Performance on International Assessments and Learning Time: A Snapshot of How the U.S. Compares to Other Education Systems on an International Scale. Informing Policy & Improving Practice. Policy Brief

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saxena, Pooja; Sell, LeeAnn

2016-01-01

Drawing from two international measures, Trends in International Mathematics and Science Studies (TIMSS) and Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), this brief provides a snapshot comparison of the United States to other education systems. Specifically, this brief addresses how the U.S. compares to other countries in overall…

Comparing International Curriculum Systems: The International Instructional Systems Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Creese, Brian; Gonzalez, Alvaro; Isaacs, Tina

2016-01-01

This paper sets out the main findings of the International Instructional Systems Study (IISS), conducted by the UCL Institute of Education and funded by the Center on International Education Benchmarking (CIEB). The study examined the instructional systems and intended curricula of six "high performing" countries and two US states. The…

In Defence of International Comparative Studies. on the Analytical and Explanatory Power of the Nation State in International Comparative Higher Education Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kosmützky, Anna

2015-01-01

Higher education is undergoing a process of globalization and new realities of a globalized higher education world are emerging. Globalization also has a profound impact on higher education research. Global and transnational topics are theoretically and empirically elaborated and seem on the rise, whereas the international comparative outlook…

Highlights from TIMSS 2011: Mathematics and Science Achievement of U.S. Fourth- and Eighth-Grade Students in an International Context. NCES 2013-009

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Provasnik, Stephen; Kastberg, David; Ferraro, David; Lemanski, Nita; Roey, Stephen; Jenkins, Frank

2012-01-01

The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is an international comparative study of student achievement. TIMSS 2011 represents the fifth such study since TIMSS was first conducted in 1995. Developed and implemented at the international level by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement…

Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness among Schizophrenic Patients and Their Families (Comparative Study)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mahmoud, Sahar; Zaki, Rania A.

2015-01-01

This study was a comparative study aiming to assess the extent of internalized stigma of mental illness among patients with schizophrenia & identify stigma as perceived by family members caring schizophrenic patients. The study was conducted in two settings 1st clinic was outpatient clinic for psychiatric patient affiliated to Abbasia…

Comparing Ourselves to Others: International Knowledge and Attitudes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sweeney, Jo Ann Cutler; Zandan, Peter A.

1982-01-01

Describes a lesson for junior high social studies which uses a comparison of research findings to teach students about international political socialization. Students answer questionnaires about their own attitudes and knowledge of international political socialization and then compare and contrast their responses to responses of American,…

Acculturative Stressors and Acculturative Strategies as Predictors of Negative Affect among Chinese International Students in Australia and Hong Kong: A Cross-Cultural Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pan, Jia-Yan; Wong, Daniel Fu Keung

2011-01-01

Objective: There are few studies comparing cross-cultural adaptation of migrant groups in two different cultural settings. This study compares the level of negative affect and acculturative stressors between Chinese international students in Australia and Mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong. The predictive effects of acculturative stressors and…

Comparing International and American Students: Involvement in College Life and Overall Satisfaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhou, Ji; Cole, Darnell

2017-01-01

Using longitudinal survey data, this study compares 191 international and 409 American students' involvement in college life, the extent to which the involvement is influenced by race/ethnicity, gender, and language background, and the extent to which the involvement influences overall satisfaction. Major findings include: International and…

34 CFR 660.1 - What is the International Research and Studies Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... outcomes and effectiveness of supported programs; (f) Comparative studies of the effectiveness of... 34 Education 3 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false What is the International Research and Studies Program...) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION THE INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH AND STUDIES PROGRAM...

34 CFR 660.1 - What is the International Research and Studies Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... outcomes and effectiveness of supported programs; (f) Comparative studies of the effectiveness of... 34 Education 3 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false What is the International Research and Studies Program...) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION THE INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH AND STUDIES PROGRAM...

34 CFR 660.1 - What is the International Research and Studies Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... outcomes and effectiveness of supported programs; (f) Comparative studies of the effectiveness of... 34 Education 3 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false What is the International Research and Studies Program...) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION THE INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH AND STUDIES PROGRAM...

34 CFR 660.1 - What is the International Research and Studies Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... outcomes and effectiveness of supported programs; (f) Comparative studies of the effectiveness of... 34 Education 3 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false What is the International Research and Studies Program...) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION THE INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH AND STUDIES PROGRAM...

34 CFR 660.1 - What is the International Research and Studies Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... outcomes and effectiveness of supported programs; (f) Comparative studies of the effectiveness of... 34 Education 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What is the International Research and Studies Program...) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION THE INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH AND STUDIES PROGRAM...

Trend Analysis on Mathematics Achievements: A Comparative Study Using TIMSS Data

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ker, H. W.

2013-01-01

Research addressed the importance of mathematics education for the students' preparation to enter scientific and technological workforce. This paper utilized Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011 data to conduct a global comparative analysis on mathematics performance at varied International Benchmark levels. The…

National states and international science: A comparative history of international science congresses in Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Russia, and cold war United States.

PubMed

Doel, Ronald E; Hoffmann, Dieter; Krementsov, Nikolai

2005-01-01

Prior studies of modern scientific internationalism have been written primarily from the point of view of scientists, with little regard to the influence of the state. This study examines the state's role in international scientific relations. States sometimes encouraged scientific internationalism; in the mid-twentieth century, they often sought to restrict it. The present study examines state involvement in international scientific congresses, the primary intersection between the national and international dimensions of scientists' activities. Here we examine three comparative instances in which such restrictions affected scientific internationalism: an attempt to bring an international aerodynamics congress to Nazi Germany in the late 1930s, unsuccessful efforts by Soviet geneticists to host the Seventh International Genetics Congress in Moscow in 1937, and efforts by U.S. scientists to host international meetings in 1950s cold war America. These case studies challenge the classical ideology of scientific internationalism, wherein participation by a nation in a scientist's fame spares the scientist conflict between advancing his science and advancing the interests of his nation. In the cases we consider, scientists found it difficult to simultaneously support scientific universalism and elitist practices. Interest in these congresses reached the top levels of the state, and access to patronage beyond state control helped determine their outcomes.

Singapore Pre-Service Secondary Mathematics Teachers' Content Knowledge: Findings from an International Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Toh, Tin Lam; Kaur, Berinderjeet; Koay, Phong Lee

2013-01-01

In this article, we explore the mathematical content knowledge of one entire cohort of pre-service teachers (N = 107) through analysing their performance in a Secondary Mathematics Audit that was developed for the International Comparative Studies in Mathematics Teacher Training that was initiated by the University of Plymouth. We study how their…

International Civic and Citizenship Education Study: Assessment Framework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schulz, Wolfram; Fraillon, Julian; Ainley, John; Losito, Bruno; Kerr, David

2008-01-01

This document outlines the framework and assessment design for the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) sponsored by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). Over the past 50 years, IEA has conducted comparative research studies focusing on educational policies, practices, and…

Burmese Sociocultural Adjustment to Thai International Programs: An Analysis of the Impact of Historical Revisionism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rhein, Douglas

2016-01-01

This research explores the perception and experiences of 15 Burmese international students temporarily studying at two international colleges in suburban Bangkok, Thailand and compares their impressions of and reaction to history with 10 Thai students studying at the same international colleges. This ethnographic exploration of Burmese…

Engagement, Satisfaction, and Belonging of International Undergraduates at U.S. Research Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Horne, Sam; Lin, Shuhui; Anson, Matthew; Jacobson, Wayne

2018-01-01

International students face challenges that their U.S. classmates rarely encounter, but few studies examine specific ways in which undergraduate experiences of international students compare to those of their U.S. classmates. This study examines U.S. and international student responses to an undergraduate survey administered at nine U.S. research…

Measuring College Success for International Baccalaureate Diploma and Certificate Candidates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, Jennifer Coles

2018-01-01

This quantitative study was conducted at a private international high school. The study purpose was to investigate United States college trends comparing International Baccalaureate Diploma Program candidates and International Baccalaureate Non-Diploma Program candidates from the same school in Asia. Data was collected for the Classes of 2007-2012…

The Emergence of a Regional Hub: Comparing International Student Choices and Experiences in South Korea

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jon, Jae-Eun; Lee, Jenny J.; Byun, Kiyong

2014-01-01

As the demand for international education increases, middle-income non-English speaking countries, such as South Korea, play an increasing role in hosting the world's students. This mixed-methods study compares the different motivations and experiences of international students within and outside the East Asian region. Based on findings, this…

Resistance of three implant-abutment interfaces to fatigue testing

PubMed Central

RIBEIRO, Cleide Gisele; MAIA, Maria Luiza Cabral; SCHERRER, Susanne S.; CARDOSO, Antonio Carlos; WISKOTT, H. W. Anselm

2011-01-01

The design and retentive properties of implant-abutment connectors affect the mechanical resistance of implants. A number of studies have been carried out to compare the efficacy of connecting mechanisms between abutment and fixture. Objectives The aims of this study were: 1) to compare 3 implant-abutment interfaces (external hexagon, internal hexagon and cone-in-cone) regarding the fatigue resistance of the prosthetic screw, 2) to evaluate the corresponding mode of failure, and 3) to compare the results of this study with data obtained in previous studies on Nobel Biocare and Straumann connectors. Materials and Methods In order to duplicate the alternating and multivectorial intraoral loading pattern, the specimens were submitted to the rotating cantilever beam test. The implants, abutments and restoration analogs were spun around their longitudinal axes while a perpendicular force was applied to the external end. The objective was to determine the force level at which 50% of the specimens survived 106 load cycles. The mean force levels at which 50% failed and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals were determined using the staircase procedure. Results The external hexagon interface presented better than the cone-in-cone and internal hexagon interfaces. There was no significant difference between the cone-in-cone and internal hex interfaces. Conclusion Although internal connections present a more favorable design, this study did not show any advantage in terms of strength. The external hexagon connector used in this study yielded similar results to those obtained in a previous study with Nobel Biocare and Straumann systems. However, the internal connections (cone-in-cone and internal hexagon) were mechanically inferior compared to previous results. PMID:21710094

Acculturative stressors and acculturative strategies as predictors of negative affect among Chinese international students in Australia and Hong Kong: a cross-cultural comparative study.

PubMed

Pan, Jia-Yan; Wong, Daniel Fu Keung

2011-11-01

There are few studies comparing cross-cultural adaptation of migrant groups in two different cultural settings. This study compares the level of negative affect and acculturative stressors between Chinese international students in Australia and Mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong. The predictive effects of acculturative stressors and acculturative strategies on negative affect were also compared between the two groups. A total of 606 graduate students were recruited for a cross-sectional survey in Melbourne, and Hong Kong, China. The measurement included the Acculturative Hassles Scale for Chinese Students, Acculturative Strategy Scale, and Chinese Affect Scale. Independent t-tests and hierarchical regression analysis were conducted for data analysis. Chinese international students in Australia were found to encounter more acculturative stressors and experience a higher level of negative affect than their counterparts in Hong Kong. The acculturative stressor of academic work and a marginalization strategy significantly predicted negative affect in both groups. The acculturative stressor of cultural difference predicted negative affect in the Hong Kong sample, and assimilation strategy predicted negative affect in the Australian sample only. It is more difficult for Chinese international students to adapt to a host society with greater cultural distance. Cross-cultural comparative study helps to find out culture-general and culture-specific predictors of acculturation and helps design tailor-made intervention programs for international students across cultures.

Is There a Drop in Normative Clearsightedness in Sixth Grade? Study of Internality and Normative Clearsightedness in Fourth to Seventh Graders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bigot, Johann; Pichot, Nathalie; Teste, Benoit

2004-01-01

Numerous studies have demonstrated a decrease in the expression of internality in French sixth graders as compared to fifth graders. The present study examines normative clearsightedness in addition to internality across four French school grades (fourth to seventh). The results confirmed the sixth-grade drop in internality and showed that the…

Comparing Chinese International and American-born Graduate Students' Beliefs about Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhao, Fangxia

2009-01-01

This study examined the educational beliefs about teaching and learning of Chinese international and American-born graduate students in the disciplines of pure and applied sciences and mathematics at Auburn University by comparing their similarities and differences. The study reported (a) participants' demographic characteristics, (b) the dominant…

U.S. Comparative and International Graduate Programs: An Overview of Programmatic Size, Relevance, Philosophy, and Methodology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Drake, Timothy A.

2011-01-01

Previous work has concentrated on the epistemological foundation of comparative and international education (CIE) graduate programs. This study focuses on programmatic size, philosophy, methodology, and pedagogy. It begins by reviewing previous studies. It then provides a theoretical framework and describes the size, relevance, content, and…

The Effects of Motivational Constructs and Engagements on Mathematics Achievements: A Comparative Study Using TIMSS 2011 Data of Chinese Taipei, Singapore, and the USA

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ker, Hsiang-Wei

2017-01-01

Motivational constructs and students' engagements have great impacts on students' mathematics achievements, yet they have not been theoretically investigated using international large-scale assessment data. This study utilized the mathematics data of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 2011 to conduct a comparative and…

What Do Children Know? Comparative Education Review. International Studies on Educational Achievement. Vol. 18, No. 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Postlethwaite, T. Neville, Ed.

1974-01-01

This issue of the Comparative Education Review focuses on analysis of data gathered by 19 countries participating in a six-subject survey conducted by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). The purpose of this and earlier IEA research (a pilot study and a mathematics study undertaken on the basis of the…

A Comparative Study of International Student Engagement and Success Based on Race/Ethnicity, Gender, and Institutional Type

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phillips, Gareth Carlington

2013-01-01

The study examined international students' engagement and success using NSSE 2007 data. The sample consisted of 1996 first years and 2,158 seniors. These students were compared by race/ethnicity, gender, and institutional type. The study found that students' engagement differed by race/ethnicity as well as type of institution. The null hypotheses…

Highlights from TIMSS and TIMSS Advanced 2015: Mathematics and Science Achievement of U.S. Students in Grades 4 and 8 and in Advanced Courses at the End of High School in an International Context. NCES 2017-002

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stephens, Maria; Landeros, Katherine; Perkins, Robert; Tang, Judy H.

2016-01-01

The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2015 is the sixth administration of this international comparative study since 1995 when first administered. TIMSS is used to compare over time the mathematics and science knowledge and skills of fourth- and eighth-graders. TIMSS is designed to align broadly with mathematics and…

Associations of Perceived Sibling and Parent-Child Relationship Quality with Internalizing and Externalizing Problems: Comparing Indian and Dutch Early Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buist, Kirsten L.; Verhoeven, Marjolein; Hoksbergen, René; ter Laak, Jan; Watve, Sujala; Paranjpe, Analpa

2017-01-01

The aims of the present study were (a) to examine whether Dutch and Indian early adolescents differ concerning sibling and parent-child relationship quality and externalizing and internalizing problems, and (b) to compare the associations between sibling and parent-child relationship quality and externalizing and internalizing problems for Indian…

Hierarchy of evidence: differences in results between non-randomized studies and randomized trials in patients with femoral neck fractures.

PubMed

Bhandari, Mohit; Tornetta, Paul; Ellis, Thomas; Audige, Laurent; Sprague, Sheila; Kuo, Jonathann C; Swiontkowski, Marc F

2004-01-01

There have been a number of non-randomized studies comparing arthroplasty with internal fixation in patients with femoral neck fractures. However, there remains considerable debate about whether the results of non-randomized studies are consistent with the results of randomized, controlled trials. Given the economic burden of hip fractures, it remains essential to identify therapies to improve outcomes; however, whether data from non-randomized studies of an intervention should be used to guide patient care remains unclear. We aimed to determine whether the pooled results of mortality and revision surgery among non-randomized studies were similar to those of randomized trials in studies comparing arthroplasty with internal fixation in patients with femoral neck fractures. We conducted a Medline search from 1969 to June 2002, identifying both randomized and non-randomized studies comparing internal fixation with arthroplasty in patients with femoral neck fractures. Additional strategies to identify relevant articles included Cochrane database, SCISEARCH, textbooks, annual meeting programs, and content experts. We abstracted information on mortality and revision rates in each study and compared the pooled results between non-randomized and randomized studies. In addition, we explored potential reasons for dissimilar results between the two study designs. We identified 140 citations that addressed the general topic of comparison of arthroplasty and internal fixation for hip fracture. Of these, 27 studies met the eligibility criteria, 13 of which were non-randomized studies and 14 of which were randomized trials. Mortality data was available in all 13 non-randomized studies ( n=3108 patients) and in 12 randomized studies ( n=1767 patients). Non-randomized studies overestimated the risk of mortality by 40% when compared with the results of randomized trials (relative risk 1.44 vs 1.04, respectively). Information on revision risk was available in 9 non-randomized studies ( n=2764 patients) and all 14 randomized studies ( n=1901 patients). Both estimates from non-randomized and randomized studies revealed a significant reduction in the risk of revision surgery with arthroplasty compared with internal fixation (relative risk 0.38 vs 0.23, respectively). The reduction in the risk of revision surgery with arthroplasty compared with internal fixation was 62% for non-randomized studies and 77% for randomized trials. Thus, non-randomized studies underestimated the relative benefit of arthroplasty by 19.5%. Non-randomized studies with point estimates of relative risk similar to the pooled estimate for randomized trials all controlled for patient age, gender, and fracture displacement in their comparisons of mortality. We were unable to identify reasons for differences in the revision rate results between the study designs. Similar to other reports in medical subspecialties, non-randomized studies provided results dissimilar to randomized trials of arthroplasty vs internal fixation for mortality and revision rates in patients with femoral neck fractures. Investigators should be aware of these discrepancies when evaluating the merits of alternative surgical interventions, especially when both randomized trials and non-randomized comparative studies are available.

Correlation of Peripheral Vein Tumour Marker Levels, Internal Iliac Vein Tumour Marker Levels and Radical Prostatectomy Specimens in Patients with Prostate Cancer and Borderline High Prostate-Specific Antigen: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Farrelly, Cormac; Lal, Priti; Trerotola, Scott O; Nadolski, Gregory J; Watts, Micah M; Gorrian, Catherine Mc; Guzzo, Thomas J

2016-05-01

To correlate prostate-specific antigen (PSA), free to total PSA percentage (fPSA%) and prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP) levels from peripheral and pelvic venous samples with prostatectomy specimens in patients with prostate adenocarcinoma and borderline elevation of PSA. In this prospective institutional review board approved study, 7 patients with biopsy proven prostate cancer had a venous sampling procedure prior to prostatectomy (mean 3.2 days, range 1-7). Venous samples were taken from a peripheral vein (PVS), the right internal iliac vein, a deep right internal iliac vein branch, left internal iliac vein and a deep left internal iliac vein branch. Venous sampling results were compared to tumour volume, laterality, stage and grade in prostatectomy surgical specimens. Mean PVS PSA was 4.29, range 2.3-6 ng/ml. PSA and PAP values in PVS did not differ significantly from internal iliac or deep internal iliac vein samples (p > 0.05). fPSA% was significantly higher in internal iliac (p = 0.004) and deep internal iliac (p = 0.003) vein samples compared to PVS. One of 7 patients had unilateral tumour only. This patient, with left-sided tumour, had a fPSA% of 6, 6, 6, 14 and 12 in his peripheral, right internal iliac, deep right internal iliac branch, left internal iliac and deep left internal iliac branch samples respectively. There were no adverse events. fPSA%, unlike total PSA or PAP, is significantly higher in pelvic vein compared to peripheral vein samples when prostate cancer is present. Larger studies including patients with higher PSA values are warranted to further investigate this counterintuitive finding.

Gestational age specific neonatal survival in the State of Qatar (2003-2008) - a comparative study with international benchmarks.

PubMed

Rahman, Sajjad; Salameh, Khalil; Al-Rifai, Hilal; Masoud, Ahmed; Lutfi, Samawal; Salama, Husam; Abdoh, Ghassan; Omar, Fahmi; Bener, Abdulbari

2011-09-01

To analyze and compare the current gestational age specific neonatal survival rates between Qatar and international benchmarks. An analytical comparative study. Women's Hospital, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar, from 2003-2008. Six year's (2003-2008) gestational age specific neonatal mortality data was stratified for each completed week of gestation at birth from 24 weeks till term. The data from World Health Statistics by WHO (2010), Vermont Oxford Network (VON, 2007) and National Statistics United Kingdom (2006) were used as international benchmarks for comparative analysis. A total of 82,002 babies were born during the study period. Qatar's neonatal mortality rate (NMR) dropped from 6/1000 in 2003 to 4.3/1000 in 2008 (p < 0.05). The overall and gestational age specific neonatal mortality rates of Qatar were comparable with international benchmarks. The survival of < 27 weeks and term babies was better in Qatar (p=0.01 and p < 0.001 respectively) as compared to VON. The survival of > 32 weeks babies was better in UK (p=0.01) as compared to Qatar. The relative risk (RR) of death decreased with increasing gestational age (p < 0.0001). Preterm babies (45%) followed by lethal chromosomal and congenital anomalies (26.5%) were the two leading causes of neonatal deaths in Qatar. The current total and gestational age specific neonatal survival rates in the State of Qatar are comparable with international benchmarks. In Qatar, persistently high rates of low birth weight and lethal chromosomal and congenital anomalies significantly contribute towards neonatal mortality.

Learning from Success: Campus Case Studies in International Program Development. Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Studies in Science, Technology and Culture. Volume 15.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelleher, Ann

The case studies presented in this volume offer comparative examples of undergraduate international education innovations in a wide variety of categories: curriculum, study abroad, community outreach, faculty development, and international students. The studies were conducted in the mid-1990s, and programs had to meet several criteria: they had to…

Globalization in Education Counts: A Comparative Study of Selected International School Associations and Selected Charter High Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson-Dunn, Tina N.

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify, examine, and compare the way globalization was perceived by 4 international school associations, 4 non-profit (corporate managed) charter high schools, and 4 independent (individually managed) charter high schools from Southern California. Selected school associations, non-profit, and independent charter…

Do Mathematicians Integrate Computer Algebra Systems in University Teaching? Comparing a Literature Review to an International Survey Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marshall, Neil; Buteau, Chantal; Jarvis, Daniel H.; Lavicza, Zsolt

2012-01-01

We present a comparative study of a literature review of 326 selected contributions (Buteau, Marshall, Jarvis & Lavicza, 2010) to an international (US, UK, Hungary) survey of mathematicians (Lavicza, 2008) regarding the use of Computer Algebra Systems (CAS) in post-secondary mathematics education. The comparison results are organized with respect…

Comparison of marginal and internal adaptation of copings fabricated from three different fabrication techniques: An in vitro study.

PubMed

Arora, Aman; Yadav, Avneet; Upadhyaya, Viram; Jain, Prachi; Verma, Mrinalini

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the marginal and internal adaptation of cobalt-chromium (Co-Cr) copings fabricated from conventional wax pattern, three-dimensional (3D)-printed resin pattern, and laser sintering technique. A total of thirty copings were made, out of which ten copings were made from 3D-printed resin pattern (Group A), ten from inlay wax pattern (Group B), and ten copings were obtained from direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) technique (Group C). All the thirty samples were seated on their respective dies and sectioned carefully using a laser jet cutter and were evaluated for marginal and internal gaps at the predetermined areas using a stereomicroscope. The values were then analyzed using one-way ANOVA test and post hoc Bonferroni test. One-way ANOVA showed lowest mean marginal discrepancy for DMLS and highest value for copings fabricated from inlay wax. The values for internal discrepancy were highest for DMLS (169.38) and lowest for 3D-printed resin pattern fabricated copings (133.87). Post hoc Bonferroni test for both marginal and internal discrepancies showed nonsignificant difference when Group A was compared to Group B ( P > 0.05) and significant when Group A was compared with Group C ( P < 0.05). Group B showed significant difference ( P < 0.05) when compared with Group C. Marginal and internal discrepancies of all the three casting techniques were within clinically acceptable values. Marginal fit of DMLS was superior as compared to other two techniques, whereas when internal fit was evaluated, conventional technique showed the best internal fit.

Comparison of rational pharmacotherapy decision-making competence of general practitioners with intern doctors.

PubMed

Akici, A; Kalaça, S; Gören, M Z; Akkan, A G; Karaalp, A; Demir, D; Uğurlu, U; Oktay, S

2004-04-01

The aim of this study was to compare rational pharmacotherapy decision-making competency of interns (final-year medical students) who had received rational pharmacotherapy education (RPE), with their classmates at another medical school and general practitioners (GPs) who had not been exposed to RPE. A written, objective, structured clinical examination (OSCE), consisting of open and structured questions, was given to all participants. The participants were expected to make a treatment plan and prescribe for simple, uncomplicated beta-hemolytic streptococcal tonsillitis and mild-to-moderate essential hypertension patients, explain their proposed treatment plans and reasons affecting their drug choice. After the OSCE, a questionnaire to assess knowledge of the rational use of drugs was given to the participants. Fifty RPE(+) interns, 54 RPE(-) interns and 53 GPs participated in the study. Mean scores of RPE(+) interns were higher than those of GPs, which were in turn found to be higher than those of RPE(-) interns for all cases. The RPE(+) interns scored the highest regarding all components of rational pharmacotherapy process for all cases of both indications. However, participants in all groups had higher scores for the structured questions compared with the corresponding open ones for both diseases. Prescription analysis also revealed better results for RPE(+) interns regarding the number of drugs/prescription and treatment costs. The present study demonstrated that the final-year medical students (interns) markedly benefited from undergraduate RPE at the medical school in developing rational prescribing skills compared with their classmates from a medical school with traditional pharmacology education. Interestingly, they got higher scores than not only RPE(-) interns, but also than the GPs participating in this study, indicating the urgent need for continuous medical education programs in this field throughout the country for practicing GPs.

TIMSS 2011 International Results in Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Michael O.; Mullis, Ina V. S.; Foy, Pierre; Stanco, Gabrielle M.

2012-01-01

For more than 50 years, the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) has been conducting comparative studies of educational achievement in a number of curriculum areas, including mathematics and science. TIMSS 2011 represents the fifth cycle of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS),…

INTERNATIONAL STUDY OF ACHIEVEMENT IN MATHEMATICS, A COMPARISON OF TWELVE COUNTRIES, VOLUME I.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

HUSEN, TORSTEN; AND OTHERS

THIS REPORT OF AN INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH ALLIANCE OF TWELVE COUNTRIES EXPLAINS THE ESTABLISHMENT OF PROCEDURES OF RESEARCH AND QUANTITATIVE ASSESSMENT FOR THE COMPARATIVE STUDY OF EDUCATION THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. RESEARCH INSTITUTES FROM TWELVE COUNTRIES ORGANIZED THE COUNCIL OF THE INTERNATIONAL PROJECT FOR THE EVALUATION OF EDUCATIONAL…

Unit and internal chain profiles of maca amylopectin.

PubMed

Zhang, Ling; Li, Guantian; Yao, Weirong; Zhu, Fan

2018-03-01

Unit chain length distributions of amylopectin and its φ, β-limit dextrins, which reflect amylopectin internal structure from three maca starches, were determined by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection after debranching, and the samples were compared with maize starch. The amylopectins exhibited average chain lengths ranging from 16.72 to 17.16, with ranges of total internal chain length, external chain length, and internal chain length of the maca amylopectins at 12.49 to 13.68, 11.24 to 11.89, and 4.27 to 4.48. The average chain length, external chain length, internal chain length, and total internal chain length were comparable in three maca amylopectins. Amylopectins of the three maca genotypes studied here presented no significant differences in their unit chain length profiles, but did show significant differences in their internal chain profiles. Additional genetic variations between different maca genotypes need to be studied to provide unit- and internal chain profiles of maca amylopectin. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

A Wake-Up Call for U.S. Educators: The Third International Mathematics and Science Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cochrane, Douglas

1999-01-01

This issue of "Policy Forum" compares the mathematics and science achievement of students midway through elementary school, midway through lower secondary school, and at the end of upper secondary school. The Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), conducted in 1995-96, is the largest international education study ever…

The Development of the International Baccalaureate in Spanish Speaking Countries: A Global Comparative Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Resnik, Julia

2016-01-01

This paper compares the development of International Baccalaureate (IB) schools in four different settings: Argentine, Chile, Spain and Ecuador. The global comparative approach used in this study, based on actor-network theory (ANT), allows us to analyse the connections and interactions between global actors and the plurality of national,…

Compulsory licensing often did not produce lower prices for antiretrovirals compared to international procurement.

PubMed

Beall, Reed F; Kuhn, Randall; Attaran, Amir

2015-03-01

Compulsory licensing has been widely suggested as a legal mechanism for bypassing patents to introduce lower-cost generic antiretrovirals for HIV/AIDS in developing countries. Previous studies found that compulsory licensing can reduce procurement prices for drugs, but it is unknown how the resulting prices compare to procurements through the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria; UNICEF; and other international channels. For this study we systematically constructed a case-study database of compulsory licensing activity for antiretrovirals and compared compulsory license prices to those in the World Health Organization's (WHO's) Global Price Reporting Mechanism and the Global Fund's Price and Quality Reporting Tool. Thirty compulsory license cases were analyzed with 673 comparable procurements from WHO and Global Fund data. Compulsory license prices exceeded the median international procurement prices in nineteen of the thirty case studies, often with a price gap of more than 25 percent. Compulsory licensing often delivered suboptimal value when compared to the alternative of international procurement, especially when used by low-income countries to manufacture medicines locally. There is an ongoing need for multilateral and charitable actors to work collectively with governments and medicine suppliers on policy options. Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

Gender, age, and place of residence as moderators of the internalized homophobia-depressive symptoms relation among Australian gay men and lesbians.

PubMed

McLaren, Suzanne

2015-01-01

Internalized homophobia is a risk factor for depression among gay men and lesbians. The aim of the study was to test whether the internalized homophobia-depression relation was moderated by gender (stronger among gay men compared with lesbians), age (stronger among younger compared with older gay men and lesbians), and place of residence (stronger among gay men and lesbians who live in rural areas compared with those who live in urban areas). An Australian sample of 311 self-identified gay men and 570 self-identified lesbians, aged 18 to 70 years, completed the Internalized Homophobia Scale and the Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Results indicated that age and gender did not moderate the internalized homophobia-depressive symptoms relation. Place of residence was a significant moderator for gay men but not lesbians. In contrast to the hypothesis, the internalized homophobia-depression relation was significant only among gay men who resided in urban areas. Those who work with gay men should be particularly aware of the significant relationship between internalized homophobia and depressive symptoms among gay men who reside in urban areas.

Incidence Rates of Sexual Harassment in Mass Communications Internship Programs: An Initial Study Comparing Intern, Student, and Professional Rates.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowen, Michelle; Laurion, Suzanne

A study documented, using a telephone survey, the incidence rates of sexual harassment of mass communication interns, and compared those rates to student and professional rates. A probability sample of 44 male and 52 female mass communications professionals was generated using several random sampling techniques from among professionals who work in…

Education Reforms and Innovations to Improve Student Assessment Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McAfee, Wade J.

2014-01-01

International assessments such as the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) have exhibited United States students specifically in the fourth and eighth grades, are not performing well when compared to their international peers. Educational stakeholders including…

Comparison of Marginal Bone Loss Between Implants with Internal and External Connections: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Palacios-Garzón, Natalia; Mauri-Obradors, Elisabeth; Roselló-LLabrés, Xavier; Estrugo-Devesa, Albert; Jané-Salas, Enric; López-López, José

The objective of this systematic review was to compare the loss of marginal bone between implants with internal and external connections by analyzing results reported in studies published after 2010. A literature search in MEDLINE with the keywords "dental implant connections, external internal implant connection, bone loss implant designs, internal and external connection implant studies in humans" was conducted. Clinical trials on human beings, comparing both connections and published in English, from 2010 to 2016 were selected. Their methodologic quality was assessed using the Jadad scale. From the initial search, 415 articles were obtained; 32 were chosen as potentially relevant based on their titles and abstracts. Among them, only 10 finally met the inclusion criteria. A total of 1,523 patients with 3,965 implants were analyzed. Six out of 10 studies observed that internal connections showed significantly less bone loss compared with external connections. The remaining four articles did not find statistically significant differences between the two connections. According to this systematic review and considering its limitation due to the degree of heterogeneity between the included studies, both internal and external connections present high survival rates. To assess whether marginal bone loss differs significantly between the two connections, more homogenous clinical studies are needed with identical implant characteristics, larger samples, and longer follow-up periods. Studies included in this review and characterized by long-term follow-ups showed that the external connection is a reliable connection on a long-term basis.

An Interdisciplinary Approach to Teaching International Law: Using the Tools of the Law School Classroom in Political Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zartner, Dana

2009-01-01

As the world has grown more interconnected, many political science programs have added courses on international law, international organizations, the laws of war and peace, international human rights, and comparative judicial politics. While in many cases these are relatively new offerings within international studies, all of these subjects have…

How International Studies Contributed to Educational Theory and Methods through Measurement of Opportunity to Learn Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Suter, Larry E.

2017-01-01

The international comparative studies in 1959 were conducted by International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) researchers who recognized that differences in student achievement measures in mathematics across countries could be caused by differences in curricula. The measurements of opportunity to learn (OTL) grew…

A Comparative Study of Student Engagement, Satisfaction, and Academic Success among International and American Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Korobova, Nadia; Starobin, Soko S.

2015-01-01

This study examines the relationship between student engagement, student satisfaction, and the academic success of international and American students using 2008 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) data. It was found that international students scored slightly higher than American students on enriching educational experiences and…

A Comparative Study of Student Engagement, Satisfaction, and Academic Success among International and American Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Korobova, Nadia

2012-01-01

Higher education is becoming increasingly globalized and internationalized, and the number of international students studying in U.S. institutions of higher education is continuously growing. International students contribute to their own success, campus diversity, campus internationalization, and the U.S. economy. However, it is not merely enough…

Linking TIMSS and NAEP Assessments to Evaluate International Trends in Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lim, Hwanggyu; Sireci, Stephen G.

2017-01-01

The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) makes it possible to compare the performance of students in the US in Mathematics and Science to the performance of students in other countries. TIMSS uses four international benchmarks for describing student achievement: Low, Intermediate, High, and Advanced. In this study, we…

Japanese Education System: A Case Study Summary and Analysis. A Report. Research Today. International Studies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Angela

The Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) results suggest to American citizens that compared to the United States' goal of excellence among nations, the U.S. is not on track with other nations. By contrast, Japan is consistently at the top of international rankings in mathematics and science. To gain insight into the Japanese…

A Critical Evaluation of Academic Internal Audit

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blackmore, Jacqueline Ann

2004-01-01

This account of internal audit is set within the context of higher education in the UK and a fictitiously named Riverbank University. The study evaluates the recent introduction of "Internal Academic Audit" to the University and compares the process with that of the internationally recognized ISO 19011 Guidelines for Auditing Quality…

Comparing International and American Students' Challenges: A Literature Review

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perry, Cody J.

2016-01-01

International student numbers have increased drastically in the past few years. International students provide benefits to universities and American students such as greater revenue, and more open-mindedness. There have been myriad studies that have examined the international student experience, but most have focused solely on international…

Correlation of Peripheral Vein Tumour Marker Levels, Internal Iliac Vein Tumour Marker Levels and Radical Prostatectomy Specimens in Patients with Prostate Cancer and Borderline High Prostate-Specific Antigen: A Pilot Study

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Farrelly, Cormac, E-mail: farrellycormac@gmail.com; Lal, Priti; Trerotola, Scott O.

PurposeTo correlate prostate-specific antigen (PSA), free to total PSA percentage (fPSA%) and prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP) levels from peripheral and pelvic venous samples with prostatectomy specimens in patients with prostate adenocarcinoma and borderline elevation of PSA.Materials and MethodsIn this prospective institutional review board approved study, 7 patients with biopsy proven prostate cancer had a venous sampling procedure prior to prostatectomy (mean 3.2 days, range 1–7). Venous samples were taken from a peripheral vein (PVS), the right internal iliac vein, a deep right internal iliac vein branch, left internal iliac vein and a deep left internal iliac vein branch. Venous sampling resultsmore » were compared to tumour volume, laterality, stage and grade in prostatectomy surgical specimens.ResultsMean PVS PSA was 4.29, range 2.3–6 ng/ml. PSA and PAP values in PVS did not differ significantly from internal iliac or deep internal iliac vein samples (p > 0.05). fPSA% was significantly higher in internal iliac (p = 0.004) and deep internal iliac (p = 0.003) vein samples compared to PVS. One of 7 patients had unilateral tumour only. This patient, with left–sided tumour, had a fPSA% of 6, 6, 6, 14 and 12 in his peripheral, right internal iliac, deep right internal iliac branch, left internal iliac and deep left internal iliac branch samples respectively. There were no adverse events.ConclusionfPSA%, unlike total PSA or PAP, is significantly higher in pelvic vein compared to peripheral vein samples when prostate cancer is present. Larger studies including patients with higher PSA values are warranted to further investigate this counterintuitive finding.« less

Randomized controlled trial of internal and external targeted temperature management methods in post- cardiac arrest patients.

PubMed

Look, Xinqi; Li, Huihua; Ng, Mingwei; Lim, Eric Tien Siang; Pothiawala, Sohil; Tan, Kenneth Boon Kiat; Sewa, Duu Wen; Shahidah, Nur; Pek, Pin Pin; Ong, Marcus Eng Hock

2018-01-01

Targeted temperature management post-cardiac arrest is currently implemented using various methods, broadly categorized as internal and external. This study aimed to evaluate survival-to-hospital discharge and neurological outcomes (Glasgow-Pittsburgh Score) of post-cardiac arrest patients undergoing internal cooling verses external cooling. A randomized controlled trial of post-resuscitation cardiac arrest patients was conducted from October 2008-September 2014. Patients were randomized to either internal or external cooling methods. Historical controls were selected matched by age and gender. Analysis using SPSS version 21.0 presented descriptive statistics and frequencies while univariate logistic regression was done using R 3.1.3. 23 patients were randomized to internal cooling and 22 patients to external cooling and 42 matched controls were selected. No significant difference was seen between internal and external cooling in terms of survival, neurological outcomes and complications. However in the internal cooling arm, there was lower risk of developing overcooling (p=0.01) and rebound hyperthermia (p=0.02). Compared to normothermia, internal cooling had higher survival (OR=3.36, 95% CI=(1.130, 10.412), and lower risk of developing cardiac arrhythmias (OR=0.18, 95% CI=(0.04, 0.63)). Subgroup analysis showed those with cardiac cause of arrest (OR=4.29, 95% CI=(1.26, 15.80)) and sustained ROSC (OR=5.50, 95% CI=(1.64, 20.39)) had better survival with internal cooling compared to normothermia. Cooling curves showed tighter temperature control for internal compared to external cooling. Internal cooling showed tighter temperature control compared to external cooling. Internal cooling can potentially provide better survival-to-hospital discharge outcomes and reduce cardiac arrhythmia complications in carefully selected patients as compared to normothermia. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Crossing Borders: Research in Comparative and International Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Foster, Jesse; Addy, Nii Antiyae; Samoff, Joel

2012-01-01

Published articles permit mapping international and comparative education research. We reviewed 605 articles published 2004-2008 in four major journals. Using title, abstract, and entire text we explored thematic focus, geographic focus, level/type of education studied, method, and funding. The economic, political, and social context of education…

The Effects of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Programs on Student Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luo, Samia Merza

2013-01-01

This study compared student academic achievement in two college readiness programs, Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) and attempted to determine how well program participation predict student performance compared to variables such as SES, parent education level, GPA, gender, and SAT II scores. Finally, the research…

Highlights From the 2003 International Adult Literacy and Lifeskills Survey (ALL). Issue Brief NCES 2005-117rev.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lemke, Mariann; Miller, David; Johnston, Jamie; Krenzke, Tom; Alvarez-Rojas, Laura; Kastberg, David; Jocelyn, Leslie

2005-01-01

The Adult Literacy and Lifeskills Survey (ALL) is an international comparative study conducted in 2003 to provide participating countries with information about the skills of their adult populations. ALL builds upon earlier national and international studies of adult literacy. Information from ALL addresses questions such as: (1) What is the…

The Domains of Undergraduate International Business and International Management Courses in Accredited Schools of Business

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adams, Janet S.; Veliyath, Rajaram

2003-01-01

This study compared undergraduate international business and international management course syllabi from 190 management departments at accredited U.S. business schools. Comparisons revealed considerable overlap in topic areas in the two courses. The findings indicate the need for greater domain clarity and differentiation in objectives, topic…

A Comparative Study of Financial Data Sources for Critical Access Hospitals: Audited Financial Statements, the Medicare Cost Report, and the Internal Revenue Service Form 990

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozmeral, Alisha Bhadelia; Reiter, Kristin L.; Holmes, George M.; Pink, George H.

2012-01-01

Purpose: Medicare Cost Reports (MCR), Internal Revenue Service Form 990s (IRS 990), and Audited Financial Statements (AFS) vary in their content, detail, purpose, timeliness, and certification. The purpose of this study was to compare selected financial data elements and characterize the extent of differences in financial data and ratios across…

The Integration of Linguistic Theory: Internal Reconstruction and the Comparative Method in Descriptive Linguistics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bailey, Charles-James N.

The author aims: (1) to show that generative phonology uses essentially the method of internal reconstruction which has previously been employed only in diachronic studies in setting up synchronic underlying phonological representations; (2) to show why synchronic analysis should add the comparative method to its arsenal, together with whatever…

Why Returning to VET? Results of a Qualitative Comparative Study about English and German Car Mechatronics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gericke, Erika

2017-01-01

Educational choices, especially the influence of class on these choices have been a subject of lively international debate. However, thus far, there has been little international and comparative research with respect to vocational and education training (VET) decision making from a subject-oriented perspective. This paper considers…

Improving the Comparability and Local Usefulness of International Assessments: A Look Back and a Way Forward

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rutkowski, Leslie; Rutkowski, David

2018-01-01

Over time international large-scale assessments have grown in terms of number of studies, cycles, and participating countries, many of which are a heterogeneous mix of economies, languages, cultures, and geography. This heterogeneity has meaningful consequences for comparably measuring both achievement and non-achievement constructs, such as…

Comparative and International Education: Policy Transfer, Context Sensitivity and Professional Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crossley, Michael; Watson, Keith

2009-01-01

This paper examines the intellectual and professional contribution of comparative and international studies to the field of education. It explores the nature of the challenges that are currently being faced, and assesses its potential for the advancement of future teaching, research and professional development. Attention is paid to the place of…

Nano-confinement inside molecular metal oxide clusters: Dynamics and modified encapsulation behavior

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Zhe; Daemen, Luke L.; Cheng, Yongqiang

Encapsulation behavior, as well as the presence of internal catalytically-active sites, has been spurring the applications of a 3 nm hollow spherical metal oxide cluster {Mo 132} as an encapsulation host and a nano-reactor. Due to its well-defined and tunable cluster structures, and nano-scaled internal void space comparable to the volumes of small molecules, this cluster provides a good model to study the dynamics of materials under ultra-confinement. Neutron scattering studies suggest that bulky internal ligands inside the cluster show slower and limited dynamics compared to their counterparts in the bulk state, revealing the rigid nature of the skeleton ofmore » the internal ligands. Furthermore, NMR studies indicate that the rigid internal ligands that partially cover the interfacial pore on the molybdenum oxide shells are able to block some large guest molecules from going inside the capsule cluster, which provides a convincing protocol for size-selective encapsulation and separation.« less

Nano-confinement inside molecular metal oxide clusters: Dynamics and modified encapsulation behavior

DOE PAGES

Wang, Zhe; Daemen, Luke L.; Cheng, Yongqiang; ...

2016-08-19

Encapsulation behavior, as well as the presence of internal catalytically-active sites, has been spurring the applications of a 3 nm hollow spherical metal oxide cluster {Mo 132} as an encapsulation host and a nano-reactor. Due to its well-defined and tunable cluster structures, and nano-scaled internal void space comparable to the volumes of small molecules, this cluster provides a good model to study the dynamics of materials under ultra-confinement. Neutron scattering studies suggest that bulky internal ligands inside the cluster show slower and limited dynamics compared to their counterparts in the bulk state, revealing the rigid nature of the skeleton ofmore » the internal ligands. Furthermore, NMR studies indicate that the rigid internal ligands that partially cover the interfacial pore on the molybdenum oxide shells are able to block some large guest molecules from going inside the capsule cluster, which provides a convincing protocol for size-selective encapsulation and separation.« less

Highlights from PIRLS 2011: Reading Achievement of U.S. Fourth-Grade Students in an International Context. NCES 2013-010

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thompson, Sheila; Provasnik, Stephen; Kastberg, David; Ferraro, David; Lemanski, Nita; Roey, Stephen; Jenkins, Frank

2012-01-01

The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) is an international comparative study of student achievement. In 2011, PIRLS was administered to nationally representative samples of 4th-grade students in 53 education systems around the world. The PIRLS assessment measures student performance on a combined reading literacy scale, as…

[On comparison of hospital performance].

PubMed

Kjekshus, L E

2000-10-20

The motivation to identify the causes of rising health care cost and variations across providers has intensified in all industrialized countries. These countries have an ongoing debate on efficiency and effectiveness in hospital production. In this debate, national and international comparative studies are important. There are very few international comparative studies that include Norwegian hospitals. Actually we know very little about how Norwegian hospitals are performing compared to others. This paper gives an introduction to comparative studies and to the DEA model which is often used in such studies and also a multilevel model which is not so common. A short review is given of a comparative study of Norwegian and North American hospitals. I also discuss the feasibility of comparative studies of hospitals from the Nordic countries, with references to several comparative studies performed in these countries. Comparative studies are often closely linked to national health politics, policy making and reforms; thus the outcome of such studies is important for the hospitals included. This makes such studies a sensitive field of research. It is important to be aware of the strength and weaknesses of comparative studies and acknowledge their importance beyond the development of new knowledge.

An Exploratory Study on International Students' Study Anxiety

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khoshlessan, Rezvan; El-Houbi, Ashraf

2015-01-01

This study examines international students' study anxiety in a mid-sized university in Southeast Texas comparing their existing study anxiety along lines of nationality, gender, age, major, degree, and stage of education. It focuses on the students' perceptions and the dominant goal of this research was to investigate whether there is a…

Chapter 23: International Standard reagents for harmonization of HPV serology and DNA assays--an update.

PubMed

Pagliusi, Sonia R; Dillner, Joakim; Pawlita, Michael; Quint, Wim G V; Wheeler, Cosette M; Ferguson, M

2006-08-31

International reference materials such as International Standard reagents facilitate quality assurance of essential biopharmaceutical products and related in vitro diagnostic tests. Standardization of antibody and DNA measurements and harmonization of laboratory procedures are key to the success of cancer prevention strategies through screening methods as well as for development and implementation of vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV). The WHO supported the preparation and initial analysis of a panel of candidate serological and DNA reference reagents aimed at facilitating inter-laboratory comparisons and detection of HPV worldwide. Two international collaborative studies assessed the performance of various HPV antibody and HPV-DNA detection assays and examined the feasibility of generating HPV antibody and DNA standard reagents. These studies showed that improvement in performance and comparability of assays is urgently needed and that the use of the same International Standard reference reagent could significantly improve performance and comparability. It is hoped that the establishment of International Units and International Standards for HPV antibody and DNA analysis will be pursued with high priority.

On the generation of internal wave modes by surface waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harlander, Uwe; Kirschner, Ian; Maas, Christian; Zaussinger, Florian

2016-04-01

Internal gravity waves play an important role in the ocean since they transport energy and momentum and the can lead to mixing when they break. Surface waves and internal gravity waves can interact. On the one hand, long internal waves imply a slow varying shear current that modifies the propagation of surface waves. Surface waves generated by the atmosphere can, on the other hand, excite internal waves by nonlinear interaction. Thereby a surface wave packet consisting of two close frequencies can resonate with a low frequency internal wave (Phillips, 1966). From a theoretical point of view, the latter has been studied intensively by using a 2-layer model, i.e. a surface layer with a strong density contrast and an internal layer with a comparable weak density contrast (Ball, 1964; Craig et al., 2010). In the present work we analyse the wave coupling for a continuously stratified fluid using a fully non-linear 2D numerical model (OpenFoam) and compare this with laboratory experiments (see Lewis et al. 1974). Surface wave modes are used as initial condition and the time development of the dominant surface and internal waves are studied by spectral and harmonic analysis. For the simple geometry of a box, the results are compared with analytical spectra of surface and gravity waves. Ball, F.K. 1964: Energy transfer between external and internal gravity waves. J. Fluid Mech. 19, 465. Craig, W., Guyenne, P., Sulem, C. 2010: Coupling between internal and surface waves. Natural Hazards 57, 617-642. Lewis, J.E., Lake, B.M., Ko, D.R.S 1974: On the interaction of internal waves and surfacr gravity waves, J. Fluid Mech. 63, 773-800. Phillips, O.M. 1966: The dynamics of the upper ocean, Cambridge University Press, 336pp.

Perceptions of University Instructors When Listening to International Student Speech

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheppard, Beth; Elliott, Nancy; Baese-Berk, Melissa

2017-01-01

Intensive English Program (IEP) Instructors and content faculty both listen to international students at the university. For these two groups of instructors, this study compared perceptions of international student speech by collecting comprehensibility ratings and transcription samples for intelligibility scores. No significant differences were…

Conceptualizing a Comparative Educational Research Framework.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plomp, Tjeerd

1992-01-01

Presents reasons why nations should participate in international survey research. Reviews the mission and history of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). Discusses the design of a typical IEA study and includes five graphic figures and one table illustrating results of previous international surveys.…

Analyzing International Students' Study Anxiety in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khoshlessan, Rezvan; Das, Kumer Pial

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study is to explore international students' study anxiety in a mid-sized public four-year university in Southeast Texas by comparing their existing study anxiety along lines of nationality, gender, age, major, degree, and stage of education. The subjects were selected using a convenience sample during the Spring of 2013. The…

Evolution and convergence of the patterns of international scientific collaboration.

PubMed

Coccia, Mario; Wang, Lili

2016-02-23

International research collaboration plays an important role in the social construction and evolution of science. Studies of science increasingly analyze international collaboration across multiple organizations for its impetus in improving research quality, advancing efficiency of the scientific production, and fostering breakthroughs in a shorter time. However, long-run patterns of international research collaboration across scientific fields and their structural changes over time are hardly known. Here we show the convergence of international scientific collaboration across research fields over time. Our study uses a dataset by the National Science Foundation and computes the fraction of papers that have international institutional coauthorships for various fields of science. We compare our results with pioneering studies carried out in the 1970s and 1990s by applying a standardization method that transforms all fractions of internationally coauthored papers into a comparable framework. We find, over 1973-2012, that the evolution of collaboration patterns across scientific disciplines seems to generate a convergence between applied and basic sciences. We also show that the general architecture of international scientific collaboration, based on the ranking of fractions of international coauthorships for different scientific fields per year, has tended to be unchanged over time, at least until now. Overall, this study shows, to our knowledge for the first time, the evolution of the patterns of international scientific collaboration starting from initial results described by literature in the 1970s and 1990s. We find a convergence of these long-run collaboration patterns between the applied and basic sciences. This convergence might be one of contributing factors that supports the evolution of modern scientific fields.

Simultaneous and Comparable Numerical Indicators of International, National and Local Collaboration Practices in English-Medium Astrophysics Research Papers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Méndez, David I.; Alcaraz, M. Ángeles

2016-01-01

Introduction: We report an investigation on collaboration practices in research papers published in the most prestigious English-medium astrophysics journals. Method: We propose an evaluation method based on three numerical indicators to study and compare, in absolute terms, three different types of collaboration (international, national and…

International Practice and Comparative Legal Studies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cummins, Richard J.

1985-01-01

The lack of knowledge of and sensitivity to the basic features of foreign legal systems on the part of lawyers doing international work is related to a general lack of legal scholarship. The methodology and subject matter of comparative law must be renewed and revived at a time when barriers between legal systems seem to be increasing. (MSE)

Methodologies for Investigating Item- and Test-Level Measurement Equivalence in International Large-Scale Assessments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oliveri, Maria Elena; Olson, Brent F.; Ercikan, Kadriye; Zumbo, Bruno D.

2012-01-01

In this study, the Canadian English and French versions of the Problem-Solving Measure of the Programme for International Student Assessment 2003 were examined to investigate their degree of measurement comparability at the item- and test-levels. Three methods of differential item functioning (DIF) were compared: parametric and nonparametric item…

Inside-out: comparing internally generated and externally generated basic emotions.

PubMed

Salas, Christian E; Radovic, Darinka; Turnbull, Oliver H

2012-06-01

A considerable number of mood induction (MI) procedures have been developed to elicit emotion in normal and clinical populations. Although external procedures (e.g., film clips, pictures) are widely used, a number of experiments elicit emotion by using self-generated procedures (e.g., recalling an emotional personal episode). However, no study has directly compared the effectiveness of two types of internal versus external MI across multiple discrete emotions. In the present experiment, 40 undergraduate students watched film clips (external procedure) and recalled personal events (internal procedure) inducing 4 basic emotions (fear, anger, joy, sadness) and later completed a self-report questionnaire. Remarkably, both internal and external procedures elicited target emotions selectively, compared with nontarget emotions. When contrasting the intensity of target emotions, both techniques showed no significant differences, with the exception of Joy, which was more intensely elicited by the internal procedure. Importantly, when considering the overall level of intensity, it was always greater in the internal procedure, for each stimulus. A more detailed investigation of the data suggest that recalling personal events (a type of internal procedure) generates more negative and mixed blends of emotions, which might account for the overall higher intensity of the internal mood induction.

The Underachieving Curriculum: Assessing U.S. School Mathematics from an International Perspective. A National Report on the Second International Mathematics Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKnight, Curtis C.; And Others

The Second International Mathematics Study investigated the status of the curriculum, achievement, and instructional practices at grades 8 and 12 in about 20 countries. The introductory first chapter explores the need for change in mathematics programs. Chapter two describes the achievement of U.S. students compared to others. At grade 8, U.S.…

International Students: A Comparison of Health Status and Physical Health before and after Coming to the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Msengi, Clementine M.; Msengi, Israel G.; Harris, Sandra; Hopson, Michael

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to assess the health status and physical health of international students at five American universities. International students in the United States were asked to compare the status of their health before and after coming to the United States. Findings suggested that health status of international students declined…

Uneven Experiences: The Impact of Student-Faculty Interactions on International Students' Sense of Belonging

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glass, Chris R.; Kociolek, Elizabeth; Wongtrirat, Rachawan; Lynch, R. Jason; Cong, Summer

2015-01-01

This study examines student-faculty interactions in which U.S. professors signal social inclusion or exclusion, facilitating--or inhibiting--international students' academic goal pursuits. It compares narratives of 40 international students from four purposefully sampled subgroups--academic preparedness (low, high) and financial resources (low,…

The Internationalization of Research in Europe: A Quantitative Study of 11 National Systems From a Micro-Level Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kwiek, Marek

2015-01-01

This article focuses on the impact of international research collaboration on individual research productivity in 11 European countries. Research productivity and international publication co-authorship of "internationalists" and "locals" (or academics collaborating and not collaborating internationally) are compared. The…

Domestic and International Service Learning Experiences: A Comparative Study of Pre-Service Teacher Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Kari Knutson; Gonzalez, Amber M.

2010-01-01

This paper examines pre-service teacher outcomes associated with service learning in domestic and international settings. Participants included upper-division, undergraduate-level pre-service teachers who participated in service learning experiences in either local, domestic settings (Orange County, CA) or international settings (Shanghai and…

Proceedings of an International Symposium on Developments and Innovations in Interpreting for Deafblind People (Leeuwenhorst, Netherlands, June 1999) and Report on a Comparative Study of Roles, Training of and Rights to Interpreters for Deafblind People.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Durham Univ. (England). Council for the Advancement of Communication with Deaf People.

The proceedings of a 1999 international symposium on interpreting for deafblind people presents 15 papers and a report of a survey of 20 countries and 5 organizations concerning the roles, training, and rights of interpreters for deafblind people. The papers are: "European Deafblind Comparative Study--Interim Report" (Lynne Hawcroft,…

Gay and bisexual men engage in fewer risky sexual behaviors while traveling internationally: a cross-sectional study in San Francisco.

PubMed

Truong, Hong-Ha M; Fatch, Robin; Grasso, Michael; Robertson, Tyler; Tao, Luke; Chen, Yea-Hung; Curotto, Alberto; McFarland, Willi; Grant, Robert M; Reznick, Olga; Raymond, H Fisher; Steward, Wayne T

2015-05-01

International travel poses potential challenges to HIV prevention. A number of studies have observed an association between travel and behavioural disinhibition. In the present study, we assessed differences in sexual behaviour while travelling internationally and within the USA, compared with being in the home environment. A probability-based sample of men who have sex with men (MSM) from the San Francisco Bay Area who had travelled internationally in the previous 12 months was recruited through an adapted respondent-driven sampling methodology (N=501). Participants completed interviewer-administered, computer-assisted surveys. Detailed partner-by-partner behavioural data by destination type were collected on 2925 sexual partnerships: 1028 while travelling internationally, 665 while travelling within the USA and 1232 while staying in the San Francisco Bay Area. The proportion of partnerships during international travel that involved unprotected anal intercourse (UAI) was lower compared with during domestic travel and staying locally. International travel was associated with decreased odds of receptive UAI (AOR=0.65, p=0.02) compared with staying locally and there was a trend towards decreased odds of insertive UAI (AOR=0.70, p=0.07). MSM engaged in proportionately fewer sexual activities which present a high HIV transmission risk when travelling internationally, namely unprotected receptive and insertive anal intercourse and particularly with HIV serodiscordant partners. The lower sexual risk-taking during international travel was robust to controlling for many factors, including self-reported HIV serostatus, age, relationship status and type of partnership. These findings suggest that when travelling internationally, MSM may experience behavioural disinhibition to a lesser extent than had been described previously. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Bem Sex Role Inventory Validation in the International Mobility in Aging Study.

PubMed

Ahmed, Tamer; Vafaei, Afshin; Belanger, Emmanuelle; Phillips, Susan P; Zunzunegui, Maria-Victoria

2016-09-01

This study investigated the measurement structure of the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) with different factor analysis methods. Most previous studies on validity applied exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to examine the BSRI. We aimed to assess the psychometric properties and construct validity of the 12-item short-form BSRI in a sample administered to 1,995 older adults from wave 1 of the International Mobility in Aging Study (IMIAS). We used Cronbach's alpha to assess internal consistency reliability and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to assess psychometric properties. EFA revealed a three-factor model, further confirmed by CFA and compared with the original two-factor structure model. Results revealed that a two-factor solution (instrumentality-expressiveness) has satisfactory construct validity and superior fit to data compared to the three-factor solution. The two-factor solution confirms expected gender differences in older adults. The 12-item BSRI provides a brief, psychometrically sound, and reliable instrument in international samples of older adults.

Bottle Characteristics of Topical International Glaucoma Medications versus Local Brands in Saudi Arabia

PubMed Central

Al-Jumaian, Nasser; Malik, Rizwan; Khandekar, Rajiv; Al-Humaidan, Abdullah; Al-Madany, Rana; Al-Qahtani, Reham; Altowairqi, Ahmed; Al-Theeb, Abdulwahab; Zaman, Babar; Al-Djasim, Leyla; Craven, E. Randy; Edward, Deepak P.

2016-01-01

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: Physical bottle characteristics differ of brand name topical glaucoma medications and local generic equivalents. This study compares the bottle characteristics of international topical glaucoma brands versus local brands from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. METHODS: Data were collected on bottle drum volume, drop volume, bottle squeezability, bottle tip diameter, labels and instructions, cap color coding, and clarity of the drug label. Density-based calculations of drops in bottle volume were assessed using an analytic balance. Bottle tip diameter was measured using 0.05 mm Vernier calipers. A Likert scale-based questionnaire was used to evaluate the subjective opinions of patients on bottle squeezability, clarity of usage and storage instructions, and the consistency of the cap color coding. RESULTS: The volumes of international brands were statistically significantly higher than the local brands (P < 0.001). A number of drops per bottle and tip diameter were comparable between the international local brands. Cap color coding was inconsistent for international and local brands. Patients were dissatisfied with the label font size. Patients reported that the international and local brands were similar in terms of the ease of opening the bottle, instilling a drop, and the clarity of the instructions; but the local brands were subjectively easier to squeeze than international brands. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to compare bottle characteristics of local Saudi Arabia brands with international brands. The bottle characteristics and patient feedback were similar between the local and international topical glaucoma medications. However, there were differences between the local and international brands in drug volume, bottle squeezability. Hence, patient compliance and drop dosage may differ based on the origin of manufacture. PMID:27994392

International Community College Students: The Neglected Minority?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hagedorn, Linda Serra; Mi-Chung, Lee

2005-01-01

A study of F-1 visa students in the Los Angeles Community College district, this study compares the academic success of international students with respect to GPA, course completion, and other measures. In addition, the study looks at the age of students, and how long they remain enrolled. In addition, the study provides details on the types of…

INF and IAEA: A comparative analysis of verification strategy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Scheinman, L.; Kratzer, M.

1992-07-01

This is the final report of a study on the relevance and possible lessons of Intermediate Range Nuclear Force (INF) verification to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) international safeguards activities.

75 FR 18507 - International Cooperation on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Registration of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-12

... Veterinary Drugs in Food-Producing Animals: Comparative Metabolism Studies in Laboratory Animals (VICH GL47... Food-Producing Animals: Comparative Metabolism Studies in Laboratory Animals,'' VICH GL47. This draft... Food-Producing Animals: Comparative Metabolism Studies in Laboratory Animals,'' VICH GL47. In recent...

A Systematic Evaluation of Collagen Crosslinks in the Human Cervix

PubMed Central

Zork, Noelia M; Myers, Kristin Marie; Yoshida, Ms. Kyoko; Cremers, Serge; Jiang, Hongfeng; Ananth, Cande V; Wapner, Ronald; Kitajewski, Jan; Vink, Joy

2014-01-01

Objective The mechanical strength of the cervix relies on crosslinking of the tissue’s collagen network. Clinically, the internal os is functionally distinct from the external os. We sought to detect specific collagen crosslinks in human cervical tissue and determine if crosslink profiles were similar at the internal and external os. Study Design Transverse slices of cervical tissue were obtained at the internal and external os from 13 non-pregnant, premenopausal women undergoing a benign hysterectomy. To understand how crosslinks were distributed throughout the entire cervix and at the internal and external os, biopsies were obtained from three circumferential zones in four quadrants from each slice. Biopsies were pulverized, lyophilized, reduced with sodium borohydride, hydrolyzed with hydrochloric acid and reconstituted in heptafluorobutyric acid buffer. Hydroxyproline was measured by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS/MS), converted to total collagen, and normalized by dry weight. Collagen crosslinks pyridinoline (PYD), deoxypyridinoline (DPD), dihydroxylysinonorleucine (DHLNL), and the nonenzymatic advanced glycation end product pentosidine [PEN] were measured by UPLC-ESI-MS/MS and reported as crosslink density ratio (crosslink:total collagen). Generalized estimated equation analysis was used to compare results between the internal and external os and to compare quadrants and zones within slices from the internal and external os to determine if crosslink profiles were similar. Results 592 samples from 13 patients were analyzed. Collagen crosslinks are detectable in the human cervix by UPLC-ESI-MS/MS. When comparing all samples from the internal and external os, similar levels of collagen content, PYD, DHLNL and DPD were found but PEN density was higher at the external os (0.005 vs 0.004, P=0.001). When comparing all internal os samples, significant heterogeneity was found in collagen content and crosslink densities across zones and quadrants. The external os exhibited heterogeneity only across zones. Conclusion Collagen crosslinks (PYD, DPD, DHLNL, and PEN) are detectable by UPLC-ESI-MS/MS in the human cervix. The internal os exhibits significant collagen crosslink heterogeneity compared to the external os. Further studies are needed to evaluate how collagen crosslink heterogeneity correlates to the mechanical strength and function of the human cervix. PMID:25281365

A Comparison of Linking Methods for Estimating National Trends in International Comparative Large-Scale Assessments in the Presence of Cross-national DIF

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sachse, Karoline A.; Roppelt, Alexander; Haag, Nicole

2016-01-01

Trend estimation in international comparative large-scale assessments relies on measurement invariance between countries. However, cross-national differential item functioning (DIF) has been repeatedly documented. We ran a simulation study using national item parameters, which required trends to be computed separately for each country, to compare…

Reflections on International Comparative Education Survey Methodology: A Case Study of the European Survey on Language Competences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ashton, Karen

2016-01-01

This paper reflects on the methodology used in international comparative education surveys by conducting a systematic review of the European Survey on Language Competences (ESLC). The ESLC was administered from February to March 2011, with final results released in June 2012. The survey tested approximately 55,000 students across 14 European…

Educational Management and Policy: Research, Theory and Practice in South Africa. Bristol Papers in Education. Comparative and International Studies: 4.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, David, Ed.

This book contains a collection of papers written by students involved in the Educational Management Project for South Africa. The project was established to introduce selected South Africans to theories and practices in educational management in an international comparative context. The papers focus on priorities for educational change and…

Embedding Research on International Development in the Discourse of Comparative Education in East Asia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheng, I-Hsuan

2010-01-01

In the wake of the recent ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) launch in 2010, this paper argues for the greater scholarly contribution of international development studies in the discourse of comparative education in East Asia. The argument is based on three premises. The first acknowledges the growing relations of East Asian countries to…

International Views of Inclusive Education: A Comparative Study of Early Childhood Educator's Perceptions in Jordan, United Arab Emirates, and the United States of America

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamaidi, Diala; Homidi, Moayyad; Reyes, Luis V.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this research was to explore and describe early childhood educators' perceptions of academic aspects and social and emotional aspects of inclusion practices. In this comparative international quantitative research an attitudinal demographic survey was distributed to 300 early childhood educators in mandated kindergartens and primary…

The Comparison of the View of "Communicative Language Teaching" in Abant Izzet Baysal University, Turkey and Sussex University; UK

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Metin Tekin, Bilge

2017-01-01

For language teachers, the study of education from international and comparative points of view, which is undertaken by comparative education, is essential because of the international nature of language education. For language teachers, working abroad to widen their experience is very common. Therefore, knowing the latest and common approach is…

Tracking Effects Depend on Tracking Type: An International Comparison of Students' Mathematics Self-Concept

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chmielewski, Anna K.; Dumont, Hanna; Trautwein, Ulrich

2013-01-01

The aim of the present study was to examine how different types of tracking--between-school streaming, within-school streaming, and course-by-course tracking--shape students' mathematics self-concept. This was done in an internationally comparative framework using data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). After…

Comparing Japanese International College Students' and U.S. College Students' Mental-Health-Related Stigmatizing Attitudes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Masuda, Akihiko; Hayes, Steven C.; Twohig, Michael P.; Lillis, Jason; Fletcher, Lindsay B.; Gloster, Andrew T.

2009-01-01

This study examined differences between Japanese international college students and U. S. college students on stigma toward people with psychological disorders, stigma tolerance in help seeking, and self-concealment. Japanese international students had greater stigma toward individuals with psychological disorders than did their U.S. counterparts.…

The Significance of Insecure and Disorganized Attachment for Children's Internalizing Symptoms: A Meta-Analytic Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Groh, Ashley M.; Roisman, Glenn I.; van IJzendoorn, Marinus H.; Bakermans-Kranenburg, Marian J.; Fearon, R. Pasco

2012-01-01

This meta-analytic review examines the association between attachment and internalizing symptomatology during childhood, and compares the strength of this association with that for externalizing symptomatology. Based on 42 independent samples (N = 4,614), the association between insecurity and internalizing symptoms was small, yet significant (d =…

Internalizing and Externalizing Problems in Immigrant Boys and Girls: Comparing Native Dutch and Moroccan Immigrant Adolescents across Time

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paalman, Carmen; van Domburgh, Lieke; Stevens, Gonneke; Vermeiren, Robert; van de Ven, Peter; Branje, Susan; Frijns, Tom; Meeus, Wim; Koot, Hans; van Lier, Pol; Jansen, Lucres; Doreleijers, Theo

2015-01-01

This longitudinal study explores differences between native Dutch and immigrant Moroccan adolescents in the relationship between internalizing and externalizing problems across time. By using generalized estimating equations (GEE), the strength and stability of associations between internalizing and externalizing problems in 159 Moroccan and 159…

Government Publications as Bibliographic References in the Periodical Literature of International Relations: A Citation Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brill, Margaret S.

1990-01-01

Describes a study that used citation analysis to identify the government publications cited in international relations journals for 1964, 1974, and 1984. U.S. government, foreign government, and international organization publications and documents are compared by citation rate; implications for collection development in libraries are discussed;…

INF and IAEA: A comparative analysis of verification strategy. [Final report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Scheinman, L.; Kratzer, M.

1992-07-01

This is the final report of a study on the relevance and possible lessons of Intermediate Range Nuclear Force (INF) verification to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) international safeguards activities.

Research priorities in health economics and funding for palliative care: views of an international think tank.

PubMed

Harding, Richard; Gomes, Barbara; Foley, Kathleen M; Higginson, Irene J

2009-07-01

At the conclusion of the November 2007 meeting, the assembled international expert group identified the research agenda. The adoption of this agenda would take forward health economic research in palliative care, and generate the necessary data for improved funding decision making, and resource allocation. Recommendations for study included international comparative research into the components of care and settings, evaluative studies, methodologic development and strategies to initiate studies, and make better use of data.

76 FR 57057 - International Cooperation on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Registration of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-15

... Drugs in Food-Producing Animals: Comparative Metabolism Studies in Laboratory Animals; Availability...: Comparative Metabolism Studies in Laboratory Animals'' (VICH GL47). This guidance has been developed for... Metabolism and Residue Kinetics of Veterinary Drugs in Food- Producing Animals: Comparative Metabolism...

Usage of Computers and Calculators and Students' Achievement: Results from TIMSS 2003

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Antonijevic, Radovan

2007-01-01

The paper deals with the facts obtained from TIMSS 2003 (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study). This international comparative study, which includes 47 participant countries worldwide, explores dependence between eighth grade students' achievement in the areas of mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology and geography, and basic…

8 CFR 316.20 - American institutions of research, public international organizations, and designations under the...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... Sociology and Anthropology), Northfield, MN. Center of Alcohol Studies, Laboratory of Applied Biodynamics of...), Fort Collins, CO. Colorado University (International Economic Studies Center), Boulder, CO. Columbia University (Parker School of Foreign and Comparative Law) and (Faculty of Pure Science), New York, NY...

8 CFR 316.20 - American institutions of research, public international organizations, and designations under the...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... Sociology and Anthropology), Northfield, MN. Center of Alcohol Studies, Laboratory of Applied Biodynamics of...), Fort Collins, CO. Colorado University (International Economic Studies Center), Boulder, CO. Columbia University (Parker School of Foreign and Comparative Law) and (Faculty of Pure Science), New York, NY...

8 CFR 316.20 - American institutions of research, public international organizations, and designations under the...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... Sociology and Anthropology), Northfield, MN. Center of Alcohol Studies, Laboratory of Applied Biodynamics of...), Fort Collins, CO. Colorado University (International Economic Studies Center), Boulder, CO. Columbia University (Parker School of Foreign and Comparative Law) and (Faculty of Pure Science), New York, NY...

8 CFR 316.20 - American institutions of research, public international organizations, and designations under the...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... Sociology and Anthropology), Northfield, MN. Center of Alcohol Studies, Laboratory of Applied Biodynamics of...), Fort Collins, CO. Colorado University (International Economic Studies Center), Boulder, CO. Columbia University (Parker School of Foreign and Comparative Law) and (Faculty of Pure Science), New York, NY...

8 CFR 316.20 - American institutions of research, public international organizations, and designations under the...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... Sociology and Anthropology), Northfield, MN. Center of Alcohol Studies, Laboratory of Applied Biodynamics of...), Fort Collins, CO. Colorado University (International Economic Studies Center), Boulder, CO. Columbia University (Parker School of Foreign and Comparative Law) and (Faculty of Pure Science), New York, NY...

Introduction: Comparative and International Studies and Education in the South Pacific.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crossley, Michael

1993-01-01

Discusses some areas of particular interest in the study of education in the South Pacific islands: educational development in small, recently decolonized nations; mismatch between policies of donors of international aid and the needs of developing nations; importance of understanding the context of education; and misapplication of educational…

Internal jugular vein blood flow in multiple sclerosis patients and matched controls.

PubMed

Mancini, Marcello; Lanzillo, Roberta; Liuzzi, Raffaele; Di Donato, Orlando; Ragucci, Monica; Monti, Serena; Salvatore, Elena; Morra, Vincenzo Brescia; Salvatore, Marco

2014-01-01

The aim of the study was to investigate the Internal Jugular Veins dynamics using contrast enhanced ultrasonography in Multiple Sclerosis patients, clinically isolated syndrome patients and healthy controls. Contrast enhanced ultrasonography imaging of the Internal Jugular Vein was performed in fifty-eight patients with Multiple Sclerosis, seven clinically isolated syndrome patients and in thirteen healthy controls. Time-intensity curves were quantified using a semi-automated method and compared with clinical disease outcomes. Wash-out parameters were calculated and six Time-intensity curves shapes were created. Significantly reduction of wash-out rate in Internal Jugular Veins was detected in Multiple Sclerosis patients compared to healthy controls [22.2% (2.7%-65.9%) vs. 33.4% (16.2%-76.8%); P<0.005]. Internal Jugular Vein enhancement was heterogeneous in patients with Multiple Sclerosis and consisted of slow wash-out Time-intensity curves shapes, compared with almost only one type of Time-intensity curves shape in control subjects that correspond to fast enhancement and fast wash-out. The vein wash-in parameters were similar in Multiple Sclerosis group compared with controls. A significant correlation was found between Internal Jugular Vein wash-out and level of disability (R =  -0.402, p<0.05). Contrast enhanced ultrasonography of the Internal Jugular Vein with time intensity curve analysis revealed alterations of cerebral venous outflow in Multiple Sclerosis patients, however mechanisms that determine this condition remains unclear.

Internalization and dissemination of human norovirus and Tulane virus in fresh produce is plant dependent.

PubMed

Yang, Zhihong; Chambers, Heather; DiCaprio, Erin; Gao, Gary; Li, Jianrong

2018-02-01

Human norovirus (NoV) is a leading cause of fresh produce associated outbreaks. Previous research indicates that the roots of growing leafy greens and berries internalize human NoV. However the effect of plant type and inoculum level on internalization rates has not been directly compared. In this study we compared the internalization and dissemination rates of human NoV and its surrogate, Tulane virus (TV) in green onion, radishes, and Romaine lettuce. We also evaluated the effect inoculum level and plant growth matrix on the rate of viral internalization. In the hydroponic growth system, we detected internalization and dissemination of human NoV RNA in green onions. In hydroponically growing green onions inoculated with high titer TV, we found higher rates of internalization and dissemination compared to green onions inoculated with low titer TV. In soil growth systems, no infectious TV was detected in either green onion or radishes. However, in Romaine lettuce plants grown in soil approximately 4 log 10  PFU/g was recovered from all tissues on day 14 p.i. Overall, we found that the type of plant, growth matrix, and the inoculum level influences the internalization and dissemination of human NoV and TV. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cumulative Evidence of Randomized Controlled and Observational Studies on Catheter-Related Infection Risk of Central Venous Catheter Insertion Site in ICU Patients: A Pairwise and Network Meta-Analysis.

PubMed

Arvaniti, Kostoula; Lathyris, Dimitrios; Blot, Stijn; Apostolidou-Kiouti, Fani; Koulenti, Despoina; Haidich, Anna-Bettina

2017-04-01

Selection of central venous catheter insertion site in ICU patients could help reduce catheter-related infections. Although subclavian was considered the most appropriate site, its preferential use in ICU patients is not generalized and questioned by contradicted meta-analysis results. In addition, conflicting data exist on alternative site selection whenever subclavian is contraindicated. To compare catheter-related bloodstream infection and colonization risk between the three sites (subclavian, internal jugular, and femoral) in adult ICU patients. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled trials, CINAHL, and ClinicalTrials.gov. Eligible studies were randomized controlled trials and observational ones. Extracted data were analyzed by pairwise and network meta-analysis. Twenty studies were included; 11 were observational, seven were randomized controlled trials for other outcomes, and two were randomized controlled trials for sites. We evaluated 18,554 central venous catheters: 9,331 from observational studies, 5,482 from randomized controlled trials for other outcomes, and 3,741 from randomized controlled trials for sites. Colonization risk was higher for internal jugular (relative risk, 2.25 [95% CI, 1.84-2.75]; I = 0%) and femoral (relative risk, 2.92 [95% CI, 2.11-4.04]; I = 24%), compared with subclavian. Catheter-related bloodstream infection risk was comparable for internal jugular and subclavian, higher for femoral than subclavian (relative risk, 2.44 [95% CI, 1.25-4.75]; I = 61%), and lower for internal jugular than femoral (relative risk, 0.55 [95% CI, 0.34-0.89]; I = 61%). When observational studies that did not control for baseline characteristics were excluded, catheter-related bloodstream infection risk was comparable between the sites. In ICU patients, internal jugular and subclavian may, similarly, decrease catheter-related bloodstream infection risk, when compared with femoral. Subclavian could be suggested as the most appropriate site, whenever colonization risk is considered and not, otherwise, contraindicated. Current evidence on catheter-related bloodstream infection femoral risk, compared with the other sites, is inconclusive.

The societal costs of femoral neck fracture patients treated with internal fixation.

PubMed

Zielinski, S M; Bouwmans, C A M; Heetveld, M J; Bhandari, M; Patka, P; Van Lieshout, E M M

2014-03-01

The study rationale was to provide a detailed overview of the costs for femoral neck fracture treatment with internal fixation in the Netherlands. Mean total costs per patient at 2-years follow-up were 19,425. Costs were higher for older, less healthy patients. Results are comparable to internationally published costs. The aim of this study was to provide a detailed overview of the cost and healthcare consumption of patients treated for a hip fracture with internal fixation. A secondary aim was to compare costs of patients who underwent a revision surgery with patients who did not. The study was performed alongside the Dutch sample of an international randomized controlled trial, concerning femoral neck fracture patients treated with internal fixation. Patient characteristics and healthcare consumption were collected. Total follow-up was 2 years. A societal perspective was adopted. Costs included hospital costs during primary stay and follow-up, and costs related to rehabilitation and changes in living situation. Costs were compared between non-revision surgery patients, implant removal patients, and revision arthroplasty patients. A total of 248 patients were included (mean age 71 years). Mean total costs per patient at 2-years follow-up were 19,425. In the non-revision surgery patients total costs were 17,405 (N = 137), in the implant removal patients 10,066 (N = 38), and in the revision arthroplasty patients 26,733 (N = 67). The main contributing costs were related to the primary surgery, admission days, physical therapy, and revision surgeries. The main determinant was the costs of admission to a rehabilitation center/nursing home. Costs were specifically high in elderly with comorbidity, who were less independent pre-fracture, and have a longer admission to the hospital and/or a nursing home. Costs were also higher in revision surgery patients. The 2-years follow-up costs in our study were comparable to published costs in other Western societies.

An international comparative family medicine study of the Transition Project data from the Netherlands, Malta and Serbia. Is family medicine an international discipline? Comparing diagnostic odds ratios across populations.

PubMed

Soler, Jean K; Okkes, Inge; Oskam, Sibo; van Boven, Kees; Zivotic, Predrag; Jevtic, Milan; Dobbs, Frank; Lamberts, Henk

2012-06-01

This is an international study of the epidemiology of family medicine (FM) in three practice populations from the Netherlands, Malta and Serbia. Diagnostic associations between common reasons for encounter (RfEs) and episodes titles are compared and similarities and differences are described and analysed. Participating family doctors (FDs) recorded details of all their patient contacts in an 'episode of care (EoC)' structure using the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC). RfEs presented by the patient and episode titles (diagnostic labels of EoCs) were classified with ICPC. The relationships between RfEs and episode titles were studied with Bayesian methods. Distributions of diagnostic odds ratios (ORs) from the three population databases are presented and compared. ICPC, the RfE and the EoC data model are appropriate tools to study the process of diagnosis in FM. Distributions of diagnostic associations between RfEs and episode titles in the Transition Project international populations show remarkable similarities and congruencies in the process of diagnosis from both the RfE and the episode title perspectives. The congruence of diagnostic associations between populations supports the use of such data from one population to inform diagnostic decisions in another. Differences in the magnitude of such diagnostic associations are significant, and population-specific data are therefore desirable. We propose that both an international (common) and a local (health care system specific) content of FM exist and that the empirical distributions of diagnostic associations presented in this paper are a reflection of both these effects. We also observed that the frequency of exposure to such diagnostic challenges had a strong effect on the confidence intervals of diagnostic ORs reflecting these diagnostic associations. We propose that this constitutes evidence that expertise in FM is associated with frequency of exposure to diagnostic challenges.

A Prospective Randomized Trial to Assess Fixation Strategies for Severe Open Tibia Fractures: Modern Ring External Fixators Versus Internal Fixation (FIXIT Study).

PubMed

OʼToole, Robert V; Gary, Joshua L; Reider, Lisa; Bosse, Michael J; Gordon, Wade T; Hutson, James; Quinnan, Stephen M; Castillo, Renan C; Scharfstein, Daniel O; MacKenzie, Ellen J

2017-04-01

The treatment of high-energy open tibia fractures is challenging in both the military and civilian environments. Treatment with modern ring external fixation may reduce complications common in these patients. However, no study has rigorously compared outcomes of modern ring external fixation with commonly used internal fixation approaches. The FIXIT study is a prospective, multicenter randomized trial comparing 1-year outcomes after treatment of severe open tibial shaft fractures with modern external ring fixation versus internal fixation among men and women of ages 18-64. The primary outcome is rehospitalization for major limb complications. Secondary outcomes include infection, fracture healing, limb function, and patient-reported outcomes including physical function and pain. One-year treatment costs and patient satisfaction will be compared between the 2 groups, and the percentage of Gustilo IIIB fractures that can be salvaged without soft tissue flap among patients receiving external fixation will be estimated.

The Effects of Child Abuse and Exposure to Domestic Violence on Adolescent Internalizing and Externalizing Behavior Problems.

PubMed

Moylan, Carrie A; Herrenkohl, Todd I; Sousa, Cindy; Tajima, Emiko A; Herrenkohl, Roy C; Russo, M Jean

2010-01-01

This study examines the effects of child abuse and domestic violence exposure in childhood on adolescent internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Data for this analysis are from the Lehigh Longitudinal Study, a prospective study of 457 youth addressing outcomes of family violence and resilience in individuals and families. Results show that child abuse, domestic violence, and both in combination (i.e., dual exposure) increase a child's risk for internalizing and externalizing outcomes in adolescence. When accounting for risk factors associated with additional stressors in the family and surrounding environment, only those children with dual exposure had an elevated risk of the tested outcomes compared to non-exposed youth. However, while there were some observable differences in the prediction of outcomes for children with dual exposure compared to those with single exposure (i.e., abuse only or exposure to domestic violence only), these difference were not statistically significant. Analyses showed that the effects of exposure for boys and girls are statistically comparable.

[Emotional climate and internal communication in a clinical management unit compared with two traditional hospital services].

PubMed

Alonso, E; Rubio, A; March, J C; Danet, A

2011-01-01

The aim of this study is to compare the emotional climate, quality of communication and performance indicators in a clinical management unit and two traditional hospital services. Quantitative study. questionnaire of 94 questions. 83 health professionals (63 responders) from the clinical management unit of breast pathology and the hospital services of medical oncology and radiation oncology. descriptive statistics, comparison of means, correlation and linear regression models. The clinical management unit reaches higher values compared with the hospital services about: performance indicators, emotional climate, internal communication and evaluation of the leadership. An important gap between existing and desired sources, channels, media and subjects of communication appear, in both clinical management unit and traditional services. The clinical management organization promotes better internal communication and interpersonal relations, leading to improved performance indicators. Copyright © 2011 SECA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Advancing Research on Comparative and International Education in Asia: Contribution of the "Asia Pacific Education Review"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gok, Enes; Weidman, John C.

2015-01-01

This article explored the contribution of Asia Pacific Education Review (APER) to expanding the scope of research on comparative and international education in Asia. We developed a rubric based on extensive studies (Rust et al. in "Comp Educ Rev," 43(1):86-109, 1999; Foster et al. in "Int J Educ Dev" 32:711-732, 2012) of…

Changes in Perceptions: A Comparative Study of the Experiential Learning of International Student Teachers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKay, Joane W.; Montgomery, Janey

This study was designed to provide a rich description of the changing perceptions student teachers had about increased personal growth and enhanced global awareness as a result of teaching placements in foreign countries. The study included an examination of research on the impact of international student teaching (IST) experiences, description of…

A comparison of exposure to risk factors for giardiasis in non-travellers, domestic travellers and international travellers in a Canadian community, 2006-2012.

PubMed

Swirski, A L; Pearl, D L; Peregrine, A S; Pintar, K

2016-04-01

The purpose of this study is to determine how demographic and exposure factors related to giardiasis vary between travel and endemic cases. Exposure and demographic data were gathered by public health inspectors from giardiasis cases reported from the Region of Waterloo from 2006 to 2012. Logistic regression models were fit to assess differences in exposure to risk factors for giardiasis between international travel-related cases and Canadian acquired cases while controlling for age and sex. Multinomial regression models were also fit to assess the differences in risk profiles between international and domestic travel-related cases and endemic cases. Travel-related cases (both international and domestic) were more likely to go camping or kayaking, and consume untreated water compared to endemic cases. Domestic travel-related cases were more likely to visit a petting zoo or farm compared to endemic cases, and were more likely to swim in freshwater compared to endemic cases and international travel-related cases. International travellers were more likely to swim in an ocean compared to both domestic travel-related and endemic cases. These findings demonstrate that travel-related and endemic cases have different risk exposure profiles which should be considered for appropriately targeting health promotion campaigns.

Mapping the MMPI-2-RF Substantive Scales Onto Internalizing, Externalizing, and Thought Dysfunction Dimensions in a Forensic Inpatient Setting.

PubMed

Romero, Isabella E; Toorabally, Nasreen; Burchett, Danielle; Tarescavage, Anthony M; Glassmire, David M

2017-01-01

Contemporary models of psychopathology-encompassing internalizing, externalizing, and thought dysfunction factors-have gained significant support. Although research indicates the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF; Ben-Porath & Tellegen, 2008 /2011) measures these domains of psychopathology, this study addresses extant limitations in MMPI-2-RF diagnostic validity research by examining associations between all MMPI-2-RF substantive scales and broad dichotomous indicators of internalizing, externalizing, and thought dysfunction diagnoses in a sample of 1,110 forensic inpatients. Comparing those with and without internalizing diagnoses, notable effects were observed for Negative Emotionality/Neuroticism-Revised (NEGE-r), Emotional/Internalizing Dysfunction (EID), Dysfunctional Negative Emotions (RC7), Demoralization (RCd), and several other internalizing and somatic/cognitive scales. Comparing those with and without thought dysfunction diagnoses, the largest hypothesized differences occurred for Thought Dysfunction (THD), Aberrant Experiences (RC8), and Psychoticism-Revised (PSYC-r), although unanticipated differences were observed on internalizing and interpersonal scales, likely reflecting the high prevalence of internalizing dysfunction in forensic inpatients not experiencing thought dysfunction. Comparing those with and without externalizing diagnoses, the largest effects were for Substance Abuse (SUB), Antisocial Behavior (RC4), Behavioral/Externalizing Dysfunction (BXD), Juvenile Conduct Problems (JCP), and Disconstraint-Revised (DISC-r). Multivariate models evidenced similar results. Findings support the construct validity of MMPI-2-RF scales as measures of internalizing, thought, and externalizing dysfunction.

Impact of Internally Developed Electronic Prescription on Prescribing Errors at Discharge from the Emergency Department

PubMed Central

Hitti, Eveline; Tamim, Hani; Bakhti, Rinad; Zebian, Dina; Mufarrij, Afif

2017-01-01

Introduction Medication errors are common, with studies reporting at least one error per patient encounter. At hospital discharge, medication errors vary from 15%–38%. However, studies assessing the effect of an internally developed electronic (E)-prescription system at discharge from an emergency department (ED) are comparatively minimal. Additionally, commercially available electronic solutions are cost-prohibitive in many resource-limited settings. We assessed the impact of introducing an internally developed, low-cost E-prescription system, with a list of commonly prescribed medications, on prescription error rates at discharge from the ED, compared to handwritten prescriptions. Methods We conducted a pre- and post-intervention study comparing error rates in a randomly selected sample of discharge prescriptions (handwritten versus electronic) five months pre and four months post the introduction of the E-prescription. The internally developed, E-prescription system included a list of 166 commonly prescribed medications with the generic name, strength, dose, frequency and duration. We included a total of 2,883 prescriptions in this study: 1,475 in the pre-intervention phase were handwritten (HW) and 1,408 in the post-intervention phase were electronic. We calculated rates of 14 different errors and compared them between the pre- and post-intervention period. Results Overall, E-prescriptions included fewer prescription errors as compared to HW-prescriptions. Specifically, E-prescriptions reduced missing dose (11.3% to 4.3%, p <0.0001), missing frequency (3.5% to 2.2%, p=0.04), missing strength errors (32.4% to 10.2%, p <0.0001) and legibility (0.7% to 0.2%, p=0.005). E-prescriptions, however, were associated with a significant increase in duplication errors, specifically with home medication (1.7% to 3%, p=0.02). Conclusion A basic, internally developed E-prescription system, featuring commonly used medications, effectively reduced medication errors in a low-resource setting where the costs of sophisticated commercial electronic solutions are prohibitive. PMID:28874948

Impact of Internally Developed Electronic Prescription on Prescribing Errors at Discharge from the Emergency Department.

PubMed

Hitti, Eveline; Tamim, Hani; Bakhti, Rinad; Zebian, Dina; Mufarrij, Afif

2017-08-01

Medication errors are common, with studies reporting at least one error per patient encounter. At hospital discharge, medication errors vary from 15%-38%. However, studies assessing the effect of an internally developed electronic (E)-prescription system at discharge from an emergency department (ED) are comparatively minimal. Additionally, commercially available electronic solutions are cost-prohibitive in many resource-limited settings. We assessed the impact of introducing an internally developed, low-cost E-prescription system, with a list of commonly prescribed medications, on prescription error rates at discharge from the ED, compared to handwritten prescriptions. We conducted a pre- and post-intervention study comparing error rates in a randomly selected sample of discharge prescriptions (handwritten versus electronic) five months pre and four months post the introduction of the E-prescription. The internally developed, E-prescription system included a list of 166 commonly prescribed medications with the generic name, strength, dose, frequency and duration. We included a total of 2,883 prescriptions in this study: 1,475 in the pre-intervention phase were handwritten (HW) and 1,408 in the post-intervention phase were electronic. We calculated rates of 14 different errors and compared them between the pre- and post-intervention period. Overall, E-prescriptions included fewer prescription errors as compared to HW-prescriptions. Specifically, E-prescriptions reduced missing dose (11.3% to 4.3%, p <0.0001), missing frequency (3.5% to 2.2%, p=0.04), missing strength errors (32.4% to 10.2%, p <0.0001) and legibility (0.7% to 0.2%, p=0.005). E-prescriptions, however, were associated with a significant increase in duplication errors, specifically with home medication (1.7% to 3%, p=0.02). A basic, internally developed E-prescription system, featuring commonly used medications, effectively reduced medication errors in a low-resource setting where the costs of sophisticated commercial electronic solutions are prohibitive.

Clinical Characteristics of Pediatric Trichotillomania: Comparisons with Obsessive-Compulsive and Tic Disorders.

PubMed

Rozenman, Michelle; Peris, Tara S; Gonzalez, Araceli; Piacentini, John

2016-02-01

This study compared youth ages 5-17 years with a primary diagnosis of trichotillomania (TTM, n = 30) to those with primary OCD (n = 30) and tic disorder (n = 29) on demographic characteristics, internalizing, and externalizing symptoms. Findings suggest that youth with primary TTM score more comparably to youth with tics than those with OCD on internalizing and externalizing symptom measures. Compared to the OCD group, youth in the TTM group reported lower levels of anxiety and depression. Parents of youth in the TTM group also reported fewer internalizing, externalizing, attention, and thought problems than those in the OCD group. Youth with TTM did not significantly differ from those with primary Tic disorders on any measure. Findings suggest that pediatric TTM may be more similar to pediatric tic disorders than pediatric OCD on anxiety, depression, and global internalizing and externalizing problems.

Comparing the Experiences and Needs of Postsecondary International Students from China and South Korea

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deters, Ping

2015-01-01

International students from China and South Korea are an increasingly important part of the international student body in many English-medium postsecondary institutions. The purpose of this qualitative study was to gain a deeper understanding of the experiences and needs of these two groups of students at a Canadian postsecondary institution. Data…

The Effects of a Roommate-Pairing Program on International Student Satisfaction and Academic Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tolman, Steven

2017-01-01

While great attention has been given to the growth of international students at U.S. institutions, there is a gap in the literature examining support for this student population within residence halls. To address the gap, this quantitative study evaluated an international roommate-pairing program (IRP) by comparing the residential experience of…

Exploring Factors Influencing International Students' Decision to Choose a Higher Education Institution: A Comparison between Chinese and Other Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

James-MacEachern, Melissa; Yun, Dongkoo

2017-01-01

Purpose: There is little research into small higher education institutions and international students' choice in selecting these institutions. The purpose of this paper is to understand the factors that influence international student choices in selecting a small institution. In particular, this study compares the differences between Chinese…

Anterolateral Knee Extra-articular Stabilizers: A Robotic Sectioning Study of the Anterolateral Ligament and Distal Iliotibial Band Kaplan Fibers.

PubMed

Geeslin, Andrew G; Chahla, Jorge; Moatshe, Gilbert; Muckenhirn, Kyle J; Kruckeberg, Bradley M; Brady, Alex W; Coggins, Ashley; Dornan, Grant J; Getgood, Alan M; Godin, Jonathan A; LaPrade, Robert F

2018-05-01

The individual kinematic roles of the anterolateral ligament (ALL) and the distal iliotibial band Kaplan fibers in the setting of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) deficiency require further clarification. This will improve understanding of their potential contribution to residual anterolateral rotational laxity after ACL reconstruction and may influence selection of an anterolateral extra-articular reconstruction technique, which is currently a matter of debate. Hypothesis/Purpose: To compare the role of the ALL and the Kaplan fibers in stabilizing the knee against tibial internal rotation, anterior tibial translation, and the pivot shift in ACL-deficient knees. We hypothesized that the Kaplan fibers would provide greater tibial internal rotation restraint than the ALL in ACL-deficient knees and that both structures would provide restraint against internal rotation during a simulated pivot-shift test. Controlled laboratory study. Ten paired fresh-frozen cadaveric knees (n = 20) were used to investigate the effect of sectioning the ALL and the Kaplan fibers in ACL-deficient knees with a 6 degrees of freedom robotic testing system. After ACL sectioning, sectioning was randomly performed for the ALL and the Kaplan fibers. An established robotic testing protocol was utilized to assess knee kinematics when the specimens were subjected to a 5-N·m internal rotation torque (0°-90° at 15° increments), a simulated pivot shift with 10-N·m valgus and 5-N·m internal rotation torque (15° and 30°), and an 88-N anterior tibial load (30° and 90°). Sectioning of the ACL led to significantly increased tibial internal rotation (from 0° to 90°) and anterior tibial translation (30° and 90°) as compared with the intact state. Significantly increased internal rotation occurred with further sectioning of the ALL (15°-90°) and Kaplan fibers (15°, 60°-90°). At higher flexion angles (60°-90°), sectioning the Kaplan fibers led to significantly greater internal rotation when compared with ALL sectioning. On simulated pivot-shift testing, ALL sectioning led to significantly increased internal rotation and anterior translation at 15° and 30°; sectioning of the Kaplan fibers led to significantly increased tibial internal rotation at 15° and 30° and anterior translation at 15°. No significant difference was found when anterior tibial translation was compared between the ACL/ALL- and ACL/Kaplan fiber-deficient states on simulated pivot-shift testing or isolated anterior tibial load. The ALL and Kaplan fibers restrain internal rotation in the ACL-deficient knee. Sectioning the Kaplan fibers led to greater tibial internal rotation at higher flexion angles (60°-90°) as compared with ALL sectioning. Additionally, the ALL and Kaplan fibers contribute to restraint of the pivot shift and anterior tibial translation in the ACL-deficient knee. This study reports that the ALL and distal iliotibial band Kaplan fibers restrain anterior tibial translation, internal rotation, and pivot shift in the ACL-deficient knee. Furthermore, sectioning the Kaplan fibers led to significantly greater tibial internal rotation when compared with ALL sectioning at high flexion angles. These results demonstrate increased rotational knee laxity with combined ACL and anterolateral extra-articular knee injuries and may allow surgeons to optimize the care of patients with this injury pattern.

International Comparisons of Teachers' Salaries: An Exploratory Study. Survey Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barro, Steven M.; Suter, Larry

This paper, the final product of a study, "International Comparison of Teachers' Salaries," on an exploratory effort to compare salaries of elementary and secondary school teachers in the United States with those in other economically advanced countries. Data was obtained from Canada, Denmark, Federal Republic of Germany, France, Italy, Japan,…

The "Russian Doll" Approach: Developing Nested Case-Studies to Support International Comparative Research in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chong, Pei Wen; Graham, Linda J.

2013-01-01

International comparison is complicated by the use of different terms, classification methods, policy frameworks and system structures, not to mention different languages and terminology. Multi-case studies can assist in the understanding of the influence wielded by cultural, social, economic, historical and political forces upon educational…

Blended Learning from Design to Evaluation: International Case Studies of Evidence-Based Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vaughan, Norman; Reali, Aline; Stenbom, Stefan; Van Vuuren, Marieta Jansen; MacDonald, David

2017-01-01

This study compares and contrasts four international faculty development programs for blended learning in order to understand the benefits, challenges, lessons learned, and recommendations from such initiatives. The benefits identified for faculty members, who participated in these programs, were that they became more reflective of their teaching…

Comparing Student Perceptions of the Classroom Climate Created by U.S. American and International Teaching Assistants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meyer, Kevin R.; Mao, Yuping

2014-01-01

Previous studies have revealed that American undergraduate students complain about International Teaching Assistants' (ITAs) lack of English proficiency and rate ITAs lower than American Teaching Assistants (ATAs) on teaching evaluations. This study investigates student perceptions of classroom climate to discover how ITAs might overcome students'…

SuperJet International case study: a business network start-up in the aeronautics industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corallo, Angelo; de Maggio, Marco; Storelli, Davide

This chapter presents the SuperJet International case study, a start-up in the aeronautics industry characterized by a process-oriented approach and a complex and as yet evolving network of partnerships and collaborations. The chapter aims to describe the key points of the start-up process, highlighting common factors and differences compared to the TEKNE Methodology of Change, with particular reference to the second and third phase, namely, the design and deployment of new techno-organizational systems. The SuperJet International startup is presented as a case study where strategic and organizational aspects have been jointly conceived from a network-driven perspective. The chapter compares some of the guidelines of the TEKNE Methodology of Change with experiences and actual practices deriving from interviews with key players in SJI's start-up process.

Trainee Teachers' Perspectives on Play Characteristics and Their Role in Children's Play: An International Comparative Study amongst Trainees in the Netherlands, Wales, Germany and Finland

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van der Aalsvoort, Geerdina; Prakke, Bette; Howard, Justine; König, Anke; Parkkinen, Terttu

2015-01-01

An international comparative research project was carried out in the Netherlands, Wales, Germany and Finland to understand how trainee teachers reflect upon play. Data was collected among 31 Dutch, 37 Welsh, 40 German and 19 Finnish teacher trainees. They watched four videotaped sequences of preschoolers engaged in an activity. Next, they answered…

Faculty Development and Teaching International Students: A Cross-National Study of Faculty Perspectives in a Global Era

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coryell, Joellen E.; Fedeli, Monica; Tyner, Jonathan; Frison, Daniela

2015-01-01

This paper describes a component of a larger cross-national comparative study on faculty development for teaching international students. Here we describe the study and report preliminary findings that offer analyses of the informal and formal means by which Italian and US university instructors enhance the knowledge and skills they find necessary…

Study on internal to surface fingerprint correlation using optical coherence tomography and internal fingerprint extraction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Darlow, Luke Nicholas; Connan, James

2015-11-01

Surface fingerprint scanners are limited to a two-dimensional representation of the fingerprint topography, and thus, are vulnerable to fingerprint damage, distortion, and counterfeiting. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) scanners are able to image (in three dimensions) the internal structure of the fingertip skin. Techniques for obtaining the internal fingerprint from OCT scans have since been developed. This research presents an internal fingerprint extraction algorithm designed to extract high-quality internal fingerprints from touchless OCT fingertip scans. Furthermore, it serves as a correlation study between surface and internal fingerprints. Provided the scanned region contains sufficient fingerprint information, correlation to the surface topography is shown to be good (74% have true matches). The cross-correlation of internal fingerprints (96% have true matches) is substantial that internal fingerprints can constitute a fingerprint database. The internal fingerprints' performance was also compared to the performance of cropped surface counterparts, to eliminate bias owing to information level present, showing that the internal fingerprints' performance is superior 63.6% of the time.

The Relationship between Learning Style Preferences and Memory Strategy use in Adults.

PubMed

Dirette, Diane Powers; Anderson, Michele A

2016-07-01

Deficits in working memory are pervasive, resistant to remediation and significantly impact a persons ability to perform activities of daily living. Internal strategies are effective for improving working memory. Learning style preferences may influence the use of various internal working memory strategies. This study compares the use of internal working memory strategies among four different learning style preferences; converger, diverger, assimilator and accommodator. A non-experimental group design was used to compare the use of internal working memory strategies and learning style preferences among 110 adults. There were some significant differences in the types of strategies used according to learning style preferences. Knowing the learning style preference of clients may help occupational therapists better tailor cognitive rehabilitation treatments to meet the client's needs.

Long-term information and distributed neural activation are relevant for the "internal features advantage" in face processing: electrophysiological and source reconstruction evidence.

PubMed

Olivares, Ela I; Saavedra, Cristina; Trujillo-Barreto, Nelson J; Iglesias, Jaime

2013-01-01

In face processing tasks, prior presentation of internal facial features, when compared with external ones, facilitates the recognition of subsequently displayed familiar faces. In a previous ERP study (Olivares & Iglesias, 2010) we found a visibly larger N400-like effect when identity mismatch familiar faces were preceded by internal features, as compared to prior presentation of external ones. In the present study we contrasted the processing of familiar and unfamiliar faces in the face-feature matching task to assess whether the so-called "internal features advantage" relies mainly on the use of stored face-identity-related information or if it might operate independently from stimulus familiarity. Our participants (N = 24) achieved better performance with internal features as primes and, significantly, with familiar faces. Importantly, ERPs elicited by identity mismatch complete faces displayed a negativity around 300-600 msec which was clearly enhanced for familiar faces primed by internal features when compared with the other experimental conditions. Source reconstruction showed incremented activity elicited by familiar stimuli in both posterior (ventral occipitotemporal) and more anterior (parahippocampal (ParaHIP) and orbitofrontal) brain regions. The activity elicited by unfamiliar stimuli was, in general, located in more posterior regions. Our findings suggest that the activation of multiple neural codes is required for optimal individuation in face-feature matching and that a cortical network related to long-term information for face-identity processing seems to support the internal feature effect. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

International News Flows in the Post-Cold War World: Mapping the News and the News Producers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sreberny-Mohammadi, Annabelle

1995-01-01

Reviews the global political environment, major global news providers, and technologies of global news production. Argues for a multinational comparative mapping of international news representation in the 1990s. Outlines a major international venture to update and elaborate the 1979 UNESCO/IAMCR study of foreign news in the media of 29 countries,…

Investigation of internally finned LED heat sinks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Bin; Xiong, Lun; Lai, Chuan; Tang, Yumei

2018-03-01

A novel heat sink is proposed, which is composed of a perforated cylinder and internally arranged fins. Numerical studies are performed on the natural convection heat transfer from internally finned heat sinks; experimental studies are carried out to validate the numerical results. To compare the thermal performances of internally finned heat sinks and externally finned heat sinks, the effects of the overall diameter, overall height, and installation direction on maximum temperature, air flow and heat transfer coefficient are investigated. The results demonstrate that internally finned heat sinks show better thermal performance than externally finned heat sinks; the maximum temperature of internally finned heat sinks decreases by up to 20% compared with the externally finned heat sinks. The existence of a perforated cylinder and the installation direction of the heat sink affect the thermal performance significantly; it is shown that the heat transfer coefficient of the heat sink with the perforated cylinder is improved greater than that with the imperforated cylinder by up to 34%, while reducing the mass of the heat sink by up to 13%. Project supported by the Scientific Research Fund of Sichuan Provincial Education Department (No. 18ZB0516) and the Sichuan University of Arts and Science (No. 2016KZ009Y).

Tibiotalocalcaneal Arthrodesis Nails: A Comparison of Nails With and Without Internal Compression.

PubMed

Taylor, James; Lucas, Douglas E; Riley, Aimee; Simpson, G Alex; Philbin, Terrence M

2016-03-01

Hindfoot arthrodesis with tibiotalocalcaneal (TTC) intramedullary nails is used commonly when treating ankle and subtalar arthritis and other hindfoot pathology. Adequate compression is paramount to avoid nonunion and fatigue fracture of the hardware. Arthrodesis systems with internal compression have demonstrated superior compression to systems relying on external methods. This study examined the speed of union with TTC fusion nails with internal compression over nails without internal compression. A retrospective review was performed identifying nail type and time to union of the subtalar joint (STJ) and tibiotalar joint (TTJ). A total of 198 patients were included from 2003 to 2011. The median time to STJ fusion without internal compression was 104 days compared to 92 days with internal compression (P = .044). The median time to TTJ fusion without internal compression was 111 days compared to 93 days with internal compression (P = .010). Adjusting for diabetes, there was no significant difference in fusion speed with or without internal compression for the STJ (P = .561) or TTJ (P = .358). Nonunion rates were 24.5% for the STJ and 17.0% for the TTJ with internal compression, and 43.4% for the STJ and 42.1% for the TTJ without internal compression. This difference remained statistically significant after adjusting for diabetes for the TTJ (P = .001) but not for the STJ (P = .194). The intramedullary hindfoot arthrodesis nail was a viable treatment option in degenerative joint disease of the TTC joint. There appeared to be an advantage using systems with internal compression; however, there was no statistically significant difference after controlling for diabetes. Level III, retrospective comparative series. © The Author(s) 2015.

Implicit Attitudes of International and American Adult Students toward Black and White Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Na, Eunkyung; Tan, Tony X.; Marn, Travis; Ramirez, Rica

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine hidden prejudice in two groups of adult students, international and American, against black compared to white teachers. Social desirability in the minds of participants may affect the result of a study involving racial bias (Mullins, 1982). For this reason, the researchers created a computer protocol using…

The Role of Subject-Matter Content in Teacher Preparation: An International Perspective for Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmidt, William H.; Burroughs, Nathan A.; Cogan, Leland S.; Houang, Richard T.

2017-01-01

International comparative studies in education provide a fresh perspective on K-12 education policy by enabling countries to learn from each other's approaches. The recently conducted Teacher Education and Development Study--Mathematics provides a worldwide lens by which to examine the role of subject-matter in the preparation of US teachers of…

Self-Regulated Learning Strategies and Pre-University Math Performance of International Students in Malaysia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Loong, Tang Eng

2012-01-01

This study is an attempt to compare the use of self-regulated learning strategies and their math performance between home and international students in the Monash University Foundation Year (MUFY) and determine the self-regulated learning strategies that are significantly associated with their math performance. The participants of the study were…

Problem Solving in the PISA and TIMSS 2003 Assessments. Technical Report. NCES 2007-049

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dossey, John A.; McCrone, Sharon S.; O'Sullivan, Christine

2006-01-01

In 2003, the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) included a special focus on problem-solving. This report reviews the problem-solving aspects of each study in order to compare and contrast the nature of problem solving in each assessment. The report's authors develop…

1979-80 Internal Revenue Service Comparison Study. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Applied Management Sciences, Inc., Silver Spring, MD.

Application forms for the Basic Educational Opportunity Grant (BEOG) program for 1979-1980 were compared to 1978 tax forms filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Comparisons were also made to data from similar 1974-1975 and 1976-1977 studies. Based on a sample of 407,596 applicants, findings include the following: between 1976-1977 and…

Spatio-temporal variability of internal waves in the northern Gulf of Mexico studied with the Navy Coastal Ocean Model, NCOM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cambazoglu, M. K.; Jacobs, G. A.; Howden, S. D.; Book, J. W.; Arnone, R.; Soto Ramos, I. M.; Vandermeulen, R. A.; Greer, A. T.; Miles, T. N.

2016-02-01

Internal waves enhance mixing in the upper ocean, transport nutrients and plankton over the water column and across the shelf from deeper waters to shallower coastal areas, and could also transport pollutants such as hydrocarbons onshore during an oil spill event. This study aims to characterize internal waves in the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGoM) and investigate the possible generation and dissipation mechanisms using a high-resolution (1-km) application of the Navy Coastal Ocean Model (NCOM). Three dimensional model products are used to detect the propagation patterns of internal waves. The vertical structure of internal waves is studied and the role of stratification is analyzed by looking at the temperature, salinity and velocity variations along the water column. The model predictions suggest the generation of internal waves on the continental shelf, therefore the role of ocean bottom topography interacting with tides and general circulation features such as the Loop Current Eddy front, on the internal wave generation will be discussed. The time periods of internal wave occurrences are identified from model predictions and compared to satellite ocean color imagery. Further data analysis, e.g. Fourier analysis, is implemented to determine internal wavelengths and frequencies and to determine if the response of internal waves are at tidal periods or at different frequencies. The atmospheric forcing provided to NCOM and meteorological data records are analyzed to define the interaction between wind forcing and internal wave generation. Wavelet analysis characterizes the ocean response to atmospheric events with periodic frequencies. Ocean color satellite imagery was used to visualize the location of the Mississippi river plume (and other oceanic features) and compared to the model predictions because the enhanced stratification from freshwater plumes which propagate across the Mississippi Bight can provide favorable conditions in coastal waters for internal wave generation and propagation. The findings of this study will provide insight about the internal wave dynamics in the Gulf of Mexico and their potential impact on the marine ecosystem.

Internal or External Stenting of the Ureterovesical Anastomosis in Renal Transplantation.

PubMed

Fockens, M Matthijs; Alberts, Victor P; Bemelman, Frederike J; Laguna Pes, M Pilar; Idu, Mirza M

2016-01-01

Stenting of the ureterovesical anastomosis reduces the incidence of urological complications (UCs) after renal transplantation, but there are multiple stenting techniques, and there is no consensus regarding which technique is preferred. The aim of this study was to compare an internal versus an external stenting technique on the incidence of UCs. This is a retrospective analysis of 419 deceased donor renal transplantations performed between January 2008 and December 2013. Until 2011, 183 patients received an external stent through the ureterovesical anastomosis placed by suprapubic bladder puncture (SP stent). From 2011, 236 recipients received an internal double-J (JJ) stent. The rate of UC was 3.8% in JJ stents, compared to 9.3% in SP stents (p = 0.021). No difference in surgical ureter revision rate was observed between the groups (2.1 vs. 5.5%; p = 0.068). Urinary tract infection (UTI) rate and graft function were comparable between both groups. Internal JJ stenting significantly decreased the incidence of UC compared to an external SP stent. There was no difference in surgical ureter revision rate, UTI or graft function. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Psychological characteristics of Swedish mandatory enlisted soldiers volunteering and not volunteering for international missions: an exploratory study.

PubMed

Rydstedt, Leif W; Osterberg, Johan

2013-04-01

The purpose of this study was to assess personality traits, psychological fitness, and hardiness among conscript soldiers volunteering for international missions (n = 146), by comparing them with conscripts from the same year class and unit who did not apply for international missions (n = 275). The sample consisted of all mandatory enlisted soldiers assigned to a supply and maintenance regiment. There were no demographic differences between the groups. The volunteers reported greater stress tolerance, concern for others, extraversion, and self-confidence than the non-volunteers. There were no differences between the groups in orderliness, temper instability, or independence. Volunteers repeatedly reported greater psychological fitness for military missions and greater hardiness over the period of military service compared to the non-volunteers.

Using international emotional picture sets in countries suffering from violence.

PubMed

Okon-Singer, Hadas; Kofman, Ora; Tzelgov, Joseph; Henik, Avishai

2011-04-01

It is hypothesized that ratings of emotional stimuli are affected by a constant threat of traumatic events. Ratings of valence and arousal on the International Affective Picture System from young adults in the United States were compared to those of young Israeli adults. Israelis rated the pictures as less negative and less positive than did participants from the United States. Israeli women gave higher arousal ratings compared to the American women. These differences may be due to compulsory military service in Israel, during which exposure to traumatic events is more likely to occur, and to the timing of the study which followed a year of frequent suicide bomb attacks. The authors suggest that these findings may reflect mild symptoms of stress disorders. Copyright © 2011 International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies.

Comparative attitude and plans of the medical students and young Nepalese doctors.

PubMed

Lakhey, M; Lakhey, S; Niraula, S R; Jha, D; Pant, R

2009-01-01

Many doctors are leaving Nepal to work abroad. To understand this problem better, we decided to study the attitude and plans of young doctors and medical students. This cross-sectional study was conducted at Kathmandu Medical College involving 65 first year medical students, 100 interns and 100 house officers. The data collected was entered in Microsoft excel and analysed by SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) programme. Chi-square test was used to compare two proportions. Significance level was set at 5%. Only 2% house officers said that their job prospects were excellent as compared to 22.4% of students, whereas 20% house officers as compared to 9% students thought job prospects in Nepal were poor (p= 0.003). Eighty two percent of students thought that a doctor's service to his country was very important as compared to 51% of interns (p= 0.001) and 58% of house officers. Forty percent of students, 58% of interns and 48% of house officers (no statistical significance between the three groups) planned to migrate to a developed country after graduation. Eighty eight percent of students, 89% interns and 74% of house officers (no statistical significant differences between the three groups) were of the opinion that improving career opportunities or working environment of the doctor could make the profession more attractive. Although majority of students, interns and house officers were of the opinion that a doctor's service to his community/country was very important, almost half of them still planned to migrate to a developed country after graduation. Improving the chances of professional advancement and professional working environment can make the profession more attractive, and therefore, may decrease this tendency for brain drain from our country.

Anatomical versus non-anatomical single bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: a cadaveric study of comparison of knee stability.

PubMed

Lim, Hong-Chul; Yoon, Yong-Cheol; Wang, Joon-Ho; Bae, Ji-Hoon

2012-12-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the initial stability of anatomical and non-anatomical single bundle anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction and to determine which would better restore intact knee kinematics. Our hypothesis was that the initial stability of anatomical single bundle ACL reconstruction would be superior to that of non-anatomical single bundle ACL reconstruction. Anterior tibial translation (ATT) and internal rotation of the tibia were measured with a computer navigation system in seven pairs of fresh-frozen cadaveric knees under two testing conditions (manual maximum anterior force, and a manual maximum anterior force combined with an internal rotational force). Tests were performed at 0, 30, 60, and 90 degrees of flexion with the ACL intact, the ACL transected, and after reconstruction of one side of a pair with either anatomical or non-anatomical single bundle ACL reconstruction. Under manual maximal anterior force, both reconstruction techniques showed no significant difference of ATT when compared to ACL intact knee state at 30° of knee flexion (p > 0.05). Under the combined anterior and internal rotatory force, non-anatomical single-bundle ACL reconstruction showed significant difference of ATT compared to those in ACL intact group (p < 0.05). In contrast, central anatomical single bundle ACL reconstruction showed no significant difference of ATT compared to those in ACL intact group (p > 0.05). Internal rotation of the tibia showed no significant difference in the ACL intact, the ACL transected, non-anatomical reconstructed and anatomical reconstructed knees. Anatomical single bundle ACL reconstruction restored the initial stability closer to the native ACL under combined anterior and internal rotational forces when compared to non-anatomical ACL single bundle reconstruction.

Pi Lambda Theta Summer 1988 Orient Study Tour, University of Hawaii at Manoa Campus. Course Title: International Education and East Asia. Research Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buzzelli, Charlotte Grace

This study compares the educational history, present educational systems, and current educational practices of Japan and Korea for the purpose of applying the study's results to improving elementary, secondary, and higher education liberal arts curricula in the United States. Framing the report is the notion of international educational exchange…

Comparing the Ethnic Identity and Well-Being of Adopted Korean Americans with Immigrant/U.S.-Born Korean Americans and Korean International Students

PubMed Central

Lee, Richard M.; Yun, Andrea Bora; Yoo, Hyung Chol; Nelson, Kim Park

2010-01-01

This study compared the ethnic identity and well-being of Korean Americans who were adopted internationally with immigrant/U.S.-born Korean Americans and Korean international students, as well as the relationship between ethnic identity and well-being for each group. One-hundred and seven college students completed measures of ethnic identity and subjective well-being. Immigrant/U.S.-born Korean Americans had higher ethnic identity scores than the other two groups. Immigrant/U.S.-born Korean Americans also had higher positive affect scores than international students. Ethnic identity was positively correlated with positive affect for all three groups (r’s = .27 – .34), but was negatively correlated with negative affect for international students (r = −.44). Overall, the results suggest that ethnic identity, although slightly lower than non-adopted peers, is relevant to the well-being of adopted Korean American college students. PMID:20694190

Policy and Practice Implications of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2000. Report of the International Reading Association PISA Task Force.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Topping, Keith; Valtin, Renate; Roller, Cathy; Brozo, William; Dionisio, M. Lourdes

The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a study of comparisons. Subjects, 15-year-old students from 32 participating countries, were compared in their abilities to "use literacy knowledge and skills to meet real-life challenges," as assessed on a two-hour, paper-and-pencil test. Students also responded to a…

Internalization and localization of basal insulin peglispro in cells.

PubMed

Moyers, Julie S; Volk, Catherine B; Cao, Julia X C; Zhang, Chen; Ding, Liyun; Kiselyov, Vladislav V; Michael, M Dodson

2017-10-15

Basal insulin peglispro (BIL) is a novel, PEGylated insulin lispro that has a large hydrodynamic size compared with insulin lispro. It has a prolonged duration of action, which is related to a delay in insulin absorption and a reduction in clearance. Given the different physical properties of BIL compared with native insulin and insulin lispro, it is important to assess the cellular internalization characteristics of the molecule. Using immunofluorescent confocal imaging, we compared the cellular internalization and localization patterns of BIL, biosynthetic human insulin, and insulin lispro. We assessed the effects of BIL on internalization of the insulin receptor (IR) and studied cellular clearance of BIL. Co-localization studies using antibodies to either insulin or PEG, and the early endosomal marker EEA1 showed that the overall internalization and subcellular localization pattern of BIL was similar to that of human insulin and insulin lispro; all were rapidly internalized and co-localized with EEA1. During ligand washout for 4 h, concomitant loss of insulin, PEG methoxy group, and PEG backbone immunostaining was observed for BIL, similar to the loss of insulin immunostaining observed for insulin lispro and human insulin. Co-localization studies using an antibody to the lysosomal marker LAMP1 did not reveal evidence of lysosomal localization for insulin lispro, human insulin, BIL, or PEG using either insulin or PEG immunostaining reagents. BIL and human insulin both induced rapid phosphorylation and internalization of human IR. Our findings show that treatment of cells with BIL stimulates internalization and localization of IR to early endosomes. Both the insulin and PEG moieties of BIL undergo a dynamic cellular process of rapid internalization and transport to early endosomes followed by loss of cellular immunostaining in a manner similar to that of insulin lispro and human insulin. The rate of clearance for the insulin lispro portion of BIL was slower than the rate of clearance for human insulin. In contrast, the PEG moiety of BIL can recycle out of cells. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cigarette smoking in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder: a report from the International College of Obsessive Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS).

PubMed

Dell'Osso, Bernardo; Nicolini, Humberto; Lanzagorta, Nuria; Benatti, Beatrice; Spagnolin, Gregorio; Palazzo, M Carlotta; Marazziti, Donatella; Hollander, Eric; Fineberg, Naomi; Stein, Dan J; Pallanti, Stefano; Van Ameringen, Michael; Lochner, Christine; Hranov, Georgi; Karamustafalioglu, Oguz; Hranov, Luchezar; Zohar, Joseph; Denys, Damiaan; Altamura, A Carlo; Menchon, Jose M

2015-10-01

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) showed a lower prevalence of cigarette smoking compared to other psychiatric disorders in previous and recent reports. We assessed the prevalence and clinical correlates of the phenomenon in an international sample of 504 OCD patients recruited through the International College of Obsessive Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS) network. Cigarette smoking showed a cross-sectional prevalence of 24.4% in the sample, with significant differences across countries. Females were more represented among smoking patients (16% vs 7%; p<.001). Patients with comorbid Tourette's syndrome (p<.05) and tic disorder (p<.05) were also more represented among smoking subjects. Former smokers reported a higher number of suicide attempts (p<.05). We found a lower cross-sectional prevalence of smoking among OCD patients compared to findings from previous studies in patients with other psychiatric disorders but higher compared to previous and more recent OCD studies. Geographic differences were found and smoking was more common in females and comorbid Tourette's syndrome/tic disorder.

Comparative, Diachronic, Ethnographic Research on Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tobin, Joseph

2014-01-01

Most qualitative studies in international education take place in a single site in a single nation. When studies are of more than one country, they most often use more quantitative than qualitative approaches. Beatrice and John Whiting conducted the most systematic of comparative cross-cultural studies of child rearing in their "Six…

A comparative study of internally and externally capped balloons using small scale test balloons

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bell, Douglas P.

1994-01-01

Caps have been used to structurally reinforce scientific research balloons since the late 1950's. The scientific research balloons used by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) use internal caps. A NASA cap placement specification does not exist since no empirical information exisits concerning cap placement. To develop a cap placement specification, NASA has completed two in-hangar inflation tests comparing the structural contributions of internal caps and external caps. The tests used small scale test balloons designed to develop the highest possible stresses within the constraints of the hangar and balloon materials. An externally capped test balloon and an internally capped test balloon were designed, built, inflated and simulated to determine the structural contributions and benefits of each. The results of the tests and simulations are presented.

Comparative Elections: Building a Basic Reference Collection.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nalen, James E.

2001-01-01

This annotated bibliography focuses on resources for the study of international elections and electoral systems and outcomes that will be useful for collection development and for answering reference questions about foreign elections. Discusses comparative politics, comparative elections, and possible electoral reform. (LRW)

Acculturative stressor and meaning of life as predictors of negative affect in acculturation: a cross-cultural comparative study between Chinese international students in Australia and Hong Kong.

PubMed

Pan, Jia-Yan; Wong, Daniel Fu Keung; Joubert, Lynette; Chan, Cecilia Lai Wan

2007-09-01

The purpose of the present study was to compare the predictive effects of acculturative stressor and meaning of life on negative affect in the process of acculturation between Chinese international students in Australia and Hong Kong. Four hundred mainland Chinese students studying at six universities in Hong Kong and 227 Chinese international students studying at the University of Melbourne in Australia completed a questionnaire that included measures of acculturative stressor, meaning of life, negative affect and demographic information. The Australian sample was found to have a higher level of acculturative stressor and negative affect than the Hong Kong sample. Acculturative stressor had a positive impact on negative affect in both samples, but the impact of different domains of acculturative stressor on negative affect varied between the two groups. Finally, meaning of life partially mediated the relationship between acculturative stressor and negative affect in the Hong Kong sample, but no such effect was found in the Australia sample. Acculturative stressor is a critical risk factor for negative affect in acculturation for Chinese international students in Australia and Hong Kong. Meaning of life acted as a protective factor that mitigated negative affect for mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong, but not for the Chinese international students in Australia. The theoretical and practical implications for resilience-based and meaning-oriented intervention for Chinese international students are discussed.

The neural correlates of internal and external comparisons: an fMRI study.

PubMed

Wen, Xue; Xiang, Yanhui; Cant, Jonathan S; Wang, Tingting; Cupchik, Gerald; Huang, Ruiwang; Mo, Lei

2017-01-01

Many previous studies have suggested that various comparisons rely on the same cognitive and neural mechanisms. However, little attention has been paid to exploring the commonalities and differences between the internal comparison based on concepts or rules and the external comparison based on perception. In the present experiment, moral beauty comparison and facial beauty comparison were selected as the representatives of internal comparison and external comparison, respectively. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to record brain activity while participants compared the level of moral beauty of two scene drawings containing moral acts or the level of facial beauty of two face photos. In addition, a physical size comparison task with the same stimuli as the beauty comparison was included. We observed that both the internal moral beauty comparison and external facial beauty comparison obeyed a typical distance effect and this behavioral effect recruited a common frontoparietal network involved in comparisons of simple physical magnitudes such as size. In addition, compared to external facial beauty comparison, internal moral beauty comparison induced greater activity in more advanced and complex cortical regions, such as the bilateral middle temporal gyrus and middle occipital gyrus, but weaker activity in the putamen, a subcortical region. Our results provide novel neural evidence for the comparative process and suggest that different comparisons may rely on both common cognitive processes as well as distinct and specific cognitive components.

Effects of internal gain assumptions in building energy calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Christensen, C.; Perkins, R.

1981-01-01

The utilization of direct solar gains in buildings can be affected by operating profiles, such as schedules for internal gains, thermostat controls, and ventilation rates. Building energy analysis methods use various assumptions about these profiles. The effects of typical internal gain assumptions in energy calculations are described. Heating and cooling loads from simulations using the DOE 2.1 computer code are compared for various internal gain inputs: typical hourly profiles, constant average profiles, and zero gain profiles. Prototype single-family-detached and multifamily-attached residential units are studied with various levels of insulation and infiltration. Small detached commercial buildings and attached zones in large commercial buildings are studied with various levels of internal gains. The results indicate that calculations of annual heating and cooling loads are sensitive to internal gains, but in most cases are relatively insensitive to hourly variations in internal gains.

Pharmacy Interns’ Perception of Their Professional Role

PubMed Central

Vestergaard, Stense; Traulsen, Janine Marie; Kaae, Susanne

2017-01-01

Objective. To determine pharmacy interns' perceptions of the roles of the pharmacist and pharmacy prior to and during the pharmacy internship and to compare their perceptions with those of their supervisors and the pharmacy customers. Methods. Questionnaires were completed and submitted by 395 interns prior to and during their internships. Interns interviewed their supervisors and two to four local customers. Results. Ninety-six supervisors and 285 customers were interviewed. Interns' perceptions were aligned with those of their supervisors in that both groups indicated that a pharmacist's most important role is that of a clinical leader. Furthermore, interns' perception of customers' expectations regarding the pharmacy were well aligned with customers' actual expectations with regard to service. Conclusion. The study illustrates that interns became more aligned in their perceptions due to the pharmacy internship. The study findings imply that the pharmacy internship influences interns' perception of the pharmacy and pharmacist's roles in society through complex individual and social learning processes. PMID:28289300

A Comparative Literature Review of the Studies on Drama in English Language Teaching in Turkey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ustuk, Özgehan; Inan, Dilek

2017-01-01

This study presents a comparative literature review of the research studies related to the effects of drama in teaching English as a foreign language. First, the study explains drama in education with regard to foreign language education. In a narrative review design, it demonstrates international studies in four categories under which the…

An International Look at Educating Young Adolescents. The Handbook of Research in Middle Level Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mertens, Steven B., Ed; Anfara, Vincent A., Ed.; Roney, Kathleen, Ed.

2009-01-01

Studies like the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) have compared the performance of U.S. middle grade students (i.e., eighth graders) to those in other countries. In relation to middle grade schools, 20 countries outperformed the United States in mathematics and nine countries scored above the U.S. in science. The intent of…

Using Comparative International Studies for Modeling Educational Effectiveness: A Secondary Analysis of PISA-2009 Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Azigwe, John Bosco

2016-01-01

International surveys of student achievement are becoming increasingly popular with governments around the world, as they try to measure the performance of their country's education system. The main reason for this trend is the shared opinion that countries will need to be able to compete in the "knowledge economy" to assure the economic…

Government Stance and Internal Diversity of Protest: A Comparative Study of Protest against the War in Iraq in Eight Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walgrave, Stefaan; Verhulst, Joris

2009-01-01

This study tackles the question to what extent the composition of protest events is determined by the stance of governments. Established contextual theories do not formulate propositions on how context affects individual protesters. The article engages in empirically testing whether the macro-context affects the internal diversity of the crowds…

The International Baccalaureate Diploma Program and Gifted Learners: A Comparative Study of Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frost, Denise Stewart

2011-01-01

The problem is that some secondary schools use the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program to service gifted students even though it was not developed as a gifted model. The purpose of the study is to determine if gifted identified students benefit more or less academically than students not identified as gifted as a result of their…

Religion and Education: Comparative and International Perspectives. Oxford Studies in Comparative Education. Oxford Studies in Comparative Education Series

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sivasubramaniam, Malina, Ed.; Hayhoe, Ruth, Ed.

2018-01-01

Despite the increased trend towards secularization in state schooling, issues of religion and spirituality have remained important. Increased pluralism within societies through expanding migration patterns is changing the religious and cultural contours of many countries in Europe and North America, and is creating a need for a deeper…

Comparative Physical Education and Sport: The Area Defined.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howell, Maxwell L.; Howell, Reet A.

The emerging field of comparative physical education and sport, or international physical education and sport, rests squarely on the shoulders of comparative education; an understanding and appreciation of the latter is necessary for an understanding of the former. Comparative education is an older field of study and has gone through certain…

Organisational Learning through International M&A Integration Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holland, Wayne; Salama, Alzira

2010-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this research paper is to explore the learning process associated with international mergers and acquisitions (M&A) integration strategies. Design/methodology/approach: The paper employs a comparative case study methodology, utilising qualitative data through in-depth interviews with top management responsible for…

International Students and Mental Health

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Forbes-Mewett, Helen; Sawyer, Anne-Maree

2016-01-01

Since the early 2000s, reports of increased rates of mental ill health among young people worldwide have received much attention. Several studies indicate a greater incidence of mental health problems among tertiary students, compared with the general population, and higher levels of anxiety, in particular, among international students compared…

Conditions, interventions, and outcomes in nursing research: a comparative analysis of North American and European/International journals. (1981-1990).

PubMed

Abraham, I L; Chalifoux, Z L; Evers, G C; De Geest, S

1995-04-01

This study compared the conceptual foci and methodological characteristics of research projects which tested the effects of nursing interventions, published in four general nursing research journals with predominantly North American, and two with predominantly European/International authorship and readership. Dimensions and variables of comparison included: nature of subjects, design issues, statistical methodology, statistical power, and types of interventions and outcomes. Although some differences emerged, the most striking and consistent finding was that there were no statistically significant differences (and thus similarities) in the content foci and methodological parameters of the intervention studies published in both groups of journals. We conclude that European/International and North American nursing intervention studies, as reported in major general nursing research journals, are highly similar in the parameters studied, yet in need of overall improvement. Certainly, there is no empirical support for the common (explicit or implicit) ethnocentric American bias that leadership in nursing intervention research resides with and in the United States of America.

A Comparison of Male and Female Assistant Superintendents and Their Descriptions of Internal Barriers, External Barriers, Motivators, Stressors, and Discriminatory Acts They Anticipate Encountering on the Route to the Superintendency

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hunter, Tanesha N.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this research study was to compare male and female assistant superintendents and their descriptions of Internal Barriers, External Barriers, Internal Motivators, External Motivators, Stressors, and Discriminatory Acts they anticipated encountering on the route to the superintendency in Suffolk and Nassau Counties on Long Island, New…

The Training of Elementary School Teachers in Mathematics in the Countries Represented in the International Commission on the Teaching of Mathematics. Bulletin, 1915, No. 39. Whole Number 666

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kandel, I. L.

1915-01-01

The accompanying report deals with the mathematical training of prospective teachers in elementary schools as described in the reports submitted by the International Commission of the Teaching of Mathematics to the Fifth International Congress of Mathematicians, held at Cambridge, England, in August, 1912. A comparative study of the facts…

Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (75th, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, August 5-8, 1992). Part XII: Foreign and International Media.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.

The International Media section of the proceedings contains the following 13 papers: "Text and Context: A Case Study of International News Discourse" (Shujen Wang); "The Future of Public Service Broadcasting in Japan and the U.K.: A Comparative Analysis" (Roya Akhavan-Majid); "Reinventing Freedom of the Press: The Search…

Anatomical glenohumeral internal rotation deficit and symmetric rotational strength in male and female young beach volleyball players.

PubMed

Saccol, Michele Forgiarini; Almeida, Gabriel Peixoto Leão; de Souza, Vivian Lima

2016-08-01

Beach volleyball is a sport with a high demand of shoulder structures that may lead to adaptations in range of motion (ROM) and strength like in other overhead sports. Despite of these possible alterations, no study evaluated the shoulder adaptations in young beach volleyball athletes. The aim of this study was to compare the bilateral ROM and rotation strength in the shoulders of young beach volleyball players. Goniometric passive shoulder ROM of motion and isometric rotational strength were evaluated in 19 male and 14 female asymptomatic athletes. External and internal ROM, total rotation motion, glenohumeral internal rotation deficit (GIRD), external rotation and internal rotation strength, bilateral deficits and external rotation to internal rotation ratio were measured. The statistical analysis included paired Student's t-test and analysis of variance with repeated measures. Significantly lower dominant GIRD was found in both groups (p<0.05), but only 6 athletes presented pathological GIRD. For strength variables, no significant differences for external or internal rotation were evident. Young beach volleyball athletes present symmetric rotational strength and shoulder ROM rotational adaptations that can be considered as anatomical. These results indicate that young practitioners of beach volleyball are subject to moderate adaptations compared to those reported for other overhead sports. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving comparability of international migration statistics: contributions by the Conference of European Statisticians from 1971 to date.

PubMed

Kelly, J J

1987-01-01

This article summarizes the 3 main types of interrelated activities which the Conference of European Statisticians has worked on to improve the measurement and international comparability of international migration flows. The work has encompassed collaborating with the UN Statistical Commission on the preparation and implementation of the revised international recommendations on statistics of international migration, organizing a regular exchange of data on immigration and emigration flows among the UN Economic Commission for Europe countries and selected countries in other regions, and conducting bilateral studies on international migration within the framework of the Conference's program of work in this field of statistics. The bulk of the work which has been carried out to date by the conference has been conducted rather anonymously and even unobtrusively by the staff of national statistical offices in Economic Commission for Europe countries; they have achieved a modest but important amount of progress during the past 15 years. There is reason to expect that further progress will be made over the next decade, particularly if national statistical offices in the region continue to undertake bilateral studies and endeavor to improve their migration statistics. However, more substantial progress could be achieved if additional countries and organizations established projects aimed at achieving these ends (author's modified).

Quality of life: international and domestic students studying medicine in New Zealand.

PubMed

Henning, Marcus A; Krägeloh, Christian; Moir, Fiona; Doherty, Iain; Hawken, Susan J

2012-08-01

International students form a significant proportion of students studying within universities in Western countries. The quality of life perceptions of international medical students in comparison with domestic medical students has not been well documented. There is some evidence to suggest that international medical students may have different educational and social experiences in relation to their domestic peers. This study investigates the levels of quality of life experienced by international and domestic students studying medicine. A total of 548 medical students completed the abbreviated version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life questionnaire. The focus of the analysis was to evaluate differences between international and domestic students in their early clinical years. The responses were analysed using multivariate analysis of variance methods. International medical students are experiencing lower social and environmental quality of life compared with domestic peers. International medical students in New Zealand have expressed quality of life concerns, which likely have an impact on their academic achievement, feelings of wellness, acculturation, and social adaptation. The findings reinforce the need for creating stronger social networks and accessible accommodation, as well as developing systems to ensure safety, peer mentorship and student support.

Ethinylestradiol and levonorgestrel preparations on the Belgian market: a comparative study.

PubMed

Vanheusden, V; De Braekeleer, K; Corthout, J

2012-03-01

Preparations formulated as coated or film-coated tablets, containing levonorgestrel and the combination ethinylestradiol/levonorgestrel, were evaluated in a comparative study. This study comprised in vitro dissolution, assay and content uniformity. The analytical methods were previously validated according to international guidelines. All examined products complied with the postulated requirements.

Study Indicates Some Improvement in U.S. Science Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Krieger, James H.

1984-01-01

Preliminary analysis of the Second International Science Study shows, counter to trends in recent studies, improved overall science scores among fifth and ninth graders compared to the 1970s. In particular, fifth graders know more about biology and physical sciences and less about space travel compared to the 1970s. (JN)

An International Study of Career Drivers of Accounting Students in Singapore, Australia and Hong Kong

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chia, Yew Ming; Koh, Hian Chye; Pragasam, John

2008-01-01

This is a comparative study of the career drivers of accounting students in Singapore, Australia and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). The study examines the motivational factors that steer accounting students into choosing accounting as a programme of study in their respective countries. Comparative analyses are performed to…

Comparative internal anatomy of Staurozoa (Cnidaria), with functional and evolutionary inferences

PubMed Central

Collins, Allen G.; Hirano, Yayoi M.; Mills, Claudia E.

2016-01-01

Comparative efforts to understand the body plan evolution of stalked jellyfishes are scarce. Most characters, and particularly internal anatomy, have neither been explored for the class Staurozoa, nor broadly applied in its taxonomy and classification. Recently, a molecular phylogenetic hypothesis was derived for Staurozoa, allowing for the first broad histological comparative study of staurozoan taxa. This study uses comparative histology to describe the body plans of nine staurozoan species, inferring functional and evolutionary aspects of internal morphology based on the current phylogeny of Staurozoa. We document rarely-studied structures, such as ostia between radial pockets, intertentacular lobules, gametoducts, pad-like adhesive structures, and white spots of nematocysts (the last four newly proposed putative synapomorphies for Staurozoa). Two different regions of nematogenesis are documented. This work falsifies the view that the peduncle region of stauromedusae only retains polypoid characters; metamorphosis from stauropolyp to stauromedusa occurs both at the apical region (calyx) and basal region (peduncle). Intertentacular lobules, observed previously in only a small number of species, are shown to be widespread. Similarly, gametoducts were documented in all analyzed genera, both in males and females, thereby elucidating gamete release. Finally, ostia connecting adjacent gastric radial pockets appear to be universal for Staurozoa. Detailed histological studies of medusozoan polyps and medusae are necessary to further understand the relationships between staurozoan features and those of other medusozoan cnidarians. PMID:27812408

Diagnosing Internal Herniation After Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass Surgery: Literature Overview, Cadaver Study and the Added Value of 3D CT Angiography.

PubMed

Klop, Cornelis; Deden, Laura N; Aarts, Edo O; Janssen, Ignace M C; Pijl, Milan E J; van den Ende, Anneline; Witteman, Bart P L; de Jong, Gabie M; Aufenacker, Theo J; Slump, Cornelis H; Berends, Frits J

2018-02-05

The purposes of the study are to outline the complexity of diagnosing internal herniation after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery and to investigate the added value of computed tomography angiography (CTA) for diagnosing internal herniation. A cadaver study was performed to investigate the manifestations of internal hernias and mesenteric vascularization. Furthermore, a prospective, ethics approved study with retrospective interpretation was conducted. Ten patients, clinically suspected for internal herniation, were prospectively included. After informed consent was obtained, these subjects underwent abdominal CT examination, including additional arterial phase CTA. All subjects underwent diagnostic laparoscopy for suspected internal herniation. The CTA was used to create a 3D reconstruction of the mesenteric arteries and surgical staples (3D CTA). The 3D CTA was interpreted, taking into account the presence and type of internal hernia that was found upon laparoscopy. Cadaveric analysis demonstrated the complexity of internal herniation. It also confirmed the expected changes in vascular structure and surgical staple arrangement in the presence of internal herniation. 3D CTA studies of the subjects with active internal hernias demonstrated remarkable differences when compared to control 3D CTA studies. The blood supply of herniated intestinal limbs in particular showed abnormal trajectories. Additionally, enteroenterostomy staple lines had migrated or altered orientation. 3D CTA is a promising technique for diagnosing active internal hernias. Our findings suggest that for diagnosing internal hernias, focus should probably shift from routine abdominal CT examination towards the 3D assessment of the mesenteric vasculature and surgical staples.

International Comparative Student Affairs: How International and Comparative Higher Education Impacts Our Work with Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roberts, Darbi L.

2014-01-01

This article examines the field of international higher education (IHE) and its application to the practice of student affairs. The author proposes that IHE is a crossroads between international comparative education and higher education, exploring their shared historical roots. She gives an overview of the current state of the IHE field, looking…

Comparing Local and International Chinese Students' English Language Learning Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anthony, Margreat Aloysious; Ganesen, Sree Nithya

2012-01-01

According to Horwitz (1987) learners' belief about language learning are influenced by previous language learning experiences as well as cultural background. This study examined the English Language Learning Strategies between local and international Chinese students who share the same cultural background but have been exposed to different…

Functional Impairments in Children with ADHD: Unique Effects of Age and Comorbid Status

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Booster, Genery D.; DuPaul, George J.; Eiraldi, Ricardo; Power, Thomas J.

2012-01-01

Objective: Children with ADHD and comorbid disorders display poorer overall functioning compared with children with ADHD alone, though little research has examined the differential impact of externalizing versus internalizing comorbidities. Method: This study examined the impact of internalizing and externalizing comorbidities on the academic and…

Comparative Early Childhood Education Services: International Perspectives. Critical Cultural Studies of Childhood

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duncan, Judith, Ed.; One, Sarah Te, Ed.

2012-01-01

This edited international collection re-conceptualizes the place of early childhood education and care services (ECEC) within communities and challenges traditional approaches to family involvement and partnerships in ECEC. Using a range of theoretical positions, the authors present research-based discussions from five countries which challenge…

Teaching Ethics in International Business Courses: The Impacts of Religions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruhe, John; Lee, Monle

2008-01-01

Implicit in most comparative ethical studies is the assumption that cultural and religious differences between countries are the major reasons behind the variations in ethical beliefs and business practice across nations. This article examines research on the international ethical issues and the common moral concerns that permeate differing…

Are Immigrants and Girls Graded Worse? Results of a Matching Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kiss, David

2013-01-01

Using Progress in International Reading Literacy Study 2001 and Programme for International Student Assessment 2003 data for Germany, this paper examines whether second-generation immigrants and girls are graded worse in math than comparable natives and boys, respectively. Once all grading-relevant characteristics, namely math skills and oral…

The Role of Distal Minority Stress and Internalized Transnegativity in Suicidal Ideation and Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Among Transgender Adults.

PubMed

Staples, Jennifer M; Neilson, Elizabeth C; Bryan, Amanda E B; George, William H

Transgender people are at elevated risk for nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicidal ideation compared to the general population. Transgender (trans) refers to a diverse group of people who experience incongruence between their gender identity and sex assigned at birth. The present study is guided by the minority stress model and the psychological mediation framework, which postulate that sexual minority groups experience elevated stress as a result of anti-minority prejudice, contributing to negative mental health outcomes. This study utilized these theories to investigate the role of internalized transnegativity-internalization of negative societal attitudes about one's trans identity-in the relationships of distal trans stress to suicidal ideation and NSSI. A U.S. national sample of trans adults (N = 237) completed a battery of online measures. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to compare models with mediation and moderation effects. Results suggested that internalized transnegativity acts as both a mediator and a moderator in the relationship between distal trans stress and suicidal ideation. Log likelihood comparisons suggested moderation models had the superior fit for these data. Results suggest that clinical interventions should directly target individuals' internalized transnegativity as well as societal-level transnegativity.

Health system frameworks and performance indicators in eight countries: A comparative international analysis

PubMed Central

Braithwaite, Jeffrey; Hibbert, Peter; Blakely, Brette; Plumb, Jennifer; Hannaford, Natalie; Long, Janet Cameron; Marks, Danielle

2017-01-01

Objectives: Performance indicators are a popular mechanism for measuring the quality of healthcare to facilitate both quality improvement and systems management. Few studies make comparative assessments of different countries’ performance indicator frameworks. This study identifies and compares frameworks and performance indicators used in selected Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development health systems to measure and report on the performance of healthcare organisations and local health systems. Countries involved are Australia, Canada, Denmark, England, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Scotland and the United States. Methods: Identification of comparable international indicators and analyses of their characteristics and of their broader national frameworks and contexts were undertaken. Two dimensions of indicators – that they are nationally consistent (used across the country rather than just regionally) and locally relevant (measured and reported publicly at a local level, for example, a health service) – were deemed important. Results: The most commonly used domains in performance frameworks were safety, effectiveness and access. The search found 401 indicators that fulfilled the ‘nationally consistent and locally relevant’ criteria. Of these, 45 indicators are reported in more than one country. Cardiovascular, surgery and mental health were the most frequently reported disease groups. Conclusion: These comparative data inform researchers and policymakers internationally when designing health performance frameworks and indicator sets. PMID:28228948

Comparative study of torque resistance and microgaps between a combined Octatorx-cone connection and an internal hexagon implant-abutment connection.

PubMed

Khongkhunthian, Pathawee; Khongkhunthian, Sakornratana; Weerawatprachya, Winai; Pongpat, Kanuengnit; Aunmeungtong, Weerapan

2015-05-01

Although the implant-abutment connection may prevent crestal bone loss around dental implants, its failure often leads to treatment failure. Microgap and micromovement of the implant-abutment connection could be causes of bone resorption around dental implant neck. The purpose of this study was to compare torque resistance and microgaps between a new cone and index connection (Octatorx) and an internal hexagon implant-abutment connection (Internal hex). Twenty Octatorx and 20 internal hexagon connections were attached with retaining screws at 30 Ncm. In a torsion resistance test, 10 of each type of connection were attached to a universal testing machine. Torque resistance with 90 degrees per minute rotation speed was recorded. For microgap measurement, each of 10 connections was embedded in clear acrylic resin. The blocks were cut longitudinally. Twenty specimens of each connection were evaluated. Twelve measurements of microgaps (6 on each side of specimen) were recorded under scanning electron microscopy. The average torsion resistance of Octatorx (203.6 ±17.4 Ncm) was significantly greater than that of the internal hexagon (146.4 ±16.1 Ncm, P<.05). For the microgap, there was a significant difference (P=.001) between the median values of Octatorx (1.19 μm) and the internal hexagon (3.80 μm). In this study, the new connection, Octatorx, had a smaller microgap and greater torque resistance than the internal hexagon connection. Copyright © 2015 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Shame, Internalized Heterosexism, Lesbian Identity, and Coming out to Others: A Comparative Study of Lesbians in Mainland China and Hong Kong

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chow, Pizza Ka-Yee; Cheng, Sheung-Tak

2010-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate coming out to family and friends and their relationships to shame, internalized heterosexism, lesbian identity, and perceived social support in Chinese lesbians from 2 different cultural settings--Mainland China (N = 244) and Hong Kong (N = 234). Results of structural equation modeling showed that, in…

Sociotechnical Narratives in Rural, High-Poverty Elementary Schools: Comparative Findings from East Texas and South India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Byker, Erik J.

2014-01-01

The article's purpose is to compare case studies of computer technology use at two rural elementary schools across two international settings. This study uses the Social Construction of Technology (SCOT) theory to guide this comparative investigation of how elementary school teachers and students in East Texas and South India construct meaning for…

Assessment of Whole-Class Instrumental Music Learning in England and the United States of America: An International Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Daniel; Fautley, Martin

2017-01-01

Despite ostensibly sharing a common language, music education terminology as used in England and the United States has many different practical meanings and corresponding connotations. In this comparative study, the authors consider these differences in relation to whole-class learning of instrumental music, a comparative newcomer to the English…

Explanation-Construction in Fourth-Grade Classrooms in Germany and the USA: A cross-national comparative video study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forbes, Cory; Lange, Kim; Möller, Kornelia; Biggers, Mandy; Laux, Mira; Zangori, Laura

2014-09-01

To help explain the differences in students' performance on internationally administered science assessments, cross-national, video-based observational studies have been advocated, but none have yet been conducted at the elementary level for science. The USA and Germany are two countries with large formal education systems whose students underperform those from peers on internationally administered standardized science assessments. However, evidence from the 2011 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Exam assessment suggests fourth-grade students (9-10 year-olds) in the USA perform higher than those in Germany, despite more instructional time devoted to elementary science in Germany. The purpose of this study is to comparatively analyze fourth-grade classroom science in both countries to learn more about how teachers and students engage in scientific inquiry, particularly explanation-construction. Videorecordings of US and German science instruction (n 1 = 42, n 2 = 42) were sampled from existing datasets and analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Despite German science lessons being, on average, twice as long as those in the USA, study findings highlight many similarities between elementary science in terms of scientific practices and features of scientific inquiry. However, they also illustrate crucial differences around the scientific practice of explanation-construction. While students in German classrooms were afforded more substantial opportunities to formulate evidence-based explanations, US classrooms were more strongly characterized by opportunities for students to actively compare and evaluate evidence-based explanations. These factors may begin to help account for observed differences in student achievement and merit further study grounded in international collaboration.

"When You're in a Different Country, Things Are More Apparent": Gender and Study Abroad in Mexico

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGivern, Martha B.

2013-01-01

This dissertation bridges the divide between comparative education and international education literature by examining student experiences in study abroad programs to make theoretical arguments about the role of culture in "doing" and "undoing" gender. The "undoing gender" framework in comparative education literature…

Concussion assessment and management knowledge among chiropractic fourth year interns and residents

PubMed Central

Kazemi, Mohsen; Pichini, Alessandro; Scappaticci, Steven; Savic, Mitchell

2016-01-01

Objectives: To investigate the degree of knowledge chiropractic fourth year interns and post-graduate chiropractic residents have in regard to concussion diagnosis and management. Methods: A survey modified from a study conducted by Boggild and Tator (2012), was administered to fourth year chiropractic interns and post-graduate residents via SurveyMonkey.com. Results: Chiropractic fourth year interns and postgraduate chiropractic specialty college residents scored 5.2 and 5.25 out of 9 respectively, which compares well with Bogglid and Tator’s reports on medical students and residents. Several knowledge gaps were identified in the sample population. Conclusion: The results from this survey show that the concussion knowledge among Canadian fourth year chiropractic interns and specialty college residents compares favorably with the knowledge of fourth year medical students and residents in diagnosing and managing concussions. Chiropractors appear to possess the skills and knowledge to diagnose and manage concussion equal to their medical counterparts. However, knowledge gaps regarding concussion diagnosis and management were found among chiropractic students and residents. PMID:28065987

Concussion assessment and management knowledge among chiropractic fourth year interns and residents.

PubMed

Kazemi, Mohsen; Pichini, Alessandro; Scappaticci, Steven; Savic, Mitchell

2016-12-01

To investigate the degree of knowledge chiropractic fourth year interns and post-graduate chiropractic residents have in regard to concussion diagnosis and management. A survey modified from a study conducted by Boggild and Tator (2012), was administered to fourth year chiropractic interns and post-graduate residents via SurveyMonkey.com. Chiropractic fourth year interns and postgraduate chiropractic specialty college residents scored 5.2 and 5.25 out of 9 respectively, which compares well with Bogglid and Tator's reports on medical students and residents. Several knowledge gaps were identified in the sample population. The results from this survey show that the concussion knowledge among Canadian fourth year chiropractic interns and specialty college residents compares favorably with the knowledge of fourth year medical students and residents in diagnosing and managing concussions. Chiropractors appear to possess the skills and knowledge to diagnose and manage concussion equal to their medical counterparts. However, knowledge gaps regarding concussion diagnosis and management were found among chiropractic students and residents.

Implementation of an intern boot camp curriculum to address clinical competencies under the new Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education supervision requirements and duty hour restrictions.

PubMed

Krajewski, Aleksandra; Filippa, Dawn; Staff, Ilene; Singh, Rekha; Kirton, Orlando C

2013-08-01

Today's general surgery interns are faced with increased duty hour restrictions and stringent competency-based supervision milestone requirements (ie, from direct to indirect supervision). Working within these constraints, we instituted a unique 2-month intern curriculum (boot camp) incorporating knowledge-based, experiential, and practical components. To describe our curriculum and the effect on resident performance and teaching faculty and nursing staff perceptions. All interns underwent a 2-month (July and August 2011) boot camp curriculum consisting of two 2½-hour knowledge-based and procedural skills (SimMan) didactic sessions per week and completion of 25 core intensive introductory American College of Surgeons Fundamentals of Surgery web-based self-study modules, followed by a standardized patient clinical skills assessment. Integrated general surgery residency program at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Farmington. Postgraduate year 1 general surgery categorical and preliminary residents. We used several assessment tools, including an intern boot camp survey, clinical skills assessment scores, intern American Board of Surgeons In-Training Examination scores, and nursing staff and teaching faculty surveys of intern performance and aptitudes compared with the previous year's interns. Data were analyzed by independent group t test, χ2 tests of proportions, and Fisher exact test for small sample cross tables. In total, 84% (91 of 108) of intern respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the usefulness, relevance, and execution of the boot camp. Compared with the previous year's interns, the nursing staff agreed or strongly agreed that the cohort interns were better at patient assessment, collaboration, and effective communication and provided compassionate and respectful patient care. More than 40% (7 of 17) of surveyed teaching faculty agreed or strongly agreed that the cohort interns demonstrated better patient care and procedural skills and self-confidence compared with the previous year's interns. The clinical skills assessment scores after the 2-month boot camp paralleled the scores typically seen at the end of the previous 2 internship years (P > .25 for all). The proportion of nondesignated and categorical interns pursuing careers in general surgery scoring in the top quartile on the American Board of Surgery In-Training Examination increased from 7% (2 of 28) to 50% (5 of 10) compared with the previous 2 internship years (P = .01). Recent changes in intern duty hours and supervision rules mandate that residency training programs must institute a competency-oriented curriculum to provide interns with the necessary knowledge and practical skills to attain clinical competence.

Temperature fluctuations inside savanna termite mounds: Do size and plant shade matter?

PubMed

Ndlovu, M; Pérez-Rodríguez, A

2018-05-01

Mound building termites are key ecosystem engineers of subtropical savanna regions. Mounds allow termites to maintain suitable conditions for termite reproduction and food cultivation ('fungus gardens'). We studied how the internal mound temperature of Macrotermes natalensis, a dominant mound-building termite of the subtropical savanna of southern Africa, responds to a number of environmental variables. We used general additive mixed models (GAMM) to determine how external temperature, mound size (volume) and the amount of vegetation shade affects mound internal temperature over a 24-h period. Internal mound temperature varied daily following changes of the external temperature, although the range of variation was much smaller. Active termite mounds maintained a higher internal temperature than inactive ones, and mound activity reinforced the positive effect of mound size and moderated the negative effect of vegetation shade on internal temperatures. In turn, external temperature fluctuations equally affected active and inactive mounds. Large mounds maintained near optimal internal temperatures compared to smaller sized mounds. We therefore conclude that termite mound size is a stronger determinant of internal mound temperature stability compared to plant shade cover. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Associations between cognition and internalizing problems in young adults with early-onset schizophrenia: A 13-year follow-up study.

PubMed

Strugstad, Benedicte; Lau, Bjørn; Glenne Øie, Merete

2018-04-12

The present follow-up study examines the associations between cognition and parent-rated internalizing problems among adolescents with early-onset schizophrenia (EOS) at baseline (T1) and self-rated internalizing problems 13 years later (T2). Twelve individuals (8 male/4 female) with EOS and 30 healthy controls (16 male/14 female) were included in the study. All were between 12 and 18 years of age at T1. Internalizing problems were measured with the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment Internalizing Scale. Cognition was examined with a neuropsychological test battery measuring auditory attention/working memory, visuomotor processing, cognitive flexibility and verbal memory. Compared to healthy controls, the EOS group had significant cognitive deficits and more internalizing problems both at T1 and T2. There was no correlation between parent-rated internalizing problems at T1 and self-rated internalizing problems at T2 in the EOS group. However, deficits in auditory attention/working memory at T1 were significantly associated with internalizing problems at T2. A focus on improving the treatment of cognitive impairments may be important in preventing the development of internalizing problems in young patients with schizophrenia. The small sample size of the study is a limitation and further research is recommended. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Balancing Academic and Professional Pedagogies: A Comparative Study of Two Accounting Departments in South Africa and the UK

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van der Merwe, Nico; McChlery, Stuart; Visser, Sarah Susanna

2014-01-01

The paper adds to extant professional education literature by reflecting on apparent differences in pedagogy of similar professional programmes of study, allowing deeper insight into the unique strand of higher education influenced by the professions. A comparative international case study approach is adopted of an interpretive qualitative nature…

Effectiveness of external fixator combined with T-plate internal fixation for the treatment of comminuted distal radius fractures.

PubMed

Han, L R; Jin, C X; Yan, J; Han, S Z; He, X B; Yang, X F

2015-03-31

This study compared the efficacy between external fixator combined with palmar T-plate internal fixation and simple plate internal fixation for the treatment of comminuted distal radius fractures. A total of 61 patients classified as type C according to the AO/ASIF classification underwent surgery for comminuted distal radius fractures. There were 54 and 7 cases of closed and open fractures, respectively. Moreover, 19 patients received an external fixator combined with T-plate internal fixation, and 42 received simple plate internal fixation. All patients were treated successfully during 12-month postoperative follow-up. The follow-up results show that the palmar flexion and dorsiflexion of the wrist, radial height, and palmar angle were significantly better in those treated with the external fixator combined with T-plate compared to those treated with the simple plate only (P < 0.05); however, there were no significant differences in radial-ulnar deviation, wrist range of motion, or wrist function score between groups (P > 0.05). Hence, the effectiveness of external fixator combined with T-plate internal fixation for the treatment of comminuted distal radius fractures was satisfactory. Patients sufficiently recovered wrist, forearm, and hand function. In conclusion, compared to the simple T-plate, the external fixator combined with T-plate internal fixation can reduce the possibility of the postoperative re-shifting of broken bones and keep the distraction of fractures to maintain radial height and prevent radial shortening.

Survival and failure modes: platform-switching for internal and external hexagon cemented fixed dental prostheses.

PubMed

Anchieta, Rodolfo B; Machado, Lucas S; Hirata, Ronaldo; Coelho, Paulo G; Bonfante, Estevam A

2016-10-01

This study evaluated the probability of survival (reliability) of platform-switched fixed dental prostheses (FDPs) cemented on different implant-abutment connection designs. Eighty-four-three-unit FDPs (molar pontic) were cemented on abutments connected to two implants of external or internal hexagon connection. Four groups (n = 21 each) were established: external hexagon connection and regular platform (ERC); external hexagon connection and switched platform (ESC); internal hexagon and regular platform (IRC); and internal hexagon and switched platform (ISC). Prostheses were subjected to step-stress accelerated life testing in water. Weibull curves and probability of survival for a mission of 100,000 cycles at 400 N (two-sided 90% CI) were calculated. The beta values of 0.22, 0.48, 0.50, and 1.25 for groups ERC, ESC, IRC, and ISC, respectively, indicated a limited role of fatigue in damage accumulation, except for group ISC. Survival decreased for both platform-switched groups (ESC: 74%, and ISC: 59%) compared with the regular matching platform counterparts (ERC: 95%, and IRC: 98%). Characteristic strength was higher only for ERC compared with ESC, but not different between internal connections. Failures chiefly involved the abutment screw. Platform switching decreased the probability of survival of FDPs on both external and internal connections. The absence in loss of characteristic strength observed in internal hexagon connections favor their use compared with platform-switched external hexagon connections. © 2016 Eur J Oral Sci.

Are two really always better than one? Results, concerns and controversies in the use of bilateral internal thoracic arteries for coronary artery bypass grafting in the elderly: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Deo, Salil V; Altarabsheh, Salah E; Shah, Ishan K; Cho, Yang Hyun; McGraw, Michael; Sarayyepoglu, Basar; Medalion, Benjamin; Markowitz, Alan H; Park, Soon J

2015-04-01

Bilateral internal thoracic artery grafting appears to be the preferred method to achieve durable long-term coronary artery revascularization. However, data reporting the benefit of this technique in the elderly is very conflicting. We performed a systematic review of available literature (till November 2014) using multiple databases to identify studies comparing clinical events in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting using either a single or double internal thoracic artery in the elderly. While early mortality was the primary end-point of inclusion, other adverse events compared were sternal wound infection (deep and superficial), stroke and peri-operative myocardial infarction. Individual and pooled odd's ratios were calculated using the Mantel-Haenzel method (random effect model); sensitivity analysis was performed. Results are presented using 95% confidence intervals. Nine retrospective studies (4479 BITA, 7733 LITA patients) fulfilled search criteria. Deep sternal wound infection was significantly higher after BITA harvest [OR 1.86 (1.3-2.5); I(2) = 0%; p < 0.01]. Early mortality (BITA 3.6% vs SITA 3.1%; p = 0.86), stroke [OR 0.7(0.4-1.1); p = 0.1], and peri-operative myocardial infarction (BITA 4.3% vs SITA 2.3%; p = 0.1) were comparable in both cohorts. Long-term survival favored the BITA cohort in two propensity matched studies. The incidence of deep sternal wound infection may be significantly higher after the harvest of both internal thoracic arteries in the elderly. While other post-operative adverse events are comparable, data regarding the long-term survival advantage in this cohort is conflicting. Hence, the use of both internal thoracic arteries in this age group needs to be invidualized. Copyright © 2015 IJS Publishing Group Limited. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

External Versus Two Different Internal Foci of Attention in Long-Distance Throwing.

PubMed

Oki, Yuta; Kokubu, Masahiro; Nakagomi, Shiro

2018-02-01

The present study examined the influence of attentional focus on performance during a long-distance throwing task. Twelve participants executed three maximum-effort, long-distance baseball throwing attempts in three focus conditions: internal focus on wrist flexion (wrist internal focus), internal focus on the separation between pelvis and upper torso orientations (torso internal focus), and external focus on the ball path (external focus). Compared with the external focus and torso internal focus conditions, performance was poorer in the wrist internal focus condition. Performances were not different in the torso internal and external focus conditions. In addition, attentional focus affected the release angle of the ball but not its initial velocity. Our results reveal that the body part targeted for internal focus of attention and the forcefulness of the motor activity can be as important to motor performance as whether the attention is internal or external.

Effect of modified bridge exercise on trunk muscle activity in healthy adults: a cross sectional study.

PubMed

Yoon, Jeong-Oh; Kang, Min-Hyeok; Kim, Jun-Seok; Oh, Jae-Seop

This is a cross-sectional study. University research laboratory. Fifteen healthy adults (mean age: 27.47 years) volunteered for this study. The individuals performed standard bridge exercise and modified bridge exercises with right leg-lift (single-leg-lift bridge exercise, single-leg-lift bridge exercise on an unstable surface, and single-leg-lift hip abduction bridge exercise). During the bridge exercises, electromyography of the rectus abdominis, internal oblique, erector spinae, and multifidus muscles was recorded using a wireless surface electromyography system. Two-way repeated-measures analysis of variance (exercise by side) with post hoc pairwise comparisons using Bonferroni correction was used to compare the electromyography data collected from each muscle. Bilateral internal oblique muscle activities showed significantly greater during single-leg-lift bridge exercise (95% confidence interval: right internal oblique=-8.99 to -1.08, left internal oblique=-6.84 to -0.10), single-leg-lift bridge exercise on an unstable surface (95% confidence interval: right internal oblique=-7.32 to -1.78, left internal oblique=-5.34 to -0.99), and single-leg-lift hip abduction bridge exercise (95% confidence interval: right internal oblique=-17.13 to -0.89, left internal oblique=-8.56 to -0.60) compared with standard bridge exercise. Bilateral rectus abdominis showed greater electromyography activity during single-leg-lift bridge exercise on an unstable surface (95% confidence interval: right rectus abdominis=-9.33 to -1.13, left rectus abdominis=-4.80 to -0.64) and single-leg-lift hip abduction bridge exercise (95% confidence interval: right rectus abdominis=-14.12 to -1.84, left rectus abdominis=-6.68 to -0.16) compared with standard bridge exercise. In addition, the right rectus abdominis muscle activity was greater during single-leg-lift hip abduction bridge exercise compared with single-leg-lift bridge exercise on an unstable surface (95% confidence interval=-7.51 to -0.89). For erector spinae, muscle activity was greater in right side compared with left side during all exercises (95% confidence interval: standard bridge exercise=0.19-4.53, single-leg-lift bridge exercise=0.24-10.49, single-leg-lift bridge exercise on an unstable surface=0.74-8.55, single-leg-lift hip abduction bridge exercise=0.47-11.43). There was no significant interaction and main effect for multifidus. Adding hip abduction and unstable conditions to bridge exercises may be useful strategy to facilitate the co-activation of trunk muscles. Copyright © 2017 Associação Brasileira de Pesquisa e Pós-Graduação em Fisioterapia. Publicado por Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

The importance of internal facial features in learning new faces.

PubMed

Longmore, Christopher A; Liu, Chang Hong; Young, Andrew W

2015-01-01

For familiar faces, the internal features (eyes, nose, and mouth) are known to be differentially salient for recognition compared to external features such as hairstyle. Two experiments are reported that investigate how this internal feature advantage accrues as a face becomes familiar. In Experiment 1, we tested the contribution of internal and external features to the ability to generalize from a single studied photograph to different views of the same face. A recognition advantage for the internal features over the external features was found after a change of viewpoint, whereas there was no internal feature advantage when the same image was used at study and test. In Experiment 2, we removed the most salient external feature (hairstyle) from studied photographs and looked at how this affected generalization to a novel viewpoint. Removing the hair from images of the face assisted generalization to novel viewpoints, and this was especially the case when photographs showing more than one viewpoint were studied. The results suggest that the internal features play an important role in the generalization between different images of an individual's face by enabling the viewer to detect the common identity-diagnostic elements across non-identical instances of the face.

Early Rehabilitation in Elderly after Arthroplasty versus Internal Fixation for Unstable Intertrochanteric Fractures of Femur: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

PubMed

Yoo, Jun Il; Ha, Yong Chan; Lim, Jae Young; Kang, Hyun; Yoon, Byung Ho; Kim, Hyunho

2017-05-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the outcomes focusing on the functional outcome and clinical results of replacement arthroplasty (AP) vs. internal fixation (IF) for the treatment of unstable intertrochanteric femoral fracture in elderly. Systematic review and meta-analysis were performed on 10 available clinical studies (2 randomized controlled trials and 8 comparative studies). Subgroup analysis was performed by type of methodological quality. Partial weight bearing time in AP group was earlier than that in IF group (SMD = -0.86; 95% CI = -0.42, 1.29; P = 0.050). The overall outcomes such as mortality, reoperation rate, and complication showed no significant diffrence between the 2 groups (AP vs. IF). Therefore, this systematic review demonstrates that AP provides superior functional outcomes especially earlier mobilization, as compared to IF in elderly patients with an unstable intertrochanteric femoral fracture. © 2017 The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences.

Improving International-Level Chess Players' Performance with an Acceptance-Based Protocol: Preliminary Findings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruiz, Francisco J.; Luciano, Carmen

2012-01-01

This study compared an individual, 4-hr intervention based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) versus a no-contact control condition in improving the performance of international-level chess players. Five participants received the brief ACT protocol, with each matched to another chess player with similar characteristics in the control…

The Relationship between Teaching Presence and Student Course Outcomes in an Online International Population

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wendt, Jillian; Courduff, Jennifer

2018-01-01

A causal comparative research design was utilized in this study to examine the relationship between international students' perceptions of teacher presence in the online learning environment and students' achievement as measured by end of course grades. Spearman's analysis indicated no statistically significant correlation between the composite…

Studying "The Political" in International Aid to Education: Methodological Considerations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knutsson, Beniamin; Lindberg, Jonas

2017-01-01

The point of departure of this article is an apparent antinomy. On the one hand, there is the powerful argument in political theory on the emergence and consolidation of a post-political condition. On the other hand, research in international and comparative education demonstrates how conflicts and power asymmetries continue to characterize…

Choosing Choice: School Choice in International Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plank, David N., Ed.; Sykes, Gary, Ed.

The chapters in this book originated as papers for a conference, School Choice and Educational Change, held in March 2000 at Michigan State University. An introductory chapter provides a comparative analysis of the lessons learned from international experience with school-choice policies, based on a review of case studies in several countries. The…

Perceptions of the International Baccalaureate (IB) in Canadian Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fitzgerald, Saira

2017-01-01

This article presents the results of the first Canada-wide survey on how university admissions personnel view the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP) in relation to other curricula. The purpose of this study was twofold: (i) to move beyond anecdote and discover how Canada compares with universities in the UK and Australia/NZ, and…

Influence of Risk Factors and Cultural Assets on Latino Adolescents' Trajectories of Self-Esteem and Internalizing Symptoms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smokowski, Paul Richard; Rose, Roderick A.; Bacallao, Martica

2010-01-01

In this study, we examined longitudinal, person-centered trajectories of acculturation, internalizing symptoms, and self-esteem in 349 Latino adolescents. We compared acculturation measures (time in the US, culture-of-origin involvement, US cultural involvement, for both parents and adolescents); acculturation stressors (perceived discrimination,…

Application of Self-Modeling to Externalizing and Internalizing Disorders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Madaus, Melissa Root; Ruberto, Laura M.

2012-01-01

The self-modeling intervention has been studied for more than 40 years, most often through single-subject research design. This article evaluates the use of the intervention with behaviors associated with both externalizing and internalizing disorders. It compares and summarizes the use of the self-modeling intervention with behaviors such as:…

International Community-Based Service Learning: Two Comparative Case Studies of Benefits and Tensions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akhurst, Jacqueline

2016-01-01

The drives to internationalise the UK curriculum and psychology students' desires to work in communities are brought together in this paper. International community-based learning (ICBL) links with many psychology students' motivations to make contributions to others; with the potential to enhance students' learning and cultural sensitivities. The…

Using TIMSS and PISA Results to Inform Educational Policy: A Study of Russia and Its Neighbours

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carnoy, Martin; Khavenson, Tatiana; Ivanova, Alina

2015-01-01

In this paper, we develop a multi-level comparative approach to analyse Trends in International Mathematics and Science Survey (TIMSS) and Programme of International Student Achievement (PISA) mathematics results for a country, Russia, where the two tests provide contradictory information about students' relative performance. Russian students do…

Contextualizing South Africa's Participation in the SITES 2006 Module

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blignaut, Seugnet; Els, Christo; Howie, Sarah

2010-01-01

The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) initiated the Second International Technology in Education Study (SITES 2006)--a large-scale comparative survey on the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in schools. The goal was to understand the pedagogical use of ICTs in schools in 22…

University Students' Perceptions of Conflict Resolution

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scorzelli, James F.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the perceptions of American and international students on conflict resolution, and to determine if the students were willing to participate in conflict resolution. A survey was given to 226 students at an eastern university that asked them to identify a major international conflict and whether they felt…

Linguistic Barriers among Internationally Educated Teachers in Ireland and Canada: A Critical Comparative Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmidt, Clea; McDaid, Rory

2015-01-01

Drawing on qualitative interview and focus group data collected from Internationally Educated Teachers (IETs) in the context of two different research studies conducted in Ireland and Manitoba, Canada, this article critically examines how national/regional linguistic requirements and expectations of a hidden curriculum are experienced as barriers…

Do the Personalities of International and U.S. Medical Graduates in Psychiatry Differ? A Preliminary Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vaidya, Nutan; Sierles, Frederick S.; Sandu, Ioana C.; Silberman, Edward K.

2006-01-01

Objective: To compare personality traits of psychiatry residents with various characteristics. Method: The authors administered Cloninger's personality inventory to residents at two schools. Results: There were no trait differences between international medical graduates (IMGs) and U.S. medical graduates (USMGs) or those for whom psychiatry was a…

The Economics of International Differences in Educational Achievement. NBER Working Paper No. 15949

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanushek, Eric A.; Woessmann, Ludger

2010-01-01

An emerging economic literature over the past decade has made use of international tests of educational achievement to analyze the determinants and impacts of cognitive skills. The cross-country comparative approach provides a number of unique advantages over national studies: It can exploit institutional variation that does not exist within…

InterRett, a Model for International Data Collection in a Rare Genetic Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Louise, Sandra; Fyfe, Sue; Bebbington, Ami; Bahi-Buisson, Nadia; Anderson, Alison; Pineda, Merce; Percy, Alan; Zeev, Bruria Ben; Wu, Xi Ru; Bao, Xinhua; MacLeod, Patrick; Armstrong, Judith; Leonard, Helen

2009-01-01

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a rare genetic disorder within the autistic spectrum. This study compared socio-demographic, clinical and genetic characteristics of the international database, InterRett, and the population-based Australian Rett syndrome database (ARSD). It also explored the strengths and limitations of InterRett in comparison with other…

Planes, Politics and Oral Proficiency: Testing International Air Traffic Controllers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moder, Carol Lynn; Halleck, Gene B.

2009-01-01

This study investigates the variation in oral proficiency demonstrated by 14 Air Traffic Controllers across two types of testing tasks: work-related radio telephony-based tasks and non-specific English tasks on aviation topics. Their performance was compared statistically in terms of level ratings on the International Civil Aviation Organization…

The Contribution of PISA to the Convergence of Education Policies in Europe

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Michel, Alain

2017-01-01

The international comparative studies on students' outcomes have initiated analyses that have had a growing influence on national and sub-national education policies in industrialised and developing countries. It is particularly the case of the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) which started in 2000 and has organised…

Taking the Lead in Science Education: Forging Next-Generation Science Standards. International Science Benchmarking Report. Appendix

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Achieve, Inc., 2010

2010-01-01

This appendix accompanies the report "Taking the Lead in Science Education: Forging Next-Generation Science Standards. International Science Benchmarking Report," a study conducted by Achieve to compare the science standards of 10 countries. This appendix includes the following: (1) PISA and TIMSS Assessment Rankings; (2) Courses and…

Engaging Visitors in Climate Change Communication: A Case Study of Southern Florida's National Parks and Wildlife Refuges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beard, Caroline A.; Thompson, Jessica Leigh

2012-01-01

Through the lens of place-based climate change communication, this manuscript compares results from internal and external assessments of capacity to communicate about climate change at national parks and refuges in southern Florida. The internal survey sample included agency staff, stakeholders, community partners, and concessionaires; the…

International Comparative Studies in Teaching and Teacher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adamson, Bob

2012-01-01

This review of eight papers published in "Teaching and Teacher Education" over the past twenty years shows how the profession has been impacted by the forces of globalisation. The impact varies in different contexts, according to local factors. The review looks at papers that use explicit international comparisons as a means to bring local…

What Science Teaching Looks Like: An International Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roth, Kathleen; Garnier, Helen

2007-01-01

Using the Trends in International Mathematics and Science (TIMSS) video study, the authors compare science teaching practices in the United States and in four other countries that outperformed the United States: Australia, the Czech Republic, Japan, and the Netherlands. Their observations of videotapes from 100 8th-grade science lessons in each…

Student and School Factors Affecting Mathematics Achievement: International Comparisons between Korea, Japan and the USA

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shin, Jongho; Lee, Hyunjoo; Kim, Yongnam

2009-01-01

The purpose of the study was to comparatively investigate student- and school-level factors affecting mathematics achievement of Korean, Japanese and American students. For international comparisons, the PISA 2003 data were analysed by using the Hierarchical Linear Modeling method. The variables of competitive-learning preference, instrumental…

Evaluation of Patient Handoff Methods on an Inpatient Teaching Service

PubMed Central

Craig, Steven R.; Smith, Hayden L.; Downen, A. Matthew; Yost, W. John

2012-01-01

Background The patient handoff process can be a highly variable and unstructured period at risk for communication errors. The morning sign-in process used by resident physicians at teaching hospitals typically involves less rigorous handoff protocols than the resident evening sign-out process. Little research has been conducted on best practices for handoffs during morning sign-in exchanges between resident physicians. Research must evaluate optimal protocols for the resident morning sign-in process. Methods Three morning handoff protocols consisting of written, electronic, and face-to-face methods were implemented over 3 study phases during an academic year. Study participants included all interns covering the internal medicine inpatient teaching service at a tertiary hospital. Study measures entailed intern survey-based interviews analyzed for failures in handoff protocols with or without missed pertinent information. Descriptive and comparative analyses examined study phase differences. Results A scheduled face-to-face handoff process had the fewest protocol deviations and demonstrated best communication of essential patient care information between cross-covering teams compared to written and electronic sign-in protocols. Conclusion Intern patient handoffs were more reliable when the sign-in protocol included scheduled face-to-face meetings. This method provided the best communication of patient care information and allowed for open exchanges of information. PMID:23267259

Generational Differences in Internalized Transnegativity and Psychological Distress Among Feminine Spectrum Transgender People.

PubMed

Jackman, Kasey B; Dolezal, Curtis; Bockting, Walter O

2018-01-01

This study examined internalized transnegativity and psychological distress in two age groups of transgender individuals who identified their gender identity on the feminine spectrum (rather than congruent with their male sex assigned at birth). Due to greater visibility and acceptance of gender diversity in the United States, we hypothesized that internalized transnegativity would be lower in the younger compared with the older group, and that the younger generation would, therefore, report lower levels of psychological distress than the older generation. The study sample consisted of trans-feminine individuals (N = 440) who completed a online survey of the U.S. transgender population and comprised a younger group aged 18-24 years (n = 133) and an older group aged 40 years and older (n = 307). Internalized transnegativity was assessed using the Transgender Identity Survey, and psychological distress was assessed with the Brief Symptom Inventory 18. We used regression and mediation analysis to examine differences between the two groups. Contrary to our expectations, the older group reported significantly lower levels of both internalized transnegativity and psychological distress compared with the younger group. Internalized transnegativity partially mediated the relationship between age group and psychological distress. Despite greater visibility of transgender people and increasing acceptance of gender diversity in the United States, the younger trans-feminine individuals reported more psychological distress than the older transfeminine individuals, which was, in part, related to internalized transnegativity. Trans-feminine individuals may benefit from culturally sensitive and clinically competent mental health services to alleviate internalized transnegativity and psychological distress.

Generational Differences in Internalized Transnegativity and Psychological Distress Among Feminine Spectrum Transgender People

PubMed Central

Dolezal, Curtis; Bockting, Walter O.

2018-01-01

Abstract Purpose: This study examined internalized transnegativity and psychological distress in two age groups of transgender individuals who identified their gender identity on the feminine spectrum (rather than congruent with their male sex assigned at birth). Due to greater visibility and acceptance of gender diversity in the United States, we hypothesized that internalized transnegativity would be lower in the younger compared with the older group, and that the younger generation would, therefore, report lower levels of psychological distress than the older generation. Methods: The study sample consisted of trans-feminine individuals (N = 440) who completed a online survey of the U.S. transgender population and comprised a younger group aged 18–24 years (n = 133) and an older group aged 40 years and older (n = 307). Internalized transnegativity was assessed using the Transgender Identity Survey, and psychological distress was assessed with the Brief Symptom Inventory 18. We used regression and mediation analysis to examine differences between the two groups. Results: Contrary to our expectations, the older group reported significantly lower levels of both internalized transnegativity and psychological distress compared with the younger group. Internalized transnegativity partially mediated the relationship between age group and psychological distress. Conclusion: Despite greater visibility of transgender people and increasing acceptance of gender diversity in the United States, the younger trans-feminine individuals reported more psychological distress than the older transfeminine individuals, which was, in part, related to internalized transnegativity. Trans-feminine individuals may benefit from culturally sensitive and clinically competent mental health services to alleviate internalized transnegativity and psychological distress. PMID:29099335

A novel modality for intrapartum fetal heart rate monitoring.

PubMed

Ashwal, Eran; Shinar, Shiri; Aviram, Amir; Orbach, Sharon; Yogev, Yariv; Hiersch, Liran

2017-11-02

Intrapartum fetal heart rate (FHR) monitoring is well recommended during labor to assess fetal wellbeing. Though commonly used, the external Doppler and fetal scalp electrode monitor have significant shortcomings. Lately, non-invasive technologies were developed as possible alternatives. The objective of this study is to compare the accuracy of FHR trace using novel Electronic Uterine Monitoring (EUM) to that of external Doppler and fetal scalp electrode monitor. A comparative study conducted in a single tertiary medical center. Intrapartum FHR trace was recorded simultaneously using three different methods: internal fetal scalp electrode, external Doppler, and EUM. The latter, a multichannel electromyogram (EMG) device acquires a uterine signal and maternal and fetal electrocardiograms. FHR traces obtained from all devices during the first and second stages of labor were analyzed. Positive percent of agreement (PPA) and accuracy (by measuring root means square error between observed and predicted values) of EUM and external Doppler were both compared to internal scalp electrode monitoring. A Bland-Altman agreement plot was used to compare the differences in FHR trace between all modalities. For momentary recordings of fetal heart rate <110 bpm or >160 bpm level of agreement, sensitivity, and specificity were also evaluated. Overall, 712,800 FHR momentary recordings were obtained from 33 parturients. Although both EUM and external Doppler highly correlated with internal scalp electrode monitoring (r 2  = 0.98, p < .001 for both methods), the accuracy of EUM was significantly higher than external Doppler (99.0% versus 96.6%, p < .001). In addition, for fetal heart rate <110 bpm or >160 bpm, the PPA, sensitivity, and specificity of EUM as compared with internal fetal scalp electrode, were significantly greater than those of external Doppler (p < .001). Intrapartum FHR using EUM is both valid and accurate, yielding higher correlations with internal scalp electrode monitoring than external Doppler. As such, it may provide a good framework for non-invasive evaluation of intrapartum FHR.

Comprehensive comparing percutaneous endoscopic lumbar discectomy with posterior lumbar internal fixation for treatment of adjacent segment lumbar disc prolapse with stable retrolisthesis: A retrospective case-control study.

PubMed

Sun, Yapeng; Zhang, Wei; Qie, Suhui; Zhang, Nan; Ding, Wenyuan; Shen, Yong

2017-07-01

The study was to comprehensively compare the postoperative outcome and imaging parameter characters in a short/middle period between the percutaneous endoscopic lumbar discectomy (PELD) and the internal fixation of bone graft fusion (the most common form is posterior lumbar interbody fusion [PLIF]) for the treatment of adjacent segment lumbar disc prolapse with stable retrolisthesis after a previous lumbar internal fixation surgery.In this retrospective case-control study, we collected the medical records from 11 patients who received PELD operation (defined as PELD group) for and from 13 patients who received the internal fixation of bone graft fusion of lumbar posterior vertebral lamina decompression (defined as control group) for the treatment of the lumbar disc prolapse combined with stable retrolisthesis at Department of Spine Surgery, the Third Hospital of Hebei Medical University (Shijiazhuang, China) from May 2010 to December 2015. The operation time, the bleeding volume of perioperation, and the rehabilitation days of postoperation were compared between 2 groups. Before and after surgery at different time points, ODI, VAS index, and imaging parameters (including Taillard index, inter-vertebral height, sagittal dislocation, and forward bending angle of lumbar vertebrae) were compared.The average operation time, the blooding volume, and the rehabilitation days of postoperation were significantly less in PELD than in control group. The ODI and VAS index in PELD group showed a significantly immediate improving on the same day after the surgery. However, Taillard index, intervertebral height, sagittal dislocation in control group showed an immediate improving after surgery, but no changes in PELD group till 12-month after surgery. The forward bending angle of lumbar vertebrae was significantly increased and decreased in PELD and in control group, respectively.PELD operation was superior in terms of operation time, bleeding volume, recovery period, and financial support, if compared with lumbar internal fixation operation. Radiographic parameters reflect lumber structure changes, which could be observed immediately after surgery in both methods; however, the recoveries on nerve function and pain relief required a longer time, especially after PLIF operation.

Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of International Travel-Associated Campylobacter Infections in the United States, 2005–2011

PubMed Central

Palmer, Amanda; Wymore, Katie; Clogher, Paula; Oosmanally, Nadine; Robinson, Trisha; Lathrop, Sarah; Karr, Jillian; Hatch, Julie; Dunn, John; Ryan, Patricia; Blythe, David

2014-01-01

Objectives. The objective of this study was to determine the role international travel plays in US Campylobacter epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance. Methods. In this study, epidemiological and antimicrobial resistance data, encompassing the years 2005 to 2011, from 10 sites participating in the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network were linked. The 10 sites are represented by 7 states that conducted surveillance on a statewide level, and 3 states which conducted county-level surveillance. Cases of Campylobacter among persons with history of international travel in the week prior to illness were compared with cases among individuals with no international travel. Results. Approximately 18% of Campylobacter infections were estimated to be associated with international travel, and 60% of international travel-associated infections had a quinolone-resistant Campylobacter isolate. Conclusions. We confirm that international travel plays a significant role in campylobacteriosis diagnosed in the United States. Recognizing this is important to both medical management decisions and understanding burden and attribution estimates of US campylobacteriosis and antibiotic-resistant campylobacteriosis. PMID:24832415

How do american students measure up? Making sense of international comparisons.

PubMed

Koretz, Daniel

2009-01-01

In response to frequent news media reports about how poorly American students fare compared with their peers abroad, Daniel Koretz takes a close look at what these comparisons say, and do not say, about the achievement of U.S. high school students. He stresses that the comparisons do not provide what many observers of education would like: unambiguous information about the effectiveness of American high schools compared with those in other nations. Koretz begins by describing the. two principal international student comparisons-the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). Both assessments, he stresses, reflect the performance of students several years before they complete high school. PISA, which targets fifteen-year-old students, measures students' abilities to apply what they have learned in school to real-world problems. By contrast, TIMSS tests fourth and eighth graders. Unlike PISA, TIMSS follows the school curriculum closely. Because the findings of the two tests are sometimes inconsistent, Koretz stresses the importance of considering data from both sources. He cautions against comparing U.S. students with an "international average," which varies widely from survey to survey depending on which countries participate, and recommends instead comparing them with students in other nations that are similar to the United States or that are particularly high-achieving. Many observers, says Koretz, speculate that the lackluster average performance of American students in international comparisons arises because many, especially minority and low-income U.S. students, attend low-performing schools. But both TIMSS and PISA, he says, show that the performance of American students on the exams is not much more variable than that of students in countries that are socially more homogeneous or that have more equitable educational systems. Koretz emphasizes that the international comparisons provide valuable information and are a useful source of hypotheses about American secondary schooling to be tested by researchers. Studies designed to explain differences between U.S. students and those in very similar countries, he says, might provide especially useful suggestions for changes in policy and practice.

Measuring quality progress

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lambert, Larry D.

The study by the American Productivity & Quality Center (APQC) was commissioned by Loral Space Information Systems, Inc. and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to evaluate internal assessment systems. APQC benchmarked approaches to the internal assessment of quality management systems in three phases. The first phase included work conducted for the International Benchmarking Clearinghouse (IBC) and consisted of an in-depth analysis of the 1991 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award criteria. The second phase was also performed for the IBC and compared the 1991 award criteria among the following quality awards: Deming Prize, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, The President's Award for Quality and Productivity Improvement, The NASA Excellence Award (The George M. Lowe Trophy) for Quality and Productivity Improvement and the Shigeo Shingo Award for Excellence in Manufacturing. The third phase compared the internal implementation approaches of 23 companies selected from American industry for their recognized, formal assessment systems.

Measuring quality progress

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lambert, Larry D.

1992-01-01

The study by the American Productivity & Quality Center (APQC) was commissioned by Loral Space Information Systems, Inc. and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to evaluate internal assessment systems. APQC benchmarked approaches to the internal assessment of quality management systems in three phases. The first phase included work conducted for the International Benchmarking Clearinghouse (IBC) and consisted of an in-depth analysis of the 1991 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award criteria. The second phase was also performed for the IBC and compared the 1991 award criteria among the following quality awards: Deming Prize, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, The President's Award for Quality and Productivity Improvement, The NASA Excellence Award (The George M. Lowe Trophy) for Quality and Productivity Improvement and the Shigeo Shingo Award for Excellence in Manufacturing. The third phase compared the internal implementation approaches of 23 companies selected from American industry for their recognized, formal assessment systems.

A basis for translational cancer research on aetiology, pathogenesis and prognosis: Guideline for standardised and population-based linkages of biobanks to cancer registries.

PubMed

Dillner, Joakim

2015-06-01

Population-based cancer research is paramount for controlling cancer. Cancer research is increasingly dependent on access to biospecimens from subjects that have been followed-up for future health outcomes. This is achieved using longitudinal follow-up of cohorts and biobanks using cancer registry linkages. All over the world, more and more large population-based cohorts and advanced biobanking facilities are established. International standardisation and networking in the linkage of cohorts and biobanks to cancer registries is required in order to enable international cancer research and comparability of research results. An international operating procedure and standard minimum dataset for linkages of biobanks, cohorts and cancer registries is proposed. An internationally comparable provision of well characterised study bases for molecular cancer research will be an essential prerequisite for the success of translational medicine. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of a Resident-as-Teacher Workshop on Teaching Behavior of Interns and Learning Outcomes of Medical Students

PubMed Central

Hill, Andrew G.; Srinivasa, Sanket; Hawken, Susan J.; Barrow, Mark; Farrell, Susan E.; Hattie, John; Yu, Tzu-Chieh

2012-01-01

Background Residents and interns are recognized as important clinical teachers and mentors. Resident-as-teacher training programs are known to improve resident attitudes and perceptions toward teaching, as well as their theoretical knowledge, skills, and teaching behavior. The effect of resident-as-teacher programs on learning outcomes of medical students, however, remains unknown. An intervention cohort study was conducted to prospectively investigate the effects of a teacher-training workshop on teaching behavior of participating interns and on the clerkship learning outcomes of instructed fourth-year medical students. Methods The House Officer-as-Teacher Training Workshop was implemented in November 2009 over 1.5 days and attended by all 34 interns from one teaching hospital. Subsequently, between February and August 2010, 124 fourth-year medical students rated the observable teaching behavior of interns during 6-week general surgery clerkships at this intervention hospital as well as at 2 comparable hospitals serving as control sites. Ratings were collected using an anonymous 15-item Intern Clinical Teaching Effectiveness Instrument. Student achievement of clerkship learning outcomes during this period was evaluated using a validated and centralized objective structured clinical examination. Results Medical students completed 101 intern clinical teaching effectiveness instruments. Intern teaching behavior at the intervention hospital was found to be significantly more positive, compared with observed behavior at the control hospitals. Objective structured clinical examination results, however, did not demonstrate any significant intersite differences in student achievement of general surgery clerkship learning outcomes. Conclusions The House Officer-as-Teacher Training Workshop noticeably improved teaching behavior of surgical interns during general surgery clerkships. This improvement did not, however, translate into improved achievement of clerkship learning outcomes by medical students during the study period. PMID:23451304

Acculturation and changes in dietary behavior and anthropometric measures among Chinese international students in South Korea.

PubMed

Lee, Jounghee; Gao, Ran-Ran; Kim, Jung-Hee

2015-06-01

International students face dissimilar food environments, which could lead to changes in dietary behaviors and anthropometric characteristics between before and after migration. We sought to examine the risk factors, including dietary behaviors, acculturation, and demographic characteristics, related to overweight subjects residing in South Korea. We conducted a cross-sectional study, collecting data from 142 Chinese international students (63 males, 79 females) in 2013. The mean age of the subjects was 25.4 years, and almost half of them immigrated to South Korea to earn a master's degree or doctoral degree (n = 70, 49.3%). Chinese international students showed an increase in skipping meals and eating speed, but a decrease in the frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption in South Korea compared to when they lived in China. We found a statistically significant increase in weight (69.4 → 73.9 kg) and BMI (22.4 → 23.8 kg/m(2)) for male subjects (P < 0.001) but no change for female subjects. We also found that overweight subjects were more likely to be highly acculturated and male compared with normal-weight subjects. Among Chinese international students living in South Korea, male and more highly acculturated subjects are more vulnerable to weight gain. This study provides useful information to design tailored nutrition intervention programs for Chinese international students.

Acculturation and changes in dietary behavior and anthropometric measures among Chinese international students in South Korea

PubMed Central

Lee, Jounghee; Gao, Ran-Ran

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES International students face dissimilar food environments, which could lead to changes in dietary behaviors and anthropometric characteristics between before and after migration. We sought to examine the risk factors, including dietary behaviors, acculturation, and demographic characteristics, related to overweight subjects residing in South Korea. SUBJECTS/METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional study, collecting data from 142 Chinese international students (63 males, 79 females) in 2013. RESULTS The mean age of the subjects was 25.4 years, and almost half of them immigrated to South Korea to earn a master's degree or doctoral degree (n = 70, 49.3%). Chinese international students showed an increase in skipping meals and eating speed, but a decrease in the frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption in South Korea compared to when they lived in China. We found a statistically significant increase in weight (69.4 → 73.9 kg) and BMI (22.4 → 23.8 kg/m2) for male subjects (P < 0.001) but no change for female subjects. We also found that overweight subjects were more likely to be highly acculturated and male compared with normal-weight subjects. CONCLUSION Among Chinese international students living in South Korea, male and more highly acculturated subjects are more vulnerable to weight gain. This study provides useful information to design tailored nutrition intervention programs for Chinese international students. PMID:26060543

Comparative Evaluation of Marginal and Internal Gap of Co-Cr Copings Fabricated from Conventional Wax Pattern, 3D Printed Resin Pattern and DMLS Tech: An In Vitro Study.

PubMed

Bhaskaran, Eswaran; Azhagarasan, N S; Miglani, Saket; Ilango, T; Krishna, G Phani; Gajapathi, B

2013-09-01

Accuracy of the fit of the restoration has always remained as one of the primary factors in determining success of the restoration. A well fitting restoration needs to be accurate both along its margins and internal surface. This study was conducted to comparatively evaluate the marginal gap and internal gap of cobalt-chromium (Co-Cr) copings fabricated by conventional casting procedures and with direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) technique. Among the total of 30 test samples 10 cast copings were made from inlay casting wax and 10 from 3D printed resin pattern. 10 copings were obtained from DMLS technique. All the 30 test samples were then cemented sequentially on stainless steel model using pressure indicating paste and evaluated for vertical marginal gap in 8 predetermined reference areas. All copings were then removed and partially sectioned and cemented sequentially on same master model for evaluation of internal gap at 4 predetermined reference areas. Both marginal gap and internal gap were measured in microns using video measuring system (VMS2010F). The results obtained for both marginal and internal gap were statistically analyzed and the values fall within the clinically acceptable range. The DMLS technique had an edge over the other two techniques used, as it exhibited minimal gap in the marginal region which is an area of chief concern.

Tumour regression of uveal melanoma after ruthenium-106 brachytherapy or stereotactic radiotherapy with gamma knife or linear accelerator.

PubMed

Georgopoulos, Michael; Zehetmayer, Martin; Ruhswurm, Irene; Toma-Bstaendig, Sabine; Ségur-Eltz, Nikolaus; Sacu, Stefan; Menapace, Rupert

2003-01-01

This study assesses differences in relative tumour regression and internal acoustic reflectivity after 3 methods of radiotherapy for uveal melanoma: (1) brachytherapy with ruthenium-106 radioactive plaques (RU), (2) fractionated high-dose gamma knife stereotactic irradiation in 2-3 fractions (GK) or (3) fractionated linear-accelerator-based stereotactic teletherapy in 5 fractions (Linac). Ultrasound measurements of tumour thickness and internal reflectivity were performed with standardised A scan pre-operatively and 3, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24 and 36 months postoperatively. Of 211 patients included in the study, 111 had a complete 3-year follow-up (RU: 41, GK: 37, Linac: 33). Differences in tumour thickness and internal reflectivity were assessed with analysis of variance, and post hoc multiple comparisons were calculated with Tukey's honestly significant difference test. Local tumour control was excellent with all 3 methods (>93%). At 36 months, relative tumour height reduction was 69, 50 and 30% after RU, GK and Linac, respectively. In all 3 treatment groups, internal reflectivity increased from about 30% initially to 60-70% 3 years after treatment. Brachytherapy with ruthenium-106 plaques results in a faster tumour regression as compared to teletherapy with gamma knife or Linac. Internal reflectivity increases comparably in all 3 groups. Besides tumour growth arrest, increasing internal reflectivity is considered as an important factor indicating successful treatment. Copyright 2003 S. Karger AG, Basel

Home Literacy Environments and Children's Reading Performance: A Comparative Study of 25 Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Hyunjoon

2008-01-01

Using data for 4th graders in primary schools from the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), I compare across 25 countries the ways in which home literacy environments influence children's reading performance. Examined are three indicators: early home literacy activities, parental attitudes toward reading, and number of books…

Teachers' Perceptions of Effective Teaching: A Comparative Study of Elementary School Teachers from China and the USA

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meng, Lingqi; Muñoz, Marco

2016-01-01

This international study investigated Chinese and American elementary school teachers' perceptions of effective teaching. The sample comprised Chinese (n = 108) and US (n = 110) participating teachers. The Effective Teaching Quality Survey (ETQS) was adopted for this comparative education research, an instrument that operationalized Stronge's…

Unemployment of Educated Youth in Asia: A Comparative Analysis of the Situation in India, Bangladesh and the Philippines.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Das, A. K.

This study of unemployment among university graduates in West Bengal (India), Bangladesh, and the Philippines provides socioeconomic and educational characteristics of these areas, a comparative analysis of unemployment, and suggested measures for reducing unemployment. The International Institute for Educational Planning studies, focusing on…

Cardiac and Metabolic Variables in Obese Dogs.

PubMed

Tropf, M; Nelson, O L; Lee, P M; Weng, H Y

2017-07-01

The etiology of obesity-related cardiac dysfunction (ORCD) is linked to metabolic syndrome in people. Studies have indicated that obese dogs have components of metabolic syndrome, warranting evaluation for ORCD in obese dogs. To evaluate cardiac structure and function and metabolic variables in obese dogs compared to ideal weight dogs. Forty-six healthy, small-breed (<25 pounds), obese dogs (n = 29) compared to ideal weight dogs (n = 17). A cross-sectional study of cardiac structure and function by standard and strain echocardiographic measurements and quantification of serum metabolic variables (insulin:glucose ratios, lipid analysis, adiponectin, inflammatory markers). Compared to the ideal weight controls, obese dogs had cardiac changes characterized by an increased interventricular septal width in diastole to left ventricular internal dimension in diastole ratio, decreased ratios of peak early to peak late left ventricular inflow velocities, and ratios of peak early to peak late mitral annular tissue velocities, and increased fractional shortening and ejection fraction percentages. The left ventricular posterior wall width in diastole to left ventricular internal dimension in diastole ratios were not significantly different between groups. Systolic blood pressure was not significantly different between groups. Obese dogs had metabolic derangements characterized by increased insulin:glucose ratios, dyslipidemias with increased cholesterol, triglyceride, and high-density lipoprotein concentrations, decreased adiponectin concentrations, and increased concentrations of interleukin 8 and keratinocyte-derived chemokine-like inflammatory cytokines. Compared to ideal weight controls, obese dogs have alterations in cardiac structure and function as well as insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, hypoadiponectinemia, and increased concentrations of inflammatory markers. These findings warrant additional studies to investigate inflammation, dyslipidemia, and possibly systemic hypertension as potential contributing factors for altered cardiac function. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.

Cost-effectiveness of a nurse practitioner-family physician model of care in a nursing home: controlled before and after study.

PubMed

Lacny, Sarah; Zarrabi, Mahmood; Martin-Misener, Ruth; Donald, Faith; Sketris, Ingrid; Murphy, Andrea L; DiCenso, Alba; Marshall, Deborah A

2016-09-01

To examine the cost-effectiveness of a nurse practitioner-family physician model of care compared with family physician-only care in a Canadian nursing home. As demand for long-term care increases, alternative care models including nurse practitioners are being explored. Cost-effectiveness analysis using a controlled before-after design. The study included an 18-month 'before' period (2005-2006) and a 21-month 'after' time period (2007-2009). Data were abstracted from charts from 2008-2010. We calculated incremental cost-effectiveness ratios comparing the intervention (nurse practitioner-family physician model; n = 45) to internal (n = 65), external (n = 70) and combined internal/external family physician-only control groups, measured as the change in healthcare costs divided by the change in emergency department transfers/person-month. We assessed joint uncertainty around costs and effects using non-parametric bootstrapping and cost-effectiveness acceptability curves. Point estimates of the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio demonstrated the nurse practitioner-family physician model dominated the internal and combined control groups (i.e. was associated with smaller increases in costs and emergency department transfers/person-month). Compared with the external control, the intervention resulted in a smaller increase in costs and larger increase in emergency department transfers. Using a willingness-to-pay threshold of $1000 CAD/emergency department transfer, the probability the intervention was cost-effective compared with the internal, external and combined control groups was 26%, 21% and 25%. Due to uncertainty around the distribution of costs and effects, we were unable to make a definitive conclusion regarding the cost-effectiveness of the nurse practitioner-family physician model; however, these results suggest benefits that could be confirmed in a larger study. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effects of Internal Waves on Sound Propagation in the Shallow Waters of the Continental Shelves

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-09-01

experiment area were largely generated by tidal forcing. Compared to simulations without internal waves , simulations accounting for the effects of...internal waves in the experiment area were largely generated by tidal forcing. Compared to simulations without internal waves , simulations accounting for...IN THE SHALLOW WATERS OF THE CONTINENTAL SHELVES ..................................4  1.  Internal Tides—Internal Waves Generated by Tidal Forcing

Attentional focus and performance anxiety: effects on simulated race-driving performance and heart rate variability.

PubMed

Mullen, Richard; Faull, Andrea; Jones, Eleri S; Kingston, Kieran

2012-01-01

Previous studies have demonstrated that an external focus can enhance motor learning compared to an internal focus. The benefits of adopting an external focus are attributed to the use of less effortful automatic control processes, while an internal focus relies upon more effort-intensive consciously controlled processes. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of a distal external focus with an internal focus in the acquisition of a simulated driving task and subsequent performance in a competitive condition designed to increase state anxiety. To provide further evidence for the automatic nature of externally controlled movements, the study included heart rate variability (HRV) as an index of mental effort. Sixteen participants completed eight blocks of four laps in either a distal external or internal focus condition, followed by two blocks of four laps in the competitive condition. During acquisition, the performance of both groups improved; however, the distal external focus group outperformed the internal focus group. The poorer performance of the internal focus group was accompanied by a larger reduction in HRV, indicating a greater investment of mental effort. In the competition condition, state anxiety increased, and for both groups, performance improved as a function of the increased anxiety. Increased heart rate and self-reported mental effort accompanied the performance improvement. The distal external focus group also outperformed the internal focus group across both neutral and competitive conditions and this more effective performance was again associated with lower levels of HRV. Overall, the results offer support for the suggestion that an external focus promotes a more automatic mode of functioning. In the competitive condition, both foci enhanced performance and while the improved performance may have been achieved at the expense of greater compensatory mental effort, this was not reflected in HRV scores.

Unravelling the differences in attrition and academic performance of international and domestic nursing students with English as an additional language.

PubMed

Zheng, Roy Xun; Everett, Bronwyn; Glew, Paul; Salamonson, Yenna

2014-12-01

High attrition and academic underperformance have been highlighted among students who speak English as an additional language (EAL) in higher education, and a lack of language skills is often cited as a key explanatory factor. Although the relationship between English-language skills and academic performance among EAL students has been established, group differences between international and domestic EAL nursing students is not known. The aim of this study was to compare attrition rates and academic performance of international and domestic EAL nursing students, taking into consideration levels of English-language usage and socio-demographic characteristics of these groups. A prospective correlational study. From 2010 to 2012, nursing students at a large Australian university, who attended an orientation session before course commencement, were invited to complete a survey to assess their English-language usage. Data collected included students' enrolment status and GPA at 12months. Compared with their domestic counterparts, the attrition rate of international EAL students was significantly lower (7.9% versus 13.3%, p=0.018). Similarly, international students also had higher GPAs (4.1 versus 4.0, p=0.011). Although the levels of English-language usage were not related to academic performance, recent arrivals in both international (p=0.047) and domestic (p=0.001) student groups had higher GPAs. This study suggests that language acculturation, indicated by English-language usage and the length of stay in the host country, was not sufficient to ensure successful transition into the academic environment for either international or domestic EAL nursing students. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

ANODAL TRANSCRANIAL DIRECT CURRENT STIMULATION (TDCS) INCREASES ISOMETRIC STRENGTH OF SHOULDER ROTATORS MUSCLES IN HANDBALL PLAYERS.

PubMed

Hazime, Fuad Ahmad; da Cunha, Ronaldo Alves; Soliaman, Renato Rozenblit; Romancini, Ana Clara Bezerra; Pochini, Alberto de Castro; Ejnisman, Benno; Baptista, Abrahão Fontes

2017-06-01

Weakness of the rotator cuff muscles can lead to imbalances in the strength of shoulder external and internal rotators, change the biomechanics of the glenohumeral joint and predispose an athlete to injury. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique that has demonstrated promising results in a variety of health conditions. However few studies addressed its potential approach in the realm of athletics. The purpose of this study was to investigate if transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) technique increases the isometric muscle strength of shoulder external and internal rotators in handball athletes. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study. Eight female handball players aged between 17 and 21 years (Mean=19.65; SD=2.55) with 7.1 ± 4.8 years of experience in training, participating in regional and national competitions were recruited. Maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) of shoulder external and internal rotator muscles was evaluated during and after 30 and 60 minutes post one session of anodal and sham current (2mA; 0.057mA/cm 2 ) with a one-week interval between stimulations. Compared to baseline, MVIC of shoulder external and internal rotators significantly increased after real but not sham tDCS. Between-group differences were observed for external and internal rotator muscles. Maximal voluntary isometric contraction of external rotation increased significantly during tDCS, and 30 and 60 minutes post-tDCS for real tDCS compared to that for sham tDCS. For internal rotation MVIC increased significantly during and 60 minutes post-tDCS. The results indicate that transcranial direct current stimulation temporarily increases maximal isometric contractions of the internal and external rotators of the shoulder in handball players. 2.

Quantifying Nanoparticle Internalization Using a High Throughput Internalization Assay.

PubMed

Mann, Sarah K; Czuba, Ewa; Selby, Laura I; Such, Georgina K; Johnston, Angus P R

2016-10-01

The internalization of nanoparticles into cells is critical for effective nanoparticle mediated drug delivery. To investigate the kinetics and mechanism of internalization of nanoparticles into cells we have developed a DNA molecular sensor, termed the Specific Hybridization Internalization Probe - SHIP. Self-assembling polymeric 'pHlexi' nanoparticles were functionalized with a Fluorescent Internalization Probe (FIP) and the interactions with two different cell lines (3T3 and CEM cells) were studied. The kinetics of internalization were quantified and chemical inhibitors that inhibited energy dependent endocytosis (sodium azide), dynamin dependent endocytosis (Dyngo-4a) and macropinocytosis (5-(N-ethyl-N-isopropyl) amiloride (EIPA)) were used to study the mechanism of internalization. Nanoparticle internalization kinetics were significantly faster in 3T3 cells than CEM cells. We have shown that ~90% of the nanoparticles associated with 3T3 cells were internalized, compared to only 20% of the nanoparticles associated with CEM cells. Nanoparticle uptake was via a dynamin-dependent pathway, and the nanoparticles were trafficked to lysosomal compartments once internalized. SHIP is able to distinguish between nanoparticles that are associated on the outer cell membrane from nanoparticles that are internalized. This study demonstrates the assay can be used to probe the kinetics of nanoparticle internalization and the mechanisms by which the nanoparticles are taken up by cells. This information is fundamental for engineering more effective nanoparticle delivery systems. The SHIP assay is a simple and a high-throughput technique that could have wide application in therapeutic delivery research.

The Future of Comparative and International Education in a Globalised World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilson, David N.

2003-03-01

This article examines the history and future prospects of comparative and international education with particular reference to the impact of globalisation and Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs). Connections and interactions between comparative educationists and the technologies of printing and electronic communications are examined in a historical context. The global nature of communications in comparative and international education is demonstrated both spatially and historically, using information from all regions of the world. The changing nature of technologies is noted to have broadened the audience for comparative insights. The development of textbooks, journals, conferences, international agencies, the Internet, web-based communications, and professional comparative education societies is related to the themes of communications and globalisation.

Comparative Study of Middle School Students' Attitudes towards Science: Rasch Analysis of Entire TIMSS 2011 Attitudinal Data for England, Singapore and the U.S.A. as Well as Psychometric Properties of Attitudes Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oon, Pey Tee; Subramaniam, R.

2018-01-01

We report here on a comparative study of middle school students' attitudes towards science involving three countries: England, Singapore and the U.S.A. Complete attitudinal data sets from TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) 2011 were used, thus giving a very large sample size (N = 20,246), compared to other studies in the…

Towards International Comparative Research on the Professionalisation of Religious Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freathy, Rob; Parker, Stephen G.; Schweitzer, Friedrich; Simojoki, Henrik

2014-01-01

This article calls for international comparative research on the professionalisation of Religious Education (RE). To this end, it provides a rationale for focusing upon the concept of professionalisation and a theoretical justification for international comparative research, particularly identifying its significance in terms of the development of…

International Education Comparison: An Intellectual Tradition and Its Contemporary Considerations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Yu-Chih

2017-01-01

What is the nature of comparative and international education as a discipline? What are the relationships and connections between comparison and internationalization? Such questions have long been discussed in comparative education and have provoked much debate."Comparative and International Education: An Introduction to Theory, Method, and…

Midface distraction osteogenesis: internal vs. external devices.

PubMed

Meling, T R; Høgevold, H-E; Due-Tønnessen, B J; Skjelbred, P

2011-02-01

This study compares internal and external distraction devices in the treatment of midface retrusion. 20 patients were treated with midface distraction (12 Crouzon, 4 Apert, 4 others); 12 with internal distraction (MID device), 8 with external distraction (Red or Blue device). The two groups were compared regarding operation time, peroperative blood loss and complications. The groups were comparable regarding patient age, sex, weight and diagnosis. In the MID-group, 7 of 12 patients (58%) underwent Le Fort III, 5 underwent 12 monobloc (32%). In the Blue device group, three of eight patients underwent Le Fort II (38%), three of eight underwent Le Fort III (38%), and two of eight underwent monobloc (25%). Operation time was shorter in the Blue device (mean 298 min) than in the MID group (mean 354 min). Peroperative blood loss and complication rates were similar. The internal distraction device is the 'gold standard' for treating midface retrusion. The use of an external distraction device in midface distraction osteogenesis is associated with a shorter operation time; peroperative blood loss and complications were similar. An external device affords better 3-dimensional control during the distraction process, so external distraction is preferable in patients who will tolerate this treatment. Copyright © 2010 International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Frictions between Formal Education Policy and Actual School Choice: Case Studies in an International Comparative Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Teelken, Christine; Driessen, Geert; Smit, Frederik

2005-01-01

This contribution is based on comparative case studies of secondary schools in England, the Netherlands and Scotland. The authors conclude that although opportunities for school choice are offered in a formal sense in each of the locations studied, in certain cases choice is not particularly encouraged. In order to explain this disparity between…

Organisation and Management of Continuing Higher Education: Findings of a Comparative Study in Six Countries from a German Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knust, Michaela; Zawacki-Richter, Olaf; Hanft, Anke

2008-01-01

An international comparison study investigated the organisation and management of continuing higher education (CHE) in Germany, Finland, France, the United Kingdom, Austria and the United States of America. CHE is compared on the system level (boundaries between traditional study programmes and CHE, linking of CHE and vocational training,…

[Prevalence of hearing impairment in northwestern Germany. Results of an epidemiological study on hearing status (HÖRSTAT)].

PubMed

von Gablenz, P; Holube, I

2015-03-01

A pure-tone average of 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz in the better ear (PTA-4) is the international standard criterion set by the World Health Organization (WHO) to describe hearing loss. Presently, there are no epidemiological data on hearing loss in Germany based on this criterion. A representative sample of adults from Oldenburg and Emden were invited for a hearing assessment. This article analyzes the association between hearing loss and age, sex, noise, occupation, and educational level. Age- and sex-specific prevalence rates following the WHO classification are compared with international findings. According to the WHO classification, the prevalence of hearing impairment in the study cohort (n=1,866) is approx. 16%. In men, who more commonly work in noisy jobs, a higher prevalence rate is observed than in women of the same age. Nevertheless, sex differences in the present study are smaller than those reported in most international studies. PTA-4 is approximately the same for men and women when effects of occupational noise are controlled, but differences in prevalence between occupational areas are still significant. Compared with international findings, age-specific prevalence rates in HÖRSTAT are low. In the synopsis of epidemiological studies of the past 25 years, a trend toward decreasing prevalence in middle and higher age groups can be observed.

Effect of captivity on morphology: negligible changes in external morphology mask significant changes in internal morphology

PubMed Central

Munn, Adam J.; Byrne, Phillip G.

2018-01-01

Captive breeding programmes are increasingly relied upon for threatened species management. Changes in morphology can occur in captivity, often with unknown consequences for reintroductions. Few studies have examined the morphological changes that occur in captive animals compared with wild animals. Further, the effect of multiple generations being maintained in captivity, and the potential effects of captivity on sexual dimorphism remain poorly understood. We compared external and internal morphology of captive and wild animals using house mouse (Mus musculus) as a model species. In addition, we looked at morphology across two captive generations, and compared morphology between sexes. We found no statistically significant differences in external morphology, but after one generation in captivity there was evidence for a shift in the internal morphology of captive-reared mice; captive-reared mice (two generations bred) had lighter combined kidney and spleen masses compared with wild-caught mice. Sexual dimorphism was maintained in captivity. Our findings demonstrate that captive breeding can alter internal morphology. Given that these morphological changes may impact organismal functioning and viability following release, further investigation is warranted. If the morphological change is shown to be maladaptive, these changes would have significant implications for captive-source populations that are used for reintroduction, including reduced survivorship.

Communication linguistique: Etude comparative faite sur le terrain (Linguistic Communication: A Comparative Field Study).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piron, Claude

2002-01-01

Compares the four international systems of linguistic communication used in the field (systems used in the United Nations, multinationals, the European Union, and Esperanto organizations) on select criteria (e.g., previous government investment). Discusses research that shows unilingual systems (English used alone, Esperanto) are those that…

Internal consistency of the self-reporting questionnaire-20 in occupational groups

PubMed Central

Santos, Kionna Oliveira Bernardes; Carvalho, Fernando Martins; de Araújo, Tânia Maria

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To assess the internal consistency of the measurements of the Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) in different occupational groups. METHODS A validation study was conducted with data from four surveys with groups of workers, using similar methods. A total of 9,959 workers were studied. In all surveys, the common mental disorders were assessed via SRQ-20. The internal consistency considered the items belonging to dimensions extracted by tetrachoric factor analysis for each study. Item homogeneity assessment compared estimates of Cronbach’s alpha (KD-20), the alpha applied to a tetrachoric correlation matrix and stratified Cronbach’s alpha. RESULTS The SRQ-20 dimensions showed adequate values, considering the reference parameters. The internal consistency of the instrument items, assessed by stratified Cronbach’s alpha, was high (> 0.80) in the four studies. CONCLUSIONS The SRQ-20 showed good internal consistency in the professional categories evaluated. However, there is still a need for studies using alternative methods and additional information able to refine the accuracy of latent variable measurement instruments, as in the case of common mental disorders. PMID:27007682

Comparison of the Effectiveness of Pars Plana Vitrectomy with and without Internal Limiting Membrane Peeling for Idiopathic Retinal Membrane Removal: A Meta-Analysis

PubMed Central

Liu, Hanhan; Zuo, Shanru; Ding, Chun; Dai, Xunzhang; Zhu, Xiaohua

2015-01-01

We conducted a meta-analysis of published retrospective studies and compared the effectiveness of pars plana vitrectomy with and without internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling for idiopathic epiretinal membrane (IERM). The results revealed that patients in the IERM+ILM peeling group had better BCVA after surgery within 12 months than those in IERM peeling group. But patients in the IERM peeling group showed better BCVA in the 18th month. More retrospective studies or randomized controlled trials are required to investigate and compare the long-term effect of IERM removal with and without ILM peeling. PMID:26693348

Internal fit of single crowns produced by CAD-CAM and lost-wax metal casting technique assessed by the triple-scan protocol.

PubMed

Dahl, Bjørn Einar; Rønold, Hans Jacob; Dahl, Jon E

2017-03-01

Whether single crowns produced by computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD-CAM) have an internal fit comparable to crowns made by lost-wax metal casting technique is unknown. The purpose of this in vitro study was to compare the internal fit of single crowns produced with the lost-wax and metal casting technique with that of single crowns produced with the CAD-CAM technique. The internal fit of 5 groups of single crowns produced with the CAD-CAM technique was compared with that of single crowns produced in cobalt-chromium with the conventional lost-wax and metal casting technique. Comparison was performed using the triple-scan protocol; scans of the master model, the crown on the master model, and the intaglio of the crown were superimposed and analyzed with computer software. The 5 groups were milled presintered zirconia, milled hot isostatic pressed zirconia, milled lithium disilicate, milled cobalt-chromium, and laser-sintered cobalt-chromium. The cement space in both the mesiodistal and buccopalatal directions was statistically smaller (P<.05) for crowns made by the conventional lost-wax and metal casting technique compared with that of crowns produced by the CAD-CAM technique. Single crowns made using the conventional lost-wax and metal casting technique have better internal fit than crowns produced using the CAD-CAM technique. Copyright © 2016 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An Exploration of the Gap between Highest and Lowest Ability Readers across 20 Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alivernini, Fabio

2013-01-01

The aim of the present study, based on data from 20 countries, is to identify the pattern of variables (at country, school and student levels), which are typical of students performing below the low international benchmark compared to students performing at the advanced performance benchmark, in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study…

Encountering Culture through Gender Norms in International Education: The Case of Volunteers in Ecuador

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGivern, Martha

2012-01-01

Demonstrating how international education programs can be used to study theoretical issues relevant to comparative education, this article reports on a scholarly analysis of 83 handover letters written by US participants in a volunteer program in Ecuador to their incoming counterparts between 2006 and 2010. It applies Swidler's notion of…

Additional Language Teaching within the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme: A Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lebreton, Marlène

2014-01-01

The International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme supports the learning of languages and cultures, but the role of the additional language within this programme is often unclear. There remains a great variability in schools regarding the frequency of lessons and the way that the additional language is taught within the Primary Years…

The Effect of Attentional Focus Cues on Object Control Performance in Elementary Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palmer, Kara K.; Matsuyama, Abigail L.; Irwin, J. Megan; Porter, Jared M.; Robinson, Leah E.

2017-01-01

Background and purpose: Attentional focus cues have been shown to impact motor performance of adults and children. Specifically, an external focus of attention results in improved motor learning and performance as compared to adopting an internal focus of attention. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of an internal and external…

World-Mindedness of Students and Their Geography Education at International (IB-DP) and Regular Schools in the Netherlands

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Béneker, Tine; van Dis, Hanneke; van Middelkoop, Daniel

2014-01-01

This article reports the results of a study conducted to gain insight into the world-mindedness of young people living in the Netherlands. Two groups are compared: students attending "regular" Dutch schools and students attending international schools. A questionnaire measured the students' world-mindedness and their evaluation of their…

Reporting Florida's Annual Measurable Objectives (AMOs) in Compliance with ESEA Flexibility Requirements: Guide to Calculations for 2013-14

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Florida Department of Education, 2014

2014-01-01

This Annual Measurable Objective (AMO) is designed to keep Florida moving forward toward national and international competitiveness. Florida will compare its National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores to those of the top five states and its Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), Progress in International…

International Benchmarking and Determinants of Mathematics Achievement in Two Indian States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Kin Bing; Goldschmidt, Pete; Boscardin, Christy Kim; Sankar, Deepa

2009-01-01

Evidence from cross-country studies suggests that the sustainability of India's rapid economic growth will be conditioned by the quality of its education. This paper analyzed a 2005 World Bank-sponsored survey of Grade Nine students in the states of Rajasthan and Orissa. The survey used internationally comparable items from the 1999 Trends of…

High Retention of Minority and International Faculty through a Formal Mentoring Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phillips, Susan L.; Dennison, Susan T.; Davenport, Mark A.

2016-01-01

In these economic times, retention of new faculty, particularly minority and international faculty, is a high priority. In this study, retention of new faculty from 2006 to 2013 was compared for participants and nonparticipants in a formal mentoring program. Retention was 92% for participating faculty and 58% for nonparticipating new faculty. For…

International Student Migration: A Comparison of UK and Indian Students' Motivations for Studying Abroad

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Russell; Sondhi, Gunjan

2018-01-01

This paper breaks new ground in its comparative analysis of two international student migration (ISM) streams, one from the Global South to the Global North (India to developed Anglophone countries), and the other within the Global North (UK to North America, Europe and Australia). These two ISM movements reflect different positionalities within…

Efficiency in Assessment: Can Trained Student Interns Rate Essays as Well as Faculty Members?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cole, Tracy L.; Cochran, Loretta F.; Troboy, L. Kim; Roach, David W.

2012-01-01

What are the most efficient and effective methods in measuring outcomes for assurance of learning in higher education? This study examines the merits of outsourcing part of the assessment workload by comparing ratings completed by trained student interns to ratings completed by faculty. Faculty evaluation of students' written work samples provides…

International Students Attending Canadian Universities: Their Experiences with Housing, Finances, and Other Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Calder, Moira J.; Richter, Solina; Mao, Yuping; Kovacs Burns, Katharina; Mogale, Ramadimetja S.; Danko, Margaret

2016-01-01

Universities recruit international students for a number of reasons, including enhancement of global contacts and reputation, to increase enrolment, and to generate revenue from tuition. These students face unique challenges as compared with domestic students, but no published studies or reports exist on this issue. In this article we report our…

National Income, Income Inequality, and the Importance of Schools: A Hierarchical Cross-National Comparison

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chudgar, Amita; Luschei, Thomas F.

2009-01-01

The international and comparative education literature is not in agreement over the role of schools in student learning. The authors reexamine this debate across 25 diverse countries participating in the fourth-grade application of the 2003 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study. The authors find the following: (a) In most cases,…

Purposes, Policies, Performance: Higher Education and the Fulfillment of a State's Public Agenda. National Center Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, CA.

This essay is based on a roundtable of higher education leaders and policy officials convened in June 2002 as part of a larger research effort undertaken by the Alliance for International Higher Education Policy Studies (AIHEPS), an international collaboration for comparative research on higher education policy. The roundtable focused on AIHEPS…

Comparative Performance Measures, Globalising Strategies and Literacy Policy in Scotland

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tett, Lyn

2014-01-01

This paper explores one example of an international comparison -- the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) -- in order to investigate the power of numbers in both the shaping and the legitimisation of adult literacy policy using Scotland as a case study. It is argued that policy…

The Effect of Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate Exam Scores upon College GPA and College Choice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farmer, Daniel Raymond

2017-01-01

This quantitative, causal-comparative and correlational study analyzed students' academic performance in college based on whether the student was classified as an International Baccalaureate student, an Advanced Placement student, or a non-accelerated student (those who did not participate in IB or AP) and how that choice of academic program…

Entrepreneurial Orientation in Business Schools. A Comparative Study of Higher Education Systems in Egypt

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abou- Warda, Sherein H.

2015-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the differences between the four main kinds of business schools in Egypt (private; internationally affiliated; public with local programs; and public with international programs) in terms of perceptions of entrepreneurial orientation (EO). Design/Methodology/Approach: Data were gathered 212 with a…

Health and Social Services among International Labor Migrants: A Comparative Perspective. CMAS Border & Migration Studies Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ugalde, Antonio, Ed.; Cardenas, Gilberto, Ed.

Eleven papers from a workshop titled "International Migration: Health and Social Policies" focus on common concerns and problems in providing social and health services to labor migrants and immigrants in the United States and the European Union. Following an introduction (Antonio Ugalde, Gilberto Cardenas), the papers are: (1)…

Media Representations of National and International Standardized Testing in the Israeli Education System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yemini, Miri; Gordon, Noa

2017-01-01

This study applies discourse analysis to Israeli media coverage of national and international standardized examinations within Israel's public education system. Through systematic analysis of the topic in the two main Israeli financial publications between the years 2000 and 2013, we explore the nature and narrative of the media and compare the…

Linear viscoelasticity of a single semiflexible polymer with internal friction.

PubMed

Hiraiwa, Tetsuya; Ohta, Takao

2010-07-28

The linear viscoelastic behaviors of single semiflexible chains with internal friction are studied based on the wormlike-chain model. It is shown that the frequency dependence of the complex compliance in the high frequency limit is the same as that of the Voigt model. This asymptotic behavior appears also for the Rouse model with internal friction. We derive the characteristic times for both the high frequency limit and the low frequency limit and compare the results with those obtained by Khatri et al.

A Randomized Cohort Controlled Trial to Compare Intern Sign-Out Training Interventions.

PubMed

Lee, Soo-Hoon; Terndrup, Christopher; Phan, Phillip H; Zaeh, Sandra E; Atsina, Kwame; Minkove, Nicole; Billioux, Alexander; Chatterjee, Souvik; Montague, Idoreyin; Clark, Bennett; Hughes, Andrew; Desai, Sanjay V

2017-12-01

Although previous studies have investigated the efficacy of specific sign-out protocols (such as the illness severity, patient summary, action list, situation awareness and contingency planning, and synthesis by reviewer [I-PASS] bundle), the implementation of a bundle can be time consuming and costly. We compared 4 sign-out training pedagogies on sign-out quality. To evaluate training interventions that best enhance multidimensional sign-out quality measured by information exchange, task accountability, and personal responsibility. Four general internal medicine firms were randomly assigned into 1 of the following 4 training interventions: didactics (control), I-PASS, policy mandate on task accountability, and Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA). First-year interns at a large, Mid-Atlantic internal medicine residency program. Eight trained observers examined 10 days each in the pre- and postintervention periods for each firm using a standardized sign-out checklist. Pre- and postintervention differences showed significant improvements in the transfer of patient information, task accountability, and personal responsibility for the I-PASS, policy mandate, and PDSA groups, respectively, in line with their respective training foci. Compared to the control, I-PASS reported the best improvements in sign-out quality, although there was room to improve in task accountability and responsibility. Different training emphases improved different dimensions of sign-out quality. A combination of training pedagogies is likely to yield optimal results. © 2017 Society of Hospital Medicine

A review of Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) as a competitive South-East Asia hub

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bardai, A. M.; Er, A. Z.; Johari, M. K.; Noor, A. A. Mohd

2017-12-01

This paper is aimed to determine the strengths and weaknesses of Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL) against its competitors in Southeast Asia countries. Due to the geographical and market relevance issues, several airport hubs around KUL are chosen for comparison: Changi International Airport (SIN), Suvarnabhumi International Airport (BKK) and Soekarno-Hatta International Airport (CGK). Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis is used to evaluate the comparative situation between the airports in relation to changing industry and market environment. The study discovers some competitive edges for KUL. Nonetheless, the airport still has to be improved to face future challenges and it is under imminent threat of new aircraft technology.

Impact of personal goals on the internal medicine R4 subspecialty match: a Q methodology study.

PubMed

Daniels, Vijay J; Kassam, Narmin

2013-12-21

There has been a decline in interest in general internal medicine that has resulted in a discrepancy between internal medicine residents' choice in the R4 subspecialty match and societal need. Few studies have focused on the relative importance of personal goals and their impact on residents' choice. The purpose of this study was to assess if internal medicine residents can be grouped based on their personal goals and how each group prioritizes these goals compared to each other. A secondary objective was to explore whether we could predict a resident's desired subspecialty choice based on their constellation of personal goals. We used Q methodology to examine how postgraduate year 1-3 internal medicine residents could be grouped based on their rankings of 36 statements (derived from our previous qualitative study). Using each groups' defining and distinguishing statements, we predicted their subspecialties of interest. We also collected the residents' first choice in the subspecialty match and used a kappa test to compare our predicted subspecialty group to the residents' self-reported first choice. Fifty-nine internal medicine residents at the University of Alberta participated between 2009 and 2010 with 46 Q sorts suitable for analysis. The residents loaded onto four factors (groups) based on how they ranked statements. Our prediction of each groups' desired subspecialties with their defining and/or distinguishing statements are as follows: group 1 - general internal medicine (variety in practice); group 2 - gastroenterology, nephrology, and respirology (higher income); group 3 - cardiology and critical care (procedural, willing to entertain longer training); group 4 - rest of subspecialties (non-procedural, focused practice, and valuing more time for personal life). There was moderate agreement (kappa = 0.57) between our predicted desired subspecialty group and residents' self-reported first choice (p < 0.001). This study suggests that most residents fall into four groups based on a constellation of personal goals when choosing an internal medicine subspecialty. The key goals that define and/or distinguish between these groups are breadth of practice, lifestyle, desire to do procedures, length of training, and future income potential. Using these groups, we were able to predict residents' first subspecialty group with moderate success.

Predictors of international students' psychological and sociocultural adjustment to the context of reception while studying at Aarhus University, Denmark.

PubMed

Ozer, Simon

2015-12-01

The number of international students engaging in intercultural education and thereby adjusting to cross-cultural transition has risen conspicuously as a consequence of globalization and increased mobility. This process of acculturation has been associated with increased creativity as well as adaptation challenges. This paper investigates international students' psychological and sociocultural adjustment to studying at Aarhus University in Denmark. Both international students (n = 129) and domestic students (n = 111) participated in the study. The international students did not report impaired psychological conditions as compared to the control group of domestic students. However, the international students reported a significantly lower level of social support. Social support and perceived discrimination were significant predictors of both psychological and sociocultural adjustment. Additionally, the level of English proficiency alone predicted sociocultural adjustment. Values of vertical individualism and horizontal collectivism predicted psychological adjustment. Finally, integration was found to be a significantly more adaptive acculturation orientation than separation in regard to sociocultural adjustment. These findings were discussed in relation to relevant international research and it was concluded that international students comprise a resourceful student sample and that the international academic environment at Aarhus University appears to be an adequately cultural and value-oriented good fit as a context of reception for the multicultural engagement of international students. © 2015 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The Untapped Promise of Secondary Data Sets in International and Comparative Education Policy Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chudagr, Amita; Luschei, Thomas F.

2016-01-01

The objective of this commentary is to call attention to the feasibility and importance of large-scale, systematic, quantitative analysis in international and comparative education research. We contend that although many existing databases are under- or unutilized in quantitative international-comparative research, these resources present the…

Comparative and International Education in Teacher Training Programs: The Case of North Park University in Chicago

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balodimas-Bartolomei, Angelyn

2016-01-01

For decades, scholars have claimed the importance of implementing comparative and international education courses in teacher education programs. Although there are countless benefits of doing so, information or evidence about offering comparative and international education in the teacher education curricula, is negligible. To date, it is…

Health literacy: setting an international collaborative research agenda

PubMed Central

Protheroe, Joanne; Wallace, Lorraine S; Rowlands, Gillian; DeVoe, Jennifer E

2009-01-01

Background Health literacy is an increasingly important topic in both the policy and research agendas of many countries. During the recent 36th Annual Meeting of the North American Primary Care Research Group, the authors led an audio-taped 3-hour forum, "Studying Health Literacy: Developing an International Collaboration," where the current state of health literacy (HL) in the United States (US) and United Kingdom (UK) was presented and attendees were encouraged to debate a future research agenda. Discussion of Forum Themes The debate centred around three distinct themes, including: (1) refining HL definitions and conceptual models, (2) HL measurement and assessment tools, and (3) developing a collaborative international research agenda. The attendees agreed that future research should be theoretically grounded and conceptual models employed in studies should be explicit to allow for international comparisons to be drawn. Summary and Authors Reflections The importance of HL research and its possible contribution to health disparities is becoming increasingly recognised internationally. International collaborations and comparative studies could illuminate some of the possible determinants of disparities, and also possibly provide a vehicle to examine other research questions of interest. PMID:19589176

Novel flow cytometric analysis of the progress and route of internalization of a monoclonal anti-carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) antibody.

PubMed

Ford, C H; Tsaltas, G C; Osborne, P A; Addetia, K

1996-03-01

A flow cytometric method of studying the internalization of a monoclonal antibody (Mab) directed against carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) has been compared with Western blotting, using three human colonic cancer cell lines which express varying amounts of the target antigen. Cell samples incubated for increasing time intervals with fluoresceinated or unlabelled Mab were analyzed using flow cytometry or polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and Western blotting. SDS/PAGE analysis of cytosolic and membrane components of solubilized cells from the cell lines provided evidence of non-degraded internalized anti-CEA Mab throughout seven half hour intervals, starting at 5 min. Internalized anti-CEA was detected in the case of high CEA expressing cell lines (LS174T, SKCO1). Very similar results were obtained with an anti-fluorescein flow cytometric assay. Given that these two methods consistently provided comparable results, use of flow cytometry for the detection of internalized antibody is suggested as a rapid alternative to most currently used methods for assessing antibody internalization. The question of the endocytic route followed by CEA-anti-CEA complexes was addressed by using hypertonic medium to block clathrin mediated endocytosis.

Maxillary movement in distraction osteogenesis using internal devices in cleft palate patients.

PubMed

Tomita, Daisuke; Omura, Susumu; Ozaki, Shusaku; Shimazaki, Kazuo; Fukuyama, Eiji; Tohnai, Iwai; Torikai, Katsuyuki

2011-03-01

The purpose of this cephalometric study was to compare the actual movement with the planned movement of the maxilla by using internal maxillary distraction in cleft lip and palate patients. Twelve patients, including eight with unilateral and four with bilateral cleft lip and palate, underwent maxillary advancement with internal maxillary distractors. Lateral cephalometric radiographs obtained preoperatively, predistraction, and postdistraction were used for analysis. The movement of the maxilla, angular change of the internal devices and rotation of the mandible were measured at each stage, and the planned vector of advancement predicted from the placement vector of the distractors was compared with the actual vector. Internal maxillary distractors were rotated in a clockwise direction during the distraction period. The angular change of the distractors was 7.7°. The amount of actual advancement at anterior nasal spine with distraction was 6.3 mm, which represented about 70% of the distance of activation of distraction. The actual advanced vector at anterior nasal spine was 9.7° smaller than the planned vector. The mandible underwent a clockwise rotation of 3.5°. In the internal distraction technique, the maxilla was advanced inferiorly to the planned vector and with a slight clockwise rotation. These results are useful for surgical planning when using internal distractors.

Comparison of transtibial amputee and non-amputee biomechanics during a common turning task.

PubMed

Segal, Ava D; Orendurff, Michael S; Czerniecki, Joseph M; Schoen, Jason; Klute, Glenn K

2011-01-01

The biomechanics of amputee turning gait has been minimally studied, in spite of its integral relationship with the more complex gait required for household or community ambulation. This study compares the biomechanics of unilateral transtibial amputees and non-amputees completing a common turning task. Full body gait analysis was completed for subjects walking at comparable self-selected speeds around a 1m radius circular path. Peak internal and external rotation moments of the hip, knee and ankle, mediolateral ground reaction impulse (ML GRI), peak effective limb length, and stride length were compared across conditions (non-amputee, amputee prosthetic limb, amputee sound limb). Amputees showed decreased internal rotation moments at the prosthetic limb hip and knee compared to non-amputees, perhaps as a protective mechanism to minimize stress on the residual limb. There was also an increase in amputee sound limb hip external rotation moment in early stance compared to non-amputees, which may be a compensation for the decrease in prosthetic limb internal rotation moment during late stance of the prior step. ML GRI was decreased for the amputee inside limb compared to non-amputee, possibly to minimize the body's acceleration in the direction of the turn. Amputees also exhibited a shorter inside limb stride length compared to non-amputees. Both decreased ML GRI and stride length indicate a COM that is more centered over the base of support, which may minimize the risk of falling. Finally, a longer effective limb length was found for the amputee inside limb turning, possibly due to excessive trunk shift. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Study on internal flow and surface deformation of large droplet levitated by ultrasonic wave.

PubMed

Abe, Yutaka; Hyuga, Daisuke; Yamada, Shogo; Aoki, Kazuyoshi

2006-09-01

It is expected that new materials will be manufactured with containerless processing under the microgravity environment in space. Under the microgravity environment, handling technology of molten metal is important for such processes. There are a lot of previous studies about droplet levitation technologies, including the use of acoustic waves, as the holding technology. However, experimental and analytical information about the relationship between surface deformation and internal flow of a large levitated droplet is still unknown. The purpose of this study is to experimentally investigate the large droplet behavior levitated by the acoustic wave field and its internal flow. To achieve this, first, numerical simulation is conducted to clarify the characteristics of acoustic wave field. Second, the levitation characteristic and the internal flow of the levitated droplet are investigated by the ultrasonic standing wave under normal gravity environment. Finally, the levitation characteristic and internal flow of levitated droplet are observed under microgravity in an aircraft to compare results with the experiment performed under the normal gravity environment.

Washback to Learning Outcomes: A Comparative Study of IELTS Preparation and University Pre-Sessional Language Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Anthony

2007-01-01

This study investigated whether dedicated test preparation classes gave learners an advantage in improving their writing test scores. Score gains following instruction on a measure of academic writing skills--the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) academic writing test--were compared across language courses of three types; all…

Universal Beliefs and Specific Practices: Students' Math Self-Efficacy and Related Factors in the United States and China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Yin

2016-01-01

This study intends to compare and contrast student and school factors that are associated with students' mathematics self-efficacy in the United States and China. Using hierarchical linear regressions to analyze the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2012 data, this study compares math self-efficacy, achievement, and variables…

Examining Intercultural Growth for Business Students in Short-Term Study Abroad Programs: Too Good to Be True?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gullekson, Nicole L.; Tucker, Mary L.; Coombs, Garth, Jr.; Wright, Scott B.

2011-01-01

Changes in ethnocentrism, intercultural communication apprehension, international awareness and activities were examined in business students participating in a 16-day consulting program abroad and compared to a control group of students at the home university. Anticipated changes in the study abroad students were found; however, when compared to…

A Comparative Revolution? An Argument for In-Depth Study of the Iranian Revolution in a Familiar Way

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Jonathan

2011-01-01

Although the curriculum changes of 2008 brought with them new GCSE specifications, Jonathan White was disappointed by the dated feel of some "Modern World" options, particularly the depth studies on offer. Drawing on his experience of teaching comparative history within the International Baccalaureate, and building on previous arguments…

Contextualizing Performances: Comparing Performances during TOEFL iBT™ and Real-Life Academic Speaking Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brooks, Lindsay; Swain, Merrill

2014-01-01

In this study we compare test takers' performance on the Speaking section of the TOEFL iBT™and their performances during their real-life academic studies. Thirty international graduate students from mixed language backgrounds in two different disciplines (Sciences and Social Sciences) responded to two independent and four integrated speaking tasks…

Not Just Another Evaluation: A Comparative Study of Four Educational Quality Projects at Swedish Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karlsson, Sara; Fogelberg, Karin; Kettis, Åsa; Lindgren, Stefan; Sandoff, Mette; Geschwind, Lars

2014-01-01

In this study, four recent self-initiated educational quality projects at Swedish universities are compared and analyzed. The article focuses on how the universities have handled the tension between external demands and internal norms. The aim is to contribute to an improved understanding of quality management in contemporary universities. On the…

Response to Noah Sobe's "Rethinking "Cosmopolitanism" as an Analytic for the Comparative Study of Globalization and Education"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wisler, Andria

2010-01-01

As a springboard into her response inspired by Noah Sobe's article, this author offers two possibilities for what cosmopolitanisms can tell about comparative and international education research. First, from her perspective, rooted in justice and peace studies, she is intrigued by several authors' assessments of cosmopolitanism as a cognitive or…

Highly efficient destruction of squamous carcinoma cells of the head and neck by photochemical internalization of Ranpirnase.

PubMed

Liebers, Nora; Holland-Letz, Tim; Welschof, Mona; Høgset, Anders; Jäger, Dirk; Arndt, Michaela A E; Krauss, Jürgen

2017-11-01

Photochemical Internalization is a novel drug delivery technology for cancer treatment based on the principle of Photodynamic Treatment. Using a photosensitizer that locates in endocytic vesicles membranes of tumor cells, Photochemical internalization enables cytosolic release of endocytosed antitumor agents in a site-specific manner. The purpose of the present in-vitro study was to explore whether Photochemical Internalization is able to enhance the efficacy of Ranpirnase, a cytotoxic amphibian ribonuclease, for eradication of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Cell viability was measured in 8 primary human cell lines of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck after treatment with Ranpirnase and Photochemical Internalization. For Photochemical Internalization the photosensitizer disulfonated tetraphenyl porphine was incubated with tumor cells followed by exposure to blue light (435 nm). Our study demonstrates significant enhancement of antitumor activity of Ranpirnase by Photochemical Internalization. Treatment responses were heterogeneous between the primary cancer cell lines. Combining Photochemical Internalization with Ranpirnase resulted in 4.6 to 1,940-fold increased cytotoxicity when compared with the ribonuclease alone (P < 0.05). Cytotoxicity of Ranpirnase can be markedly enhanced by Photochemical Internalization in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

Methodological Challenges When Comparing Demographic and Clinical Characteristics of International Observational Registries.

PubMed

Verstappen, Suzanne M M; Askling, Johan; Berglind, Niklas; Franzen, Stefan; Frisell, Thomas; Garwood, Christopher; Greenberg, Jeffrey D; Holmqvist, Marie; Horne, Laura; Lampl, Kathy; Michaud, Kaleb; Nyberg, Fredrik; Pappas, Dimitrios A; Reed, George; Symmons, Deborah P M; Tanaka, Eiichi; Tran, Trung N; Yamanaka, Hisashi; Ho, Meilien

2015-12-01

Comparisons of data from different registries can be helpful in understanding variations in many aspects of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The study aim was to assess and improve the comparability of demographic, clinical, and comorbidity data from 5 international RA registries. Using predefined definitions, 2 subsets of patients (main cohort and subcohort) from 5 international observational registries (Consortium of Rheumatology Researchers of North America Registry [CORRONA], the Swedish Rheumatology Quality of Care Register [SRR], the Norfolk Arthritis Register [NOAR], the Institute of Rheumatology Rheumatoid Arthritis cohort [IORRA], and CORRONA International) were evaluated and compared. Patients ages >18 years with RA, and present in or recruited to the registry from January 1, 2000, were included in the main cohort. Patients from the main cohort with positive rheumatoid factor and/or erosive RA who had received ≥1 synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD), and switched to or added another DMARD, were included in the subcohort at time of treatment switch. Age and sex distributions were fairly similar across the registries. The percentage of patients with a high Disease Activity Score in 28 joints score varied between main cohorts (17.5% IORRA, 18.9% CORRONA, 24.7% NOAR, 27.7% CORRONA International, and 36.8% SRR), with IORRA, CORRONA, and CORRONA International including more prevalent cases of RA; the differences were smaller for the subcohort. Prevalence of comorbidities varied across registries (e.g., coronary artery disease ranged from 1.5% in IORRA to 7.9% in SRR), partly due to the way comorbidity data were captured and general cultural differences; the pattern was similar for the subcohorts. Despite different inclusion criteria for the individual RA registries, it is possible to improve the comparability and interpretability of differences across RA registries by applying well-defined cohort definitions. © 2015, American College of Rheumatology.

The impact of international experience on student nurses' personal and professional development.

PubMed

Lee, N-J

2004-06-01

Many student nurses undertake international clinical experience during their education programmes, which raises the question 'How do these experiences impact on students nurses' personal and professional development?' A case study was conducted in one School of Nursing in the United Kingdom. Student nurses participating in a new module, International Nursing and Health Care, which included clinical experience overseas, gave qualitative accounts of their international experiences and subsequent learning. Their accounts were also compared with the perceptions and expectations of the module facilitators. While there were some similarities in student experience and facilitator expectations, there were also notable differences. The students believed that their international experiences had a deep impact on their personal development, helping them make the transition from student to qualified nurse. The case study raised further questions about the acquisition of cultural knowledge and the facilitation and provision of learning from experience.

Empowering citizens in international governance of nanotechnologies.

PubMed

Malsch, Ineke; Subramanian, Vrishali; Semenzin, Elena; Hristozov, Danail; Marcomini, Antonio; Mullins, Martin; Hester, Karena; McAlea, Eamonn; Murphy, Finbarr; Tofail, Syed A M

The international dialogue on responsible governance of nanotechnologies engages a wide range of actors with conflicting as well as common interests. It is also characterised by a lack of evidence-based data on uncertain risks of in particular engineered nanomaterials. The present paper aims at deepening understanding of the collective decision making context at international level using the grounded theory approach as proposed by Glaser and Strauss in "The Discovery of Grounded Theory" (1967). This starts by discussing relevant concepts from different fields including sociological and political studies of international relations as well as political philosophy and ethics. This analysis of current trends in international law making is taken as starting point for exploring the role that a software decision support tool could play in multi-stakeholder global governance of nanotechnologies. These theoretical ideas are then compared with the current design of the SUN Decision Support System (SUNDS) under development in the European project on Sustainable Nanotechnologies (SUN, www.sun-fp7.eu). Through constant comparison, the ideas are also compared with requirements of different stakeholders as expressed during a user workshop. This allows for highlighting discussion points for further consideration.

Empowering citizens in international governance of nanotechnologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malsch, Ineke; Subramanian, Vrishali; Semenzin, Elena; Hristozov, Danail; Marcomini, Antonio; Mullins, Martin; Hester, Karena; McAlea, Eamonn; Murphy, Finbarr; Tofail, Syed A. M.

2015-05-01

The international dialogue on responsible governance of nanotechnologies engages a wide range of actors with conflicting as well as common interests. It is also characterised by a lack of evidence-based data on uncertain risks of in particular engineered nanomaterials. The present paper aims at deepening understanding of the collective decision making context at international level using the grounded theory approach as proposed by Glaser and Strauss in "The Discovery of Grounded Theory" (1967). This starts by discussing relevant concepts from different fields including sociological and political studies of international relations as well as political philosophy and ethics. This analysis of current trends in international law making is taken as starting point for exploring the role that a software decision support tool could play in multi-stakeholder global governance of nanotechnologies. These theoretical ideas are then compared with the current design of the SUN Decision Support System (SUNDS) under development in the European project on Sustainable Nanotechnologies (SUN, www.sun-fp7.eu). Through constant comparison, the ideas are also compared with requirements of different stakeholders as expressed during a user workshop. This allows for highlighting discussion points for further consideration.

Health and well-being factors associated with international business travel.

PubMed

Burkholder, Justin D; Joines, Ron; Cunningham-Hill, Mark; Xu, Baowei

2010-01-01

International travel by US business travelers is continuing to increase with the globalization of the economy. The objective of this study was to determine if the frequency and duration of international business travel is associated with differences in travelers' health and well-being. This study expands our limited knowledge of the impact of long-haul travel on healthy lifestyle choices and traveler's perceptions of their health and well-being. 12,942 unique health risk appraisal (HRA) records of US employees of a multinational corporation were analyzed according to self-reported (objective and subjective) travel history and lifestyle habits. Comparing 2,962 international travelers and 9,980 non-travelers, international business travel was significantly associated with a lower body mass index, lower blood pressure, excess alcohol consumption, sleep deprivation, and diminished confidence to keep up with the pace of work. This study demonstrated both positive and negative associations on the health risks and well-being of a large sample of US-based international business travelers from an US multinational company. This study identifies targeted areas for pretrip screening and counseling to proactively address potential negative effects of travel and may assist in the design of corporate travel health and employee assistance programs. © 2010 International Society of Travel Medicine.

Sleep and Alertness in Medical Interns and Residents: An Observational Study on the Role of Extended Shifts

PubMed Central

Dinges, David F.; Shea, Judy A.; Small, Dylan S.; Zhu, Jingsan; Norton, Laurie; Ecker, Adrian J.; Novak, Cristina; Bellini, Lisa M.; Volpp, Kevin G.

2017-01-01

Abstract Study Objectives: Fatigue from sleep loss is a risk to physician and patient safety, but objective data on physician sleep and alertness on different duty hour schedules is scarce. This study objectively quantified differences in sleep duration and alertness between medical interns working extended overnight shifts and residents not or rarely working extended overnight shifts. Methods: Sleep–wake activity of 137 interns and 87 PGY-2/3 residents on 2-week Internal Medicine and Oncology rotations was assessed with wrist-actigraphy. Alertness was assessed daily with a brief Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) and the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale. Results: Interns averaged 6.93 hours (95% confidence interval [CI] 6.84–7.03 hours) sleep per 24 hours across shifts, significantly less than residents not working overnight shifts (7.18 hours, 95% CI 7.06–7.30 hours, p = .007). Interns obtained on average 2.19 hours (95% CI 2.02–2.36 hours) sleep during on-call nights (17.5% obtained no sleep). Alertness was significantly lower on mornings after on-call nights compared to regular shifts (p < .001). Naps between 9 am and 6 pm on the first day post‐call were frequent (90.8%) and averaged 2.84 hours (95% CI 2.69–3.00 hours), but interns still slept 1.66 hours less per 24 hours (95% CI 1.56–1.76 hours) compared to regular shift days (p < .001). Sleep inertia significantly affected alertness in the 60 minutes after waking on-call. Conclusions: Extended overnight shifts increase the likelihood of chronic sleep restriction in interns. Reduced levels of alertness after on-call nights need to be mitigated. A systematic comparison of sleep, alertness, and safety outcomes under current and past duty hour rules is encouraged. PMID:28329124

Colorimeter and scanning electron microscopy analysis of teeth submitted to internal bleaching.

PubMed

Martin-Biedma, Benjamin; Gonzalez-Gonzalez, Teresa; Lopes, Manuela; Lopes, Luis; Vilar, Rui; Bahillo, José; Varela-Patiño, Purificación

2010-02-01

This in vitro study compared the tooth color and the ultrastructure of internal dental tissues before and after internal bleaching. Sodium perborate was placed in the pulp chamber of endodontically treated molars and sealed with intermediate restorative material. The test samples were stored in a physiologic solution, and the bleaching agent was replaced every 7 days. A control group was used. After 1 month, the colors of the test and control samples were measured with a colorimeter, and the internal surfaces were observed under field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). Statistically significant differences were found between the test and control sample colors. The FESEM ultrastructure analysis of the internal enamel and dentin surfaces did not show any changes after the internal bleaching. The results of the present study show that sodium perborate is effective in bleaching nonvital teeth and does not produce ultrastructural changes in the dental tissues. Copyright 2010 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Three-dimensional description and mathematical characterization of the parasellar internal carotid artery in human infants

PubMed Central

Meng, Stefan; da F Costa, Luciano; Geyer, Stefan H; Viana, Matheus P; Reiter, Christian; Müller, Gerd B; Weninger, Wolfgang J

2008-01-01

Inside the ‘cavernous sinus’ or ‘parasellar region’ the human internal carotid artery takes the shape of a siphon that is twisted and torqued in three dimensions and surrounded by a network of veins. The parasellar section of the internal carotid artery is of broad biological and medical interest, as its peculiar shape is associated with temperature regulation in the brain and correlated with the occurrence of vascular pathologies. The present study aims to provide anatomical descriptions and objective mathematical characterizations of the shape of the parasellar section of the internal carotid artery in human infants and its modifications during ontogeny. Three-dimensional (3D) computer models of the parasellar section of the internal carotid artery of infants were generated with a state-of-the-art 3D reconstruction method and analysed using both traditional morphometric methods and novel mathematical algorithms. We show that four constant, demarcated bends can be described along the infant parasellar section of the internal carotid artery, and we provide measurements of their angles. We further provide calculations of the curvature and torsion energy, and the total complexity of the 3D skeleton of the parasellar section of the internal carotid artery, and compare the complexity of this in infants and adults. Finally, we examine the relationship between shape parameters of the parasellar section of the internal carotid artery in infants, and the occurrence of intima cushions, and evaluate the reliability of subjective angle measurements for characterizing the complexity of the parasellar section of the internal carotid artery in infants. The results can serve as objective reference data for comparative studies and for medical imaging diagnostics. They also form the basis for a new hypothesis that explains the mechanisms responsible for the ontogenetic transformation in the shape of the parasellar section of the internal carotid artery. PMID:18397239

Location, location & size: defects close to surfaces dominate fatigue crack initiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Serrano-Munoz, Itziar; Buffiere, Jean-Yves; Mokso, Rajmund; Verdu, Catherine; Nadot, Yves

2017-03-01

Metallic cast components inevitably contain defects such as shrinkage cavities which are inherent to the solidification process. Those defects are known to significantly alter the fatigue life of components. Yet very little is known, quantitatively, on the dangerosity of internal casting defects compared to surface ones. In this study, fatigue specimens containing controlled internal defects (shrinkage pores) are used to foster internal cracking. In situ fatigue tests monitored by X ray synchrotron tomography revealed that the internal nucleation and propagation of cracks was systematically overran by surface cracking initiated at castings defects up to ten times smaller than the internal ones. These findings indicate that the presence of internal defects in cast components can be tolerated to a larger extent than is allowed by nowadays standards

An Investigation of the Effects of Internal Waves on Sound Propagation in a Stratified Medium with a Sloping Bed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deldar, H.; Bidokhti, A. A.; Chegini, V.

2018-01-01

Internal waves usually cause temporal and spatial changes of density and consequently affect the acoustic wave propagation in the ocean. The purpose of this study is a laboratory investigation of the effects of internal waves generated by oscillation of a cylinder in a large stratified glass tank with a sloping bed on the sound waves propagation. Results showed that sound waves are affected by internal waves that depend on the slope angle to the direction of internal wave propagation angle ratio. When the ratio is subcritical or supercritical, the acoustic signal is much reduced as compared to the case with no sloped bottom. This can be explained in terms of the internal waves energy reaching the sloped bed and their reflections.

Location, location &size: defects close to surfaces dominate fatigue crack initiation.

PubMed

Serrano-Munoz, Itziar; Buffiere, Jean-Yves; Mokso, Rajmund; Verdu, Catherine; Nadot, Yves

2017-03-27

Metallic cast components inevitably contain defects such as shrinkage cavities which are inherent to the solidification process. Those defects are known to significantly alter the fatigue life of components. Yet very little is known, quantitatively, on the dangerosity of internal casting defects compared to surface ones. In this study, fatigue specimens containing controlled internal defects (shrinkage pores) are used to foster internal cracking. In situ fatigue tests monitored by X ray synchrotron tomography revealed that the internal nucleation and propagation of cracks was systematically overran by surface cracking initiated at castings defects up to ten times smaller than the internal ones. These findings indicate that the presence of internal defects in cast components can be tolerated to a larger extent than is allowed by nowadays standards.

Location, location & size: defects close to surfaces dominate fatigue crack initiation

PubMed Central

Serrano-Munoz, Itziar; Buffiere, Jean-Yves; Mokso, Rajmund; Verdu, Catherine; Nadot, Yves

2017-01-01

Metallic cast components inevitably contain defects such as shrinkage cavities which are inherent to the solidification process. Those defects are known to significantly alter the fatigue life of components. Yet very little is known, quantitatively, on the dangerosity of internal casting defects compared to surface ones. In this study, fatigue specimens containing controlled internal defects (shrinkage pores) are used to foster internal cracking. In situ fatigue tests monitored by X ray synchrotron tomography revealed that the internal nucleation and propagation of cracks was systematically overran by surface cracking initiated at castings defects up to ten times smaller than the internal ones. These findings indicate that the presence of internal defects in cast components can be tolerated to a larger extent than is allowed by nowadays standards PMID:28345599

Fracture resistance of the implant-abutment connection in implants with internal hex and internal conical connections under oblique compressive loading: an in vitro study.

PubMed

Coppedê, Abílio Ricciardi; Bersani, Edmilson; de Mattos, Maria da Gloria Chiarello; Rodrigues, Renata Cristina Silveira; Sartori, Ivete Aparecida de Mattias; Ribeiro, Ricardo Faria

2009-01-01

The objective of this study was to verify if differences in the design of internal hex (IH) and internal conical (IC) connection implant systems influence fracture resistance under oblique compressive forces. Twenty implant-abutment assemblies were utilized: 10 with IH connections and 10 with IC connections. Maximum deformation force for IC implants (90.58 +/- 6.72 kgf) was statistically higher than that for IH implants (83.73 +/- 4.94 kgf) (P = .0182). Fracture force for the IH implants was 79.86 +/- 4.77 kgf. None of the IC implants fractured. The friction-locking mechanics and the solid design of the IC abutments provided greater resistance to deformation and fracture under oblique compressive loading when compared to the IH abutments.

The Oceanic Researcher and the Search for a Space in Comparative and International Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johansson-Fua, Seu'ula

2016-01-01

This paper argues that, despite the increasingly espoused centrality of culture and context to the field of comparative and international education, the voices from within the context remain silent and absent from the literature on comparative and international education. This paper explores the various spaces in which an Oceanic researcher may…

The experiences of internationally educated nurses in the southeastern United States of America.

PubMed

Wheeler, R M; Foster, J W; Hepburn, K W

2013-09-01

US healthcare facilities have addressed nursing shortages in part by recruiting internationally educated nurses (IENs), and studies suggest IENs may make up a significant percentage of the nursing workforce in urban hospitals. Despite the economic recession of 2008-2012, international nurse migration is expected to continue. Little is known about IENs in the southeastern USA, and no studies have compared their perspectives to those of their US counterparts. The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding about the experiences of IENs compared to those of US registered nurses (RNs) practising in two urban hospitals in southeastern USA. This study involved two rounds of semi-structured interviews of 82 IENs and US RNs. Interviews focused on themes relating to education, barriers to practice, intent to stay in nursing and IENs' migration experiences. Most IENs interviewed migrated to the USA after 1990 to join their family and do not plan to return to their home countries to practise. Most IENs initially received their Associate Degree in Nursing; many have obtained their Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. IENs and newly licensed US RNs faced similar barriers when they began practising in the USA, but IENs faced additional challenges adjusting to the attitudes of US patients, the perceived lack of respect for nurses and delivering total patient care. IENs would benefit from orientation regarding the cultural differences in the USA. In other ways, their challenges are similar to those of US RNs; policies regarding education, recruitment and retention could target both groups together. © 2013 The Authors. International Nursing Review © 2013 International Council of Nurses.

Vitrectomy with internal limiting membrane peeling versus inverted internal limiting membrane flap technique for macular hole-induced retinal detachment: a systematic review of literature and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Yuan, Jing; Zhang, Ling-Lin; Lu, Yu-Jie; Han, Meng-Yao; Yu, Ai-Hua; Cai, Xiao-Jun

2017-11-28

To evaluate the effects on vitrectomy with internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling versus vitrectomy with inverted internal limiting membrane flap technique for macular hole-induced retinal detachment (MHRD). Pubmed, Cochrane Library, and Embase were systematically searched for studies that compared ILM peeling with inverted ILM flap technique for macular hole-induced retinal detachment. The primary outcomes are the rate of retinal reattachment and the rate of macular hole closure 6 months later after initial surgery, the secondary outcome is the postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) 6 months later after initial surgery. Four studies that included 98 eyes were selected. All the included studies were retrospective comparative studies. The preoperative best-corrected visual acuity was equal between ILM peeling and inverted ILM flap technique groups. It was indicated that the rate of retinal reattachment (odds ratio (OR) = 0.14, 95% confidence interval (CI):0.03 to 0.69; P = 0.02) and macular hole closure (OR = 0.06, 95% CI:0.02 to 0.19; P < 0.00001) after initial surgery was higher in the group of vitrectomy with inverted ILM flap technique than that in the group of vitrectomy with ILM peeling. However, there was no statistically significant difference in postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (mean difference (MD) 0.18 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution; 95% CI -0.06 to 0.43 ; P = 0.14) between the two surgery groups. Compared with ILM peeling, vitrectomy with inverted ILM flap technique resulted significantly higher of the rate of retinal reattachment and macular hole closure, but seemed does not improve postoperative best-corrected visual acuity.

Comparative study of the prevalence of sepsis in patients admitted to dermatology and internal medicine wards*

PubMed Central

Almeida, Luiz Maurício Costa; Diniz, Michelle dos Santos; Diniz, Lorena dos Santos; Machado-Pinto, Jackson; Silva, Francisco Chagas Lima

2013-01-01

BACKGROUND Sepsis is a common cause of morbidity and mortality among hospitalized patients. The prevalence of this condition has increased significantly in different parts of the world. Patients admitted to dermatology wards often have severe loss of skin barrier and use systemic corticosteroids, which favor the development of sepsis. OBJECTIVES To evaluate the prevalence of sepsis among patients admitted to a dermatology ward compared to that among patients admitted to an internal medicine ward. METHODS It is a cross-sectional, observational, comparative study that was conducted at Hospital Santa Casa de Belo Horizonte. Data were collected from all patients admitted to four hospital beds at the dermatology and internal medicine wards between July 2008 and July 2009. Medical records were analyzed for the occurrence of sepsis, dermatologic diagnoses, comorbidities, types of pathogens and most commonly used antibiotics. RESULTS We analyzed 185 medical records. The prevalence of sepsis was 7.6% among patients admitted to the dermatology ward and 2.2% (p = 0.10) among those admitted to the internal medicine ward. Patients with comorbidities, diabetes mellitus and cancer did not show a higher incidence of sepsis. The main agent found was Staphylococcus aureus, and the most commonly used antibiotics were ciprofloxacin and oxacillin. There was a significant association between sepsis and the use of systemic corticosteroids (p <0.001). CONCLUSION It becomes clear that epidemiological studies on sepsis should be performed more extensively and accurately in Brazil so that efforts to prevent and treat this serious disease can be made more effectively. PMID:24173179

Awareness of basic life support among staff and students in a dental school.

PubMed

Reddy, Sahithi; Doshi, Dolar; Reddy, Padma; Kulkarni, Suhas; Reddy, Srikanth

2013-05-01

To assess and compare the knowledge of basic life support (BLS) among third, fourth and fifth (III, IV and V) year Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) clinical students, dental interns, postgraduate students and Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) and Master of Dental Surgery (MDS) faculty of Panineeya Institute of Dental Sciences and Hospital, Hyderabad, India. A BLS questionnaire consisting of 22 questions was used to assess the levels of III, IV and V years BDS clinical students, dental interns, postgraduate students and BDS and MDS faculty of Panineeya Institute of Dental Sciences and Hospital, Hyderabad, India. Statistical Package for Social Sciences software (SPSS version 12.0) was used to analyze the statistical data. The p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. A total of 338 respondents took part in the study. When gender comparison was done with correct knowledge responses, statistically significant differences were noted for Q6, Q9, Q12, Q13, Q15 and Q17. For age groups and educational qualifications, significant difference was observed for all questions. It was noted that III, IV and V year undergraduate clinical students and half of interns had adequate knowledge when compared to postgraduate students (6.9%), BDS tutors (0.00%) and MDS staff (10.7%). The study concludes that there is a significant lack of knowledge among postgraduates students BDS and MDS faculty, regarding BLS when compared to III, IV and V year's clinical BDS students and dental interns. This study emphasizes the need for all health care professionals to regularly update the knowledge and skills regarding BLS.

Comparative study on stress distribution around internal tapered connection implants according to fit of cement- and screw-retained prostheses.

PubMed

Lee, Mi-Young; Heo, Seong-Joo; Park, Eun-Jin; Park, Ji-Man

2013-08-01

The aim of this study was to compare the passivity of implant superstructures by assessing the strain development around the internal tapered connection implants with strain gauges. A polyurethane resin block in which two implants were embedded served as a measurement model. Two groups of implant restorations utilized cement-retained design and internal surface of the first group was adjusted until premature contact between the restoration and the abutment completely disappeared. In the second group, only nodules detectable to the naked eye were removed. The third group employed screw-retained design and specimens were generated by computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing system (n=10). Four strain gauges were fixed on the measurement model mesially and distally to the implants. The strains developed in each strain gauge were recorded during fixation of specimens. To compare the difference among groups, repeated measures 2-factor analysis was performed at a level of significance of α=.05. The absolute strain values were measured to analyze the magnitude of strain. The mean absolute strain value ranged from 29.53 to 412.94 µm/m at the different strain gauge locations. According to the result of overall comparison, the cement-retained prosthesis groups exhibited significant difference. No significant difference was detected between milled screw-retained prostheses group and cement-retained prosthesis groups. Within the limitations of the study, it was concluded that the cement-retained designs do not always exhibit lower levels of stress than screw-retained designs. The internal adjustment of a cement-retained implant restoration is essential to achieve passive fit.

International institutions and China's health policy.

PubMed

Huang, Yanzhong

2015-02-01

This article examines the role of international institutional actors in China's health policy process. Particular attention is paid to three major international institutional actors: the World Bank, the World Health Organization, and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Through process tracing and comparative case studies, the article looks at how international institutions contribute to policy change in China and seeks to explain different outcomes in the relationship between international institutions and China's health policies. It finds that despite the opaque and exclusive authoritarian structure in China, international institutions play a significant role in the country's domestic health governance. By investing their resources and capabilities selectively and strategically, international institutions can change the preferences of government policy makers, move latent public health issues to the government's agenda, and affect the timing of government action and the content of policy design. Furthermore, the study suggests that different outcomes in the relationship between China's health policies and global health governance can be explained through the seriousness of the externalities China faces. Copyright © 2015 by Duke University Press.

Performances of U.S. Osteopathic and Canadian Medical School Graduates on the American Board of Internal Medicine Certifying Examinations, 1984-1988.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shea, Judy A.; And Others

1990-01-01

A study compared the 1984-88 test performances of United States osteopathic medical school graduates and Canadian medical school graduates with those of U.S. and foreign medical school graduates during the same period. Findings, limitations, and implications for recruitment and training of internal medicine specialists are discussed. (Author/MSE)

Exploring the Influence of Individual and Academic Differences on the Placement Participation Rate among International Students: A UK Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crawford, Ian; Wang, Zhiqi; Andrews, Georgina

2016-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the low placement participation rate among international students compared with UK students, by examining the impact of individual factors such as gender and domicile and academic achievement such as prior academic qualification, prior academic results and subsequent academic results on…

International Schools: Current Issues and Future Prospects. Oxford Studies in Comparative Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hayden, Mary, Ed.; Thompson, Jeff, Ed.

2016-01-01

The foundation of the first international schools of the modern era well over a century ago, and their burgeoning growth over recent years, provides the context in this book for a series of personal perspectives written by some of those who have been involved centrally in their development. As the schools themselves have increased not only in…

The Word Shape Hypothesis Re-Examined: Evidence for an External Feature Advantage in Visual Word Recognition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beech, John R.; Mayall, Kate A.

2005-01-01

This study investigates the relative roles of internal and external letter features in word recognition. In Experiment 1 the efficacy of outer word fragments (words with all their horizontal internal features removed) was compared with inner word fragments (words with their outer features removed) as primes in a forward masking paradigm. These…

The Rise of International Relations Programs in the Brazilian Federal Universities: Curriculum Specificities and Current Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ferreira, Marcos Alan S. V.

2016-01-01

The aim of this reflection is to study the new international relations (IR) programs introduced by Brazilian federal universities, looking comparatively at their curriculum specificities and current challenges. In recent years, Brazil has seen an increase of IR programs launched in several regions. Since 2003, the Ministry of Education is in the…

Reliability and Structure of the TALIS Social Desirability Scale: An Assessment Based on Item Response Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapuza, A. V.; Tyumeneva, Yu. A.

2017-01-01

One of the ways of controlling for the influence of social expectations on the answers given by survey respondents is to use a social desirability scale together with the main questions. The social desirability scale, which was included in the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) international comparative study for this purpose, was…

An Investigation into the Validity of the TOEFL iBT Speaking Test for International Teaching Assistant Certification

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farnsworth, Timothy L.

2013-01-01

This study examined the construct validity of the TOEFL iBT Speaking subsection for the purposes of international teaching assistant (ITA) certification, a purpose for which it was not specifically designed. The factor structure of the new TOEFL was compared with that of another language performance test in use at a major American research…

Ratings of Students' Performances in a Third-Year Internal Medicine Clerkship: A Comparison between Problem-Based and Lecture-Based Curricula.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richards, Boyd F.; And Others

1996-01-01

A study compared the performances of Wake Forest University (North Carolina) medical students rotating through an internal medicine program, 88 in a problem-based curriculum and 364 in a lecture-based curriculum. Students in the problem-based curriculum received significantly higher ratings from house staff and faculty on four clinical rating…

Supporting First Year Alternatively Certified Urban and Rural Intern Teachers through a Multicomponent Distance Induction Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gresko, Jennifer A.

2013-01-01

The pathway for entering the K-12 classroom as a teacher varies compared to what was once the traditional model of teacher preparation. In this mixed-methods action research study, I explore supporting first year alternatively certified urban and rural intern teachers through a multicomponent distance induction program. The induction model in this…

Comparing Future Teachers' Beliefs across Countries: Approximate Measurement Invariance with Bayesian Elastic Constraints for Local Item Dependence and Differential Item Functioning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Braeken, Johan; Blömeke, Sigrid

2016-01-01

Using data from the international Teacher Education and Development Study: Learning to Teach Mathematics (TEDS-M), the measurement equivalence of teachers' beliefs across countries is investigated for the case of "mathematics-as-a fixed-ability". Measurement equivalence is a crucial topic in all international large-scale assessments and…

International Adult Literacy Survey. Benchmarking Adult Literacy in America: An International Comparative Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tuijnman, Albert

This 22-country survey was conducted between 1994 and 1998. Representative samples of adults aged 16-65 were interviewed and tested at home using the same literacy tests. The main purpose of the survey was to find out how well adults use information to function in society. Another aim was to investigate the factors that influence literacy…

An Empirical Method for Deriving Grade Equivalence for University Entrance Qualifications: An Application to A Levels and the International Baccalaureate

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Francis; Vignoles, Anna

2012-01-01

We present a method to compare different qualifications for entry to higher education by studying students' subsequent performance. Using this method for students holding either the International Baccalaureate (IB) or A-levels gaining their degrees in 2010, we estimate an "empirical" equivalence scale between IB grade points and UCAS…

Humeral retroversion and shoulder rotational mobility in young handball practitioners

PubMed Central

Quadros, Gustavo Aguiar; Döhnert, Marcelo Baptista

2015-01-01

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE : To evaluate the prevalence of humeral retroversion and rotational mobility (RHH) in young handball practitioners and non-practitioners. METHODS : This is a cross-sectional study performed with two groups: the handball group, with 14 female students practicing handball and the control group, with 13 young participants non-practicing pitch sports. RESULTS : The handball group presented full rotational movement (FRM) hi-gher than the control group in both the dominant shoulder (p=0.001) and the non-dominant shoulder (p=0.0001). The mobility of active and passive internal rotation was significantly higher in handball players in both shoulders. The handball group presented lower internal rotation range of motion for the dominant shoulder as compared to the non-dominant shoul-der (p=0.001). CONCLUSION : Young handball practitioners, des-pite skeletally immature, showed a higher MRT than the control group. The handball group showed loss of internal rotation (medial) on the dominant shoulder as compared to the non--dominant shoulder. Level of Evidence II, Prospective Study. PMID:27057141

Humeral retroversion and shoulder rotational mobility in young handball practitioners.

PubMed

Quadros, Gustavo Aguiar; Döhnert, Marcelo Baptista

2015-01-01

: To evaluate the prevalence of humeral retroversion and rotational mobility (RHH) in young handball practitioners and non-practitioners. : This is a cross-sectional study performed with two groups: the handball group, with 14 female students practicing handball and the control group, with 13 young participants non-practicing pitch sports. : The handball group presented full rotational movement (FRM) hi-gher than the control group in both the dominant shoulder (p=0.001) and the non-dominant shoulder (p=0.0001). The mobility of active and passive internal rotation was significantly higher in handball players in both shoulders. The handball group presented lower internal rotation range of motion for the dominant shoulder as compared to the non-dominant shoul-der (p=0.001). : Young handball practitioners, des-pite skeletally immature, showed a higher MRT than the control group. The handball group showed loss of internal rotation (medial) on the dominant shoulder as compared to the non--dominant shoulder. Level of Evidence II, Prospective Study.

Improving the psychometric properties of dot-probe attention measures using response-based computation.

PubMed

Evans, Travis C; Britton, Jennifer C

2018-09-01

Abnormal threat-related attention in anxiety disorders is most commonly assessed and modified using the dot-probe paradigm; however, poor psychometric properties of reaction-time measures may contribute to inconsistencies across studies. Typically, standard attention measures are derived using average reaction-times obtained in experimentally-defined conditions. However, current approaches based on experimentally-defined conditions are limited. In this study, the psychometric properties of a novel response-based computation approach to analyze dot-probe data are compared to standard measures of attention. 148 adults (19.19 ± 1.42 years, 84 women) completed a standardized dot-probe task including threatening and neutral faces. We generated both standard and response-based measures of attention bias, attentional orientation, and attentional disengagement. We compared overall internal consistency, number of trials necessary to reach internal consistency, test-retest reliability (n = 72), and criterion validity obtained using each approach. Compared to standard attention measures, response-based measures demonstrated uniformly high levels of internal consistency with relatively few trials and varying improvements in test-retest reliability. Additionally, response-based measures demonstrated specific evidence of anxiety-related associations above and beyond both standard attention measures and other confounds. Future studies are necessary to validate this approach in clinical samples. Response-based attention measures demonstrate superior psychometric properties compared to standard attention measures, which may improve the detection of anxiety-related associations and treatment-related changes in clinical samples. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Internal versus external features in triggering the brain waveforms for conjunction and feature faces in recognition.

PubMed

Nie, Aiqing; Jiang, Jingguo; Fu, Qiao

2014-08-20

Previous research has found that conjunction faces (whose internal features, e.g. eyes, nose, and mouth, and external features, e.g. hairstyle and ears, are from separate studied faces) and feature faces (partial features of these are studied) can produce higher false alarms than both old and new faces (i.e. those that are exactly the same as the studied faces and those that have not been previously presented) in recognition. The event-related potentials (ERPs) that relate to conjunction and feature faces at recognition, however, have not been described as yet; in addition, the contributions of different facial features toward ERPs have not been differentiated. To address these issues, the present study compared the ERPs elicited by old faces, conjunction faces (the internal and the external features were from two studied faces), old internal feature faces (whose internal features were studied), and old external feature faces (whose external features were studied) with those of new faces separately. The results showed that old faces not only elicited an early familiarity-related FN400, but a more anterior distributed late old/new effect that reflected recollection. Conjunction faces evoked similar late brain waveforms as old internal feature faces, but not to old external feature faces. These results suggest that, at recognition, old faces hold higher familiarity than compound faces in the profiles of ERPs and internal facial features are more crucial than external ones in triggering the brain waveforms that are characterized as reflecting the result of familiarity.

A twin-singleton comparison of developmental trajectories of externalizing and internalizing problems in 6- to 12-year-old children.

PubMed

Robbers, Sylvana C C; Bartels, Meike; van Oort, Floor V A; van Beijsterveldt, C E M Toos; van der Ende, Jan; Verhulst, Frank C; Boomsma, Dorret I; Huizink, Anja C

2010-02-01

Research on twin-singleton differences in externalizing and internalizing problems in childhood is largely cross-sectional and yields contrasting results. The goal of this study was to compare developmental trajectories of externalizing and internalizing problems in 6- to 12-year-old twins and singletons. Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) maternal reports of externalizing and internalizing problems were obtained for a sample of 9651 twins from the Netherlands Twin Register and for a representative general population sample of 1351 singletons. Latent growth modeling was applied to estimate growth curves for twins and singletons. Twin-singleton differences in the intercepts and slopes of the growth curves were examined. The developmental trajectories of externalizing problems showed a linear decrease over time, and were not significantly different for twins and singletons. Internalizing problems seem to develop similarly for twins and singletons up to age 9. After this age twins' internalizing symptoms start to decrease in comparison to those of singletons, resulting in less internalizing problems than singletons by the age of 12 years. Our findings confirm the generalizability of twin studies to singleton populations with regard to externalizing problems in middle and late childhood. The generalizability of studies on internalizing problems in early adolescence in twin samples should be addressed with care. Twinship may be a protective factor in the development of internalizing problems during early adolescence.

Internalized Homonegativity: A Systematic Mapping Review of Empirical Research

PubMed Central

Berg, Rigmor C.; Munthe-Kaas, Heather M.; Ross, Michael W.

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT Internalized homonegativity (IH) is an important variable affecting the wellbeing of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) persons. We included 201 studies in a systematic mapping review of IH. Most studies were conducted in North America and examined IH as a predictor of poor health. The primary focus of 14 studies was IH scale measurement, and, in total, these studies detailed nine distinct scales. Eighteen studies compared levels of IH in LGB populations, four described prevention programs, and one investigated IH using qualitative methods. Our review indicates that further research is needed, particularly qualitative research and ways to ameliorate IH. PMID:26436322

A Comparative Investigation into Understandings and Uses of the "TOEFL iBT"® Test, the International English Language Testing Service (Academic) Test, and the Pearson Test of English for Graduate Admissions in the United States and Australia: A Case Study of Two University Contexts. "TOEFL iBT"® Research Report. TOEFL iBT-24. ETS Research Report. RR-14-44

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ginther, April; Elder, Catherine

2014-01-01

In line with expanded conceptualizations of validity that encompass the interpretations and uses of test scores in particular policy contexts, this report presents results of a comparative analysis of institutional understandings and uses of 3 international English proficiency tests widely used for tertiary selection--the "TOEFL iBT"®…

The effect of internal teat sealant products (Teatseal and Orbeseal) on intramammary infection, clinical mastitis, and somatic cell counts in lactating dairy cows: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Rabiee, A R; Lean, I J

2013-01-01

The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of internal teat sealant products containing bismuth subnitrate (Teatseal and Orbeseal; Pfizer Animal Health, West Ryde, Australia) when used alone, or in the presence of antibiotic dry cow therapy (ADCT), before or at drying off on the incidence of new intramammary infections (IMI), clinical mastitis, and milk somatic cell count (SCC) during lactation. The literature search identified 18 English-language publications on the use of Teatseal in dairy cattle. A total of 12 studies with 17 subtrials or comparisons including 13 positive control subtrials (internal teat sealant and ADCT vs. ADCT) and 4 negative control subtrials (internal teat sealant vs. untreated) examining IMI were included in the analysis. Internal teat sealants, alone or in the presence of ADCT, reduced the risk of acquiring new IMI after calving by 25% [risk ratio (RR)=0.75; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.67 to 0.83]. Internal teat sealants reduced the risk of IMI by 73% compared with untreated cows (RR=0.27; 95% CI: 0.13 to 0.55). The results of both meta-analyses of IMI, with positive and negative controls, were heterogeneous [I(2) (a statistic that describes the proportion of total variation in study effect estimates that is due to heterogeneity)=65.4 and 92.1%]. No farm or cow factors studied significantly contributed to the heterogeneity of the results. A total of 16 studies (21 subtrials), including 14 positive control subtrials and 7 negative control subtrials, examining clinical mastitis were included in the analysis. Internal teat sealants alone and in the presence of ADCT reduced the risk of clinical mastitis after calving in lactating cows by 29% (RR=0.71; 95% CI: 0.62 to 0.82), and 48% (RR=0.52; 95% CI: 0.37 to 0.75), respectively. The results of the meta-analysis on clinical mastitis with positive controls were homogeneous (I(2)=33.6%), whereas the results of studies with negative controls were heterogeneous (I(2)=60.4%). No farm or cow factors studied that had sufficient data to evaluate significantly contributed to the heterogeneity of the results. The estimated linear score (LS) of milk SCC after calving in published studies (n=3) and for studies that provided raw data (n=2), was significantly lower for cattle treated with internal teat sealants and ADCT in 3 studies than for cattle treated with internal teat sealants only. The estimated LS of pooled raw data of 3 studies from 32 herds showed that the LS of cows treated with internal teat sealant and ADCT was not significantly different than those treated with ADCT only. This study found that the application of internal teat sealants in the presence of ADCT or the use of internal teat sealants alone at dry off significantly reduced the incidence of IMI and clinical mastitis in lactating dairy cows compared with respective control groups. Further studies are needed to investigate the effect of internal teat sealants on postpartum milk SCC in lactating dairy cows. Copyright © 2013 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Longitudinal Comparison of the Speech and Language Performance of United States-Born and Internationally Adopted Toddlers with Cleft Lip and Palate: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Scherer, Nancy J; Baker, Shauna; Kaiser, Ann; Frey, Jennifer R

2018-01-01

Objective This study compares the early speech and language development of children with cleft palate with or without cleft lip who were adopted internationally with children born in the United States. Design Prospective longitudinal description of early speech and language development between 18 and 36 months of age. Participants This study compares four children (age range = 19 to 38 months) with cleft palate with or without cleft lip who were adopted internationally with four children (age range = 19 to 38 months) with cleft palate with or without cleft lip who were born in the United States, matched for age, gender, and cleft type across three time points over 10 to 12 months. Main Outcome Measures Children's speech-language skills were analyzed using standardized tests, parent surveys, language samples, and single-word phonological assessments to determine differences between the groups. Results The mean scores for the children in the internationally adopted group were lower than the group born in the United States at all three time points for expressive language and speech sound production measures. Examination of matched pairs demonstrated observable differences for two of the four pairs. No differences were observed in cognitive performance and receptive language measures. Conclusions The results suggest a cumulative effect of later palate repair and/or a variety of health and environmental factors associated with their early circumstances that persist to age 3 years. Early intervention to address the trajectory of speech and language is warranted. Given the findings from this small pilot study, a larger study of the long-term speech and language development of children who are internationally adopted and have cleft palate with or without cleft lip is recommended.

[Development and Effects of a Cognitive-behavioral Therapy Based Program in Reducing Internalized Stigma in Patients with Schizophrenia].

PubMed

Kim, Mi Young; Jun, Seong Sook

2016-06-01

This study was done to develop a internalized stigma reducing program based on cognitive-behavioral therapy and appropriate for patients with schizophrenia and to evaluate its effectiveness. The study design was a mixed method research. Qualitative study, 13 patients with schizophrenia who had experience in overcoming stigma were purposively chosen for interviews and data were analyzed using Giorgi method. Quantitative study, 64 patients with schizophrenia (experimental group=32, control group=32) were recruited. The cognitive-behavioral therapy-based program for reducing internalized stigma in patients with schizophrenia was provided for 8 weeks (12 sessions). Data were collected from June. 20, 2013 to Feb. 14, 2014. Quantitative data were analyzed using χ²-test, t-test, repeated measures ANOVA with the SPSS program. Qualitative results, from the experience of coping with stigma in patients with schizophrenia seventeen themes and five themes-clusters were drawn up. Quantitative results showed that internalized stigma, self-esteem, mental health recovery and quality of life were significantly better in the experimental group compared to the control group. Study findings indicate that this program for reducing internalized stigma in patients with schizophrenia is effective and can be recommended as a rehabilitation program intervention to help patients with schizophrenia to cope with internalized stigma.

Performance analysis of a SOFC under direct internal reforming conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Janardhanan, Vinod M.; Heuveline, Vincent; Deutschmann, Olaf

This paper presents the performance analysis of a planar solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC) under direct internal reforming conditions. A detailed solid-oxide fuel cell model is used to study the influences of various operating parameters on cell performance. Significant differences in efficiency and power density are observed for isothermal and adiabatic operational regimes. The influence of air number, specific catalyst area, anode thickness, steam to carbon (s/c) ratio of the inlet fuel, and extend of pre-reforming on cell performance is analyzed. In all cases except for the case of pre-reformed fuel, adiabatic operation results in lower performance compared to isothermal operation. It is further discussed that, though direct internal reforming may lead to cost reduction and increased efficiency by effective utilization of waste heat, the efficiency of the fuel cell itself is higher for pre-reformed fuel compared to non-reformed fuel. Furthermore, criteria for the choice of optimal operating conditions for cell stacks operating under direct internal reforming conditions are discussed.

Fluid Analysis and Improved Structure of an ATEG Heat Exchanger Based on Computational Fluid Dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Z. B.; Deng, Y. D.; Su, C. Q.; Yuan, X. H.

2015-06-01

In this study, a numerical model has been employed to analyze the internal flow field distribution in a heat exchanger applied for an automotive thermoelectric generator based on computational fluid dynamics. The model simulates the influence of factors relevant to the heat exchanger, including the automotive waste heat mass flow velocity, temperature, internal fins, and back pressure. The result is in good agreement with experimental test data. Sensitivity analysis of the inlet parameters shows that increase of the exhaust velocity, compared with the inlet temperature, makes little contribution (0.1 versus 0.19) to the heat transfer but results in a detrimental back pressure increase (0.69 versus 0.21). A configuration equipped with internal fins is proved to offer better thermal performance compared with that without fins. Finally, based on an attempt to improve the internal flow field, a more rational structure is obtained, offering a more homogeneous temperature distribution, higher average heat transfer coefficient, and lower back pressure.

DSM-IV Personality Disorders and Associations with Externalizing and Internalizing Disorders: Results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions

PubMed Central

Harford, Thomas C.; Chen, Chiung M.; Saha, Tulshi D.; Smith, Sharon M.; Ruan, W. June; Grant, Bridget F.

2013-01-01

Background Although associations between personality disorders and psychiatric disorders are well established in general population studies, their association with liability dimensions for externalizing and internalizing disorders has not been fully assessed. The purpose of this study is to examine associations between personality disorders (PDs) and lifetime externalizing and internalizing Axis I disorders. Methods Data were obtained from the total sample of 34,653 respondents from Wave 2 of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC). Drawing on the literature, a 3-factor exploratory structural equation model was selected to simultaneously assess the measurement relations among DSM-IV Axis I substance use and mood and anxiety disorders and the structural relations between the latent internalizing-externalizing dimensions and DSM-IV PDs, adjusting for gender, age, race/ethnicity, and marital status. Results Antisocial, histrionic, and borderline PDs were strong predictors for the externalizing factor, while schizotypal, borderline, avoidant, and obsessive-compulsive PDs had significantly larger effects on the internalizing fear factor when compared to the internalizing misery factor. Paranoid, schizoid, narcissistic, and dependent PDs provided limited discrimination between and among the three factors. An overarching latent factor representing general personality dysfunction was significantly greater on the internalizing fear factor followed by the externalizing factor, and weakest for the internalizing misery factor. Conclusion Personality disorders offer important opportunities for studies on the externalizing-internalizing spectrum of common psychiatric disorders. Future studies based on panic, anxiety, and depressive symptoms may elucidate PD associations with the internalizing spectrum of disorders. PMID:23932575

DSM-IV personality disorders and associations with externalizing and internalizing disorders: results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions.

PubMed

Harford, Thomas C; Chen, Chiung M; Saha, Tulshi D; Smith, Sharon M; Ruan, W June; Grant, Bridget F

2013-11-01

Although associations between personality disorders and psychiatric disorders are well established in general population studies, their association with liability dimensions for externalizing and internalizing disorders has not been fully assessed. The purpose of this study is to examine associations between personality disorders (PDs) and lifetime externalizing and internalizing Axis I disorders. Data were obtained from the total sample of 34,653 respondents from Wave 2 of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC). Drawing on the literature, a 3-factor exploratory structural equation model was selected to simultaneously assess the measurement relations among DSM-IV Axis I substance use and mood and anxiety disorders and the structural relations between the latent internalizing-externalizing dimensions and DSM-IV PDs, adjusting for gender, age, race/ethnicity, and marital status. Antisocial, histrionic, and borderline PDs were strong predictors for the externalizing factor, while schizotypal, borderline, avoidant, and obsessive-compulsive PDs had significantly larger effects on the internalizing fear factor when compared to the internalizing misery factor. Paranoid, schizoid, narcissistic, and dependent PDs provided limited discrimination between and among the three factors. An overarching latent factor representing general personality dysfunction was significantly greater on the internalizing fear factor followed by the externalizing factor, and weakest for the internalizing misery factor. Personality disorders offer important opportunities for studies on the externalizing-internalizing spectrum of common psychiatric disorders. Future studies based on panic, anxiety, and depressive symptoms may elucidate PD associations with the internalizing spectrum of disorders. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Housekeeping genes as internal standards: use and limits.

PubMed

Thellin, O; Zorzi, W; Lakaye, B; De Borman, B; Coumans, B; Hennen, G; Grisar, T; Igout, A; Heinen, E

1999-10-08

Quantitative studies are commonly realised in the biomedical research to compare RNA expression in different experimental or clinical conditions. These quantifications are performed through their comparison to the expression of the housekeeping gene transcripts like glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (G3PDH), albumin, actins, tubulins, cyclophilin, hypoxantine phsophoribosyltransferase (HRPT), L32. 28S, and 18S rRNAs are also used as internal standards. In this paper, it is recalled that the commonly used internal standards can quantitatively vary in response to various factors. Possible variations are illustrated using three experimental examples. Preferred types of internal standards are then proposed for each of these samples and thereafter the general procedure concerning the choice of an internal standard and the way to manage its uses are discussed.

Applying the Chronic Care Model to Homeless Veterans: Effect of a Population Approach to Primary Care on Utilization and Clinical Outcomes

PubMed Central

Buckel, Lauren; Bourgault, Claire; Blumen, Jonathan; Redihan, Stephen G.; Jiang, Lan; Friedmann, Peter

2010-01-01

Objectives. We compared a population-tailored approach to primary care for homeless veterans with a usual care approach. Methods. We conducted a retrospective prolective cohort study of homeless veterans enrolled in a population-tailored primary care clinic matched to a historical sample in general internal medicine clinics. Overall, 177 patients were enrolled: 79 in the Homeless-Oriented Primary Care Clinic and 98 in general internal medicine primary care. Results. Homeless-oriented primary care–enrolled patients had greater improvements in hypertension, diabetes, and lipid control, and primary care use was higher during the first 6 months (5.96 visits per person vs 1.63 for general internal medicine) but stabilized to comparable rates during the second 6 months (2.01 vs 1.31, respectively). Emergency department (ED) use was also higher (2.59 vs 1.89 visits), although with 40% lower odds for nonacute ED visits than for the general internal medicine group (95% confidence interval = 0.2, 0.8). Excluding substance abuse and mental health admissions, hospitalizations were reduced among the homeless veterans between the 2 periods (28.6% vs 10.8%; P < .01) compared with the general internal medicine group (48.2% vs 44.4%; P = .6; difference of differences, P < .01). Conclusions. Tailoring primary care to homeless veterans can decrease unnecessary ED use and medical admissions and improve chronic disease management. PMID:20966377

Examining the Impact of a DSP Project through a Comparative Adult Education Lens: A Snapshot of Principal Professional Development for Education Internationalization in Beijing, China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kang, Haijun; Lyu, Lei; Sun, Qi

2016-01-01

Through the lenses of comparative adult education and international educational leadership development, this study explores the learning experiences of local school principals after they participated in a professional development program named "Domestic Study Program" (DSP) in Beijing. A qualitative narrative inquiry was applied and four…

The Role of Schools in Bridging Within-School Achievement Gaps Based on Socioeconomic Status: A Cross-National Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Haigen; Sebastian, James

2015-01-01

Since the publication of the Coleman report in 1966, research on the role of schools in influencing student achievement relative to the role of family background has generated considerable interest and controversy. A large volume of international and comparative research has also been devoted to studying school effects on student achievement.…

The Comparison of Physical Education and Sports Lessons Applied in Education Systems of Turkey and Kosovo

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hergüner, Gülten; Önal, Ayse; Berisha, Milaim; Yaman, Menzure Sibel

2016-01-01

This study was conducted in order to compare and determine the differences between the syllabuses, class hours, subject topics, contents and acquirements of Physical Education and Sports Lessons in primary, middle and high schools in Turkey and Kosovo. This is an international comparative education study in which the aim is to reveal the…

Neither Orthodoxy nor Randomness: Differing Logics of Conducting Comparative and International Studies in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schriewer, Jürgen

2014-01-01

The issue of the presumed "identity" of Comparative Education as a field of study or a discipline has been discussed for decades. Yet what remains open to question is a kind of systematic structure that provides the basic principles for a coherent exposition of the field. After conceptualising and rejecting almost a dozen possible…

The Impacts of Student-, Teacher- and School-Level Factors on Mathematics Achievement: An Exploratory Comparative Investigation of Singaporean Students and the USA Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ker, H. W.

2016-01-01

Reports from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) consistently show that there is a substantial gap in average mathematics achievement between Singapore and the USA. This study conducts an exploratory comparative investigation on the multilevel factors influencing the mathematics achievement of students from these two…

Femoroacetabular Impingement in Elite Ice Hockey Goaltenders: Etiological Implications of On-Ice Hip Mechanics.

PubMed

Whiteside, David; Deneweth, Jessica M; Bedi, Asheesh; Zernicke, Ronald F; Goulet, Grant C

2015-07-01

Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) is particularly prevalent in ice hockey. The butterfly goalie technique is thought to involve extreme ranges of hip motion that may predispose goaltenders to FAI. To quantify hip mechanics during 3 common goaltender movements and interpret their relevance to the development of FAI. Descriptive laboratory study. Fourteen collegiate and professional goaltenders performed skating, butterfly save, and recovery movements on the ice. Hip mechanics were compared across the 3 movements. The butterfly did not exhibit the greatest range of hip motion in any of the 3 planes. Internal rotation was the only hip motion that appeared close to terminal in this study. When subjects decelerated during skating—shaving the blade of their skate across the surface of the ice—the magnitude of peak hip internal rotation was 54% greater than in the butterfly and 265% greater than in the recovery. No movement involved levels of concomitant flexion, adduction, and internal rotation that resembled the traditional impingement (FADIR) test. The magnitude of internal rotation was the most extreme planar hip motion (relative to end-range) recorded in this study (namely during decelerating) and appeared to differentiate this cohort from other athletic populations. Consequently, repetitive end-range hip internal rotation may be the primary precursor to symptomatic FAI in hockey goaltenders and provides the most plausible account for the high incidence of FAI in these athletes. Resection techniques should, therefore, focus on enhancing internal rotation in goaltenders, compared with flexion and adduction. While the butterfly posture can require significant levels of hip motion, recovering from a save and, in particular, decelerating during skating are also demanding on goaltenders' hip joints. Therefore, it appears critical to consider and accommodate a variety of sport-specific hip postures to comprehensively diagnose, treat, and rehabilitate FAI. © 2015 The Author(s).

Domestic and International Climate Migration from Rural Mexico

PubMed Central

Nawrotzki, Raphael J.; Runfola, Daniel M.; Hunter, Lori M.; Riosmena, Fernando

2016-01-01

Evidence is increasing that climate change and variability may influence human migration patterns. However, there is less agreement regarding the type of migration streams most strongly impacted. This study tests whether climate change more strongly impacted international compared to domestic migration from rural Mexico during 1986-99. We employ eight temperature and precipitation-based climate change indices linked to detailed migration histories obtained from the Mexican Migration Project. Results from multilevel discrete-time event-history models challenge the assumption that climate-related migration will be predominantly short distance and domestic, but instead show that climate change more strongly impacted international moves from rural Mexico. The stronger climate impact on international migration may be explained by the self-insurance function of international migration, the presence of strong migrant networks, and climate-related changes in wage difference. While a warming in temperature increased international outmigration, higher levels of precipitation declined the odds of an international move. PMID:28439146

Perceptions of friendship among youth with distressed friends.

PubMed

Hill, Erin N; Swenson, Lance P

2014-02-01

This cross-sectional study examined the relationship between a friend's level of internalizing distress and the focal child's perceptions of friendship amongst 5th, 8th, and 11th grade youth. Participants completed the Youth Self-Report to assess internalizing distress and measures assessing perceptions of friendship quality, social support, and self-disclosure within reciprocal, same-sex friendship dyads. Results indicated that youth with friends experiencing low levels of internalizing distress reported poorer friendship quality and decreased levels of social support and self-disclosure within the friendship compared to youth with friends experiencing average or high internalizing distress. In a second set of analyses controlling for the focal child's own internalizing symptoms, gender, and age, friend's level of internalizing distress remained a significant, unique predictor of target participants' self-disclosure about their own problems within the friendship. The findings suggest that a mild degree of internalizing distress may enhance, rather than harm, friendships amongst youth.

Domestic and International Climate Migration from Rural Mexico.

PubMed

Nawrotzki, Raphael J; Runfola, Daniel M; Hunter, Lori M; Riosmena, Fernando

2016-12-01

Evidence is increasing that climate change and variability may influence human migration patterns. However, there is less agreement regarding the type of migration streams most strongly impacted. This study tests whether climate change more strongly impacted international compared to domestic migration from rural Mexico during 1986-99. We employ eight temperature and precipitation-based climate change indices linked to detailed migration histories obtained from the Mexican Migration Project. Results from multilevel discrete-time event-history models challenge the assumption that climate-related migration will be predominantly short distance and domestic, but instead show that climate change more strongly impacted international moves from rural Mexico. The stronger climate impact on international migration may be explained by the self-insurance function of international migration, the presence of strong migrant networks, and climate-related changes in wage difference. While a warming in temperature increased international outmigration, higher levels of precipitation declined the odds of an international move.

A Comparative Analysis of the Relationship among Quality Instruction, Teacher Self-Efficacy, Student Background, and Mathematics Achievement in South Korea and the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Son, Ji-Won; Han, Seong Won; Kang, Chungseo; Kwon, Oh Nam

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study is to compare and contrast student, teacher, and school factors that are associated with student mathematics achievement in South Korea and the United States. Using the data from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011, this study examines factors that are linked to teachers who deliver…

Directing Attention Externally Enhances Agility Performance: A Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of the Efficacy of Using Verbal Instructions to Focus Attention

PubMed Central

Porter, Jared M.; Nolan, Russell P.; Ostrowski, Erik J.; Wulf, Gabriele

2010-01-01

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate if focusing attention externally produced faster movement times compared to instructions that focused attention internally or a control set of instructions that did not explicitly focus attention when performing an agility task. A second purpose of the study was to measure participants’ focus of attention during practice by use of a questionnaire. Participants (N = 20) completed 15 trials of an agility “L” run following instructions designed to induce an external (EXT), internal (INT) attentional focus or a control (CON) set of instructions inducing no specific focus of attention. Analysis revealed when participants followed the EXT instructions they had significantly faster movement times compared to when they followed the INT and CON set of instructions; consistent with previous research the INT and CON movement times were not significantly different from each other. Qualitative data showed when participants were in the external condition they focused externally 67% of the time. When they were in the internal condition they focused internally 76% of the time, and when they were in the control condition they did not use an internal or external focus of attention 77% of the time. Qualitative data also revealed participants in the EXT, INT, and CON conditions switched their focus of attention at a frequency of 27, 35, and 51% respectively. PMID:21833271

Visibility and coping with minority stress: a gender-specific analysis among lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals in Flanders.

PubMed

Dewaele, Alexis; Van Houtte, Mieke; Vincke, John

2014-11-01

The role of visibility management strategies, as an extended measure of outness related to sexual orientation, has been rarely studied with the aim of explaining the experience of external stressors (i.e., experiences of everyday discrimination and perceived sanctioning of cross-gender behavior) and internal stressors (i.e., internalized homonegativity and general mental distress). In this study, we examined gender differences within these relationships. A non-representative sample of 2,378 lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals was recruited. We found that lesbian and bisexual women scored significantly higher on perceived cross-gender sanctioning and general mental distress compared to gay and bisexual men. Multivariate analysis showed that visibility management was significantly related to the experience of internalized homonegativity in both men and women. Visibility management mediated the relationship between experiences of every day discrimination on the one hand and internalized homonegativity and general mental distress on the other. Finally, we found that compared to gay and bisexual men, lesbian and bisexual women who maintained relatively closed visibility management strategies, reported lower scores on internalized homonegativity but higher scores on general mental distress. We found fewer gender differences related to visibility management than expected and those that we did find were relatively small. Flemish lesbian and bisexual women and gay and bisexual men appear to more alike than different.

Second internal thoracic artery versus radial artery in coronary artery bypass grafting: a long-term, propensity score-matched follow-up study.

PubMed

Ruttmann, Elfriede; Fischler, Nikolaus; Sakic, Adel; Chevtchik, Orest; Alber, Hannes; Schistek, Roland; Ulmer, Hanno; Grimm, Michael

2011-09-20

The best second arterial conduit for multiple arterial revascularization (MAR) is still a matter of debate. Previous studies on the benefit of either using the radial artery (RA) or the right internal thoracic artery (RITA) in coronary artery bypass grafting are not conclusive. The aim of our study was to compare the perioperative and long-term outcome of either RA or RITA grafts as second conduits for MAR. A consecutive series of 1001 patients undergoing first nonemergent coronary artery bypass grafting receiving either RA or RITA as second graft for MAR between 2001 and 2010 were studied. There were 277 patients receiving a RITA and 724 patients receiving a RA in addition to a left internal thoracic artery (LITA). Concomitant saphenous vein grafts (SVG) were grafted in addition as necessary. Propensity score-matched analysis was performed to compare the 2 groups, bilateral ITA±SVG (BITA±SVG group) and the LITA+RA±SVG group relative to overall survival and major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events-free survival. Hazard ratios and their 95% confidence intervals were estimated by COX regression stratified on matched pairs. The incidence of perioperative major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events was significantly lower in the BITA±SVG group (1.4% versus 7.6%, P<0.001). Overall survival (hazard ratio 0.23; 95% confidence interval 0.066-0.81; P=0.022) and major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events-free survival (hazard ratio 0.18; 95% confidence interval 0.08-0.42; P<0.001) were significantly better in the BITA±SVG group compared to the LITA+RA±SVG group. The results of our study provide strong evidence for the superiority of a RITA graft compared to RA as a second conduit in MAR.

Internal and external attention and the default mode network.

PubMed

Scheibner, Hannah J; Bogler, Carsten; Gleich, Tobias; Haynes, John-Dylan; Bermpohl, Felix

2017-03-01

Focused attention meditations have been shown to improve psychological health and wellbeing and are nowadays an integral part of many psychotherapies. While research on the neural correlates of focused attention meditation is increasing, findings vary on whether meditations are associated with high or low activity in the default mode network (DMN). To clarify the relationship between focused attention meditation and the activity in DMN regions, it may be helpful to distinguish internal and external attention as well as different phases within one meditation: During focused attention meditation, the practitioner switches between mindful attention, mind-wandering and refocusing. Here, we employed a thought-probe paradigm to study the neural correlates of these different phases. Twenty healthy, meditation naïve participants were introduced to external (mindfulness of sound) and internal (mindfulness of breathing) attention meditation and then practiced the meditation at home for four consecutive days. They then performed the same focused attention meditations during fMRI scanning, in four runs alternating between internal and external attention. At pseudorandom intervals, participants were asked whether they had just been focused on the task (mindful attention) or had been distracted (mind-wandering). During mindful attention, brain regions typically associated with the DMN, such as the medial prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex and left temporoparietal junction showed significantly less neural activation compared to mind-wandering phases. Reduced activity of the DMN was found during both external and internal attention, with stronger deactivation in the posterior cingulate cortex during internal attention compared to external attention. Moreover, refocusing after mind-wandering was associated with activity in the left inferior frontal gyrus. Our results support the theory that mindful attention is associated with reduced DMN activity compared to mind-wandering, independent of the practitioner's attention focus (i.e., internal vs. external). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An In Vitro Robotic Assessment of the Anterolateral Ligament, Part 1: Secondary Role of the Anterolateral Ligament in the Setting of an Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury.

PubMed

Rasmussen, Matthew T; Nitri, Marco; Williams, Brady T; Moulton, Samuel G; Cruz, Raphael Serra; Dornan, Grant J; Goldsmith, Mary T; LaPrade, Robert F

2016-03-01

Recent investigations have described the structural and functional behavior of the anterolateral ligament (ALL) of the knee through pull-apart and isolated sectioning studies. However, the secondary stabilizing role of the ALL in the setting of a complete anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear has not been fully defined for common simulated clinical examinations, such as the pivot-shift, anterior drawer, and internal rotation tests. Combined sectioning of the ALL and ACL would lead to increased internal rotation and increased axial plane translation during a pivot-shift test when compared with isolated sectioning of the ACL. Controlled laboratory study. Ten fresh-frozen human cadaveric knees were subjected to a simulated pivot-shift test with coupled 10-N·m valgus and 5-N·m internal rotation torques from 0° to 60° of knee flexion and a 5-N·m internal rotation torque and an 88-N anterior tibial load, both from 0° to 120° of knee flexion via a 6 degrees of freedom robotic system. Kinematic changes were measured and compared with the intact state for isolated sectioning of the ACL and combined sectioning of the ACL and ALL. Combined sectioning of the ACL and ALL resulted in a significant increase in axial plane tibial translation during a simulated pivot shift at 0°, 15°, 30°, and 60° of knee flexion and a significant increase in internal rotation at 0°, 15°, 30°, 45°, 60°, 75°, 90°, 105°, and 120° when compared with the intact and ACL-deficient states. Based on the model results, ALL sectioning resulted in an additional 2.1 mm (95% CI, 1.4-2.9 mm; P < .001) of axial plane translation during the pivot shift when compared with ACL-only sectioning, when pooling evidence over all flexion angles. Likewise, when subjected to IR torque, the ACL+ALL-deficient state resulted in an additional 3.2° of internal rotation (95% CI, 2.4°-4.1°; P < .001) versus the intact state, and the additional sectioning of the ALL increased internal rotation by 2.7° (95% CI, 1.8°-3.6°; P < .001) versus the ACL-deficient state. The results of this study confirm the ALL as an important lateral knee structure that provides rotatory stability to the knee. Specifically, the ALL was a significant secondary stabilizer throughout flexion during an applied internal rotation torque and simulated pivot-shift test in the context of an ACL-deficient knee. Residual internal rotation and a positive pivot shift after ACL reconstruction may be attributed to ALL injury. For these patients, surgical treatment of an ALL tear may be considered. © 2015 The Author(s).

Randomized Prospective Study of Endoscopic Rubber Band Ligation Compared With Bipolar Coagulation for Chronically Bleeding Internal Hemorrhoids

PubMed Central

Jutabha, Rome; Jensen, Dennis M.; Chavalitdhamrong, Disaya

2013-01-01

OBJECTIVES: Our purpose was to compare the efficacy, complications, success rate, recurrence rate at 1 year, and crossovers of rubber band ligation (RBL) with those of bipolar electrocoagulation (BPEC) treatment for chronically bleeding internal hemorrhoids. METHODS: A total of 45 patients of mean age 51.5 years, who had rectal bleeding from grade II or III hemorrhoids and in whom intensive medical therapy failed, were randomized in a prospective study comparing RBL with BPEC. Treatment failure was predefined as continued bleeding, occurrence of a major complication, or failure to reduce the size of all internal hemorrhoidal segments to grade I in ≤ 3 treatments. Patients were followed up for 1 year. RESULTS: With similar patients, rectal bleeding and other symptoms were controlled with significantly fewer treatments of RBL than of BPEC (2.3±0.2 vs. 3.8±0.4, P < 0.05), and RBL had a significantly higher success rate (92% vs. 62%, P< 0.05). RBL had more cases of severe pain during treatment (8% vs. 0%, P> 0.05), but significantly fewer failures and crossovers (8% vs. 38%). Symptomatic recurrence at 1 year was 10% RBL and 15% BPEC. CONCLUSIONS: For patients with chronically bleeding grade II or III internal hemorrhoids that are unresponsive to medical therapy, safety and complication rates of banding and BPEC were similar. The success rate was significantly higher with RBL than with BPEC. Symptom recurrence rates at 1 year were similar. PMID:19513028

Web-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Intervention for the Prevention of Suicidal Ideation in Medical Interns: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

PubMed

Guille, Constance; Zhao, Zhuo; Krystal, John; Nichols, Breck; Brady, Kathleen; Sen, Srijan

2015-12-01

In the United States, approximately 1 physician dies by suicide every day. Training physicians are at particularly high risk, with suicidal ideation increasing more than 4-fold during the first 3 months of internship year. Despite this increase, to our knowledge, very few efforts have been made to prevent the escalation of suicidal thoughts among training physicians. To assess the effectiveness of a web-based cognitive behavioral therapy (wCBT) program delivered prior to the start of internship year in the prevention of suicidal ideation in medical interns. A randomized clinical trial conducted at 2 university hospitals with 199 interns from multiple specialties during academic years 2009-2010 or 2011-2012. The current study was conducted from May 2009 to June 2010 and May 2011 to June 2012, and data were analyzed using intent-to-treat principles, including last observation carried forward. Interns were randomly assigned to 2 study groups (wCBT and attention-control group [ACG]), and completed study activities lasting 30 minutes each week for 4 weeks prior to starting internship year. Participants assigned to wCBT completed online CBT modules and those assigned to ACG received emails with general information about depression, suicidal thinking, and local mental health professionals. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 was used to assess suicidal ideation (ie, "thoughts that you would be better off dead or hurting yourself in some way") prior to the start of intern year and at 3-month intervals throughout the year. A total of 62.2% of interns (199 of 320) agreed to take part in the study; 100 were assigned to the wCBT group and 99 to the ACG. During at least 1 point over the course of internship year, 12% of interns (12 of 100) assigned to wCBT endorsed suicidal ideation compared with 21.2% of interns (21 of 99) assigned to ACG. After adjusting for covariates identified a priori that have previously shown to increase the risk for suicidal ideation, interns assigned to wCBT were less likely to endorse suicidal ideation during internship year (relative risk, 0.40; 95% CI, 0.17- 0.91; P = .03) compared with those assigned to ACG. This study demonstrates that a free, easily accessible, brief wCBT program is associated with reduced likelihood of suicidal ideation among medical interns. Prevention programs with these characteristics could be easily disseminated to medical training programs across the country. anzctr.org.au Identifier: ACTRN12610000628044.

Barriers to participation in governance and professional advancement: a comparison of internationally educated nurses and registered nurses educated in the United States.

PubMed

Wheeler, Rebecca M; Foster, Jennifer W

2013-01-01

This study compared the perspectives of internationally educated nurses (IENs) and registered nurses (RNs) educated in the United States regarding participation in hospital governance structures and professional advancement. Nurses' participation in hospital governance is reported to contribute to empowerment. No research has examined how IENs' perceptions about participation in governance compared with those of U.S. RNs. Semistructured interviews were held with 82 nurses in 2 urban hospitals. Forty nurses were reinterviewed to follow up on themes. Internationally educated nurses and US RNs shared similar perspectives. Nurses in both samples did not value participation in governance, lacked guidance about how to advance, and preferred to at the bedside. Strategies to encourage nurses to participate in and value governance and professional advancement opportunities should be explored and adopted.

A prospective randomised comparative study of endoscopic band ligation versus injection sclerotherapy of bleeding internal haemorrhoids in patients with liver cirrhosis.

PubMed

Awad, Atif ElSayed; Soliman, Hanan Hamed; Saif, Sabry Abdel Latif Abou; Darwish, Abdel Monem Nooman; Mosaad, Samah; Elfert, Asem Ahmed

2012-06-01

Bleeding internal haemorrhoids are common and used to be treated surgically with too many complications. Endoscopic therapy is trying to take the lead. Sclerotherapy and rubber band ligation are the candidates to replace surgical therapy especially in patients with liver cirrhosis. The aim of this study was to compare endoscopic injection sclerotherapy (EIS) to endoscopic rubber band ligation (EBL) regarding effectiveness and complications in the treatment of bleeding internal haemorrhoids in Egyptian patients with liver cirrhosis. One hundred and twenty adult patients with liver cirrhosis and bleeding internal haemorrhoids were randomised into two equal groups; the first treated with EBL using Saeed multiband ligator, and the second with EIS using either ethanolamine oleate 5% or N-butyl cyanoacrylate. All groups were matched as regards age, sex, Child score and pre-procedure Doppler values. Patients were followed up clinically and with abdominal ultrasound/Doppler for 6 months. Endoscopic and endosonography/Doppler was done before and one month after the procedure. Pre and post-procedure data were recorded and analysed. Both techniques were highly effective in the control of bleeding from internal haemorrhoids with a low rebleeding [10% in the EBL group and 13.33% in the EIS group] and recurrence [20% in the EBL group 20% in the EIS group] rates. Child score had a positive correlation with rebleeding and recurrence in EIS group only. Pain score and need for analgesia were significantly higher while patient satisfaction was significantly lower in EIS compared to EBL [p<0.05]. No significant difference between ethanolamine and cyanoacrylate subgroups was found [p>0.05]. Both EBL and EIS were effective in the treatment of bleeding internal haemorrhoids in patients with liver cirrhosis. EBL had significantly less pain and higher patient satisfaction than EIS. EBL was also safer in patients with advanced cirrhosis. Copyright © 2012 Arab Journal of Gastroenterology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of marginal and internal adaptation of hybrid and nanoceramic systems with microcomputed tomography: An in vitro study.

PubMed

Yildirim, Güler; Uzun, Ismail H; Keles, Ali

2017-08-01

The accuracy of recently introduced chairside computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD-CAM) blocks is not well established, and marginal integrity and internal adaptation are not known. The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the marginal and internal adaptation of hybrid and nanoceramics using microcomputed tomography (μ-CT). The marginal and internal adaptation of 3 polymer-infiltrated ceramic-network (PICN) materials (Vita Enamic [VE]; Lava Ultimate [LU]; Vita Suprinity [VS]) were compared with lithium disilicate (IPS e.max.CAD, IPS). Ninety-six specimens (48 dies and 48 crowns) were prepared (n=12 each group) using a chairside CAD-CAM system. The restorations were scanned with μ-CT, with 160 measurements made for each crown, and used in 2-dimensional (2D) analysis. The marginal adaptation of marginal discrepancy (MD), absolute marginal discrepancy (AMD), internal adaptation of shoulder area (SA), axial space (AS), and occlusal space (OS) were compared using appropriate statistical analysis methods (α=.05). Cement volumes were compared using 3D analysis. The IPS blocks showed higher MD (130 μm), AMD (156 μm), SA (111 μm) (P<.05), AS (52 μm), and OS (192 μm) than the other blocks (P<.01). The adaptation values of VS were significantly lower than those of the IPS block (P<.05). The adaption values of the LU and VE blocks were significantly lower than those of others (P<.01) but were statistically similar to one another (P>.05). IPS had the largest cement space at 18 mm 3 (P<.01). The marginal and internal adaptation values were within a clinically acceptable range for all 3 hybrids and nanoceramics tested. Copyright © 2016 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[A structural protein study of the influenza A (H1N1) virus by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis].

PubMed

Pérez Guevara, M T; Savón Valdés, C; Rivas Arjona, M; Goyenechea Hernández, A

1992-01-01

Influenza is an acute respiratory disease typically appearing as an epidemic. Three immunological types of the influenza virus are known: A, B and C. Continually, antigen changes occur, especially in type A. Therefore, a comparative study was carried out on 4 influenza A(H1N1) virus strains in relation to protein structure (surface antigens), by using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis by the modified Laemmli method. The objective was to compare the structural proteins of the A/Havana/1292/78 (H1N1) national strain with the proteins of 3 international pattern strains. In all the cases, 6 bands were detected by densitometry. In the 4 strains studied the most abundant protein was M. Great differences between the Cuban strain and the 3 international patterns were not seen.

The "Diagnostic Guideline for Anxiety and Challenging Behaviour" for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities: Preliminary Outcomes on Internalizing Problems, Challenging Behaviours, Quality of Life and Clients' Satisfaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pruijssers, Addy; Meijel, Berno; Maaskant, Marian; Teerenstra, Steven; van Achterberg, Theo

2017-01-01

Background: People with intellectual disabilities are vulnerable to develop psychopathology (in particular anxiety) and related challenging behaviour. Method: A comparative multiple case study with an experimental and a control condition. Results: The application of the guideline showed a trend of decreases of internalizing problems (P = 0.07) and…

Learning to Read: The Reading Performance of Hong Kong Primary Students Compared with that in Developed Countries Around the World in PIRLS 2001 and 2006

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lam, Joseph W. I.; Cheung, Wai Ming; Lam, Raymond Y. H.

2009-01-01

Being literate is fundamental for learning most school subjects. The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) conducts a regular cycle of studies of children's reading literacy and the factors associated with literacy acquisition in countries around the world. The Progress in International Reading Literacy…

The Phoenix: Vocational Education and Training in Singapore. International Comparative Study of Leading Vocational Education Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tucker, Marc S.

2012-01-01

This is the first in a series of reports from the Center on International Education Benchmarking (CIEB) exploring the leading vocational and technical education systems from around the world to draw out what makes these systems great and what other countries can learn from them. This first report was based on a visit of several days to Singapore…

Association of prenatal exposure to benzodiazepines and child internalizing problems: A sibling-controlled cohort study.

PubMed

Brandlistuen, Ragnhild E; Ystrom, Eivind; Hernandez-Diaz, Sonia; Skurtveit, Svetlana; Selmer, Randi; Handal, Marte; Nordeng, Hedvig

2017-01-01

During pregnancy, many women experience sleep problems and anxiety that require treatment. The long-term safety for the child of maternal benzodiazepine (BZD) and z-hypnotic use during pregnancy remains controversial. We conducted a cohort and a sibling control study using data from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study. Data on use of BZD and z-hypnotics, internalizing and externalizing outcomes, and covariates were collected from mothers at gestational weeks 17 and 30 and when children were 0.5, 1.5, and 3 years of age. The total sample consisted of 71,996 children (19,297 siblings) at 1.5 years and 55,081 children (13,779 siblings) at 3 years. Short-term use was defined as use in one pregnancy period only. Long-term use was defined as use in two or more pregnancy periods. Linear full cohort random-effect and sibling-matched fixed-effect regression models were used to compare internalizing and externalizing behavior in children prenatally exposed compared to those unexposed in the full cohort of pregnancies accounting for family clusters, as well as within sibling clusters comparing pregnancies with discordant exposures. Propensity score (PS) adjustment included variables on indication for use (sleep problems, symptoms of anxiety and depression) and other potential confounding factors. Long-term prenatal exposure to BZD or z-hypnotics was associated with increased internalizing behavior in crude cohort analyses and at age 1.5 years after PS adjustment in sibling-matched fixed-effect models [β 0.60, 95% confidence interval 0.17-0.95]. Analyses on specific drug groups showed that prenatal exposure to BZD-anxiolytics was associated with increased internalizing problems at both 1.5 years [β 0.25, 0.01-0.49] and 3 years [β 0.26, 0.002-0.52] while exposure to z-hypnotics was not associated with any adverse outcomes after adjustment. The findings suggest a moderate association between BZD-anxiolytic exposure and child internalizing problems that is not likely due to stable familial confounding factors.

Internal resources among informal caregivers: trajectories and associations with well-being.

PubMed

Litzelman, Kristin; Tesauro, Gina; Ferrer, Rebecca

2017-12-01

The experiences, skills, and internal resources that informal caregivers bring into their role may play a critical part in their mental health and well-being. This study examined how caregiver internal resources changed over a 10 year period, and how this was related to caregivers' well-being. Data are from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study, a national sample of adults, at two time points: 1995-1996 (T1) and 2004-2006 (T2). We identified subjects who reported being a caregiver at T2 and starting care after T1 (mean age = 56; 65% female). We examined internal resources: sense of control (personal mastery); primary and secondary control strategies (persistence in goal striving, positive reappraisal, and lowering expectations); and social support seeking, and psychological and subjective well-being. We evaluated how internal resources changed over time, and how these trajectories were associated with well-being at T2 using multivariable linear regressions. Most caregivers had stable levels of internal resources (between 4 and 13% showed an increase or decrease). Caregivers with increasing or high-stable levels of personal mastery had significantly better well-being scores on 6 out of 8 subscales compared with low-stable levels [effect sizes (ES) between 0.39 and 0.79]. Increasing persistence was associated with better personal growth and environmental mastery (ES = 0.96 and 0.91), and increasing and high-stable positive reappraisals were associated with better affect (ES = 0.63 and 0.48) compared with low-stable levels. Lowering aspirations and support seeking were not associated with well-being outcomes. Practices or interventions that support or improve internal resources could potentially improve caregiver well-being.

A Comparative Approach to Art Education Policy Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dewey, Patricia

2008-01-01

The challenges and opportunities of globalization require art education scholars and practitioners to develop international competencies, but research in the specific field of comparative art education is very limited at present. In this article, I provide a pragmatic framework for studying art education policy as a subfield of comparative…

The Effects of Self-Directed Teams in an Automotive Manufacturing Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shall, David W.

2010-01-01

This study compares self-directed work structures to more traditional supervised work structures in order to determine if the expenditures and efforts required to implement self-directed work teams are warranted. Multiple internal performance metrics are examined in comparing plant work structures in various degrees of implementation between…

Flexibility of internal and external glenohumeral rotation of junior female tennis players and its correlation with performance ranking.

PubMed

Chiang, Ching-Cheng; Hsu, Chih-Chia; Chiang, Jinn-Yen; Chang, Weng-Cheng; Tsai, Jong-Chang

2016-12-01

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to compare the internal and external rotation of the dominant and nondominant shoulders of adolescent female tennis players. The correlation between the shoulder rotation range of motion and the player's ranking was also analyzed. [Subjects and Methods] Twenty-one female junior tennis players who were 13 to 18 years old participated in this study. A standard goniometer was used to measure the internal and external rotation of both glenohumeral joints. The difference in internal and external rotation was calculated as the glenohumeral rotation deficit. The year-end ranking of each player was obtained from the Chinese Taipei Tennis Association. [Results] The internal rotation of the dominant shoulder was significantly smaller than that of the nondominant shoulder. Moreover, player ranking was significantly and negatively correlated with the internal rotation range of motion of both shoulders. On the other hand, the correlations of the internal and external rotation ranges of motion with the age, height, and weight were not significant. [Conclusion] The flexibility of the glenohumeral internal rotation is smaller in the dominant shoulder than of the nondominant shoulder in these junior female tennis players. Flexibility of the glenohumeral internal rotation may be a factor affecting performance in junior female tennis players.

Effects of internal displacement and resettlement on the mental health of Turkish children and adolescents.

PubMed

Erol, Neşe; Simşek, Zeynep; Oner, Ozgür; Munir, Kerim

2005-03-01

To evaluate the effects of internal displacement and resettlement within Turkey on the emotional and behavioral profile of children, age 5-18 after controlling for possible confounding and demographic variables. We conducted a national population survey using a self-weighted, equal probability sample. We compared the CBCL, TRF and YSR responses regarding children with (n = 1644) and without (n = 1855) experience of internal displacement. We examined the effects of gender, age, paternal employment, resettlement, urban residence and physical illness. The children and adolescents with internal displacement had significantly higher internalizing, externalizing and total problem scores on the CBCL and YSR, and higher internalizing scores on the TRF. The effect of displacement was related to higher internalizing problems when factors like physical illness, child age, child gender and urban residence were accounted. The overall effect was small explaining only 0.1-1.5% of the total variance by parent reports, and not evident by teacher reports. To our knowledge the present study is the first to examine Turkish children and adolescents with and without experience of internal displacement. The results are consistent with previous immigration studies: child age, gender, presence of physical illness and urban residence were more important predictors of internalization and externalization problem scores irrespective of informant source.

32 CFR 206.3 - Overall program emphasis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... curriculum development efforts. Such efforts may involve intensive language study designed for different... comparative terms. Students in these areas also need quality opportunities in international education. (3...

32 CFR 206.3 - Overall program emphasis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... curriculum development efforts. Such efforts may involve intensive language study designed for different... comparative terms. Students in these areas also need quality opportunities in international education. (3...

32 CFR 206.3 - Overall program emphasis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... curriculum development efforts. Such efforts may involve intensive language study designed for different... comparative terms. Students in these areas also need quality opportunities in international education. (3...

32 CFR 206.3 - Overall program emphasis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... curriculum development efforts. Such efforts may involve intensive language study designed for different... comparative terms. Students in these areas also need quality opportunities in international education. (3...

32 CFR 206.3 - Overall program emphasis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... curriculum development efforts. Such efforts may involve intensive language study designed for different... comparative terms. Students in these areas also need quality opportunities in international education. (3...

A comparison of self-generated versus taught internal strategies for working memory.

PubMed

Dirette, Diane Powers

2015-01-01

Internal strategies are effective for improving working memory. These internal working memory strategies can be taught or self-generated. This study compares working memory performance using taught versus self-generated internal working memory strategies and explores the quantity, type and carry-over of the use of these strategies. An experimental cohort design with randomly assigned groups compared the performances among 120 participants on 5 memory tests given prior, immediately following and at 1 month post intervention. There were no significant differences in the number or type of internal memory strategies used by the groups with chunking, repetition and association used most commonly. The group that self-generated strategies performed significantly better on a contextual memory test and the group that was taught strategies performed better on a face/name recall test for which a specific strategy was taught. The group that was taught strategies performed significantly worse on contextual memory tests from pre-test to follow-up. Participants who generated their own strategies or used a specific strategy for a specific task did as well as participants who were taught myriad internal WM strategies. Teaching too many strategies may overwhelm participants or may distract them from using the context that is available in such tasks.

Comparison of the perceived relevance of oral biology reported by students and interns of a Pakistani dental college.

PubMed

Farooq, I; Ali, S

2014-11-01

The purpose of this study was to analyse and compare the perceived relevance of oral biology with dentistry as reported by dental students and interns and to investigate the most popular teaching approach and learning resource. A questionnaire aiming to ask about the relevance of oral biology to dentistry, most popular teaching method and learning resource was utilised in this study. Study groups encompassed second-year dental students who had completed their course and dental interns. The data were obtained and analysed statistically. The overall response rate for both groups was 60%. Both groups reported high relevance of oral biology to dentistry. Perception of dental interns regarding the relevance of oral biology to dentistry was higher than that of students. Both groups identified student presentations as the most important teaching method. Amongst the most important learning resources, textbooks were considered most imperative by interns, whereas lecture handouts received the highest importance score by students. Dental students and interns considered oral biology to be relevant to dentistry, although greater relevance was reported by interns. Year-wise advancement in dental education and training improves the perception of the students about the relevance of oral biology to dentistry. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Comparison of the diameter, cross-sectional area, and position of the left and right internal jugular vein and carotid artery in adults using ultrasound.

PubMed

Bos, Michaël J; van Loon, Rick F H J; Heywood, Luke; Morse, Mitchell P; van Zundert, André A J

2016-08-01

Central venous access is indicated for transduction of central venous pressure and the administration of inotropes in the perioperative period. The right internal jugular vein (RIJV) is cannulated preferentially over the left internal jugular vein (LIJV). Cannulation of the LIJV is associated with a higher complication rate and a perceived increased level of difficulty when compared with cannulation of the RIJV. Possible explanations for the higher complication rate include a smaller diameter and more anterior position relative to the corresponding carotid artery (CA) of the LIJV compared with the RIJV. In this study, the RIJV and LIJV were examined in mechanically ventilated patients to determine the validity of these possible explanations. A prospective, nonrandomized cohort study. The operating room of a major teaching hospital. One hundred fifty-one patients scheduled for elective heart surgery. Ultrasound examination of the RIJV and LIJV at the level of the cricoid cartilage with a 12-MHz linear transducer in 151 anesthetized, mechanically ventilated patients in the Trendelenburg position. In 72% of patients, the RIJV was dominant over the LIJV. The diameter and cross-sectional area of the RIJV was larger than the LIJV (P < .001). An anterior position of the LIJV in relation to the left CA was detected more often when compared with the RIJV and right CA (15.1% vs 5.4%, P = .01). This study confirms the smaller diameter and increased frequency of anterior positioning relative to the corresponding CA of the LIJV when compared with the RIJV. This validates them as possible explanations for the higher complication rate of LIJV cannulation compared with RIJV cannulation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Prepared to practice? Perception of career preparation and guidance of recent medical graduates at two campuses of a transnational medical school: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Kassim, Sameer S; McGowan, Yvonne; McGee, Hannah; Whitford, David L

2016-02-09

Graduating medical students enter the workforce with substantial medical knowledge and experience, yet little is known about how well they are prepared for the transition to medical practice in diverse settings. We set out to compare perceptions of medical school graduates' career guidance with their perceptions of preparedness to practice as interns. We also set out to compare perceptions of preparedness for hospital practice between graduates from two transnational medical schools. This was a cross-sectional study. A Preparedness for Hospital Practice (PHPQ) survey and career guidance questionnaire was sent to recent medical graduates, incorporating additional free text responses on career preparation. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and tests of association including Chi-square, Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis H tests. Forty three percent (240/555) of graduates responded to the survey: 39 % of respondents were domestic (Dublin, Ireland or Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain) and interning locally; 15 % were overseas students interning locally; 42 % were overseas students interning internationally and 4 % had not started internship. Two variables explained 13 % of the variation in preparedness for hospital practice score: having planned postgraduate education prior to entering medical school and having helpful career guidance in medical school. Overseas graduates interning internationally were more likely to have planned their postgraduate career path prior to entering medical school. Dublin graduates found their career guidance more helpful than Bahrain counterparts. The most cited shortcomings were lack of structured career advice and lack of advice on the Irish and Bahraini postgraduate systems. This study has demonstrated that early consideration of postgraduate career preparation and helpful medical school career guidance has a strong association with perceptions of preparedness of medical graduates for hospital practice. In an era of increasing globalization of medical education, these findings can direct ongoing efforts to ensure all medical students receive career guidance and preparation for internship appropriate to their destination.

Avoidable iatrogenic complications of male urethral catheterisation and inadequate intern training: a 4-year follow-up post implementation of an intern training programme.

PubMed

Sullivan, J F; Forde, J C; Thomas, A Z; Creagh, T A

2015-02-01

To assess the impact of a structured training programme in urethral catheterisation (UC) targeted at newly qualified junior doctors on rates of iatrogenic catheter morbidity within a tertiary care referral centre. Male UC-related morbidities were retrospectively identified from our computerised inpatient urology consultation system over a 1-year period from July 2010 to June 2011. Relevant medical records were also reviewed. Results were compared with an initial study performed between July 2006 and June 2007, prior the introduction of a structured training programme in our institution. An anonymous questionnaire was used for the subjective assessment of interns about confidence in catheterising post introduction of the programme. Of 725 urological consultations, 29 (4%) were related to complications arising from male UC during the 1 year period. This reflected a statistically significant decrease when compared to our 2007 figures, 51/864 (6%) (p < 0.05). Again, the most common indication for UC was monitoring urinary output for acute medical illness (19/29, 66%). The most common complication was urethral trauma (16/29, 55%). Of the 29 cases of UC-related morbidity, 18 (62%) resulted from interns performing UC, a decrease of 12% from our original paper. A drop of 27% was seen in the rates of UC related morbidity attributable to interns during the first 6 months of internship (July-December). Overall, 70% (vs 40% original study) of interns felt that their practical training was adequate since introduction of the programme (p < 0.01) with 53% considering theoretical training adequate (vs 16% original study (p < 0.01). When asked were they confident in performing UC, 63% said they were compared to 35% before introduction of the programme (p < 0.05). UC-related iatrogenic morbidity is not uncommon even in a tertiary-care teaching hospital. Implementation of a structured training programme in UC prior to the commencement of intern year has been shown to result in a significant decrease in the amount of iatrogenic UC related morbidity. Copyright © 2014 Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (Scottish charity number SC005317) and Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Nazi Seizure of the "International Education Review": A Dark Episode in the Early Professional Development of Comparative Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Epstein, Erwin H.

2018-01-01

It was not until the 1930s that comparative education, with the initiation of dedicated courses and programmes at universities in various countries, that the field became internationally recognised in its own right. And, it was not until the 1930s that the first internationally recognised journal in the field, the "International Education…

Web-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Intervention for the Prevention of Suicidal Ideation in Medical Interns: A Randomized Controlled Trial

PubMed Central

Guille, Constance; Zhao, Zhuo; Krystal, John; Nichols, Breck; Brady, Kathleen; Sen, Srijan

2016-01-01

Importance In the United States, approximately one physician dies by suicide every day. Training physicians are at particularly high risk, with suicidal ideation increasing over four-fold during the first three months of internship year. Despite this dramatic increase, very few efforts have been made to prevent the escalation of suicidal thoughts among training physicians. Objective To assess the effectiveness of a Web-based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (wCBT) program delivered prior to the start of internship year in the prevention of suicidal ideation in medical interns. Design, Setting and Participants A randomized controlled trial conducted at two university hospitals with 199 interns from multiple specialties during academic years 2009-10 or 2011-12. Interventions Interns were randomly assigned to study groups (wCBT, n=100; attention-control group (ACG), n=99), and completed study activities lasting 30-minutes each week for four weeks prior to starting internship year. Subjects assigned to wCBT completed online-CBT modules and subjects assigned to ACG received emails with general information about depression, suicidal thinking and local mental health providers. Main Outcome Measure The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was employed to assess suicidal ideation (i.e., “thoughts that you would be better off dead, or hurting yourself in some way”) prior to the start of intern year and at 3-month intervals throughout the year. Results 62.2% (199/320) of individuals agreed to take part in the study. During at least one time point over the course of internship year 12% (12/100) of interns assigned to wCBT endorsed suicidal ideation, compared to 21%(21/99) of interns assigned to ACG. After adjusting for covariates identified a priori that have previously shown to increase the risk for suicidal ideation, interns assigned to wCBT were 60% less likely to endorse suicidal ideation during internship year (RR: 0.40, 95% CI 0.17-0.91; p=0.03), compared to those assigned to ACG. Conclusion This study demonstrates that a free, easily accessible, brief wCBT program can help reduce the development of suicidal ideation among medical interns. Prevention programs with these characteristics could be easily disseminated to medical training program across the country. PMID:26535958

Non-linear Relationship between BOLD Activation and Amplitude of Beta Oscillations in the Supplementary Motor Area during Rhythmic Finger Tapping and Internal Timing.

PubMed

Gompf, Florian; Pflug, Anja; Laufs, Helmut; Kell, Christian A

2017-01-01

Functional imaging studies using BOLD contrasts have consistently reported activation of the supplementary motor area (SMA) both during motor and internal timing tasks. Opposing findings, however, have been shown for the modulation of beta oscillations in the SMA. While movement suppresses beta oscillations in the SMA, motor and non-motor tasks that rely on internal timing increase the amplitude of beta oscillations in the SMA. These independent observations suggest that the relationship between beta oscillations and BOLD activation is more complex than previously thought. Here we set out to investigate this rapport by examining beta oscillations in the SMA during movement with varying degrees of internal timing demands. In a simultaneous EEG-fMRI experiment, 20 healthy right-handed subjects performed an auditory-paced finger-tapping task. Internal timing was operationalized by including conditions with taps on every fourth auditory beat, which necessitates generation of a slow internal rhythm, while tapping to every auditory beat reflected simple auditory-motor synchronization. In the SMA, BOLD activity increased and power in both the low and the high beta band decreased expectedly during each condition compared to baseline. Internal timing was associated with a reduced desynchronization of low beta oscillations compared to conditions without internal timing demands. In parallel with this relative beta power increase, internal timing activated the SMA more strongly in terms of BOLD. This documents a task-dependent non-linear relationship between BOLD and beta-oscillations in the SMA. We discuss different roles of beta synchronization and desynchronization in active processing within the same cortical region.

Technology whitespaces India should focus: a comparative anti-cancer patent rational analysis of Indian and international public funded universities.

PubMed

Dara, Ajay; Sangamwar, Abhay T

2015-01-01

The article reported an in-depth comparative technology analysis of 1708 Anti-cancer patents from top 20 international universities and leading 10 Indian public funded organization and research institutes. The study segregated pioneer universities vs. technologies used in the field of Anticancer research at a level of drug discovery, development, diagnosis and treatment, which are illustrated in the form of novel substantive patent landscape maps. The reported competitive intelligent maps identified genetics, composition and synthetic compounds as dominating technologies; followed by natural extracts, combination and drug delivery systems as upcoming technologies. The least number of patents were reported by surgical apparatus, targeted therapy and animal models. In addition, the study analysed the key technologies followed by Indian universities in comparison to the international universities, to identify the overlooked technologies by the Indian public funded institutes. In an ever changing competitive world, it is essential for every university to have their own research plan and thrust areas; but at the same time, it is equally important for any organisation to have an idea of their competitor's research plan as well. So, the article suggested Indian institutes to focus on the latest emerging Anti-cancer technology trends, which are in practice by the international universities. Concurrently, this study may be a landmark indication for Indian public funded universities and institutes, calling for a U-turn from their traditional approaches.

Marginal and internal fit of cobalt-chromium copings fabricated using the conventional and the direct metal laser sintering techniques: A comparative in vitro study.

PubMed

Ullattuthodi, Sujana; Cherian, Kandathil Phillip; Anandkumar, R; Nambiar, M Sreedevi

2017-01-01

This in vitro study seeks to evaluate and compare the marginal and internal fit of cobalt-chromium copings fabricated using the conventional and direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) techniques. A master model of a prepared molar tooth was made using cobalt-chromium alloy. Silicone impression of the master model was made and thirty standardized working models were then produced; twenty working models for conventional lost-wax technique and ten working models for DMLS technique. A total of twenty metal copings were fabricated using two different production techniques: conventional lost-wax method and DMLS; ten samples in each group. The conventional and DMLS copings were cemented to the working models using glass ionomer cement. Marginal gap of the copings were measured at predetermined four points. The die with the cemented copings are standardized-sectioned with a heavy duty lathe. Then, each sectioned samples were analyzed for the internal gap between the die and the metal coping using a metallurgical microscope. Digital photographs were taken at ×50 magnification and analyzed using measurement software. Statistical analysis was done by unpaired t -test and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results of this study reveal that no significant difference was present in the marginal gap of conventional and DMLS copings ( P > 0.05) by means of ANOVA. The mean values of internal gap of DMLS copings were significantly greater than that of conventional copings ( P < 0.05). Within the limitations of this in vitro study, it was concluded that the internal fit of conventional copings was superior to that of the DMLS copings. Marginal fit of the copings fabricated by two different techniques had no significant difference.

How to Cope with Stress in Special Needs Education? Stress-Inducing Dysfunctional Cognitions of Teacher Students: The Perspective of Professionalisation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kiel, Ewald; Heimlich, Ulrich; Markowetz, Reinhard; Braun, Annika; Weiß, Sabine

2016-01-01

The goal of the present study is to identify prospective special education teachers (SETs) who may have difficulties in coping with occupational stresses and burdens. International comparative studies show that SETs have a higher level of stress than their colleagues who work in the general school system. Compared with teachers in regular schools,…

Information Technology Diffusion: A Comparative Case Study of Intranet Adoption

DTIC Science & Technology

1999-07-01

Information Technology Diffusion: A Comparative Case Study of Intranet Adoption George A. Zolla Jr. Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA 93943...and diffusion of intranet technology is then presented. I. INTRODUCTION An intranet is an organization’s internal computer network protected from the... Information Systems (IS) strategy links to implementation [16]. More research dealing with the implementation of new technology in organizations is needed

Science Education Impacts on Labor Market and University Expectations of Students by Citizenship Status in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Comparative Analysis Using TIMSS 2007 Data

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiseman, Alexander W.; Alromi, Naif H.; Alshumrani, Saleh

2013-01-01

This study comparatively examines the impact of students' citizenship status on science education relative to labor market and university expectations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Specifically, the 2007 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) provides science education teaching, learning and achievement data from the…

The Future of Swiss Foreign and Security Policy: Increasing International Cooperation is the Key to National Autonomy

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-12-01

government,14 the “comparison cases ” in the present analysis—Austria, Finland , Ireland and Sweden—and the various security studies institutions.15 The...comparative cases are those of Austria, Finland , Ireland, and Sweden, the larger European neutrals.22 The study is limited to these five cases because the...17   III.   COMPARING SWITZERLAND WITH FOUR CASES

Comparative health systems research among Kaiser Permanente and other integrated delivery systems: a systematic literature review.

PubMed

Maeda, Jared Lane K; Lee, Karen M; Horberg, Michael

2014-01-01

Because of rising health care costs, wide variations in quality, and increased patient complexity, the US health care system is undergoing rapid changes that include payment reform and movement toward integrated delivery systems. Well-established integrated delivery systems, such as Kaiser Permanente (KP), should work to identify the specific system-level factors that result in superior patient outcomes in response to policymakers' concerns. Comparative health systems research can provide insights into which particular aspects of the integrated delivery system result in improved care delivery. To provide a baseline understanding of comparative health systems research related to integrated delivery systems and KP. Systematic literature review. We conducted a literature search on PubMed and the KP Publications Library. Studies that compared KP as a system or organization with other health care systems or across KP facilities internally were included. The literature search identified 1605 articles, of which 65 met the study inclusion criteria and were examined by 3 reviewers. Most comparative health systems studies focused on intra-KP comparisons (n = 42). Fewer studies compared KP with other US (n = 15) or international (n = 12) health care systems. Several themes emerged from the literature as possible factors that may contribute to improved care delivery in integrated delivery systems. Of all studies published by or about KP, only a small proportion of articles (4%) was identified as being comparative health systems research. Additional empirical studies that compare the specific factors of the integrated delivery system model with other systems of care are needed to better understand the "system-level" factors that result in improved and/or diminished care delivery.

Perspectives on Numeracy: Reflections from International Assessments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tout, Dave; Gal, Iddo

2015-01-01

This paper examines perspectives regarding the mathematical skills expected of adults and school graduates, comparing ideas developed as part of two major multinational comparative assessments of skills: the Programme for International Student Assessment and the Programme for International Assessment of Adult Competencies (also known as the OECD…

Effect of the 2011 vs 2003 duty hour regulation-compliant models on sleep duration, trainee education, and continuity of patient care among internal medicine house staff: a randomized trial.

PubMed

Desai, Sanjay V; Feldman, Leonard; Brown, Lorrel; Dezube, Rebecca; Yeh, Hsin-Chieh; Punjabi, Naresh; Afshar, Kia; Grunwald, Michael R; Harrington, Colleen; Naik, Rakhi; Cofrancesco, Joseph

2013-04-22

On July 1, 2011, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education implemented further restrictions of its 2003 regulations on duty hours and supervision. It remains unclear if the 2003 regulations improved trainee well-being or patient safety. To determine the effects of the 2011 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education duty hour regulations compared with the 2003 regulations concerning sleep duration, trainee education, continuity of patient care, and perceived quality of care among internal medicine trainees. Crossover study design in an academic research setting. Medical house staff. General medical teams were randomly assigned using a sealed-envelope draw to an experimental model or a control model. We randomly assigned 4 medical house staff teams (43 interns) using a 3-month crossover design to a 2003-compliant model of every fourth night overnight call (control) with 30-hour duty limits or to one of two 2011-compliant models of every fifth night overnight call (Q5) or a night float schedule (NF), both with 16-hour duty limits. We measured sleep duration using actigraphy and used admission volumes, educational opportunities, the number of handoffs, and satisfaction surveys to assess trainee education, continuity of patient care, and perceived quality of care. RESULTS The study included 560 control, 420 Q5, and 140 NF days that interns worked and 834 hospital admissions. Compared with controls, interns on NF slept longer during the on call period (mean, 5.1 vs 8.3 hours; P = .003), and interns on Q5 slept longer during the postcall period (mean, 7.5 vs 10.2 hours; P = .05). However, both the Q5 and NF models increased handoffs, decreased availability for teaching conferences, and reduced intern presence during daytime work hours. Residents and nurses in both experimental models perceived reduced quality of care, so much so with NF that it was terminated early. Compared with a 2003-compliant model, two 2011 duty hour regulation-compliant models were associated with increased sleep duration during the on-call period and with deteriorations in educational opportunities, continuity of patient care, and perceived quality of care.

Nasal valve evaluation in the Mexican-Hispanic (mestizo) nose.

PubMed

Jasso-Ramírez, Elizabeth; Sánchez Y Béjar, Fernando; Arcaute Aizpuru, Fernando; Maulen Radován, Irene E; de la Garza Hesles, Héctor

2018-04-01

Our aim in this study was to determine the angle of the internal nasal valve in Mexican patients with the "mestizo nose" feature and without nasal obstructive symptoms. The work was prospective, comparative, and observational in nature and included patients >14 years of age who were seen in the Otolaryngology Department at the Los Angeles Lomas Hospital between April and May 2016. The angle of the internal nasal valve was measured in 30 patients without obstructive symptoms. Endoscopic examination was performed with a 0° endoscope framed with tape at a 13-mm distance from the endoscope's tip, and digital photographs of the internal nasal valve were taken. The measurement of the angle of the internal nasal valve was made in sexagesimal degrees using Golden Ratio v3.1 (2012) software. Statistical analysis was performed using Excel v15.13.3. The angles of the internal nasal valve of the patients were (mean ± standard deviation) 24.07 ± 4.8° for the right nasal cavity and 25.07 ± 5.0° for the left nasal cavity, wider than the angle reported in the normal Caucasian nose established in the literature. According to our results, the Mexican-Hispanic mestizo nose has a wider angle in the internal nasal valve than that considered normal in the literature (10°-15°). We believe it is necessary to undertake a second study and add an airflow resistance measurement with a rhinomanometry procedure so we can compare the results with those in the Caucasian population. © 2018 ARS-AAOA, LLC.

Extreme ultraviolet diagnostic upgrades for kink mode control on the HBT-EP tokamak

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Levesque, J. P.; Brooks, J. W.; Desanto, S.; Mauel, M. E.; Navratil, G. A.; Page, J. W.; Hansen, C. J.; Delgado-Aparicio, L.

2016-10-01

Optical diagnostics can provide non-invasive measurements of tokamak equilibria and the internal characteristics of MHD mode activity. We present research plans and ongoing progress on upgrading extreme ultraviolet (EUV) diagnostics in the HBT-EP tokamak. Four sets of 16 poloidal views will allow tomographic reconstruction of plasma emissivity and internal kink mode structure. Emission characteristics of naturally-occurring m/n = 2/1, 3/2, and 3/1 tearing and kink modes will be compared with expectations from a synthetic diagnostic. Coupling between internal and external modes leading up to disruptions is studied. The internal plasma response to external magnetic perturbations is investigated, and compared with magnetic response measurements. Correlation between internal emissivity and external magnetic measurements provides a global picture of long-wavelength MHD instabilities. Measurements are input to HBT-EP's GPU-based feedback system, allowing active feedback for kink modes using only optical sensors and both magnetic and edge current actuators. A separate two-color, 16-chord tangential system will be installed next year to allow reconstruction of temperature profiles and their fluctuations versus time. Supported by U.S. DOE Grant DE-FG02-86ER53222.

Transient in-plane thermal transport in nanofilms with internal heating

PubMed Central

Cao, Bing-Yang

2016-01-01

Wide applications of nanofilms in electronics necessitate an in-depth understanding of nanoscale thermal transport, which significantly deviates from Fourier's law. Great efforts have focused on the effective thermal conductivity under temperature difference, while it is still ambiguous whether the diffusion equation with an effective thermal conductivity can accurately characterize the nanoscale thermal transport with internal heating. In this work, transient in-plane thermal transport in nanofilms with internal heating is studied via Monte Carlo (MC) simulations in comparison to the heat diffusion model and mechanism analyses using Fourier transform. Phonon-boundary scattering leads to larger temperature rise and slower thermal response rate when compared with the heat diffusion model based on Fourier's law. The MC simulations are also compared with the diffusion model with effective thermal conductivity. In the first case of continuous internal heating, the diffusion model with effective thermal conductivity under-predicts the temperature rise by the MC simulations at the initial heating stage, while the deviation between them gradually decreases and vanishes with time. By contrast, for the one-pulse internal heating case, the diffusion model with effective thermal conductivity under-predicts both the peak temperature rise and the cooling rate, so the deviation can always exist. PMID:27118903

Is a global rural and remote health research agenda desirable or is context supreme?

PubMed

Farmer, Jane; Clark, Ann; Munoz, Sarah-Anne

2010-06-01

This paper proposes that there is value in international comparison of rural and remote health-care service delivery models because of practical reasons - to find ideas, models and lessons to address 'local' delivery challenges; and for theoretical reasons - to derive a conceptual framework for international comparison. Literature review and commentary. There are significant challenges to international comparative research that have been highlighted generically; for example, equivalence of terminology, datasets and indicators. Context supremacy has been raised as a reason why models and research findings might not be transferable. This paper proposes that there is insufficient knowledge about how rural contexts in relation to health service delivery are similar or different internationally. Investigating contexts in different countries and identifying the dimensions on which service delivery might differ is an important stimulus for study. The paper suggests, for discussion, dimensions on which rural service delivery might differ between countries and regions, including physical geographical factors, social interaction with rurality, policies of service provision and the politics and operation of health care. The paper asks whether, given the need to develop models suitable for rural areas and for theory on rural health to extend, international comparative research is an imperative or an indulgence.

The Education-Occupation Mismatch of International and Internal Migrants in Mexico, 2005-2012.

PubMed

Villarreal, Andrés

2016-06-01

Recent studies have found international migrants from developing countries such as Mexico to be negatively selected by education; that is, they are less educated than those who stay behind. Moving beyond the question of whether migrants are negatively selected by education overall, I examine how migrants are selected compared with others in similar jobs. Using data from a nationally representative panel survey of Mexican households, I find that men who migrate abroad have significantly higher levels of education than nonmigrants in the same occupation. Because men who are overeducated for their occupation tend to receive lower wages than those employed in occupations commensurate with their education, and are also more dissatisfied with their jobs, overeducation may encourage men to emigrate. Results from the regression models, which account for differential selectivity into employment, indicate that internal migrants within Mexico also have higher educational levels than nonmigrants in the same occupation prior to migrating but comparable levels of education afterward. Migrating internally, therefore, appears to allow men to improve their occupational placement. Finally, I examine changes in migrants' education over time and find evidence that the education-occupation mismatch has increased among Mexican emigrants in the years following the 2008 U.S. recession.

Transient in-plane thermal transport in nanofilms with internal heating.

PubMed

Hua, Yu-Chao; Cao, Bing-Yang

2016-02-01

Wide applications of nanofilms in electronics necessitate an in-depth understanding of nanoscale thermal transport, which significantly deviates from Fourier's law. Great efforts have focused on the effective thermal conductivity under temperature difference, while it is still ambiguous whether the diffusion equation with an effective thermal conductivity can accurately characterize the nanoscale thermal transport with internal heating. In this work, transient in-plane thermal transport in nanofilms with internal heating is studied via Monte Carlo (MC) simulations in comparison to the heat diffusion model and mechanism analyses using Fourier transform. Phonon-boundary scattering leads to larger temperature rise and slower thermal response rate when compared with the heat diffusion model based on Fourier's law. The MC simulations are also compared with the diffusion model with effective thermal conductivity. In the first case of continuous internal heating, the diffusion model with effective thermal conductivity under-predicts the temperature rise by the MC simulations at the initial heating stage, while the deviation between them gradually decreases and vanishes with time. By contrast, for the one-pulse internal heating case, the diffusion model with effective thermal conductivity under-predicts both the peak temperature rise and the cooling rate, so the deviation can always exist.

A Comparison of China's Risk Communication in Response to SARS and H7N9 Using Principles Drawn From International Practice.

PubMed

Qiu, Wuqi; Chu, Cordia; Hou, Xiaohui; Rutherford, Shannon; Zhu, Bin; Tong, Zhendong; Mao, Ayan

2017-10-04

China's emergency management of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) was heavily criticized, whereas the H7N9 response was praised by the international community. Aims The aims of this study were to examine and compare the strengths and weaknesses of risk communication conducted in response to SARS and H7N9 and their associated social impacts on affected communities in China. A qualitative comparative case study approach was employed in the present study, using a set of 8 risk communication principles selected from international literature to suit the Chinese context for the comparative analysis of emergency responses of SARS and H7N9. The study found significant differences in the risk communication conducted in the 2 cases. The SARS outbreak fully exposed China's lack of experience in public health risk communication. By contrast, the Chinese government's risk communication strategies had improved significantly during the H7N9 outbreak. Discussion Trust is the basis for communication. Maintaining an open and honest attitude and actively engaging stakeholders to address their risk information needs will serve to build trust and facilitate multi-sector collaborations in dealing with a public health crisis. From SARS to H7N9, risk communication practices in China greatly improved, which, in turn, lessened adverse social impacts and improved outcomes in emergency management of public health crises. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2017; page 1 of 12).

Efficacy and safety of an oral contraceptive containing ethinylestradiol 20 µg/drospirenone 3 mg (24/4 regimen) in three indications in the People’s Republic of China: a comparison with international studies

PubMed Central

Marr, Joachim; Huang, Zirong; Wang, Baoxi; Zhang, Hongyan; Roth, Katrin

2015-01-01

While combined oral contraceptives are a popular choice in developed Western countries, they are used by only 1% of women who are married or in a relationship in the People’s Republic of China. The purpose of this review is to describe the efficacy and safety of the combined oral contraceptive containing ethinylestradiol (EE) 20 µg/drospirenone 3 mg taken in a 24/4 regimen (YAZ®; Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Berlin, Germany) by Chinese women and to compare these results with those in women assessed in the international studies. Studies of EE 20 µg/drospirenone 3 mg in three different indications (contraception, acne, and premenstrual dysphoric disorder [PMDD]) have been conducted in Chinese women. The results of these three studies indicate that the EE 20 µg/drospirenone 3 mg combined oral contraceptive is a good long-term contraceptive option in Chinese women, providing 99% contraceptive protection over the observed 1-year treatment period, and additionally had a favorable effect on moderate acne vulgaris and relieved the symptoms of PMDD. The contraceptive efficacy, improvement in acne, and relief from PMDD symptoms observed in these studies did not differ from the effects observed in other international studies of EE 20 µg/drospirenone 3 mg, indicating that EE 20 µg/drospirenone 3 mg is as effective in Chinese women as in other ethnicities. Further, EE 20 µg/drospirenone 3 mg demonstrated a similar safety and tolerability profile in women enrolled in the Chinese and international trials, with no unexpected adverse events reported in any of the three Chinese trials. Overall, the efficacy, tolerability, and degree of non-contraceptive benefits with EE 20 µg/drospirenone 3 mg appear similar in Chinese women when compared with those reported in larger studies done at other international centers. PMID:29386927

Thermal Conductivity of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube with Internal Heat Source Studied by Molecular Dynamics Simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Yuan-Wei; Cao, Bing-Yang

2013-12-01

The thermal conductivity of (5, 5) single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) with an internal heat source is investigated by using nonequilibrium molecular dynamics (NEMD) simulation incorporating uniform heat source and heat source-and-sink schemes. Compared with SWNTs without an internal heat source, i.e., by a fixed-temperature difference scheme, the thermal conductivity of SWNTs with an internal heat source is much lower, by as much as half in some cases, though it still increases with an increase of the tube length. Based on the theory of phonon dynamics, a function called the phonon free path distribution is defined to develop a simple one-dimensional heat conduction model considering an internal heat source, which can explain diffusive-ballistic heat transport in carbon nanotubes well.

Patients suffering from restless legs syndrome have low internal locus of control and poor psychological functioning compared to healthy controls.

PubMed

Brand, Serge; Beck, Johannes; Hatzinger, Martin; Holsboer-Trachsler, Edith

2013-01-01

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a disturbing sensorimotor disorder negatively influencing both sleep and psychological functioning. The aim of the present study was to assess RLS patients with respect to locus of control, sleep-related personality traits, quality of life, and sleep as compared to healthy controls. Thirty-eight patients (18 females and 20 males; mean age: 56.06 years) diagnosed with RLS and an age- and gender-matched control group (n = 42) were recruited. Participants completed a series of questionnaires related to locus of control, personality traits, quality of life, and sleep. Compared to healthy controls, RLS patients had a lower internal locus of control, unfavourable sleep-related personality traits such as low self-confidence and higher mental arousal, poorer quality of life, and more depressive symptoms. Sleep was also affected. Multiple regression analyses showed that a low internal and a high external locus of control were predicted by RLS. The pattern of results suggests that RLS is associated with a low locus of control, negative personality traits, and poor quality of life as compared to healthy controls. Copyright © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel.

A report on the clinical efficacy of a new Bougie-internal urethrectomy.

PubMed

Hyn, Choe Sung; Jong, Kim Han; Chol, Choe Un

2015-01-01

We compare the clinical efficacy of the new bougie-internal urethrectomy (BIU) with internal urethrotomy and urethroplasty to treat urethral stricture disease. We prospectively studied 186 people with urethral stricture disease. Of these, 84 were identified for urethroplasty and 102 for internal urethrotomy (endoscopic urethrotomy). Among the 84 identified for urethroplasty, 52 received BIU (Group 1) and the remaining 32 received urethroplasty. Among the 102 identified for internal urethrotomy, 58 received BIU (Group 2) and the remaining 44 received the internal urethrotomy. After surgery, we evaluated the clinical efficacy of the BIU (operative invasions, voiding flow rates, complications, sequelae) compared with the endoscopic treatment and urethroplasty. Patient age ranged from 20 to 70 years. The follow-up period was 2 years. In the BIU Group 1, the BIU Group 2, and the internal urethrotomy (endoscopic treatment), the length of strictures were 2.9 ± 1.5, 2.8 ± 1.3, 1.6 ± 0.7, and 1.5 ± 0.6, respectively. In the BIU Group 1, the urethroplasty, the BIU Group 2, and the internal urethrotomy (endoscopic treatment), the amount of bleeding was 34.1 ± 17.1, 172.2 ± 29.8, 28.5 ± 9.8, and 49.7 ± 13.6 mL, respectively. In the BIU Group 1, the urethroplasty, the BIU Group 2, and the internal urethrotomy, the recurrence rates were 5.8%, 86%, 6.8% and 25%, and the average flow rates were 18.1 ± 4.8, 13.1 ± 3.9, 18.2 ± 3.6, 10.1 ± 3.1 mL/s, respectively. There was no sequealae (sexual dysfunction, penile change) in both BIU groups. The new BIU could be considered first-line treatment in all patients with indications for visual internal urethrotomy and urethroplasty.

Stereotype contrast effect on neuropsychological assessment of contact-sport players: The moderating role of locus of control.

PubMed

Fresson, Megan; Dardenne, Benoit; Geurten, Marie; Meulemans, Thierry

2017-11-01

Diagnosis threat has been shown to produce detrimental effects on neuropsychological performance in individuals with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). Focusing on contact-sport players who are at great risk of mTBI, our study was designed to examine the moderating role of internal locus of control. Specifically, we predicted that following diagnosis threat (reminder of their risk of sustaining mTBI and of its consequences), low-internal contact-sport players would underperform (assimilation to the stereotype), while their high-internal counterparts would outperform (contrast effect). We predicted that effort and anxiety would mediate these effects. Contact-sport players and non-contact-sport players ("control" group) were randomly assigned to one condition (diagnosis threat or neutral) and then completed attention, executive, episodic memory, and working memory tasks. Regarding mediating and moderating variables, participants rated their effort and anxiety (self-report measures) and completed the Levenson (1974) locus of control scale. Regression-based path analyses were carried out to examine the direct and indirect effects. As expected, there was no effect of condition on the control group's performance. Contact-sport players with moderate and high levels of internal control outperformed (contrast effect) on executive and episodic memory tasks following diagnosis threat compared to the neutral condition. Additionally, the less anxiety moderate- and high-internal contact-sport participants felt, the better they performed on episodic memory and executive tasks. However, contact-sport players low in internal control did not underperform (assimilation effect) under diagnosis threat. Our results suggest that diagnosis threat instructions may have challenged moderate- and high-internal contact-sport participants, leading them to outperform compared to the neutral condition. Individuals who have moderate and high levels of internal locus of control may have higher performance under diagnosis threat compared to the neutral condition because of their feeling of control over their cognitive performance.

Asymptomatic population reference values for three knee patient-reported outcomes measures: evaluation of an electronic data collection system and implications for future international, multi-centre cohort studies.

PubMed

McLean, James M; Brumby-Rendell, Oscar; Lisle, Ryan; Brazier, Jacob; Dunn, Kieran; Gill, Tiffany; Hill, Catherine L; Mandziak, Daniel; Leith, Jordan

2018-05-01

The aim was to assess whether the Knee Society Score, Oxford Knee Score (OKS) and Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) were comparable in asymptomatic, healthy, individuals of different age, gender and ethnicity, across two remote continents. The purpose of this study was to establish normal population values for these scores using an electronic data collection system. There is no difference in clinical knee scores in an asymptomatic population when comparing age, gender and ethnicity, across two remote continents. 312 Australian and 314 Canadian citizens, aged 18-94 years, with no active knee pain, injury or pathology in the ipsilateral knee corresponding to their dominant arm, were evaluated. A knee examination was performed and participants completed an electronically administered questionnaire covering the subjective components of the knee scores. The cohorts were age- and gender-matched. Chi-square tests, Fisher's exact test and Poisson regression models were used where appropriate, to investigate the association between knee scores, age, gender, ethnicity and nationality. There was a significant inverse relationship between age and all assessment tools. OKS recorded a significant difference between gender with females scoring on average 1% lower score. There was no significant difference between international cohorts when comparing all assessment tools. An electronic, multi-centre data collection system can be effectively utilized to assess remote international cohorts. Differences in gender, age, ethnicity and nationality should be taken into consideration when using knee scores to compare to pathological patient scores. This study has established an electronic, normal control group for future studies using the Knee society, Oxford, and KOOS knee scores. Diagnostic Level II.

Unruptured intracranial aneurysms in the Familial Intracranial Aneurysm and International Study of Unruptured Intracranial Aneurysms cohorts: differences in multiplicity and location.

PubMed

Mackey, Jason; Brown, Robert D; Moomaw, Charles J; Sauerbeck, Laura; Hornung, Richard; Gandhi, Dheeraj; Woo, Daniel; Kleindorfer, Dawn; Flaherty, Matthew L; Meissner, Irene; Anderson, Craig; Connolly, E Sander; Rouleau, Guy; Kallmes, David F; Torner, James; Huston, John; Broderick, Joseph P

2012-07-01

Familial predisposition is a recognized nonmodifiable risk factor for the formation and rupture of intracranial aneurysms (IAs). However, data regarding the characteristics of familial IAs are limited. The authors sought to describe familial IAs more fully, and to compare their characteristics with a large cohort of nonfamilial IAs. The Familial Intracranial Aneurysm (FIA) study is a multicenter international study with the goal of identifying genetic and other risk factors for formation and rupture of IAs in a highly enriched population. The authors compared the FIA study cohort with the International Study of Unruptured Intracranial Aneurysms (ISUIA) cohort with regard to patient demographic data, IA location, and IA multiplicity. To improve comparability, all patients in the ISUIA who had a family history of IAs or subarachnoid hemorrhage were excluded, as well as all patients in both cohorts who had a ruptured IA prior to study entry. Of 983 patients enrolled in the FIA study with definite or probable IAs, 511 met the inclusion criteria for this analysis. Of the 4059 patients in the ISUIA study, 983 had a previous IA rupture and 657 of the remainder had a positive family history, leaving 2419 individuals in the analysis. Multiplicity was more common in the FIA patients (35.6% vs 27.9%, p<0.001). The FIA patients had a higher proportion of IAs located in the middle cerebral artery (28.6% vs 24.9%), whereas ISUIA patients had a higher proportion of posterior communicating artery IAs (13.7% vs 8.2%, p=0.016). Heritable structural vulnerability may account for differences in IA multiplicity and location. Important investigations into the underlying genetic mechanisms of IA formation are ongoing.

Shoulder isokinetic profile of male handball players of the Brazilian National Team

PubMed Central

Andrade, Marília S.; Vancini, Rodrigo L.; de Lira, Claudio A. B.; Mascarin, Naryana C.; Fachina, Rafael J. F. G.; da Silva, Antonio C.

2013-01-01

Background Data obtained on an isokinetic dynamometer are useful to characterize muscle status and have been reported in muscle imbalance studies in different types of sport. However, few studies have assessed elite handball players to establish reference values. Objective The purpose of this study was to compare, for the dominant (D) and non-dominant (ND) side, the isokinetic profile of shoulder rotator muscle strength between male handball players (H) and asymptomatic non-athletes (NA). Method Isokinetic concentric and eccentric strength tests for D upper limbs were performed by the H group (n=20) and the NA group (n=12). Internal and external rotator muscle peak torque in concentric action was assessed at 60°/s and 300°/s and in eccentric action at 300°/s. We also calculated conventional balance (the ratio of external rotator peak torque to internal rotator peak torque in concentric action) and functional balance (the ratio of external rotator peak torque in eccentric action to internal rotator peak torque in concentric action). Results In the H group, dominant limbs were stronger in concentric action for external rotation at 60 and 300°/s. The conventional balance ratio for the D side was significantly lower at 60 and 300°/s for H compared to NA. The functional ratio for the D side was significantly lower at 300º/s for H compared to NA. Conclusions Compared to asymptomatic non-athletes, handball players presented significant muscular imbalance resulting from daily sports practice, a known risk factor for shoulder injuries. PMID:24271090

Being bullied as an environmentally mediated contributing factor to children's internalizing problems: a study of twins discordant for victimization.

PubMed

Arseneault, Louise; Milne, Barry J; Taylor, Alan; Adams, Felicity; Delgado, Kira; Caspi, Avshalom; Moffitt, Terrie E

2008-02-01

To test whether the experience of being bullied has an environmentally mediated effect on internalizing symptoms in young children. A genetically informative, longitudinal 1994-1995 birth cohort. A nationally representative sample from the United Kingdom. We examined 1116 twin pairs who are participants in the Environmental Risk Longitudinal Twin Study. Main Exposure The experience of being bullied between the ages of 7 and 9 years. Mothers' and teachers' reports of children's internalizing problems at 7 and 10 years of age. Monozygotic twins who had been bullied had more internalizing symptoms (mean, 0.23; SD, 1.00) compared with their co-twin who had not been bullied (mean, -0.13; SD, 0.86), indicating that being bullied has an environmentally mediated effect on children's internalizing problems (beta, 0.36 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.18-0.54]). This effect remained significant after controlling for preexisting internalizing problems (beta, 0.26 [95% CI, 0.09-0.44]). Being bullied at a young age is an environmentally mediated contributing factor to children's internalizing problems. Intervention programs aimed at reducing bullying behavior in schools and in the community have the potential to influence children's early symptoms of mental health problems.

Brief International Cognitive Assessment for MS (BICAMS): international standards for validation.

PubMed

Benedict, Ralph H B; Amato, Maria Pia; Boringa, Jan; Brochet, Bruno; Foley, Fred; Fredrikson, Stan; Hamalainen, Paivi; Hartung, Hans; Krupp, Lauren; Penner, Iris; Reder, Anthony T; Langdon, Dawn

2012-07-16

An international expert consensus committee recently recommended a brief battery of tests for cognitive evaluation in multiple sclerosis. The Brief International Cognitive Assessment for MS (BICAMS) battery includes tests of mental processing speed and memory. Recognizing that resources for validation will vary internationally, the committee identified validation priorities, to facilitate international acceptance of BICAMS. Practical matters pertaining to implementation across different languages and countries were discussed. Five steps to achieve optimal psychometric validation were proposed. In Step 1, test stimuli should be standardized for the target culture or language under consideration. In Step 2, examiner instructions must be standardized and translated, including all information from manuals necessary for administration and interpretation. In Step 3, samples of at least 65 healthy persons should be studied for normalization, matched to patients on demographics such as age, gender and education. The objective of Step 4 is test-retest reliability, which can be investigated in a small sample of MS and/or healthy volunteers over 1-3 weeks. Finally, in Step 5, criterion validity should be established by comparing MS and healthy controls. At this time, preliminary studies are underway in a number of countries as we move forward with this international assessment tool for cognition in MS.

External Versus Internal Pancreatic Duct Drainage for the Early Efficacy After Pancreaticoduodenectomy: A Retrospectively Comparative Study.

PubMed

Wang, Gang; Li, Le; Ma, Yuan; Qu, Feng-Zhi; Zhu, Hong; Lv, Jia-Chen; Jia, Yue-Hui; Wu, Lin-Feng; Sun, Bei

2016-08-01

To compare the early efficacy of external versus internal pancreatic duct drainage after pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD), providing clinical evidence for selecting the optimal approach to pancreatic duct drainage. The clinical data of 395 consecutive patients undergoing PD from 2006 to 2013 were analyzed retrospectively. All the patients were divided into external and internal drainage group. Intraoperative blood loss, surgery duration, postoperative hospitalization duration, mortality rate, PF, and other complications were compared between the two groups. The perioperative relative risk factors that might induce PF were analyzed. External drainage significantly reduced the incidences of post-PD PF, delayed gastric emptying, abdominal infection, bowel obstruction, overall complications, and shortened the healing time of PF (p < .05). The univariate analysis showed that the pancreatic duct drainage method, body mass index (BMI), preoperative serum bilirubin level, perioperative blood transfusion, pancreaticojejunostomy approach, pancreatic texture, pancreatic duct diameter, and primary disease differed markedly between the two groups (p < .05). A multivariate analysis revealed that BMI ≥ 25 kg/m(2), internal pancreatic duct drainage, pancreatic duct diameter <3 mm, soft pancreatic texture, and ampullary disease were independent risk factors for PF. External pancreatic duct drainage can effectively reduce the morbidity of PF and overall complications after PD.

Evaluation of marginal bone loss of dental implants with internal or external connections and its association with other variables: A systematic review.

PubMed

de Medeiros, Rodrigo Antonio; Pellizzer, Eduardo Piza; Vechiato Filho, Aljomar José; Dos Santos, Daniela Micheline; da Silva, Emily Vivianne Freitas; Goiato, Marcelo Coelho

2016-10-01

Different factors can influence marginal bone loss around dental implants, including the type of internal and external connection between the implant and the abutment. The evidence needed to evaluate these factors is unclear. The purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate marginal bone loss by radiographic analysis around dental implants with internal or external connections. A systematic review was conducted following the criteria defined by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). Initially, a population, intervention, comparison, and outcome(s) (PICO) question was defined: does the connection type (internal or external) influence marginal bone loss in patients undergoing implantation? An electronic search of PubMed/MEDLINE and Scopus databases was performed for studies in English language published between January 2000 and December 2014 by 2 independent reviewers, who analyzed the marginal bone loss of dental implants with an internal and/or external connection. From an initial screening yield of 595 references and after considering inclusion and exclusion criteria, 17 articles were selected for this review. Among them, 10 studies compared groups of implants with internal and external connections; 1 study evaluated external connections; and 6 studies analyzed internal connections. A total of 2708 implants were placed in 864 patients. Regarding the connection type, 2347 implants had internal connections, and 361 implants had external connections. Most studies showed lower marginal bone loss values for internal connection implants than for external connection implants. Osseointegrated dental implants with internal connections exhibited lower marginal bone loss than implants with external connections. This finding is mainly the result of the platform switching concept, which is more frequently found in implants with internal connections. Copyright © 2016 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of the Core Primary Curriculum in England to Those of Other High Performing Countries. Research Report DCSF-RW048

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruddock, Graham; Sainsbury, Marian

2008-01-01

This study looks at the curricula for mathematics, science and literacy, comparing England's curricula with those of other countries based on performance in international comparative surveys. The main objective was to answer the question: How does the content of the Primary Curriculum in England at Key stage 2 compare in literacy, math and science…

Desirable role in a price-setting international mixed duopoly

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferreira, Fernanda A.; Ferreira, Flávio

2011-12-01

In this paper, we study the order of moves in a mixed international duopoly for differentiated goods, where firms choose whether to set prices sequentially or simultaneously. We discuss the desirable role of the public firm by comparing welfare among three games. We find that, in the three possible roles, the domestic public firm put a lower price, and then produces more than the foreign private firm.

A comparative study of RNA and DNA as internal gene expression controls early in the developmental cycle of Chlamydia pneumoniae.

PubMed

Engström, Patrik; Bailey, Leslie; Onskog, Thomas; Bergström, Sven; Johansson, Jörgen

2010-03-01

Many microbial pathogens invade and proliferate within host cells and the molecular mechanism underlying this behavior is currently being revealed for several bacterial species. Testing clinically relevant antibacterial compounds and elucidating their effects on gene expression requires adequate controls, especially when studying genetically intractable organisms such as Chlamydia spp., for which various gene fusions cannot be constructed. Until now, relative mRNA levels in Chlamydia have been measured using different internal gene expression controls, including 16S rRNA, mRNAs, and DNA. Here, we compared the advantages and disadvantages of various internal expression controls during the early phase of Chlamydia pneumoniae development. The relative abundance of target mRNAs varied using the different internal control RNAs. This was partly due to variation in the transcript stability of the RNA species. Also, seven out of nine of the analyzed RNAs increased fivefold or more between 2 and 14 h postinfection, while the amount of DNA and number of cells remained essentially unaltered. Our results suggest that RNA should not be used as a gene expression control during the early phase of Chlamydia development, and that intrinsic bacterial DNA is preferable for that purpose because it is stable, abundant, and its relative amount is generally correlated with bacterial numbers.

Evaluation of marginal and internal fit of ceramic and metallic crown copings using x-ray microtomography (micro-CT) technology.

PubMed

Pimenta, Manuel Antonio; Frasca, Luis Carlos; Lopes, Ricardo; Rivaldo, Elken

2015-08-01

Prosthetic crown fit to the walls of the tooth preparation may vary depending on the material used for crown fabrication. The purpose of this study was to compare the marginal and internal fit of crown copings fabricated from 3 different materials. The selected materials were zirconia (ZirkonZahn system, group Y-TZP), lithium disilicate (IPS e.max Press system, group LSZ), and nickel-chromium alloy (lost-wax casting, group NiCr). Five specimens of each material were seated on standard dies. An x-ray microtomography (micro-CT) device was used to obtain volumetric reconstructions of each specimen. Points for fit measurement were located in Adobe Photoshop, and measurements were obtained in the CTAn SkyScan software environment. Marginal fit was measured at 4 points and internal fit at 9 points in each coping. Mean measurements from the 3 groups were compared by analysis of variance (ANOVA) at the 5% significance level, and between-group differences were assessed with the Tukey range test. The nickel-chromium alloy exhibited the best marginal fit overall, comparable with zirconia and significantly different from lithium disilicate. Lithium disilicate exhibited the lowest mean values for internal fit, similar to zirconia and significantly different from the nickel-chrome alloy. The marginal and internal fit parameters of the 3 tested materials were within clinically acceptable range. Copyright © 2015 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Bridging Cultures and Traditions for Educational and International Development: Comparative Research, Dialogue and Difference

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crossley, Michael

2008-07-01

Addressing the central theme of the XIII World Congress, the paper explores a number of contemporary theoretical, methodological and organisational developments in the field of comparative education. In doing so it draws upon the author's recent work and a selection of studies carried out in the South Pacific, the Caribbean and Africa. It is argued that disciplined comparative and international research can contribute much to the development of theory and methodology - as well as to the improvement of policy and practice in education world-wide. For this to be realised it is maintained that ongoing efforts to challenge and `reconceptualise' the field deserve sustained support - and increased attention to a more effective `bridging of cultures and traditions'. This `bridging' thesis is examined in greater depth, pointing to possible ways forward for those engaged in advancing the future of comparative research in education and in the social sciences more generally.

Effects of glucosamine-chondroitin combination on synovial fluid IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and PGE2 levels in internal derangements of temporomandibular joint

PubMed Central

Esen, Emin; Tatli, Ufuk

2015-01-01

Background The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of glucosamine-chondroitin sulphate combination on internal derangements of temporomandibular joint in clinical and biochemical manners. Material and Methods This randomized clinical study included 31 cases reporting joint tenderness, in which disc displacement was detected on MR imaging. In all patients, synovial fluid sampling was performed under local anesthesia. In the study group, the patients were prescribed a combination of 1500 mg glucosamine and 1200 mg chondroitin sulphate, while patients in the control group were only prescribed 50 mg tramadol HCl (twice daily) for pain control. After 8 weeks, synovial fluid sampling was repeated in the same manner. The levels of pain, maximum mouth opening (MMO), synovial fluid IL-1ß, IL-6, TNF-α and PGE2 measured before and after pharmacological intervention were compared. Results The reduction in pain levels was significant in both groups. There was no significant difference between two groups in terms of pain reduction. The improvement in MMO was significant in the study group but it was not in the control group. The MMO improvement was significantly higher in the study group compared to the control group. In the study group, significant decrease was observed in PGE2 level, while the decreases in IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α levels were not significant. In the control group, no significant decrease was observed in any of the inflammatory cytokines after 8 weeks, moreover IL-1ß and IL-6 levels were increased. Alterations of IL-1ß and IL-6 levels were significant in study group while TNF-α and PGE2 levels were not, compared to control group. Conclusions In conclusion, these results might suggest that glucosamine-chondroitin combination significantly increases the MMO and decreases the synovial fluid IL1β and IL6 levels in internal derangements of TMJ compared to tramadol. The modifications of synovial fluid TNF-α and PGE2 levels do not reach statistical significance. This combination also provides efficient pain relief in similar level with tramadol, a narcotic analgesic. Key words: Chondroitin sulphate, glucosamine, internal derangement, TMJ, tramadol. PMID:25662545

Determinants of internal migrant health and the healthy migrant effect in South India: a mixed methods study.

PubMed

Dodd, Warren; Humphries, Sally; Patel, Kirit; Majowicz, Shannon; Little, Matthew; Dewey, Cate

2017-09-12

Internal labour migration is an important and necessary livelihood strategy for millions of individuals and households in India. However, the precarious position of migrant workers within Indian society may have consequences for the health of these individuals. Previous research on the connections between health and labour mobility within India have primarily focused on the negative health outcomes associated with this practice. Thus, there is a need to better identify the determinants of internal migrant health and how these determinants shape migrant health outcomes. An exploratory mixed methods study was conducted in 26 villages in the Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu. Sixty-six semi-structured interviews were completed using snowball sampling, followed by 300 household surveys using multi-stage random sampling. For qualitative data, an analysis of themes and content was completed. For quantitative data, information on current participation in internal labour migration, in addition to self-reported morbidity and determinants of internal migrant health, was collected. Morbidity categories were compared between migrant and non-migrant adults (age 14-65 years) using a Fisher's exact test. Of the 300 households surveyed, 137 households (45.7%) had at least one current migrant member, with 205 migrant and 1012 non-migrant adults (age 14-65 years) included in this study. The health profile of migrant and non-migrants was similar in this setting, with 53 migrants (25.9%) currently suffering from a health problem compared to 273 non-migrants (27.0%). Migrant households identified both occupational and livelihood factors that contributed to changes in the health of their migrant members. These determinants of internal migrant health were corroborated and further expanded on through the semi-structured interviews. Internal labour migration in and of itself is not a determinant of health, as participation in labour mobility can contribute to an improvement in health, a decline in health, or no change in health among migrant workers. Targeted public health interventions should focus on addressing the determinants of internal migrant health to enhance the contributions these individuals can make to their households and villages of origin.

Investigating the Comparability of a Self-Report Measure of Childhood Bullying across Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Konishi, Chiaki; Hymel, Shelley; Zumbo, Bruno D.; Li, Zhen; Taki, Mitsuru; Slee, Phillip; Pepler, Debra; Sim, Hee-og; Craig, Wendy; Swearer, Susan; Kwak, Keumjoo

2009-01-01

Responding to international concerns regarding childhood bullying and a need to identify a common bullying measure, this study examines the comparability of children's self-reports of bullying across five countries. The Pacific-Rim Bullying Measure, a self-report measure of students' experiences with six different types of bullying behaviour and…

A Comparative Cross-Cultural Study of the Prevalence and Nature of Misconceptions in Physics amongst English and Chinese Undergraduate Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abrahams, Ian; Homer, Matt; Sharpe, Rachael; Zhou, Mengyuan

2015-01-01

Background: Despite the large body of literature regarding student misconceptions, there has been relatively little cross-cultural research to directly compare the prevalence of common scientific misconceptions amongst students from different cultural backgrounds. Whilst previous research does suggest the international nature of many…

Religion and Education: Comparative and International Perspectives. Oxford Studies in Comparative Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sivasubramaniam, Malini, Ed.; Hayhoe, Ruth, Ed.

2018-01-01

Despite the increased trend towards secularisation in state schooling, issues of religion and spirituality have remained important. Increased pluralism within societies through expanding migration patterns is changing the religious and cultural contours of many countries in Europe and North America, and is creating a need for a deeper…

Informing Teacher Education through the Use of Multiple Classroom Observation Instruments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weber, Nancy Dubinski; Waxman, Hersh C.; Brown, Danielle B.; Kelly, Larry J.

2016-01-01

The purpose of the present study is to examine how first-year secondary teaching interns' classrooms compare to those of more experienced teachers. Through the simultaneous use of three unique observation instruments, the authors addressed the following research questions: (a) How do first-year secondary teachers' classroom behaviors compare to…

Business School Accreditation in the Changing Global Marketplace: A Comparative Study of the Agencies and Their Competitive Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhao, Jun; Ferran, Carlos

2016-01-01

Purpose: This paper aims to examine current trends in business accreditation by describing and comparing the major international business accreditation agencies (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, European Quality Improvement System, Association of MBAs, Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs and International…

Comparing Cognitive Interviewing and Online Probing: Do They Find Similar Results?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meitinger, Katharina; Behr, Dorothée

2016-01-01

This study compares the application of probing techniques in cognitive interviewing (CI) and online probing (OP). Even though the probing is similar, the methods differ regarding typical mode setting, sample size, level of interactivity, and goals. We analyzed probing answers to the International Social Survey Programme item battery on specific…

A Comparative History of Church-State Relations in Irish Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Donoghue, Tom; Harford, Judith

2011-01-01

This essay argues for the development of a research agenda on the comparative history of Catholic education internationally from the nineteenth century to the present. This requires, in the first instance, the production of a series of individual-country case studies, concentrating on relations between the Catholic Church and the particular state…

Multilevel Structural Equation Models for the Analysis of Comparative Data on Educational Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldstein, Harvey; Bonnet, Gerard; Rocher, Thierry

2007-01-01

The Programme for International Student Assessment comparative study of reading performance among 15-year-olds is reanalyzed using statistical procedures that allow the full complexity of the data structures to be explored. The article extends existing multilevel factor analysis and structural equation models and shows how this can extract richer…

A Comparative Survey of the Incorporation of Environmental Education into School Curricula. Environmental Educational Series 17.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Paris (France). Div. of Science, Technical and Vocational Education.

The UNESCO International Environmental Education Programme has undertaken a comparative study of the incorporation of environmental education into elementary and secondary school curricula. A survey was designed to investigate how environmental education has been introduced into school curricula in different educational systems in various…

Interoceptive awareness in experienced meditators.

PubMed

Khalsa, Sahib S; Rudrauf, David; Damasio, Antonio R; Davidson, Richard J; Lutz, Antoine; Tranel, Daniel

2008-07-01

Attention to internal body sensations is practiced in most meditation traditions. Many traditions state that this practice results in increased awareness of internal body sensations, but scientific studies evaluating this claim are lacking. We predicted that experienced meditators would display performance superior to that of nonmeditators on heartbeat detection, a standard noninvasive measure of resting interoceptive awareness. We compared two groups of meditators (Tibetan Buddhist and Kundalini) to an age- and body mass index-matched group of nonmeditators. Contrary to our prediction, we found no evidence that meditators were superior to nonmeditators in the heartbeat detection task, across several sessions and respiratory modulation conditions. Compared to nonmeditators, however, meditators consistently rated their interoceptive performance as superior and the difficulty of the task as easier. These results provide evidence against the notion that practicing attention to internal body sensations, a core feature of meditation, enhances the ability to sense the heartbeat at rest.

Interoceptive awareness in experienced meditators

PubMed Central

KHALSA, SAHIB S.; RUDRAUF, DAVID; DAMASIO, ANTONIO R.; DAVIDSON, RICHARD J.; LUTZ, ANTOINE; TRANEL, DANIEL

2009-01-01

Attention to internal body sensations is practiced inmost meditation traditions. Many traditions state that this practice results in increased awareness of internal body sensations, but scientific studies evaluating this claim are lacking. We predicted that experienced meditators would display performance superior to that of nonmeditators on heartbeat detection, a standard noninvasive measure of resting interoceptive awareness. We compared two groups of meditators (Tibetan Buddhist and Kundalini) to an age- and body mass index-matched group of nonmeditators. Contrary to our prediction, we found no evidence that meditators were superior to nonmeditators in the heartbeat detection task, across several sessions and respiratory modulation conditions. Compared to nonmeditators, however, meditators consistently rated their interoceptive performance as superior and the difficulty of the task as easier. These results provide evidence against the notion that practicing attention to internal body sensations, a core feature of meditation, enhances the ability to sense the heartbeat at rest. PMID:18503485

An In Vitro Robotic Assessment of the Anterolateral Ligament, Part 2: Anterolateral Ligament Reconstruction Combined With Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction.

PubMed

Nitri, Marco; Rasmussen, Matthew T; Williams, Brady T; Moulton, Samuel G; Cruz, Raphael Serra; Dornan, Grant J; Goldsmith, Mary T; LaPrade, Robert F

2016-03-01

Recent biomechanical studies have demonstrated that an extra-articular lateral knee structure, most recently referred to as the anterolateral ligament (ALL), contributes to overall rotational stability of the knee. However, the effect of anatomic ALL reconstruction (ALLR) in the setting of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction (ACLR) has not been biomechanically investigated or validated. The purpose of this study was to investigate the biomechanical function of anatomic ALLR in the setting of a combined ACL and ALL injury. More specifically, this investigation focused on the effect of ALLR on resultant rotatory stability when performed in combination with concomitant ACLR. It was hypothesized that ALLR would significantly reduce internal rotation and axial plane translation laxity during a simulated pivot-shift test compared with isolated ACLR. Controlled laboratory study. Ten fresh-frozen cadaveric knees were evaluated with a 6 degrees of freedom robotic system. Knee kinematics were evaluated with simulated clinical examinations including a simulated pivot-shift test consisting of coupled 10-N·m valgus and 5-N·m internal rotation torques, a 5-N·m internal rotation torque, and an 88-N anterior tibial load. Kinematic differences between ACLR with an intact ALL, ACLR with ALLR, and ACLR with a deficient ALL were compared with the intact state. Single-bundle ACLR tunnels and ALLR tunnels were placed anatomically according to previous quantitative anatomic attachment descriptions. Combined anatomic ALLR and ACLR significantly improved the rotatory stability of the knee compared with isolated ACLR in the face of a concurrent ALL deficiency. During a simulated pivot-shift test, ALLR significantly reduced internal rotation and axial plane tibial translation when compared with ACLR with an ALL deficiency. Isolated ACLR for the treatment of a combined ACL and ALL injury was not able to restore stability of the knee, resulting in a significant increase in residual internal rotation laxity. ALLR did not affect anterior tibial translation; no significant differences were observed between the varying ALL conditions with ACLR except between ACLR with an intact ALL and ACLR with a deficient ALL at 0° of flexion. In the face of a combined ACL and ALL deficiency, concurrent ACLR and ALLR significantly improved the rotatory stability of the knee compared with solely reconstructing the ACL. Significant increases in residual internal rotation and laxity during the pivot-shift test may exist in both acute and chronic settings of an ACL deficiency and in patients treated with isolated ACLR for a combined ACL and ALL deficiency. For this subset of patients, surgical treatment of the ALL, in addition to ACLR, should be considered to restore knee stability. © 2016 The Author(s).

Adolescent internalizing symptoms and negative life events: the sensitizing effects of earlier life stress and cortisol.

PubMed

Ruttle, Paula L; Armstrong, Jeffrey M; Klein, Marjorie H; Essex, Marilyn J

2014-11-01

Although adolescence is marked by increased negative life events and internalizing problems, few studies investigate this association as an ongoing longitudinal process. Moreover, while there are considerable individual differences in the degree to which these phenomena are linked, little is known about the origins of these differences. The present study examines early life stress (ELS) exposure and early-adolescent longitudinal afternoon cortisol level as predictors of the covariation between internalizing symptoms and negative life events across high school. ELS was assessed by maternal report during infancy, and the measure of cortisol was derived from assessments at ages 11, 13, and 15 years. Life events and internalizing symptoms were assessed at ages 15, 17, and 18 years. A two-level hierarchical linear model revealed that ELS and cortisol were independent predictors of the covariation of internalizing symptoms and negative life events. Compared to those with lower levels of ELS, ELS-exposed adolescents displayed tighter covariation between internalizing symptoms and negative life events. Adolescents with lower longitudinal afternoon cortisol displayed tighter covariation between negative life events and internalizing symptoms, while those with higher cortisol demonstrated weaker covariation, partially due to increased levels of internalizing symptoms when faced with fewer negative life events.

NFC Internal: An Indoor Navigation System

PubMed Central

Ozdenizci, Busra; Coskun, Vedat; Ok, Kerem

2015-01-01

Indoor navigation systems have recently become a popular research field due to the lack of GPS signals indoors. Several indoors navigation systems have already been proposed in order to eliminate deficiencies; however each of them has several technical and usability limitations. In this study, we propose NFC Internal, a Near Field Communication (NFC)-based indoor navigation system, which enables users to navigate through a building or a complex by enabling a simple location update, simply by touching NFC tags those are spread around and orient users to the destination. In this paper, we initially present the system requirements, give the design details and study the viability of NFC Internal with a prototype application and a case study. Moreover, we evaluate the performance of the system and compare it with existing indoor navigation systems. It is seen that NFC Internal has considerable advantages and significant contributions to existing indoor navigation systems in terms of security and privacy, cost, performance, robustness, complexity, user preference and commercial availability. PMID:25825976

Comparison of basic physical fitness, aerobic capacity, and isokinetic strength between national and international level high school freestyle swimmers

PubMed Central

Bae, Young-Hyeon; Yu, Jae-Ho; Lee, Suk Min

2016-01-01

[Purpose] This study aimed to compare basic physical fitness, aerobic capacity, and isokinetic strength between international and national level freestyle high school student swimmers. [Subjects and Methods] A total of 28 participants (14 international level swimmers and 14 national level freestyle high school student swimmers) with no known pathology were included. We used a cross-sectional study to examine three variables: basic physical fitness, aerobic capacity, and isokinetic strength. [Results] The mean values of these variables in the international level swimmers were higher than those in the national level swimmers. Swimmers are generally physically fit with a good competition record. [Conclusion] An appropriate training program, which considers specific individual characteristics is likely to have a positive impact on the improvement of total physical fitness, and subsequently, on the performance of the freestyle high school swimmer. PMID:27134379

Comparative and International Education: A Bibliography (2002).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raby, Rosalind Latiner; Miller, Lisa, Comp.

2003-01-01

Cites 1,424 articles on comparative and international education in 319 journals published 2002. Categories: adult, rural, vocational, literacy, lifelong, and popular education; child, citizenship, human rights; comparative; curriculum, instruction, assessment; educational planning, development, and reform; gender; general; higher education;…

Effect of the 16-hour work limit on general surgery intern operative case volume: a multi-institutional study.

PubMed

Schwartz, Samuel I; Galante, Joseph; Kaji, Amy; Dolich, Matthew; Easter, David; Melcher, Marc L; Patel, Kevin; Reeves, Mark E; Salim, Ali; Senagore, Anthony J; Takanishi, Danny M; de Virgilio, Christian

2013-09-01

The 80-hour work-week limit for all residents was instituted in 2003 and studies looking at its effect have been mixed. Since the advent of the 16-hour mandate for postgraduate year 1 residents in July 2011, no data have been published regarding the effect of this additional work-hour restriction. To determine whether the 16-hour intern work limit, implemented in July 2011, has adversely affected operative experience. A retrospective review of categorical postgraduate year 1 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education case logs from the intern class (N = 52) (with 16-hour work limit) compared with the 4 preceding years (2007-2010; N = 197) (without 16-hour work limit). A total of 249 categorical general surgery interns from 10 general surgery residency programs in the western United States were included. Total, major, first-assistant, and defined-category case totals. As compared with the preceding 4 years, the 2011-2012 interns recorded a 25.8% decrease in total operative cases (65.9 vs 88.8, P = .005), a 31.8% decrease in major cases (54.9 vs 80.5, P < .001), and a 46.3% decrease in first-assistant cases (11.1 vs 20.7, P = .008). There were statistically significant decreases in cases within the defined categories of abdomen, endocrine, head and neck, basic laparoscopy, complex laparoscopy, pediatrics, thoracic, and soft tissue/breast surgery in the 16-hour shift intern era, whereas there was no decrease in trauma, vascular, alimentary, endoscopy, liver, and pancreas cases. The 16-hour work limit for interns, implemented in July 2011, is associated with a significant decrease in categorical intern operative experience. If the 16-hour shift were to be extended to all postgraduate year levels, one can anticipate that additional years of training will be needed to maintain the same operative volume.

Sleep and Alertness in Medical Interns and Residents: An Observational Study on the Role of Extended Shifts.

PubMed

Basner, Mathias; Dinges, David F; Shea, Judy A; Small, Dylan S; Zhu, Jingsan; Norton, Laurie; Ecker, Adrian J; Novak, Cristina; Bellini, Lisa M; Volpp, Kevin G

2017-04-01

Fatigue from sleep loss is a risk to physician and patient safety, but objective data on physician sleep and alertness on different duty hour schedules is scarce. This study objectively quantified differences in sleep duration and alertness between medical interns working extended overnight shifts and residents not or rarely working extended overnight shifts. Sleep-wake activity of 137 interns and 87 PGY-2/3 residents on 2-week Internal Medicine and Oncology rotations was assessed with wrist-actigraphy. Alertness was assessed daily with a brief Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) and the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale. Interns averaged 6.93 hours (95% confidence interval [CI] 6.84-7.03 hours) sleep per 24 hours across shifts, significantly less than residents not working overnight shifts (7.18 hours, 95% CI 7.06-7.30 hours, p = .007). Interns obtained on average 2.19 hours (95% CI 2.02-2.36 hours) sleep during on-call nights (17.5% obtained no sleep). Alertness was significantly lower on mornings after on-call nights compared to regular shifts (p < .001). Naps between 9 am and 6 pm on the first day post-call were frequent (90.8%) and averaged 2.84 hours (95% CI 2.69-3.00 hours), but interns still slept 1.66 hours less per 24 hours (95% CI 1.56-1.76 hours) compared to regular shift days (p < .001). Sleep inertia significantly affected alertness in the 60 minutes after waking on-call. Extended overnight shifts increase the likelihood of chronic sleep restriction in interns. Reduced levels of alertness after on-call nights need to be mitigated. A systematic comparison of sleep, alertness, and safety outcomes under current and past duty hour rules is encouraged. © Sleep Research Society 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Sleep Research Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

Money left on the table: generic drug prices in Canada.

PubMed

Law, Michael R

2013-02-01

Generic drugs are a major cost-saving opportunity for patients and drug plans. While almost every province has reduced generic drug prices, we have no information on whether these new prices are internationally competitive. Therefore, I compared Canadian prices to those in two other countries. I used 2009 data from the IMS Brogan Canadian CompuScript and PharmaStat databases and studied the 100 most frequently dispensed generic products in Ontario, which has Canada's lowest generic prices. I compared these prices to those in public drug programs in the United States and New Zealand that use tendering. Using these alternative prices, I calculated the potential savings in Ontario. Of the top 100 generic products, 82 were listed on an international formulary. In 90% of cases, generic products were less expensive in other countries. If Ontario had obtained the lowest comparator price for these products, the annual public sector and overall drug expenditure savings would have been $129 million and $245 million, respectively. Further, the province could have publicly paid for all these generic drugs - both public and private - and saved $87 million compared to current public sector expenditures. Even after recent reforms, generic drug prices in Canada remain high by international standards. I found that if Ontario had obtained commonly used generic drugs at international best prices, the province could have publicly paid for all generic drugs and lowered annual expenditures by nearly a quarter-billion dollars. Copyright © 2013 Longwoods Publishing.

Money Left on the Table: Generic Drug Prices in Canada

PubMed Central

Law, Michael R.

2013-01-01

Background: Generic drugs are a major cost-saving opportunity for patients and drug plans. While almost every province has reduced generic drug prices, we have no information on whether these new prices are internationally competitive. Therefore, I compared Canadian prices to those in two other countries. Methods: I used 2009 data from the IMS Brogan Canadian CompuScript and PharmaStat databases and studied the 100 most frequently dispensed generic products in Ontario, which has Canada's lowest generic prices. I compared these prices to those in public drug programs in the United States and New Zealand that use tendering. Using these alternative prices, I calculated the potential savings in Ontario. Results: Of the top 100 generic products, 82 were listed on an international formulary. In 90% of cases, generic products were less expensive in other countries. If Ontario had obtained the lowest comparator price for these products, the annual public sector and overall drug expenditure savings would have been $129 million and $245 million, respectively. Further, the province could have publicly paid for all these generic drugs – both public and private – and saved $87 million compared to current public sector expenditures. Discussion: Even after recent reforms, generic drug prices in Canada remain high by international standards. I found that if Ontario had obtained commonly used generic drugs at international best prices, the province could have publicly paid for all generic drugs and lowered annual expenditures by nearly a quarter-billion dollars. PMID:23968624

Developing a prenatal nursing care International Classification for Nursing Practice catalogue.

PubMed

Liu, L; Coenen, A; Tao, H; Jansen, K R; Jiang, A L

2017-09-01

This study aimed to develop a prenatal nursing care catalogue of International Classification for Nursing Practice. As a programme of the International Council of Nurses, International Classification for Nursing Practice aims to support standardized electronic nursing documentation and facilitate collection of comparable nursing data across settings. This initiative enables the study of relationships among nursing diagnoses, nursing interventions and nursing outcomes for best practice, healthcare management decisions, and policy development. The catalogues are usually focused on target populations. Pregnant women are the nursing population addressed in this project. According to the guidelines for catalogue development, three research steps have been adopted: (a) identifying relevant nursing diagnoses, interventions and outcomes; (b) developing a conceptual framework for the catalogue; (c) expert's validation. This project established a prenatal nursing care catalogue with 228 terms in total, including 69 nursing diagnosis, 92 nursing interventions and 67 nursing outcomes, among them, 57 nursing terms were newly developed. All terms in the catalogue were organized by a framework with two main categories, i.e. Expected Changes of Pregnancy and Pregnancy at Risk. Each category had four domains, representing the physical, psychological, behavioral and environmental perspectives of nursing practice. This catalogue can ease the documentation workload among prenatal care nurses, and facilitate storage and retrieval of standardized data for many purposes, such as quality improvement, administration decision-support and researches. The documentations of prenatal care provided data that can be more fluently communicated, compared and evaluated across various healthcare providers and clinic settings. © 2016 International Council of Nurses.

Comparison of dental maturity in children of different ethnic origins: international maturity curves for clinicians.

PubMed

Chaillet, Nils; Nyström, Marjatta; Demirjian, Arto

2005-09-01

Dental maturity was studied with 9577 dental panoramic tomograms of healthy subjects from 8 countries, aged between 2 and 25 years of age. Demirjian's method based on 7 teeth was used for determining dental maturity scores, establishing gender-specific tables of maturity scores and development graphs. The aim of this study was to give dental maturity standards when the ethnic origin is unknown and to compare the efficiency and applicability of this method to forensic sciences and dental clinicians. The second aim was to compare the dental maturity of these different populations. We noted an high efficiency for International Demirjian's method at 99% CI (0.85% of misclassified and a mean accuracy between 2 to 18 years +/- 2.15 years), which makes it useful for forensic purposes. Nevertheless, this international method is less accurate than Demirjian's method developed for a specific country, because of the inter-ethnic variability obtained by the addition of 8 countries in the dental database. There are inter-ethnic differences classified in three major groups. Australians have the fastest dental maturation and Koreans have the slowest.

Evaluation of hygiene habits: cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Campos, Manuel António; Sousa, Ana Cristina; Varela, Paulo; Baptista, Armando

2016-09-01

It is well known that adequate hygiene is important for health. Even though this topic has drawn the attention of the media, little or no scientific investigation has been done. We performed a comparative questionnaire-based cross-sectional study in three groups: patients attending a dermatology outpatient clinic, patients attending an internal medicine consultation, and community members. We analyzed a total of 446 questionnaires (249 from dermatology patients, 98 from internal medicine patients, and 99 from the community group). The three groups did not differ statistically in sex and age (p=0.070). The patients from the dermatology department had a higher education level. The number of weekly baths did not differ among the three groups (p=0.417). Hair hygiene did not differ between the three groups. The dermatology and internal medicine groups washed their hands more frequently than the community group (p=0.028). Comparing our results to the limited data available, we find that the population surveyed has better hygiene habits than those previously reported. We believe that hygiene habits should be discussed during office visits.

Reporting Misconduct of a Coworker to Protect a Patient: A Comparison between Experienced Nurses and Nursing Students

PubMed Central

Mansbach, Abraham; Kushnir, Talma; Ziedenberg, Hana; Bachner, Yaacov G.

2014-01-01

Purpose. Whistleblowing is the reporting of illegal, immoral, or illegitimate practices to persons or organizations that may affect the action. The current study compares experienced nurses to nursing students regarding their willingness to blow the whistle to protect a patient's interests. Methods. 165 participants were divided into two groups: 82 undergraduate nursing students and 83 experienced nurses. Participants responded to two vignettes that described a colleague's and a manager's misconduct at work. Results. The nursing students perceived the severity of the misconduct significantly lower compared to the experienced nurses. The nursing students also ranked the internal and external whistleblowing indices higher than the nurses, but the differences did not reach statistical significance. For each of the examined internal and external indices, professional experience was found to be significant in multivariate regression analyses. Conclusions. Even though nursing students perceived the severity of the misconduct significantly lower than the experienced nurses, the students demonstrated a greater readiness to blow the whistle, both internally and externally. Recommendations for handling comparable situations are offered. PMID:25379527

Timed activity performance in persons with upper limb amputation: A preliminary study.

PubMed

Resnik, Linda; Borgia, Mathew; Acluche, Frantzy

55 subjects with upper limb amputation were administered the T-MAP twice within one week. To develop a timed measure of activity performance for persons with upper limb amputation (T-MAP); examine the measure's internal consistency, test-retest reliability and validity; and compare scores by prosthesis use. Measures of activity performance for persons with upper limb amputation are needed The time required to perform daily activities is a meaningful metric that implication for participation in life roles. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were evaluated. Construct validity was examined by comparing scores by amputation level. Exploratory analyses compared sub-group scores, and examined correlations with other measures. Scale alpha was 0.77, ICC was 0.93. Timed scores differed by amputation level. Subjects using a prosthesis took longer to perform all tasks. T-MAP was not correlated with other measures of dexterity or activity, but was correlated with pain for non-prosthesis users. The timed scale had adequate internal consistency and excellent test-retest reliability. Analyses support reliability and construct validity of the T-MAP. 2c "outcomes" research. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Pornography consumption and non-marital sexual behaviour in a sample of young Indonesian university students.

PubMed

Hald, Gert Martin; Mulya, Teguh Wijaya

2013-01-01

Using a sample of Indonesian university students and a cross sectional design, this study investigated prevalence rates and patterns of pornography consumption in Indonesia, a religious, sexually conservative, Muslim-majority nation with strict anti-pornography laws. Further, the association between pornography consumption and common non-marital sexual behaviours was explored. The study found that in this sample, pornography is as widely and readily consumed as in comparable international studies predominantly utilising Western background samples from more sexually liberal and less religious countries with very few laws on pornography. Gender differences in patterns of pornography consumption were pronounced and comparable with findings in international counterpart studies. For men only, pornography consumption was found to significantly predict common sexual behaviours in non-marital relations. The study is the first to provide insights into prevalence rates and patterns of pornography consumption and its association with common non-marital sexual behaviours in a sexually conservative, Muslim-majority nation with strict anti-pornography laws.

Comparative Analysis of the Mathematics Problems Given at International Tests and at the Romanian National Tests

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marchis, Iuliana

2009-01-01

The results of the Romanian pupils on international tests PISA and TIMSS in Mathematics are below the average. These poor results have many explications. In this article we compare the Mathematics problems given on these international tests with those given on national tests in Romania.

Semantics bias in cross-national comparative analyses: is it good or bad to have "fair" health?

PubMed

Schnohr, Christina W; Gobina, Inese; Santos, Teresa; Mazur, Joanna; Alikasifuglu, Mujgan; Välimaa, Raili; Corell, Maria; Hagquist, Curt; Dalmasso, Paola; Movseyan, Yeva; Cavallo, Franco; van Dorsselaer, Saskia; Torsheim, Torbjørn

2016-05-04

The Health Behavior in School-aged Children is a cross-national study collecting data on social and health indicators on adolescents in 43 countries. The study provides comparable data on health behaviors and health outcomes through the use of a common protocol, which have been a back bone of the study sine its initiation in 1983. Recent years, researchers within the study have noticed a questionable comparability on the widely used item on self-rated health. One of the four response categories to the item "Would you say your health is….?" showed particular variation, as the response category "Fair" varied from 20 % in Latvia and Moldova to 3-4 % in Bulgaria and Macedonia. A qualitative mini-survey of the back-translations showed that the response category "Fair" had a negative slant in 25 countries, a positive slant in 10 countries and was considered neutral in 9 countries. This finding indicates that there are what may be called semantic issues affecting comparability in international studies, since the same original word (in an English original) is interpreted differently across countries and cultures. The paper test and discuss a few possible explanations to this, however, only leaving to future studies to hold a cautious approach to international comparisons if working with the self-rated health item with four response categories.

Kinematics of ACL and anterolateral ligament. Part II: anterolateral and anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

PubMed

Bonanzinga, T; Signorelli, C; Grassi, A; Lopomo, N; Jain, M; Mosca, M; Iacono, F; Marcacci, M; Zaffagnini, S

2017-04-01

To quantify the influence of Single-Bundle with Lateral Plasty and Double-Bundle reconstruction on static and dynamic laxity in combined ACL- and ALL-deficient knees. The study included 10 fresh-frozen human knees. The joints were analyzed in the following conditions: ACL + ALL resection, Single-Bundle with Lateral Plasty (SBLP) reconstruction, Double-Bundle (DB) reconstruction. Testing parameters were: anterior displacement at 30° and 90° of flexion (AP30, AP90) applying a manual maximum load; internal rotation at 30° and 90° of flexion (INT30, INT90) applying a 5 Nm torque and acceleration and internal rotation Pivot-Shift (PS) test. Kinematics was acquired by a navigation system. Paired Student's t test was conducted to assess statistical difference (P < 0.05). At both 30° and 90° of knee flexion, both SBLP and DB surgical techniques showed a significant reduction (P < 0.01) of anterior-posterior tibial displacement compared to the resection of ACL + ALL. At 30° on knee flexion it is the SBLP that allows the greatest reduction of internal rotational laxity when compared to DB reconstruction. Concerning the PS test, only SBPL procedure had a significant laxity decrease considering the acceleration reached by the joint when compared with the ACL + ALL state (P < 0.01). Clinical relevance of this study is that the internal rotation and PS test were more efficiently controlled by the SBLP technique than by the DB one at both 30° and 90° of flexion in case of ACL + ALL lesions.

Scapular Resting Position and Gleno-Humeral Movement Dysfunction in Asymptomatic Racquet Players: A Case-Control Study

PubMed Central

Shimpi, Apurv P.; Bhakti, Shah; Roshni, Karnik; Rairikar, Savita A.; Shyam, Ashok; Sancheti, Parag K.

2015-01-01

Background: Racquet sports, especially lawn tennis and badminton have been gaining popularity in Asian countries like India. With this increase in popularity, the injury rate in the sport has also increased. Objectives: The study will help detect the presence of gleno-humeral movement dysfunction and scapular resting position abnormality in asymptomatic racquet players, thus providing basis for screening the players and allow the clinician to determine if the asymmetry is a normal adaptation in the player or an abnormal change associated with injury. Materials and Methods: 46 asymptomatic professional players were divided into a study group of 23 players (16 tennis and 7 badminton) and control group of 23 football players. Assessment of passive gleno-humeral range of motion and distance of spine and inferior angle of scapula from corresponding spinous process were measured bilaterally and between groups. Results: There was statistically significant reduction in range of internal rotation (62.17 ± 8.09), extension (39.78 ± 4.12) and an increase in the external rotation (106.95 ± 7.49) of dominant compared to non-dominant arm of racquet players and a statistically significant decrease in internal rotation (78.69 ± 10.24), extension (44.78 ± 3.19), adduction (37.39 ± 6.54) and an increase in external rotation (102.6 ± 5.19) of dominant arm of racquet players compared to football players. Study also showed statistically significant increase in the spino-scapular distance at the level of inferior angle of scapula (10.23 ± 1.43) on dominant side compared to non-dominant. Conclusions: The dominant side scapula of asymptomatic racquet players showed increased external rotation and elevation as compared to the non-dominant side. Also, reduced shoulder internal rotation, extension and adduction and gain in shoulder external rotation was observed on the dominant side of racquet players when compared to the control group. PMID:26715968

Scapular Resting Position and Gleno-Humeral Movement Dysfunction in Asymptomatic Racquet Players: A Case-Control Study.

PubMed

Shimpi, Apurv P; Bhakti, Shah; Roshni, Karnik; Rairikar, Savita A; Shyam, Ashok; Sancheti, Parag K

2015-12-01

Racquet sports, especially lawn tennis and badminton have been gaining popularity in Asian countries like India. With this increase in popularity, the injury rate in the sport has also increased. The study will help detect the presence of gleno-humeral movement dysfunction and scapular resting position abnormality in asymptomatic racquet players, thus providing basis for screening the players and allow the clinician to determine if the asymmetry is a normal adaptation in the player or an abnormal change associated with injury. 46 asymptomatic professional players were divided into a study group of 23 players (16 tennis and 7 badminton) and control group of 23 football players. Assessment of passive gleno-humeral range of motion and distance of spine and inferior angle of scapula from corresponding spinous process were measured bilaterally and between groups. There was statistically significant reduction in range of internal rotation (62.17 ± 8.09), extension (39.78 ± 4.12) and an increase in the external rotation (106.95 ± 7.49) of dominant compared to non-dominant arm of racquet players and a statistically significant decrease in internal rotation (78.69 ± 10.24), extension (44.78 ± 3.19), adduction (37.39 ± 6.54) and an increase in external rotation (102.6 ± 5.19) of dominant arm of racquet players compared to football players. Study also showed statistically significant increase in the spino-scapular distance at the level of inferior angle of scapula (10.23 ± 1.43) on dominant side compared to non-dominant. The dominant side scapula of asymptomatic racquet players showed increased external rotation and elevation as compared to the non-dominant side. Also, reduced shoulder internal rotation, extension and adduction and gain in shoulder external rotation was observed on the dominant side of racquet players when compared to the control group.

Evolution of Nonlinear Internal Waves in China Seas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liu, Antony K.; Hsu, Ming-K.; Liang, Nai K.

1997-01-01

Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images from ERS-I have been used to study the characteristics of internal waves of Taiwan in the East China Sea, and east of Hainan Island in the South China Sea. Rank-ordered packets of internal solitons propagating shoreward from the edge of the continental shelf were observed in the SAR images. Based on the assumption of a semidiurnal tidal origin, the wave speed can be estimated and is consistent with the internal wave theory. By using the SAR images and hydrographic data, internal waves of elevation have been identified in shallow water due to a thicker mixed layer as compared with the bottom layer on the continental shelf. The generation mechanism includes the influences of the tide and the Kuroshio intrusion across the continental shelf for the formations of elevation internal waves. The effects of water depth on the evolution of solitons and wave packets are modeled by nonlinear Kortweg-deVries (KdV) type equation and linked to satellite image observations. The numerical calculations of internal wave evolution on the continental shelf have been performed and compared with the SAR observations. For a case of depression waves in deep water, the solitons first disintegrate into dispersive wave trains and then evolve to a packet of elevation waves in the shallow water area after they pass through a turning point of approximately equal layer depths has been observed in the SAR image and simulated by numerical model.

Religion, Sexuality, and Internalized Homonegativity: Confronting Cognitive Dissonance in the Abrahamic Religions.

PubMed

Meladze, Pikria; Brown, Jac

2015-10-01

This research was aimed at investigating how religious beliefs and internalized shame predicted homonegativity. An online survey, which consisted of a self-report questionnaire assessing religious orientation, internalized shame, and internalized homonegativity, was completed by 133 Caucasian and Asian gay men. The respondents also were asked to write a short answer in which they had to explain how they integrated their religion and sexual practices. The quantitative analyses of data demonstrated no significant difference in internalized homonegativity among the two cultural groups. Internalized homonegativity was predicted by the main Abrahamic faiths (i.e. Christianity, Islam, and Judaism) and internalized shame. Qualitative analysis showed that gay men who adhere to a monotheistic religious faith follow a different path to reconciling their religion and homosexuality compared to gay men who adhere to Philosophical/New Age religions or to gay men who have no religious faith. The implications of these findings as well as directions for future research studies were discussed.

Regional white matter abnormalities in drug-naive, first-episode schizophrenia patients and their healthy unaffected siblings.

PubMed

Lyu, Hailong; Hu, Maorong; Eyler, Lisa T; Jin, Hua; Wang, Juan; Ou, Jianjun; Guo, Xiaofeng; He, Zhong; Liu, Fang; Zhao, Jingping; Guo, Wenbin

2015-03-01

Shared neuropathological features between schizophrenia patients and their siblings may represent intermediate phenotypes of schizophrenia and can be used to investigate genetic susceptibility to the illness. This study aimed to discover regional white matter abnormalities in first-episode schizophrenia (FES) patients and their unaffected siblings compared to healthy subjects in the Chinese Han population using optimized Voxel-Based Morphometry (VBM). A total of 51 drug-naive, FES patients, 45 of their unaffected siblings and 59 healthy comparisons were studied with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). FES patients exhibited significant regional white matter deficits in the left inferior frontal gyrus and left joint of external capsule and internal capsule compared with healthy subjects (corrected FDR, p<0.005). The sibling group also showed significant white matter deficits in these two regions compared with the healthy comparison group (uncorrected, p<0.001). White matter deficits with a less stringent threshold for significance in the left cerebellum anterior lobe, left middle frontal gyrus, left hippocampus, right anterior cingulate and right internal capsule were observed in patients compared to their siblings. Our findings extend those from previous VBM analyses showing that FES patients and their unaffected siblings may share white matter deficits in the left inferior frontal gyrus and the left joint of external capsule and internal capsule. These regional white matter deficits may be related to genetic factors related to schizophrenia susceptibility. © The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists 2014.

Determine and compare the viewpoints of nurses, patients and their relatives to workplace violence against nurses.

PubMed

Babaei, Nasib; Rahmani, Azad; Avazeh, Marziyeh; Mohajjelaghdam, Ali-Reza; Zamanzadeh, Vahid; Dadashzadeh, Abbass

2018-03-23

The present study aims to assess the perception of nurses, patients and their relatives regarding the nature of workplace violence against nurses. Workplace violence adversely affects the health, well-being and safety of nurses and the quality of nursing care. In the present descriptive comparative study, the nature of violence was assessed using a modified and validated International Labor Office, the International Council of Nurses, World Health Organization, and Public Services International Questionnaire. Nurses, patients and relatives reported verbal abuse as the most common and sexual violence as the least common type of violence against nurses. Nurses mostly blamed factors associated with patients and their relatives as the cause of violence, whereas patients and their relatives blamed social factors. This study shows that violence is significantly prevalent in clinical settings, but its nature is differently perceived by nurses, patients and their relatives. This phenomenon requires further studies because knowledge of the causes of this difference could help to reduce and control violence. It is necessary that nursing managers inform nurses about protocols for reporting all such cases in order to collect information, and based on a clear procedure, actively pursue reported cases and take the necessary measures to prevent violence against nurses. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effect of tooth profile modification on wear in internal gears

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tunalioglu, M. S.; Tuc, B.

2018-05-01

Internal gears are often used in the automotive industry when two gears are required to rotate in the same direction. Tooth shapes, slippage speeds at the beginning and end of meshing are different according to the external gears. Manufacturing of internal gears is more difficult than external gears. Thus, it is necessary to determine the working conditions and wear behavior of internal gears carefully. The profile modification method in terms of strength and surface tension of the gear mechanism are performed in order to increase the load-carrying capability. In this study, profile modification method was performed in the internal gears to reduce the wear on the teeth. For this purpose, the wear of the internal gears was theoretically investigated by adapting the Archard wear equation to the internal gears. Closed circuit power circulation system was designed and manufactured to experimentally investigate the wear in internal gears. With this system, wear tests of gears made of St 50 material without profile modification and different profile modifications were made and the results were compared. Experimental study was performed in the same loading and cycle time conditions to validate the theoretical results and it was seen that the results are compatible. According to the experimental results, it is seen that in the internal gears, when profile modification done the wear is decreased in the teeth tip region.