Digital Commons Network^™

Can Engagement Be Compared? Measuring Academic Engagement For Comparison, Ling Tan, Xiaoxun Sun, Siek Toon Khoo

Dr Siek Toon Khoo

Student engagement is a reflection of active involvement in learning. In digital learning environment, research studies on engagement have been focused on detecting behavioral and psychological engagement indicators from the patterns of activities using feature engineering, but student engagement estimates were rarely compared across sessions or across domains of learning. This paper describes how this could be done by revisiting engagement instrument, diagnosing engagement indicators, estimating engagement parameters, and equating. This study illustrates how engagement reliability can be improved by refining engagement indictors. We demonstrated through DataShop data that student engagement levels can be compared across domains of learning.

Optimal Planning For Traffic Signal Alternative Power Sources In Signal Network, Mo Zhao, Anuj Sharma

Mo Zhao

Dark signals and flash operation during traffic signal malfunction can degrade the efficiency and safety at an intersection warranting a signalized control. Alternative power sources, such as an uninterruptable power supply system, can provide power protection as well as power back-up to the traffic control systems. The policy makers, with limited budgets and unlimited demands, need a tool to choose signalized intersections that can be provided with backup power. They also need to decide the battery capacity at these intersections. At present, there exists no such tool that can help to make an optimal choice for capacity and installation of …

Political Competition And Local Social Spending: Evidence From Brazil, Carew Boulding, David Brown

David C. Brown

Electoral theories of democracy imply electoral competition insures accountability. Using data on local elections, socioeconomic factors, and municipal budgets from more than 5,000 municipalities in Brazil for the years 1996, 2000, and 2004, we find that municipalities with more competitive elections allocate less to social spending compared to municipalities with little political competition. We argue that previous theory on political competition and public goods obscures the critical role that financial resources play in shaping the dynamics of social spending and political competition. Municipalities with small budgets lack the resources necessary to engineer convincing electoral victories. Where resources are negligible, voter …

Examining Cohort Differences And Resilience Among The Aging Lgbt Community: Implications For Education And Practice Among An Expansively Diverse Population, Michael Dentato, John Orwat, Marcia Spira, Benjamin Walker

Marcia Spira

Gender And Theory Of Mind In Preschoolers’ Group Effort: Evidence For Timing Differences Behind Children’S Earliest Social Loafing, Robert Thompson, Bill Thornton

Bill Thornton

This study explored mental state reasoning within the context of group effort and possible differences in development between boys and girls. Preschool children (59 girls, 47 boys) were assessed for theory of mind (ToM) ability using classic false belief tests. Children participated in group effort conditions that alternated from one condition, where individual effort was transparent and obvious, to one where individual effort remained anonymous. The aim was to investigate if emergent mental state reasoning, after controlling for age, was associated with the well-known phenomenon of reduced effort in group tasks (“social loafing”). Girls had slightly higher ToM scores and …

Examining Cohort Differences And Resilience Among The Aging Lgbt Community: Implications For Education And Practice Among An Expansively Diverse Population, Michael Dentato, John Orwat, Marcia Spira, Benjamin Walker

John Orwat

Who's Talking About (And Citing) Me? Tracking Your Work Using Databases, Google, Web Of Knowledge, And Altmetrics Tools, Julia Lovett, Andrée Rathemacher, Amanda Izenstark

Julia Lovett

Slides and handouts from a presentation, "Who's Talking About (and Citing) Me? Tracking Your Work using Databases, Google, Web of Knowledge, and Altmetrics Tools," offered at the University of Rhode Island Libraries on April 9 and April 10, 2014.

"Stop using the impact factor as a measure of the value of your research. There are better ways. In this hands-on session find out about tools that can help you learn how your work is being received, used, and disseminated across scholarly platforms and social media networks."

Part of the University Libraries' Search Savvy Seminar series.

Copyright, Fair Use, And Education: Your Rights As A Student, Faculty Member, And Researcher, Julia Lovett, Andrée Rathemacher, Angel Ferria

Julia Lovett

Slides, handouts, and classroom examples from a presentation, "Copyright, Fair Use, and Education: Your Rights as a Student, Faculty Member, and Researcher," offered at the University of Rhode Island Libraries on February 24 and February 25, 2014.

"Learn how Fair Use can help you incorporate copyrighted works (written material, images, video, etc.) into your research, teaching, and academic projects. Have questions about Fair Use and Copyright? Please bring them to these interactive sessions!"

Part of the University Libraries' Search Savvy Seminar series.

Toward A Radical Integral Humanism: Macintyre’S Continuing Marxism, Jeffery Nicholas

Jeffery Nicholas

I argue that we must read Alasdair MacIntyre’s mature work through a Marxist lens. I begin by discussing his argument that we must choose which God to worship on principles of justice, which, it turns out, are ones given to us by God. I contend that this argument entails that we must see Mac- Intyre’s early Marxist commitments as given to him by God, and, therefore, that he has never abandoned them in his turn to Thomistic-Aristotelianism. I examine his reading of Marx, with its emphasis on the concept of alienation as a Christian concept, and explain how this reading …

Impact Of The Municipal Solid Waste Incineration Plant In Warsaw On Air Quality, Robert Oleniacz

Robert Oleniacz

The only Polish municipal solid waste (MSW) incinerator has been operating within the Municipal Solid Waste Disposal Plant in Warsaw since 2000. In the paper selected results of the air quality impact assessment for this incinerator during an operating period of one year (2008) are presented. With respect to the incinerated waste amounts and emission levels, the analysed period can be considered typical for this facility. Assessment of the air quality impact was carried out by assessing air pollutant emissions in reference to the applicable emission limit values and by modeling atmospheric dispersion of these pollutants. It has been found …

Dietary Variety Is Inversely Associated With Body Adiposity Among Us Adults Using A Novel Food Diversity Index.Pdf, Maya Vadiveloo, L. Beth Dixon, Tod Mijanovich, Brian Elbel, Niyati Parekh

Maya Vadiveloo

Greater Healthful Food Variety As Measured By The Us Healthy Food Diversity Index Is Associated With Lower Odds Of Metabolic Syndrome And Its Components In Us Adults.Pdf, Maya Vadiveloo, Niyati Parekh, Josiemer Mattei

Maya Vadiveloo

Hiv Symptom Burden And Anemia Among Hiv-Positive Individuals: Cross-Sectional Results Of A Community-Based Positive Living With Hiv (Polh) Study In Nepal, Catherine Martin, Kalpana Poudel-Tandukar, Krishna C. Poudel

Krishna C. Poudel

Mullen's Choices, Rowan Cahill

Rowan Cahill

Obituary/biographical note concerning Geoff Mullen (1947-2014), and his anti-conscription activities (1967-1972) in Australia during the Vietnam War.

Computer Aided Pronunciation Learning For Al-Jabari Method: A Review, Noor Jamaliah Ibrahim, Mohd Yamani Idna Idris, Zulkifli Mohd Yusoff

Noor Jamaliah Ibrahim

Speech processing for Quranic Arabic is an active field of research, since a few years ago. We propose in this paper, a review on the potential of automatic speech recognition (ASR) computer-based technology to support Quranic learning processes. Thus, the aspects of Computer-Aided Pronunciation Learning (CAPL) are discussed, focusing towards the implementation on Quranic learning through Al-Jabari method. We believe Al-Jabari method is fast and efficient, as well as a practical way of learning Al-Quran. The analysis of CAPL systems towards the implementation in Quranic learning through Al-Jabari method are discussed in details.

Primary Health Centres And Patients Satisfaction Level In Haripad Community Development Block Of Kerala, India, Sarath Chandran

SARATH CHANDRAN

The main objectives of the present study were to show the spatial distribution of Primary Health Centres in the Haripad Block of Kerala and to investigate the patients’ perception regarding the services provided by the Primary Health Centres. Spatial distribution of Primary Health centres was shown with the help of GIS mapping. Out of eight Primary Health Centres of the Block, five of them were selected by lottery method of simple random sampling for the present study. A pre designed schedule was used for t tabulated and analysed by using of primary health care services in Haripad The major problems …

Modelling Non-Euclideanmovement And Landscape Connectivity In Highly Structured Ecological Networks, Chris Sutherland, Angela Fuller, J. Royle

Chris Sutherland

دینامیک سیستم های قدرت - فصل دوم, Hadi Zayandehroodi

Dr. Hadi Zayandehroodi

No abstract provided.

دینامیک سیستم های قدرت - فصل سوم - قسمت اول, Hadi Zayandehroodi

Dr. Hadi Zayandehroodi

No abstract provided.

Grid Connected Roof Top Solar Power Generation: A Review, Radhey Shyam Meena

Radhey Shyam Meena

India is blessed with rich solar energy and if exploited efficiently, the country has the potential of producing trillionkilowatts of electricity. Sunlight is converted to electricity directly when made to fall on solar photovoltaic (SPV) modules. Systems /devices are made for various applications based on SPV modules connected with suitably designed power conditioning units for meeting electricity requirements. These systems/devices are designed to work in offgrid mode (usually supported with batteries to allow use when sunlight is low or during night). In recent years solar PV systems became viable and attractive. Utility scale plants are being set up worldwide with …

The Umunri-Enugwu Ukwu Ancestral Connection: A Historical Perspective, Dr Williams Emeka Obiozor

Dr Williams Emeka Obiozor

Salutations! HRM Eze Enugwu-Ukwu and Igwe Umunri, Sir Ralph Obumneme Ekpeh, Okpalanakana Ukabia Nri IV, members of the Royal cabinet, Ndi Ichie, Nze na Ozo, Hon. Justice Nkem Izuako of the UN Int. Courts, ECDU PG, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen present. I greet you. I am standing here to present this paper not because I know it all but because the onus fell on me by sheer luck. Yes, I said ‘luck’ because I know that Enugwu-Ukwu has men and women with great intellect in archaeology, anthropology and history who may even do better than me but here I …

Text Autopsy: A Sine Qua Non For Emotiveness In Arabic-English Translation, Mohammad Ahmad Thawabteh Mat

Mohammad Ahmad Thawabteh MAT

Text is deemed as a minimal unit of communication in intercultural transaction, and should be fully borne in mind in any translation activity as translation is first and foremost thought to be a project for maintaining communicative thrust between the Source Language (SL) and the Target Language (TL). This can be achieved by observing minimal denotative meanings and relaying maximal connotative meanings of the SL text so that emotiveness can be secured. This paper borrows a criminological term ʻautopsyʼ for detailed componential analysis of emotiveness, based on the assumption in discourse analysis that text is an animated entity replete with …

Elements Of Crimenal Conduct, Mohamad Ali Ali Yousefkhani Mr

Mohamad Ali Ali Yousefkhani

The thing that sometimes irks people and family are destitution.in many countries we see that some families drift a part due to the said subject, and less crimes are happened because of sexual and love. Therefore in this topic we want to consider the most important elements that caused into the above subject.

The Impact Of The Volatility Of Monetary Policy On A Small Economy: Some Evidence From New Zealand, Reza Moosavi Mohseni Dr., Jiling Cao, Wenjun Zhang

Reza Moosavi Mohseni

This paper investigates the impact of the international and domestic volatility of monetary policy shocks on a small economy using the GARCH-SVAR model. We enrich the SVAR model by using time-varying International and domestic volatilities as endogenous variables. The results show that although monetary policy shocks have transient effect on real economy (neutrality of money) the impact of the volatility of monetary policy shocks on real part of the economy is permanent and significant. Findings of variance decomposition also show that New Zealand heavily depends on international trade, so international monetary shocks can have a permanent impact on the local …

Filosofía De La Responsabilidad Extracontractual: Un Llamado Al Debate, Jorge Luis Fabra

Jorge Luis Fabra Zamora

Recientemente se ha comenzado a hablar con fuerza de la “filosofía de la responsabilidad extracontractual” en Latinoamérica. La publicación de varias compilaciones de artículos, la traducción de uno de los textos fundacionales del área, y la publicación del primer libro con una contribución original al debate en español han hecho que este estudio filosófico se consolide un cuerpo académico por mérito propio. Sin embargo, a pesar de estos logros, la idea de una “filosofía de la responsabilidad extracontractual” puede sonar extraña al jurista práctico. Como señala Zipursky, desde la perspectiva de los jueces o abogados, la responsabilidad extracontractual –que se …

Static Security Enhancement And Loss Minimization Using A Simulated Annealing Based Approach, Almoataz Youssef Abdelaziz

Almoataz Youssef Abdelaziz

A developed algorithm for optimal placement and sizing of thyristor controlled series capacitors (TCSC’s) for enhancing the static security of power system and minimizing the overall power system loss is presented in this paper. A procedure to determine the optimal locations and sizes of the thyristor controlled series capacitors is illustrated and presented. The locations are determined by evaluating contingency sensitivity index (CSI) for a given power system branch for a given number of contingencies. Optimal sizes of TCSC’s are determined by the optimization technique of simulated annealing (SA), where TCSC’s settings are chosen to minimize the overall power system …

Examining The Regulatory Value Of Multi-Route Mammalian Acute Systemic Toxicity Studies, Troy Seidle, Pilar Prieto, Anna Bulgheroni

Troy Seidle, PhD

Regulatory information requirements for pesticides call for submission of acute systemic toxicity data for up to three different exposure routes (oral, dermal, inhalation) for both active ingredients and formulated products. Similar multi-route testing is required in the European Union and elsewhere for industrial chemicals. To determine the value of acute toxicity testing by more than one route, oral-dermal and oralinhalation concordances among regulatory classifications were examined for large data sets of chemicals and pesticide active ingredients. Across all sectors examined, oral acute toxicity classifications for pure active substances were more severe than those derived from dermal data in more than …

The Development Of New Concepts For Assessing Reproductive Toxicity Applicable To Large Scale Toxicological Programmes, S. Bremer, C. Pellizzer, S. Hoffmann, T. Seidle, T. Hartung

Troy Seidle, PhD

Large scale toxicological testing programmes which are currently ongoing such as the new European chemical legislation REACH require the development of new integrated testing strategies rather than applying traditional testing schemes to thousands of chemicals. The current practice of requiring in vivo testing for every possible adverse effect endanger the success of these programmes due (i) to limited testing facilities and sufficient capacity of scientific/technical knowledge for reproductive toxicity; (ii) an unacceptable number of laboratory animals involved (iii) an intolerable number of chemicals classified as false positive.

A key aspect of the implementation of new testing strategies is the determination …

Popular Culture's Portrayal Of Attorney Decision-Making And It's Consequences- An Analysis Of An Attorney's Internal Ethical Conflict In Film, Tara M. Parente

Tara M. Parente

This paper explores how popular culture portrays attorney decision-making and its consequences. This paper compares and contrasts two films in order to exemplify how attorneys are portrayed throughout film and how this carries over into real life. Attorneys are faced with ethical dilemmas at all times, especially throughout career advancement and the decisions made tend to affect every aspect of an attorney's life.

From Kafka To Kafta: Intellectual Property, And The Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement, Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

The Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement 2014 (KAFTA) is a Kafkaesque agreement – with its secret texts, speculative claims, and shadowy tribunals. Australia and South Korea have signed a new free trade agreement - the Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement2014 (KAFTA). Is it a fair trade fairytale? Or is it a dirty deal done dirt cheap? Or somewhere in between? It is hard to tell, given the initial secrecy of the negotiations, and the complexity of the texts of the agreement. There has been much debate in the Australian Parliament over the transparency of the trade agreement; the scope of market access …