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Calls attention to limitations and dangers in routine application of multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), describes some alternative procedures, and laments the necessarily pervasive character of the statistical problem. (Author)

Some specific intellectual abilities show consistent sex differences which vary in degree according to types of tests and samples examined. Reviews the empirical support for these differences, as well as the methodological difficulties, data and sampling limitations, interpretative biases, and contradictory results of much of the sex-difference research. (Author)

Purpose: To compare (1) fluid, food and nutrient intake obtained with a paper versus an online version of a 7-day food record and (2) user's acceptability of both versions of the food record. Methods: A cross-over study was carried out in 2010 in France. A total of 246 participants aged 18-60 years reported their food and fluid intake using both versions of the 7-day food record, separated by a 7- to 14-day washout period. To help participants in estimating consumed portions, both versions of the food record were supported by a photographic booklet of standard portions and containers. At the end of the study protocol, participants completed a questionnaire designed to assess the acceptability of the two questionnaires. Results: The reported water intake of fluids was significantly higher with the online version compared with the paper version (respectively 1348 ± 36 and 1219 ± 34 mL/day, p < 0.0001). No difference was found between methods in terms of energy intake and the consumption of most food categories, macro- and micronutrients. Furthermore, 77 % of the participants preferred the online method to the paper version. Conclusions: Fluid intake, but not food intake, reported with the online 7-day food record was higher in comparison with the paper version. In addition, the online version was preferred by users. In population surveys, the online record is therefore a relevant alternative, and even a preferred alternative in the case of fluid intake, to the paper record. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to evaluate the difference in legibility between e-books and paper books by using an eye tracker. Eight male and eight female subjects free of eye disease participated in the experiment. The experiment was conducted using a 2 × 3 within-subject design. The book type (e-book, paper book) and font size (8 pt, 10 pt, 12 pt) were independent variables, and fixation duration time, saccade length, blink rate and subjective discomfort were dependent variables. In the results, all dependent variables showed that reading paper books provided a better experience than reading e-books did. These results indicate that the legibility of e-books needs further improvement, considering fixation duration time, saccade movement, eye fatigue, device and so on. Practitioner Summary:This study evaluated the legibility difference between e-books and paper books from the viewpoint of readability, eye fatigue and subjective discomfort by using an eye tracker. The results showed that paper books provided a better experience than e-books. This indicates that the readability of e-books needs further improvement in relation to paper books. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Many current standardized testing and teaching practices approach media for composition with the assumption that media do not influence the writing process in significant ways. This study seeks to determine whether emergent media used for student writing influence essay composition (in terms of quantifiable text indicators) and compares a set of eighth-grade student essays composed via Chromebooks ( n = 139) to those written by hand ( n = 319). Essays were collected from students across three (3) schools, and descriptive results corroborate previous findings that Chromebook essays were generally longer than handwritten essays. ANOVA hypothesis testing on Flesch-Kincaid reading ease and grade level scores yielded new knowledge with regard to writing complexity as they indicated that Chromebook essays exhibited a significantly higher grade-level of writing and greater reading difficulty. This suggests greater complexity in word usage and sentence composition among Chromebook essays when compared to handwritten essays and also suggests that the medium itself may have an effect upon the complexity of student writing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study on the survival of bacterial pathogens on regular office paper and to quantify the proportion of pathogens transferred from hand to paper and back to another hand. Findings reveal that bacteria can be transferred on paper by contaminated hands of healthcare workers, deemed the most important route of pathogenic bacteria transmission. It stresses that the best way to minimize the pathogen spread is proper hand hygiene as paper is hard to disinfect once contaminated.

• International mathematical contest papers are an emerging type of research paper. • Metadiscourse analysis showed variances in use in winning papers across cultures. • Clear writing was more important than native-like writing in math contest papers. • Using IR and text analysis in an EAP course may increase contest competitiveness. Practitioners of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) are responsible for preparing students to fulfill the expectations of an ever-growing number of written genres. One emerging application of the research paper genre is found in a related pair of highly competitive international contests, the Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MCM) and Interdisciplinary Contest in Modeling (ICM). Through a lens of intercultural rhetoric (IR) and English as a lingua franca (ELF), this paper examines a metadiscourse analysis of 38 summary and 38 conclusion sections of MCM/ICM Outstanding Winner papers, half of which were written by Chinese teams and the other half by American teams. The study found that while both Chinese and American writing depended heavily on the use of metadiscourse in the two sections, there are distinct differences in the frequency and linguistic realization of metadiscourse across cultures. The paper concludes with proposed pedagogical applications of findings in designing an EAP course to prepare international student teams to be more competitive in their MCM/ICM writing. In line with recent research in IR and ELF, the current research demonstrates that the MCM/ICM contests do not require students to hold strictly to "native-speaker" levels of writing as long as the contest papers are mathematically and logically sound. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To practice evidence-based medicine, clinicians must be competent in information literacy (IL). Few studies acknowledge the critical role that reading strategies play in IL instruction and assessment of health professional students. The purpose of this study was to understand the information-seeking and evaluation behaviors of doctor of veterinary medicine (DVM) students in regard to scientific papers. Methods: The authors studied DVM student behaviors across eight programs in North America using a web-based survey of closed- and open-ended questions about finding and evaluating scientific papers, including a task to read a linked scientific paper and answer questions about it. Results: A total of 226 individuals responded to the survey. The sections of a scientific paper that were most commonly read were the abstract, introduction, and conclusions. Students who reported reading a higher proportion of scientific papers were more likely to feel confident in their abilities to interpret them. A third of respondents answered open-ended questions after the paper reading task. Respondents felt the least amount of confidence with one of the final steps of evidence-based medicine, that of interpreting the significance of the paper to apply it in veterinary medicine. Conclusions: DVM students may lack the skills needed to evaluate scientific literature and need more practice and feedback in evaluating and interpreting scientific papers. Librarians who support DVM students can (1) help DVM students to efficiently evaluate scientific literature, (2) seek training opportunities in alternative modes of teaching and learning IL skills, and (3) partner with veterinary faculty and clinicians to provide students with practice and feedback in information evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We give some comments on the paper by Mendes and Yigit where some misleading statements on rank tests have been given. Also, we give some additional important references on the same topic, which are not cited in this paper. By extending the simulations presented in the Mendes and Yigit paper to larger and unequal sample sizes, we demonstrate that the main conclusions are misleading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper outlines an initial analysis of 20 years of data held on an electronic bridge management database for approximately 3500 arch bridges across Northern Ireland (NI) by the Department for Infrastructure. Arch bridges represent the largest group of bridge types, making up nearly 56% of the total bridge stock in NI. This initial analysis aims to identify trends that might help inform maintenance decisions in the future. Consideration of the Bridge Condition Indicator (BCI) average value for the overall arch bridge stock indicates the potential for regional variations in the overall condition and the potential for human bias in inspections. The paper presents the most prevalent structural elements and associated defects recorded in the inspections of arch bridges. This indicated a link to scour and undermining for the worst-conditioned arch bridges. An Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) analysis identified function, number of spans, and deck width as significant factors during the various deterioration stages in a bridge's lifecycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Gift-wrapping paper made fragrant by screen-printing with UV-curable varnish mixed with encapsulated lavender essential oil. • Encapsulate lavender essential oil with Gelatin and gum-arabic complex coacervate. • Optimize encapsulation for strengths, releases and morphologies of microcapsules. • Optimize fragrant varnish for strengths, releases, and encapsulation capacity. • Make paper fragrant without modifying or interfering with the actual printing. The applicability of making a gift-wrapping paper fragrant by screen-printing with a varnish that contained microencapsulated fragrance were assessed. Experiments were conducted on a commercially available, general use, Lavender (Lavandula Angustifolia) essential oil. The encapsulation was made by a complex coacervating technique, with gelatin and gum-arabic as the wall materials. Factors in the encapsulating process were studied with the attempts to control the strength, the release and the morphologies of microcapsule. The statistical tools including the analysis of variance, the main effect plot, and the rolled throughput yield were used in identifying the controlling factors and the best performing conditions for encapsulation. Fragrant varnishes made by mixing the microcapsule into a commercially available UV-curable varnish were evaluated and optimized for the essential oil loading capacity, the release by rubbing with fingers, the protection against untimely release, and the load withstanding in handling, storage and transportation. All the practices specifically required to produce a fragrant gift-wrapping paper were done without the need to modify or to interfere with the actual screen-printing process. The overall results signified its potential in applications like special ordered or customized, small volume gift-wrapping papers, and the likes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While previous studies found that origami, when used for cognitive training and education, can improve spatial ability, the underlying mechanisms of this change, presumably associated with the origami folding process, remain unclear. In the present study, we focused on origami imagery in which participants imagined the process of folding paper to create a work of art; and we examined the cognitive factors involved in the imagery process and their association with mental transformations and the extent to which visual imagery was vivid. We identified four specific relevant cognitive factors in origami imagery: (a) controllability of origami transformations, (b) visual imagery of shapes, (c) hand sensations, and (d) visual imagery of colors. We associated the first two of these with non-rigid transformations: the controllability of origami transformations and the visual imagery of shapes. Moreover, vividness of visual imagery was related to all four cognitive factors. We propose this cognitive model of origami as one that considers the key relationships between origami imagery, mental transformations, and vividness of visual imagery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Paper based simulated patients are widely used to analyse nurses’ clinical judgements. However, developments in the physical simulation of clinical environments offer exciting, but relatively underexploited, opportunities for exploring nurses’ judgements. Critical event risk assessment is an element of acute care practice which lends itself well to simulation and in which more clinical experience is often assumed to lead to better quality judgements. Objectives: To model nurses’ judgements of critical event risk using physical and paper simulation and to examine whether improving fidelity via physical clinical simulation impacts on the apparent benefits of clinical experience on nurses’ judgement performance. Design: A comparative clinical judgement analysis. Setting: A university in Northern England. Methods: Sixty-three nursing students and 34 experienced nurses made dichotomous risk assessment judgements (“at risk” or “not at risk”) in response to 25 paper and physical simulated scenarios. These were randomly generated from a dataset of real patient case records. Clinical outcomes (the judgement criteria) for a ‘correct’ judgement were derived from the same case records. Logistic regression models were constructed to derive statistics for each nurse representing various measures of judgement performance: achievement (r a ), consistency (R s ) and clinical information use (G). These statistics were known as Lens Model statistics (from the psychological theory of Brunswik''s Lens Model of judgement). Performance measures for novice and experienced nurses were compared. Results: No significant differences in judgemental achievement (r a ) between experienced nurses and students were observed in either paper or high fidelity clinical simulations. Similarly, there were no significant differences in the nurses’ abilities to correctly match the ways they synthesised clinical information with the optimum synthesis required by the task (policy matching) (G). When faced with “paper patients” experienced nurses exercised more cognitive control/consistency (R s ) than students (P =0.04). However, this heightened control in experienced nurses was absent when those same nurses made judgements in the higher fidelity clinical simulation environment. Conclusion: Clinical experience made no difference to nurses’ judgement achievement (accuracy) in either the lower fidelity paper scenarios or the higher fidelity setting of the clinical simulation unit. The significant impact of clinical experience on judgement consistency was negated by the increases in fidelity offered through clinical simulation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A method was developed for the determination of trichloroanisole, tribromoanisole and pentachloroanisol by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography in paper samples (Kraft liner, Test liner and Miolo). Four commercial SPME fibers were evaluated: Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), Polyacrylate (PA), Carbowax/Divinylbenzene (CW/DVB) and Divinylbenzene/Carboxen/Polydimethylsiloxane (DVB/CAR/PDMS). DVB/CAR/PDMS gave the best results and was therefore selected. Other variables involved in the extraction procedure were studied and optimized, such as: sample volume, salting-out effect, temperature and extraction time, effect of organic solvent and previous sample preparation. Optimum conditions were obtained using 20 mL of sample with 5 mol L−1 NaCl in a 40 mL vial, extraction temperature of 70 °C and sonication and extraction time of 30 and 40 min, respectively. Detection limits ranged from 0.43 to 1.32 ng g−1 for all analytes. Recoveries between 70 and 100% were obtained and relative standard deviation was below 10% for all compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate metacognitive self-regulated learning (SRL) differences in computer- and paper-based reading assignments across elementary students. Students in two after-school programs in a southeastern U.S. public school district were recruited. The final sample consisted of 48 students in Grades 2-5 who participated in two counterbalanced conditions involving a computer- and a paper-based reading assignment. The study employed a 2 x 4 (condition-by-grade) mixed-model analysis of variance (ANOVA) and followup tests to examine metacognitive SRL differences between conditions and grades. The results indicate that elementary students used various metacognitive SRL skills across both conditions. The mixed-model ANOVA results show a significant interaction in control processes in paper-based reading for students in fifth grade, a significant main effect of condition in evaluation practices in computer-based reading for all grades, and a significant main effect of condition in conditional knowledge in the paper reading assignment for all grades. The results suggest that students can benefit from focused instruction to apply metacognitive SRL skills between the two reading formats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which determines the effect of untreated effluent from two pulp and paper mills on a benthic marine fish, Pseudopleuronectes americanus. The study uses one- or two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), mean and standard errors, and organ somatic indices. Results show that main aspects of long-term pollution caused by effluents from paper and pulp mills include the negative effects on fish populations and communities.

The article presents a study which examines the laboratory induction in the intersexuality of Gambusia (G.) affinis mosquitofish using paper mill effluent. Study used analysis of variance and multiple linear regression statistical analyses during data analysis. Study reveals that an androgenic-like compound, androgen, or a water-borne androgen precursor serves as responsible agent for poeciliid fishes' intersex condition.

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the effects of medium light roast (MLR) and medium roast (MR) paper-filtered coffee on cardiovascular risk factors in healthy volunteers. Methods: This randomized crossover trial compared the effects of consuming three or four cups (150 mL) of MLR or MR coffee per day for 4 wk in 20 healthy volunteers. Plasma lipids, lipoprotein( a) (Lp[a]), total homocysteine, and endothelial dysfunction-related inflammation biomarkers, serum glycemic biomarkers, and blood pressure were measured at baseline and after each intervention. Results: Both roasts increased plasma total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) concentrations (10%, 12%, and 18% for MLR; 12%, 14%, and 14% for MR, respectively) (P < 0.05). MR also increased high-density lipoporteincholesterol concentration by 7% (P = 0.003). Plasma fibrinogen concentration increased 8% after MR intake (P = 0.01), and soluble E-selectin increased 12% after MLR intake (P = 0.02). No changes were observed for Lp(a), total homocysteine, glycemic biomarkers, and blood pressure. Conclusion: Moderate paper-filtered coffee consumption may have an undesirable effect on plasma cholesterol and inflammation biomarkers in healthy individuals regardless of its antioxidant content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The precise effect and the quality of different cases used in dermatology problem-based learning (PBL) curricula are yet unclear. Aim: To prospectively compare the impact of real patients, digital, paper PBL (PPBL) and traditional lecture-based learning (LBL) on academic results and student perceptions. Methods: A total of 120 students were randomly allocated into either real-patients PBL (RPBL) group studied via real-patient cases, digital PBL (DPBL) group studied via digital-form cases, PPBL group studied via paper-form cases, or conventional group who received didactic lectures. Academic results were assessed through review of written examination, objective structured clinical examination and student performance scores. A five-point Likert scale questionnaire was used to evaluate student perceptions. Results: Compared to those receiving lectures only, all PBL participants had better results for written examination, clinical examination and overall performance. Students in RPBL group exhibited better overall performance than those in the other two PBL groups. Real-patient cases were more effective in helping develop students' self-directed learning skills, improving their confidence in future patient encounters and encouraging them to learn more about the discussed condition, compared to digital and paper cases. Conclusion: Both real patient and digital triggers are helpful in improving students' clinical problem-handling skills. However, real patients provide greater benefits to students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Patient-reported mood charts are frequently used in management of bipolar disorder. Although mood charts have recently been programmed in electronic devices such as mobile phones, little is known about the impact of the method of data capture on the psychometric properties and validity of these data. Methods: In an ongoing pilot study, a sample of outpatients with bipolar disorder were randomized to complete mood charts either on a mobile phone or with standard paper and pencil as part of a 12-week intervention (primary outcomes for the trial await study completion). We compared these conditions across a single item rating of mood state, and we hypothesized that mobile phone-based data capture would produce greater compliance to mood ratings, variability between and within participants, and concurrent validity with blinded clinician-rated affective symptom severity. Results: A total of 56 participants were randomized and 40 participants were included in the analyses. There were no significant differences between conditions on demographic or clinical variables. The rate of compliance was significantly higher in paper-and-pencil versus mobile phone ratings. Ratings demonstrated significantly more variability within individuals in the mobile phone condition. Mobile phone mood ratings were significantly correlated with clinician-rated depressive symptom severity across the study and with manic symptom severity at the week-6 assessment, whereas paper-and-pencil ratings were not significantly associated with clinician-rated depression or mania. Conclusions: Although preliminary, our results suggest a lower rate of compliance with mobile phones compared to paper-and-pencil daily mood rating in bipolar disorder, yet a greater ability to capture variability and concurrent validity in quantifying affective symptoms. This clinical trial is registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01670123. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]