these jobs when notified. Control centers for headquarters and ''field'' are established with telephone and radio communication capabilities and are also supplied with some source materials to assist initiating plans for containing an emergency for recovery. A comprehensive emergency procedures manual has been developed, which contains information of company-wide application and procedures for specific facilities covering almost all accident situations

  18. Governance of water resources in Colombia: Between progress and challenges

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zamudio Rodriguez, Carmen

    2012-01-01

    This work is an overview of water management in Colombia, emphasizing governance as a key element in this type of process. Therefore, from the collection and analysis of secondary data, identifies the evolution of water management in the country and, to that extent, aspects that reveal a crisis of governance in this area. In this sense, initially some relevant issues are raised in order to analyze the integrated water resource management and water governance. Later, it addresses factors that show that, despite significant progress in water management in the country, it is still to emerge a comprehensive approach that considers multiple criteria to provide governance on water resources. Thus, we propose that there is a crisis of governance on water expressed in terms of lack of experience and international context, lack of coordination and dispersion of water policy, ignorance of the various forms of local government, a wrong perception on the water abundance and richness of the country, and dissimulation or disinterest ignoring the many pressures that threaten water.

  19. Cell- and stage-specific chromatin structure across the Complement receptor 2 (CR2/CD21) promoter coincide with CBF1 and C/EBP-beta binding in B cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cruickshank, Mark N; Fenwick, Emily; Karimi, Mahdad; Abraham, Lawrence J; Ulgiati, Daniela

    2009-08-01

    Stringent developmental transcription requires multiple transcription factor (TF) binding sites, cell-specific expression of signaling molecules, TFs and co-regulators and appropriate chromatin structure. During B-lymphopoiesis, human Complement receptor 2 (CR2/CD21) is detected on immature and mature B cells but not on B cell precursors and plasma cells. We examined cell- and stage-specific human CR2 gene regulation using cell lines modeling B-lymphopoiesis. Chromatin accessibility assays revealed a region between -409 and -262 with enhanced accessibility in mature B cells and pre-B cells, compared to either non-lymphoid or plasma cell-types, however, accessibility near the transcription start site (TSS) was elevated only in CR2-expressing B cells. A correlation between histone acetylation and CR2 expression was observed, while histone H3K4 dimethylation was enriched near the TSS in both CR2-expressing B cells and non-expressing pre-B cells. Candidate sites within the CR2 promoter were identified which could regulate chromatin, including a matrix attachment region associated with CDP, SATB1/BRIGHT and CEBP-beta sites as well as two CBF1 sites. ChIP assays verified that both CBF1 and C/EBP-beta bind the CR2 promoter in B cells raising the possibility that these factors facilitate or respond to alterations in chromatin structure to control the timing and/or level of CR2 transcription.

  20. A comprehensive performance evaluation on the prediction results of existing cooperative transcription factors identification algorithms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lai, Fu-Jou; Chang, Hong-Tsun; Huang, Yueh-Min; Wu, Wei-Sheng

    2014-01-01

    Eukaryotic transcriptional regulation is known to be highly connected through the networks of cooperative transcription factors (TFs). Measuring the cooperativity of TFs is helpful for understanding the biological relevance of these TFs in regulating genes. The recent advances in computational techniques led to various predictions of cooperative TF pairs in yeast. As each algorithm integrated different data resources and was developed based on different rationales, it possessed its own merit and claimed outperforming others. However, the claim was prone to subjectivity because each algorithm compared with only a few other algorithms and only used a small set of performance indices for comparison. This motivated us to propose a series of indices to objectively evaluate the prediction performance of existing algorithms. And based on the proposed performance indices, we conducted a comprehensive performance evaluation. We collected 14 sets of predicted cooperative TF pairs (PCTFPs) in yeast from 14 existing algorithms in the literature. Using the eight performance indices we adopted/proposed, the cooperativity of each PCTFP was measured and a ranking score according to the mean cooperativity of the set was given to each set of PCTFPs under evaluation for each performance index. It was seen that the ranking scores of a set of PCTFPs vary with different performance indices, implying that an algorithm used in predicting cooperative TF pairs is of strength somewhere but may be of weakness elsewhere. We finally made a comprehensive ranking for these 14 sets. The results showed that Wang J's study obtained the best performance evaluation on the prediction of cooperative TF pairs in yeast. In this study, we adopted/proposed eight performance indices to make a comprehensive performance evaluation on the prediction results of 14 existing cooperative TFs identification algorithms. Most importantly, these proposed indices can be easily applied to measure the performance of new

  1. Vocabulary and syntactic knowledge factors in 5th grade students’ reading comprehension

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kouider Mokhtari

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available In this study, we examined 5th grade students’ levels of vocabulary knowledge and syntactic awareness relative to their reading comprehension performance. The aim was to explore the contributions of vocabulary and syntactic awareness as potential sources of reading comprehension difficulty for these readers. Overall, we found that both vocabulary knowledge and syntactic awareness contributed in significant yet unique ways to students’ reading comprehension performance. Students who showed weaknesses in vocabulary and syntax also performed poorly on measures of reading comprehension. Additionally, we found that syntactic awareness explained a small amount of additional variance in reading comprehension beyond what was explained by vocabulary. The implications of these findings are discussed in light of research and practice addressing the relationships among syntax, vocabulary, and reading comprehension for more and less skilled readers.

  2. The Treatment Effectiveness Assessment (TEA: an efficient, patient-centered instrument for evaluating progress in recovery from addiction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ling W

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Walter Ling,1 David Farabee,1 Dagmar Liepa,2 Li-Tzy Wu31Integrated Substance Abuse Programs, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; 2Valley Care Medical Center, Panorama City, CA, USA; 3Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, School of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USAAbstract: The fields of addiction medicine and addiction research have long sought an efficient yet comprehensive instrument to assess patient progress in treatment and recovery. Traditional tools are expensive, time consuming, complex, and based on topics that clinicians or researchers think are important. Thus, they typically do not provide patient-centered information that is meaningful and relevant to the lives of patients with substance use disorders. To improve our ability to understand patients’ progress in treatment from their perspectives, the authors and colleagues developed a patient-oriented assessment instrument that has considerable advantages over existing instruments: brevity, simplicity, ease of administration, orientation to the patient, and cost (none. The resulting Treatment Effectiveness Assessment (TEA elicits patient responses that help the patient and the clinician quickly gauge patient progress in treatment and in recovery, according to the patients’ sense of what is important within four domains established by prior research. Patients provide both numerical responses and representative details on their substance use, health, lifestyle, and community. No software is required for data entry or scoring, and no formal training is required to administer the TEA. This article describes the development of the TEA and the initial phases of its application in clinical practice and in research.Keywords: substance use disorders, global treatment progress, brief instrument, patient-centered

  3. Zolpidem in Progressive Supranuclear Palsy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandip K. Dash

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, characterized by motor symptoms, postural instability, personality changes, and cognitive impairment. There is no effective treatment for this disorder. Reduced neurotransmission of GABA in the striatum and globus pallidus may contribute to the symptoms of motor and cognitive symptoms seen in PSP. Zolpidem is a GABA agonist of the benzodiazepine subreceptor BZ1. Here a nondiabetic, normotensive case of PSP is (Progressive Supranuclear Palsy described, which showed improvement in swallowing, speech, and gaze paresis after zolpidem therapy and possible mechanism of actions are discussed. However, more trials are needed with large number of patients to confirm the effectiveness of zolpidem in progressive supranuclear palsy.

  4. Progress report 1981

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chalupka, A.; Dirninger, G.

    1982-01-01

    The progress report describes the scientific work and research results of the institute for radium research and nuclear physics of the Austrian Academy of Sciences for the period of 1981. The progress report covers the subject areas of nuclear theory, nuclear model calculations, experimental nuclear physics and neutron involved reactions, medium energy physics, instrumentation and detectors, evaluation of nuclear data and numerical data processing, dating, applications in medicine, dosimetry and environmental studies. A list of publications of this institute is given. (A.N.)

  5. Progress report 1982

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chalupka, A.; Wild, E.; Dirninger, G.

    1983-01-01

    The progress report describes the scientific work and research results of the institute for radium research and nuclear physics of the Austrian Academy of Sciences for the period of 1982. The progress report covers the subject areas of nuclear theory, nuclear model calculations, experimental nuclear physics and neutron involved reactions, medium energy physics, instrumentation and detectors, evaluation of nuclear data and numerical data processing, dating, applications in medicine, dosimetry and environmental studies. A list of publications of this institute is given. (A.N.)

  6. Implementing Comprehensive Reform: Implications for Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stout, Karen A.

    2016-01-01

    This chapter describes the challenges and practical barriers community colleges face when implementing comprehensive reform, exploring how reforms are leading to some improvements but not often scaled improvements.

  7. Training Comprehensiveness: Construct Development and Relation with Role Behaviour

    Science.gov (United States)

    Srivastava, Anugamini Priya; Dhar, Rajib Lochan

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: This study aims to develop the scale for perception of training comprehensiveness and attempts to examine the influence of perception of training comprehensiveness on role behaviour: teachers' efficacy as a mediator and job autonomy as a moderator. Design/methodology/approach: Through the steps for a generation, refinement, purification…

  8. Correlates of Early Reading Comprehension Skills: A Componential Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babayigit, Selma; Stainthorp, Rhona

    2014-01-01

    This study had three main aims. First, we examined to what extent listening comprehension, vocabulary, grammatical skills and verbal short-term memory (VSTM) assessed prior to formal reading instruction explained individual differences in early reading comprehension levels. Second, we examined to what extent the three common component skills,…

  9. Effects of listening comprehension training on listening and reading

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Aarnoutse, C.A.J.; Van den Bos, K.P.; Brand-Gruwel, S.

    1998-01-01

    In this study the effects of providing text strategy instruction in a listening mode on listening and reading comprehension of experimental and control groups of 9- to 11-year-old poor readers were examined. All students were very poor in decoding and poor in reading comprehension. In addition, half

  10. The Association between Mathematical Word Problems and Reading Comprehension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vilenius-Tuohimaa, Piia Maria; Aunola, Kaisa; Nurmi, Jari-Erik

    2008-01-01

    This study aimed to investigate the interplay between mathematical word problem skills and reading comprehension. The participants were 225 children aged 9-10 (Grade 4). The children's text comprehension and mathematical word problem-solving performance was tested. Technical reading skills were investigated in order to categorise participants as…

  11. Use of the Progressive Aphasia Severity Scale (PASS) in monitoring speech and language status in PPA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sapolsky, Daisy; Domoto-Reilly, Kimiko; Dickerson, Bradford C.

    2014-01-01

    Background Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) is a devastating neurodegenerative syndrome involving the gradual development of aphasia, slowly impairing the patient’s ability to communicate. Pharmaceutical treatments do not currently exist and intervention often focuses on speech-language behavioral therapies, although further investigation is warranted to determine how best to harness functional benefits. Efforts to develop pharmaceutical and behavioral treatments have been hindered by a lack of standardized methods to monitor disease progression and treatment efficacy. Aims Here we describe our current approach to monitoring progression of PPA, including the development and applications of a novel clinical instrument for this purpose, the Progressive Aphasia Severity Scale (PASS). We also outline some of the issues related to initial evaluation and longitudinal monitoring of PPA. Methods & Procedures In our clinical and research practice we perform initial and follow-up assessments of PPA patients using a multi-faceted approach. In addition to standardized assessment measures, we use the PASS to rate presence and severity of symptoms across distinct domains of speech, language, and functional and pragmatic aspects of communication. Ratings are made using the clinician’s best judgment, integrating information from patient test performance in the office as well as a companion’s description of routine daily functioning. Outcomes & Results Monitoring symptom characteristics and severity with the PASS can assist in developing behavioral therapies, planning treatment goals, and counseling patients and families on clinical status and prognosis. The PASS also has potential to advance the implementation of PPA clinical trials. Conclusions PPA patients display heterogeneous language profiles that change over time given the progressive nature of the disease. The monitoring of symptom progression is therefore crucial to ensure that proposed treatments are appropriate at

  12. The Role of Reading Fluency in Children's Text Comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Álvarez-Cañizo, Marta; Suárez-Coalla, Paz; Cuetos, Fernando

    2015-01-01

    Understanding a written text requires some higher cognitive abilities that not all children have. Some children have these abilities, since they understand oral texts; however, they have difficulties with written texts, probably due to problems in reading fluency. The aim of this study was to determine which aspects of reading fluency are related to reading comprehension. Four expositive texts, two written and two read by the evaluator, were presented to a sample of 103 primary school children (third and sixth grade). Each text was followed by four comprehension questions. From this sample we selected two groups of participants in each grade, 10 with good results in comprehension of oral and written texts, and 10 with good results in oral and poor in written comprehension. These 40 subjects were asked to read aloud a new text while they were recorded. Using Praat software some prosodic parameters were measured, such as pausing and reading rate (number and duration of the pauses and utterances), pitch and intensity changes and duration in declarative, exclamatory, and interrogative sentences and also errors and duration in words by frequency and stress. We compared the results of both groups with ANOVAs. The results showed that children with less reading comprehension made more inappropriate pauses and also intersentential pauses before comma than the other group and made more mistakes in content words; significant differences were also found in the final declination of pitch in declarative sentences and in the F0 range in interrogative ones. These results confirm that reading comprehension problems in children are related to a lack in the development of a good reading fluency.

  13. Study on comprehensive evaluation model for nuclear power plant control room layout

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhu Yiming; Liu Yuan; Fan Huixian

    2010-01-01

    A comprehensive evaluation model for layout of the main control room of nuclear power plants was proposed. Firstly the design scope and principle for the layout of the main control room were defined based on the standards, and then the index system for the comprehensive evaluation was established. Finally, comprehensive evaluation was carried out for the layout design by applying the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method in the index system. (authors)

  14. From “Comprehensive Transportation Hub” to “City New Sitting Room”---Overall the design about Jinan East district comprehensive transportation hub

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lv, Jie; Guo, Jianmin; Li, Jin

    2017-08-01

    integrated transport hub or high-speed rail station often talked about, often known as the “city portal” and the title of “city window”, so the comprehensive transportation hub or the high-speed rail station of a city is very important to a region or a provincial. At the same time, it reflects that the managers and users of a city only focus on the comprehensive transportation hub of transportation service function and ignore her cities attributes and functions. Jinan east district comprehensive transportation hub in the beginning of design is given a feature that it has to serve both the traffic and city. We are trying to build a new center for Jinan east new town, the window to welcome people, the city hall of hospitality.

  15. Progress at LAMPF: Clinton P. Anderson Meson Physics Facility. Progress report, January-June 1981

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Allred, J.C.

    1981-09-01

    Progress at LAMPF is the semiannual progress report of the MP Division of the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The report includes brief reports on research done at LAMPF by researchers from other institutions and Los Alamos divisions

  16. Progress at LAMPF: Clinton P. Anderson Meson Physics Facility. Progress report, January-June 1981

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Allred, J.C. (ed.)

    1981-09-01

    Progress at LAMPF is the semiannual progress report of the MP Division of the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The report includes brief reports on research done at LAMPF by researchers from other institutions and Los Alamos divisions.

  17. Earnings progression, human capital and incentives

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Frederiksen, Anders

    progression by investigating the effects of on-the-job human capital acquisition, explicit short-run incentives and career concern incentives on earnings progression. The model leads to predictions about the incentive structure and the progression in both cross-sectional and individual earnings which...

  18. Fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method of F statistics weighting in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In order to rapidly identify the source of water inrush in coal mine, and provide the theoretical basis for mine water damage prevention and control, fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model was established. The F statistics of water samples was normalized as the weight of fuzzy comprehensive evaluation for determining the ...

  19. Riddle Appreciation and Reading Comprehension in Cantonese-Speaking Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Ivy N. Y.; To, Carol K. S.; Weekes, Brendan S.

    2013-01-01

    Purpose: Inference-making skills are necessary for reading comprehension. Training in riddle appreciation is an effective way to improve reading comprehension among English-speaking children. However, it is not clear whether these methods generalize to other writing systems. The goal of the present study was to investigate the relationship between…

  20. Enhancing Reading Comprehension with Student-Centered iPad Applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moon, Andria L.; Wold, Cheryl M.; Francom, Gregory M.

    2017-01-01

    Reading comprehension, or understanding the author's message, is a critical component of teaching literacy (Hougen and Smartt 2012). Student-centered activities using the iPad with the goal of improving reading comprehension in a fifth-grade classroom were implemented for this action research study. University teacher candidates guided fifth-grade…