The Effectiveness of Computer Assisted Classes for English as a Second Language

The present study aims to evaluate the efficiency of the computer assisted English classes and to emphasize the necessity of developing sound methodological strategies adjusted to the new technology. It also present the benefits of using the computer in the pre-school and elementary school classes, highlighted by a report on the comparative observation of four groups of children studying English in a computer assisted environment.Comment: 8 pages, exposed on 5th International Conference "Actualities and Perspectives on Hardware and Software" - APHS2009, Timisoara, Romani

Liquid biopsy for early detection of hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly prevalent and lethal cancer globally. Over 90% of HCC cases arise in the context of liver cirrhosis, and the severity of the underlying liver disease or advanced tumor stage at diagnosis significantly limits treatment options. Early diagnosis is crucial, and all guidelines stress the importance of screening protocols for HCC early detection as a public health objective. As serum biomarkers are not optimal for early diagnosis, liquid biopsy has emerged as a promising tool for diagnosis, prognostication, and patients’ stratification for personalized therapy in various solid tumors, including HCC. While circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are better suited for personalized therapy and prognosis, cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and extracellular vesicle-based technologies show potential for early diagnosis, HCC screening, and surveillance protocols. Evaluating the added value of liquid biopsy genetic and epigenetic biomarkers for HCC screening is a key goal in translational research. Somatic mutations commonly found in HCC can be investigated in cfDNA and plasma exosomes as genetic biomarkers. Unique methylation patterns in cfDNA or cfDNA fragmentome features have been suggested as innovative tools for early HCC detection. Likewise, extracellular vesicle cargo biomarkers such as miRNAs and long non-coding RNAs may serve as potential biomarkers for early HCC detection. This review will explore recent findings on the utility of liquid biopsy for early HCC diagnosis. Combining liquid biopsy methods with traditional serological biomarkers could improve the overall diagnostic accuracy for early HCC detection

The Strategy Blueprint - A Strategy Process Computer-Aided Design Tool

Strategy has always been a main concern of organizations because it dictates their direction, and therefore determines their success. Thus, organizations need to have adequate support to guide them through their strategy formulation process. The goal of this research is to develop a computer-based tool, known as ‘the Strategy Blueprint’, consisting of a combination of nine strategy techniques, which can help organizations define the most suitable strategy, based on the internal and external factors that influence their business. The research methodology we adopted is design science. To visualize the Strategy Blueprint tool, we use a spreadsheet-based implementation. Our first evaluation of the tool in real-life settings indicates that the tool is both useful and easy to use

Duodenal carcinoid tumour – a case report

Duodenal carcinoids are rare tumours of the small intestine with heterogenous clinical and pathological characteristics. The long-term prognosis is very good if discovered in the early stages. We present the case of a patient with a non-functional duodenal carcinoid tumour discovered incidentally during an upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. The diagnosis was confirmed through immunohistochemistry. Treatment consisted of the endoscopic resection of the tumour and the surveillance of the patient for the following 2 years, with no signs of recurrence. We have conducted a literature review regarding the clinical manifestations, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up of patients with this type of tumours

Attention Patterns Detection using Brain Computer Interfaces

The human brain provides a range of functions such as expressing emotions, controlling the rate of breathing, etc., and its study has attracted the interest of scientists for many years. As machine learning models become more sophisticated, and bio-metric data becomes more readily available through new non-invasive technologies, it becomes increasingly possible to gain access to interesting biometric data that could revolutionize Human-Computer Interaction. In this research, we propose a method to assess and quantify human attention levels and their effects on learning. In our study, we employ a brain computer interface (BCI) capable of detecting brain wave activity and displaying the corresponding electroencephalograms (EEG). We train recurrent neural networks (RNNS) to identify the type of activity an individual is performing

The influence of PDA, CMA, TA and V8 culture media on the development of Phytophthora infestans de bary. and Phytophthora parasitica dast.

The aim of the study was to learn the influence of culture media on two species of Phytophthora. The development and colony appearance was observed for ten days and the number of spores for ten weeks. In order to achieve this experiment two species of the genus Phytophthora were used Phytophthora infestans de Bary and Phytophthora parasitica Dast. and four culture media PDA, CMA, V8 and TA. In determining the number of spores, 63.63 cm2 of mycelium were collected from the surface of the culture medium and mixed with 250 ml of sterile water. The containers with sterile water and Phytophthora parasitica Dast. and Phytophthora infestans de Bary., were placed in a refrigerator at a temperature of 7° C, to make sure that zoospores are released. The number of spores per milliliter was determined for each of the fungi using the hemocytometer. The highest values were recorded on the dishes with PDA medium, where after calculating the average of nine dishes the colony registered a rate of growth of approximately 1.47 cm. According to these observations we can conclude that the PDA is the most favorable for the development of the Phytophthora infestans de Bary colony. The highest values of the Phytophthora parasitica Dast colony diameter were observed in the plates with V8, where more than half of the plates have reached the edge of the analyzed Petri plates, thus an average diameter of 8.4 cm was registered in the last day of observation. On the TA plates there was also a high growth rate, the diameter of the colony reaching an average value of 5.5 cm at the end of the 10th day of observation. The PDA provided a slower growth rate of the colony diameter, at the end of the observations the colony only measured 3.94 cm, while CMA media composition has provided conditions for development of the average diameter of only 1.67 cm

Research regarding the pathogen agent Dothistroma septosporum (Dorog.) M. Morelet on Pinus cembra L.

The asexual form of the fungus Mycosphaerella attacks most species of pine trees and produces major damage in the woody nursery. This pathogen has had only seven years after the first infection in Tanzania to reach nurseries in central or eastern Africa. Global losses resulting from epidemics in the world were major. There were losses of 67% to Pinus radiata trees 7-8 years of age in California, total losses of P. ponderosa trees in most eastern states of the United States of America and 40% loss of trees P. flexilis in Montana (Taylor, Schwandt, 1998). Within this paper observations were performed in the laboratory and in the field, determinations were made based on symptoms and morphological characteristics of the fungus. To achieve these observations and measurements samples were taken every ten days for three months from The Botanical Garden of Iaşi, from the species Pinus nigra and Pinus cembra damaged by Dothistroma septosporum