1,354,455 research outputs found
Effect of Material Constituents on Bond Characteristics of Self Consolidating Concrete
No full textA Master of Science thesis in Civil Engineering by Amjad Ahmad Alhamad entitled, “Effect of Material Constituents on Bond Characteristics of Self Consolidating Concrete”, submitted in April 2023. Thesis advisor is Dr. Sherif Yehia and thesis co-advisor is Dr. Mohamed Elchalakani. Soft copy is available (Thesis, Completion Certificate, Approval Signatures, and AUS Archives Consent Form).College of EngineeringDepartment of Civil EngineeringMaster of Science in Civil Engineering (MSCE
Children’s reading engagement and social reading experiences: exploring the influence of augmented reality (AR) books
No full textThe quality of children’s reading experiences plays a significant role in their opportunity to thrive, and these reading experiences can be shaped by different text types (Krcmar & Cingel, 2014). Over the last decade, the nature of reading has been evolving, and Augmented Reality (AR) represents a step change in bringing together the physical book with digital enhancements (Panchenko et al., 2020; Polyzou et al., 2023). Augmented Reality (AR) books represent a hybrid reading experience, where print books are augmented with digital features (e.g., animations, sounds, comprehension questions). This offers opportunities for new research questions focusing on children’s reading experiences and how different reading mediums could shape and support their reading practices. This research adopted a mixed-methods exploratory sequential design to i) provide in-depth insights into children’s reading engagement with AR books, focusing on behavioural, cognitive, affective, and social dimensions and ii) explore the social reading experiences (shared reading and book-talk) afforded by AR books for children with reading difficulties.
Previous research highlights that the quality of children’s reading experiences and outcomes is associated with their reading engagement (McGeown & Conradi-Smith, 2023); however, research to date has only examined children’s reading engagement within the context of print books or digital texts. Therefore, Study 1 examined children’s perspectives and experiences of AR books, within the context of reading engagement. In total, 38 demographically diverse children (aged 8–10, 21 boys, 17 English as an Additional Language, 14 ethnicities, and nine with teacher-reported reading difficulties) from the UK participated. After reading an AR book, children participated in interviews to learn about their reading engagement. Deductive (themes) and inductive (subthemes) approaches to thematic analysis were used (Braun & Clarke, 2006), examining children’s AR reading experiences within the context of their behavioural, cognitive, affective and social engagement (Lee et al., 2021a). The majority of children found AR books easy to use, and provided examples of how AR books supported their behavioural engagement (e.g., desire to read more/extend reading practices), altered their cognitive engagement (e.g., reading strategies, visual representation/use of imagination, comprehension monitoring), influenced their affective engagement: (e.g., diverse positive feelings), and social engagement (e.g., prompted interaction and discussion), providing examples suggesting similarities and differences with print books. In addition, class teachers from the classes participating in this project took part in interviews (n = 2), and their perceptions of the usability of AR books in the classroom are discussed (e.g., time restrictions and availability), as these issues could complicate the implementation of AR books within classrooms.
Shared reading and book talk are common activities used to engage primary school readers, yet can be anxiety-provoking for those with reading difficulties. Study 2 examined whether, and how, AR books could foster more positive social reading experiences for children with reading difficulties by comparing children’s book-talk and reading experiences with an Augmented Reality (AR) and non-AR (matched in content and format, except for the number of pages) book. In total, 32 children (aged 8–10, 17 girls, 3 English as an Additional Language, 7 ethnicities, and all with reading difficulties) from the UK participated. Children participated in dyads in two shared book reading sessions (AR/non-AR book, counterbalanced), with book-talk after each session, followed by a general discussion to learn of their perceptions of the similarities and differences in their AR/non-AR reading experiences. It was found that AR books were associated with significantly higher levels of book talk following the reading session (both in number of words spoken and sentence length), while many similarities and differences were found in children’s experiences with the AR and non-AR books. For example, shared reading in both conditions could support reading progress (e.g., positive peer support) and foster positive social reading experiences (e.g., enjoying reading together and feeling connected); however, differences were also found in relation to the AR book shared reading (e.g., ease of use).
The findings of this thesis have contributed to the very limited research literature on AR books and reading experiences. Given the increase in the use of technology among children, this research reported how this new form of technology can potentially support and extend children’s reading practices and experiences. For AR books to be used optimally within the classroom, it is essential to raise teachers’ awareness of AR books, and how they influence children’s reading engagement, so that teachers can make informed decisions about their use. Moreover, previous research has demonstrated the importance of talking about text with peers (Gambrell, 2011), and its positive influence on readers’ social engagement (Lee et al., 2021a). Enabling positive social reading experiences for children who have difficulties with reading is essential, and AR books offer promise in this regard. This research provides novel and educationally important insights which can inform the reading practices of children with reading difficulties, as it is the first research to explore the potential impact of AR books on the book-talk and reading experiences of children with reading difficulties. Finally, AR does offer a new direction for book publishing (Gudinavičius & Markelevičiūtė, 2020; Lai et al., 2015) and the findings of this research could develop our understanding of how best to integrate AR into books to facilitate positive engaging and enriching reading experiences for children
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
No full text“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
No full textWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Pirfenidone treatment in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: A Saudi experience
No full textBackground: Recent trials involving pirfenidone suggest a beneficial effect in the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).
Objective: To report on the efficacy and safety of pirfenidone in the treatment of patients with IPF, at a tertiary care hospital in Saudi Arabia.
Methods: The study included 58 patients with IPF who were evaluated from March 2012 to March 2013. During the study period, 33 patients received pirfenidone, and the remaining patients (n = 25) served as a control group. Baseline clinical characteristics, physiological parameters and the results of a 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) were compared between the groups. Furthermore, we compared changes in forced vital capacity (FVC), diffusion capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLco), six-minute walk distance (6MWD) and SF-36 for both groups during follow-up. The last follow-up period ended in January 2014.
Results: There were no significant differences in baseline clinical characteristics between the groups. Furthermore, we found no differences in FVC, DLco and SF-36 during follow-up (median, 12 months). However, patients receiving pirfenidone treatment were less likely to experience reductions in 6MWD compared with the control group (13% vs. 52%, respectively; P = 0.001). Although adverse events were more frequently reported by the pirfenidone group compared with the control group (85 vs. 56%, respectively; P = 0.015), these patients did not require discontinuation of treatment.
Conclusion: Pirfenidone treatment preserves functional capacity, as reflected by the 6MWD. Adverse events associated with pirfenidone treatment were generally well tolerated by the patients
Interstitial lung diseases in Saudi Arabia: A single-center study
No full textBackground: There are relatively few epidemiological studies on interstitial lung disease (ILD) worldwide.
Objective: To report the incident cases of ILD and compare our data with reports from other populations.
Methods: Newly diagnosed ILDs were prospectively collected at a single tertiary care hospital from January 2008 to December 2011. Detailed demographic and clinical data were collected at the time of diagnosis, along with the results from diagnostic procedures, including high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), serological tests, bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), transbronchial lung biopsy, endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) and surgical lung biopsy.
Results: A total of 330 cases were included. The mean age was 55.4 ± 14.9 years. There was a slight predominance of females (202; 61.2%), and the male-to-female ratio was 1:1.37. The most frequent disease was connective tissue disease (CTD)-associated ILD (34.8%), followed by idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) (23.3%), sarcoidosis (20%), and hypersensitivity pneumonitis (6.3%). Non-classifiable ILD was present in 1.8% of the total ILD cases. HRCT was performed in 97.3% of the cases, BAL in 17.5%, transbronchial lung biopsy in 21.8%, EBUS-TBNA in 4.5%, and surgical lung biopsy in 22.7% (38.6% of which were performed among the idiopathic interstitial pneumonia cases).
Conclusions: CTD-ILD and IPF were the most frequently observed ILDs in this Saudi Arabian population. Similarities and differences were found with respect to the previous reports from other countries
The six-minute walk test in patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis
No full textBackground: The 6-min walk test (6MWT) is a useful tool to assess prognosis and functional impairment in various pulmonary diseases. Aims: To evaluate functional capacity during various stages of pulmonary sarcoidosis and develop a scoring system clinical radiological physiological score (CRP) that can potentially be used to assess the functional status among patients with sarcoidosis. Materials and Methods: We performed a retrospective study on 26 patients diagnosed with pulmonary sarcoidosis from 2001 to 2007. All patients completed the 6MWT. The parameters assessed during the test included spirometry, arterial blood gas, 6-min walk distance (6MWD), Borg dyspnea score, and initial and end oxygen saturation. Results: Females covered a significantly shorter distance than males (343 m (223-389) vs. 416.5 m (352-500); P < 0.0001). In addition, females had a significantly lower SpO 2 at the end of the 6MWT than males (90.5 (61-99) vs. 96 (75-98); P < 0.03). The 6MWD was inversely correlated with the final Borg score (r = −0.603, P = 0.004) and the CRP score (r = -0.364, P = 0.047) and positively correlated with forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV 1 ) % (r = 0.524, P = 0.006) and forced vital capacity (FVC) % (r = 0.407, P = 0.039). Conclusions: Female gender, FEV 1 %, final Borg score, FVC%, CRP score, and SpO 2 at the end of the 6MWT are associated with reduced 6MWD. It appears that Saudi patients diagnosed with sarcoidosis have a markedly reduced walking distance compared with other races. The effect of race and ethnicity and the utility of the CRP score as a potential marker to assess functional status require further exploration
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
No full textWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Author, publisher and bookseller : a tripartite synergy in Nigerian book industry
No full textThis work is about the roles of Author, Publisher and Bookseller in Book development in
Nigeria. The paper started by delving into the history of Book Publishing in Nigeria after
which it proceeded by defining who an author, a publisher, and a bookseller is and
expatiated on the indispensable roles of these key actors in Nigerian Book Industry and in
the emerging Information Society. Furthermore, the various constraints to book
development were identified while the paper advised on how the Book Industry can be
further promoted in Nigeria. However, the paper concluded and made recommendations
on how the Book sector can help in enhancing scholarship in the country
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