676 research outputs found
Parenting Young Children: Comparison of a Psychoeducational Program in Mexico and the United States
The purpose of this study was to compare the cross-cultural effectiveness of a psychoeducational program with 82 Mexican and 63 American mothers with very young children. The 10-hour program was presented by trained facilitators in Mexico and the United States to small groups of mothers. Results showed that the both groups of mothers significantly increased their expectations and use of nurturing strategies and reduced their use of verbal and corporal punishment with their young children following the program. In addition, the reported frequency of child behavior problems decreased significantly at post-test. The similar results obtained across cultures were explained based on research finding similar parenting practices with young children between Mexican and American parents
Side-entrainment in a jet embedded in a sidewind
Numerical simulations of HH jets never show side-entrainment of environmental
material into the jet beam. This is because the bow shock associated with the
jet head pushes the surrounding environment into a dense shell, which is never
in direct contact with the sides of the jet beam. We present 3D simulations in
which a side-streaming motion (representing the motion of the outflow source
through the surrounding medium) pushes the post-bow shock shell into direct
contact with the jet beam. This is a possible mechanism for modelling well
collimated "molecular jets" as an atomic/ionic flow which entrains molecules
initially present only in the surrounding environment.Comment: 8 pages, 12 figures, 1 table, accepted for publication in Ap
Multimodal agent interfaces and system architectures for health and fitness companions
Multimodal conversational spoken dialogues using physical and virtual agents provide a potential interface to motivate and support users in the domain of health and fitness. In this paper we present how such multimodal conversational Companions can be implemented to support their owners in various pervasive and mobile settings. In particular, we focus on different forms of multimodality and system architectures for such interfaces
Dual concepts of almost distance-regularity and the spectral excess theorem
Generally speaking, `almost distance-regular' graphs share some, but not
necessarily all, of the regularity properties that characterize
distance-regular graphs. In this paper we propose two new dual concepts of
almost distance-regularity, thus giving a better understanding of the
properties of distance-regular graphs. More precisely, we characterize
-partially distance-regular graphs and -punctually eigenspace
distance-regular graphs by using their spectra. Our results can also be seen as
a generalization of the so-called spectral excess theorem for distance-regular
graphs, and they lead to a dual version of it
Yukawa hierarchies at the point of in F-theory
We analyse the structure of Yukawa couplings in local SU(5) F-theory models
with enhancement. In this setting the symmetry is broken down to
SU(5) by a 7-brane configuration described by T-branes, all the Yukawa
couplings are generated in the vicinity of a point and only one family of
quarks and leptons is massive at tree-level. The other two families obtain
their masses when non-perturbative effects are taken into account, being
hierarchically lighter than the third family. However, and contrary to previous
results, we find that this hierarchy of fermion masses is not always
appropriate to reproduce measured data. We find instead that different T-brane
configurations breaking to SU(5) give rise to distinct hierarchical
patterns for the holomorphic Yukawa couplings. Only some of these patterns
allow to fit the observed fermion masses with reasonable local model parameter
values, adding further constraints to the construction of F-theory GUTs. We
consider an model where such appropriate hierarchy is realised and
compute its physical Yukawas, showing that realistic charged fermions masses
can indeed be obtained in this case.Comment: 46 pages + appendices, 5 figures. v2, added references and typos
corrected, version accepted on JHEP. v3, typos correcte
El desafío de la calidad : un mensaje pedagógico básico para el trabajo experimental en química analítica
El trabajo se orienta hacia el logro del mejoramiento de la enseñanza experimental en el laboratorio de química analítica y se realiza desde el modelo de la investigación-acción. La química analítica es una actitud intelectual y se la considera una disciplina científica; la enseñanza de su teoría y de la programación del análisis mediante la aplicación del proceso analítico tiene, como objetivo pedagógico básico, generar una actitud intelectual. Se presenta un enfoque conceptual del proceso analítico total para la enseñanza experimental, orientada para que el estudiante aprenda a obtener información analítica de calidad. Se reúnen y evalúan diferentes prácticos en el laboratorio, de complejidad creciente, analizándose los resultados de las experiencias. El desafío pedagógico invita a revisar con profundidad la concepción sobre la educación permanente en química analítica y, en particular, del trabajo experimental, dado que las nuevas tecnologías sufren rápidos cambios y generalmente no son utilizadas en su máximo rendimiento.The aim of this work is to improve the experimental teaching in Analytical Chemistry Labs. It is being developed from the investigation-action model. Analytical Chemistry is an intelectual attitude. We think about it as a scientific subject. The basic pedagogic aim of teaching theory and programming the analysis applying the analytical process is to incorporate it into mental structures. A conceptual approach to complete analytical process in experimental teaching is shown. The student is guided to obtain qualified analytical information. Different practical works of increasing complexity are gathered and evaluated. The results of these experiencies are analysed. The pedagogic challenge is to revise thoroughly the understanding of everyday teaching in Analytical Chemistry. Specially experimental work, since new technologies undergo quick changes and they are not always efficiently applied
A comparative analysis of configurations of linear Fresnel collectors for concentrating solar power
Linear Fresnel collector arrays present some relevant advantages in the domain of concentrating solar power because of their simplicity, robustness and low capital cost. However, they also present important drawbacks and limitations, notably their average concentration ratio, which seems to limit significantly the performance of these systems.
First, the paper addresses the problem of characterizing the mirror field configuration assuming hourly data of a typical year, in reference to a configuration similar to that of Fresdemo. For a proper comparative study, it is necessary to define a comparison criterion. In that sense, a new variable is defined, the useful energy efficiency, which only accounts for the radiation that impinges on the receiver with intensities above a reference value. As a second step, a comparative study between central linear Fresnel reflectors and compact linear Fresnel reflectors is carried out. This analysis shows that compact linear Fresnel reflectors minimize blocking and shading losses compared to a central configuration. However this minimization is not enough to overcome other negative effects of the compact Fresnel collectors, as the greater dispersion of the rays reaching the receiver, caused by the fact that mirrors must be located farther from the receiver, which yields to lower efficiencies
Differences in trajectories and predictive factors of cognition over time in a sample of cognitively healthy adults, in zaragoza, spain
Great inter-individual variability has been reported in the maintenance of cognitive function in aging. We examined this heterogeneity by modeling cognitive trajectories in a population-based longitudinal study of adults aged 55+ years. We hypothesized that (1) distinct classes of cognitive trajectories would be found, and (2) between-class differences in associated factors would be ob-served. The sample comprised 2403 cognitively healthy individuals from the Zaragoza Dementia and Depression (ZARADEMP) project, who had at least three measurements of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) in a 12-year follow-up. Longitudinal changes in cognitive functioning were modeled using growth mixture models (GMM) in the data. The best-fitting age-adjusted model showed 3 distinct trajectories, with 1-high-to-moderate (21.2% of participants), 2-moderate-stable (67.5%) and, 3-low-and-declining (9.9%) cognitive function over time, respectively. Compared with the reference 2-trajectory, the association of education and depression was significantly different in trajectories 1 and 3. Instrumental activities of daily living (iADLs) were only associated with the declining trajectory. This suggests that intervention strategies should be tailored specifically to individuals with different trajectories of cognitive aging, and intervention strategies designed to maintain cognitive function might be different from those to prevent decline. A stable cognitive performance (‘successful cognitive aging’) rather than a mild decline, might be more ‘normal’ than generally expected
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