Readability of science textbooks in forms 1 and 2

The readability of science textbooks, used by pupils attending Forms 1 and 2 in state schools, was investigated. According to the Flesch Reading Ease formula and the Fry readability graph, This is Science 1 had a mean reading age of 12.7 years (CI= 1.47) and 11.5 years (CI= 1.54) respectively, whereas This is Science 2 had a mean reading age of 12.6 years (d= 1.2) and 11.6 years (CI= 1.70). Seven versions of two close tests were administered to a sample of 316 Form 1 girls from four area schools and 397 Form 2 girls from the same area schools and a Junior Lyceum. Two methods of scoring were used. It was found that the pupils may understand This is Science 1 if teacher's help is available. This is Science 2 was too difficult for pupils of average and below-average ability but within the capabilities of high-ability pupils.peer-reviewe

Children's wishes

Through the use of a projective technique, the three greatest wishes of 7-year-old and 10-year-old children were analysed. The sample under study included 227 girls and 256 boys attending five primary state schools in Malta. Each child had to think of three wishes which in his/her opinion would be suggested by the child of the same sex in the story. Significance was obtained when considering age as a variable. When considering sex differences, it was found that boys and girls conform to wishes and needs related to their sex whereas certain wishes are associated with one sex group only.peer-reviewe

Social and emotional competence : are preventive programmes necessary in early childhood education and care?

Just as young children begin to develop a wide range of skills, attitudes and behaviours during the early years, the development of social and emotional competence is also rooted in early childhood. Yet, whilst some argue that this competence is nurtured through preventive programmes (Schonert-Reichl 2004), this paper argues against the need for preventive programmes as long as the adults caring for young children are themselves experiencing positive relationships and can be role models providing a stable and positive effect on children during what must be one of their most crucial and vulnerable periods of their life. The paper juxtaposes various interpretations of quality education and care in the early years and emphasises good practice which can promote social and emotional competence without the need to resort to formal, preventive programmes. Assuming that positive and appropriate approaches to early childhood education and care are promoted within homes as well as within formal early years settings, there can be a natural development of emotional and social competence.peer-reviewe

A Bayesian spatial random effects model characterisation of tumour heterogeneity implemented using Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation

The focus of this study is the development of a statistical modelling procedure for characterising intra-tumour heterogeneity, motivated by recent clinical literature indicating that a variety of tumours exhibit a considerable degree of genetic spatial variability. A formal spatial statistical model has been developed and used to characterise the structural heterogeneity of a number of supratentorial primitive neuroecto-dermal tumours (PNETs), based on diffusionweighted magnetic resonance imaging. Particular attention is paid to the spatial dependence of diffusion close to the tumour boundary, in order to determine whether the data provide statistical evidence to support the proposition that water diffusivity in the boundary region of some tumours exhibits a deterministic dependence on distance from the boundary, in excess of an underlying random 2D spatial heterogeneity in diffusion. Tumour spatial heterogeneity measures were derived from the diffusion parameter estimates obtained using a Bayesian spatial random effects model. The analyses were implemented using Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation. Posterior predictive simulation was used to assess the adequacy of the statistical model. The main observations are that the previously reported relationship between diffusion and boundary proximity remains observable and achieves statistical significance after adjusting for an underlying random 2D spatial heterogeneity in the diffusion model parameters. A comparison of the magnitude of the boundary-distance effect with the underlying random 2D boundary heterogeneity suggests that both are important sources of variation in the vicinity of the boundary. No consistent pattern emerges from a comparison of the boundary and core spatial heterogeneity, with no indication of a consistently greater level of heterogeneity in one region compared with the other. The results raise the possibility that DWI might provide a surrogate marker of intra-tumour genetic regional heterogeneity, which would provide a powerful tool with applications in both patient management and in cancer research

Down The Great Unknown: My discovery of Seneca Howland and Just Jim in UMW Theatres\u27 production of Men On Boats

Mina Sollars fulfills her Senior Project at the University of Mary Washington with Klein Theatres\u27 production of Men On Boats by Jaclyn Backhaus. In this production she plays Seneca Howland and Just Jim. This website is a documentation of the preparation and process of these role

Chorda tympani nerve transection at different developmental ages produces differential effects on taste bud volume and papillae morphology in the rat

Chorda tympani nerve transection (CTX) results in morphological changes to fungiform papillae and associated taste buds. When transection occurs during neonatal development in the rat, the effects on fungiform taste bud and papillae structure are markedly more severe than observed following a comparable surgery in the adult rat. The present study examined the potential “sensitive period” for morphological modifications to tongue epithelium following CTX. Rats received unilateral transection at 65, 30, 25, 20, 15, 10, or 5 days of age. With each descending age at the time of transection, the effects on the structural integrity of fungiform papillae were more severe. Significant losses in total number of taste buds and filiform‐like papillae were observed when transection occurred 5–30 days of age. Significant reduction in the number of taste pores was indicated at every age of transection. Another group of rats received chorda tympani transection at 10, 25, or 65 days of age to determine if the time course of taste bud degeneration differed depending on the age of the rat at the time of transection. Taste bud volumes differed significantly from intact sides of the tongue at 2, 8, and 50 days posttransection after CTX at 65 days of age. Volume measurements did not differ 2 days posttransection after CTX at 10 or 25 days of age, but were significantly reduced at the other time points. Findings demonstrate a transitional period throughout development wherein fungiform papillae are highly dependent upon the chorda tympani for maintenance of morphological integrity. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Neurobiol, 200

The Epigenomic Viewpoint on Cellular Differentiation of Myeloid Progenitor Cells as it Pertains to Leukemogenesis

The new millennium has brought with it a surge of research in the field of epigenetics. This has included advances in our understanding of stem cell characteristics and mechanisms of commitment to cell lineages prior to differentiation. The nature of stem cells is similar to that of malignant cells in that they have unlimited self-renewal and protection from apoptosis, leading researchers to suspect that stem cells are the target of oncogenesis. This review will explore the idea of how epigenetic control of gene expression may contribute to mechanisms controlling differentiation of myeloid progenitor cells and its importance to our understanding of myelogenous leukemias. Recent developments in epigenetic research pertaining to differentiation of myeloid progenitor cells and hematopoietic stem cells are presented including aspects of cellular memory, general myelopoiesis, change in gene expression patterns, signal transduction, and the influence of the microenvironment

Biological Bases

Lab Title: Structure/Function Relationships within Sensory Systems Main Idea/Concept Demonstrated or Taught by Lab: Students will examine the way in which individual differences in anatomical structures can influence how the system functions. Perception of a sensory stimulus can vary between individuals. Such structure/function relations in physiological systems can change the way an individual behaves. In this lab, students will test taste intensity of salt and sugar solutions, quantify fungiform papillae (an indirect measure of the number of taste buds), and determine the correlation between the number of fungiform papillae and taste intensity ratings. Lab Title: Modification of Sensory Receptor Structure and Function Main Idea/Concept Demonstrated or Taught by Lab: Students will understand how modification of cellular function may lead to changes in sensory perception

Kafkaesque Absurdity in the Aesthetics of Beckett and Giacometti

The complex zone of what I refer to as the aesthetical absurd is examined in the works of Modernists Kafka, Giacometti, and Beckett. This aesthetic zone, addressed through cognitive poetics, exists between artistic notion, the artist’s ideal cognitive image, and the actual performance or resulting image born in reality. Artistic ideal is evaluated as the aesthetic image or notion that exists in a tentative nascent and emotive state, but one that the artist strives to produce in the world—to reconstruct from the cognitive zone of creativity—but at times fails to bring to completion or fruition. This ever present bifurcation between these two conflictive states leads to a new view of the Sisyphean absurd. Kafka stands as the beginning point of the discussion. His fragmented, at times incomplete, writing serves as a touchstone to position the aesthetics of the later Beckett and Giacometti, a sculptor. Beckett mirrors Kafka’s sensibility, and relates his negative aesthetic, one lacking or hiding any visible scaffolding for the artistic process. Beckett and Giacometti were friends and collaborated on crafting props for a staging of his signature play Waiting for Godot, a failed attempt. An assessment of the aesthetics of these three artists advances the understanding of their works in terms of the aesthetical absurd