Publication Management System
Not a member yet
3916 research outputs found
Sort by
The Impact of Multiple Recesses on Limb Movement Patterns in Children: An Exploratory Study
Get PDFBackground: Inactivity levels among elementary-aged children are climbing at alarming rates, as only 24% participate in the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity. Limb movements during children’s active time are essential for heart, bone, and muscle health, setting the stage for an overall active and healthy life. School recess, defined as child-directed, outdoor play, is optimal for children to accumulate many types and repetitions of limb movements. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to use the Movement Pattern Observation Tool (MPOT) to determine the impact of varying amounts of daily recess on elementary-aged children’s limb movement patterns. It was hypothesized that children who participate in 60 minutes of daily recess would accumulate significantly more limb movements and specifically, contralateral movements as they advance in grades.
Methods: This cross-sectional, observational study used the MPOT to observe grades K-2 children from two schools offering one twenty-minute recess daily and two schools offering four 15-minute recesses daily. The researchers observed 3,023 children’s limb movements during recess across the schools. There were 36 total observation scans completed for the four schools observed.
Results: Children who received 60 minutes of recess maintained significantly higher activity levels and contralateral movements as they advanced by grade. Additionally, on average 96% of all children utilized unilateral, bilateral, or contralateral limb movements when observed.
Conclusion: When given the opportunity, most children will utilize recess in a way that is beneficial for off-setting inactivity trends and is instrumental for a healthy mind-body connection as they age
Development and Validation of a Psychological Resilience Scale for Mothers of Children with ASD: Calibration with Rasch-Andrich Model
No full textBackground: The present study aimed to develop and validate a psychological resilience scale for mothers of children with ASD using calibration with the Rasch-Andrich model.
Methods: A quantitative approach of national survey research design using an online questionnaire was applied. The cross-sectional study involves a sample of mothers of children with ASD in KSA. Purposive sampling was employed. There were 310 mothers of children with ASD. All of them filled in all questions on the scale.
Findings: Concerning unidimensionality and local independence assumptions, the first factor explains more than (20%) of the variance in score with respect to the total variance due to all factors, so it can be said that there is one factor behind the items of the scale. The separation index and reliability of the psychological resilience scale for mothers of children with ASD were at an acceptable level. The person separation reliability was 0.96, indicating an acceptable degree of confidence in replicating the placement of persons within measurement error.
Conclusion: Analysis by Item Response Theory (IRT) models allows a considerably deeper understanding of the psychometric properties of the items and scale
Prediction of Self-Concept and Anxiety on the Tendency of Postgraduate Students with Learning Disabilities (LD) to Acquire Research Skills in Two Public Universities of Cross River State, Nigeria: Implications for Counseling
Get PDFBackground: Acquisition of research skills provide the forum for incorporating Nigerian graduate students with disabilities and university lecturers into the international scientific culture and the developing knowledge economy.
Aim: This study investigated the prediction of self-concept and anxiety on the tendency of postgraduate students with Learning Disabilities (LD) to acquire research skills in two Public Universities of Cross River State, Nigeria: Implications for counseling. Two objectives of the study were stated to guide the study and to achieve the purpose of the study. Two research questions were formulated, which were converted to two statements of hypotheses. A literature review was carried out based on the variables under study.
Method: The survey research design was considered most suitable for the study. A stratified random sampling technique was adopted in selecting the 49 respondents sampled for the study. A validated 20 items four-point modified Likert scale questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection. The face and content validity of the instrument was established by experts in Test and Measurement. The reliability estimates of 0.81 of the instruments were established using the Cronbach Alpha method. A simple Linear regression statistical tool was used to test the hypotheses formulated for the study. The hypotheses were tested at a 0.05 level of significance.
Results: The results obtained from the data analysis revealed a significant prediction of self-concept and anxiety on the tendency of postgraduate students with Learning Disabilities (LD) to acquire research skills in the study area.
Conclusion: Based on the findings of the study, it was therefore recommended, among others, that internal seminars and workshops should be organized by Graduate schools every quarter of the year, where each postgraduate student delivers a standard paper, and this should be made compulsory. This will encourage sharing knowledge and increase skills and zeal for using knowledge and more research publications
Effect of Vaccination Status on SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Levels in Gowa Regency Community, Indonesia
Get PDFBackground: COVID-19 is a disease caused by infection with SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2). One of the body's immune responses to infection is to produce antibodies. Acute SARS-CoV-2 infection initiates cellular and humoral immune responses. The humoral immune response specifically generates antibodies against virus-specific antigens. Several factors influence the immune response, one of which is vaccination status. Therefore, this study aimed to determine and analyze the effect of vaccination status on SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels.
Methods: An analytical observational study with a cross-sectional design involving 815 samples was conducted. The proportional random sampling technique was employed based on data obtained from the Seroepidemiology Survey. Data analysis was conducted using the STATA version 14.0 program with the Independent T-Test, Mann Whitney test, Kruskal Wallis test, and Multiple logistic regression.
Results: The results showed that there was a significant relationship between the determinant variables of SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels based on gender (p=0.012), vaccination status (p=0.000), and COVID-19 infection history (p=0.000). Furthermore, the multivariate analysis indicated that vaccination status was the variable most associated with SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels (p = 0.010). The OR value = 0.16 < 1 and 95%CI (0.04-0.65) which did not contain a value of 1 suggested vaccination status to be a significant protective factor associated with SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels, with a probability value of 94.1%.
Conclusion: The most influential variable on SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels in the Gowa Regency was vaccination status. Moreover, none of the variables measured were identified as confounding factors or showed interaction effects
Hemicellulose-g-PAAc/TiO2 Nanocomposite Hydrogel for Dye Removal
Get PDFDyes pollution on urban environment is of great concern because of the human health hazards associated with this kind of contaminants, and the use of low-cost photocatalytic composite material is an efficient treatment method to minimize the environmental impact. A novel hemicellulose-g-PAAc/TiO2 composite hydrogel was prepared as a promising alternative material for dye removal. Wheat straw hemicellulose and TiO2 nanoparticles were first modified and then incorporated into hydrogel via covalent bonds. Effects of gel dosage, pH, initial concentration and contact time on the adsorption amount of methylene blue were systematically studied using the prepared hydrogel. The equilibrium adsorption data was fitted well to the Freundlich isotherm model, and Langmuir isotherm analysis indicated that the adsorption capacity of the hemicellulose-g-PAAc/TiO2 composite hydrogel was 389.1 mg/g, and adsorption kinetic study showed that the adsorption process can be described by the pseudo second-order kinetic model. The prepared composite hydrogel exhibited high photodegradation ability for methylene blue under alkaline conditions, and all results indicated that the hemicellulose-g-PAAc/TiO2 composite hydrogel had excellent photocatalytic degradability for dyes, which can be used in practical process
Development and Characterization of Supercooled Polyethylene Naphthalate
Get PDFThe utilization of undercooled or supercooled polymers presents a promising approach for the creation of single-polymer composites (SPCs), applicable not only to compaction processing but also to extrusion, injection molding, and 3D printing techniques. This study focuses on the development and characterization of supercooled polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) through differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and rheological measurements. By employing predetermined conditions, a supercooling degree of 50 ˚C for PEN was achieved. The impact of maximum heating temperature, cooling rate, and shear rate on the supercooling degree was examined, revealing that higher supercooling degrees of PEN can be attained by increasing these factors. Additionally, the flow behavior of supercooled polymer melts at various temperatures was analyzed. The supercooling state of PEN exhibited remarkable stability for a minimum duration of half an hour at temperatures exceeding 250 ˚C
The Spectrum of Seizure Disorders in Children at a Secondary Care Hospital in Saudi Arabia
No full textObjective: This study was conducted to find out the presentation, clinical features, diagnosis, and outcome of seizures in children in a secondary care hospital.
Methodology: This was a prospective, cross-sectional analytical study conducted from September 2018 to April 2020 in a secondary care hospital in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Children presented with seizures to the hospital were included and studied for the demographic profile, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and course of the disease.
Results: A total of 73 cases were included in the study. Out of these, 48 (65.8%) were in the age group of 1-5 years, while 25 (34.2%) were in the age group of 6-14 years. Males were 33 (45.21), while females were 40 (54.8%). More than half of the cases were already diagnosed 43 (58.9). Generalized tonic-clonic seizures were the most common seizure type in the patients. The most common etiology of seizures was febrile seizure, followed by epilepsy.
Conclusion: Seizures in children are not uncommon presentations with varying profiles in various regions of the world. Febrile seizures and epilepsy are the commonest cause of seizures in children. Most seizure disorders have a good prognosis, provided that a comprehensive approach is used for the management
Conjoint Effect of Boron Nitride and Surface-Enhanced Flake Graphite in Thermal Conductivity of Thermally Conductive Grease
Get PDFThe next generation of high-power electronic devices is expected to exhibit improved heat dissipation capabilities despite their smaller size. Current studies have investigated the utilization of hybrid fillers, our study introduces a novel approach by combining boron nitride (BN) and surface-enhanced flake graphite (G), both of which possess a platelet-like structure, to develop a thermally conductive grease. The grease shows an exceptionally high thermal conductivity of 2.21 W/mK and an extremely low electrical conductivity of 7.3×10-6 S/m. The viscosity of the grease is measured at 149 Pa·s. By incorporating hybrid fillers with a significantly high aspect ratio into EPON 828, a notable reduction of interfacial thermal resistance is observed, which is attributed to the formation of an effective pathway for phonon transfer facilitated by the unique characteristics of the hybrid fillers. Various theoretical models are employed to corroborate the experimental data, which facilitates substantiating the fundamental principles underlying the enhanced thermal conductivity of the prepared thermal grease
The Unknown Mindscapes: Gender Dysphoria and Romantic/ Sexuality Relationships in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
No full textIntroduction: Higher percentages of gender dysphoria among autistic people has been recently observed. Previous studies showed that patients with autism spectrum disorders have difficulties in social communication and romantic relationships.
Aim: In light of this, this manuscript aimed to study the quality of romantic relationship in autistic people and the possible role played by gender dysphoria.
Methods: The search of the literature was conducted in this database: PubMed; we used these search terms: "autism spectrum disorder", "gender dysphoria", and "romantic relationship". We found a total of 74 citations. After excluding duplicates, 74 records were screened. 58 studies were excluded according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. A total of 16 studies has been finally assessed.
Results: The findings of this work showed that autistic people have a difficulties in social and romantic relationships. A variety of difficulties in interpersonal and romantic relationships were detected, but to date, it is not clear how gender dysphoria could influence the possibility to initiating and maintaining romantic relationships as well as having a satisfying sexual life. Furthermore, different diagnostic instruments resulted in having been employed, and a general heterogeneity in the population under scrutiny was observed.
Conclusions: Impaired social communication and interaction (SCI) and restricted, repetitive behavior (RRB) represent the two core symptom domains of ASD within the DSM-5. It is important to pay attention to these conditions, to manage the coming out about gender dysphoria in autistic people, and to develop strategies to help future social and romantic relationships. Furthermore, as different assessment tools resulted in having been used, in future research, greater attention should be paid to standardizing assessment tools and criteria for the autism spectrum, paying attention to the subjects presenting subthreshold traits as well. In general, future research should better investigate specific existential dimensions and/or difficulties met by people presenting both ASD and Gender Dysphoria
Exploring Social Realities and Identity Struggles through Content Analysis of Dialogues in La Désintégration by Philippe Faucon
Get PDFThis paper delves into the intricate social realities and identity struggles depicted in the film La Désintégration by Philippe Faucon through a meticulous content analysis of dialogues. This study aims to unveil the underlying sociopolitical themes embedded within the characters' dialogues by employing content analysis as the primary methodology. La Désintégration offers a poignant exploration of issues such as cultural and religious identity, socioeconomic marginalisation, and the process of radicalisation. Through a detailed analysis of selected dialogue excerpts, this paper sheds light on the characters' nuanced interactions and internal conflicts. By engaging with the dialogues as narrative devices, this research contributes to a deeper understanding of how banlieue cinema captures and reflects broader societal concerns. The findings extend the existing discourse on banlieue cinema and highlight the significance of dialogue in conveying the intricate web of social complexities in contemporary societies