English Workshops for Primary School Children in Romania – A Privileged Didactic Activity

AbstractThe main aim of the present article consists in highlighting the advantage of teaching English to second language learners within workshops. Among all types of learning activities, workshops have a privileged place, i.e., they do not imply high difficulty examinations and they take place in a relaxed and joyful atmosphere. Our work is intended to emphasize the range of extracurricular educational offers and pinpoint the methods of teaching English as a second language within a borderline educational activity: the workshop. The deliberate and meaningful choice of content, ambience and methods represent important elements meant to grant the success of such types of activities

A retrospective analysis of longitudinal changes in bone mineral content in cystic fibrosis

Background: We aimed to describe the longitudinal changes in bone mineral content and influencing factors, in children with cystic fibrosis (CF). Methods: One hundred children (50 females) had dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) performed. Of these, 48 and 24 children had two to three scans, respectively over 10 years of follow-up. DXA data were expressed as lumbar spine bone mineral content standard deviation score (LSBMCSDS) adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity and bone area. Markers of disease, anthropometry and bone biochemistry were collected retrospectively. Results: Baseline LSBMCSDS was >0.5 SDS in 13% children, between −0.5; 0.5 SDS, in 50% and ≤−0.5 in the remainder. Seventy-eight percent of the children who had baseline LSBMCSDS >−0.5, and 35% of the children with poor baseline (LSBMCSDS<−0.5), showed decreasing values in subsequent assessments. However, mean LS BMC SDS did not show a significant decline in subsequent assessments (−0.51; −0.64; −0.56; p=0.178). Lower forced expiratory volume in 1 s percent (FEV1%) low body mass index standard deviation scores (BMI SDS) and vitamin D were associated with reduction in BMC. Conclusions: Bone mineral content as assessed by DXA is sub-optimal and decreases with time in most children with CF and this study has highlighted parameters that can be addressed to improve bone health

Fault Direction Estimation for DFIG Integrated Distribution System

In Recent years, Distributed energy sources such as wind generators, PV generators, fuel cells have become more attractive to integrate in power system at distribution level because of environmental issues and to replace the fossil fuels which are decreasing day by day. The distributed generation is expected to play a major role in future power systems. The solar and wind energy forms are the two main formsof the renewable energy resources. But, the presence of renewable energy resources will change the traditional distribution system in terms of short circuit power, fault current level and the characteristics of fault currents. These will disturb already existing protection system and cause the entire system to become active. The impact will be majorly on short circuit currents, protection and control

The Hunger Games: Katniss Everdeen\u27s Effort To Gain American Pragmatism Goals In Terms Of American Values

As one of a popular American novel which was published recently, The Hunger Games composed by Suzanne Collins, provides a significant description about the manifestation of American values portrayed by the main character, KatnissEverdeen.Katniss\u27 efforts in the novel are in line with the principle of American Pragmatism, which later on can be analyzed by its relation with the idea of American values, the grounding idea of the framing of this great American philosophy. By applying a sociological approach, this study discover the existence of the two roots of American culture known as American values and American Pragmatism, are still preserved. Katniss successfully manifests the goals of American Pragmatism that certainly taken from American values\u27 idea through her struggle told in the novel. This result leads to the comprehension of how American values influence American\u27s mind in fulfilling their goals or achievements

SOLVENT EFFECTS ON THE ABSORPTION AND FLUORESCENCE SPECTRA OF Er(III) (AZO-DYES AND SCHIFF BASES) COMPLEXES: DETERMINATION OF GROUND AND EXCITED STATE DIPOLE MOMENT

Absorption and fluorescence emission spectra of some thermally stable Er(III) mononuclear complexes of azo dyes, namely o, o` -dihydroxy azobenzene (DAB), o, o` -dihydroxy 4-Cl-phenylazonaphatalene (P1) and Schiff bases o, o` -dihydroxy phenylazomethinnaphatalene (D2), o-hidroxy -o` -carboxy (D3), were recorded in solvents with different solvent dielectric constant ε and refractive index n. The solvatochromic shift method was used to determine the experimental ground and excited state dipole moments of the complexes. All the complexes were proved to be more polar in the excited state as compared with the ground state

Suitability of Different Agricultural and Urban Organic Wastes as Feedstocks for the Production of Biochar—Part 1: Physicochemical Characterisation

Biochar is traditionally made from clean lignocellulosic or waste materials that create no competition for land use. In this paper, the suitability of alternative feedstocks of agricultural and urban origins are explored. A range of biochars was produced from holm oak and a selection of organic wastes, such as greenhouse wastes, greenwastes, a cellulosic urban waste, municipal press cake and pig manure. They were characterized and assessed for their potential agricultural use. The physicochemical properties of biochars were mainly driven by the characteristics of feedstocks and the pyrolysis temperature. The use of pre-treated lignocellulosic residues led to biochars with a high concentration of ash, macro and micronutrients, whereas raw lignocellulosic residues produced biochars with characteristics similar to traditional wood biochars. All biochars were found to be suitable for agricultural use according to the international standards for the use of biochars as soil amendments, with the exception of a biochar from urban origin, which presented high levels of Cr and Pb. The use of these biochars as soil amendments requires a thorough agronomical evaluation to assess their impact on soil biogeochemical cycles and plant growth

Reaction of porphyrin-based surface-anchored metal-organic frameworks to prolonged illumination

Crystalline surface-anchored metal–organic framework (SURMOF) thin films made from porphyrin-based organic linkers have recently been used in both photon upconversion and photovoltaic applications. While these studies showed promising results, the question of photostability in this organic–inorganic hybrid material has to be investigated before applications can be considered. Here, we combine steady-state photoluminescence, transient absorption, and time-resolved electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy to examine the effects of prolonged illumination on a palladium-porphyrin based SURMOF thin film. We find that phototreatment leads to a change in the material\u27s photoresponse caused by the creation of stable products of photodecomposition – likely chlorin – inside the SURMOF structure. When the mobile triplet excitons encounter such a defect site, a short-lived (80 ns) cation–anion radical pair can be formed by electron transfer, wherein the charges are localized at a porphyrin and the photoproduct site, respectively