EXAMINING THE IMPACT OF USING POINT OF VIEW VIDEO MODELING ON IMPROVING SELF-CARE SKILLS OF A STUDENT WITH AUTISM

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of using point of view video modeling intervention strategy on improving the self-care skills of a student with autism. The target skills were handwashing and toothbrushing skills. A single-subject ABA design was used in this study. Data was collected using mixed-method approach. The intervention lasted for six weeks. The results of this study indicated that point of view video modeling is an effective instructional tool to improve handwashing and toothbrushing skills for a student with autism. Moreover, the participant was able to generalize handwashing and toothbrushing skills to two different settings. Implications of this study include the importance of utilizing point-of-view video modeling in the daily classroom practice to teach students with autism self-care skills

Engineering directed excitonic energy transfer

We provide an intuitive platform for engineering exciton transfer dynamics. We show that careful consideration of the spectral density, which describes the system-bath interaction, leads to opportunities to engineer the transfer of an exciton. Since excitons in nanostructures are proposed for use in quantum information processing and artificial photosynthetic designs, our approach paves the way for engineering a wide range of desired exciton dynamics. We carefully describe the validity of the model and use experimentally relevant material parameters to show counter-intuitive examples of a directed exciton transfer in a linear chain of quantum dots

Quantum transport efficiency and Fourier's law

We analyze the steady-state energy transfer in a chain of coupled two-level systems connecting two thermal reservoirs. Through an analytic treatment we find that the energy current is independent of the system size, hence violating Fourier's law of heat conduction. The classical diffusive behavior in Fourier's law of heat conduction can be recovered by introducing decoherence to the quantum systems constituting the chain. Implications of these results on energy transfer in biological light harvesting systems, and the role of quantum coherences and entanglement are discussed.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Plagiarism and Patchwriting Detection in EFL Students' Graduation Research Writing

This study aims at detecting plagiarism and patchwritting in Iraqi EFL students' graduation research papers. To accomplish this aim, five graduation research papers were analyzed. Findings indicate that Iraqi EFL students when writing from sources commit extensive copying from the source (plagiarsism) or stitching sentences together to form a paragraph (patchwriting). So instead of  writing about the source they find themselves coping from it. The researchers find that this misuse of sources is due to many reasons that were revealed in a questionnaire conducted throughout the study on 20 Iraqi fourth stage University students, exploring why they commit direct coping from their sources. Figures indicate evidently that (60%) of the students expressed their  lack of knowledge in the possible techniques that could be used when writing from sources like summarizing and paraphrasing. This lack of knowledge plays an essential role in the difficulty students face in their research writing process. To avoid plagiarism and patchwriting, further research is most definitely urgent so that the Iraqi students might be more aware of their misuses of sources and of the misconducting techniques they employ in writing their graduation research papers. Keywords: Plagiarism, Patchwriting, Writing from sources, Paraphrasing, Summarizing

The Adhesive Strength of Epoxy/Sol-Gel Materials Modified by Various Ratio of γ-Al2O3 Nanoparticles

In this study, the use of sol-gel/epoxy adhesive based on the combination of organic and inorganic components within the adhesive matrix have been studied. The combination of different amounts of γ-Al2O3 nano-particles to the adhesive matrix was evaluated. Mild steel specimens were prepared for lap joints, which were cured in an oven at 200°C for 16 hours. The bond strength of the sol-gel/epoxy matrix was investigated using a universal tensile test machine. The presence of Al-OH and/or Si-OH bonds increases causing an increase in the strength of the bulk material. This process is seen through the appearance of an absorption peak shoulder which appears in the range of ~ 1088 to1100 cm-1 which corresponds to Al-O-Si or Si-O-Si. The maximum adhesive strength of composite sol-gel/epoxy adhesive recorded was 23±0.4 MPa. This was obtained when small amounts of γ-Al2O3 nano-particles (4.0 wt%), were incorporated within the matrix. However, as the level of these inorganic materials in the adhesive matrix increased further, the adhesive shear strength gradually decreased. At a high ratio of γ-Al2O3 particles, poor interfacial bonding or adhesion between the filler and the adhesive matrix is recorded. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) is used to investigate the fracture surface with 4.0 wt% γ-Al2O3, the scanning shows a very small distance of cracks, suggesting the material may act as a barrier to crack propagation and thus increases the energy required for fracture

‘E-Barter’ Exchanging System: Toward a Smart and Sustainable Community

The developed e-bartering system enables people within a society to exchange surplus goods and items that are not needed without monetary payments and share services and experiences. This bartering system aims at achieving social and environmental goals, such as increasing community cohesion and public benefits and filling individuals’ needs smartly, improving the communal harmony and happiness among society members and achieving more green and sustainable society. From an environmental point of view, the system is conscious of the importance of waste risks to the environment and the importance of reusing items and recycling them. The methodology followed for developing the system was the system development life cycle, where the e-bartering website went through the phases of the planning, analysis, design, and implementation. A short survey was also shared among the community members of the United Arab Emirates as a market research tool to understand people’s willingness to accept this system and use it

Globalization: Its Effects

A global culture is now increasingly emerging.  The process of globalization is facilitated by technology.  This technology comes from but one place – education.  The primary way to accept (or fight it) globalization is through knowledge.  Education is the main way to facilitate interaction and increase the quality of life for people everywhere

Laboratory manifestations of COVID-19 associated with hemostatic abnormalities

Hemostatic abnormalities had been reported in COVID-19 patients, which may include disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), hypercoagulability, and alterations in platelets parameters. Articles that investigate the alterations of hemostatic abnormalities during the COVID-19 disease (2020-2021) and their predictive value of disease outcome have been thoroughly reviewed. Among the reviewed articles, thrombocytopenia is observed in 5.0-41.7% of COVID-19 patients, which is related to disease severity. Moreover, other platelets parameters, including Platelets/lymphocytes ratio (PLR), Mean platelets volume (MPV), and aggregation, may also be affected. On the other hand, findings of coagulation tests such as D dimer; fibrinogen, Antithrombin (AT), and Fibrin degradation products (FDP) are significantly elevated in COVID-19 patients, while in a single study, most of the patients had positive Lupus anticoagulants (LA) and normal protein C (PC). In the same perspective, these alterations showed significant correlations with disease severity. Overall, hemostatic laboratory markers are significant predictors of COVID-19 disease outcome as indicated by the increased risk of venous and arterial thrombotic events, especially in ICU patients. &nbsp