English Related Difficulties Experienced By Turkish Students Studying In A Dual Diploma ELT Program In The U.S.A.

The purpose of this study was to investigate English language related difficulties experienced by 30 Turkish dual diploma students studying in an ELT (English Language Teaching) program established between a Turkish and an American university, and to see the effects of those difficulties on the students’ adjustment process in the U.S.A. The data of the study were collected through a 60-item questionnaire designed by the researcher and analyzed by using multiple regression analysis, paired-samples t-test, independent-samples t-test, and correlation coefficients. The results of the study indicated that students of this program experience English related difficulties at a moderate level; they experience more English related difficulties in their academic life as compared to their social life; and writing and speaking in academic settings are the most problematic skills for them

Weak solvability of the unconditionally stable difference scheme for the coupled sine-Gordon system

In this paper, we study the existence and uniqueness of weak solution for the system of finite difference schemes for coupled sine-Gordon equations. A novel first order of accuracy unconditionally stable difference scheme is considered. The variational method also known as the energy method is applied to prove unique weak solvability.We also present a new unified numerical method for the approximate solution of this problem by combining the difference scheme and the fixed point iteration. A test problem is considered, and results of numerical experiments are presented with error analysis to verify the accuracy of the proposed numerical method

Foreign language reading strategy use of intermediate level adult Turkish EFL learners

The purpose of this study was to investigate foreign language reading strategy use of a group of intermediate level adult Turkish EFL learners. The participants of the study were 87 Turkish first-year university students who were taking intermediate level English courses at a state university in Turkey. The main instrument of the study was a reading strategies survey which consisted of 30 items with three sub-scales: global or metacognitive reading strategies, problem-solving or cognitive reading strategies, and support reading strategies. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted to support the quantitative data. The quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, frequencies, percentages) and one-way ANOVA with repeated measures. As for the analysis of the qualitative data, tape-recorded interviews were first transcribed and then analyzed by grouping each interviewee’s response according to the sub-scales of the survey. Results of the study indicated that intermediate-level adult Turkish EFL learners show the moderate overall use of reading strategies; problem-solving strategies are the most favored strategies, and they are followed by global reading strategies and supplementary reading strategies

Determining of the University Freshmen Students’ Misconceptions and Alternative Conceptions about Mitosis and Meiosis

AbstractThe purpose of our study is to determine the misconceptions and inadequate information which the university freshmen students’ held about mitosis and meiosis. We majored mostly on the numbers of chromosome potential and the DNA amount in our questions. In addition we wanted our students to interpret their past information about the subject. The results of our qualitative analyses show that students reword interphase as preparatory period but they don’t recognize what happens in this period, precisely. Also, they don’t explain DNA, chromosome and gene concepts. And they don’t precisely recognize the importance of mitosis and meiosis for life

Recurrent Chest Pain, as a Presenting Sign of Ovarian Endometrioma

Chest pain is a rare sign of thoracal endometriosis associated with endometrioma of the tubo-ovarian endometrioma. We report the case periodic episodes of chest pain concurrent with menstruation in a 35-year-old female, in which ovarian endometrioma was diagnosed and left-sided oophorectomy was performed. After surgery, patient underwent medical treatment which included a Gn-RH agonist and a combined oral contraceptive. In the follow-up period, there was no evidence of chest pain

On Stability of a Third Order of Accuracy Difference Scheme for Hyperbolic Nonlocal BVP with Self-Adjoint Operator

A third order of accuracy absolutely stable difference schemes is presented for nonlocal boundary value hyperbolic problem of the differential equations in a Hilbert space H with self-adjoint positive definite operator A. Stability estimates for solution of the difference scheme are established. In practice, one-dimensional hyperbolic equation with nonlocal boundary conditions is considered

On Third Order Stable Difference Scheme for Hyperbolic Multipoint Nonlocal Boundary Value Problem

This paper presents a third order of accuracy stable difference scheme for the approximate solution of multipoint nonlocal boundary value problem of the hyperbolic type in a Hilbert space with self-adjoint positive definite operator. Stability estimates for solution of the difference scheme are obtained. Some results of numerical experiments that support theoretical statements are presented

A Note on the Second Order of Accuracy Stable Difference Schemes for the Nonlocal Boundary Value Hyperbolic Problem

The second order of accuracy absolutely stable difference schemes are presented for the nonlocal boundary value hyperbolic problem for the differential equations in a Hilbert space H with the self-adjoint positive definite operator A. The stability estimates for the solutions of these difference schemes are established. In practice, one-dimensional hyperbolic equation with nonlocal boundary conditions and multidimensional hyperbolic equation with Dirichlet conditions are considered. The stability estimates for the solutions of these difference schemes for the nonlocal boundary value hyperbolic problem are established. Finally, a numerical method proposed and numerical experiments, analysis of the errors, and related execution times are presented in order to verify theoretical statements

Sources of Turkish EFL Learners’ Foreign Language Reading Anxiety

The purpose of this study was to investigate possible sources of reading anxiety experienced by Turkish EFL learners. The participants of the study were 50 first year university students studying at the English Language Teaching program of a public university in Turkey. The study employed the explanatory sequential mixed methods design. First, the quantitative data were collected through Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale (FLRAS), and then the qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews for the purpose of better understanding quantitative data findings. For analyzing the quantitative data, each participant's mean score from FLRAS was computed. As for the qualitative data, the transcribed interviews were analyzed using the constant comparison method, for which the researcher identified the recurring themes through coding, prioritizing and connecting the pieces of data. Results indicated that the participants of the study, in general, experience a moderate level of FL reading anxiety. The following three main categories of FL reading anxiety sources were identified with their ten sub-categories: (1) personal factors (inappropriate reading strategy use, lack of self-confidence, high expectations), (2) features of the reading text (topic familiarity, unknown vocabulary, complex reading structure, text length, figurative language), and (3) reading course (compulsory reading, exam)

Impact of mesoporous silica nanoparticle surface functionality on hemolytic activity, thrombogenicity and non-specific protein adsorption

Although numerous mesoporous silica nanoparticle (MSN) drug carriers and theranostic agents with various surface functionalities have been designed in the last decade, their biocompatibility remains a matter of intensive debate. Here, we systematically evaluated interactions of a series of MSNs possessing different surface functional groups (ionic, polar, neutral, and hydrophobic) with blood constituents, in terms of their hemolytic activity, thrombogenicity, and adsorption of blood proteins on their surfaces. Using a hemolysis assay we showed that surface functionalization can reduce or even completely prevent the hemolytic activity of bare MSNs. We investigated thrombogenicity of MSNs by measuring prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT). We observed that none of the MSNs used in this study exhibit significant thrombogenic activity. Lastly, we examined non-specific protein adsorption on MSN surfaces using human serum albumin (HSA) and gamma globulins (γGs) and found that surface functionalization with ionic groups can greatly reduce protein adsorption. Demonstration of the surface functionalization having a crucial impact on blood compatibility might serve as a guideline for further investigation related to the design of mesoporous silica systems for biomedical applications, and shed light on research towards the ultimate goal of developing smart theranostic systems. © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2013