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Introduction: Myeloneuropathy is a diagnosis ascribed to disorders that concomitantly affect the spinal cord and peripheral nerves. Recognizing this syndrome may sometimes be arduous, even for the most consummate clinicians, because symptomatology can mimic either spinal cord or peripheral nerve disease. Besides, examination findings suggest a predominantly myelopathic or neuropathic picture. This article reports a rendezvous of rare cases of clinically diagnosed myeloneuropathy with different etiological backgrounds and therapeutic responses. Methods: Eleven cases of non-compressive myeloneuropathy were admitted to the Department of General Medicine of Burdwan Medical College and Hospital, Burdwan, West Bengal, India, between May 2018 and May 2022. Results: We report the cases of 11 patients (6 men and 5 women) who presented with myeloneuropathy of different etiologies (vitamin B12, copper, and vitamin E deficiencies, organophosphate poisoning, chronic alcohol abuse, illicit substances abuse, anti-thyroid peroxidase/anti-thyroglobulin antibody-related neurologic disorder responsive to steroids, Sjögren syndrome, chikungunya infection, paraneoplastic, and hereditary). Conclusion: Meticulous historical analysis, careful clinical examination, and apposite utilization and interpretation of biochemical, electrophysiological, and neuroimaging findings are sine-qua-non for an accurate and consistent approach to evaluating a suspected case of myeloneuropathy, facilitating early treatment and recovery. Differential identification of these disorders needs an in-depth perception of the mode of onset of symptoms, the course of progression of the disease, the pattern of myelopathic/neuropathic findings, and recognition of other neurological or systemic manifestations. For untroubled understanding, etiologies of myeloneuropathies should be subdivided into a few broad categories, e.g., metabolic (nutritional), toxic (toxin-induced), infectious, inflammatory (immune-mediated), paraneoplastic, and hereditary disorders. Resumen: Introducción: La mieloneuropatía es un síndrome que afecta concomitantemente la médula espinal y los nervios periféricos. Reconocerlo a veces puede ser arduo, incluso para los médicos más experimentados, porque la sintomatología puede simular una enfermedad de la médula espinal o de los nervios periféricos. Además, los hallazgos del examen sugieren un cuadro predominantemente mielopático o neuropático. Este artículo describe una serie de casos raros de mieloneuropatía de distintas causas y con respuestas terapéuticas distintas. Métodos: Once casos de mieloneuropatía no compresiva fueron ingresados en el Departamento de Medicina General del Burdwan Medical College, and Hospital, Burdwan, Bengala Occidental, India, entre mayo de 2018 y mayo de 2022. Resultados: Presentamos 11 pacientes (seis hombres y cinco mujeres) con mieloneuropatía de diferentes etiologías (deficiencias de vitamina B12, cobre y vitamina E, intoxicación por organofosforados, abuso crónico de alcohol, abuso de sustancias ilícitas, trastorno neurológico relacionado con anticuerpos anti-tiroglobulina / antiperoxidasa tiroidea que responde a esteroides, síndrome de Sjögren, infección por chikungunya, paraneoplásico y hereditario). Conclusión: El análisis meticuloso de la historia y del examen clínico, así como la utilización e interpretación adecuadas de los hallazgos bioquímicos, electrofisiológicos y de neuroimagen son condiciones sine qua non para un enfoque preciso y consistente para evaluar un caso sospechoso de mieloneuropatía, lo que facilita el tratamiento temprano y su recuperación. El diagnóstico diferencial de esta patología requiere un conocimiento del modo de inicio de los síntomas, su progresión, el patrón de hallazgos mielopáticos/neuropáticos y el reconocimiento de otras manifestaciones neurológicas o sistémicas. Las etiologías de las mieloneuropatías deben subdividirse en trastornos metabólicos (nutricionales), tóxicos (inducidos por toxinas), infecciosos, inflamatorios (mediados por mecanismos inmunitarios), paraneoplásicos y hereditarias.

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) completed its 5 month Survey Validation in 2021 May. Spectra of stellar and extragalactic targets from Survey Validation constitute the first major data sample from the DESI survey. This paper describes the public release of those spectra, the catalogs of derived properties, and the intermediate data products. In total, the public release includes good-quality spectral information from 466,447 objects targeted as part of the Milky Way Survey, 428,758 as part of the Bright Galaxy Survey, 227,318 as part of the Luminous Red Galaxy sample, 437,664 as part of the Emission Line Galaxy sample, and 76,079 as part of the Quasar sample. In addition, the release includes spectral information from 137,148 objects that expand the scope beyond the primary samples as part of a series of secondary programs. Here, we describe the spectral data, data quality, data products, Large-Scale Structure science catalogs, access to the data, and references that provide relevant background to using these spectra.

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) was designed to conduct a survey covering 14,000 deg ^2 over 5 yr to constrain the cosmic expansion history through precise measurements of baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO). The scientific program for DESI was evaluated during a 5 month survey validation (SV) campaign before beginning full operations. This program produced deep spectra of tens of thousands of objects from each of the stellar Milky Way Survey (MWS), Bright Galaxy Survey (BGS), luminous red galaxy (LRG), emission line galaxy (ELG), and quasar target classes. These SV spectra were used to optimize redshift distributions, characterize exposure times, determine calibration procedures, and assess observational overheads for the 5 yr program. In this paper, we present the final target selection algorithms, redshift distributions, and projected cosmology constraints resulting from those studies. We also present a One-Percent Survey conducted at the conclusion of SV covering 140 deg ^2 using the final target selection algorithms with exposures of a depth typical of the main survey. The SV indicates that DESI will be able to complete the full 14,000 deg ^2 program with spectroscopically confirmed targets from the MWS, BGS, LRG, ELG, and quasar programs with total sample sizes of 7.2, 13.8, 7.46, 15.7, and 2.87 million, respectively. These samples will allow exploration of the Milky Way halo, clustering on all scales, and BAO measurements with a statistical precision of 0.28% over the redshift interval z < 1.1, 0.39% over the redshift interval 1.1 < z < 1.9, and 0.46% over the redshift interval 1.9 < z < 3.5.

Attracting prospective students could be difficult and expensive. Candidates, when choosing a future school for their studies, consider a great number of factors. Information from official university websites does not suffice to persuade. Word of mouth plays a significant role, among others. The aim of this paper is to present findings about important factors influencing the overall satisfaction of current students with university life as well as their willingness to share positive references. The study took place in the Czech Republic with students attending business schools at universities. Primary data was collected via an online questionnaire with students with bachelor's, master's, and doctorate degrees (n = 274) and in-depth interviews (n = 10). Data was processed with regression analysis and Spearman's correlation coefficient. The main findings suggest that there is a close positive correlation between students' satisfaction and the willingness to recommend the university. The quality of student life and the reputation of the school were identified as the most important factors influencing this satisfaction and willingness to recommend.

Higher education students need help and support to enable them to cope with the challenges of their studies. The aim of this study was to investigate the perspectives of first-year undergraduate students on predictors of psychosocial support in challenging situations. A creative art-based descriptive research design was employed utilising an individual One-Page Profile form to gather data from 240 first-year students from two different universities in Slovakia. Data was collected and analysed using a content-thematic and visual approach. Four significant individual predictors of psychosocial support were identified: emotional, instrumental, informational and appraisal. Emotional support consists of desirable mental health, defined by the students as experiencing happiness, self-satisfaction, self-development, relationships which are satisfying, loving and safe, trust, empathic acceptance, and care from others. Instrumental support varies from personnel up to material resources e.g., people, animals, and assistance such as financial services. The preferred informational support is peer-to-peer counselling, followed by professional counselling. When students describe appraisal support their needs are primarily in the areas of well-being and self-efficacy. The study makes various suggestions on how University staff can provide first-year students with support and counselling in their everyday challenges.

Abstract High-purity microfine mullite precursor powder of stoichiometric chemical composition, 3Al2O3.2SiO2, was synthesized through the sol-gel route using aluminum isopropoxide and tetraethyl orthosilicate. The derived mullite precursor powder was characterized by BET surface area, particle size distribution, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetry-differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Phase analysis of the precursor powder and calcined samples at different temperatures was done by XRD. Non-isothermal crystallization kinetics of mullite precursor was studied by TG-DTA in static air using heating rates of 5.0, 7.5, 10.0, 12.5, and 15 K.min-1. Grain morphology was studied by SEM. The results showed that synthesized mullite precursor powder possessed homogeneity of Al and Si components, and the amorphous precursor powder was converted to monophasic mullite crystal when heat-treated at 970 °C. Based on Flynn-Wall-Ozawa and Kissinger equations, the activation energy associated with the crystallization of mullite was determined to be 1189.8 and 1189.0 kJ.mol-1, respectively.

In March 2018, metal construction kits were distributed to all elementary schools in Rhineland-Palatinate as part of the project called "Technikkiste" [translation from German: technology box] to promote STEM education. At the end of the year 2018, three more expansion sets followed. So far, no requests have been made to schools, even after five years of the project's start as to how and whether they use this material. Therefore, an evaluation study was carried out in 2023, which was intended to find out the current usage behaviour with the kits as well as to get an impression of the teachers regarding the in-service training that took place as part of the project. For that 921 elementary schools were asked to participate in an online survey. 69 answered the questionnaire some more gave informal feedback. The results from the survey already show that only about 70% of the responders are even aware of the metal construction kits. Around 30% stated, that they were not familiar with the metal construction kits. In addition, only about 43% of the participants indicated that the kits have ever been used in the classroom at their school. One of the main reasons why they do not use the constructions kits is that the school has allegedly not received a kit or has too few for classroom use. This brief excerpt from the survey results already shows that the promotion project is not showing the success that the Ministry of Education had hoped for.

This qualitative case study explores the perceptions of school leadership that future school counselors have regarding leadership roles for women in rural Appalachia. Using a feminist-geographical lens, several cultural, economic, geographic, and identity-based themes were found. Participants' definitions of ideal school leadership included strong community collaboration, advocacy, and leading by example. Some aspects of participants' rural hometowns supported these ideals, such as a community culture offering high levels of cohesion and familial support, leading to them wanting to live there again. However, other characteristics of the community culture, such as being closed to change, sexism against women in leadership, and a lack of women role models, were perceived barriers. In addition, participants' leadership identity was nascent and context based. These factors, combined with poor perceptions of schools in the community, led to participants not to want to live and work in their hometowns. Overall, these participants appear to experience a complex push and pull between pursuing their careers in educational leadership and their desire to take on school leadership roles in rural communities.

There is a critical need to broaden access to engineering education in order to build a strong and diverse engineering workforce. However, four-year engineering programs are typically designed for students who are calculus-ready, so many students who wish to study engineering may need additional preparation and time to succeed. The NSF-funded Redshirt in Engineering Consortium was formed in 2016 to enhance the ability of academically talented but underprepared students from low-income backgrounds to successfully graduate with bachelor's degrees in engineering. The "redshirt" name is derived from the practice of giving some college athletes an extra year of eligibility to prepare for college-level competition. Implementation and evaluation of Redshirt programs across six universities participating in the Redshirt in Engineering Consortium revealed important lessons for schools considering a Redshirt program, including the importance of alignment with a college-wide commitment to increasing equity; sufficient funding for a full-time administrator; ability to fit shared curricular experiences within existing degree requirements; and attention to Redshirt's unique role in the landscape of existing equity programs. Over the course of the five-year grant, understanding of the Redshirt in Engineering Model also evolved to center on five key pillars: (1) a focus on supporting high-achieving students from low income or educationally disadvantaged backgrounds; (2) an expected five-year graduation timeline; (3) personal, professional, and study skills development; (4) intrusive advising; and (5) community-building and social support. This article defines the key elements of the Redshirt in Engineering Model, describes model adaptations and lessons learned through implementation and evaluation across the consortium, and suggests considerations for other institutions interested in implementing a Redshirt in Engineering program.

The ability to learn new skills as an adult, cognitive stimulation in the ageing process, and a cognitively active lifestyle are of interest to experts in education, public health, and social studies. The game Scrabble, with its enjoyable nature, has gained recognition as an educational resource that facilitates the acquisition and preservation of vocabulary, thereby augmenting both practical and cognitive abilities. In this study, a descriptive quantitative research design was implemented to assess attentional capacity using the Bourdon Attention Test, specifically utilizing the BoPr (Prague Square Modification of the CSAT), within the cohort of Scrabble League e-players and the broader general population. With a focus on promoting cognitive brain health, this study presents a comparison of sustained attention levels between these groups. A sample of N = 60 participants (divided into Scrabble e-players who participate in a league [N = 30], and a comparison group of the general population [N = 30]) underwent a study comparing their levels of attention achieved in the Bourdon test. A significant difference (p = 0.050) was found in their attention span, favoring the league e-players. The results suggest that Scrabble e-games can potentially improve the cognitive well-being and attention of adults and older individuals. However, further investigation is necessary to understand their capabilities fully. Utilizing Scrabble in the realms of adult education, gerontology, and medical practice could be beneficial for enhancing cognitive brain health.

Various studies have shown that epistemological beliefs affect personal learning and teaching performances. Therefore, epistemological beliefs have become an attractive object of research with different methods of survey. A distinction can be made between denotative and connotative aspects of beliefs, the former being reflected upon, explicit beliefs, whereas the latter being associative and evaluative judgements on (in our case: mathematical) epistemological beliefs. The present study used the instrument Connotative Aspects of Epistemological Beliefs by Stahl and Bromme to collect data from university students in mathematics in the years of 2017, 2018 and 2019. The pseudo-longitudinal data analysis showed 1. that students hold different connotative beliefs regarding the two domains "mathematics at university" and "mathematics at school" regardless their study progress, 2. that the beliefs remain relatively stable within the domains overtime and 3. that -- considering the different mathematical programmes of study (e.g., pre-service teachers vs. mathematics majors) -- the students' connotative beliefs mainly differ regarding beliefs about the simplicity of mathematical knowledge at school.

Two middle school educators earned a Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching fellowship. A Fulbright Finland Foundation inter-country travel grant provided the grantees with a unique opportunity to connect and collaborate at the University of Helsinki. Within this research, they described their inquiry experiences. The research included examining authentic student-centered learning continuums and phenomenon-based learning in Finland and teachers' adaptability in relation to meeting the needs of linguistically and culturally diverse math classrooms in the Netherlands. This paper summarizes how cross-cultural dialogues, classroom observations, and informal interviews with educators, students, and thought leaders informed each grantee's discovery of how student-centered learning is structured, delivered, and valued in Finland and the Netherlands. This article (1) describes how communication empowers middle school mathematics students, (2) analyzes the learning-to-learn framework, and (3) provides insights into how to utilize language diversity in a mathematics classroom.

With technology integration efforts expanding to early childhood education globally, assessing preschool teachers' technological competence beliefs is imperative. However, most existing tools measuring teachers' information and communication technology (ICT) competence beliefs focused on primary through secondary grades. This study examined the factorial validity, reliability, and measurement invariance of the Basic ICT Competence Beliefs (BICB) questionnaire among 209 preschool teachers in Hong Kong and the Philippines. Confirmatory factor analyses supported the original nine-factor structure over plausible alternative models. All factors showed good reliability ([alpha] = 0.83 to 0.91) and theoretically meaningful factor intercorrelations. Multigroup CFA results supported the measurement invariance of the scale. Specifically, the results demonstrated the configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariance across cultural groups. Findings provide further validity for the BICB as a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing preschool teachers' ICT competence beliefs within and across contexts. The BICB can help identify teacher strengths and needs, guide professional development, and evaluate technology integration efforts in early childhood education in Asia.

Emotion dysregulation is a common challenge for autistic individuals, yet research examining early emotion regulation processes in autism is lacking. The present study examined negative emotion expression and parent-child co-regulatory processes in 18-month-old younger siblings of autistic children (children with an "elevated likelihood" (EL) of autism) with diverse outcomes: autism, language delay without autism (EL-LD), and no delay/diagnosis (EL-ND). Thirty-nine toddlers were videotaped at home with a parent. Negative emotion and parent co-regulatory responses were coded from the video. Results indicated that autistic toddlers exhibited more high-intensity negative emotion than EL-ND toddlers. The likelihood of negative emotion continuing once initiated was higher for autistic and EL-LD toddlers. Parental co-regulation strategy use was similar across groups. Parental co-regulation reduced the likelihood of continued negative emotion, although the effect appeared somewhat weaker for autistic toddlers. This research corroborates evidence that increased risk for heightened and prolonged negative emotion starts early in autistic children and, to a lesser extent, in EL-LD children. Parents of all children were highly responsive, but coregulatory responses may be less effective at reducing negative emotions for autistic children. While more research is needed, the present study contributes to our understanding of the unique emotional experiences of autistic toddlers.

Word reading fluency is crucial for early L2 development. Moreover, the practice of digital reading has become increasingly common for both children and adults. Therefore, the current study investigated factors that explain digital word reading fluency in English (L2) among Chinese children from Hong Kong. Eighty-six children (age: M = 9.78, SD = 1.42) participated in a digital silent word reading test using a mobile phone, a computer, or a tablet. This is a 10-minute timed test of English word reading. Overall, children's digital word reading fluency was highly correlated with print word reading fluency, even when measured a year apart. A hierarchical regression model revealed that socio-economic status ([beta] = 0.333), grade ([beta] = 0.455), and English reading motivation ([beta] = 0.375) were positively and uniquely associated with performance in digital reading. These predictors explained 48.6% of the total variance in task performance. Two additional variables, i.e., the type of reading device and extraneous cognitive load, were included as well. Digital word reading fluency was significantly poorer when done using a phone as compared to a computer ([beta] = -0.187). No significant difference was found between reading on a tablet and a computer. Extraneous cognitive load ([beta] = -0.255) negatively and uniquely explained digital word reading fluency as well. Overall, the model explained 58.8% of the total variance. The present study represents the first attempt to highlight a comprehensive set of predictors of digital word reading fluency.

Research suggests that the effect of emergency remote education on the motivation of gifted students during the COVID-19 pandemic differs from that observed in traditional students. The main aim of the present study was to explore the lived experience of academic motivation among gifted high school students in Croatia, Serbia, and Slovenia. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 47 gifted students aged 15 to 18, using the same methodological procedure in the three countries with similar educational backgrounds. Grounded in gifted students' narratives about their academic motivation, we detected three groups of students who experienced decreased, no change in, or increased academic motivation. Furthermore, we identified group-specific patterns based on the most common activities and salient features of students' school context, learning, and leisure time during the pandemic.

Preparation for university studies is key to enabling adult refugees and asylum seekers to reestablish their educational and professional careers in the host country. While refugees' transition to higher education (HE) is embedded in multiple transitions regarding social position, educational career, and migration, related identities may compete. We investigate how this is manifested in stigma consciousness and precarious student self-identification and how these factors influence the transition to HE. We combine novel quantitative and qualitative data on refugee students in prestudy programs in Germany. The results show that stigma consciousness impedes student self-identification. Moreover, stigma consciousness moderates the effect of student self-identification on the likelihood of enrolling in university. Qualitative interviews show how refugee students use strategies to deal with the stigma that unfortunately reproduces stigmatizing attributions. We provide implications for further research, educational counseling, and prestudy programs for refugees as an integral part of adult education.

New motor skills can shape how infants communicate with their caregivers. For example, learning to walk allows infants to move faster and farther than they previously could, in turn allowing them to approach their caregivers more frequently to gesture or vocalize. Does the link between walking and communication differ for infants later diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), whose communicative and motor development differs from their neurotypically developing peers? We prospectively followed two groups of infants longitudinally during the transition from crawling to walking: (1) N = 25 infants with no family history of ASD; and (2) N = 91 infants with an older sibling with ASD. Fifteen infants were later diagnosed with ASD, and 26 infants showed a language delay (but did not receive an ASD diagnosis). After learning to walk, infants without ASD or language delay showed considerable changes in their communication: They gestured more frequently, and increasingly coordinated their gestures and vocalizations with locomotion (e.g., by approaching a caregiver and showing a toy). Infants with language delay showed similar but attenuated growth in their communication. However, infants later diagnosed with ASD did not display enhanced communication after they began to walk.

Although vaccine behaviors differ greatly by gender and age, few studies have examined vaccination at the intersection of gender and age within the Black community. We examined COVID-19 vaccination by gender and age using a survey of over 500 Black adults in Chicago, Illinois, fielded from September 2021 to March 2022. Although 54% had received at least one COVID-19 vaccine, the proportion vaccinated was considerably lower for Black men (28%) and women (37%) under 40 years old than Black men (92%) and women (86%) over 40 years (p < 0.001). Concern about vaccine side effects was the most reported barrier for unvaccinated women (56%) and men (38%) under 40 years. Our results suggest that targeted efforts to improve COVID-19 vaccine uptake in the Black community in Chicago after the initial rollout should have focused on young adults, particularly young Black men, with emphasis on addressing concern about vaccine side effects.

In the current digital age, (mathematics) teachers are provided with a profusion of digital resources. Consequently, research in mathematics education has focused on teachers' interactions with resources as the heart of their professional activity. The term Pedagogical Design Capacity (PDC) was introduced to designate teacher's ability to perceive affordances of resources and to make decisions about how to use them efficiently. PDC has been further conceptualized to define teacher design capacity (TDC) as including a goal or points of reference for the design, a set of design principles, and reflection-in-action. This definition is illustrated with case studies involving teachers' design of digital resources, yet it does not seem to consider the specificities of the latter. We therefore aim to further refine the concept of TDC by considering crucial components that designing technology-based tasks and their enactment in the classroom entail. We ask: What are the unique components of TDC specific to digital technology and resources? We elaborate a framework to suggest dimensions and components of mathematics teacher Digital Resource Design Capacity (DRDC) to emphasize the focus on design of digital resources. This framework is built on previous studies and on the concept of instrumental orchestration, and is refined taking into account findings from two case studies in France and Israel.

The development of professional digital competencies is an important condition for a meaningful integration of digital technologies in mathematics education. A widely used and empirically studied approach for the professional development of in-service teachers are teacher design teams, in which lessons are collaboratively planned, implemented and reflected. However, this approach has not yet been considered for the collaboration of pre-service and in-service teachers. Therefore, this article examines in a holistic case study mixed teacher design teams composed of pre-service and in-service teachers. A total of 23 interviews were conducted with pre-service and in-service teachers and analyzed by inductive development of categories using the method of qualitative content analysis. The case study shows among other things, that the different prerequisites of the participants can lead to a relatively clear division of roles within the collaboration, which turns out to be suitable for the professionalization of both pre-service and in-service mathematics teachers.

The role of teaching, learning, and assessment with digital technology has become increasingly prominent in mathematics education. This survey paper provides an overview of how technology has been transforming teaching, learning, and assessment in mathematics education in the digital age and suggests how the field will evolve in the coming years. Based on several decades of research and educational practices, we discuss and anticipate the multifaceted impact of technology on mathematics education, thus laying the groundwork for the other papers in this issue. After a brief introduction discussing the motivations for this issue, we focus our attention on three lines of research: teaching mathematics with technology, learning mathematics with technology, and assessment with technology. We point to new research orientations that address the issue of teaching with technology, specifically describing attempts to conceptualise teachers' mathematical and digital competencies, perspectives that view teachers as designers of digital resources, and the design and evaluation of long-term initiatives to support teachers as they develop innovative teaching practices enhanced by digital technologies. Our examination shows that learning with technology is still marked by new conceptualizations raised by researchers that can further our understanding of this complex issue. These conceptualizations support the recognition that multiple resources, ranging from paper and pencil to augmented reality, participate in the learning process. Finally, assessment with technology, especially in the formative sense, offers new possibilities for offering individualised support for learners that can benefit from adaptive systems, though more tasks for conceptual understanding need to be developed.

Bartonella quintana is a small, facultatively intracellular, gram-negative bacillus that is transmitted to humans through the feces of an infected human body louse (Pediculus humanus corporis) (1). B. quintana infection [...]