Vocabulary Learning Through Extensive Reading: A Case Study

Abstract The role and importance of reading in second language vocabulary learning have been discussed by many researchers because of the richness and variety of vocabulary in written texts compared to oral discourse (Horst, 2005; Nation, 2001). However, despite the recent increase of studies in this field, there are very few studies focusing on non-Western languages, including Japanese, compared to Indo-European languages. To fill the gap, this study explored the process of Japanese vocabulary acquisition through extensive reading. Data were collected through a pretest, eight immediate tests, a posttest, and a semistructured interview. The results indicate that extensive reading is especially beneficial in consolidating learners’ vocabulary knowledge and in encouraging learners to reflect on their interests and needs in vocabulary learning. Résumé Le rôle et l’importance de la lecture dans l’apprentissage du vocabulaire en langue seconde sont sujets de discussion pour de nombreux chercheurs en raison de la richesse et de la variété de la langue écrite en comparaison au discours oral (Horst, 2005 ; Nation, 2001). Toutefois, malgré la récente hausse d’études effectuées dans ce domaine, très peu d’études se concentrent sur les langues non-occidentales, incluant le japonais, en comparaison aux langues indo-européennes. Pour combler cette lacune, cette étude a exploré le processus d’acquisition du vocabulaire en japonais par la lecture assidue. Les données ont été recueillies grâce à un pré-test, huit tests immédiats, un post-test et une entrevue semi-structurée. Les résultats indiquent que la lecture assidue est particulièrement bénéfique pour la consolidation du vocabulaire des apprenants et pour encourager les apprenants à réfléchir à leurs intérêts et à leurs besoins dans l’apprentissage du vocabulaire

Implementing a flipped classroom in teaching second language pronunciation: Challenges, solutions, and expectations

While the philosophy of flipped classroom has recently been drawing much attention of second language teachers, integrating technology into pedagogy is often an issue. This is also the case in pronunciation teaching. Second language pronunciation teaching has been largely dependent on teachers' intuition and beliefs, realized by repetition. Although recent technology developments in the field of linguistics, namely ultrasound imaging, enable visualization of movement and motion inside the mouth, it has not yet been widely used in second language education. In this chapter, taking a self-learning website for Japanese language pronunciation, the authors explore what makes teachers stay away from technology integration into language learning and how this barrier can be overcome to implement a flipped classroom. Specifically, the authors address the importance of taking initiative in planning how technology can be integrated into pedagogy while closely collaborating with and involving other fields of study, like linguistics, as well as information technology

Human Herpesvirus 6 Open Reading Frame U14 Protein and Cellular p53 Interact with Each Other and Are Contained in the Virion

A mass spectroscopic analysis of proteins from human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6)-infected cells showed that the HHV-6 U14 protein coimmunoprecipitated with the tumor suppressor p53. The binding of U14 to p53 was verified by coimmunoprecipitation experiments in both Molt-3 cells infected with HHV-6 and 293 cells cotransfected with U14 and p53 expression vectors. Indirect immunofluorescence assays (IFAs) showed that by 18 h postinfection (hpi) U14 localized to the dot-like structures observed in both the nucleus and cytoplasm where p53 was partly accumulated. Despite Northern blotting evidence that U14 follows late kinetics, the U14 protein was detected immediately after infection (at 3 hpi) by IFA. In addition, by Western blotting, U14 was detected at 0 hpi or in the presence of cycloheximide which completely abolished the expression of IE1 protein. In addition to U14, p53 was detected at 0 hpi although it was not detected in mock-infected cells. Furthermore, both U14 and p53 were clearly detected in the viral particles by Western blotting and immunoelectron microscopy, supporting the idea that U14 and p53 are incorporated into virions. Our study provides the first evidence of the incorporation of cellular p53 into viral particles and suggests that p53 may play an important role in viral infection

Novel germline variant of TMEM127 gene in a patient with familial pheochromocytoma

Pheochromocytomas (PCCs) and paragangliomas (PGLs) are rare tumours with a heterogeneous genetic background. Up to 40% of apparently sporadic PCC/PGL cases carry 1 of the 12 gene germline mutations conferring genetic susceptibility to PCC/PGL. Although the precise mechanisms are unclear, TMEM127 is one of the rare responsible genes for PCC/PGL. Here we report the case of a patient with familial PCC having a novel TMEM127 variant (c.119C > T, p.S40F). In silico prediction analysis to evaluate the functional significance of this variant suggested that it is a disease-causing variant. A PCC on the left side was considered to be the dominant lesion, and unilateral adrenalectomy was performed. The histopathologic findings were consistent with benign PCC. A loss of heterogeneity of the TMEM127 variant was detected in the surgically removed tumour

Effectiveness of Bystander-Initiated Cardiac-Only Resuscitation for Patients With Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest

[Background] Previous animal and clinical studies suggest that bystander-initiated cardiac-only resuscitation may be superior to conventional cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. Our hypothesis was that both cardiac-only bystander resuscitation and conventional bystander CPR would improve outcomes from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests of ≤15 minutes' duration, whereas the addition of rescue breathing would improve outcomes for cardiac arrests lasting >15 minutes. [Methods and Results] We carried out a prospective, population-based, observational study involving consecutive patients with emergency responder resuscitation attempts from May 1, 1998, through April 30, 2003. The primary outcome measure was 1-year survival with favorable neurological outcome. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate the relationship between type of CPR and outcomes. Among the 4902 witnessed cardiac arrests, 783 received conventional CPR, and 544 received cardiac-only resuscitation. Excluding very-long-duration cardiac arrests (>15 minutes), the cardiac-only resuscitation yielded a higher rate of 1-year survival with favorable neurological outcome than no bystander CPR (4.3% versus 2.5%; odds ratio, 1.72; 95% CI, 1.01 to 2.95), and conventional CPR showed similar effectiveness (4.1%; odds ratio, 1.57; 95% CI, 0.95 to 2.60). For the very-long-duration arrests, neurologically favorable 1-year survival was greater in the conventional CPR group, but there were few survivors regardless of the type of bystander CPR (0.3% [2 of 624], 0% [0 of 92], and 2.2% [3 of 139] in the no bystander CPR, cardiac-only CPR, and conventional CPR groups, respectively; P<0.05). [Conclusions] Bystander-initiated cardiac-only resuscitation and conventional CPR are similarly effective for most adult out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. For very prolonged cardiac arrests, the addition of rescue breathing may be of some help