Application Of Evaluation Criteria Research Articles

A new level of blast furnace control in the developments of the IFM

Under today’s conditions, characterized by the instability of the composition and quality of charge materials, the composition of the combined blast, as well as the significant variability in the intensity of heat, the timely expert evaluation of the current heat parameters and reasons of their variations comparing with the setup parameters is rather actual. The expert evaluation can allow to issue recommendations to reach the setup technical and economic indices while minimizing the energy costs. The main features of the decision-making support intellectual system for blast furnace heat control, developed by the Institute of Ferrous Metallurgy, presented. The system based on the heat conditions diagnostic with application of evaluation criteria of heat conditions and BF heat gas-dynamic regime, effectiveness of axes coke funnel, evaluation of the form, location and thickness of the plastic zone in a blast furnace and other criteria, based on technological parameters of BF heat and control systems information. It was noted, that the elaborated system allows to evaluate adequately the processes of BF heat under conditions of multicomponent charge, which is stipulated generally by utilization of raw materials and fuel of lower quality within the BF charge to make it cheaper. A comprehensive mathematical model of multicomponent portions of charge materials forming, their charging into the bunker of the bell-less charging facility, discharging out of the bunker and distribution on the charge surface elaborated. The elaborated intellectual system tested under real conditions of “ArcelorMittal Krivoy Rog” No. 9 blast furnace operation. The system showed effectiveness of its algorithms functioning within a sequence of test periods.

A Comprehensive, Research-based, Peer Review and Self-evaluation Module for Integration into Combined Composition Classes for Second (L2) and Heritage (HL) Language Learners of Spanish

Second (L2) and heritage (HL) language learners face a variety of similar challenges when they approach the writing of Spanish compositions. Practitioners have often suggested peer editing as a prefinal step to help identify student writing errors that can be corrected before submission of a final product. However, some studies reveal that student writers do not always trust feedback from their classmates and hesitate to follow through with peer recommendations to the same extent they will from their instructors. This paper suggests an enhancement to the traditional peer editing process that combines a semester-long training program in peer and self-evaluation along with a research-based instrument for a more comprehensive evaluation of Spanish compositions. The instrument is versatile enough to serve students who place at different levels of proficiency along both L2 and HL learner continuums. The paper argues that by becoming a better peer evaluator, one in turn becomes a better self-evaluator. This new process returns control to students, creates more self-reliant writers, and empowers them to significantly improve their essays prior to submission. The paper concludes with the suggestion that if students adopt this process and continue its use it for future compositions, they can eventually become sufficiently trained to the point at which application of evaluation criteria becomes part of their normal mental routine before submitting any written work.

Low-Level Evidence Suggests that Perceived Ability to Evaluate and Trust Online Health Information is Associated with Low Health Literacy

Objective – To review, based on research evidence, the correlation between low health literacy and four outcomes of interest: (1) the ability to evaluate online health information based on (2) perceived reliability and accuracy, (3) trust in the Internet as an information source, and (4) the application of established evaluation criteria. 
 
 Design – Systematic review and narrative synthesis.
 
 Setting –MEDLINE, PsycInfo, Web of Science, CINAHL, and Communication and Mass-media Complete as well as articles discovered through the snowball method.
 
 Subjects – 38 studies identified through a systematic literature search.
 
 Methods – An exhaustive list of potential articles was gathered through searching five online databases and Google Scholar, and hand searching of references. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied in a two-phase screening process in which two researchers participated to address reliability. Data, including study characteristics and metadata, predictors, assessment methods, and outcomes, were extracted from relevant studies, and then synthesized narratively. 
 
 Main Results – Following duplication removal 13,632 records were retrieved, 254 of which were identified for full-text assessment. Thirty-eight studies met the eligibility criteria. All studies were non-experimental and therefore graded as a low level of evidence; 35 were cross-sectional designs, 1 a focus group, and 2 were observational studies. Studies varied widely in population definition and sample size and were published between 2001 and 2013, primarily in North America. 
 
 Overall, a positive association was identified between health literacy and outcomes related to the ability to evaluate or trust Internet health information, while findings were inconsistent related to perceived quality of information and the application of evaluative criteria. Four studies examined the impact of health literacy levels on one or more of the outcomes of interest. 
 
 The most prevalent outcome measure studied was trust in online health information, and the least prevalent was the use of evaluative criteria. The ability to trust online health information was assessed primarily through self-reporting, half of which utilized the eHealth Literacy scale, the majority of which indicated a positive correlation between education level or low health literacy and the perceived or actual ability to evaluate online health information. 
 
 No studies on perceived information quality were found to utilize health literacy as an indicator. A positive association between educational level and trust in health information on the Internet was reported in ten studies, while two articles noted a similar correlation based on proxies for health literacy, including English language proficiency and comprehension comfort. In terms of the use of evaluation criteria, only one study focused on health literacy, indicating that those with low health literacy evaluate online health information based on search result placement, celebrity endorsement, image quality, and site authorship, and that they trust university researchers more than government or religious authorities to provide health information. 
 
 No association was shown between readability or physician-provided online information and evaluation criteria while one study demonstrated that study participants with higher education tended to check author credentials more often when evaluating a website.
 
 Conclusion – Effective and informed evaluation of online health information is impacted by low health literacy.

A Public Law Perspective on Intellectual Property

This paper, delivered as the Annual Francis Gurry Lecture at Melbourne University in 2012, considers intellectual property law as a species of public law serving public purposes. The purposes reflecting the interests of creators, owners and users of intellectual property rights are in tension. That tension affects the normative clarity of intellectual property law and its effective enforcement. It may inform the construction of intellectual property statutes and the application of evaluative criteria of validity under those statutes. In Australia, intellectual property statutes are made under constitutional authority with respect to specified categories of intellectual property, the specific content of which may vary with technological change. Official decisions effecting the creation or discontinuance in intellectual property rights are statutory and subject to constitutionally based judicial review in addition to particular appeal rights conferred by statute. At the heart of the public law aspect of intellectual property rights is a tension between their characterisation as proprietary or instrumental.

Objective Metrics for the Evaluation of Simple Surgical Skills in Real and Virtual Domains

Surgical skills are traditionally assessed through subjective evaluation with experienced surgeons observing and rating trainee activity. However, this process can be expensive, particularly in terms of the time required of expert surgeons. Subjective assessment may also suffer from problems of intersubject variation in the application of evaluation criteria. Computer-based training, in particular systems combining virtual reality interfaces with haptic displays, offers a means of providing both automated and objective assessment of performance. In this paper we propose that, prior to the development of such systems, there is a need to determine measures that can adequately differentiate levels of performance. The paper therefore discusses the evaluation of surgical technique using objective metrics. Two main questions are addressed. How can surgical technique be assessed? What metrics prove useful in defining and modifying surgical skills and techniques?

The Effectiveness of Internally-Generated Feedback with an Instructional Expert System

An expert system was developed and included as a feedback stimulus component of an instructional unit that taught the production of graphics instructional materials. The expert system was used to help students generate their own feedback about the quality of their production projects. Implementation of the expert system raised questions about its effects on processing activities and learning. To investigate these questions, a total of forty-three students were assigned to either an internal (provided by expert system) or external (provided by an instructor) feedback condition. Internally-generated feedback, stimulated by the expert system, proved as effective as externally provided feedback in the learning of the production tasks and improved both the learning and application of evaluation criteria in a complex evaluation task. The internal feedback group were also more creative in their evaluations. Students who used the expert system held positive opinions about its use.