Does ICT matter for effectiveness and efficiency in mathematics education?

ICT infrastructure investments in educational institutions have been one of the key priorities of education policy during the last decade. Despite the attention, research on the effectiveness and efficiency of ICT is inconclusive. This is mainly due to small-scale research with weak identification strategies which lack a proper control group. Using the 2011 ‘Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study’ (TIMSS) data, we define by a Mahalanobis matching a control group with similar student, teacher, school and regional characteristics. The results indicate that accounting or not accounting for these characteristics, may considerably alter the estimated impact of ICT. This suggests that a correction for characteristics related to the student population, teaching staff, administrative personnel and school management is warranted in the evaluation of the impact of ICT.     

Synthesis and In Vitro Properties of Dexamethasone 21-Sulfate Sodium as a Colon-Specific Prodrug of Dexamethasone

ABSTRACT

We synthesized dexamethasone 21-sulfate sodium (DS) as a colon-specific prodrug of dexamethasone and investigated its properties. Introduction of a sulfate group to dexamethasone lowered the apparent partition coefficient from 52.5 to 0.27 in 1-octanol/pH 6.8 phosphate buffer at 37°C. DS was stable on incubation with buffer solutions of varied pH or with the upper intestinal contents of rats at 37°C for 24 h. On incubation with the cecal contents, DS was hydrolyzed by producing dexamethasone over 80% of the dose at 10 h. When DS was incubated with the cecal contents collected from trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced colitic rats, the degree of prodrug hydrolysis and production of dexamethasone amounted to 70% of healthy rats. In comparison with prednisolone, hydrocortisone, and cortisone, dexamethasone was stable against bioinactivation by the cecal contents, a desirable property for the development of a colon-specific prodrug. These results demonstrated that DS might be delivered specifically to the colon as an intact form to produce dexamethasone in high yield, suggesting DS as a potential colon-specific prodrug of dexamethasone.     

Self‐employment and local economic performance: Evidence from US counties*

This study explores the relationship between self‐employment and income growth, employment growth, and change in poverty in metro and non‐metro areas in the United States using county‐level panel data. We investigate the impact of the relative size of the self‐employment sector measured by the share of non‐farm proprietorships (NFPs) in total full and part‐time employment on three key economic performance indicators. We first estimate an income growth model to analyse the effects of self‐employment on income growth. Then we investigate the independent effects of self‐employment on employment growth and changes in family poverty rates. Our results indicate that higher self‐employment rates are associated with statistically significant increases over time in income and employment growth, and reductions in poverty rates in non‐metro counties. We find similar effects on metro county income and employment, but not on poverty dynamics.     

miR-21的高表达在结直肠癌预后中的meta分析

目的:评价miR-21的高表达与结直肠癌预后的相关性.方法:通过全面检索PubMed、EMBASE、Google scholar、维普、CNKI等数据库,收集关于miR-21的高表达与结直肠癌预后相关性的文献,用meta分析方法评价miR-21的高表达是否与结直肠癌的预后相关.结果:共纳入4篇文献(共783个病例),总生存率(OS)HR的合并值为1.42,95％CI:1.21至1.66,P＜0.05.结论:miR-21的高表达是结直肠癌预后的一个危险因素.     

Decomposing regional business change at plant level in Italy: A novel spatial shift‐share approach

In this paper, spatial shift‐share decomposition is analysed when applied to Italian data on regional business change at plant level, over the period 2004–2009. A new type of spatial decomposition, which looks more effectively at neighbourhood influence, is introduced here. Notable results emerge from the empirical investigation. First, it can be seen that the spatial level of aggregation greatly affects results. Second, evidence of neighbourhood advantage in the Southern NUTS 3 regions is found, together with opposite results for the Central‐Northern NUTS 3 regions. Finally, evidence of positive industrial mix effects is only found in Central‐Northern Italy.     

Substitution bias and the construction of a spatial cost of living index*

We estimate the spatial substitution bias based on the difference between a price index (PI) and the true cost of living (COL). This bias is computed at three geographical scales, using several fixed baskets and across different expenditures quartiles. Our results show a significant substitution bias for small geographical units. The choice of the base basket is also relevant for the bias estimation. Finally, the spatial substitution bias is larger for upper side of the expenditure distribution due to the heterogeneity in the consumption basket. This exercise shows that the spatial dimension affects the construction of a price index and that the approach of fixed baskets should be carefully considered in the estimation of spatial price differentials.     

LF21铝合金双轴肩搅拌摩擦焊组织与性能

利用光学显微镜、扫面电子显微镜、显微硬度仪、拉伸试验机等方法,分析6 mm厚LF21铝合金单道对接双轴肩搅拌摩擦焊焊焊缝的微观组织、力学性能、缺陷成因。实验结果表明,转速1 200 r/min、焊接速度100 mm/min时可以获得较好的焊接性能;焊缝组织呈不完全对称的沙漏状;焊缝硬度在焊缝两侧的热影响区处发生不对称的软化,前进侧组织析出相发生了明显的长大现象;抗拉强度达到103.25 MPa,焊接强度系数为基材强度的70.4%,接头断口形貌呈典型的韧性断裂。     

21世纪前期我国煤炭科技重点发展领域探讨

分析了国内外煤炭科技发展的概况及趋势，提出了21世纪前期我国煤炭工业将向“高效、安全、洁净、结构优化”的方向发展，以及煤炭科技发展要解决的重大问题：① 煤炭资源（含煤层气）精细勘查与高效开采地质保障；② 东部深厚冲积层下建井综合技术与装备研究；③ 煤矿高效集约化开采技术与机电一体化装备研究；④ 以矿井瓦斯灾害综合防治技术为重点的煤矿安全新技术；⑤ 以“煤基液体燃料”和煤化工多联产为目标的新型煤转化技术；⑥矿区生态环境综合整治与废弃物处理利用技术.     

Analysis of a 26 756 bp segment from the left arm of yeast chromosome IV

The nucleotide sequence of a 26·7 kb DNA segment from the left arm of Saccharomyces cerevisiae chromosome IV is presented. An analysis of this segment revealed 11 open reading frames (ORFs) longer than 300 bp and one split gene. These ORFs include the genes encoding the large subunit of RNA polymerase II, the biotin apo-protein ligase, an ADP-ribosylation factor (ARF 2), the ‘L35’-ribosomal protein, a rho GDP dissociation factor, and the sequence encoding the protein phosphatase 2A. Further sequence analysis revealed a short ORF encoding the ribosomal protein YL41B, an intron in a 5′ untranslated region and an extended homology with another cosmid (X83276) located on the same chromosome. The potential biological relevance of these findings is discussed. The sequence was submitted to the EMBL database under Accession Number X96876.