Search results for: generative second language acquisition

Authors: Sally Abu Sabaa, Lindsey Gutt

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In an attempt to use education as a way of raising a socially responsible and engaged global citizen, the YU-Bridge program, the largest and fastest pathway program of its kind in North America, has embarked on the journey of integrating general themes from the UN’s sustainable developmental goals (SDGs) in its English for Academic Purposes (EAP) curriculum. The purpose of this initiative was to redefine the general philosophy of education in the middle of a pandemic and align with York University’s University Academic Plan that was released in summer 2020 framed around the SDGs. The YUB program attracts international students from all over the world but mainly from China, and its goal is to enable students to achieve the minimum language requirement to join their undergraduate courses at York University. However, along with measuring outcomes, objectives, and the students’ GPA, instructors and academics are always seeking innovation of the YUB curriculum to adapt to the ever growing challenges of academics in the university context, in order to focus more on subject matter that students will be exposed to in their undergraduate studies. However, with the sudden change that has happened globally with the advance of the COVID-19 pandemic, and other natural disasters like the increase in forest fires and floods, rethinking the philosophy and goal of education was a must. Accordingly, the SDGs became the solid pillars upon which we, academics and administrators of the program, could build a new curriculum and shift our perspective from simply ESL education to education with moral and ethical goals. The preliminary implementation of this initiative was supported by an institutional-wide consultation with EAP instructors who have diverse experiences, disciplines, and interests. Along with brainstorming sessions and mini-pilot projects preceding the integration of the SDGs in the YUB-EAP curriculum, those meetings led to creating a general outline of a curriculum and an assessment framework that has the SDGs at its core with the medium of ESL used for language instruction. Accordingly, a community of knowledge exchange was spontaneously created and facilitated by instructors. This has led to knowledge, resources, and teaching pedagogies being shared and examined further. In addition, experiences and reactions of students are being shared, leading to constructive discussions about opportunities and challenges with the integration of the SDGs. The discussions have branched out to discussions about cultural and political barriers along with a thirst for knowledge and engagement, which has resulted in increased engagement not only on the part of the students but the instructors as well. Later in the program, two surveys will be conducted: one for the students and one for the instructors to measure the level of engagement of each in this initiative as well as to elicit suggestions for further development. This paper will describe this fundamental step into using ESL methodology as a mode of disseminating essential ethical and socially correct knowledge for all learners in the 21st Century, the students’ reactions, and the teachers’ involvement and reflections.

Keywords: EAP, curriculum, education, global citizen

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Authors: Bahloul Amel

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The present study debates students’ perceptions of the use of technology in learning English as a Foreign Language. Its aim is to explore and understand students’ preparation and presentation of Posters, PowerPoint and Animated Videos by drawing attention to visual and oral elements. The data is collected through observations and semi-structured interviews and analyzed through phenomenological data analysis steps. The themes emerged from the data, visual learning satisfaction in using information and communication technology, providing structure to oral presentation, learning from peers’ presentations, draw attention to using Posters, PowerPoint and Animated Videos as each supports visual learning and organization of thoughts in oral presentations.

Keywords: EFL, posters, PowerPoint presentations, Animated Videos, visual learning

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Authors: Saksit Saengboon

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The study of English in Thailand receives comparatively little attention in the world of Englishes scholarship despite a complex and dynamic linguistic landscape. Like many countries in the region, English is used in predictable contexts, such as schools and at work. However, English is being increasingly used as a contact language among Thais and non-Thais, requiring much needed empirical attention. This study aims to address this neglected issue by examining how Thais perceive and use English in contemporary Thai society. This study explored the ways in which English has been used in public signage, mass media, especially about Thai food, and perceptions of Thais (N = 80) regarding English. Findings indicate that English in Thailand is used in a complicated manner portraying both standard and non-standard English. Thais still hold a static or traditional view of English, making it impractical, if not impossible, to have Thai English as an established variety.

Keywords: Thai english, thainess in english, public signage, mass media, thai food, thai linguistic landscape

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Authors: Minami Ito, Akihiro Iijima

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On March 11, 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake occurred off the coast of Sanriku, Japan. It is important to build a sustainable society through the reconstruction process rather than simply restoring the infrastructure. To compare the goals of reconstruction plans of quake-stricken municipalities, Japanese language morphological analysis was performed by using text mining techniques. Frequently-used nouns were sorted into four main categories of “life”, “disaster prevention”, “economy”, and “harmony with environment”. Because Soma City is affected by nuclear accident, sentences tagged to “harmony with environment” tended to be frequent compared to the other municipalities. Results from cluster analysis and principle component analysis clearly indicated that the local government reinforces the efforts to reduce risks from radiation exposure as a top priority.

Keywords: eco-friendly reconstruction, harmony with environment, decontamination, nuclear disaster

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Authors: Salwa Enneifer

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The research is intended to investigate Tunisian students’ own perception of the difficulties they encounter in the writing task. To achieve this objective, a questionnaire was administered to students enrolled in the ‘Faculty of Letters Arts and Humanities’ in Kairouan, in Tunisia. Students were classified into three groups: first-, second-, and third-year students. The researcher used 120 questionnaires filled in by the students as data for this study; moreover, 30 students participated in a semi-structured interview to complete the data. The questionnaire results revealed that Tunisian EFL students faced spelling and grammar difficulties. ANOVA also revealed that the first-year students did not recognise that Arabic and English greatly differ in their respective punctuation systems. The second-year class, however, was fully aware of this difference. Additionally, the interview shed light on other aspects or different difficulties experienced by students in writing: a cruel ‘lack of vocabulary’, Arabic language interference, the organisation of the essay and especially the academic essay, and difficulty with writing an argumentative essay.

Keywords: difficulties, writing, Tunisian, EFL students

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Authors: Rafael Dias Silva

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The school is a social institution that should promote learning situations that remain throughout life. Based on this, the teaching activities promoted in museum spaces can represent an educational strategy that contributes to the learning process in a more meaningful way. This article systematizes a series of elements that guide the use of these spaces for the scientific literacy of deaf students and as experiences of this nature are favorable for the school development through the concept of the circularity. The methodology for the didactic use of these spaces of non-formal education is one of the reflections developed in this study and how such environments can contribute to the learning in the classroom. To develop in the student the idea of ​​association making him create connections with the curricular proposal and notice how the proposed activity is articulated. It is in our interest that the experience lived in the museum be shared collaborating for the construction of a scientific literacy and cultural identity through the research.

Keywords: accessibility in museums, Brazilian sign language, deaf students, teacher training

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Authors: Siti Nadiah Nuwawi, Roshidah Hassan

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Dialect is one of the language variants emerge due to certain factors. One of the distinctive dialects spoken by people in Malaysia is the one spoken by those who reside in the inland area of the East Peninsular Malaysia; Hulu Terengganu, which is known as Ulu Terengganu Malay dialect. This dialect is unique since it possesses ancient elements in its phonology elements, which makes it is hard to be understood by people who come from other states. There is dearth of acoustic studies of the dialect in which this paper aims to attain by describing the quality of the monophthongs found in the dialect instrumentally based on their first and second formant values. The hertz values are observed and recorded from the waveforms and spectrograms depicted in PRAAT version 6.0.43 software. The findings show that Ulu Terengganu Malay speakers produced ten monophthongs namely /ɛ/, /e/, /a/, /ɐ/, /ɞ/, /ɔ/, /i/, /o/, /ɵ/ and /ɘ/ which applauds a few monophthongs suggested by past researchers which were based on auditory impression namely /ɛ/, /e/, /a/, ɔ/, and /i/. It also discovers the other five monophthongs of the dialect which are unknown before namely /ɐ/, /ɞ/, /o/, /ɵ/ and /ɘ/.

Keywords: acoustic analysis, dialect, formant values, monophthongs, Ulu Terengganu Malay

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Authors: Fatemeh Jannesarvatan, Ghazaal Parastooei, Jimmy frerejan, Saedeh Mokhtari, Peter Van Rosmalen

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Medical and dental education increasingly emphasizes the acquisition, integration, and coordination of complex knowledge, skills, and attitudes that can be applied in practical situations. Instructional design approaches have focused on using real-life tasks in order to facilitate complex learning in both real and simulated environments. The Four component instructional design (4C/ID) model has become a useful guideline for designing instructional materials that improve learning transfer, especially in health profession education. The objective of this study was to apply the 4C/ID model in the creation of virtual patients (VPs) that dental students can use to practice their clinical management and clinical reasoning skills. The study first explored the context and concept of complication factors and common errors for novices and how they can affect the design of a virtual patient program. The study then selected key dental information and considered the content needs of dental students. The design of virtual patients was based on the 4C/ID model's fundamental principles, which included: Designing learning tasks that reflect real patient scenarios and applying different levels of task complexity to challenge students to apply their knowledge and skills in different contexts. Creating varied learning materials that support students during the VP program and are closely integrated with the learning tasks and students' curricula. Cognitive feedback was provided at different levels of the program. Providing procedural information where students followed a step-by-step process from history taking to writing a comprehensive treatment plan. Four virtual patients were designed using the 4C/ID model's principles, and an experimental design was used to test the effectiveness of the principles in achieving the intended educational outcomes. The 4C/ID model provides an effective framework for designing engaging and successful virtual patients that support the transfer of knowledge and skills for dental students. However, there are some challenges and pitfalls that instructional designers should take into account when developing these educational tools.

Keywords: 4C/ID model, virtual patients, education, dental, instructional design

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Authors: Sadiq Aminu, Ahmed Lamido

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This research studies Barack Obama’s second inaugural speech using Halliday’s Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG). SFG is a text grammar which describes how language is used, so that the meaning of the text can be better understood. The primary source of data in this research work is Barack Obama’s second inaugural speech which was obtained from the internet. The analysis of the speech was based on the ideational and textual metafunctions of Systemic Functional Grammar. Specifically, the researcher analyses the Process Types and Participants (ideational) and the Theme/Rheme (textual). It was found that material process (process of doing) was the most frequently used ‘Process type’ and ‘We’ which refers to the people of America was the frequently used ‘Theme’. Application of the SFG theory, therefore, gives a better meaning to Barack Obama’s speech.

Keywords: ideational, metafunction, rheme, textual, theme

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Authors: Andrea Catorci, Federico Maria Tardella, Alessandro Brica, Muhammad Umair

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Climate change models predict for the Mediterranean region a strong increase of intensity and frequency of drought events, with an expected effect on grassland biodiversity and functioning. The research aim was to understand how the grassland species modulate their resource acquisition and conservation strategies to short-term variation of the pattern of summer water supply. The study area is mountain meadows located in the ‘‘Montagna di Torricchio’’ (1130 m a.s.l.) a Nature Reserve in central Italy. In 2017 we started a manipulative experiment for 2 year (2017-2018), and we defined two treatments, one with increasing water (watering condition) and the other with less water (drought condition). Then, we investigated how species change their resource strategies at different amount of water availability by measuring the specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf area (LA). We used ANOVAs to test the effect of treatment over time on leaf area and specific leaf area, considering all the species together and also separately according to their growth form (forb, grass, legume). Our results showed that species may respond differently depending on their growth form and that using all the species together may cover more detailed variation. Overall, resource retaining strategies (lower SLA, LA) are resulted by increase of drought condition, while increase in water amount and number of watering events fosters acquisitive strategies (higher SLA, LA). However, this pattern is not constant for all growth form. Grass species are able to maintain their strategies to variation of the pattern of water availability. Forb and legume species on the other side have shown decreasing trend of SLA, LA values with increasing drought condition, a pattern more marked for the latter growth form. These variations suggest not only an increase of slow-growing strategies for both growth form, but also a decrease of their nutrient pastoral values since their leaves are supposed to become harder. Local farmers should consider the effect of climate change on grassland and adapt their management practices to guarantee the cattle welfare.

Keywords: function strategies, grasslands, climate change, sub Mediterranean region

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Authors: Amanda T. Badaró, Douglas F. Barbin, Sofia T. Garcia, Maria Teresa P. S. Clerici, Amanda R. Ferreira

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Food fortification is the intentional addition of a nutrient in a food matrix and has been widely used to overcome the lack of nutrients in the diet or increasing the nutritional value of food. Fortified food must meet the demand of the population, taking into account their habits and risks that these foods may cause. Wheat and its by-products, such as semolina, has been strongly indicated to be used as a food vehicle since it is widely consumed and used in the production of other foods. These products have been strategically used to add some nutrients, such as fibers. Methods of analysis and quantification of these kinds of components are destructive and require lengthy sample preparation and analysis. Therefore, the industry has searched for faster and less invasive methods, such as Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (NIR). NIR is a rapid and cost-effective method, however, it is based on indirect measurements, yielding high amount of data. Therefore, NIR spectroscopy requires calibration with mathematical and statistical tools (Chemometrics) to extract analytical information from the corresponding spectra, as Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA). PCA is well suited for NIR, once it can handle many spectra at a time and be used for non-supervised classification. Advantages of the PCA, which is also a data reduction technique, is that it reduces the data spectra to a smaller number of latent variables for further interpretation. On the other hand, LDA is a supervised method that searches the Canonical Variables (CV) with the maximum separation among different categories. In LDA, the first CV is the direction of maximum ratio between inter and intra-class variances. The present work used a portable infrared spectrometer (NIR) for identification and classification of pure and fiber-fortified semolina samples. The fiber was added to semolina in two different concentrations, and after the spectra acquisition, the data was used for PCA and LDA to identify and discriminate the samples. The results showed that NIR spectroscopy associate to PCA was very effective in identifying pure and fiber-fortified semolina. Additionally, the classification range of the samples using LDA was between 78.3% and 95% for calibration and 75% and 95% for cross-validation. Thus, after the multivariate analysis such as PCA and LDA, it was possible to verify that NIR associated to chemometric methods is able to identify and classify the different samples in a fast and non-destructive way.

Keywords: Chemometrics, fiber, linear discriminant analysis, near-infrared spectroscopy, principal component analysis, semolina

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Authors: Valentine Ubanako

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This paper investigates a situation that has given rise to a particular kind of variety or category of users of English in Cameroon which I have called here Non-native expatriate English (Users). This paper asserts that Non-expatriates in Cameroon (those who work for native speakers of English) use English in a peculiar manner which is worth investigating. This paper thus looks into the kind of English they use and their attitudes towards other users of different varieties of English and how these non-native expatriates form new identities and try to negotiate social ascendency within a local context. Data for this paper is collected through observation, interviews and questionnaires. Some Cameroonians, especially the educated, believe that they must move to Europe or America, study to a very high level and struggle to be like the white man whereas, the lowly educated (working with native English expatriates), are living their European and American dream in Cameroon among their brothers. Thus, educational attainment is not a necessary criterion for social ascendency.

Keywords: non-native expatriate English, native expatriates, varieties of English, English language, linguistics

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Authors: Veronika Pivkina, Alla Kim, Khon Nataliya

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Actuality of the present study is defined first of all the role of subjective well-being problem in modern psychology and the comprehending of subjective well-being by current students. Purpose of this research is to educe peculiarities of comprehending of subjective well-being by students with various levels of emotional intelligent. Methods of research are adapted Russian-Language questionnaire of K. Riff 'The scales of psychological well-being'; emotional intelligent questionnaire of D. V. Lusin. The research involved 72 student from different universities and disciplines aged between 18 and 24. Analyzing the results of the studies, it can be concluded that the understanding of happiness in different groups of students with high and low levels of overall emotional intelligence is different, as well as differentiated by gender. Students with higher level of happiness possess more capacity and higher need to control their emotions, to cause and maintain the desired emotions and control something undesirable.

Keywords: subjective well-being, emotional intelligent, psychology of comprehending, students

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Authors: Maria Ilyushkina

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The article addresses the problem of translating vocative texts with intertextual references and describes the influence of language on how knowledge and meaning are developed in the field of advertising. The starting point of the article takes advertisements from the sphere of tourism and the way we choose, translate, and interpret intertexts. The article focuses on the perception and understanding of the information in printed texts advertising recreational facilities and services for tourists as the target audience by representatives of other cultures and the knowledge intertexts convey. The authors argue that intertextuality complicates translation leading to knowledge asymmetries. Studying typical communicative failures is considered to be of great importance, allowing for improvement in the practice of translation in the sphere of advertising as well as preventing the fallacious transfer of knowledge when translating foreign intertexts.

Keywords: advertising, translation, intertext, Russian culture, knowledge asymmetries, tourism, vocative texts

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Authors: Tinatin Kurdghelashvili

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The paper deals with the usage of speech acts and politeness strategies in an EFL classroom in Georgia (Rep of). It explores the students’ and the teachers’ practice of the politeness strategies and the speech acts of apology, thanking, request, compliment/encouragement, command, agreeing/disagreeing, addressing and code switching. The research method includes observation as well as a questionnaire. The target group involves the students from Georgian public schools and two certified, experienced local English teachers. The analysis is based on Searle’s Speech Act Theory and Brown and Levinson’s politeness strategies. The findings show that the students have certain knowledge regarding politeness yet they fail to apply them in English communication. In addition, most of the speech acts from the classroom interaction are used by the teachers and not the students. Thereby, it is suggested that teachers should cultivate the students’ communicative competence and attempt to give them opportunities to practice more English speech acts than they do today.

Keywords: english as a foreign language, Georgia, politeness principles, speech acts

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Authors: Kamini Kaushal

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Medicinal plants of Ayurveda are effective in the treatment of cervical cancer. The aim of this paper is to assess anti cancerous activities of these medicinal plants against cancer. Most of the medicinal plants in Ayurveda are using to treat cervical cancer as name of disease as treatment of YONI VYAPADA. The selected plants has been studied scientifically in India and evidence based written since Vedic era. The compilation results showed potential anti cervical cancer activity of the tested plants. There plants are remaining under the dark due to lack of awareness, lack of popularity and barrier of language. Now this is the time to eye opener regarding the classical text and clinical evidences, so that we can give the hope to world's affected women from this disease. World is waiting for such type of remedy which is having zero side effects, low cost and effective.

Keywords: anti cancerous, cervical cancer, ayurveda, medicinal plants, scientific study, classical text

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Authors: Lopamudra Malek

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Bangladesh continues a compacted bilateral relationship with Japan since 1971, but the seed of this vital relationship had been sown much earlier in 1863 when MadhushudhonMukhapaddhay translated Commodore Mathew’s book, and the seed was nourished and nurtured by Rabindranath and other writers by translating Japanese literature in Bengali. Sano Jinnotsuke translated Rabindranath’s novel ‘Gora’ in 1924. Concentrating on formal literary translation, Jyotirmoy Mukhopadhyay, Jalal Ahmed continued to translate important novels, short poems, and short stories as well. Kyoko Niwa - GouriAiyub and Monjurul Huq and Swandip Tagore had translated one of the master pieces of Matsuo Basho and 万葉集. Gita A. Keeni has translated few stories from Kenji Miyazawa and in contemporary literature, Abhijit Mukherjee translating Yukio Mishima and Haruki Murakami in Bengali language.

Keywords: literary translation, bengali, Japanese, book

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Authors: Hycham Aboutaleb, Bruno Monsuez

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Current systems complexity has reached a degree that requires addressing conception and design issues while taking into account all the necessary aspects. Therefore, one of the main challenges is the way complex systems are specified and designed. The exponential growing effort, cost and time investment of complex systems in modeling phase emphasize the need for a paradigm, a framework and a environment to handle the system model complexity. For that, it is necessary to understand the expectations of the human user of the model and his limits. This paper presents a generic framework for designing complex systems, highlights the requirements a system model needs to fulfill to meet human user expectations, and defines the refined functional as well as non functional requirements modeling tools needs to meet to be useful in model-based system engineering.

Keywords: system modeling, modeling language, modeling requirements, framework

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Authors: Takuya Inoue

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Applying affordance theory to the field of communication research has been more significant. This paper suggests that the act of design, including language, is defined as encouraging or restricting affordance of an object or event and make it perceivable for users, rather merely conveying information. From this point of view, 5 types of oral expressions in Kyoto dialect, as well as 4 types of exterior design such as sekimori-ishi (a barrier-stone in a teahouse garden) which are specific to traditions in Kyoto, are examined. We found that exterior designs have no physical power in itself, they work as ‘signifier’ to highlight cultural frames which heavily depend on exclusive culture among city-dwellers in Kyoto. At the same time, the expressions are implicit, even sometimes sarcastic, which are also supported by cultural frames. In conclusion, the existence of traditional design is motivated in informative ‘ecological frame.’

Keywords: affordance theory, communication, cultural design, Japanese culture, Kyoto dialect, signifier

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Authors: Abdelaziz Hussien

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This article reports investigations of a study into the effectiveness of a traits cooperative learning (TCL) on teacher candidates’ writing achievement, composition, and attitudes towards traits of writing approach and small group learning. Mixed methodologies were used with the participants in a repeated measures quasi-experimental design. Forty-two class teacher candidates, enrolled in the Bahrain Teachers College, completed the pre and post author-developed measures. The results suggest that TCL has a positive effect on the participants’ writing achievement, composition, and attitudes towards traits of writing approach, but not on the attitudes towards small group learning. Further implications to teacher education are presented.

Keywords: trait-based language education, cooperative learning, writing achievement, writing composition, traits of writing, teacher education

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Authors: Mazyar Yosofi, Olivier Kerbrat, Pascal Mognol

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Life cycle assessment of additive manufacturing processes has evolved significantly since these past years. A lot of existing studies mainly focused on energy consumption. Nowadays, new methodologies of life cycle inventory acquisition came through the literature and help manufacturers to take into account all the input and output flows during the manufacturing step of the life cycle of products. Indeed, the environmental analysis of the phenomena that occur during the manufacturing step of additive manufacturing processes is going to be well known. Now it becomes possible to count and measure accurately all the inventory data during the manufacturing step. Optimization of the environmental performances of processes can now be considered. Environmental performance improvement can be made by varying process parameters. However, a lot of these parameters (such as manufacturing speed, the power of the energy source, quantity of support materials) affect directly the mechanical properties, surface finish and the dimensional accuracy of a functional part. This study aims to improve the environmental performance of an additive manufacturing process without deterioration of the part quality. For that purpose, the authors have developed a generic method that has been applied on multiple parts made by additive manufacturing processes. First, a complete analysis of the process parameters is made in order to identify which parameters affect only the environmental performances of the process. Then, multiple parts are manufactured by varying the identified parameters. The aim of the second step is to find the optimum value of the parameters that decrease significantly the environmental impact of the process and keep the part quality as desired. Finally, a comparison between the part made by initials parameters and changed parameters is made. In this study, the major finding claims by authors is to reduce the environmental impact of an additive manufacturing process while respecting the three quality criterion of parts, mechanical properties, dimensional accuracy and surface roughness. Now that additive manufacturing processes can be seen as mature from a technical point of view, environmental improvement of these processes can be considered while respecting the part properties. The first part of this study presents the methodology applied to multiple academic parts. Then, the validity of the methodology is demonstrated on functional parts.

Keywords: additive manufacturing, environmental impact, environmental improvement, mechanical properties

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Authors: Lugyi No

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This research delves into how students from two different backgrounds in a conflict-affected area, one group being internally displaced (IDP) and the other residing in permanent homes, express their emotions through art. Two experiments were conducted involving guided drawing to understand their emotional experiences. In the first experiment, where no specific instructions were given, both groups mostly used dark and dull colors, which suggests feelings of sadness and anxiety. Positive emotions were rarely depicted. In the second experiment, students were asked to express their emotions and provide reasons for their drawings. Here, we observed distinct variations: IDP students leaned towards vibrant colors, reflecting resilience, while town students tended to use monochromatic shades, likely due to their experiences with conflict. This abstract highlights the differing emotional expressions of these groups and the influence of instructions on their artwork.

Keywords: art therapy, conflict-affected areas, education in conflict zones, children's drawings

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Authors: Daniel J. Patricio Jiménez

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Digital reality demands new ways of thinking, flexibility in learning, acquisition of new competencies, visualizing reality under new approaches, generating open spaces, understanding dimensions in continuous change, etc. We need inclusive growth, where colors are not lacking, where lights do not give a distorted reality, where science is not half-truth. In carrying out this study, the documentary or bibliographic collection has been taken into account, providing a reflective and analytical analysis of current reality. In this context, deductive and inductive methods have been used on different multidisciplinary information sources. Women today and tomorrow are a strategic element in science and arts, which, under the umbrella of sustainability, implies ‘meeting current needs without detriment to future generations’. We must build new scenarios, which qualify ‘the feminine and the masculine’ as an inseparable whole, encouraging cooperative behavior; nothing is exclusive or excluding, and that is where true respect for diversity must be based. We are all part of an ecosystem, which we will make better as long as there is a real balance in terms of gender. It is the time of ‘the lifting of the veil’, in other words, it is the time to discover the pseudonyms, the women who painted, wrote, investigated, recorded advances, etc. However, the current reality demands much more; we must remove doors where they are not needed. Mass processing of data, big data, needs to incorporate algorithms under the perspective of ‘the feminine’. However, most STEM students (science, technology, engineering, and math) are men. Our way of doing science is biased, focused on honors and short-term results to the detriment of sustainability. Historically, the canons of beauty, the way of looking, of perceiving, of feeling, depended on the circumstances and interests of each moment, and women had no voice in this. Parallel to science, there is an under-representation of women in the arts, but not so much in the universities, but when we look at galleries, museums, art dealers, etc., colours impoverish the gaze and once again highlight the gender gap and the silence of the feminine. Art registers sensations by divining the future, science will turn them into reality. The uniqueness of the so-called new normality requires women to be protagonists both in new forms of emotion and thought, and in the experimentation and development of new models. This will result in women playing a decisive role in the so-called "5.0 society" or, in other words, in a more sustainable, more humane world.

Keywords: art, digitalization, gender, science

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Authors: Victoria Esteves

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Online memes have not only impacted different aspects of culture, but they have also left their mark on particular subcultures, where memes have reflected issues and debates surrounding specific spheres of interest. This is the first study that outlines how memes can address cultural intersections within the Lolita fashion community, which are much more specific and which fall outside of the broad focus of politics and/or social commentary. This is done by looking at the way online memes are used in this particular subculture as a form of meaning-making and group identity reinforcement, demonstrating not only the adaptability of online memes to specific cultural groups but also how subcultures tailor these digital objects to discuss both community-centered topics and more broad societal aspects. As part of an online ethnography, this study focuses on qualitative content analysis by taking a look at some of the meme communication that has permeated Lolita fashion communities. Examples of memes used in this context are picked apart in order to understand this specific layered phenomenon of communication, as well as to gain insights into how memes can operate as visual shorthand for the remix of meaning-making. There are existing parallels between internet culture and cultural behaviors surrounding Lolita fashion: not only is the latter strongly influenced by the former (due to its highly globalized dispersion and lack of physical shops, Lolita fashion is almost entirely reliant on the internet for its existence), both also emphasize curatorial roles through a careful collaborative process of documenting significant aspects of their culture (e.g., Know Your Meme and Lolibrary). Further similarities appear when looking at ideas of inclusion and exclusion that permeate both cultures, where memes and language are used in order to both solidify group identity and to police those who do not ascribe to these cultural tropes correctly, creating a feedback loop that reinforces subcultural ideals. Memes function as excellent forms of communication within the Lolita community because they reinforce its coded ideas and allows a kind of participation that echoes other cultural groups that are online-heavy such as fandoms. Furthermore, whilst the international Lolita community was mostly self-contained within its LiveJournal birthplace, it has become increasingly dispersed through an array of different social media groups that have fragmented this subculture significantly. The use of memes is key in maintaining a sense of connection throughout this now fragmentary experience of fashion. Memes are also used in the Lolita fashion community to bridge the gap between Lolita fashion related community issues and wider global topics; these reflect not only an ability to make use of a broader online language to address specific issues of the community (which in turn provide a very community-specific engagement with remix practices) but also memes’ ability to be tailored to accommodate overlapping cultural and political concerns and discussions between subcultures and broader societal groups. Ultimately, online memes provide the necessary elasticity to allow their adaption and adoption by subcultural groups, who in turn use memes to extend their meaning-making processes.

Keywords: internet culture, Lolita fashion, memes, online community, remix

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Authors: Abbas Ebrahimi, Mohammad Zandsalimy

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The main purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility of using FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Arrays) chips as alternatives for the conventional CPUs to accelerate the numerical solution of the Laplace equation. FPGA is an integrated circuit that contains an array of logic blocks, and its architecture can be reprogrammed and reconfigured after manufacturing. Complex circuits for various applications can be designed and implemented using FPGA hardware. The reconfigurable hardware used in this paper is an SoC (System on a Chip) FPGA type that integrates both microprocessor and FPGA architectures into a single device. In the present study the Laplace equation is implemented and solved numerically on both reconfigurable hardware and CPU. The precision of results and speedups of the calculations are compared together. The computational process on FPGA, is up to 20 times faster than a conventional CPU, with the same data precision. An analytical solution is used to validate the results.

Keywords: accelerating numerical solutions, CFD, FPGA, hardware definition language, numerical solutions, reconfigurable hardware

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Authors: Tso Sheng-Yang, Wang Tien-Ni

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Introduction and Purpose: Previous researchers have documented children with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorders) prefer to escaping internal privates and external privates when they face tough conditions they can’t control or they don’t like.Especially, when children with ASD need to learn challenging tasks, such us Chinese language, their inappropriate behaviors will occur apparently. Recently, researchers apply positive behavior support strategies for children with ASD to enhance their self-efficacy and therefore to reduce their adverse behaviors. Thus, the purpose of this research was to design a series of lecture based on art therapy and to evaluate its effectiveness on the child’s self-efficacy. Method: This research was the single-case design study that recruited a high school boy with ASD. Whole research can be separated into three conditions. First, baseline condition, before the class started and ended, the researcher collected participant’s competencies of self-efficacy every session. In intervention condition, the research used dramatic conventions to teach the child in Chinese language twice a week.When the data was stable across three documents, the period entered to the maintenance condition. In maintenance condition, the researcher only collected the score of self-efficacynot to do other interventions five times a month to represent the effectiveness of maintenance.The time and frequency of data collection among three conditions are identical. Concerning art therapy, the common approach, e.g., music, drama, or painting is to use art medium as independent variable. Due to visual cues of art medium, the ASD can be easily to gain joint attention with teachers. Besides, the ASD have difficulties in understanding abstract objectives Thus, using the drama convention is helpful for the ASD to construct the environment and understand the context of Classical Chinese. By real operation, it can improve the ASD to understand the context and construct prior knowledge. Result: Bassd on the 10-points Likert scale and research, we product following results. (a) In baseline condition, the average score of self-efficacyis 1.12 points, rangedfrom 1 to 2 points, and the level change is 0 point. (b)In intervention condition, the average score of self-efficacy is 7.66 points rangedfrom 7 to 9 points, and the level change is 1 point. (c)In maintenance condition, the average score of self-efficacy is 6.66 points rangedfrom 6 to 7 points, and the level change is 1 point. Concerning immediacy of change, between baseline and intervention conditions, the difference is 5 points. No overlaps were found between these two conditions. Conclusion: According to the result, we find that it is effective that using dramatic conventions a s teaching strategies to teach children with ASD. The result presents the score of self-efficacyimmediately enhances when the dramatic conventions commences. Thus, we suggest the teacher can use this approach and adjust, based on the student’s trait, to teach the ASD on difficult task.

Keywords: dramatic conventions, autism spectrum disorder, slef-efficacy, teaching strategy

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Authors: Faiza Hussain, Usman Qamar

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Synonym-based searching is recognized to be a complicated problem as text mining from unstructured data of web is challenging. Finding useful information which matches user need from bulk of web pages is a cumbersome task. In this paper, a novel and practical synonym retrieval technique is proposed for addressing this problem. For replacement of semantics, user intent is taken into consideration to realize the technique. Parts-of-Speech tagging is applied for pattern generation of the query and a thesaurus for this experiment was formed and used. Comparison with Non-Context Based Searching, Context Based searching proved to be a more efficient approach while dealing with linguistic semantics. This approach is very beneficial in doing intent based searching. Finally, results and future dimensions are presented.

Keywords: natural language processing, text mining, information retrieval, parts-of-speech tagging, grammar, semantics

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Authors: Markus Meyer, Bastian Maucher, Rolf Witzmann

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The ever increasing amount of distributed generation in low voltage distribution grids (mainly PV and micro-CHP) can lead to reverse load flows from low to medium/high voltage levels at times of high feed-in. Reverse load flow leads to rising voltages that may even exceed the limits specified in the grid codes. Furthermore, the share of electrical loads connected to low voltage distribution grids via switched power supplies continuously increases. In combination with inverter-based feed-in, this results in high harmonic levels reducing overall power quality. Especially high levels of third-order harmonic currents can lead to neutral conductor overload, which is even more critical if lines with reduced neutral conductor section areas are used. This paper illustrates a possible concept for smart grids in order to increase the feed-in capacity, improve power quality and to ensure safe operation of low voltage distribution grids at all times. The key feature of the concept is a hierarchically structured control strategy that is run on a superordinated controller, which is connected to several distributed grid analyzers and inverters via broad band powerline (BPL). The strategy is devised to ensure both quick response time as well as the technically and economically reasonable use of the available inverters in the grid (PV-inverters, batteries, stepless line voltage regulators). These inverters are provided with standard features for voltage control, e.g. voltage dependent reactive power control. In addition they can receive reactive power set points transmitted by the superordinated controller. To further improve power quality, the inverters are capable of active harmonic filtering, as well as voltage balancing, whereas the latter is primarily done by the stepless line voltage regulators. By additionally connecting the superordinated controller to the control center of the grid operator, supervisory control and data acquisition capabilities for the low voltage distribution grid are enabled, which allows easy monitoring and manual input. Such a low voltage distribution grid can also be used as a virtual power plant.

Keywords: distributed generation, distribution grid, power quality, smart grid, virtual power plant, voltage control

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Authors: Ali Zefeiti

Abstract:

There has always been a debate on critical versus pragmatic approach to learning English. Different elements of teaching take different shapes in the two approaches. This study concerns itself with the students who are the main pillar of the teaching/learning operation. Students have always been placed into classrooms to learn what the curricula of different courses offer. There is little room for students to state their own learning needs as they often have to conform with the group requirement. This study focuses on an extra-curricular activity students did alongside their mainstream learning. The students come from different colleges and different EAP courses. They are united by their passion for the task and learning many things along the way. The data are collected through interviews and students' journals. The study was concerned with the effect of this extra-curricular activity on students' main learning trajectory. The students were engaged in the task of film production over the period of their English Language course. The findings show that students are able to set their own agenda for learning and have actually had a lot of skills and vocabulary to take to class.

Keywords: critical EAP, pragmatic EAP, self-directed learning, teaching methods

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Authors: Osama Mohamed Elrajubi, Idris El-Feghi, Mohamed Abu Baker Saghayer

Abstract:

This paper describes an identification of specific shapes within binary images using the morphological Hit-or-Miss Transform (HMT). Hit-or-Miss transform is a general binary morphological operation that can be used in searching of particular patterns of foreground and background pixels in an image. It is actually a basic operation of binary morphology since almost all other binary morphological operators are derived from it. The input of this method is a binary image and a structuring element (a template which will be searched in a binary image) while the output is another binary image. In this paper a modification of Hit-or-Miss transform has been proposed. The accuracy of algorithm is adjusted according to the similarity of the template and the sought template. The implementation of this method has been done by C language. The algorithm has been tested on several images and the results have shown that this new method can be used for similar shape detection.

Keywords: hit-or-miss operator transform, HMT, binary morphological operation, shape detection, binary images processing

Procedia PDF Downloads 328