Economic Growth and its Effect on Poverty Reduction in Russia

This study discusses whether Russiafs economic growth following the 1998 financial crisis is pro-poor. Using Russiafs regional data pertaining to 1995-2002, we estimate the elasticity of poverty to real per capita GRP (gross regional product). The analysis reveals that the elasticity of poverty to growth after the crisis substantially falls at both the national and regional levels. Our results also suggest that inequality increases between and within the richer and poorer regions. We conclude that it is quite necessary to formulate pro-poor policies rather than growth-enhancing ones, in order to alleviate poverty in Russia.Poverty, Inequality, Pro-poor growth, Russia

Wearing sweets: the potential of pastry-inspired-clothing

The research purpose is to explore the relationship between clothing and pastries and to investigate the potential of pastry-inspired-clothing. Accordingly, the goal is to familiarize myself to the correspondence between clothing and pastries, to conduct a research with the research question: “How could pastry-inspired-clothing be accepted as a long-term fashion by young adult females?” and to experiment with a fashion collection based on the research outcomes. First of all, the background which leads to the idea of pastry-inspired-fashion is discussed. Then, identified key terms drawn from the research topic were studied with previous researches. Eventually, my own research was conducted applying an observation and a focus group interview methods. Interviews were transcribed verbatim; then, everything was coded carefully. Through the coding process, five themes were discovered. After examining the links between the themes, these were categorized into two groups. By analyzing the correlations of the themes and the groups, six hypotheses were discovered to answer the research question. In addition to my own research, an experimental fashion collection based on the research outcomes was generated

Deterministic sub-linear space LCE data structures with efficient construction

Given a string $S$ of $n$ symbols, a longest common extension query $\mathsf{LCE}(i,j)$ asks for the length of the longest common prefix of the $i$th and $j$th suffixes of $S$. LCE queries have several important applications in string processing, perhaps most notably to suffix sorting. Recently, Bille et al. (J. Discrete Algorithms 25:42-50, 2014, Proc. CPM 2015: 65-76) described several data structures for answering LCE queries that offers a space-time trade-off between data structure size and query time. In particular, for a parameter $1 \leq \tau \leq n$, their best deterministic solution is a data structure of size $O(n/\tau)$ which allows LCE queries to be answered in $O(\tau)$ time. However, the construction time for all deterministic versions of their data structure is quadratic in $n$. In this paper, we propose a deterministic solution that achieves a similar space-time trade-off of $O(\tau\min\{\log\tau,\log\frac{n}{\tau}\})$ query time using $O(n/\tau)$ space, but significantly improve the construction time to $O(n\tau)$.Comment: updated titl

Small-Space LCE Data Structure with Constant-Time Queries

The longest common extension (LCE) problem is to preprocess a given string w of length n so that the length of the longest common prefix between suffixes of w that start at any two given positions is answered quickly. In this paper, we present a data structure of O(z tau^2 + frac{n}{tau}) words of space which answers LCE queries in O(1) time and can be built in O(n log sigma) time, where 1 leq tau leq sqrt{n} is a parameter, z is the size of the Lempel-Ziv 77 factorization of w and sigma is the alphabet size. The proposed LCE data structure not access the input string w when answering queries, and thus w can be deleted after preprocessing. On top of this main result, we obtain further results using (variants of) our LCE data structure, which include the following: - For highly repetitive strings where the ztau^2 term is dominated by frac{n}{tau}, we obtain a constant-time and sub-linear space LCE query data structure. - Even when the input string is not well compressible via Lempel-Ziv 77 factorization, we still can obtain a constant-time and sub-linear space LCE data structure for suitable tau and for sigma leq 2^{o(log n)}. - The time-space trade-off lower bounds for the LCE problem by Bille et al. [J. Discrete Algorithms, 25:42-50, 2014] and by Kosolobov [CoRR, abs/1611.02891, 2016] do not apply in some cases with our LCE data structure

The Effectiveness of Training Programs on the Fidelity of Neuropsychological Tests

Background: There will probably be an exponential increase in the number of seniors suffering from dementia, as aging is the greatest risk factor for this disease. Therefore, neuropsychological tests to assessing dementia are likely to play an increasingly important role for medical services in Japan. This study developed and evaluated the usefulness of a training program on neuropsychological tests aimed at promoting the understanding of testers with regard to the cognitive functions and communication required in the neuropsychological testing process. Methods: The subjects of this study comprised 20 individuals engaged in administrating neuropsychological tests at the Japan-Multidomain Intervention Trial for Prevention of Dementia in Older Adults with Diabetes. A four-hour training session was held. The first part of the training program focused on “cognitive functions and communication;” the second addressed “neuropsychological tests.” As the main evaluation criteria, a fidelity checklist was created with 14 items designed to measure success or failure with regard to important and easily mistakable aspects of implementing each neuropsychological test. They were conducted three times: before, immediately after, and six months after the training. Results: The main effect of time was significant for the “fidelity” score. The effect size was large at η2 = 0.69. A simple main effect test using the Bonferroni method revealed significant differences between the pre-training and post-training values and between the pre-training and six-month point values. However, no significant differences were found in self-efficacy scores before, immediately after, and six months after the training. Conclusion: This outcome indicates that the fidelity of the subjects to neuropsychological tests increased as a result of the training program, and that this improvement was maintained through the six-month period following the program. Moreover, the large effect size suggests that the training program may be effective in facilitating the mastery of neuropsychological tests in testers

Accuracy assessment methods of tissue marker clip placement after 11-gauge vacuum-assisted stereotactic breast biopsy: comparison of measurements using direct and conventional methods

BACKGROUND:　 The objective of the study was to compare direct measurement with a conventional method for evaluation of clip placement in stereotactic vacuum-assisted breast biopsy (ST-VAB) and to evaluate the accuracy of clip placement using the direct method.　 METHODS:　 Accuracy of clip placement was assessed by measuring the distance from a residual calcification of a targeted calcification clustered to a clip on a mammogram after ST-VAB. Distances in the craniocaudal (CC) and mediolateral oblique (MLO) views were measured in 28 subjects with mammograms recorded twice or more after ST-VAB. The difference in the distance between the first and second measurements was defined as the reproducibility and was compared with that from a conventional method using a mask system with overlap of transparent film on the mammogram. The 3D clip-to-calcification distance was measured using the direct method in 71 subjects.　 RESULTS:　 The reproducibility of the direct method was higher than that of the conventional method in CC and MLO views (P = 0.002, P < 0.001). The median 3D clip-to-calcification distance was 2.8 mm, with an interquartile range of 2.0-4.8 mm and a range of 1.1-36.3 mm.　 CONCLUSION:　 The direct method used in this study was more accurate than the conventional method, and gave a median 3D distance of 2.8 mm between the calcification and clip

現在の英語カリキュラムと新入生の学習者ビリーフに基づく発展的提案

In order to provide students with good teaching, the curriculum needs to be reviewed and revised periodically. Even minor changes can be of benefit. To prepare a better curriculum for students, teachers should know students’ needs and wants. In this report, the present English curriculum at Okayama Prefectural University is described. The present curriculum aims to improve students’ four skills: listening, reading, speaking, and writing in addition to increasing vocabulary and grammar knowledge. Then, the results of a survey on 2018 first-year students’ beliefs regarding learning English are reported. Students’ beliefs include attitude toward English learning, motivation, anxiety, and expectation. Last, based on the results of the survey, the strengths and weaknesses of the present curriculum are discussed.平成30年度に実施された英語カリキュラムを説明し、平成30年度入学生の入学直後の学習者ビリーフ（学習への期待、意欲、不安など）を調査した。調査の結果、3つの学部から構成される岡山県立大学は、学部ごとに、学習者ビリーフが大きく異なることが明らかになった。語学教育推進室は、全学を対象とした統一英語カリキュラムを実施しているが、学部ごとに、学生のニーズに合わせた英語カリキュラムを工夫していく必要がある

Process of parenting a child with RB

Background : Retinoblastoma（RB） occurs at a very young age. Since the disease is diagnosed at an early age, the family is responsible for the care of the childʼs disease acceptance. Objective : This study aims to explore the parenting process of children with RB toward disease acceptance. Methods : Parents of eleven children with RB living in Japan were interviewed, and the data were analyzed using the Modified Grounded Theory Approach of Kinoshita（M-GTA）. Results : There were twenty-one concepts representing the process of parenting a child with RB while guiding him or her toward disease acceptance, and nineteen of them were classified into ten categories based on semantic similarities. The two other concepts showed similar interpretability to categories. These categories and concepts were summarized into two core categories : “Helping the child develop a positive mindset to define the disease as a part of him/herself ” and “Paving the way in advance for the child to live comfortably when his or her living space expands”. Conclusions : In a cyclical framework of parenting, consisting of two core categories described in Results, the parents coordinated these two approaches while maintaining balance by “Avoiding saying anything that does not need to be said” and established their process of parenting a child with RB while guiding him or her toward disease acceptance, according to their household situation. The results suggest the necessity of recognizing that in childhood-onset cancers, such as RB, and diseases involving genetic issues, problems tend to occur not only during the treatment period but also at the time of life events and providing support from a comprehensive perspective