Methods of Instruction for English as a Second Language: The Impact of English as a Second Language Program Models on English Language Learners’ English Proficiency

The broad diversity of students learning English as a second language (ESL) has led to inadequate ESL programs among elementary, middle, and high school students in public school systems in the United States. Examined in the paper are the three main types of ESL instruction methods: English-only immersion, bilingual English, and sheltered English instruction. While there has been ample research on the various ESL programs, there has not been as much research on exactly how these programs affect the development of English for both ELL students who are born in the United States and those who immigrated to the United States. ESL instruction methods are highly debated due to the diversity of students who are considered to be English language learners. One of the biggest issues in question is how to design English as a second language curriculum in order to best suit a greater number of English language learners. This research effectively highlights why a specific ESL program works in a particular academic setting, and why the other ESL programs do not

Antiretroviral Non-Adherence is Associated With a Retrieval Profile of Deficits in Verbal Episodic Memory.

HIV-associated deficits in verbal episodic memory are commonly associated with antiretroviral non-adherence; however, the specific aspects of memory functioning (e.g., encoding, consolidation, or retrieval) that underlie this established relationship are not well understood. This study evaluated verbal memory profiles of 202 HIV+ participants who underwent a 30-day electronic monitoring of antiretroviral adherence. At the group level, non-adherence was significantly associated with lower scores on immediate and delayed passage recall and word list learning. Retention and recognition of passages and word lists were not related to adherence. Participants were then classified as having either a normal verbal memory profile, a "subcortical" retrieval profile (i.e., impaired free recall with relatively spared recognition), or a "cortical" encoding profile (e.g., cued recall intrusions) based on the Massman et al. ( 1990 ) algorithm for the California Verbal Learning Test. HIV+ participants with a classic retrieval deficit had significantly greater odds of being non-adherent than participants with a normal or encoding profile. These findings suggest that adherence to prescribed antiretroviral regimens may be particularly vulnerable to disruption in HIV+ individuals due to deficits in the complex process of efficiently accessing verbal episodic information with minimal cues. A stronger relationship between non-adherence and passage (vs. word list) recall was also found and may reflect the importance of contextual features in remembering to take medications. Targeted interventions for enhancing and supporting episodic memory retrieval processes may improve antiretroviral adherence and overall health outcomes among persons living with HIV

Atom-specific identification of adsorbed chiral molecules by photoemission

The study of chiral adsorbed molecules is important for an analysis of enantioselectivity in heterogeneous catalysis. Here we show that such molecules can be identified through circular dichroism in core-level photoemission arising from the chiral carbon atoms in stereoisomers of 2,3-butanediol molecules adsorbed on Si(100), using circularly polarized x rays. The asymmetry in the carbon 1s intensity excited by right and left circularly polarized light is readily observed, and changes sign with the helicity of the radiation or handedness of the enantiomers; it is absent in the achiral form of the molecule. This observation demonstrates the possibility of determining molecular chirality in the adsorbed phase

Structural Characterization of Surfactant-Coated Bimetallic Cobalt/Nickel Nanoclusters by XPS, EXAFS, WAXS, and SAXS

Cobalt nickel bimetallic nanoparticles were synthesized by changing the sequence of the chemical reduction of Co(II) and Ni(II) ions confined in the core of bis(2-ethylhexyl)phosphate (2)., and Ni(DEHP)(2). The reduction was carried out by mixing, sequentially or contemporaneously, fixed amounts of n-heptane solution of Co(DEHP)2 and Ni(DEHP)2 micelles with a solution of sodium borohydride in ethanol at a fixed (reductant)/(total metal) molar ratio. This procedure involves the rapid formation of surfactant-coated nanoparticles, indicated as Co/Ni (Co after Ni), Ni/Co (Ni after Co), and Co + Ni (simultaneous), followed by their slow separation as nanostructures embedded in a sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl)phosphate matrix. The resulting composites, together with those obtained by reducing the n-heptane solutions of pure Co(DEHP)(2) or Ni(DEHP)(2), were characterized by XPS, EXAFS, WAXS, and SAXS. The data analysis confirms the presence of nanometer-sized surfactant-coated cobalt, nickel, and cobalt/nickel particles. As expected, the composition and internal structure of cobalt/nickel bimetallic nanoparticles are influenced by the preparation sequence as well as by the "chemical affinity" between the surfactant and the metal. However, some atomic-scale physicochemical processes play a subtle role in determining the structural features of bimetallic nanoparticles. Further effects due to the competition between nanoparticle growing process and surfactant adsorption at the nanoparticle surface were observed

Assessing Food Quality and Regulations at Homeless Shelters in Philadelphia

Introduction: Nutritional diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and cholesterol disorders are particularly high among individuals experiencing homelessness in comparison to the general United States population, leading the propagation of chronic health conditions and overuse of expensive healthcare resources. In addition, the food served in homeless shelters is the main source of nutrition for those living in these shelters, most notably when there is no option for food storage available. Despite the disproportionate prevalence of nutrition-related diseases among the homeless population, there is limited research on the quality of the food provided in homeless shelters and there are few policies to regulate the food being served. Methods: This exploratory study assesses and compares the quality of food provided as well as the nutritional policies that have been implemented in Philadelphia homeless shelters and nonprofit organizations that care for individuals experiencing homelessness. This study also assesses how food is obtained, prepared, and distributed. Leadership and staff members from Philadelphia homeless shelters are interviewed about food quality, food-related procedures, and food policies at the shelter. Responses from the interview are coded by performing a content analysis. Results: Five staff members from different homeless shelters were interviewed. A content analysis performed by two researchers revealed food quality at shelters to be ____. Barriers to improving food quality included _____. __ shelters had food-related policies that improved the quality of food served, including ____. Conclusion: The assumed data suggests that the nutritional quality of food at the shelters is generally poor and that shelter leadership cites similar barriers to improving nutritional quality as those in prior studies. In addition, shelter leadership offered few policies in place to improve the nutritional quality of food, whereas the nonprofit organizations had policies that allow for higher nutritional quality of food. Results provide insight into nutrition initiatives that have been successful among shelters, and future studies should examine the efficacy of these policies

Acid-Base Disorders in ICU Patients

Metabolic acid-base disorders are comnom clinical problems in ICU patients. Arterial blood gas analysis and anion gap (AG) are important laboratory data in approaching acid-base interpretation. When measuring the AG, several factors such as albumin have influence on unmeasured anions and unmeasured cations. If a patient has hypoalbuminemia, the AG should be adjusted according to the albumin level. High AG metabolic acidoses including lactic acidosis, ketoacidosis, and ingestion of toxic alcohols are common in ICU patients. The treatment target of lactic acidosis and ketoacidosis is not the acidosis, but the underlying condition causing acidosis. Gastric acid loss, diuretics, volume depletion, renal compensation for respiratory acidosis, hypokalemia, and mineralocorticoid excess are common causes of metaboic alkalosis. In chloride responsive metaboic alkalosis, volume and potassium repletion are mandatory

Inhibition of the anaphase-promoting complex by the Xnf7 ubiquitin ligase

Degradation of specific protein substrates by the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC) is critical for mitotic exit. We have identified the protein Xenopus nuclear factor 7 (Xnf7) as a novel APC inhibitor able to regulate the timing of exit from mitosis. Immunodepletion of Xnf7 from Xenopus laevis egg extracts accelerated the degradation of APC substrates cyclin B1, cyclin B2, and securin upon release from cytostatic factor arrest, whereas excess Xnf7 inhibited APC activity. Interestingly, Xnf7 exhibited intrinsic ubiquitin ligase activity, and this activity was required for APC inhibition. Unlike other reported APC inhibitors, Xnf7 did not associate with Cdc20, but rather bound directly to core subunits of the APC. Furthermore, Xnf7 was required for spindle assembly checkpoint function in egg extracts. These data suggest that Xnf7 is an APC inhibitor able to link spindle status to the APC through direct association with APC core components

Large-area polycrystalline α-MoO3 thin films for IR photonics

In recent years, the excitation of surface phonon polaritons (SPhPs) in van der Waals materials received wide attention from the nanophotonics community. Alpha-phase Molybdenum trioxide (α-MoO3), a naturally occurring biaxial hyperbolic crystal, emerged as a promising polaritonic material due to its ability to support SPhPs for three orthogonal directions at different wavelength bands (range 10–20 µm). Here, we report on the fabrication, structural, morphological, and optical IR characterization of large-area (over 1 cm2 size) α-MoO3 polycrystalline film deposited on fused silica substrates by pulsed laser deposition. Due to the random grain distribution, the thin film does not display any optical anisotropy at normal incidence. However, the proposed fabrication method allows us to achieve a single α-phase, preserving the typical strong dispersion related to the phononic response of α-MoO3 flakes. Remarkable spectral properties of interest for IR photonics applications are reported. For instance, a polarization-tunable reflection peak at 1006 cm−1 with a dynamic range of ∆R = 0.3 and a resonance Q-factor as high as 53 is observed at 45◦ angle of incidence. Additionally, we report the fulfillment of an impedance matching condition with the SiO2 substrate leading to a polarization-independent almost perfect absorption condition (R < 0.01) at 972 cm−1 which is maintained for a broad angle of incidence. In this framework our findings appear extremely promising for the further development of mid-IR lithography-free, scalable films, for efficient and large-scale sensors, filters, thermal emitters, and label-free biochemical sensing devices operating in the free space, using far-field detection setups