Teaching English by means of theatricalized activity

The problem of finding effective methods of teaching foreign languages, focused on quick and easy assimilation of language material, its activation in the process of communication in various life situations, is the subject of numerous pedagogical discourse. A modern teacher is a mentor of the educational process, and is able to use a wide methodological and technological pedagogical toolkit. Among the most important problems of modern linguodidactics is the weak motivation of students to learn a foreign language in the absence of a linguistic environment. Therefore, the main task of organizing the educational process in teaching a foreign language is to develop students’ interest in the language. The article focuses on the authors’ practical experience on the use of theater technologies in additional language education and presents a tested foreign language teaching program. The research problem: what is the role of theatrical activities in teaching English? The purpose of the research is to substantiate the potential of theatrical activity in teaching English. The research methods used are observation, generalization, analysis. The research results: the influence of the means of theatrical activity on the process of teaching English to schoolchildren has been described; the understanding of theatricalization as an interactive educational technology in the English classroom has been presented; the experience of using elements of theater in extracurricular activities for the study of the English language have been described; the arguments of theatrical activity as an effective means of teaching a foreign language have been substantiated. Key findings: the means of theatrical activity include the following theatrical techniques: role-play when reading foreign texts, a theatrical story about a character / historical personality, a scene, sketches, games, etc. Theatrical technologies complement the traditional form of the classroom, contributing to the development of open dialogical communication, the emotional component, broadening the horizons of students, which makes it possible to expand the range of opportunities for teaching a foreign language

The psychological science accelerator’s COVID-19 rapid-response dataset

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Psychological Science Accelerator coordinated three large-scale psychological studies to examine the effects of loss-gain framing, cognitive reappraisals, and autonomy framing manipulations on behavioral intentions and affective measures. The data collected (April to October 2020) included specific measures for each experimental study, a general questionnaire examining health prevention behaviors and COVID-19 experience, geographical and cultural context characterization, and demographic information for each participant. Each participant started the study with the same general questions and then was randomized to complete either one longer experiment or two shorter experiments. Data were provided by 73,223 participants with varying completion rates. Participants completed the survey from 111 geopolitical regions in 44 unique languages/dialects. The anonymized dataset described here is provided in both raw and processed formats to facilitate re-use and further analyses. The dataset offers secondary analytic opportunities to explore coping, framing, and self-determination across a diverse, global sample obtained at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which can be merged with other time-sampled or geographic data

A global experiment on motivating social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic

Finding communication strategies that effectively motivate social distancing continues to be a global public health priority during the COVID-19 pandemic. This cross-country, preregistered experiment (n = 25,718 from 89 countries) tested hypotheses concerning generalizable positive and negative outcomes of social distancing messages that promoted personal agency and reflective choices (i.e., an autonomy-supportive message) or were restrictive and shaming (i.e., a controlling message) compared with no message at all. Results partially supported experimental hypotheses in that the controlling message increased controlled motivation (a poorly internalized form of motivation relying on shame, guilt, and fear of social consequences) relative to no message. On the other hand, the autonomy-supportive message lowered feelings of defiance compared with the controlling message, but the controlling message did not differ from receiving no message at all. Unexpectedly, messages did not influence autonomous motivation (a highly internalized form of motivation relying on one’s core values) or behavioral intentions. Results supported hypothesized associations between people’s existing autonomous and controlled motivations and self-reported behavioral intentions to engage in social distancing. Controlled motivation was associated with more defiance and less long-term behavioral intention to engage in social distancing, whereas autonomous motivation was associated with less defiance and more short- and long-term intentions to social distance. Overall, this work highlights the potential harm of using shaming and pressuring language in public health communication, with implications for the current and future global health challenges

The Psychological Science Accelerator’s COVID-19 rapid-response dataset

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Psychological Science Accelerator coordinated three large-scale psychological studies to examine the effects of loss-gain framing, cognitive reappraisals, and autonomy framing manipulations on behavioral intentions and affective measures. The data collected (April to October 2020) included specific measures for each experimental study, a general questionnaire examining health prevention behaviors and COVID-19 experience, geographical and cultural context characterization, and demographic information for each participant. Each participant started the study with the same general questions and then was randomized to complete either one longer experiment or two shorter experiments. Data were provided by 73,223 participants with varying completion rates. Participants completed the survey from 111 geopolitical regions in 44 unique languages/dialects. The anonymized dataset described here is provided in both raw and processed formats to facilitate re-use and further analyses. The dataset offers secondary analytic opportunities to explore coping, framing, and self-determination across a diverse, global sample obtained at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which can be merged with other time-sampled or geographic data

A HISTORICAL OUTLINE OF RADIONUCLIDE CONTAMINATION OF THE YENISEY FLOODPLAIN BASED ON LANDSCAPE AND RADIOMETRIC SURVEY

Distribution of technogenic radionuclides discharged by the Krasnoyarsk Mining and Chemical Combine (KMCC, Zheleznogorsk) in the period from 1958 to 1992 has been studied in floodplain landscapes of the Yenisey river. After shutting down the direct-flow reactors the radioactive contamination of the Yenisey river became dozen times lower. Performed landscape and radiometric studies revealed factors responsible for radionuclide differentiation and the character of radionuclide distribution within two landscape segments of the Yenisey river floodplain. The first segment characterized the impact zone from 16 km to 20 downstream the discharge, the second one was studied in the remote zone as far as 2000 km down the river. Artificial radionuclide contamination was most intensive in the 60-ies of the past century when it reached the Kara Sea. Traces of that contamination were registered in soils of both sites at the depth of 20–50 cm

Theoretical evaluation of iodine and selenium speciation in the natural waters of iodine-deficient territories

Water migration of iodine, selenium are in many cases directly related to manifestation of thyroid pathologies, in particular, the endemic goiter. The main aim was to evaluate species and conditions of migration of these elements in natural waters from different water-bearing rocks in areas with a natural iodine deficiency. Evaluation of iodine and selenium species in aqueous solutions has been carried out by thermodynamic modeling basing on chemical composition of 81 water samples taken in the Bryansk region in the period of 2015-2017. The study has showed that the predominant species of iodine in the natural waters is iodide-ion (89%), which may also associate with typomorphic ions (Ca, Mg, Na, K, Sr) forming mineral complexes with them. In the latter state iodine may be removed from solution by fixation on a carbonate barrier. Selenium dominates in natural waters as hydroselenide ion (91%). In the presence of a significant amount of iron, this trace element may form the FeSe mineral phase which may be fixed in reduction conditions

Pd-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs and Pt-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs Composite Materials: Morphology, Microstructure, and Catalytic Properties

The composite nanomaterials based on noble metals, reducible oxides, and nanostructured carbon are considered to be perspective catalysts for many useful reactions. In the present work, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were used for the preparation of Pd-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs and Pt-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs catalysts comprising the active components (6 wt%Pd, 6 wt%Pt, 20 wt%CeO2) as highly dispersed nanoparticles, clusters, and single atoms. The application of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) provided analysis of the samples’ morphology and structure at the atomic level. For Pd-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs samples, the formation of PdO nanoparticles with an average crystallite size of ~8 nm was shown. Pt-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs catalysts comprised single Pt2+ ions and PtOx clusters less than 1 nm. A comparison of the catalytic properties of the samples showed higher activity of Pd-based catalysts in CO and CH4 oxidation reactions in a low-temperature range (T50 = 100 °C and T50 = 295 °C, respectively). However, oxidative pretreatment of the samples resulted in a remarkable enhancement of CO oxidation activity of Pt-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs catalyst at T < 20 °C (33% of CO conversion at T = 0 °C), while no changes were detected for the Pd-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs sample. The revealed catalytic effect was discussed in terms of the capability of the Pt-Ce-Ox/MWCNTs system to form unique PtOx clusters providing high catalytic activity in low-temperature CO oxidation