Taoyuan County Research Articles

Bacillus cihuensis sp. nov., isolated from rhizosphere soil of a plant in the Cihu area of Taiwan.

A Gram-positive, moderately halotolerant, rod-shaped, spore forming bacterium, designated strain FJAT-14515(T) was isolated from a soil sample in Cihu area, Taoyuan County, Taiwan. The strain grew at 10-35 °C (optimum at 30 °C), pH 5.7-9.0 (optimum at pH 7.0) and at salinities of 0-5 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum at 1 % w/v). The diagnostic diamino acid of the peptidoglycan of the isolated strain was meso-diaminopimelic acid and major respiratory isoprenoid quinone was MK-7. Major cellular fatty acids were anteiso-C15:0 (40.6 %), iso-C15:0 (20.7 %) and the DNA G+C content of strain FJAT-14515(T) was 37.1 mol %. A phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain FJAT-14515(T) belongs to the genus Bacillus, and was most closely related to the reference strains of Bacillus muralis DSM 16288(T) (97.6 %) and Bacillus simplex DSM 1321(T) (97.5 %). Levels of DNA-DNA relatedness between strain FJAT-14515(T) and the reference strains of B. muralis DSM 16288(T) and B. simplex DSM 1321(T) were 27.9 % ± 3.32 and 44.1 % ± 0.57, respectively. Therefore, on the basis of phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and genotypic properties, strain FJAT-14515(T) represents a novel species of the genus Bacillus, for which the name Bacillus cihuensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is FJAT-14515(T) (=DSM 25969(T) = CGMCC 1.12697(T)).

Extraction of heavy metals from contaminated soil by Cinnamomum camphora.

83 acres of rice paddy fields in Taoyuan county, Taiwan, were polluted by cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr) and copper (Cu) through a nearby irrigation channel, and rice plantation was ceased in 1987. Camphor trees (Cinnamomum camphora) have been planted in 2 acre of the above fields since 1991. Heavy metal accumulation of roots, leaves, branches and heartwood of camphor trees were analyzed during 20-year afforestation. Averaged Cd contents of the roots were found larger than the ones of the branches, leaves, sapwood and heartwood of camphor trees growing in three polluted plots. Averaged diameters at breast height (DBH) of the planted camphor trees were 13-15 cm. Cd pollution did not significantly impact the growth of camphor trees, as similar DBH's were found from both polluted and control sites. Annual growths of DBH were from 0.63 to 0.77 cm year(-1). Planting camphor trees sequestered 68.8 ton biomass per acre. During 20-year period, 0.69-1.98 ton C year(-1) ha(-1) were sequestered on three polluted plots. The above numbers exceeded IPCC LULUCF reference values 0.31-0.53 ton C year(-1) ha(-1) for activities at forest lands.

The Reliability of Modified Termination of Resuscitation Rules after Arrival at the Emergency Department

Introduction Pre-hospital termination of resuscitation (TOR) is not a usual practice in many cities. The current study aimed to examine the reliability of the modified basic life support (ED-BLS) and advanced life support (ED-ALS) rules for TOR after patient arrival at the emergency department (ED). Methods In this retrospective cohort study, adult non-traumatic cardiac arrest patients who received pre-hospital basic life support and defibrillator (BLS-D) mode of service in Taoyuan County in northern Taiwan during the study period were assessed. Data were retrieved from web-based registry records. Results Of the 1612 patients included, 40 (2.5%) achieved survival to discharge. The ED-ALS rule showed higher specificity (ED-ALS rule: 82.5% {95% confidence interval [CI]: 68.1-91.3} vs. ED-BLS rule: 50.0% {95%CI: 35.2-64.8}) and positive predictive value (ED-ALS rule: 99.0% {95% CI: 97.9-99.5} vs. ED-BLS rule: 98.6% {95%CI: 97.8-99.1}) than the ED-BLS rule in terms of predicting no survival to discharge after patient arrival at the ED. Among patients who fulfilled all criteria for the ED-BLS and ED-ALS rule, 20 (1.4%) and seven (1.0%) survived to discharge, respectively. Application of the ED-BLS and ED-ALS rules could have reduced further resuscitation efforts after arrival at the ED by 86.4% and 43.1%, respectively. Conclusion For non-traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients who receive BLS-D service, the ED-ALS rule has a higher specificity and PPV than the ED-BLS rule to predict no survival to discharge after patient arrival at the ED. Using the ED-ALS rule to terminate resuscitation after arrival at the ED should be prospectively validated. (Hong Kong j.emerg.med. 2014;21:283-290)

Effects of a school-based drug use prevention programme for middle-school students in Taiwan

This study examined the effects of a school-based drug use prevention programme for middle-school students in Taiwan. The curriculum consisted of 10 lessons and 4 homework assignments involving parent–child activities. A quasi-experimental design was used. The study was conducted in an urban middle-school located in Taipei city and in a middle-school located in a rural area in Taoyuan county. A total of 327 middle-school students in the intervention group and 314 students in the comparison group successfully participated in the baseline (September 2011) and follow-up surveys (November 2011). A mixed-model approach was used to examine the effects. Multivariate analysis results indicated that the school-based drug-prevention programme increased the students' drug-related knowledge, drug-prevention attitudes, enhanced life skills, and improved perceived parental involvement in the prevention of drug use. The results of this study endorse the implementation of school-based drug use prevention programmes that include parent–child activities to enhance youth drug-prevention knowledge, attitudes, and life skills.

Genetic diversity and identification of race 3 of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lactucae in Taiwan

Fusarium wilt disease of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is one of the major threats to the production of lettuce in Taiwan. This disease is caused by the vascular wilt pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lactucae. It is important for the lettuce breeders to identify the pathological races of F. oxysporum f. sp. lactucae in the course of developing F. oxysporum f. sp. lactucae-resistant cultivars for growers. Recently, race 3 of F. oxysporum f. sp. lactucae was identified in Taiwan based on the results of pathogenicity tests against three differential lettuce cultivars, Patriot, Costa Rica No. 4, and Banchu Red Fire, along with some Japanese F. oxysporum f. sp. lactucae reference strains for comparison. In our collected F. oxysporum f. sp. lactucae isolates, most isolates from Taiwan were identified as race 1 except two isolates, Fola-10 and Fola-40 collected from Taoyuan County identified as race 3. This is the first report of F. oxysporum f. sp. lactucae race 3 outside of Japan. The PCR-based tagging technique with the four reference markers was used to confirm the results of pathogenicity tests. In addition, genetic diversity between races of F. oxysporum f. sp. lactucae was also observed according to the results of random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD) fingerprintings.

Prevalence of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) in Taoyuan county of Taiwan

Prevalence of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) in Taoyuan county of Taiwan

Enhancing digital reading performance with a collaborative reading annotation system

As children now spend considerable time reading electronic media, digital reading skills and good reading comprehension are essential. However, many studies agree that screen-based reading leads to shallow reading, short attention spans, and poor comprehension. Therefore, this work presents a collaborative reading annotation system with a reading annotation and interactive discussion scaffold (CRAS-RAIDS) for improving reading performance in collaborative digital reading environments. This study used a quasi-experimental design. Fifty-three Grade 5 students were recruited from two classes of an elementary school in Taoyuan County, Taiwan. One class was randomly designated the experimental group used the proposed CRAS-RAIDS support for collaborative reading. The other class was designated the control group and used the traditional paper-based reading annotation method and face-to-face discussions. The two groups were then compared in terms of reading attitude, reading comprehension, and use of reading strategy in an active reading context. Analytical results show that the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group in direct and explicit comprehension, inferential comprehension performance, and use of reading strategy. Moreover, the experimental group, but not the control group, had a significantly improved reading attitude in the total dimensions and in the behavioral and affective sub-dimensions. Additionally, the experimental group showed positive interest and high learning satisfaction.

Description of a new species of the genus Sarasaeschna Karube & Yeh, with a key to the species of Taiwan (Odonata: Anisoptera: Aeshnidae).

Sarasaeschna chiangchinlii sp. nov. collected from Daxi, Taoyuan County in northern Taiwan is described and diagnosed. Judging from male penile structure, this species is considered to belong to the pryeri-group of its genus. It is easily distinguished from all known congeners in having peculiar sickle-shaped cerci in male. The habitats of S. chiangchinlii are mainly shaded brooks in lowland areas, which are exceptional for its Taiwanese relatives. Distributional maps and a key are also provided for the four species of Taiwanese Sarasaeschna.

Simple Patchy-Based Simulators Used to Explore Pondscape Systematic Dynamics

Thousands of farm ponds disappeared on the tableland in Taoyuan County, Taiwan since 1920s. The number of farm ponds that have disappeared is 1,895 (37%), 2,667 ponds remain (52%), and only 537 (11%) new ponds were created within a 757 km2 area in Taoyuan, Taiwan between 1926 and 1960. In this study, a geographic information system (GIS) and logistic stepwise regression model were used to detect pond-loss rates and to understand the driving forces behind pondscape changes. The logistic stepwise regression model was used to develop a series of relationships between pondscapes affected by intrinsic driving forces (patch size, perimeter, and patch shape) and external driving forces (distance from the edge of the ponds to the edges of roads, rivers, and canals). The authors concluded that the loss of ponds was caused by pond intrinsic factors, such as pond perimeter; a large perimeter increases the chances of pond loss, but also increases the possibility of creating new ponds. However, a large perimeter is closely associated with circular shapes (lower value of the mean pond-patch fractal dimension [MPFD]), which characterize the majority of newly created ponds. The method used in this study might be helpful to those seeking to protect this unique landscape by enabling the monitoring of patch-loss problems by using simple patchy-based simulators.

3D‐CAD effects on creative design performance of different spatial abilities students

AbstractStudents' creativity is an important focus globally and is interrelated with students' spatial abilities. Additionally, three‐dimensional computer‐assisted drawing (3D‐CAD) overcomes barriers to spatial expression during the creative design process. Does 3D‐CAD affect students' creative abilities? The purpose of this study was to explore the auxiliary effects of 3D‐CAD applications on students' creative design capabilities and on students with different spatial abilities. A total of 349 students from a public senior high school in Taoyuan County, Taiwan, participated in the study. The study used a non‐equivalent pretest and post‐test quasi‐experimental design. The key results from the study include the following: (1) students' spatial abilities were moderately correlated with their creative performance, especially their functional creativity; (2) the 3D‐CAD applications enhanced students' creative performance, particularly with regard to aesthetics; and (3) in 3D‐CAD applications, students with better spatial abilities were superior to those with relatively poor spatial abilities with regard to creative performance. Additionally, the effect sizes of novelty and aesthetics were stronger than that of functionality.

An Application of Immune Algorithm for the Periodic Delivery Planning of Vending Machines

This paper investigates the periodic delivery planning of vending machine problem (PDPVMP). The problem is a periodic vehicle routing problem (PVRP), which is also an extension of the typical vehicle routing problem (VRP). The considered PDPVMP contains multiple vending machines with periodic demands. For each vending machine, its replenishment frequency is either once per two days or twice per two days, i.e., once per day. In the PDPVMP, there are multiple vehicles to deliver goods for vending machines. The objective of the considered problem is to minimize the total length of routes for all vehicles during the time horizon such that all demands for vending machines are delivered. In this paper, based upon a new coding procedure, we apply an immune based algorithm to solve the PDPVMP. A case of Taoyuan county in Taiwan is considered and solved. Numerical results show that the studied immune algorithm can effectively solve this PDPVMP.

Early language learning profiles of young children with autism: Hyperlexia and its subtypes

This study utilized a standardized and comprehensive computer-aided language assessment tool to identify the early learning characteristics (e.g., hyperlexia) of young children with autism. The tool consisted of six subtests: decoding, homographs, auditory vocabulary comprehension, visual vocabulary comprehension, auditory sentence comprehension, and visual sentence comprehension. Thirty-five children with ASD between the ages of 4 and 6 from Tao-Yuan County in Taiwan participated in the study. Fifteen children with ASD whose decoding performance was 1 standard deviation above the norm of age-matched typically developing children were identified as hyperlexic and selected for further analysis. Five potential hyperlexic subtypes of language learning profiles emerged from this group of children with ASD. This study revealed the heterogeneous nature of language learning characteristics of young children with autism. Such findings have important implications for preschool teachers and other early interventionists who seek to develop specific strategies that capitalize on the learning strengths of young children with ASD.

Differential responses of crop yields and soil organic carbon stock to fertilization and rice straw incorporation in three cropping systems in the subtropics

Because the in situ incorporation of rice straw into paddy fields enhances CH4 emissions, the ex situ (or shifted) incorporation of rice straw into uplands may provide an alternative way of mitigating CH4 emissions and increasing crop productivity and soil organic carbon (SOC) accumulation. To evaluate the efficiency of this practice, three field trials were conducted in flooded paddies (FP), paddy-upland rotation (PU), and upland (UL) cropping systems in Taoyuan county, a subtropical region of China. All trials had three fertilization treatments: no fertilizer (Nil), chemical fertilizer only (NPK) and combined application of chemical fertilizer and rice straw (NPK+R in FP and NP+R in PU and UL). Results showed that the responses of crop yields to NPK in the UL trial (yields increased 2.4 to 4.1-folds relative to Nil) were greater than those of rice (increased 1.65 to 1.80-folds) in the FP and PU trial. Compared with NPK treatment, NPK+R constantly increased the grain yields of rice in the FP trial by 10% averagely, but not in PU trials. The effects of NP+R treatment on crop yields in the UL trial were significant (p<0.05) during the first 5–6 years. NPK treatments increased the SOC accumulation at a rate of 0.48Mgha−1yr−1 in the FP trial and 0.35Mgha−1yr−1 in the UL trial, but not in the PU trial. NPK+R treatments resulted in SOC accumulation rates of 1.00, 0.68, and 0.24tha−1yr−1, and 9.11%, 6.56%, and 6.45% of the total straw C input was converted to SOC in the FP, UL, and PU trials, respectively. The results suggested that the incorporation of rice straw was highly efficient on SOC accumulation and crop productivity in the uplands (as shown in the UL trial). We therefore recommend the ex situ incorporation of rice straw in the upland neighboring paddy fields as a way of utilizing excessive rice straw in the hilly area of subtropical China.

Research trends in problem‐based learning (PBL) research in e‐learning and online education environments: A review of publications in SSCI‐indexed journals from 2004 to 2012

British Journal of Educational TechnologyVolume 44, Issue 6 p. E185-E190 Colloquium Research trends in problem-based learning (PBL) research in e-learning and online education environments: A review of publications in SSCI-indexed journals from 2004 to 2012 Chia-Wen Tsai, Chia-Wen TsaiSearch for more papers by this authorYi-Chun Chiang, Yi-Chun ChiangSearch for more papers by this author Chia-Wen Tsai, Chia-Wen TsaiSearch for more papers by this authorYi-Chun Chiang, Yi-Chun ChiangSearch for more papers by this author First published: 17 October 2013 https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12038Citations: 19 Address for correspondence: Dr Chia-Wen Tsai, Department of Information Management, Ming Chuan University, No.5 De-Ming Road., Guishan Township, Taoyuan County, Taipei 333, Taiwan. Email: jawen12b@gmail.com Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume44, Issue6Special Issue: e-Learning and LeadershipNovember 2013Pages E185-E190 RelatedInformation

Adult Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Based on Chain of Survival in Taoyuan County, Northern Taiwan

BackgroundMost out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) studies have been conducted in developed countries or metropolitan areas, and few in developing countries or rural areas. ObjectivesThe aims of this study were to determine the weak links in the chain of survival and to estimate the outcomes of OHCA patients in Taoyuan, a nonmetropolitan area in Taiwan. MethodsA retrospective review and analysis of OHCA data was conducted. The three outcomes were whether a return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) was achieved, whether the patient survived to admission, or whether the patient survived to hospital discharge. ResultsFrom April to December 2008, 1048 OHCA patients were resuscitated, and 712 (67.9%) adult cardiac patients were used in this study. Among these 712 patients, 17.8% achieved ROSC (95% confidence interval [CI] 15.2–20.8%), 16.3% survived to admission (95% CI 13.6–19.0%), and 1.4% survived to discharge (95% CI 0.5–2.3%). Factors significantly associated with the three outcomes were witness status, response time to emergency medical services, and whether the patient had a shockable rhythm. Bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) did not add a notable benefit to the outcomes of OHCA. ConclusionsThe survival rate of OHCA patients in nonmetropolitan Taiwan was very low (1.4%). Lower witnessed rate, lower bystander CPR rate, and longer response interval in remote areas are the main causes of inferior survival rate.

Cyclists’ red-light running behaviours: An examination of risk-taking, opportunistic, and law-obeying behaviours

Literature has suggested that bicyclists’ red-light violations (RLVs) tend not to cause accidents although RLV is a frequent and typical bicyclist's behaviour. High association between bicyclist RLVs and accidents were, however, revealed in Taiwan. The current research explores bicyclists’ RLVs by classifying crossing behaviours into three distinct manners: risk-taking, opportunistic, and law-obeying. Other variables, as well as bicyclists’ crossing behaviours, were captured through the use of video cameras that were installed at selected intersections in Taoyuan County, Taiwan. Considering the unobserved heterogeneity, this research develops a mixed logit model of bicyclists’ three distinct crossing behaviours. Several variables (pupils in uniform, speed limit with 60km/h) appear to have heterogeneous effects, lending support to the use of mixed logit models in bicyclist RLV research. Several factors were found to significantly increase the likelihood of bicyclists’ risky behaviours, most notably: intersections with short red-light duration, T/Y intersections, when riders were pupils in uniform, when riders were riding electric bicycles, when riders were unhelmeted.Implications of the research findings, and the concluding remarks, are finally provided.

Deriving the Vehicle Speeds from a Mobile Telecommunications Network

Vehicle speeds are often measured by intelligent transportation systems (ITSs) by utilizing sensors or software solutions. Our previous work proposed the Lin-Chang-Huangfu (LCH) scheme to compute the cell residence times by the standard counter values in mobile telecommunications switches. In this paper, we use mathematical and statistical developments to investigate the accuracy of the LCH scheme by deriving the bias of the cell residence times computed in this scheme. Then, we extend the LCH scheme with some filtering and compensation techniques for vehicle speed estimation and validate our approach with vehicle detector (VD) measurements at National Highway 3, Longtan Township, Taoyuan County, Taiwan. Our study indicates that the LCH scheme is an effective approach to vehicle speed estimation.

The development of a multimedia online language assessment tool for young children with autism

This study aimed to provide early childhood special education professionals with a standardized and comprehensive language assessment tool for the early identification of language learning characteristics (e.g., hyperlexia) of young children with autism. In this study, we used computer technology to develop a multi-media online language assessment tool that presents auditory or visual stimuli. This online comprehensive language assessment consists of six subtests: decoding, homographs, auditory vocabulary comprehension, visual vocabulary comprehension, auditory sentence comprehension, and visual sentence comprehension. Three hundred typically developing children and 35 children with autism from Tao-Yuan County in Taiwan aged 4-6 participated in this study. The Cronbach α values of the six subtests ranged from .64 to .97. The variance explained by the six subtests ranged from 14% to 56%, the current validity of each subtest with the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised ranged from .21 to .45, and the predictive validity of each subtest with WISC-III ranged from .47 to .75. This assessment tool was also found to be able to accurately differentiate children with autism up to 92%. These results indicate that this assessment tool has both adequate reliability and validity. Additionally, 35 children with autism have completed the entire assessment in this study without exhibiting any extremely troubling behaviors. However, future research is needed to increase the sample size of both typically developing children and young children with autism and to overcome the technical challenges associated with internet issues.

Research trends in game‐based learning research in online learning environments: A review of studies published in SSCI‐indexed journals from 2003 to 2012

British Journal of Educational TechnologyVolume 44, Issue 5 p. E115-E119 Colloquium Research trends in game-based learning research in online learning environments: A review of studies published in SSCI-indexed journals from 2003 to 2012 Chia-Wen Tsai, Chia-Wen TsaiSearch for more papers by this authorYa-Ting Fan, Ya-Ting FanSearch for more papers by this author Chia-Wen Tsai, Chia-Wen TsaiSearch for more papers by this authorYa-Ting Fan, Ya-Ting FanSearch for more papers by this author First published: 13 August 2013 https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12031Citations: 21 Address for correspondence: Dr Chia-Wen Tsai, Ming Chuan University, Department of Information Management, No. 5 De-Ming Road, Guishan Township, Taoyuan County, Taipei 333, Taiwan. Email: jawen12b@gmail.com; jawen12b@yahoo.com.tw Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume44, Issue5September 2013Pages E115-E119 RelatedInformation

Rethinking of Supply and Demand of Residential Land in Taiwan's Most Popular Housing Markets

In Taiwan, the strongest demand for housing is located in New Taipei City and Taoyuan County. It needs to use policies and systems to adjust the housing market timely and relieve the situation of supply and demand in the urban area. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the trends of the population growth in Taiwan, understand the current status of land use in the metropolitan area, study the possible schedules and issues about the release and use of all kinds of residential lands and public lands, consult some foreign cases and laws and domestic land policies, examine the supply and demand of residential land as well as the relevant supporting systems, assess the feasibility of the introduction of land reservation system, propose a strategy of adjustment of the supply and demand of residential land as well as the re-use of public lands, build the system framework of the supply and demand of housing market, in order to reduce the risk of an imbalance of the supply and demand of housing market in the future.