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In the first part of the review article “General considerations” we give information about conventional flexible platforms and consider the advantages and disadvantages of paper when used in humidity sensors, both as a substrate and as a humidity-sensitive material. This consideration shows that paper, especially nanopaper, is a very promising material for the development of low-cost flexible humidity sensors suitable for a wide range of applications. Various humidity-sensitive materials suitable for use in paper-based sensors are analyzed and the humidity-sensitive characteristics of paper and other humidity-sensitive materials are compared. Various configurations of humidity sensors that can be developed on the basis of paper are considered, and a description of the mechanisms of their operation is given. Next, we discuss the manufacturing features of paper-based humidity sensors. The main attention is paid to the consideration of such problems as patterning and electrode formation. It is shown that printing technologies are the most suitable for mass production of paper-based flexible humidity sensors. At the same time, these technologies are effective both in the formation of a humidity-sensitive layer and in the manufacture of electrodes.

In the first part of the review article "General considerations" we give information about conventional flexible platforms and consider the advantages and disadvantages of paper when used in humidity sensors, both as a substrate and as a humidity-sensitive material. This consideration shows that paper, especially nanopaper, is a very promising material for the development of low-cost flexible humidity sensors suitable for a wide range of applications. Various humidity-sensitive materials suitable for use in paper-based sensors are analyzed and the humidity-sensitive characteristics of paper and other humidity-sensitive materials are compared. Various configurations of humidity sensors that can be developed on the basis of paper are considered, and a description of the mechanisms of their operation is given. Next, we discuss the manufacturing features of paper-based humidity sensors. The main attention is paid to the consideration of such problems as patterning and electrode formation. It is shown that printing technologies are the most suitable for mass production of paper-based flexible humidity sensors. At the same time, these technologies are effective both in the formation of a humidity-sensitive layer and in the manufacture of electrodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A method for the comparison of paper structure using light transmission images and frequency analysis was developed. The resolution of the light transmission images and the algorithm for the feature extraction were greatly improved to enhance the visibility of peaks in the 2D power spectrum that results from frequency analysis. A comparison method based on correlation measures how well the spectra match as a function of the orientation of the paper, yielding an objective and quantitative measure of similarity between 0 and 1. A technical validation was carried out with 25 different papers showing the potential of this method with common copy papers. Finally, the method was applied in a case. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Required metrological tools, such as higher order reference measurements procedures, pure substance and matrix certified reference materials, are established for small well defined molecules. Difficulties still remain in the provision of SI traceable standards in the area of larger biomolecules such as peptides/proteins. The provision of Primary Calibration Reference Services has been identified as a core technical competency for National Measurement Institutes (NMIs). A concept has been elaborated by the Focus Group I on peptide/protein purity for the strategic planning of ongoing Key Comparisons of the Protein Analysis Working Group (PAWG) within the Comité Consultatif pour la Quantité de Matière (CCQM). The assignment of the mass fraction content of high purity peptide/protein materials will be the subject of the CCQM-K115/P55.2 comparison series to directly support NMI services and certified reference materials currently being provided by NMIs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fibers and fillers are important raw materials for the preparation of paper products. Similar to fiber engineering, filler engineering for papermaking has become an active research area. There are similarities as well as differences between engineering involving each of these classes of materials. There are differences in such aspects as the nature of materials to be engineered, applicable engineering methods, and engineerablity of the material surfaces. The co-development of fiber engineering and filler engineering can potentially provide many benefits to the papermaking industry. For filler engineering, the relevant research topics broadly can include fibrous filler engineering, hollow/porous filler engineering, acid-stabilization of calcium carbonate fillers, surface encapsulation of naturally occurring polymers or their derivatives, preflocculation, precoagulation, cationic modification, filler/size hybrid formation, organic filler engineering, using combinations of different types of available fillers, multilayer deposition modification, modification with polymer latexes or dispersants, physical modification, mechanical modification, surface functionalization, fines-filler composite/hybrids or fiber-filler composite/ hybrid formation, in-situ polymerization modification, surface grafting, physical treatment in the presence of polymeric additives, filler precipitation, and core-shell composite filler engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Fengyun-4B (FY-4B) satellite is currently the primary operational geostationary meteorological satellite in China, replacing the previous FY-4A satellite. The advanced geostationary radiation imager (AGRI) aboard the FY-4B satellite provides an operational sea surface temperature (SST) product with a high observation frequency of 15 min. This paper conducts the first data quality assessment of operational SST products from the FY-4B/AGRI using quality-controlled measured SSTs from the in situ SST quality monitor dataset and foundation SSTs produced by the operational sea surface temperature and sea ice analysis (OSTIA) system from July 2023 to January 2024. The FY-4B/AGRI SST product provides a data quality level flag on a pixel-by-pixel basis. Accuracy evaluations are conducted on the FY-4B/AGRI SST product with different data quality levels. The results indicate that the FY-4B/AGRI operational SST generally has a negative mean bias compared to in situ SST and OSTIA SST, and that the accuracy of the FY-4B/AGRI SST, with an excellent quality level, can meet the needs of practical applications. The FY-4B/AGRI SST with an excellent quality level demonstrates a strong correlation with in situ SST and OSTIA SST, with a correlation coefficient R exceeding 0.99. Compared with in situ SST, the bias, root mean square error (RMSE), and unbiased RMSE (ubRMSE) of the FY-4B/AGRI SST with an excellent quality level are −0.19, 0.66, and 0.63 °C in daytime, and −0.15, 0.70, and 0.68 °C at night, respectively. Compared with OSTIA SST, the bias, RMSE, and ubRMSE of the FY-4B/AGRI SST with an excellent data quality level are −0.10, 0.64, and 0.63 °C in daytime, and −0.13, 0.68, and 0.67 °C at night. The FY-4B/AGRI SST tends to underestimate the sea water temperature in mid–low-latitude regions, while it tends to overestimate sea water temperature in high-latitude regions and near the edges of the full disk. The time-varying validation of FY-4B/AGRI SST accuracy shows weak fluctuations with a period of 3–4 months. Hourly accuracy verification shows that the difference between the FY-4B/AGRI SST and OSTIA SST reflects a diurnal effect. However, FY-4B/AGRI SST products need to be used with caution around midnight to avoid an abnormal accuracy. This paper also discusses the relationships between the FY-4B/AGRI SST and satellite zenith angle, water vapor content, wind speed, and in situ SST, which have an undeniable impact on the underestimation of the FY-4B/AGRI operational SST. The accuracy of the FY-4B/AGRI operational SST retrieval algorithm still needs to be further improved in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computer-aided design (CAD) has become an integral part of engineering education, particularly for those studying mechanical engineering. By providing practical skills that are highly valued in the engineering industry, proficiency in CAD systems enhances students' employability. Generally, CAD systems provide students with the tools and knowledge necessary to excel in their engineering education and future careers. In order to help teachers to give the best training to their students and to make the right evaluations, an automatized tool is needed to support the evaluation of CAD models during training sessions. After an extensive bibliographical search, this paper proposes a CAD Model Automatized Assessment (MAA) Tool for mechanical courses called the CAD MAA Tool. This tool is mainly based on a developed model that takes into account different aspects of modeling, such as geometric, feature-based, and parametric modeling. To correctly evaluate a given part compared to a reference one, the proposed model uses different coefficients fixed by the teacher according to their teaching strategies or course objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most comparative studies of media are undertaken between different countries. It is normally assumed that there are considerable commonalities between the media in a given country and it is usually argued that these are sufficient to form a 'media system', which can usefully be contrasted with that of another country. It is relatively unusual to find two sets of media within one country that are sufficiently distinct as be considered as different systems. This paper explores one of the exceptions to that general rule: the case of the Hong Kong media as compared with those of mainland China. Given the different historical and current situations of the two locations at the time the research was conducted, it is to be expected that the kinds of journalism practised would be radically dissimilar. The results of a content analysis of five mainland and three Hong Kong papers demonstrate that, at the aggregate level, there are indeed important differences. A more detailed analysis, however, demonstrates that each of the three Hong Kong papers is in fact closer to mainland groupings than they are to each other. One Hong Kong paper, Ta Kung Pao, is closest to the most 'official' grouping of mainland papers, while Ming Pao falls in to a grouping with the 'liberal' mainland paper. The now defunct Apple Daily, on the other hand, has the closest links with the 'popular official' mainland press. Taken together, these findings suggest that the common assumption that different forms of journalism are best compared on a national basis is incorrect and that factors like market position and ideological orientation have an important influence on the kinds of journalism practised across borders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the aim is to classify torque signals that are received from a 3-DOF manipulator using a pattern recognition neural network (PR-NN). The output signals of the proposed PR-NN classifier model are classified into four indicators. The first predicts that no collisions occur. The other three indicators predict collisions on the three links of the manipulator. The input data to train the PR-NN model are the values of torque exerted by the joints. The output of the model predicts and identifies the link on which the collision occurs. In our previous work, the position data for a 3-DOF robot were used to estimate the external collision torques exerted by the joints when applying collisions on each link, based on a recurrent neural network (RNN). The estimated external torques were used to design the current PR-NN model. In this work, the PR-NN model, while training, could successfully classify 56,592 samples out of 56,619 samples. Thus, the model achieved overall effectiveness (accuracy) in classifying collisions on the robot of 99.95%, which is almost 100%. The sensitivity of the model in detecting collisions on the links "Link 1, Link 2, and Link 3" was 97.9%, 99.7%, and 99.9%, respectively. The overall effectiveness of the trained model is presented and compared with other previous entries from the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning and teaching a language for specific purposes, in our case English language, is quite a new approach at the Public University of Prishtina, which was established only in 1970. Considering this fact, English language teaching in Kosovo has been around ever since. It was initially taught as General English (GE) in the schools of the capital city and later, namely from the 1980s to date throughout the country. Nevertheless, English for Specific Purposes (ESP) is one of the most recent courses that have started to attract the attention of the domestic teaching authorities, mainly at the university level, while it continues to be absent in secondary schools. Despite this, the reason for the absence of ESP in secondary education relates to the lack of planning, extracurricular teaching materials or specific textbooks. In this paper, we will review the current state of GE at the University of Prishtina by assessing the English language first-term exam results for two groups of students in the first year in the Departments of History and Political Sciences, with the aim of finding out whether they are ready to attend ESP courses in the second semester. Research has taken place amongst male and female students, aged 18-19, who attended the A1 and B2+GE level as per the CEFR requirements. The students who pass the exam may be qualified to attend the ESP classes in the second semester, whereas students who did not should continue with GE classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to compare the power measurement capabilities in millimetre- and sub-millimetre-wave frequency bands of several national metrology institutes and one research institute. The first comparison, in WR-6.5 waveguide (110 GHz to 170 GHz), involved NPL, TUBITAK UME and PTB. The second comparison, in WR-1.5 waveguide (500 GHz to 750 GHz), involved NPL, METAS, TUBITAK UME, LNE, WAT, GUM and VDI. Two types of travelling standards were used for these comparisons: a thermoelectric power sensor in the WR-6.5 band and a calorimetric power sensor in the WR-6.5 and WR-1.5 bands. The thermoelectric power sensor was characterised by the participants against their own standards and a generalised effective efficiency was calculated. The calorimetric power sensor operating in the WR-6.5 band was measured to observe its behaviour during the comparison and was also measured in the WR-1.5 band after being fitted with a suitable waveguide taper and used in conjunction with a frequency multiplier. The participants measured the output of the calorimetric power sensor and their own power sensor standard. A normalised power ratio method was used as a comparison parameter for the WR-1.5 band measurements. In addition, a pyroelectric power standard was used by METAS to measure absolute power, and a frequency of 650 GHz was used as a link between the absolute power and the power ratios. Finally, all but two of the measurement points compared between the participants achieved agreement in terms of E n scores less than 1. For the first time, an interlaboratory comparison of power measurements at sub-millimetre frequencies has been performed and, overall, good agreement was achieved between the different laboratories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Application of emerging digital technology (DT) is an attractive subject of research and is indispensable to the current goal of intelligent construction in many countries. Relevant studies have either focused on the status of a specific DT or proposed preliminary/qualitative comparisons among DTs. This paper provides a systematic understanding of research on applying DTs to the architecture, engineering, construction, and operation (AECO) industry using a mixed-review method. Ten emerging DTs are determined, and publications related to them in 2011–2020 are collected from the Scopus database. The overall status and comparisons of research on 10 emerging DTs by region, journal, and popularity are then presented. The content of research on them is examined through in-depth literature analysis (including research scenario, project stage, and literature evolution in a discipline) and theme classification. Future research directions including technology knowledge, development, application and management, and some practical implications for the country, industry, project, and enterprise, are finally proposed. This research will be informative for academics with regard to the emerging DT's opportunities in this discipline and provide support for work on the digitization of the AECO industry. Some practical implications are proposed from the perspectives of the country, industry, project, and enterprise. For the government, the holistic planning and scientific coordination of emerging DTs need to be highlighted, such as vigorously promoting Building Information Modelling (BIM) and artificial intelligence (AI) and utilizing them to further support the progress of blockchain and digital twin. Establishing demonstration projects to play their radiating roles and accelerate the inter-regional promotion of emerging DTs is also effective. For the industry, it is suggested to build technology alliances to jointly develop integrated platforms covering multiple emerging DTs through in-depth synergy; industry associations are advised to strengthen knowledge diffusion and accumulation for emerging DTs through sharing and training. For projects, applying emerging DTs to the entire life of projects and making them be deeply integrated with off-site, lean, and green construction are advisable. For enterprises, improving the workflow and management model adapted to the application of emerging DTs is necessary. Through adjusting organizational structure and transforming corporate culture, the competitiveness of enterprises could be continuously improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of GeSec: Revista de Gestao e Secretariado is the property of Sindicato das Secretarias e Secretarios do Estado de Sao Paulo (SINSESP) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The popularity of sustainability as a research topic in different areas of organisational functioning is marked by the number of studies on the topic. Significantly less research is addressing the factors that fundamentally influence the functioning of organisations. Among these factors, this paper will review the criteria for sustainable leadership. Competition in the economy has made it necessary to build sustainability capabilities in all areas of business, of which the practice of sustainable leadership is a fundamental requirement for making strategic decisions. This paper aims to examine the thinking, leadership styles, and decisions of leaders of organisations in everyday practice based on the pyramid logic of sustainable leadership. In this research, structured interviews with managers of Hungarian (32) and Polish (28) organisations were evaluated using the 'Voyant tools' 2.6.9. software. The results show that there is a significant difference between the Hungarian and Polish leadership mindsets, with both samples only partially meeting the expectations of what can be considered a sustainable leadership style in the spirit of the 'Honeybee' approach. Out of the 14 basic elements of the pyramid, the leaders of both nations reach the desired level in five cases. This study provides useful lessons for SME managers in developing sustainability management practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Formaldehyde, the simplest molecule of the aldehyde group, is a gaseous compound at room temperature and pressure, is colorless, and has a strong, pungent odor. It is soluble in water, ethanol, and diethyl ether and is used in solution or polymerized form. Its maximum daily dosage established by the EPA is 0.2 μg g−1 of body weight whereas that established by the WHO is between 1.5 and 14 mg g−1: it is in category 1A of carcinogens by IARC. From an analytical point of view, formaldehyde is traditionally analyzed by HPLC with UV-Vis detection. Nowadays, the need to analyze this compound quickly and in situ is increasing. This work proposes a critical review of methods for analyzing formaldehyde in food using sensing methods. A search carried out on the Scopus database documented more than 50 papers published in the last 5 years. The increase in interest in the recognition of the presence of formaldehyde in food has occurred in recent years, above all due to an awareness of the damage it can cause to human health. This paper focuses on some new sensors by analyzing their performance and comparing them with various no-sensing methods but focusing on the determination of formaldehyde in food products. The sensors reported are of various types, but they all share a good LOD, good accuracy, and a reduced analysis time. Some of them are also biodegradable and others have a very low cost, many are portable and easy to use, therefore usable for the recognition of food adulterations on site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The comparison of Sogdian images in China and Central Asia has become a hot topic in academic circles in recent years. However, there is no specific comparison of Sogdian images on burial utensils in the existing studies. Accordingly, the author proposes to compare the images on burial utensils by collecting together the remaining materials as much as possible and making corresponding data tables. First and foremost, this paper focuses on the actual quantity of the remains and gives a table, "Statistics of the Sogdian Burial Utensils with Images", to show this quantity for the first time: there are 30 remains of Sogdian burial utensils in China (26 sarcophagi and four ossuaries) and 23 Sogdian burial utensils in Central Asia (all are ossuaries). Secondly, there are several tables based on remaining materials in this paper, including "Distribution of the Shapes of Sogdian Sarcophagi in China", "Historical Period and Shape of Sogdian Ossuaries in Central Asia", "Religious Images Table of Sogdian Sarcophagi in China", "Table of Religious Image Types of the Sogdian Ossuaries in Central Asia" and "Common Religious Images of the Burial Utensils in China and Central Asia". Thirdly, further analysis shows that there are two image systems. Grounded in the above analysis, this paper comes to conclusions at three levels. Firstly, there are two shapes of burial utensils. Sarcophagi are widely seen in China whilst ossuaries are commonly discovered in Central Asia. As a result, the images on the sarcophagi in China are large in size and wide in narrative themes, whereas those on the ossuaries in Central Asia are small in size, emphasizing important content and narrative themes. All are rich in image representation. Secondly, there are three types of religious images on the burial utensils. The comparison results of image types show the common images in three categories: gods, funeral ceremonies and sacred fire sacrifice. Thirdly, the images on burial utensils have different characteristics regarding religious transmission. Zoroastrianism is dominant in Central Asia, while Zoroastrianism, Chinese mythology and Buddhist images are primary in China and images of tomb owners embodying secularity are also widespread in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, general characteristics related to the supply chain of compressed natural gas (eng. CNG - Compressed Natural Gas) are given. Compressed natural gas is stored in a compressed gas state in tanks (bottles), in contrast to liquefied natural gas (eng. LNG - Liquefied Natural Gas) in which natural gas is stored in liquid form. The production and storage of compressed natural gas is somewhat cheaper compared to liquid natural gas, with the fact that the storage volumes are different. From all of this, there is a need to analyze the supply chain with CNG from the aspect of the compression process, transportation and storage costs. This paper describes the process of exploitation of CNG as a fuel for the conditions of functioning of the supply chain in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Real data related to the process of compression, transportation and storage of natural gas were taken from the company: "Prvo gasno društvo" D.O.O. Zvornik. The paper analyzed the indicators of the chain like energy efficiency, CO2 emissions and production cost reduced per 1 kWh of energy expressed in the lower heat value (LHV) of the distributed fuel. Also, a short comparison of the supply chains by CNG, wood pellets and chips as fuels is presented by the MCDM method. From the aspect of transport logistics, CNG has significantly better predispositions compared to other supply chains of pellets and wood chips, taking into account the energy efficiency of its process as well as the cost of supply logistics itself. However, CNG belongs to the category of fossil fuels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of BMC Ophthalmology is the property of BioMed Central and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Online communication in our work and private lives has increased significantly since the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualitative research has evolved with this trend with many studies adopting online methods. It is therefore timely to assess the use and utility of online focus groups compared to face-to-face focus groups. Traditional Pearl Growing Methodology was used to identify eligible papers. Data were extracted on data collection methods, recruitment and sampling strategies, analytical approaches to comparing data sets, the depth of data produced, participant interactions and the required resources. A total of 26 papers were included in the review. Along with face-to-face focus groups (n = 26) 16 studies conducted synchronous, eight asynchronous and two both online focus group methods. Most studies (n = 22) used the same recruitment method for both face-to-face and online focus groups. A variety of approaches to compare data sets were used in studies. Of the studies reporting on depth of data (n = 19), nine found that face-to-face groups produced the most in-depth data, four online groups and six equivalent data. Participant interaction was reported to be greater during face-to-face groups in 10 studies; three reported online groups produced greater interaction and six equivalent interaction. Detailed resource use comparisons were not presented in any of the studies. This review demonstrates that to date there is not a clear consensus as to whether face-to-face or online focus groups hold specific advantages in terms of the data produced and the resources required. Given these findings it may be appropriate for researchers to consider using online focus groups where time and resources are constrained, or where these are more practicable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reliable quantification in biological systems of endogenous low- and high-molecular substances, drugs and their metabolites, is of particular importance in diagnosis and therapy, and in basic and clinical research. The analytical characteristics of analytical approaches have many differences, including in core features such as accuracy, precision, specificity, and limits of detection (LOD) and quantitation (LOQ). Several different mathematic approaches were developed and used for the comparison of two analytical methods applied to the same chemical compound in the same biological sample. Generally, comparisons of results obtained by two analytical methods yields different quantitative results. Yet, which mathematical approach gives the most reliable results? Which mathematical approach is best suited to demonstrate agreement between the methods, or the superiority of an analytical method A over analytical method B? The simplest and most frequently used method of comparison is the linear regression analysis of data observed by method A (y) and the data observed by method B (x): y = α + βx. In 1986, Bland and Altman indicated that linear regression analysis, notably the use of the correlation coefficient, is inappropriate for method-comparison. Instead, Bland and Altman have suggested an alternative approach, which is generally known as the Bland–Altman approach. Originally, this method of comparison was applied in medicine, for instance, to measure blood pressure by two devices. The Bland–Altman approach was rapidly adapted in analytical chemistry and in clinical chemistry. To date, the approach suggested by Bland–Altman approach is one of the most widely used mathematical approaches for method-comparison. With about 37,000 citations, the original paper published in the journal The Lancet in 1986 is among the most frequently cited scientific papers in this area to date. Nevertheless, the Bland–Altman approach has not been really set on a quantitative basis. No criteria have been proposed thus far, in which the Bland–Altman approach can form the basis on which analytical agreement or the better analytical method can be demonstrated. In this article, the Bland–Altman approach is re-valuated from a quantitative bioanalytical perspective, and an attempt is made to propose acceptance criteria. For this purpose, different analytical methods were compared with Gold Standard analytical methods based on mass spectrometry (MS) and tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS), i.e., GC-MS, GC-MS/MS, LC-MS and LC-MS/MS. Other chromatographic and non-chromatographic methods were also considered. The results for several different endogenous substances, including nitrate, anandamide, homoarginine, creatinine and malondialdehyde in human plasma, serum and urine are discussed. In addition to the Bland–Altman approach, linear regression analysis and the Oldham–Eksborg method-comparison approaches were used and compared. Special emphasis was given to the relation of difference and mean in the Bland–Altman approach. Currently available guidelines for method validation were also considered. Acceptance criteria for method agreement were proposed, including the slope and correlation coefficient in linear regression, and the coefficient of variation for the percentage difference in the Bland–Altman and Oldham–Eksborg approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comparison of the three distinctive well-known control techniques, including Linear Quadratic Regulator (for short, LQR), Sliding Mode Control (for short, SMC), and Fuzzy Logic Control (for short, FLC). Each controller is in a different control category; LQR is an optimal controller employed in both linear and nonlinear systems, SMC is a nonlinear controller commonly applied in a nonlinear system, and the Fuzzy controller is the intelligent controller which can be archived by user's experiment or other learning techniques. Beside the three main controllers for stabilizing at the equilibrium point, the swing-up controller is designed based on energy-based method to bring the system at the initial position close to the equilibrium points. Finally, the performance and the validity of the three methods are verified through both simulation and experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper focuses on the field of learning styles in e-learning. The study is structured in two main parts: (1) a brief overview of traditional approaches to learning styles is presented and their role in the process of instruction is set; this part results in the reflection of current state, when learning styles are considered within e-learning; (2) results of meta-analysis dealing with learning styles in the e-learning environment are introduced focusing on two periods (2001-2007, 2008-2014) and journals in selected databases ProQuest Central, Elsevier Science Direct and ERIC. Totally 5,361 papers were collected and structured according to three criteria: (1) time period, (2) relevancy of information sources and (3) relevant key words. Collected data underwent the chí-squared test for independence and the analysis of adjusted residuals on the significance level α=0.05. No statistically significant changes were discovered in the research sample, however, some shifts were detected in this field. Finally, the results were discussed and relating conclusions provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Waxy maize contains nearly 100% of the branched amylopectin type of starch, which has a similar structure to that of a commercial anionic organic micro-particle (OMP). It was found that the maize starch would have the same function as the OMP if carboxymethyl groups were introduced; moreover, the performance of carboxymethyl starch as a retention and drainage aid could be enhanced by grafting some cationic groups on the backbone of the starch so that it could absorb on fibers through electrostatic attraction. In this study, the introduced groups of cationic-modified carboxymethyl starch (CCMS) prepared from waxy maize were determined by FT-IR and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. Factors affecting retention and drainage, comparison between CCMS and OMP systems, and also the strengthening effect of CCMS were studied. The results showed that CCMS had excellent performance when it was used with cationic polyacrylamide (CPAM) as a retention system. Compared with the OMP, CCMS had better retention performance when the dosage was in the range from 0.01% to 0.08%, and it yielded much more uniform formation of the handsheets. Additionally, CCMS had a strengthening effect on the paper, which distinguished it from other retention aids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper firstly describes how my teaching context and student body shapes the methodological and motivational resources that I use in the first three weeks of a section in comparative hagiographical studies. This practical example demonstrates the importance of being conversant with both our local learning context and the international scholarly comparative community. The second part of this essay outlines my methodological thinking as I propose a historical-scientific example of hagiographical comparison to my students, by employing taxonomies from psychological science for the sake of making helpful comparative observations between thirteenth-century hagiographies. The third part of the essay describes how I ensure that employing a particular psychological paradigm—such as "religious and spiritual struggles"—is appropriate to a given historical context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]