Implementation of an Automated Grading System with an Adaptive Learning Component to Affect Student Feedback and Response Time

This research focuses on the development and implementation of an adaptive learning and grading system with a goal to increase the effectiveness and quality of feedback to students. By utilizing various concepts from established learning theories, the goal of this research is to improve the quantity, quality, and speed of feedback as it pertains specifically to the grading of computer skills with a focus on personal productivity software. Feedback has been identified as a key component of successful learning among students. This research builds upon the previous knowledge from the cognitive, behavioral, and resourcebased views of learning as well as upon the establishment of grading rubrics. An automated grading system was developed that allows instructors to quickly grade multiple complex computer literacy assignments. Key to the success of the system is the ability of the system to “learn” the correct and incorrect responses and store them for future use. To understand the impact of the system on feedback, three hypotheses were created and experiments were developed to test them. The system was shown to positively affect the quantity of feedback and reduce the time required for grading assignments. No effect on the quality of the feedback comments was shown and may be a subject of further study

Novel properties and potential applications of functional ligand-modified polyoxotitanate cages.

Functional ligand-modified polyoxotitanate (L-POT) cages of the general type [TixOy(OR)z(L)m] (OR = alkoxide, L = functional ligand) can be regarded as molecular fragments of surface-sensitized solid-state TiO2, and are of value as models for studying the interfacial charge and energy transfer between the bound functional ligands and a bulk semiconductor surface. These L-POTs have also had a marked impact in many other research fields, such as single-source precursors for TiO2 deposition, inorganic-organic hybrid material construction, photocatalysis, photoluminescence, asymmetric catalysis and gas adsorption. Their atomically well-defined structures provide the basis for the understanding of structure/property relationships and ultimately for the rational design of new cages targeting specific uses. This highlight focuses on recent advances in L-POTs research, with emphasis on their novel properties and potential applications.EPSRCThis is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Royal Society of Chemistry via https://doi.org/10.1039/C6CC03788G

Dissociation of the role of the prelimbic cortex in interval timing and resource allocation: beneficial effect of norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitor nomifensine on anxiety-inducing distraction

Emotional distracters impair cognitive function. Emotional processing is dysregulated in affective disorders such as depression, phobias, schizophrenia, and PTSD. Among the processes impaired by emotional distracters, and whose dysregulation is documented in affective disorders, is the ability to time in the seconds-to-minutes range, i.e. interval timing. Presentation of task-irrelevant distracters during a timing task results in a delay in responding suggesting a failure to maintain subjective time in working memory, possibly due to attentional and working memory resources being diverted away from timing, as proposed by the Relative Time-Sharing model. We investigated the role of the prelimbic cortex in the detrimental effect of anxiety-inducing task-irrelevant distracters on the cognitive ability to keep track of time, using local infusions of norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitor nomifensine in a modified peak-interval procedure with neutral and anxiety-inducing distracters. Given that some antidepressants have beneficial effects on attention and working memory, e.g., decreasing emotional response to negative events, we hypothesized that nomifensine would improve maintenance of information in working memory in trials with distracters, resulting in a decrease of the disruptive effect of emotional events on the timekeeping abilities. Our results revealed a dissociation of the effects of nomifensine infusion in prelimbic cortex between interval timing and resource allocation, and between neutral and anxiety-inducing distraction. Nomifensine was effective only during trials with distracters, but not during trials without distracters. Nomifensine reduced the detrimental effect of the distracters only when the distracters were anxiety-inducing, but not when they were neutral. Results are discussed in relation to the brain circuits involved in Relative Time-Sharing of resources, and the pharmacological management of affective disorders

The influence of halides in polyoxotitanate cages; dipole moment, splitting and expansion of d-orbitals and electron-electron repulsion

Metal-doped polyoxotitanate (M-POT) cages have been shown to be efficient single-source precursors to metal-doped titania [TiO$_2$(M)] (state-of-the-art photocatalytic materials) as well as molecular models for the behaviour of dopant metal ions in bulk titania. Here we report the influence halide ions have on the optical and electronic properties of a series of halide-only, and cobalt halide-‘doped’ POT cages. In this combined experimental and computational study we show that halide ions can have several effects on the band gaps of halide-containing POT cages, influencing the dipole moment (hole–electron separation) and the structure of the valance band edge. Overall, the band gap behaviour stems from the effects of increasing orbital energy moving from F to I down Group 17, as well as crystal-field splitting of the d-orbitals, the potential effects of the Nephelauxetic influence of the halides and electron–electron repulsion.We thank the EPSRC (Doctoral Prize for P. D. M.), A*STAR Singapore (Scholarship for N. L.), the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes, Fonds of the Chemical Industry (S. H.) for funding. The authors would like to acknowledge the use of the EPSRC UK National Service for Computational Chemistry Software (NSCCS) at Imperial College London and contributions from its staff in carrying out this work

Framework development and application in waste generation prediction

He, R., Sandoval-reyes, M., Scott, I., Semeano, R., Ferrão, P., Matthews, S., & Small, M. J. (2022). Global knowledge base for municipal solid waste management: Framework development and application in waste generation prediction. Journal of Cleaner Production, 377(December), 1-11. [134501]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.134501--- This research is supported by the Mao Yisheng Fellowship of Carnegie Mellon University to Rui He, and through the CMU-Portugal project “Bee2Waste Crypto” (IDT-COP 45933). The authors would like to thank other members of the Bee2Waste Crypto project consortium for their support and inputs to this paper.Increasing municipal solid waste (MSW) generation has become not only a major sustainability challenge and a considerable financial burden for municipalities across the globe, but also an opportunity to promote a circular economy, provided adequate information is made available. Data and information on MSW generation, characterization, and management practices are prerequisites to studying and optimizing solid waste management systems (SWMS). However, such data and information are usually dispersed, unsystematized, and suffering from various availability and quality issues. This study aims to assemble and provide access to the current landscape of MSW data by establishing a comprehensive framework for understanding the interconnectedness of various sub-domains of MSW knowledge. Existing databases and governmental reports were reviewed to compile 1720 records of MSW generation, composition, management practices, and socioeconomic contexts for 219 countries and 410 cities. Multivariate linear regression and additive models were built to relate MSW generation, composition, and recovery rates to demographics, economic development, and climate patterns of cities and regions. These models generate new insights into the complex nature of SWMS and provide an evidence-based decision-making tool to future researchers and policy makers. Specifically, economic development (GDP), density factors (population, population density, and household size), sustainability initiatives, education, and regulation are all identified as positive drivers toward the targets of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 12.publishersversionpublishersversionpublishersversionepub_ahead_of_prin

An efficient and extensible approach for compressing phylogenetic trees

Biologists require new algorithms to efficiently compress and store their large collections of phylogenetic trees. TreeZip is a novel method for compressing phylogenetic trees. Recently, we extended our TreeZip algorithm to support branch lengths and show how it can be used to extract sets of trees of interest quickly. The key advantage of TreeZip over standard compression methods like 7zip is its ability to interpret and compress tree collections semantically, making it immune to branch rotations and allowing key operations (such calculating a consensus tree) to be performed quickly and without a loss of space savings. On unweighted phylogenetic trees, TreeZip is able to compress Newick files in excess of 98%. On weighted phylogenetic trees, TreeZip is able to compress a Newick file by at least 73%. TreeZip can be combined with 7zip with little overhead, allowing space savings in excess of 99 % (unweighted) and 92%(weighted). Unlike TreeZip, 7zip is not immune to branch rotations, and performs worse as the level of variability in the Newick string representation increases. Finally, since the TreeZip compressed text (TRZ) file contains all the semantic information in a collection of trees, we can easily filter and decompress a subset of trees of interest (such as the set of unique trees), or build the resulting consensus tree in a matter of seconds. We also show the ease of which set operations can be performed on TRZ files, at speeds quicker than those performed on Newick or 7zip compressed Newick files, and without loss of space savings. TreeZip is an efficient approach for compressing large collections of phylogenetic trees. The semantic and compact nature of the TRZ file allow it to be operated upon directly and quickly, without a need to decompress the original Newick file. We believe that TreeZip will be vital for compressing and archiving trees in the biological community.

Prevalence studies of dementia in mainland china, Hong Kong and taiwan: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Many studies have considered the prevalence of dementia in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. However, area level estimates have not been produced. This study examines area differences across mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan adjusting for the effect of methodological factors with the aim of producing estimates of the numbers of people with dementia in these areas. METHOD AND FINDINGS: A search of Chinese and English databases identified 76 dementia prevalence studies based on samples drawn from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan between 1980 and 2012. A pattern of significantly decreasing prevalence was observed from northern, central, southern areas of mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Area variations in dementia prevalence were not explained by differences in methodological factors (diagnostic criteria, age range, study sample size and sampling method), socioeconomic level or life expectancy between areas. The results of meta-analysis were applied to current population data to provide best estimate. Based on the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria, the total number of people aged 60 and over with dementia in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is 8.4 million (4.6%, 95% CI: 3.4, 5.8) and in northern, central and southern areas are 3.8 (5.1%, 95% CI: 4.1, 6.1), 3.2 (4.4%, 95% CI: 3.2, 5.6) and 1.2 (3.9%, 95% CI: 2.3, 5.4) million respectively. These estimates were mainly based on the studies existing in highly developed areas and potentially affected by incomplete and insufficient data. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this review provide a robust estimate of area differences in dementia prevalence. Application of the estimated prevalence to population data reveals the number of people with dementia is expected to double every 20 years, areas in mainland China will be facing the greatest dementia challenge.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from the Public Library of Science via http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.006625

Rapid, energy-efficient synthesis of the layered carbide, Al₄C₃

The phase-pure binary aluminium carbide, Al4C3 can be synthesised in vacuo from the elements in 30 minutes via microwave heating in a multimode cavity reactor. The success of the reaction is dependent on the use of finely divided aluminium and graphite starting materials, both of which couple effectively to the microwave field. The yellow-brown powder product was characterised by powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy thermogravimetric-differential thermal analysis and Raman spectroscopy. Powders were composed of hexagonal single crystallites tens of microns in diameter (rhombohedral space group R[3 with combining macron]m; Z = 3; a = 3.33813(5) Å, c = 25.0021(4) Å) and were stable to 1000 °C in air, argon and nitrogen. Equivalent microwave reactions of the elements in air led to the formation of the oxycarbide phases Al2OC and Al4O4C

An update on cardiac implantable electronic devices for the general physician

Cardiac electronic device implantation is a common and important intervention for patients with tachy- and bradyarrhythmia. An increasing number of patients are receiving more complex devices such as cardiac resynchronisation therapy or devices with a defibrillation function. Over the last 5 years, two new models of cardiac device have emerged, subcutaneous defibrillators and leadless pacemakers. With an ageing population and data demonstrating 2000 per 100,000 of the population aged over 75 years have a cardiac device, it is essential that the general physician remains updated on the common pacemaker indications and available therapies