L2 の授業において言語学習者の集中力を高める取り組み

本稿では、筆者が授業プランを作成するときに活用している4 つの言語教授方法について論じる。それらの教授方法とは、学習者に自信を持たせること、協同学習法の採用、正確さよりも流暢さを優先すること、そして教室におけるテクノロジーの活用である。それぞれについて、L2 の授業において学習者の学習意欲と集中力を高めるという視点から議論する。また、それぞれの教授方法の定義や、それらを採用した理由を述べるにあたっては、その都度、適切なSLA の文献について言及する。読者が自身の授業で実践するにあたって役立つものとなるよう、徹底的な検証を試みる。さらに、筆者がここで議論する教授方法は、全ての言語学習者を対象としたものではなく、主に第2 言語の習得に消極的な学習者を対象としたものであることを強調したい。本稿は、筆者を含む言語教員が、その教授法を導いている理論的な根拠に注意を払い続けることを促すという意味において、有益なものである。This paper discusses four language teaching practices upon which the writer relies when designing lesson plans: building student confidence, employment of collaborative learning education, prioritizing fluency over accuracy, and utilizing technology in the classroom. Each of these items is presented with an eye toward enhancing student motivation and encouraging student engagement in the L2 classroom. The writer calls on relevant SLA literature to define each of the four teaching practices upon which the paper is focused, as well as to discuss his reasons for employing each method. Effort is made to provide a thorough review of each teaching practice in order to provide readers with a blueprint for utilizing them in their own classrooms. Throughout, the author is careful to stress that the methods he discusses herein are not intended to address the needs of all language learners, but primarily those who possess less resolve for second language study. This article is productive in that it encourages language teachers, the author included, to remain mindful of the rationale guiding their approach to teaching

Evaluation of the cutaneous microbiome in psoriasis

Psoriasis, a highly prevalent disease of humans of unknown cause, is a chronic inflammatory disorder primarily involving skin, with distinctive clinical characteristics. With the newly developed tools that facilitate microbiome research, it now is possible to assess whether the cutaneous microbiome plays a role in the pathogenesis of this disorder. Preliminary data from our studies suggest that the cutaneous microbiome in psoriasis is complex and possibly different from normal. To deal with this complexity, we propose to examine the cutaneous microbiome in relation to psoriasis with explorations at several taxonomic and informatic levels. Our overall objective is to examine how changes in the normal cutaneous microbiome contributes to the pathogenesis of psoriasis. Since causality is complex and often difficult to prove, our overall hypothesis is that there are alterations in the cutaneous microbiome in areas of skin affected by psoriasis in comparison with the range observed in clinically unaffected areas, or in healthy persons. We also hypothesize that the characteristics of the microbiome may affect clinical responses to the immunomodulatory agents used to treat psoriasis. An alternative hypothesis is that effective treatment of psoriasis with systemic immunomodulatory agents will not substantially affect the disordered microbial ecosystem. Such observations would provide evidence for the roles of the microbiota in this disorder. Since an important consideration in microbiome research is the optimal level (e.g. phylum, genus, species, strain, gene) at which to examine a scientific question, and we are not yet certain what are the optimal levels for psoriasis, this also will be examined. Our studies of psoriasis should allow development of both approaches and tools that will have general utility for microbiome research. To test our hypothesis, we propose the following specific aims: 1. To understand the cutaneous microbiome species composition overlaying psoriatic lesions; 2. To investigate differences in metagenome content for psoriatic lesions compared to normal skin; 3. To identify differences in the transcriptional profiles of the microbiome and the host between normal skin and psoriatic lesions using high-throughput sequencing; and 4. To estimate the effects of systemic immunomodulatory therapy for psoriasis on microbiome composition. In total, these studies should help us understand the role of the microbiome in psoriasis pathogenesis

Fabrication of high quality sub-micron Au gratings over large areas with pulsed laser interference lithography for SPR sensors

Metallic gratings were fabricated using high energy laser interference lithography with a frequency tripled Nd:YAG nanosecond laser. The grating structures were first recorded in a photosensitive layer and afterwards transferred to an Au film. High quality Au gratings with a period of 770 nm and peak-to-valley heights of 20-60 nm exhibiting plasmonic resonance response were successfully designed, fabricated and characterized.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure

Scaling analysis of the screening length in concentrated electrolytes

The interaction between charged objects in an electrolyte solution is a fundamental question in soft matter physics. It is well-known that the electrostatic contribution to the interaction energy decays exponentially with object separation. Recent measurements reveal that, contrary to the conventional wisdom given by classic Poisson-Boltzmann theory, the decay length increases with ion concentration for concentrated electrolytes and can be an order of magnitude larger than the ion diameter in ionic liquids. We derive a simple scaling theory that explains this anomalous dependence of the decay length on ion concentration. Our theory successfully collapses the decay lengths of a wide class of salts onto a single curve. A novel prediction of our theory is that the decay length increases linearly with the Bjerrum length, which we experimentally verify by surface force measurements. Moreover, we quantitatively relate the measured decay length to classic measurements of the activity coefficient in concentrated electrolytes, thus showing that the measured decay length is indeed a bulk property of the concentrated electrolyte as well as contributing a mechanistic insight into empirical activity coefficients.Comment: To appear in Physical Review Letter

The Severity and Lack of Awareness of Dermatomyositis

Dermatomyositis is a rare autoimmune disease that affects a very small percentage of the population, close to 10 cases per million, according to the National Organization of Rare Disorders (NORD). The amount of men that are diagnosed with this disease are even smaller. However, hardly anyone knows what Dermatomyositis is, let alone what its side effects are. The purpose of this research paper is to exploit the severity of Dermatomyositis for those who are unaware of its existence, characteristics and significance within the health community. In doing so, I hope to create awareness throughout society by also telling my father’s story through a narrative documentary, as he is currently living with Dermatomyositis. Through better communication and further research on Dermatomyositis, awareness will increase, more studies can be conducted, and improvements can be made toward the rehabilitation process for the affected individuals. This is why I will be creating a narrative documentary to further exemplify the details in my paper. I will go into more detail regarding my father’s story, connecting all dots to my research. Those who doubt the validity of the information provided will question my degree of membership and credibility. However, by maintaining professionalism and informative research to back up my personal connections and experiences, I will establish my reliability and validity