1,143 research outputs found
Construction and validation of a questionnaire to assess student satisfaction with mathematics learning materials
Sixth Edition Technological Ecosystems for Enhancing MulticulturalityMathematics is an essential branch for the scientific development and its study is mandatory in most university degrees. However, currently the level of academic performance and motivation of students to learn this science is not the desired one. The students can use different learning tools inside and outside the math classroom, enhancing the quality of the learning materials that are designed essentially to facilitate the learning of mathematics. The present research project aims to determine the validity and reliability of a measurement instrument that allows theassessment of the satisfaction of the students with the availablelearning materials. To fulfill the objectives of this research, the method of survey was used. A study with a quantitative approach was developed, which led to the design and validation of a questionnaire by a group of 7 experts. The validation closed after applying a pilot study with 728 students. It concluded positively, obtaining nine factors that coincide with the revision of the literature: technological quality, quality of content, visual quality, didactic significance, adequacy of content, relationship between theory and practice, involvement, contribution to learning, relevance and interaction between educational actors. The results of this questionnaire provide to the international scientific community with relevant information for the design, selection, and use of study materials in the classrooms, which will contribute to raising the levels of student engagement, and their academic performance in mathematics, secondaril
Stable Determination of the Electromagnetic Coefficients by Boundary Measurements
The goal of this paper is to prove a stable determination of the coefficients
for the time-harmonic Maxwell equations, in a Lipschitz domain, by boundary
measurements
On uniqueness for time harmonic anisotropic Maxwell's equations with piecewise regular coefficients
We are interested in the uniqueness of solutions to Maxwell's equations when
the magnetic permeability and the permittivity are
symmetric positive definite matrix-valued functions in . We
show that a unique continuation result for globally coefficients
in a smooth, bounded domain, allows one to prove that the solution is unique in
the case of coefficients which are piecewise with respect to a
suitable countable collection of sub-domains with boundaries. Such
suitable collections include any bounded finite collection. The proof relies on
a general argument, not specific to Maxwell's equations. This result is then
extended to the case when within these sub-domains the permeability and
permittivity are only in sets of small measure.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figure
Serum levels and removal by haemodialysis and haemodiafiltration of tryptophan-derived uremic toxins in ESKD patients
Tryptophan is an essential dietary amino acid that originates uremic toxins that contribute to end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patient outcomes. We evaluated serum levels and removal during haemodialysis and haemodiafiltration of tryptophan and tryptophan-derived uremic toxins, indoxyl sulfate (IS) and indole acetic acid (IAA), in ESKD patients in different dialysis treatment settings. This prospective multicentre study in four European dialysis centres enrolled 78 patients with ESKD. Blood and spent dialysate samples obtained during dialysis were analysed with high-performance liquid chromatography to assess uremic solutes, their reduction ratio (RR) and total removed solute (TRS). Mean free serum tryptophan and IS concentrations increased, and concentration of IAA decreased over pre-dialysis levels (67%, 49%, -0.8%, respectively) during the first hour of dialysis. While mean serum total urea, IS and IAA concentrations decreased during dialysis (-72%, -39%, -43%, respectively), serum tryptophan levels increased, resulting in negative RR (-8%) towards the end of the dialysis session (p < 0.001), despite remarkable Trp losses in dialysate. RR and TRS values based on serum (total, free) and dialysate solute concentrations were lower for conventional low-flux dialysis (p < 0.001). High-efficiency haemodiafiltration resulted in 80% higher Trp losses than conventional low-flux dialysis, despite similar neutral Trp RR values. In conclusion, serum Trp concentrations and RR behave differently from uremic solutes IS, IAA and urea and Trp RR did not reflect dialysis Trp losses. Conventional low-flux dialysis may not adequately clear Trp-related uremic toxins while high efficiency haemodiafiltration increased Trp losses
Cardiovascular risk biomarkers and metabolically unhealthy status in prepubertal children: Comparison of definitions
Background and aims: The early onset of cardio-metabolic abnormalities, known as metabolically unhealthy (MU) status, is highly associated with obesity and cardiovascular disease (CVD), as well as with increased morbidity and mortality later in life. Given the lack of a consensus MU classification for prepubertal children, we aimed to compare available MU definitions in terms of their association with CVD risk biomarkers.
Methods and results: A total of 930 prepubertal children (622 with overweight/obesity, 462 males) aged 5–10.9 years were recruited, anthropometric measures were taken and biomarkers were analyzed. Children were classified using eight MU definitions based on different cut-offs for blood pressure, triacylglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, glucose and homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). MU prevalence in children with overweight/obesity ranged between 30% and 60% across definitions. Plasma concentrations of resistin, leptin, myeloperoxidase (MPO) and total plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (tPAI-1) were higher, and those of adiponectin were lower, in MU compared to MH children with overweight/obesity. Linear regression analyses confirmed the contribution of MPO and tPAI-1 concentrations to MU status, with most significant results derived from definitions that use age and sex-specific criteria and that account for HOMA-IR.
Conclusion: Plasma concentrations of MPO and tPAI-1 are increased in prepubertal MU children irrespective of having normal-weight or overweight/obesity. Inclusion of age and sex-specific cut-offs for cardio-metabolic components as well as insulin resistance criteria increases the quality of MU definitions as seen by their stronger association with CVD biomarkers concentrations
Tropical larval and juvenile fish critical swimming speed (U-crit) and morphology data
Fish swimming capacity is a key life history trait critical to many aspects of their ecology. U-crit (critical) swimming speeds provide a robust, repeatable relative measure of swimming speed that can serve as a useful surrogate for other measures of swimming performance. Here we collate and make available one the most comprehensive datasets on U-crit swimming abilities of tropical marine fish larvae and pelagic juveniles, most of which are reef associated as adults. The dataset includes U-crit speed measurements for settlement stage fishes across a large range of species and families obtained mostly from field specimens collected in light traps and crest nets; and the development of swimming abilities throughout ontogeny for a range of species using reared larvae. In nearly all instances, the size of the individual was available, and in many cases, data include other morphological measurements (e.g. “propulsive area”) useful for predicting swimming capacity. We hope these data prove useful for further studies of larval swimming performance and other broader syntheses
A rigorous analysis of high order electromagnetic invisibility cloaks
There is currently a great deal of interest in the invisibility cloaks
recently proposed by Pendry et al. that are based in the transformation
approach. They obtained their results using first order transformations. In
recent papers Hendi et al. and Cai et al. considered invisibility cloaks with
high order transformations. In this paper we study high order electromagnetic
invisibility cloaks in transformation media obtained by high order
transformations from general anisotropic media. We consider the case where
there is a finite number of spherical cloaks located in different points in
space. We prove that for any incident plane wave, at any frequency, the
scattered wave is identically zero. We also consider the scattering of finite
energy wave packets. We prove that the scattering matrix is the identity, i.e.,
that for any incoming wave packet the outgoing wave packet is the same as the
incoming one. This proves that the invisibility cloaks can not be detected in
any scattering experiment with electromagnetic waves in high order
transformation media, and in particular in the first order transformation media
of Pendry et al. We also prove that the high order invisibility cloaks, as well
as the first order ones, cloak passive and active devices. The cloaked objects
completely decouple from the exterior. Actually, the cloaking outside is
independent of what is inside the cloaked objects. The electromagnetic waves
inside the cloaked objects can not leave the concealed regions and viceversa,
the electromagnetic waves outside the cloaked objects can not go inside the
concealed regions. As we prove our results for media that are obtained by
transformation from general anisotropic materials, we prove that it is possible
to cloak objects inside general crystals.Comment: The final version is now published in Journal of Physics A:
Mathematical and Theoretical, vol 41 (2008) 065207 (21 pp). Included in
IOP-Selec
Myiasis in domestic cats: A global review
Myiasis is an infestation caused by larvae of Diptera in humans and other vertebrates. In domestic cats, Felis silvestris catus L. (Carnivora: Felidae), four dipteran families have been reported as agents of obligatory and facultative myiasis: Oestridae, Calliphoridae, Sarcophagidae and Muscidae. Among agents of obligatory myiasis, the most frequent genus is Cuterebra Clark (Oestridae) and the most frequent species is Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel) (Calliphoridae). Among the agents of facultative myiasis, the most frequent species is Lucilia sericata (Meigen) (Calliphoridae). A survey of myiasis in cats reported in literature shows that the cases are distributed worldwide and linked to the geographical range of the dipteran species. Factors favouring the occurrence of myiasis in cats are prowling in infested areas, poor hygiene conditions due to diseases and/or neglect, and wounds inflicted during territorial or reproductive competition. The aim of the review is to provide an extended survey of literature on myiasis in cats, as general information and possible development of guidelines for veterinarians, entomologists and other researchers interested in the field
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