Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Training in Organization of Open Education

The modern concept of open education modifies the traditional learning format through advanced information and communications technology. This fact imposes special requirements for all participants in the learning process and makes it necessary to reconsider the tasks and functions of students and teachers. This is relevant, therefore, to find a way of making a gradual transition to the model of open education. Based on an experiment with introductory training, the authors perform an empirical assessment of teachers’ preparedness to organize open education and use open educational resources (OER). The effectiveness of the introductory training of teachers was checked by means of interviewing and testing respondents. The research results showed that there were significant changes in the training criteria: according to the motivational and value-based criterion, virtually all teachers displayed a positive shift in their attitude to organization of open education; in terms of the cognitive criterion, the teachers acquired thorough knowledge of open education tools; according to the operational criterion, the teachers acquired the necessary skills in developing and introducing OER. In the process of observation, we recorded a rise in the number of teachers with a sufficient (by 60.5% compared with the verification stage) and high (by 16.6%) level of preparedness. The introductory training, therefore, is a principal component in the stable system of open education

Assessment of News Items Objectivity in Mass Media of Countries with Intelligence Systems: the Brexit Case

The role of mass media in society keeps the problem of manipulative influence distinction and the contiguous phenomena, chief among which is objectivity and authenticity of news items, current. The research provides a detailed study of the information broadcasting mechanisms in the media area, defines the problems, impeding an impersonal reproduction and disclosure of information, clarifies the verification methods, and gives their topology. In this research, we examined how the mass media of different countries presented the same event to the public. The publications of four mass media, concerning such an event as the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Brexit), have been determined as an object of the analysis. The chosen mass media refer to the countries, which are not the direct participants of that process: Russia, the USA, and Ukraine. D. Brewer’s criteria were used to define the objectivity of the news items. A relative sentiment of the news, which became the objective analysis basis, has been identified using linguistic rate with Eureka Engine intelligence system. The obtained results predominantly confirmed the hypothesis, that the mass media of different countries would represent the process of the UK withdrawal from the EU according to the country’s policy and interpret the facts in their favor. All the four mass media demonstrate the partiality when broadcasting the current situation in the matter of Brexit. The concepts being the semantic kernel elements of mass media publications have emotional coloring. The sentiment analysis of the publications resulted in the conclusion that only one of the four mass media gave a neutral assessment of the Brexit situation. The other three held to the political stance of their edition or government. The research results indicate that the problem of mass media objectivity remains relevant. The correctional impact on public opinion through mass media is extremely high. Therefore, forming the personal attitude toward the situation or event should occur with using several verifications methods and mass media sources at once

SMART technologies as the innovative way of development and the answer to challenges of modern time

One of the promising tasks in education lies in reforming it into the knowledge economy, integrating and creating a market oriented towards results of intellectual activity. On the other hand, globalization process requires transition of the educational environment to the format of information, communication and digital space. Primarily these areas are set as the nodal tasks, which directs authors of this article to the comparative analysis of educational system making it possible to identify general and particular, positive or negative consequences and characteristics of digitalization in the higher education system. In accordance with current trends and processes of globalization and informatization, the authors are considering the prospects for interaction and mutual influence of Smart technologies used in building a future educational model in the higher education area. Technological innovations today are called upon not only to qualitatively change methods, forms and technologies in the education content, but rather to train personnel capable of operating in the new information and telecommunication community. Therefore, studying the influence and the capabilities of modern digital technologies that meet needs of society, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, contribute to formation of professional competencies in students, which requires major alterations in the learning process, changes in its state towards flexibility, adaptation, personalization, continuity, multidimensionality and systematicity, becomes of specific relevance for authors of this article

Assessment of News Items Objectivity in Mass Media of Countries with Intelligence Systems: the Brexit Case

TThe role of mass media in society keeps the problem of manipulative influence distinction and the contiguous phenomena, chief among which is objectivity and authenticity of news items, current. The research provides a detailed study of the information broadcasting mechanisms in the media area, defines the problems, impeding an impersonal reproduction and disclosure of information, clarifies the verification methods, and gives their topology. In this research, we examined how the mass media of different countries presented the same event to the public. The publications of four mass media, concerning such an event as the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Brexit), have been determined as an object of the analysis. The chosen mass media refer to the countries, which are not the direct participants of that process: Russia, the USA, and Ukraine. D. Brewer’s criteria were used to define the objectivity of the news items. A relative sentiment of the news, which became the objective analysis basis, has been identified using linguistic rate with Eureka Engine intelligence system. The obtained results predominantly confirmed the hypothesis, that the mass media of different countries would represent the process of the UK withdrawal from the EU according to the country’s policy and interpret the facts in their favor. All the four mass media demonstrate the partiality when broadcasting the current situation in the matter of Brexit. The concepts being the semantic kernel elements of mass media publications have emotional coloring. The sentiment analysis of the publications resulted in the conclusion that only one of the four mass media gave a neutral assessment of the Brexit situatio

Formation and modern state of ecosystem in Tolmachevskoye reservoir (Kamchatka) and the acclimatized there population of kokanee ( <i>Oncorhynchus nerka kennerlyi</i>)

Evolution of local ecosystem in Tolmachevskoye reservoir and changes in its artificial population of kokanee salmon are traced on the data of authors’ observations in 2009-2013 and previous archival and cited data. Decreasing of inorganic phosphorous, nitrogen, and bioavailable iron is detected in the water against a background of water warming. As the result, phytoplankton production and abundance decrease, its species composition becomes simpler, chlorophyll а concentration becomes lower. Zooplankton abundance is stable (1-2 g/m3), as before the reservoir appearance, but species structure of plankton crustaceans is changed, and the copepods Cyclops scutifer , small cladocerans Holopedium gibberum, Bosmina longirostris , and Daphnia ( Daphnia ) cristata group prevail recently. The salmon food spectrum is wide and includes a lot of unedible fractions as wood chips and plant detritus; coefficient of consumption is high - these factors indicate a deficiency of forage resources for fish. The fish condition indicates a chronic malnutrition. The state of female gonads is satisfactory, without any visible pathology, as in 2003-2007, but the oocytes resorption goes concurrently with maturation of gonads that is a sign of hard competition for the food within the kokanee population. The current stable state of the population differs from preceded stages of its development by lower stock add smaller size of fish, the age of spawning is now 4-7 years. Among other freshwater fish, the kokanee salmon is distinguished by high content of ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Artificial populations in Kamchatka could be considered as a resource for both amateur or sport fishing and commercial aquaculture

Activity of the upstream component of tandem TERT/survivin promoters depends on features of the downstream component.

We spliced the promoters of the human telomerase and human survivin genes (PhTERT and PhSurv, respectively) widely used for gene therapy and known to have the broadest cancer type spectrum of activity. Two head-to-tail constructs were obtained: the PhTERT-PhSurv and PhSurv-PhTERT tandems. The splicing caused quantitative and qualitative changes in the promoter features. In both constructs, only the promoter proximal to the transcribed gene retained its ability to initiate transcription, whereas the distal promoter was silent, the phenomenon never reported before. However, the distal promoter modulated the activity of the proximal one by increasing its strength and causing an appearance of additional transcription start sites. We suggested that this suppression might be due to the presence of Sp1 transcription factor binding sites in both promoters and Sp1-bridges between these sites. Such Sp1-bridges might convert the tandem promoter linear DNA into a stem-loop structure. If localized inside the formed loop, the distal promoter could lose its ability to initiate transcription. To test this hypothesis, we constructed two modified double promoters, where the proximal PhSurv promoter was replaced either by a shortened variant of the survivin promoter (PhSurv269) or by the mouse survivin promoter. Both PhSurv substitutes were considerably shorter than PhSurv and had different numbers and/or positions of Sp1 sites. In modified tandems, transcription was initiated from both promoters. We also prepared two mutant forms of the PhSurv-PhTERT tandem with two or four Sp1 sites removed from the distal "long" PhSurv promoter. In the first case, the distal PhSurv promoter remained silent, whereas the removal of four Sp1 binding sites restored its activity. In the majority of studied cancer cell lines the efficiency of transcription from the hTERT-(shortened hSurv269) promoter tandem was markedly higher than from each constituent promoter. In normal lung fibroblast cells, the tandem promoter activity was considerably lower

Changes in calf productivity and resistance as a result of using the lactulose-based feed additive

Objective: the aim of the research is to make a comprehensive assessment of the prebiotic feed additive effect on calves. The experiment was carried out in work conditions on 10 black-and-white Holstein-cross calves at the age of 2 to 32 days. To conduct the experiment, an experimental group and a test group have been formed. Each group has included five milk-fed calves at the age of 2 days and older. All the calves have been given colostrum in their first 2–4 hours after birth and then they have been fed three times a day, at regular intervals. The following methods are used: clinical, microbiological, immunological and statistical. The article describes the prebiotic lactulose-based additive effect on the intestinal microbiocenosis development in one-month old calves and presents an assessment of humoral and cellular components of natural resistance in calves. The research results show a positive effect of the lactulose-based additive on the symbiotic microflora of the gastrointestinal tract that improves the natural resistance of the body and the physiological status of animals, reduces the disease duration and contributes to an increase in weight gain. After feeding the calves with the lactulose-containing preparation during their first month of life, the weight gain of each calf in the experimental group has been 21.8 kg, or + 51 % of the initial weight and in the test group 19.0 kg, or + 41 % of the initial weight. Feeding the additive has an impact on the two components of natural resistance: serum bactericidal activity in the experimental group calves has been higher by 17.8 % and the phagocytosis activity has been higher by 30.5%, compared to the test group calves. Feeding calves with the lactulose-containing additive helps reduce the illness duration, stimulates the increase in live weight and affects the natural resistance level of newborn animals positively