The effects of foreign language programmes in early childhood education and care: a systematic review

This systematic review investigates the effects of foreign language programmes in early childhood education and care (ECEC), which are increasingly popular. Foreign language ECEC centres familiarise very young children with a foreign language, and in general also expose them to the majority language. This review synthesises research on the effects of foreign language ECEC on children’s development of the foreign language, majority language, first language, and wellbeing, as well as programme-related and child-related factors that influence language development and wellbeing. The reviewed studies indicate that foreign language ECEC fosters foreign language development, without negatively impacting the majority and first language. Children can experience positive wellbeing in these programmes, but only if programmes are play-based and if the language policy is not too strict. Some studies report that programme characteristics, such as input quantity, language policy, and teacher strategies, modulate the effects of foreign language ECEC on language development and wellbeing. Few of the reviewed studies examined child characteristics, but the available findings indicate that children’s age, as well as their temperament and in-class behaviour, are related to foreign language learning. However, these findings need to be interpreted with caution, because research into foreign language ECEC is still in its infancy

Oral administration of the selective GPR120/FFA4 agonist compound A is not effective in alleviating tissue inflammation in mouse models of prototypical autoimmune diseases

ω3-polyunsaturated free fatty acids (ω3-PUFAs), particularly docosahexaenoic (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), are thought to exert health promoting effects in metabolic and in inflammatory diseases. The molecular mechanisms of these beneficial effects are only partially understood. DHA and EPA activate Free Fatty Acid receptor 4 (GPR120/FFA4). Recently, the first orally available, synthetic ligand of FFA4, 3-[2-chloro-5-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl]-3-azaspiro[5.5]undecane-9-acetic acid ("compound A"; cpd A) has been developed. Cpd A exhibits distinctly higher potency, efficiency, and selectivity at FFA4 than ω3-PUFAs and ameliorates insulin resistance and adipose tissue inflammation in the mouse. With GPR120/FFA4 activation believed to also attenuate tissue inflammation in autoimmune diseases, cpd A may also have a beneficial effect in these diseases. We have therefore addressed the therapeutic potential of cpd A in mouse models of three prototypical autoimmune diseases, specifically psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and bullous pemphigoid. The effect of cpd A on the course of Aldara™-induced psoriasis-like dermatitis, K/BxN serum transfer arthritis, and antibody transfer pemphigoid disease-like dermatitis was scrutinized. Cpd A did not alter the course of Aldara-induced psoriasis-like dermatitis, K/BxN serum transfer arthritis, or antibody transfer pemphigoid disease-like dermatitis. Our results suggest that therapeutic regimens solely relying on FFA4 activation do not bear the potential to treat inflammatory diseases. With cpd A distinctly more potent in activating GPR120/FFA4 than ω3-PUFAs, this also suggests that GPR120/FFA4 activation by ω3-PUFAs does not significantly contribute to the health-promoting effects of ω3-PUFAs in autoimmune diseases

Some properties of the k-dimensional Lyness' map

This paper is devoted to study some properties of the k-dimensional Lyness' map. Our main result presentes a rational vector field that gives a Lie symmetry for F. This vector field is used, for k less or equal to 5 to give information about the nature of the invariant sets under F. When k is odd, we also present a new (as far as we know) first integral for F^2 which allows to deduce in a very simple way several properties of the dynamical system generated by F. In particular for this case we prove that, except on a given codimension one algebraic set, none of the positive initial conditions can be a periodic point of odd period.Comment: 22 pages; 3 figure

Indikatoren einer tiergerechten Mastputenhaltung unter den Bedingungen der ökologischen Geflügelmast

Ziel der Studie war eine Analyse der Häufigkeit und des Ausprägungsgrades tierschutzrelevanter Veränderungen bei Puten, die gemäß den Bedingungen der EU-Verordnung 889/2008 für den ökologischen Landbau gehalten wurden. In zwei Durchgängen wurden in neun Aufzucht- und 14 Mastbetrieben 32 Herden mit insgesamt 105.483 Tieren erfasst. Der Tiergesundheitsstatus der einzelnen Herden wurde stichprobenartig an fünf Zeitpunkten durch Beurteilung von 60 Einzeltieren dokumentiert. Bei jedem Bestandsbesuch wurden außerdem Einstreuproben entnommen und ihr Feuchtigkeitsgehalt thermogravimetrisch bestimmt. Die mittlere kumulierte Verlustrate in der Aufzuchtphase lag bei 3,3 % und in der 16. Lebenswoche bei 4,5%. Am Ende der Aufzuchtphase wiesen bis zu 44 % der untersuchten Tiere Epithelnekrosen an den Fußballen auf. Häufigkeit und Schweregrad von Ballenveränderungen nahmen im Verlauf der Mastphase weiter zu. So wurden in der 16. Lebenswoche bei über 80 % der untersuchten Puten Ballennekrosen festgestellt. Am Schlachthof erfolgte eine Aufnahme allgemeiner Daten zur Schlachtung und folgend die visuelle Beschau von 60 Puten je Herde. Der überwiegende Teil der Tiere (97,7%) wies zum Zeitpunkt der Schlachtung Veränderungen der Fußballen auf, während Brusthautveränderungen nur selten dokumentiert wurden. Vermehrt traten weiterhin Leberveränderungen, insbesondere Grünfärbungen auf, wobei deutliche Unterschiede zwischen verschiedenen Betrieben sowie zwischen den einzelnen Durchgängen festgestellt wurden. Auch Gelenksveränderungen waren häufige Befunde. Als ein maßgeblicher Faktor für die Gesunderhaltung eines Putenbestandes ist die Befähigung des bestandsbetreuenden Personenkreises anzusehen, gesundheitliche Probleme frühzeitig zu erkennen und zeitnah darauf zu reagieren. Neben der Qualität des Einstreusubstrates inklusive Beurteilung der Kotkonsistenz können Häufigkeit und Ausprägung von Ballenveränderungen wertvolle Hinweise für eine Einschätzung des Tierhaltungsstandards in einem Bestand liefern und sind als wichtige, einfach erfassbare Tierschutzindikatoren einzustufen . Auch Gelenks- und Leberveränderungen sind aufgrund hoher Prävalenzen als relevante Tiergesundheitsparameter zu betrachten, die im Rahmen eines Monitorings routinemäßig erfasst werden sollten

Structural, spectroscopic and catalytic activity studies on glutathione reductase reconstituted with FAD analogues

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/66378/1/j.1432-1033.1991.tb16100.x.pd

Social sensemaking with AI: Designing an open-ended AI experience with a blind child

AI technologies are often used to aid people in performing discrete tasks with well-defned goals (e.g., recognising faces in images). Emerging technologies that provide continuous, real-time information enable more open-ended AI experiences. In partnership with a blind child, we explore the challenges and opportunities of designing human-AI interaction for a system intended to support social sensemaking. Adopting a research-through-design perspective, we refect upon working with the uncertain capabilities of AI systems in the design of this experience. We contribute: (i) a concrete example of an open-ended AI system that enabled a blind child to extend his own capabilities; (ii) an illustration of the delta between imagined and actual use, highlighting how capabilities derive from the human-AI interaction and not the AI system alone; and (iii) a discussion of design choices to craft an ongoing human-AI interaction that addresses the challenge of uncertain outputs of AI systems