Higher Comprehension Scores Research Articles

Analysis of Nutritional Components and Flavor Substances of Different Varieties of Mangoes

In this thesis, four varieties of mangoes (Dahuang mango, Daqing mango, eagle-mouth mango, Tai mango), which were all out put in Panzhihua, were investigated as the research objects. The comprehensive evaluation of the four varieties of mangoes was carried out by measuring their various nutritional components combined with their volatile aroma components. In the meantime, the principal component analysis (PCA) was established on the nutritional components. The results showed that there were obvious differences in the quality of the four varieties of mangoes. The highest sugar-acid ratio and β-carotene content belonged to Dahuang mango, which were 16.47 and 4.06 mg/100 g, respectively. The highest water content, content of soluble sugar, titratable acid and total phenols belonged to eagle-mouth mango, which were 82.96%, 21.22%, 2.03% and 0.73 mg/g, respectively. The highest soluble protein content belonged to Tai mango, which was 7.83 mg/g, respectively. Principal component analysis (PCA) results showed that the mango evaluation system can be characterized by two principal components. The highest comprehensive score was eagle-mouth mango, the second was Tai mango, the third was Dahuang mango, and the fourth was Daqing mango. The proportions of terpenoids in the four varieties of mangoes from high to low were Dahuang mango, eagle-mouth mango, Tai mango and Daqing mango. This research provided a theoretical basis for the development of Panzhihua mango industry.

Research on Traffic Dispatching Scheme of Multi-service Data Center for 5G Smart Grid

Aiming at the flow scheduling problem of 5G power network multi-service data center, this paper designs and proposes a multi-service-oriented multi-factor flow scheduling scheme. Based on the shortest path algorithm, this paper improves and perfects the traffic scheduling strategy, and introduces a set of scoring mechanism. The number of hops, the number of large flows and the remaining bandwidth of each path are used as scoring indicators, and the path with the highest comprehensive score is selected. As the forwarding path of traffic. Based on the Mininet simulation platform, use Ryu to control to generate probability model traffic to simulate data center network traffic. The experimental results show that the scheme improves the network throughput and bandwidth utilization, and improves the performance of the data center network.

Evaluation of Tourism Development Potential and High-quality Development Countermeasures in Shandong Section of the Yellow River Basin

As a major national strategy, ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin aims to promote high-quality development in the areas of economy, ecology, society, people’s livelihood, and tourism. Taking 9 cities in the Shandong section of the Yellow River Basin as the main research area, the entropy Topsis method is used to analyze and evaluate the tourism development potential. The evaluation index system is constructed from the four subsystems of tourism economic potential, tourism service potential, tourism protection potential, and tourism environmental potential. The results of the study found that the comprehensive score of tourism development potential of the study area is between 0.2734 and 0.7054, with Ji’nan having the highest comprehensive score. At the same time, there is an imbalance in the development level of various subsystems within the region. On this basis, high-quality development countermeasures are proposed for the tourism development.

Effects of different N, P, K and Ca levels on tomato yield, quality and fertiliser use efficiency

The experiment aimed to obtain a quadratic regression mathematical model of the comprehensive evaluation score of yield, quality, and four macroelements (N, K, P and Ca). The suitable nutrient solution was chosen and verified via computer simulation of the model and the highest comprehensive score in all treatments. Results showed that P, K and Ca had a positive effect on the comprehensive evaluation value of tomato, whereas N showed a negative effect. The optimal formula calculated using the regression equation could promote high-yield and high-quality tomato. The single-plant yield, soluble protein, vitamin C, total sugar, lycopene, and elemental utilisation of K and Ca in the tomato were 13.93, 78.95, 3.29, 20.98, 51.91, 16.69 and 24.14% higher than those in the special formula treatment of Japanese Yamazaki tomato, respectively. In summary, the optimal nutrient solution formula of tomato cultivation was obtained, in which the N, P, K and Ca levels were 24.83, 4.50, 9.49 and 5.73 mmol/L, respectively.

Baseline assessment of a potassium iodide distribution for nuclear power plant emergencies in the Canadian-United States border region.

This study sought to evaluate resident demographics and resident understanding of the proper use of potassium iodide (KI) pills as a countermeasure in the event of a nuclear power plant emergency. We also described expected behaviors of community members in the event of a nuclear accident. The study design utilized a cross-sectional survey with a validated written questionnaire. Subjects, Participants: The study subjects were Canadian residents living within the primary emergency planning zone of the Fermi 2 nuclear power reactor. There was a 77 percent participation rate (n = 180) in Amherst Point and 61 percent for Bois Blanc Island (commonly referred to as Bob-Lo Island) (n = 57). The primary study outcome measures were the number of knowledge-based questions survey respondents correctly answered about proper KI use (Ksum) and various behavior-based survey questions in the context of the extended parallel process model (EPPM). Overall, we found that residents in general had a very low overall comprehension of proper KI use. We found that most resident demographics (eg, age, gender) did not significantly impact their knowledge of proper KI use but did find that households with children under 13 years of age tended to have higher comprehension scores than households without young children. Most residents reported that if they thought they were exposed to radiation they would go to the hospital or call 911 and few residents knew their evacuation routes, few were aware of the emergency siren, none knew where the reception center was located, and most did not have an emergency kit in their home. The majority of the survey respondents did indicate that they would evacuate if told to do so by their government. Public health outreach is crucial for KI distribution programs because of the overall low pre-existing comprehension in communities. Also, hospitals and 911 must be prepared to deal with higher volume of residents seeking help should an accident occur.

Application of a 2D-QSAR with a sine normalization method for the biodegradation of fluoroquinolones to poison cyanobacteria.

Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic autotrophic aquatic prokaryotes. One of the methods for controlling cyanobacterial blooms is to destroy the phycobiliproteins required for photosynthesis. In this study, to improve the biodegradation of the fluoroquinolones through inhibit cyanobacteria, the molecular docking scores of 32 fluoroquinolones (FQs) with four categories of phycobiliproteins from cyanobacteria were calculated after sine normalization to characterize the binding ability between them. A two-dimensional quantitative structure-activity relationship (2D-QSAR) model was constructed based on the comprehensive scores. Danofloxacin (DAN) with the highest comprehensive score was chosen for molecular modification. When docking with four categories of phycobiliproteins from cyanobacteria, the docking values of DAN-11 and DAN-16 were increased up to 35.75%. Moreover, their functional characteristics and environmentally friendly predictive values were improved. When the DAN-11 and DAN-16 molecules docked with the other cyanobacterial phycobiliproteins, indicating that the designed DAN derivatives had general applicability to poison cyanobacteria, the weak interaction forces might increase the binding ability between the DAN derivatives and the receptor phycobiliprotein compared with the target molecule.

Assessment of fresh star anise (Illicium verum Hook.f.) drying methods for influencing drying characteristics, color, flavor, volatile oil and shikimic acid

In order to evaluate the effects of drying methods on the drying characteristics, quality (color, volatile oil (VO) content, shikimic acid (SA) content, trans-anethole content in the star anise volatile oil (TA-O)) and flavor components of star anise (Illicium verum Hook.f.), we tested five different methods (hot air drying (HAD), heat pump drying (HPD), far infrared radiation drying (FIRD), microwave drying (MD), and sun drying (SD)) with or without blanching to dry fresh star anise. Results showed MD had a shorter drying time than others, as well as the highest SA content (125.56 mg/g d.b.). HPD sample exhibited higher VO content (12.27% d.b.) and TA-O (113.30 mg/g d.b.) than those dried with other methods. HPD can improved the dominant flavor compounds of star anise, including trans-anethole (4165.46 mg/100 g d.b.), estragole (176.50 mg/100 g d.b.), linalool (280.69 mg/100 g d.b.), and (+)-limonene (471.18 mg/100 g d.b.). Samples treated with HPD-B had the highest comprehensive score (4.59) in the flavor principal component analysis. Therefore, HPD was more suitable for star anise drying as it maintaining quality. The better quality (higher flavor quality and better appearance) was found in HPD-B.

Improving students’ learning by providing a graphic organizer after a multimedia document

AbstractThe present study was intended to deepen current knowledge about the impact of graphic organizers (GOs) on students’ learning in a computer‐based learning environment, by evaluating the effects of successive versus simultaneous presentation of a GO and an explanatory text. Based on the previous studies, we hypothesized that simultaneous display of a GO improves learning performances for the information it highlights (represented elements), but impairs those for nonrepresented elements, owing to a focused processing effect during text reading. We predicted that staggering the display of the document and the GO would avoid this effect and enhance the learning of both represented and nonrepresented elements. We compared three groups: students who studied a multimedia document without a GO (control group); students who viewed the same multimedia document accompanied by a GO that was displayed simultaneously (simultaneous GO group); and students who viewed the document and were then shown the GO (successive GO group). In line with previous research on GOs, results showed that adding a GO to the multimedia document increased students’ memorization of the represented elements and their comprehension. Interestingly, students in the successive GO group exhibited enhanced memorization of the nonrepresented elements and had the highest comprehension scores. These original results indicate that delaying the display of the GO can lead students to process the overall information more deeply and, in turn, improve their learning.

Adaptive changes in root morphological traits of Gramineae and Leguminosae seedlings in the ecological restoration of the semiarid region of northwest China

AbstractGramineae and Leguminosae forages are widely grown in the semiarid region of northwest China. To understand the changes in root morphology in forage seedlings under drought stress, a nursery experiment was conducted with and without water stress using four Gramineae species (Bromus inermis, Agropyron mongolicum, Lolium perenne, and Bothriochloa ischaemum) and four Leguminosae species (Lespedeza bicolor, Medicago sativa, Astragalus adsurgens and Melilotus suaveolens). The forages were grown in rhizoboxes under drought stress (15% polyethylene glycol stress) and well‐watered (85% of field capacity) conditions. The results showed that the root length, root area, and specific root length of the Gramineae species were higher than those of the Leguminosae species at the 30–60 cm soil depth. The fine roots of eight species in the 0~0.5 mm diameter class had the largest total root length and total root area, and the total root volume and root tips in the 0.5~1.0 mm diameter class were the highest. Based on the subordinate function method results, B. inermis had the highest comprehensive score, while M. suaveolens had the lowest. Our results implied that Gramineae seedlings distributed more roots than Leguminosae seedlings in the 30–60 cm soil layer under drought stress. Under drought stress, fine roots in the 0~0.5 mm and 0.5~1.0 mm diameter classes were the main organs sustaining the growth of the eight species when suffered drought stress. Among the eight species, B. inermis had the strongest drought tolerance and could act as an optimal ecological restoration forage in the semiarid region of northwest China.

Optimization of NPK fertilization combined with phytoremediation of cadmium contaminated soil by orthogonal experiment.

In the current experiment, influence of NPK composition on the Cd contaminated soil-plant (Solanum nigrum L.) system as well as the phytoremediation efficiency were comprehensively studied. The composition of NPK was optimized for a sustainable phytoremediation and simultaneous agronomic technique in Cd-contaminated soil by orthogonal (L14) experiment, aimed to achieve plant productivity and maximum phytoremediation potential enhancement. Results showed that different treatments of NPK composition enhanced soil properties including saccharase, urease, catalase and acid phosphatase activities as compared to the control treatment, however, soil pH was slightly decreased by 3.64%~6.67% with different composition of NPK treatments. Plant biomass and Cd concentration in the aboveground part (stem and leaves) of S. nigrum were significantly (P<0.05) enhanced by 14.19%~48.97% and 38.50%~127.15% as compared to control plants with the addition of NPK fertilizers having different composition. Meanwhile, with the application of NPK fertilizer root/shoot Cd ratio and translocation factor (TF) was significantly decreased, however, bioconcentration factor (BCF) was increased as compared to control. Additionally, different composition of NPK fertilizers significantly increased photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, and carotenoids) and soluble protein in comparison to control. The activities of antioxidant enzymes in S. nigrum including ascorbate peroxidase (APX), catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione reductase (GR) were increased, while malonaldehyde (MDA) and proline contents were decreased. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that N3P2K2 treatment had the highest comprehensive score amongst other studied treatments of NPK composition, owing to its optimal composition for the investigated soil-S. nigrum system. Moreover, it was found that optimal composition (N3P2K2) of fertilizer resulted in increase of the plant resistance to Cd and the efficiency of phytoextraction. Therefore, it is suggested to all the small-holder famers and scientific community that precise composition of NPK fertilizer should be utilized according to soil properties, environmental conditions and plant requirements under Cd-stress condition in order to achieve maximum biomass, Cd uptake efficiency as well phytoremediation potential in moderately Cd contaminated soil.

The effects of reading on pixel vs. paper: a comparative study

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to examine the effects that reading on screens (using digital devices with different screen sizes) and on paper have on reading time and comprehension. The study group was comprised of126 secondary students from a private school. To ensure balance, the participants were assigned into test groups, formed according to the size of the reading device, based on class levels, gender, and average school grade. In the data collection process, a narrative text was transferred to both print and electronic media. Access to the text was provided on paper and three digital devices. There were no time limitations. After reading, participants were given comprehension tests that consisted of twenty multiple-choice questions. Female participants’ on-screen comprehension scores were found to be relatively higher compared to their paper comprehension scores. They also acquired better scores as the screen size increased. Conversely, male participants had higher comprehension scores on tablets and smart phones. Participants who read the text on smart phones and tablets completed the tasks in less time compared to other groups. However, the effects of reading modality on comprehension and reading time were not found to be statistically significant in either the male or female groups.

Differentiation of Lepidium meyenii (Maca) from Different Origins by Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry with Principal Component Analysis.

In this paper, we report a high-speed, high-sensitivity, and economic method to authenticate Maca. After being extracted by ethanol, nutritional components of a dozen kinds of Maca were detected by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. Combined with principal component analysis (PCA), these samples can be rapidly differentiated after selecting the origins and principal components in the projection of components 1 and 2. The result suggests that sample 2 from Lijiang gets the highest comprehensive score among the samples and sample 1 from Huize gets the lowest comprehensive score among the samples in positive-ion mass spectra. However, sample 2 from Peru gets the highest comprehensive score among the samples and sample 3 from Lijiang gets the lowest comprehensive score among the samples in negative-ion mass spectra. Compared with the PCA results, the data of negative-ion mass spectra can better differentiate these samples than those of positive-ion mass spectra. This method has the advantages of easy operation and high efficiency, which make it a differential tool in the fields of food safety, medicinal chemistry, and materials science.

Inspecting a picture before reading affects attentional processing but not comprehension

This study investigated whether presenting a picture before reading can encourage situation-model construction. We compared two conditions (n = 30) which differed in whether a picture of the initial situation described in a narrative text was presented before reading (i.e. pictorial-support condition) or not (i.e. no-picture condition). Situation-model construction was measured using both process- and product-oriented measures. Eye-tracking data indicated online resource allocation to the different levels of text representation: surface, textbase, and situation model. Literal text questions and inference questions were used as an offline indication of textbase and situation-model processing, respectively. The results showed that a picture presented before reading led to a redistribution of processing resources during reading, evidenced by a shift from textbase to situation-model processing. This attentional shift did not translate into higher comprehension scores. The results were interpreted in line with multimedia learning theories suggesting pictures can serve as a mental scaffold for situation-model construction.

One page of text: Eye movements during regular and thorough reading, skimming, and spell checking.

Eye movements during regular reading, thorough reading, skimming, and spell checking of single pages of text were measured, to investigate how high-level reading tasks elicited by instructions affect reading behavior. Word frequency and word length effects were found. All results were compared to regular reading. Thorough reading involved longer total reading times and more rereading, and resulted in higher comprehension scores. Skimming involved longer saccades, shorter average fixation durations, more word skipping, shorter total reading times evenly distributed across the page, and resulted in lower comprehension scores. Spell checking involved shorter saccades, longer average fixation durations, less word skipping, longer total reading times evenly distributed across the entire page, and resulted in lower comprehension scores. Replicating local effects shows that paragraphs maintain sufficient experimental rigor, while also enabling reading analyses from a global perspective. Compared to regular reading, thorough reading was more elaborate and less uniform, skimming was faster and more uniform, and spell checking was slower and more uniform.

노인의 인지적 특성을 고려한 건강메시지 디자인 가이드라인 연구

Objectives: Cognitive declines that inevitably come with aging make it difficult for elderly to understand health information and take appropriate actions to treat diseases and manage their health. The goal of this research was to improve health literacy of the elderly, especially those with low education, by designing a health message to accommodate changes due to cognitive declines of the elderly. Methods: A 2×2 experiment examined the effect of message types (i.e., original versus new design message) and educational level (low versus high education). Participants who were at least 65 years old and healthy participated in the study. Results: The new message design resulted in higher comprehension score and faster reading time. The effect of the design was greater with low education group. Less problems were reported with respect to the new design as compared to the original design. Conclusions: The results suggest that we can improve the health literacy of the elderly, especially those with low education, by applying design principles that take into account of the cognitive changes that come with aging. More active application of these design principles will help elderly population to better manage and prevent health problems.

Effects of Pre-reading Activities on EFL Reading by Iranian College Students

This study investigated the effects of two pre-reading activities (class discussion and vocabulary definitions) and a control condition on the reading comprehension of 57 Iranian college freshmen. It also investigated the differential facilitative effect of the two pre-reading activities on the students' comprehension. Each student read an expository text under one of the three conditions and immediately afterwards answered a 9-item short answer test designed to measure comprehension of the text. A one-way ANOVA and a post-hoc comparison test were applied to the results. This revealed that the two pre-reading activities produced significantly higher comprehension scores than the control condition. Vocabulary definitions activity resulted in increased comprehension compared with the control condition, but was significantly less effective than the class discussion activity. Results of the study were interpreted in relation to the schema-theoretic view of the reading process, and to their implications for EFL reading instruction.

Strategy training and mind-mapping facilitates children’s hypertext comprehension

Children in primary school read hypertext for comprehension. However, children typically are taught reading strategies for linear text, while these strategies are not automatically transferrable one-to-one to hypertext. In the present study, a training group of 55 sixth-graders were taught four hypertext reading strategies (planning, monitoring, evaluation and elaboration) via mind mapping and the usage of a prompting paper-card. A control group of 29 children received no strategy training. We examined to what extent strategy training influenced children’s strategy use and learning outcomes: (1) number of pages read and reading time per text, (2) literal / inferential reading comprehension scores and (3) knowledge representations (relatedness judgment task and mind maps). At posttest, the training group showed higher scores on a self-reported strategy usage questionnaire, and higher comprehension scores as compared to the control group. Hypertext strategy training in combination with mind-mapping supports children’s hypertext comprehension.

Evaluation, Modification, and Validation of Pictograms Depicting Medication Instructions in the Elderly

Poor health literacy has been recognized as a limiting factor in the elderly’s ability to comprehend written or verbal medication information and also to successfully adhere to medical regimens. The objective of this study was to validate a set of pictograms depicting medication instructions for use among the elderly to support health literacy. Elderly outpatients were recruited in 3 community pharmacies in Canada. One-on-one structured interviews were conducted to assess comprehension of 76 pictograms from the International Pharmaceutical Federation. Comprehension was assessed using transparency testing and pictogram translucency, or the degree to which the pictogram represents the intended message. A total of 135 participants were enrolled in this study, and 76 pictograms were assessed. A total of 50 pictograms achieved more than 67% comprehension. Pictograms depicting precautions and warnings against certain side effects were generally not well understood. Gender, age, and education level all had a significant impact on the interpretation scores of certain individual pictograms. When all pictograms were included, younger males had a significantly higher comprehension score than older females, and participants with a higher level of education provided significantly higher translucency scores. Even when pictograms reached the comprehension threshold set by the International Organization for Standardization in the general populations, only 50 of these pictograms achieved more than 67% comprehension among the elderly, confirming that validation in this subpopulation should be conducted prior to using specific pictograms. Accompanying pictograms with education about these pictograms and important counseling points remains extremely important.

Informing the Design of Direct-to-Consumer Interactive Personal Genomics Reports.

BackgroundIn recent years, people who sought direct-to-consumer genetic testing services have been increasingly confronted with an unprecedented amount of personal genomic information, which influences their decisions, emotional state, and well-being. However, these users of direct-to-consumer genetic services, who vary in their education and interests, frequently have little relevant experience or tools for understanding, reasoning about, and interacting with their personal genomic data. Online interactive techniques can play a central role in making personal genomic data useful for these users.ObjectiveWe sought to (1) identify the needs of diverse users as they make sense of their personal genomic data, (2) consequently develop effective interactive visualizations of genomic trait data to address these users’ needs, and (3) evaluate the effectiveness of the developed visualizations in facilitating comprehension.MethodsThe first two user studies, conducted with 63 volunteers in the Personal Genome Project and with 36 personal genomic users who participated in a design workshop, respectively, employed surveys and interviews to identify the needs and expectations of diverse users. Building on the two initial studies, the third study was conducted with 730 Amazon Mechanical Turk users and employed a controlled experimental design to examine the effectiveness of different design interventions on user comprehension.ResultsThe first two studies identified searching, comparing, sharing, and organizing data as fundamental to users’ understanding of personal genomic data. The third study demonstrated that interactive and visual design interventions could improve the understandability of personal genomic reports for consumers. In particular, results showed that a new interactive bubble chart visualization designed for the study resulted in the highest comprehension scores, as well as the highest perceived comprehension scores. These scores were significantly higher than scores received using the industry standard tabular reports currently used for communicating personal genomic information.ConclusionsDrawing on multiple research methods and populations, the findings of the studies reported in this paper offer deep understanding of users’ needs and practices, and demonstrate that interactive online design interventions can improve the understandability of personal genomic reports for consumers. We discuss implications for designers and researchers.

Connectives and layout as processing signals: How textual features affect students’ processing and text representation.

When students read their school text, they may make a coherent mental representation of it that contains coherence relations between the text segments. The construction of such a representation is a prerequisite for learning from texts. This article focuses on the influence of connectives (therefore, furthermore) and layout (continuous placement of sentences vs. each sentence beginning a new line) on the dynamics of the reading process as well as the quality of students’ mental representation. The results shed light on the cognitive reading processes of students in secondary education, which allows us to explain effects of text features on off-line comprehension measures. Our eye-tracking data emphasize the importance of connectives: Connectives speed up students’ processing, especially when texts have a continuous layout. In contrast, students’ processing slows when they read texts with a discontinuous layout. Our data also show a correlation between reading times and scores on bridging inference tasks: Students who read faster have higher comprehension scores. These findings indicate that explicit texts with a continuous layout place fewer processing demands on students’ working memory.