Innovation in techniques for teacher commentary on ESL writers� drafts

19 p�ginasRecent technological advances make computer and Internet tools an attractive alternative to traditional written teacher commentary on students� academic writing assignments. This presentation will discuss how one such tool was used for oral teacher commentary on the first draft paragraphs of intermediate level English learners� (B1 in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) texts. Analyses of texts from treatment and control groups will show the commentary students received on their first draft, the changes they made to their first draft as reflected in their second draft, and the students� attitudes towards the tool on each of three writing assignments collected at the beginning, in the middle and at the end of the term. The presenters will conclude by drawing comparisons between the video-based teacher commentary and recent work on written teacher commentary to discuss potential strengths and weaknesses of the technique illustrated in the study

GENDER DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN IN BINA SHAHS BEFORE SHE SLEEPS: A REVIEW ON THE MAIN CHARACTER

The main topic in this research is gender discrimination which is based on the study of the main character in Bina Shah's Before She Sleeps. This research process involves the whole story, intrinsic elements: characters and characterizations, settings, and conflicts, as well as extrinsic elements: gender discrimination, patriarchy systems, and power relations. This qualitative research is supported by descriptive analysis methods and literature study techniques which result in findings that politicized gender disparities are the cause of gender discrimination. The main character, Sabine, experiences several forms of gender discrimination namely limited access to education and not allowed to work. Her only choice is to be a good housewife with three to five husbands, and to bear as many children as possible. This system, prompting Sabine to put up resistance by running away.Keywords : gender; gender discrimination; gender gap; patriarchy system; main characte

Clustering of energy balance-related behaviors and parental education in European children : the ENERGY-project

Background:Recent research and literature reviews show that, among schoolchildren, some specific energy balance-related behaviors (EBRBs) are relevant for overweight and obesity prevention. It is also well known that the prevalence of overweight and obesity is considerably higher among schoolchildren from lower socio-economic backgrounds. This study examines whether sugared drinks intake, physical activity, screen time and usual sleep duration cluster in reliable and meaningful ways among European children, and whether the identified clusters could be characterized by parental education. Methods: The cross-sectional study comprised a total of 5284 children (46% male), from seven European countries participating in the ENERGY-project ("EuropeaN Energy balance Research to prevent excessive weight Gain among Youth"). Information on sugared drinks intake, physical activity, screen time and usual sleep duration was obtained using validated self-report questionnaires. Based on these behaviors, gender-specific cluster analysis was performed. Associations with parental education were identified using chi-square tests and odds ratios. Results: Five meaningful and stable clusters were found for both genders. The cluster with high physical activity level showed the highest proportion of participants with highly educated parents, while clusters with high sugared drinks consumption, high screen time and low sleep duration were more prevalent in the group with lower educated parents. Odds ratio showed that children with lower educated parents were less likely to be allocated in the active cluster and more likely to be allocated in the low activity/sedentary pattern cluster. Conclusions: Children with lower educated parents seemed to be more likely to present unhealthier EBRBs clustering, mainly characterized by their self-reported time spent on physical activity and screen viewing. Therefore, special focus should be given to lower educated parents and their children in order to develop effective primary prevention strategies

Contrasting population structure and demographic history of cereal aphids in different environmental and agricultural landscapes

Genetic diversity of populations has important ecological and evolutionary consequences, whose understanding is fundamental to improve the sustainability of agricultural production. Studies of how differences in agricultural management and environment influence the population structure of insect pests are central to predict outbreaks and optimise control programmes. Here, we have studied the population genetic diversity and evolution of Sitobion avenae and Sitobion miscanthi, which are among the most relevant aphid pests of cereals across Europe and Asia, respectively. We have used genotyping by sequencing (GBS) to identify genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to infer the geographic structure and migration patterns. In the present study, we show that the population structure in present day populations are different from that described in previous studies, which suggests that they have evolved recently possibly as a response to human-induced changes in agriculture. This study shows that S. avenae in England is predominantly parthenogenetic and there has been a demographic and spatial expansion of a single genetic cluster, which could correspond with the insecticide-resistance superclone identified in previous studies. Conversely, in China, S. miscanthi populations are mostly cyclical parthenogenetic, with one sexual stage in autumn to produce overwintering eggs, and there are six genetically differentiated subpopulations and high genetic differentiation between geographic locations, which suggests that further taxonomical research is needed. Unlike S. avenae in England, there is no evidence for insecticide resistance and there is no predominance of a single lineage in S. miscanthi in China

Waste hemp hurd as a sustainable precursor for affordable and high-rate hard carbon-based anodes in sodium-ion batteries

The present study reports the promising potential of waste hemp-hurd-derived carbons as anodes in sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). Carbons were produced through an easily scalable process consisting of pyrolysis of raw biomass at 500 °C followed by mild chemical activation of the resulting char through wet impregnation with K2CO3 and subsequent heating of the solid phase (after filtration and drying) up to 700 or 800 °C under nitrogen. The best electrochemical performance was observed for the hard carbon activated at a char-K2CO3 mass ratio of 1:4 and heated up to 800 °C, which exhibited an excellent initial coulombic efficiency (73%) and achieved reversible charge capacities of 267 and 79 mAh g–1 at 0.03 and 1 A g–1, respectively. This material also exhibited an impressive cyclic stability and rate capability, with a capacity retention of 96% after 300 cycles at a current density of 2 A g–1. This more than satisfactory performance could be related to the textural and structural features of the hard carbon, which include moderate interconnected microporosity (with pore sizes below 1 nm), an appropriate concentration of defects in the carbon structure, relatively large interplanar distances, and a certain number of closed pores

Test-retest reliability and construct validity of the ENERGY-child questionnaire on energy balance-related behaviours and their potential determinants: the ENERGY-project

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Insight in children's energy balance-related behaviours (EBRBs) and their determinants is important to inform obesity prevention research. Therefore, reliable and valid tools to measure these variables in large-scale population research are needed.</p> <p>Objective</p> <p>To examine the test-retest reliability and construct validity of the child questionnaire used in the ENERGY-project, measuring EBRBs and their potential determinants among 10-12 year old children.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We collected data among 10-12 year old children (n = 730 in the test-retest reliability study; n = 96 in the construct validity study) in six European countries, i.e. Belgium, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, and Spain. Test-retest reliability was assessed using the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) and percentage agreement comparing scores from two measurements, administered one week apart. To assess construct validity, the agreement between questionnaire responses and a subsequent face-to-face interview was assessed using ICC and percentage agreement.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of the 150 questionnaire items, 115 (77%) showed good to excellent test-retest reliability as indicated by ICCs > .60 or percentage agreement ≥ 75%. Test-retest reliability was moderate for 34 items (23%) and poor for one item. Construct validity appeared to be good to excellent for 70 (47%) of the 150 items, as indicated by ICCs > .60 or percentage agreement ≥ 75%. From the other 80 items, construct validity was moderate for 39 (26%) and poor for 41 items (27%).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results demonstrate that the ENERGY-child questionnaire, assessing EBRBs of the child as well as personal, family, and school-environmental determinants related to these EBRBs, has good test-retest reliability and moderate to good construct validity for the large majority of items.</p

Membrane protein insertion and assembly by the bacterial holo-translocon SecYEG-SecDF-YajC-YidC

Protein secretion and membrane insertion occur through the ubiquitous Sec machinery. In this system, insertion involves the targeting of translating ribosomes via the signal recognition particle and its cognate receptor to the SecY (bacteria and archaea)/Sec61 (eukaryotes) translocon. A common mechanism then guides nascent transmembrane helices (TMHs) through the Sec complex, mediated by associated membrane insertion factors. In bacteria, the membrane protein ‘insertase’ YidC ushers TMHs through a lateral gate of SecY to the bilayer. YidC is also thought to incorporate proteins into the membrane independently of SecYEG. Here, we show the bacterial holo-translocon (HTL) — a supercomplex of SecYEG–SecDF–YajC–YidC — is a bona fide resident of the Escherichia coli inner membrane. Moreover, when compared with SecYEG and YidC alone, the HTL is more effective at the insertion and assembly of a wide range of membrane protein substrates, including those hitherto thought to require only YidC

Hábitos de actividad física y conductas sedentarias en escolares de Educación Primaria

The objective of the present study is to describe the anthropometric characteristics and lifestyle in Primary School (PS) students and to observe if there are differences in the variables analyzed regarding sex, school grade, educational cycle, number of weekly Physical Education sessions and type of educational center. In this study, 793 PS students participated. Among the results obtained, significantly higher values ​​were observed in the group of boys, compared to the group of girls, in the weekly practice of physical exercise (p &lt;0.01) and in the recreative use of screens on weekends (p &lt;0.01). Significant differences were also found depending on the school grade, the educational cycle and the type of educational center. These results show the importance of understanding the specific characteristics of the groups of schoolchildren, with the objective of being efficient in the necessary implementation of policies encouraging the practice of PA.Los objetivos del presente estudio fueron describir las características antropométricas y los hábitos de vida de escolares de Educación Primaria Obligatoria (EPO) y observar si existen diferencias en las variables analizadas atendiendo al sexo, curso escolar, internivel, número de sesiones semanales de Educación Física y tipo de centro educativo. En este estudio participaron 793 estudiantes de EPO. Entre los resultados obtenidos, se observaron valores significativamente más altos en el grupo de chicos con respecto al grupo de chicas en la práctica semanal de AF reglada (p &lt; 0,01) y en el uso ocioso de pantallas los fines de semana (p &lt; 0,01). También se hallaron diferencias significativas atendiendo al curso, internivel y tipo de centro. Estos resultados evidencian la importancia de conocer las características específicas de los grupos de escolares, con el objetivo de ser eficientes en la necesaria implementación de políticas de fomento de la práctica de AF

Polygenic risk for obesity and its interaction with lifestyle and sociodemographic factors in European children and adolescents

Background Childhood obesity is a complex multifaceted condition, which is influenced by genetics, environmental factors, and their interaction. However, these interactions have mainly been studied in twin studies and evidence from population-based cohorts is limited. Here, we analyze the interaction of an obesity-related genome-wide polygenic risk score (PRS) with sociodemographic and lifestyle factors for BMI and waist circumference (WC) in European children and adolescents. Methods The analyses are based on 8609 repeated observations from 3098 participants aged 2-16 years from the IDEFICS/I.Family cohort. A genome-wide polygenic risk score (PRS) was calculated using summary statistics from independent genome-wide association studies of BMI. Associations were estimated using generalized linear mixed models adjusted for sex, age, region of residence, parental education, dietary intake, relatedness, and population stratification. Results The PRS was associated with BMI (beta estimate [95% confidence interval (95%-CI)] = 0.33 [0.30, 0.37], r(2) = 0.11, p value = 7.9 x 10(-81)) and WC (beta [95%-CI] = 0.36 [0.32, 0.40], r(2) = 0.09, p value = 1.8 x 10(-71)). We observed significant interactions with demographic and lifestyle factors for BMI as well as WC. Children from Southern Europe showed increased genetic liability to obesity (BMI: beta [95%-CI] = 0.40 [0.34, 0.45]) in comparison to children from central Europe (beta [95%-CI] = 0.29 [0.23, 0.34]), p-interaction = 0.0066). Children of parents with a low level of education showed an increased genetic liability to obesity (BMI: beta [95%-CI] = 0.48 [0.38, 0.59]) in comparison to children of parents with a high level of education (beta [95%-CI] = 0.30 [0.26, 0.34]), p-interaction = 0.0012). Furthermore, the genetic liability to obesity was attenuated by a higher intake of fiber (BMI: beta [95%-CI] interaction = -0.02 [-0.04,-0.01]) and shorter screen times (beta [95%-CI] interaction = 0.02 [0.00, 0.03]). Conclusions Our results highlight that a healthy childhood environment might partly offset a genetic predisposition to obesity during childhood and adolescence.Peer reviewe