Search

This study aimed to determine the communicative grammar competence level of Grade 11 students of Mayamot National High School, Mayamot, Antipolo City during the school year 2021-2022 which could serve as inputs for the development and evaluation of reinforcement learning materials.The researcher used the descriptive research design since it is concerned with developing and evaluating communicative grammatical reinforcement learning materials (CGRLMs) for Grade 11 students. The most difficult grammatical learning competencies of the Grade 11 students were identified using a teacher-made diagnostic test in communicative grammar and were evaluated and validated by five (5) English expert teachers. The identified most difficult served as topics in developing reinforcement learning materials. The respondents of the study were 218 Grade 11 students, 20 English teacher respondents in Grade 11, and ten (10) English experts from some selected secondary schools in District 1-D of the City Schools Division of Antipolo City. The data-gathering instrument used was an evaluation questionnaire with six criteria: authenticity, clarity, usefulness, suitability, relevance, and meaningfulness. Based on the results, the developed CGRLM was evaluated by Grade 11 students, Grade 11 teachers and English experts as Highly Acceptable (HA). More so, there were no significant differences among the evaluations of Grade 11 students, Grade 11 teachers of English, and English experts on the developed CGRLM.The respondents also provided comments and suggestions to further improve the developed materials.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the mental, physical, emotional, social, and spiritual experiences of work-from-home (WFH) Filipino teachers. It also provides descriptions of the positive and negative aspects of working from home and how they adapt to the new culture. This study describes exceptional or new thoughts and feelings of WFH Filipino teachers. Using a qualitative phenomenological methodology, the researchers explored teachers’ lived experiences in teaching in a work-from-home environment. This study included ten (10) teachers from both public and private schools in Metro Manila. Analyses of the data revealed key themes from the teachers’ perspectives of the work-from-home environment. Respondents accepted the new culture of working from home, opened their minds to all possibilities, and were eager to learn new things to adapt to changes. Online teaching-learning is not possible without the respondents' participation in training and seminars. Technical issues, communication concerns, student learning conditions, family concerns, household issues, and health conditions are some of the challenges in teaching and working at home based on the research. Teacher participants expressed that WFH experiences were challenging and exhausting but they found it fulfilling as well. They cultivated the teachers’ traits of being flexible, innovative, dynamic, and sociable despite the many challenges that they have encountered in the intricate setup to enhance success and effectiveness in the teaching and learning process.

Purpose/Objective(s) Local breast cancer recurrences and new primary breast cancers are an increasingly common clinical challenge without clear treatment guidelines. To date, photon reirradiation (reRT) has not been widely adopted due to concerns for toxicities. Proton beam therapy (PBT) can optimize normal tissue sparing and may allow for safer delivery of a second definitive radiotherapy (RT) course. We hypothesize salvage PBT reRT can be safely delivered, and we present clinical outcomes and toxicities of patients with recurrent or new primary non-metastatic breast cancer who received prior RT and PBT reRT. Materials/Methods In an IRB-approved retrospective study, all consecutive patients with recurrent or new primary non-metastatic breast cancer treated with breast or chest wall (CW) RT and PBT reRT from a single institution were identified. Patient and tumor characteristics, treatment parameters, clinical outcomes and toxicities were collected. Distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) and overall survival (OS) were defined from PBT reRT start to date of distant recurrence, death or last follow-up and estimated using Kaplan-Meier methodology. Results Forty-six consecutive patients were assessed. Eight patients (17.4%) were reirradiated to an intact breast, 13 (28.3%) to CW without reconstruction, 20 (43.5%) to CW with reconstruction, and 5 (10.9%) to regional lymph nodes (LN) alone. PBT reRT was delivered with uniform (70%) or pencil beam (30%) scanning PBT. Median first course dose was 60Gy (45-66Gy); median PBT reRT dose was 50.4Gy (RBE) (40-66.6Gy); median cumulative dose was 108.9Gy2, a/b = 3(RBE) (95.0-168.8 Gy2, a/b = 3 (RBE)). When regional LN were retreated, median first course dose was 50.4 Gy (48.6-66.6Gy) and median PBT reRT dose was 50 Gy2, a/b = 3 (46.7-66.0Gy2, a/b = 3). Four patients had significant brachial plexus overlap with cumulative doses up to 99.0 Gy. At a median follow-up of 21 months, there were no local or regional recurrences; 8 patients (17%) developed distant recurrence, of whom three died. Estimated 3-year DMFS and OS were 60% and 88%, respectively. Grade 3 acute toxicities were limited exclusively to RT dermatitis (30.4%). Grade 3 late toxicities occurred in 4 patients (8.7%) (3 capsular contracture requiring surgical intervention, 1 breast pain requiring mastectomy). Two patients developed rib fracture. No cases of neuropathies, skin ulceration or other acute or late grade ≥3 toxicities occurred. Conclusion In the largest series to date of PBT reRT for breast cancer recurrence or new primary after prior definitive breast or CW RT, PBT reRT provided excellent locoregional control with a low rate of high-grade toxicities limited to target tissue not amenable to sparing from full reRT dose. These data are encouraging and suggest PBT reRT may provide patients with a relatively safe and highly effective salvage option. Longer follow-up and additional patients are needed to correlate composite normal tissue doses with toxicities and assess long-term outcomes.

This article brings together the views of a working group to deliberate on burnout among physicians in Spain. The document is the result of the answers that different members of the group have prepared to different questions on the subject with conclusions derived from the discussion among all the participants. Burnout is an entity with a high incidence in physicians, with serious work, personal and economic repercussions, whose recognition as a disease is changing in recent years. Particularly affected are some specialties, such as Primary Care, Oncology, Intensive Care Medicine, and Palliative Care. The common factor being an increased qualitative or quantitative demand on the professional. Although it may have a substratum of personal characteristics, it is more commonly associated with extrinsic factors specific to the organisation of work and the management of occupational risks. It involves serious indirect costs for the health system including absenteeism, high financial costs and leads to loss of health and well-being in people who suffer it.

Resumen Este articulo reune las opiniones de un grupo de trabajo para deliberar sobre el sindrome de burnout entre los medicos en Espana. El documento es el resultado de las respuestas que los miembros del grupo han preparado a diferentes preguntas sobre el tema con conclusiones derivadas de la discusion entre todos los participantes. El burnout es una entidad con una alta incidencia en los medicos, con graves repercusiones laborales, personales y economicas, cuyo reconocimiento como enfermedad esta cambiando en los ultimos anos. Se ven especialmente afectadas especialidades como Atencion Primaria, Oncologia, Medicina Intensiva y Cuidados Paliativos. El factor comun es un aumento de la demanda cualitativa o cuantitativa sobre el profesional. Aunque puede tener un sustrato de caracteristicas personales, se asocia mas comunmente a factores extrinsecos propios de la organizacion del trabajo y la gestion de los riesgos laborales. Implica graves costes indirectos para el sistema sanitario, como el absentismo laboral, altos costes economicos, y provoca la perdida de salud y bienestar de las personas que lo padecen.

The thermo-electrical behavior of polyurethane coatings doped with graphitic nanofillers has been studied. They show an excellent electric heating performance, such as rapid temperature response, high electric power efficiency, and operational stability at different voltages applied. The influence of several experimental conditions, such as voltage and electrical power applied, distance between electrodes, heated area, thickness of coating, between among, have been analyzed. The increment of temperature caused by Joule´s effect is directly proportional to power applied and inversely proportional to the coating´s surface exposed to the air. Coatings with higher graphitic nanofillers content present higher electrical conductivity, implying higher increment of temperature when the same voltage is applied. However, these systems show lower efficiency on the Joule´s effect due to the lower heating at the same power applied. An increment of the distance between electrodes induces an exponential decrease of temperature reached. In practice, thinner coating induces that heating is more heterogeneous and the increment of thickness seems to induce a decrease of the electrical conductivity of the coating.

Background: Freelancing has become an increasingly profitable prospect for many working professionals, especially those who want to work on their terms, as it provides benefits and experiences unparalleled to those workers in full-time employment. Purpose: Captivated by varied experiences and life stories, the researchers aimed at exploring the factors that contribute and shape the lived experiences of the Filipino freelance workers in Qatar. Method: Utilizing phenomenology as a research design, the researchers chose seven respondents via qualitative purposive sampling with set criteria. Data were gathered through a semi-structured interview. The results were analyzed using the inductive approach: audio recording of the conversations, transcribing the results from emic to etic observing cool to warm analysis, and member checking to validate the instrument used. Findings: Findings have revealed essential factors that contribute to the lived experiences of the Filipino freelance workers as specified in terms of familial (finance, support, and freedom), social (self-esteem, impartiality, and influence), and personal (contentment, pride, and happiness) aspects. These further imply that the road to freelancing may be bumpy, but it promises opportunities and advantages. Conclusion: Notwithstanding the benefits of having formal employment, there are still Filipino expatriates in Qatar who have opted to venture into freelancing due to different reasons and circumstances.

A new manufacturing process based on applying weak magnetic field during the curing treatment is reported in order to induce a selective mobility and alignment of the carbon nanotubes on epoxy resins. Depending on experimental conditions, this procedure allows manufacturing different materials: (a) anisotropic composites with aligned carbon nanotubes and (b) composites with selected nanoreinforced areas and neat epoxy areas. Different composites have been manufactured, such as dielectric materials with insulating inside and electrically doped surfaces, or doped composites with insulating ring. The procedure basically consists on the anchorage of magnetite nanoparticles in the surface of carbon nanotubes and the application of magnetic field during the curing treatment. The mobility of nanofillers can be directly observed through the appearance of black and transparent areas on the composites, while the alignment of carbon nanotubes is analyzed by scanning electron microscopy of high resolution. The anisotropy and different behavior of selected areas for the manufactured composites have been determined by electrical measurements.

The dearth in research in Philippine higher education institutions (HEIs) had driven the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to provide policies and mandates that are largely geared towards the improvement of research productivity. Saint Mary’s University responded through Faculty Research Development Program, a scheme borne of the plans of the University Research Center (IDP Year 2013-2014) that aims to strengthen and enhance the research skills of faculty members. This study aimed to assess the efficacy of the research faculty development program workshop in writing full-blown research proposals. It involved the quantitative type of research using the posttest-only control group experimental design since the subjects were evaluated after the intervention. Evaluative in nature, it was conducted at Saint Mary’s University, located at Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya in Cagayan Valley. There were 25 subjects of the study who were all participants in the seminar-workshop. Researcher-made questionnaires and evaluated research proposals were the primary sources of the data in the study. Findings revealed that the research faculty development program workshop on writing research proposals was efficient. Hence, faculty members are highly recommended to continue participating in research capability training to become part of the tri-fold function of the university - the instruction, community extension, and research.

The electrical and thermal behavior of epoxy composites reinforced with different contents of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (from 0.1 to 0.4 wt% CNT) is studied when they are subjected to relatively high DC voltages (from 1 to 100 V). These materials obey Ohm's law, reaching values of electrical conductivity in the range of 0.01–0.5 S/m. The transported electric current leads to a significant increase of temperature, which is a result of the Joule heating effect. The temperature increases to 40oC in CNT/epoxy composites when applying 100 V. The study of heating due to Joule's effect gives information about the electrical transport mechanisms implied. It is also confirmed that both, electrical conductivity and Joule's heating effect depend on the morphological features of the composites. The functionalization of CNTs decreases the electrical conductivity of composites but increases their corresponding Joule heating, due to the strong interface between the nanotubes and matrix, which hinders the formation of pathways in CNT in direct contact. The technique of CNT dispersion applied also affects to the increase of temperature induced by the electrical current. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 54:1976–1982, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers

The main properties of epoxy composites reinforced with aligned carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been studied. The alignment was carried out in a specific designed device applying a weak magnetic field (0.3 T) with permanent magnets. CNTs were modified with magnetite nanoparticles (Fe3O4) functionalized, in a one-stage-process which does not require use of strong acids or aggressive treatments which could affect the structural integrity of CNTs. The study by transmission electron microscopy confirmed that the Fe3O4 nanoparticles were closely bonded over CNT surfaces. The thermo-mechanical and tensile properties of composites measured were higher than neat epoxy resin and were similar for both composites: reinforced with neat CNTs and magnetite–CNT hybrid nanofillers. The electrical behaviour indicates a high anisotropy for aligned composites, showing an increase of one order of magnitude for the electrical conductivity in the direction of aligned nanotubes.

The phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase (PI3K) pathway is dysregulated in multiple myeloma (MM); we therefore tested a highly selective class I PI3K inhibitor, GDC-0941, for anti-myeloma activity. Functional and mechanistic studies were first performed in MM cell lines, then extended to primary MM patient samples cultured in vitro. GDC-0941 was then assessed as a single agent and in various combinations in myeloma tumor xenograft models. We show p110 α and β are the predominant PI3K catalytic subunits in MM and that a highly selective class I PI3K inhibitor, GDC-0941, has robust activity as a single agent to induce cell cycle arrest and apoptosis of both MM cell lines and patient myeloma cells. Mechanistic studies revealed an induction of cell cycle arrest at G0/G1, with decreased phospho-FoxO1/3a levels, decreased cyclin D1 and c-myc expression, and an increase in the cell cycle inhibitor, p27kip. Induction of apoptosis correlated with increased expression of the pro-apoptotic BH3-only protein BIM, cleaved caspase 3 and cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). In vitro, GDC-0941 synergized with dexamethasone (Dex) and lenalidomide (combination index values of 0.3-0.4 and 0.4-0.8, respectively); in vivo GDC-0941 has anti-myeloma activity and significantly increases the activity of the standard of care agents in several murine xenograft tumor models (additional tumor growth inhibition of 37-53% (Dex) and 22-72% (lenalidomide)). These data provide a clear therapeutic hypothesis for the inhibition of PI3K and provide a rationale for clinical development of GDC-0941 in myeloma.

A novel technique of dispersion, stretching and alignment of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in an epoxy resin has been developed based on chronoamperometry. The procedure is to apply an electrical field in non-cured CNT/epoxy mixtures, using an electrode of large surface. CNT movements can be promoted by their intrinsic polarisation or by the introduction of electrical charges over their surfaces. The efficiency of the process can be monitored through the electrical current passing through the system as a function of time. Different experimental conditions, such as the applied voltage, have been analysed. The composites have been characterised through their thermal, mechanical and electrical behaviour. They show high dispersion degree of nanotubes, which are found to be stretched and untangled. CNTs show alignment along a preferred direction in the epoxy matrix, which affects to their electrical conductivity.

Self-heating of conductive nanofilled resins due to the Joule effect is interesting for numerous applications, including computing, self-reparation, self-post-curing treatment of resins, fabrication of adhesive joints, de-icing coatings and so on. In this work, we study the effect of the nature and amount of graphitic nanofiller on the self-heating of epoxy composites. The addition of graphitic nanofillers induced an increase in the thermal conductivity of the epoxy resins, directly proportional to the nanofiller content. Percolation was not observed because of the heat transport through phonons. In contrast, the electrical conductivity curves present a clear percolation threshold, due to the necessity of an electrical percolation network. The electrical threshold is much lower for composites reinforced with carbon nanotubes (CNTs, 0.1 wt.%) than for the resin filled with graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs, 5 %). This fact is due to their very different specific areas. The composites filled with CNTs reach higher temperatures than the ones reinforced with GNPs, applying low electrical voltage because of their higher electrical conductivity. In contrast, the self-heating is more homogeneous for the GNP/epoxy resins due to their higher thermal conductivity. It was also confirmed that the self-heating is repetitive in several cycles, reaching the same temperature when the same voltage is applied.

The adhesive strength and durability of adhesively-bonded aluminum joints in wet environments was analyzed. A2024-T4 alloy was subjected to two different surface treatments based on etching with chromic-sulfuric acid (FPL) and with sulfuric acid-ferric sulfate (P2). Small differences were observed in the lap shear strength as a function of the applied surface treatment. However, durability in humid environments was higher for the joints whose adherends were treated with P2. Although the amount of water absorbed by the epoxy adhesive is lower in saline environments, the effects on the glass transition temperature of the epoxy adhesive and on the lap shear strength of the joints are more marked than the effects caused by aging with distilled water. Finally, a new epoxy adhesive with a siloxanic hardener was tested, obtaining good mechanical properties, high glass transition temperature, moderate values of lap shear strength, and high durability in wet environments.

The main objective of this research was to obtain an improved understanding of the factors which contribute to bond strength in adhesive joints of carbon fiber/epoxy composites. For this, the most common surface treatments for composites were applied including grit blasting, peel ply and plasma. Also, the untreated adherends were analysed. The topography of the studied surfaces was analysed with a profilometer and through image analysis of scanning electron micrographs. Besides measuring the average roughness, other surface parameters were determined in order to characterise the shape, distribution, height and density of summits on the surfaces. In view of the results obtained, it was confirmed that average roughness alone was not sufficient to interpret the results; the adhesion between the adhesive and the adherends does not depend only on the mechanical interlocking effect. It was confirmed that plasma treatment provides the highest joint strength due to the higher surface energy of the composite when is treated by this method. In contrast, peel ply gives poor results. The joints whose adherends were treated by grit blasting also showed high strength values due to a high density of summits on the surface.

The objective of this work is to present the results of the comparative analysis of YAG:Ce3+ microstructural parameters obtained from x-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) data using Rietveld based Koalariet and Fullprof programs. YAG:Ce3+ powder is obtained via low temperature aerosol route at 3200C followed by post annealing treatment. The chosen technique of synthesis, i.e. ultrasonic spray pyrolysis, provides the generation of spherically shaped and submicronically sized particles having composite nanostructure. Since the targeting garnet phase represents a very promising host phosphor material being doped with rare-earth ions, the most important criteria determining its applicability in various optical devices is the uniform distribution of the luminescent center in the host lattice as well as the cubic YAG phase crystallinity. Comparison of the data obtained for the same samples by the above mentioned XRPD analyses gives us an insight into the validity of the refined parameters.

The common nitrates precursor solution leading to the Y3Al5O12:Ce 3+ (YAG:Ce) composition with 2 at.% of cerium, is ultrasonically atomised and introduced into the tubular flow reactor at 320 ◦ C. Having in mind that extremely high heating rates and short residence time are associated with spray pyrolysis, the low temperature regime is used for aerosol decomposition for the production of segregation-free precursor powder that is additionally heated at 900 and 1000 ◦ C (2–6 h) for the purpose to determine the phase evolution. Formation of uniform and submicron-sized spherical particles with nano-clustered inner structure is proved by different analysing techniques (X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy). The effect of processing parameters and post-annealing treatment is discussed from the viewpoint of the targeted garnet phase formation. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

This report presents the results of glass formulation development with TWRS LAW simulants that was conducted at the Vitreous State Laboratory of The Catholic University of America during TWRS Phase I.

The yttrium-aluminium garnet phase (YAG) represents a suitable host material for solidstate lasers and is widely used for various display applications being doped with rare-earth ions. Introduction of Ce3+ ion as a luminescence centre transforms it from insulating to effective phosphor material capable of emitting radiation in the visible spectrum. In this work Ce3+ doped YAG powder was obtained via aerosol route using nitrate precursor solution. Well-crystallized targeted phase was obtained after additional thermal treatment. A combination of different analysis techniques (differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy with determination of image metrology, energy dispersive spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy) is used to obtain detailed information about the structural and morphological powder properties. The effects of both processing parameters and post annealing treatment conditions are discussed from the viewpoint of establishing the best relationship between them and produced YAG:Ce3+ crystal structure.

Submicronic, spherical, polycrystalline YAG:Ce powders with luminescence properties were synthesised through aerosol processing route from the corresponding nitrates solution. Additional heat treatment was performed in the temperature range from 1000 to 1200 °C in order to increase the crystallinity of the obtained cubic garnet phase. SEM examination and subsequent morphological analysis allowed studying the surface properties and particle size distributions. An Image Processor was used to measure particle surface roughness. Quantitative SEM/EDS analysis indicated the synthesised materials present high purity and compositional homogeneity. TEM and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) showed a high crystallinity of the samples. XRD patterns of the powders were recorded in the region of 2θ = 10°–80°. The evolution of crystallite size was performed measuring of the broadening of a particular peak using the Scherrer equation. It was found that the crystallite size and bulk particles size vary with the applied temperature. The observed changes in function of the different thermal treatments were correlated with the photoluminescence (PL) properties of these materials.

A new ultrafiltration membrane was developed by the incorporation of binary metal oxides of the type Ti(x)Zr(1_x)O2 inside polyethersulfone. Physico-chemical characterization of the binary metal oxides demonstrated that the presence of Ti in the TiO2–ZrO2 system results in an increase of the size of the oxides, and also their dispersity. The crystalline phases of the synthesized binary metal oxides were identified as srilankite and zirconium titanium oxide. The effect of the addition of ZrO2 can be expressed in terms of the inhibition of crystal growth of nanocrystalline TiO2 during the synthesis process. For photocatalytic applications the band gap of the synthesized semiconductors was determined, confirming a gradual increase (blue shift) in the band gap as the amount of Zr loading increases. Distinct distributions of binary metal oxides were found along the permeation axis for the synthesized membranes. Particles with Ti are more uniformly dispersed throughout the membrane cross-section. The physico-chemical characterization of membranes showed a strong correlation between some key membrane properties and the spatial particle distribution in the membrane structure. The proximity of metal oxide fillers to the membrane surface determines the hydrophilicity and porosity of modified membranes. Membranes incorporating binary metal oxides were found to be promising candidates for wastewater treatment by ultrafiltration, considering the observed improvement in flux and anti-fouling properties of doped membranes. Multi-run fouling tests of doped membranes confirmed the stability of permeation through membranes embedded with binary TiO2–ZrO2 particles.