Parental Spatial Input During Parent-Child Interactions: A Two-Dimensional versus a Three-Dimensional Learning Experience

Children’s spatial ability is predictive of their future achievement in many academic and occupational domains, including science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM; e.g., Wai at el., 2009). During the early years, experiences such as hearing spatial language (e.g., Ferrara et al., 2011) and engaging in spatial activities with three-dimensional (3D) blocks or puzzles (e.g., Casey et al., 2008) are found to facilitate children’s spatial learning. Other than 3D toys, the use of two-dimensional (2D) touchscreen media (e.g., iPads®) by young children has been on the rise (e.g., Rideout, 2013). Technology has become part of children’s daily activities and a tool to promote language learning (e.g., Penuel et al., 2009). However, there is a dearth of research specifically investigating the nature of parent-child interactions and children’s spatial learning using digital mobile devices. Therefore, the present study examined the frequency and variation of parental linguistic input elicited during play using an iPad® (a 2D touchscreen device) and using 3D spatial toys. In addition to the types of spatial learning (3D versus 2D), factors such as parents’ spatial anxiety and attitudes towards math can also influence their spatial language production. Research suggests that one’s attitude or anxiety towards mathematics can influence the amount of numeracy talk in which individuals engage (e.g., Gunderson et al., 2013). However, no studies have examined the relationship between spatial anxiety and spatial talk. The present study examined whether the amount of parental spatial talk was influenced by their attitudes towards math, spatial anxiety. The present exploratory study has three objectives: (i) to examine the frequency and variation of parental spatial language during 3D spatial toys versus 2D iPad® visual-spatial applications interactions with their preschoolers, (ii) to investigate whether parental spatial input (i.e., language and activities) predicts children’s spatial knowledge, and (iii) to explore the role of parental spatial anxiety and attitude towards mathematics on their spatial language input. Thirty-four 3- to 5-year-old children and their parents participated in interaction with 3D and 2D spatial learning media at two home visit sessions. Math and spatial activities engaged by the dyads at home, parental level of spatial anxiety, and attitude towards math were assessed. Children were tested with the Woodcock Johnson III Tests (Woodcock et al., 2001) for spatial, math, language competencies, and working memory capacity. Their spatial abilities were also assessed via 3D Mega Blocks© Test of Spatial Assembly (TOSA; Verdine et al., 2014). The sessions were videotaped, transcribed, and coded for the frequency and variation of spatial talk produced by parent-child dyads. Results revealed that parents used more spatial talk with regards to spatial dimensions in 3D interaction and more orientations and transformations during 2D interaction, yet the total frequency and variation of parental spatial talk did not differ between 3D and 2D interaction. As parents engaged in a relatively infrequent spatial talk (6% in 3D talk and 5% in 2D talk), the frequency of parental spatial input was not predictive of preschoolers’ spatial language production, which led to a minimal effect on their spatial competence. Furthermore, parental levels of spatial anxiety and attitudes toward math were not related to the amount of parental spatial input produced during parent-child interactions. The present study underscores the importance of supporting parents with pointers on how to instill spatial talk and activities with their preschoolers. Implications on the use of 3D and 2D learning media are discussed

Moment inequalities and their application

This paper provides conditions under which the inequality constraints generated by either single agent optimizing behavior, or by the Nash equilibria of multiple agent problems, can be used as a basis for estimation and inference. We also add to the econometric literature on inference in models defined by inequality constraints by providing a new specification test and methods of inference for the boundaries of the model's identified set. Two applications illustrate how the use of inequality constraints can simplify the problem of obtaining estimators from complex behavioral models of substantial applied interest.

Physician incentives introduced by the new Accountable Care Organizations could reduce costs of care by 5 percent

The U.S. spends more on healthcare as a percentage of GDP and on a per capita basis, than any other country in the world, something that aspects of 2010’s Affordable Care Act aim to alleviate. Kate Ho and Ariel Pakes take a close look at the likely effects of Accountable Care Organizations: groups of providers whose payment arrangements give physicians incentives to control costs. They find that through capitation (flat, fixed payments) and the sharing of savings, these new organizations could reduce healthcare costs by between 4.5 and 5 percent without corresponding quality reductions

A mechanistic model of the regulation of division timing by the circadian clock in cyanobacteria

The cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus possesses a circadian clock in the form of a group of proteins whose concentrations and phosphorylation states oscillate with daily periodicity under constant conditions. The circadian clock regulates the cell cycle such that the timing of the cell divisions is biased toward certain times during the circadian period, but the mechanism underlying this phenomenon remains unclear. Here, we propose a mechanism in which a protein limiting for division accumulates at a rate proportional to the cell volume growth and is modulated by the clock. This “modulated rate” model, in which the clock signal is integrated over time to affect division timing, differs fundamentally from the previously proposed “gating” concept, in which the clock is assumed to suppress divisions during a specific time window. We found that although both models can capture the single-cell statistics of division timing in S. elongatus, only the modulated rate model robustly places divisions away from darkness during changes in the environment. Moreover, within the framework of the modulated rate model, existing experiments on S. elongatus are consistent with the simple mechanism that division timing is regulated by the accumulation of a division limiting protein in a phase with genes whose activity peaks at dusk

Effect of chronic octreotide treatment on intestinal absorption in patients with acromegaly

The adverse gastrointestinal effects of octreotide, a synthetic analog of somatostatin, have not been fully elucidated. Low-dose octreotide frequently causes adverse gastrointestinal symptoms in normal individuals. We investigated the adverse gastrointestinal effects of high-dose octreotide, which is required for the normalization of growth hormone hypersecretion in some patients with acromegaly. Patients with acromegaly ( N =8) were treated with octreotide, 450 μg/day, then 1500 μg/day for two months at each dosage. Carbohydrate absorption was assessed using the d -xylose test, and fat absorption using fecal fat excretion and serum carotene concentrations, at baseline, at each dosage of octreotide, and after one month of washout. Ultrasonography was used to monitor for cholelithiasis. Growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor-I concentrations were significantly suppressed at both dosages. Adverse gastrointestinal symptoms were mild and transient. d -Xylose absorption remained normal at each dosage and after one month of washout. Fecal fat excretion increased from 7±2 to 12±2 g/24 hr ( P <0.05) after the higher dosage and resumed baseline levels after the washout. Mean fasting serum carotene levels remained normal, and carotene loading test (15,000 units three times a day for three days) was unreliable in identifying patients with high fecal fat. No new cholelithiasis was detected by ultrasonography. One of two patients with preexisting cholelithiasis developed biliary colic several days after the treatment period. Although steatorrhea was common, small intestinal absorptive capacity was otherwise unchanged by four months of high-dose octreotide treatment, which significantly suppressed growth hormone secretion in acromegalic patients.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44417/1/10620_2005_Article_BF01307549.pd

The clustering of Galaxies in the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey : including covariance matrix errors

JP acknowledges support from the UK Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC) through the consolidated grant ST/K0090X/1 and from the European Research Council through the ‘Starting Independent Research’ grant 202686, MDEPUGS. AGS acknowledges support from the Trans-regional Collaborative Research Centre TR33 ‘The Dark Universe’ of the German Research Foundation (DFG).We present improved methodology for including covariance matrices in the error budget of Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS) galaxy clustering measurements, revisiting Data Release 9 (DR9) analyses, and describing a method that is used in DR10/11 analyses presented in companion papers. The precise analysis method adopted is becoming increasingly important, due to the precision that BOSS can now reach: even using as many as 600 mock catalogues to estimate covariance of two-point clustering measurements can still lead to an increase in the errors of ∼20 per cent, depending on how the cosmological parameters of interest are measured. In this paper, we extend previous work on this contribution to the error budget, deriving formulae for errors measured by integrating over the likelihood, and to the distribution of recovered best-fitting parameters fitting the simulations also used to estimate the covariance matrix. Both are situations that previous analyses of BOSS have considered. We apply the formulae derived to baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) and redshift-space distortion (RSD) measurements from BOSS in our companion papers. To further aid these analyses, we consider the optimum number of bins to use for two-point measurements using the monopole power spectrum or correlation function for BAO, and the monopole and quadrupole moments of the correlation function for anisotropic-BAO and RSD measurements.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

The clustering of galaxies in the completed SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey: tomographic BAO analysis of DR12 combined sample in configuration space

We perform a tomographic baryon acoustic oscillations analysis using the two-point galaxy correlation function measured from the combined sample of BOSS DR12, which covers the redshift range of $0.2<z<0.75$. Splitting the sample into multiple overlapping redshift slices to extract the redshift information of galaxy clustering, we obtain a measurement of $D_A(z)/r_d$ and $H(z)r_d$ at nine effective redshifts with the full covariance matrix calibrated using MultiDark-Patchy mock catalogues. Using the reconstructed galaxy catalogues, we obtain the precision of $1.3\%-2.2\%$ for $D_A(z)/r_d$ and $2.1\%-6.0\%$ for $H(z)r_d$. To quantify the gain from the tomographic information, we compare the constraints on the cosmological parameters using our 9-bin BAO measurements, the consensus 3-bin BAO and RSD measurements at three effective redshifts in \citet{Alam2016}, and the non-tomographic (1-bin) BAO measurement at a single effective redshift. Comparing the 9-bin with 1-bin constraint result, it can improve the dark energy Figure of Merit by a factor of 1.24 for the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder parametrisation for equation of state parameter $w_{\rm DE}$. The errors of $w_0$ and $w_a$ from 9-bin constraints are slightly improved when compared to the 3-bin constraint result.Comment: 14 pages, 21 figures, 7 Tables. Submitted to MNRA

The clustering of galaxies in the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey : cosmological implications of the full shape of the clustering wedges in the data release 10 and 11 galaxy samples

We explore the cosmological implications of the angle-averaged correlation function, ξ(s), and the clustering wedges, ξ⊥(s) and ξ∥(s), of the LOWZ and CMASS galaxy samples from Data Releases 10 and 11 of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey III (SDSS-III) Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey. Our results show no significant evidence for a deviation from the standard Λ cold dark matter model. The combination of the information from our clustering measurements with recent data from the cosmic microwave background is sufficient to constrain the curvature of the Universe to Ωk = 0.0010 ± 0.0029, the total neutrino mass to ∑mν < 0.23 eV (95 per cent confidence level), the effective number of relativistic species to Neff = 3.31 ± 0.27 and the dark energy equation of state to wDE = −1.051 ± 0.076. These limits are further improved by adding information from Type Ia supernovae and baryon acoustic oscillations from other samples. In particular, this data set combination is completely consistent with a time-independent dark energy equation of state, in which case we find wDE = −1.024 ± 0.052. We explore the constraints on the growth rate of cosmic structures assuming f(z) = Ωm(z)γ and obtain γ = 0.69 ± 0.15, consistent with the predictions of general relativity of γ = 0.55.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe