Learners\u27 incidental vocabulary acquisition : a case on narrative and expository texts

This study was intended to determine whether or not the genre of a reading text affects the incidental vocabulary acquisition of L2 learners while reading. To this aim, 40 Iranian EFL students whose vocabulary knowledge was within a limited range (already determined by Nation&rsquo;s Vocabulary Levels Test) were divided into two groups of 20 each for the reading sections. The Narrative Group comprised the participants who read the narratives, and the Expository Group were those who read the expository texts. Three types of vocabulary tests (i.e., Form recognition, Meaning translation and Multiple-choice items) were administered after the reading sessions to assess the incidental vocabulary gains of the participants. Overall, this study demonstrated the relative superiority of expository texts over narratives in terms of enhancing readers\u27 incidental acquisition of unknown words. It is argued that depending on the genre of a text, readers will invest processing resources with different depths and varying degrees of cognitive elaboration for the task of comprehension.<br /

Decision-making process for evaluating socio-economic impact of green transport policies in insular areas

Green transport policies, especially in insular areas, have to account for the unique characteristics and growth prospects with respect both to tourism development and travel behavior of residents. This paper evaluates the impact of green transport policies, moving one step further in research by rating the proposed policies in terms of their effectiveness in achieving a wide variety of economic, social, environmental, and other public policy goals (sustainability). Under this scope, the approach developed is based mainly on two decision methods that is the cost-benefit and multicriteria analysis, using data derived from stated preference surveys on residents and tourists as well as observations of actual choices. Thus, alternative policies are given qualitative ratings, and the weights derived from preference surveys on policymakers are applied to calculate a composite total score for each alternative. Based on this information, an advanced decision-making model for policymakers is developed for evaluating the socio-economic impact of foreseen green transport policies in islands taking into account their unique characteristics

Decision-making process for evaluating socio-economic impact of green transport policies in insular areas

Green transport policies, especially in insular areas, have to account for the unique characteristics and growth prospects with respect both to tourism development and travel behavior of residents. This paper evaluates the impact of green transport policies, moving one step further in research by rating the proposed policies in terms of their effectiveness in achieving a wide variety of economic, social, environmental, and other public policy goals (sustainability). Under this scope, the approach developed is based mainly on two decision methods that is the cost-benefit and multicriteria analysis, using data derived from stated preference surveys on residents and tourists as well as observations of actual choices. Thus, alternative policies are given qualitative ratings, and the weights derived from preference surveys on policymakers are applied to calculate a composite total score for each alternative. Based on this information, an advanced decision-making model for policymakers is developed for evaluating the socio-economic impact of foreseen green transport policies in islands taking into account their unique characteristics

Evaluating Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation and Ventilation Treatment of Patients with COVID-19: A Review

The prevalence of COVID-19 in the world is rapidly increasing. Although some patients show mild symptoms of the virus, some others need special care due to the exacerbation of the disease. Therefore, invasive treatments are needed to treat these patients. Data were collected from PubMed and Google scholars at various time points up to the 2020 academic year. The related keywords are listed as follows: "COVID-19", "Treatment", "Pathogenesis", and "Lung disorder". Studies have shown that although the use of ECMO and ventilation can provide oxygen to patients and improve their clinical status; these procedures can lead to the activation of inflammatory responses and the activation of the renin-angiotensin system. Inflammation and activation of the renin-angiotensin system are among the weak prognoses for COVID-19-infected patients. ECMO and ventilation treatment procedures are like double-edged swords, and monitoring patients during treatment is essential to prevent renin-angiotensin activation. *Corresponding Author: Zahra Gatavizadeh; Email: [email protected] Please cite this article as: Hybar H, Samimi A, Maniati M, Jodat J, Gatavizadeh Z. Evaluating Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation and Ventilation Treatment of Patients with COVID-19: A Review. Arch Med Lab Sci. 2020;6:1-6 (e16). https://doi.org/10.22037/amls.v6.3355

Analysis of Financial Crisis Results on Dry Bulk Market & Financing

The maritime industry provides an efficient method of transporting large volumes of basic commodities and finished products, with more than one-third of all international seaborne trade consisting of dry bulk cargo. Historically, the period that preceded the global financial crisis was characterized by accelerated growth, which culminated with the historic high point in the dry bulk freight market recorded during the second quarter of 2008. However, since mid-2008, the dry bulk sector presents high volatility, reflecting both lower demand for maritime transport and increase of the expected capacity.Within this framework, commercial banks, being the main source of financing for the shipping market, which is characterised by high capital and operating costs, have significantly reduced the volume of loans granted in the industry. The latter is of particular importance considering the recent regulatory framework for banks apllied by the Basel III that limits the exposure of banks in sectors, like dry bulk shipping, that present high risk rate

Η μετάβαση από την Ανώτερη Παλαιολιθική στην Μεσολιθική στον ελλαδικό χώρο

Το ζήτημα της μετάβασης των ανθρώπινων κοινοτήτων από το τροφοσυλλεκτικό στο τροφοπαραγωγικό στάδιο αποτελεί κεντρικό θέμα στη μελέτη της προϊστορίας του ανθρώπου. Στο ερευνητικό αυτό πλαίσιο οι κοινωνίες των κυνηγών – τροφοσυλλεκτών του τέλους του Πλειστοκαίνου και των αρχών του Ολοκαίνου στον ελλαδικό χώρο αποτελούν ιδιαίτερο πεδίο μελέτης, εν όψει μάλιστα των θεωριών που έχουν τεθεί για τον τρόπο εμφάνισής της Νεολιθικής στην ευρωπαϊκή ήπειρο. Η αλματώδης πρόοδος των φυσικών επιστημών τα τελευταία χρόνια έθεσε στη διάθεσή μας πολύ περισσότερα και πιο ακριβή δεδομένα: περισσότερες και πιο ακριβείς απόλυτες χρονολογήσεις των ανασκαφικών δεδομένων, περισσότερες και εμπεριστατωμένες μελέτες για ένα ευρύ φάσμα μικροευρημάτων που προέκυψαν από την επίπλευση των επιχώσεων (λείψανα φυτών, ζώων, ιχθύων, μαλακίων). Στην παρούσα μελέτη επιλέχθηκαν τρεις θέσεις με δημοσιευμένες ακολουθίες από την κρίσιμη μεταβατική περίοδο από το Πλειστόκαινο στο Ολόκαινο: η βραχοσκεπή στη Μποΐλα, το σπήλαιο στη Θεόπετρα, και το σπήλαιο στο Φράγχθι. Οι θέσεις στα σπήλαια διατηρούν καλύτερα στρωματογραφημένους ορίζοντες, αν και ισχυροί παράγοντες αναμόχλευσης δεν είναι σπάνιοι, όπως στην περίπτωση της Θεόπετρας. Οι θέσεις αυτές προέρχονται από τρία εντελώς διαφορετικά φυσιογραφικά περιβάλλοντα του ελλαδικού χώρου: το ΒΔ τμήμα της Ηπείρου, το ΒΔ άκρο της θεσσαλικής πεδιάδας και το ΒΑ άκρο της Πελοποννήσου αντίστοιχα. Στο πρώτο μέρος γίνεται λεπτομερής παράθεση των δεδομένων ανά λιθοστρωματογραφικό ορίζοντα του ενδιαφέροντός μας. Συζητείται η σύσταση των επιχώσεων, οι απόλυτες χρονολογήσεις που έχουν προκύψει, η ακολουθία των λιθοτεχνικών, βιοαρχαιολογικών και οικιστικών δεδομένων, καθώς και των ταφικών και των στοιχείων για την κόσμηση του ατόμου. Στο δεύτερο μέρος γίνεται προσπάθεια σύνθεσης των δεδομένων ανά εποχή. Ζητούμενο της παρούσας μελέτης υπήρξε η αποτύπωση κατά το δυνατόν του συνόλου των πολιτισμικών χαρακτηριστικών των συγκεκριμένων κοινοτήτων που έζησαν στα συγκεκριμένα φυσιογραφικά περιβάλλοντα του ελλαδικού χώρου κατά το κρίσιμο μεταβατικό διάστημα από τη μία στην επόμενη γεωλογική περίοδο. Στόχος υπήρξε να διαφανεί τι άλλαξε στα πολιτισμικά τους κατάλοιπα και σε ποιο βαθμό, τι πιθανώς συνεχίστηκε ή τι καινούριο εμφανίστηκε. Να φανεί η σχέση των κοινοτήτων που έζησαν στην πρώτη γεωλογική περίοδο με αυτές που έζησαν στη δεύτερη. Να διερευνηθεί αν αποτέλεσαν κοινότητες που προσαρμόστηκαν και συνέχισαν ή ακολουθήθηκαν από νέες με εντελώς διαφορετικά πολιτισμικά χαρακτηριστικά ή εάν πιθανώς έλαβαν χώρα και οι δύο διαδικασίες. Η εικόνα που τελικά αναδύθηκε είναι αυτή της συνέχειας και των αλλαγών. Αποτυπώθηκαν κοινωνίες δυναμικές με ιδιαίτερα νεωτερικά για την εποχή τους χαρακτηριστικά, όπως τα εργαλεία λειασμένου λίθου, ο πηλός, η παρουσία του μηλιακού οψιανού, η φροντίδα των νεκρών και τα στοιχεία για την κόσμηση του ατόμου. Τα ιδιαίτερα αυτά χαρακτηριστικά τεκμηριώνουν από τη μια την επικοινωνία των κοινοτήτων αυτών σε αποστάσεις μεγάλης εμβέλειας, από την άλλη όμως την ιδιαίτερη δέσμευσή τους με τον τόπο που χρησιμοποίησαν. Αποτυπώνουν επίσης τις ιδιαίτερες διεργασίες που έλαβαν χώρα στο νοητικό τους επίπεδο, στην προσπάθειά τους να ορίσουν την ατομική αλλά και τη συλλογική τους ταυτότητα. Το σύντομο επεισόδιο της κλιματικής αντιστροφής της Νεαρής Δρυάδος φαίνεται ότι υπήρξε κομβικής σημασίας για τις αλλαγές που οδήγησαν στο τροφοπαραγωγικό στάδιο.The issue of the transition of hunters – gatherers to farmers and herders is a fundamental issue in the study of human prehistory. Within this field of research the hunter – gatherers societies of the end of the Pleistocene and the beginning of the Holocene in Greece constitute an interesting part, especially due to the theories that have been placed concerning the beginning of the Neolithic in the European continent. The excessive progress that has been accomplished during the last decades in the field of natural sciences has provided us with an abundance of more precise data: more accurate absolute dates of the excavated units, more well established studies of a wide range of micro remains that have come to light through the flotation process of the excavated units (remains of plants, animals, fish, molluscs). For our present study we selected three sites that preserve well established sequences dating to the critical transitional period from the Pleistocene to the Holocene. These sites are the rockshelter at Boila, the cave at Theopetra and the cave at Franchthi. Caves usually preserve more intact stratigraphical units, although strong post-depositional disturbance factors are not uncommon, as in the case of Theopetra. The sites are located in three completely different environmental territories of the Greek mainland: the NW part of Epirus, the NW end of the Thessalian plain, and the NE part of the Peloponnese respectively. In the first part of our study, we introduce a detailed presentation of the data per stratigraphical unit of our interest. We discuss the sedimentological character of the units of each site, the absolute dates that have been produced, the lithic assemblages, the bioarchaeological data, the residential and burial evidence, as well as the evidence concerning the decoration of individuals. In the second part we attempt a synthesis of the data per period. The main aim of our study was to depict the whole – if possible – of the cultural characteristics of these communities that lived in those different territories of the Greek mainland during the critical transitional period from the one geological period to the other. We aimed to discern what has changed in their cultural remains in the new era and to what extent, what probably remained the same or what new had emerged. We further aimed to understand the relationship of those communities of the first geological period to those of the second one. To investigate whether they were communities that were adapted to the new climatic and environmental conditions and continued to the Holocene or were succeeded by new ones with totally different cultural characteristics or whether both processes took place in those areas. The picture that has finally emerged is one of continuity and changes. Dynamic societies have been depicted with highly advanced features, such as polished stone tools, the existence of clay or Melian obsidian, the evidence for the care for the dead or the decoration of the individuals. These highly advanced elements document the long-range communication routes of these societies on the one hand, but also reveal the special commitment these societies had to the sites they used. These elements also hint to the particular processes that took place in their intellectual realm, as part of their attempt to define their identity (personal of communal). The brief episode of climatic reverse of the Younger Dryas, seems to have played a crucial role to the changes that led to the Neolithic way of life

Shipping Market Financing: Special Features and the Impact of Basel III

Shipping sector constitutes a sector with special characteristics that considerably differentiate it from the other sub-sectors of international transport. The maximisation of benefits for each one of the special market characteristics form a highly dynamic environment, with high risk of loss of invested capital. Within this framework, commercial banks, being the main source of financing shipping market, which is characterised by high capital and operating costs, have to take into account various variables in order to minimise the risk and maximise the return. The last is of particular importance considering the recent regulatory framework for banks applied by the Basel III, which has been elaborated on the grounds of inappropriateness of Basel II

Technical Efficiency of Shipping Banks: A DEA Approach

The international transportation Industry involves various sectors, shipping being one with particular characteristics which differentiates it from others. Within this scope, commercial banks are one of the main entities that may offer the required funding in a market that is characterized by the need for large amounts of capital and high operating costs. Banks play a significant role and are required to assess a number of factors in order to limit the risk from loans as well as to establish an accurate risk-return ratio. The efficiency of banks involved in the shipping industry is particularly important since it may, on one hand, affect financial growth, and on the other, create systemic crisis that may affect the economy as a whole as it directly affects the borrowing and consequently the financial situation and investment activity the shipping companies. This paper presents an effort to assess the shipping banks’ efficiency, and the determination of those factors which affect their technical efficiency, through the application of Data Envelopment Analysis. The results of this research indicate the factors that affect the efficiency of the shipping banks such as ROA, ROE, total loan loss provision to total loans ratio, total deposits and total assets, providing significant information to be considered by management regarding factors on which they should further focus in order to maintain and/or reinforce technical efficiency