Creating a Successful Wayfinding System: Lessons Learned from Springfield, Massachusetts

The masters project presents findings from recent work the author completed related to wayfinding, and wayfinding systems. This work began as part of a graduate urban design studio, followed by work as a research assistant at the UMass Design Center in Springfield, on a new “demonstration” wayfinding system installed in Springfield, Massachusetts. The wayfinding project was done in association with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission and the Springfield Office of Planning and Community Development, was implemented with the main goals of improving public health by encouraging more people to walk. Wayfinding systems are increasingly seen as an important part of a successful built environment. For many cities, good wayfinding systems can make the environment easier to understand and navigate, making for a better, more enjoyable experience. And an enjoyable experience may encourage people to return again, further enhancing civic life. The overall aim of this project is to use the experience gained as part of an actual project in Springfield to make recommendations and provide guidance to other cities and towns considering new wayfinding systems

Karar Ağacı Algoritması Kullanılarak Çin Topraklarındaki Orta Dereceli Okul Öğrencilerine İlişkin Jeo-Uzamsal Düşünme Yeteneğinin Tahmin Edilmesi

Predicting secondary school students' geospatial thinking ability can provide targeted guidance for teachers. To date, few scholars have focused on predicting students’ geospatial thinking ability. In this paper, we address this gap by constructing a prediction model based on the decision tree algorithm, to predict the geospatial thinking ability of secondary school students. A total of 1029 secondary school students were surveyed using the Spatial Thinking Ability Test, the Students' Geography Learning Status Questionnaire, and the Middle Students Motivation Test. Our model indicates that geospatial thinking ability can be predicted by nine factors, in order of importance: academic achievement in geography, geography learning strategy, geography classroom environment, gender, learning initiative, learning goals, extra-curricular time spent learning geography, ego-enhancement drive, and interest in learning geography. The model accuracy is 81.25%. Specifically, our study is the first to predict geospatial thinking ability. It provides a tool for teachers that can help them identify and predict students' geospatial thinking ability, which is conducive to designing better teaching plans and making adjustments to the curriculum.Orta dereceli okul öğrencilerinin jeo-uzamsal düşünme yeteneklerinin tahmin edilmesi öğretmenler için hedefe yönelik rehberlik sağlayabilir. Şimdiye kadar az sayıda bilim insanı, öğrencilerin jeo-uzamsal düşünme yeteneklerinin tahmin edilmesine odaklanmıştır. Bu makalede, orta dereceli okul öğrencilerinin jeo-uzamsal düşünme yeteneklerinin tahmin edilmesi amacıyla karar ağacı algoritmasına dayanan bir tahmin modeli oluşturarak bu boşluğu doldurmayı amaçlıyoruz. Uzamsal Düşünme Yeteneği Testi, Öğrencilerin Coğrafya Öğrenimi Durumu Anketi ve Orta Dereceli Okul Öğrencileri Motivasyon Testi kullanılarak toplam 1029 orta dereceli okul öğrencisine anket uygulanmıştır. Modelimiz, jeo-uzamsal düşünme yeteneğinin dokuz etmenle tahmin edilebileceğine işaret etmektedir. Önem sırasına göre bu etmenler; coğrafya dersindeki akademik başarı, coğrafya öğrenimi stratejisi, coğrafya sınıf ortamı, cinsiyet, öğrenme inisiyatifi, öğrenme hedefleri, coğrafya öğreniminde harcanan müfredat harici zaman, benlik geliştirme dürtüsü ve coğrafya öğrenimine ilgi şeklindedir. Model doğruluk oranı %81,25’tir. Özellikle, çalışmamız jeo-uzamsal düşünme yeteneğinin tahmin edilmesine yönelik ilk çalışmadır. Öğretmenlere öğrencilerin jeo-uzamsal düşünme yeteneklerini saptamalarına ve tahmin etmelerine yardımcı olabilecek bir araç sunan çalışmamız böylelikle daha iyi eğitim planları hazırlanmasında ve müfredatta düzenlemeler yapılmasında fayda sağlayacaktır

The Neuronal Channel NALCN Contributes Resting Sodium Permeability and Is Required for Normal Respiratory Rhythm

SummarySodium plays a key role in determining the basal excitability of the nervous systems through the resting “leak” Na+ permeabilities, but the molecular identities of the TTX- and Cs+-resistant Na+ leak conductance are totally unknown. Here we show that this conductance is formed by the protein NALCN, a substantially uncharacterized member of the sodium/calcium channel family. Unlike any of the other 20 family members, NALCN forms a voltage-independent, nonselective cation channel. NALCN mutant mice have a severely disrupted respiratory rhythm and die within 24 hours of birth. Brain stem-spinal cord recordings reveal reduced neuronal firing. The TTX- and Cs+-resistant background Na+ leak current is absent in the mutant hippocampal neurons. The resting membrane potentials of the mutant neurons are relatively insensitive to changes in extracellular Na+ concentration. Thus, NALCN, a nonselective cation channel, forms the background Na+ leak conductance and controls neuronal excitability

Cross-cultural validation of the Health Care Provider HIV/AIDS Stigma Scale (HPASS) in China

The study aimed to validate the Health Care Provider HIV/AIDS Stigma Scale among medical staff in China. The validation was conducted in four steps from March to December 2017: translation and back-translation; content validity test with six experts; test–retest reliability testing with 63 medical staff with 2 weeks interval; and structural validation with 349 medical staff from 52 hospitals with a convenience sample,using exploratory factor analysis,including principal component analysis and varimax rotation. The scale content validity index average was 0.88, while for test–retest reliability, the ICC was 0.87. Three factors of “discrimination”, “prejudice” and “stereotype” with 16 items were extracted and explained 59.61% variance. The Cronbach’s alpha value for the total scale was of 0.88, and for the three factors, the values were 0.89, 0.86 and 0.74, respectively. The discrimination factor showed identical means between Canadian medical students and Chinese medical staff, while the prejudice and stereotype factors had higher mean scores in the Chinese sample. The three-factor structure of Health Care Provider HIV/AIDS Stigma Scale was confirmed in Chinese medical staff with a simpler solution. This could provide a basis for trans-cultural application and comparison

Stimulation of trans-resveratrol biosynthesis in Vitis vinifera cv. Kyoho cell suspension cultures by 2, 3-dihydroxypropyl jasmonate elicitation

Background: Plant cell suspension culture of Vitis vinifera is a promising technology for investigating different factors that are able to induce and/or modify stilbenes biosynthesis. Jasmonates have been reported to play an important role in a signal transduction pathway that regulates defence responses as well as the production of secondary metabolites. In this study, 2, 3-dihydroxypropyl jasmonate (DHPJA) was used to investigate its effect on stimulating trans-resveratrol (t-R) accumulation and the plant defence responses in Vitis vinifera cv. Kyoho cell suspension cultures for the first time. Results: It demonstrated that DHPJA had superior effects on stilbenoids accumulation over methyl jasmonate (MeJA). The optimal condition was 150 \u3bcM DHPJA added on day 15 of cultivation period, with the highest level of t-R accumulation which was increased 1.8-fold and 1.3-fold compared with the control and 150 \u3bcM MeJA respectively. DHPJA induced stronger plant defence responses, including oxidative burst and activation of L-phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) than MeJA. H2O2 generation induced by DHPJA played a significant role in enhancing t-R accumulation. Adding a specific inhibitor of H2O2 signalling pathway inhibited DHPJA-induced t-R accumulation, but had no effects on DHPJA-induced other metabolites accumulation, which resulted in regulations of product diversity. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that DHPJA was an efficient elicitor to enhance t-R accumulation by activating stronger oxidative burst, and H2O2 signalling pathway could regulate product diversity in DHPJA-induced V. vinifera cv. Kyoho cell suspension cultures