Reading electronic books as a support for vocabulary,story comprehension and word reading in kindergarten and first grade

The effect of reading an electronic storybook (e-book) on Israeli children’s language and literacy was examined in kindergarten children (N = 40; age 5:2–6:3) compared to first graders (N = 50; age 6:3–7:4). The children in each age group were randomly assigned to two groups: an intervention group which read the e-book five times and a control group which was afforded the regular school program. Pre- and post-tests included vocabulary and word reading measures. Post-tests included story comprehension and production. Children who read the e-book exhibited significant progress in word meaning and word reading compared to the control group. Kindergarten children progressed in word reading more significantly than first graders across treatment groups. This could be explained by the ceiling effect of the first graders’ word reading level which did not leave much room for progress in this skill compared to the kindergarten children. No interaction was found between age and treatment groups. Kindergarten children exhibited a good level of story comprehension, similar to first graders, although their story production was lower. Implications for future research and education are discussed.     

Improving literacy and metacognition with electronic portfolios: Teaching and learning with ePEARL

Can an electronic portfolio that is both a multimedia container for student work and a tool to support key learning processes have a positive impact on the literacy practices and self-regulated learning skills of students? This article presents the findings of a yearlong study conducted in three Canadian provinces during the 2007–2008 school year initially involving 32 teachers and 388 students. Due to varying levels of implementation our final data set included 14 teachers and 296 students. Using a non-equivalent pre-test/post-test design, we found that grade 4–6 students who were in classrooms where the teacher provided regular and appropriate use of the electronic portfolio tool ePEARL (i.e., medium–high implementation condition, n = 7 classrooms and 121 students), compared to control students (n = 7 classrooms and 175 students) who did not use ePEARL, showed significant improvements (p < .05) in their writing skills on a standardized literacy measure (i.e., the constructed response subtest of the Canadian Achievement Test-4th ed.) and certain metacognitive skills measured via student self-report. The results of this study indicate that teaching with ePEARL has positive impacts on students’ literacy and self-regulated learning skills when the tool is used regularly and integrated into classroom instruction.     

From Symbol to ‘Symbol’, to Abstract Symbol: Response to Copeland and Shagrir on Turing-Machine Realism Versus Turing-Machine Purism

In their recent paper “Do Accelerating Turing Machines Compute the Uncomputable?” Copeland and Shagrir (Minds Mach 21:221–239, 2011) draw a distinction between a purist conception of Turing machines, according to which these machines are purely abstract, and Turing machine realism according to which Turing machines are spatio-temporal and causal “notional" machines. In the present response to that paper we concede the realistic aspects of Turing’s own presentation of his machines, pointed out by Copeland and Shagrir, but argue that Turing's treatment of symbols in the course of that presentation opens the door for later purist conceptions. Also, we argue that a purist conception of Turing machines (as well as other computational models) plays an important role not only in the analysis of the computational properties of Turing machines, but also in the philosophical debates over the nature of their realization.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Thrombin Conjugated γ‐Fe2O3 Magnetic Nanoparticles for Hemostasis

Thrombin is the final protease produced in the clotting pathways. Thrombin has been used in the clinic more than six decades for topical hemostasis and wound management. In human plasma the half‐life of thrombin is shorter than 15 seconds due to close control by inhibitors. In order to stabilize thrombin, this enzyme was conjugated covalently and physically to γ‐Fe₂O₃ magnetic nanoparticles. The physical conjugation was accomplished through adsorption of thrombin to BSA coating on the nanoparticles. The coagulant activity of the covalently bound thrombin was significantly lower than that of the physically adsorbed thrombin. Leakage of the physically bound thrombin into PBS containing 4% HSA was negligible. The physical conjugation of thrombin onto the nanoparticles stabilized the thrombin against its major inhibitor antithrombin III and improved its storage stability. At optimal CaCl₂ concentration, the clotting time by the bound thrombin is shorter than that of the free enzyme. This novel conjugated thrombin may be an efficient candidate for topical hemostasis and wound healing.     

Exposure to dissent and recall of information.

Recent work on minority influence has led to a debate about whether majorities and minorities exercise different forms of influence. C. L. Nemeth (see record 1986-14271-001) has argued that consistent minorities induce different cognitive processes than do consistent majorities, with a resulting impact on the quality of the judgments rendered. Two experiments test this theory. In Experiment 1, Ss heard 3 tape-recorded lists of words and learned that either a minority or a majority differed in the category "first noticed." This feedback occurred either once or over 3 trials. When exposure was once, recall was not affected by the source; when it was consistent, Ss exposed to the minority view recalled more words than those exposed to the majority view. In Experiment 2, Ss were exposed to a minority view that was either consistent over time or inconsistent over time. Ss exposed to a consistent minority had better recall than control Ss. Exposure to an inconsistent minority did not improve recall. The results offer support for the Nemeth formulation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Israeli psychotherapists' reactions and perceptions on the process of psychotherapy during the Gulf War.

64 26–56 yr old psychotherapists (38 still in training), who practiced in areas that were either directly or indirectly threatened by missile attack during the Persian Gulf War, completed a questionnaire addressing well-being as affected by the war, the similarity between the patient's and the therapist's experience of the war, and how psychotherapists perceived the overall functioning of their patients and the extent that their internal conflicts were affected by the war. Therapists more directly threatened by the war reported having a greater positive mood than did Ss more indirectly threatened. Experienced psychotherapists addressed the war to a greater degree during the therapeutic hour; inexperienced Ss reported a greater change in their therapeutic stance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does one ever really laugh at one's own expense? The case of Jews and Arabs in Israel.

Investigated the problem of self-aimed humor by examining the case of Jews and Arabs in Israel. Study 1, with 80 Jewish and 60 Arab high school seniors, dealt with preferences of jokes. Ss were asked to rate the funniness of 5 jokes with a Jewish butt and 5 jokes with an Arab butt. Jews preferred jokes with an Arab butt, as did the Arabs who felt positively toward Israel, but not those whose attitudes were negative. Study 2, with 139 Jewish and 111 Arab high school seniors, dealt with the production of humor. Ss were asked to respond humorously to 13 cartoonlike drawings depicting an Arab and a Jew in conversation. Both Jews and Arabs expressed more aggression toward an Arab butt. When humorous answers toward the Ss themselves and toward subgroups within each group were compared, no differences between Jews and Arabs were found. The only difference found was in a special kind of self-aimed humor, in which aggression is turned inward but the situation is denied, and the S finds a humorous way to benefit from it. Jews used this kind of humor more often. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What do you do when asked to answer humorously?

250 12th-grade and male Jewish and Arab students were given a modified version of the Rosenzweig Picture-Frustration Study. They were asked to answer this questionnaire twice: (a) ordinarily (as if they were present in the situation) and (b) humorously (as amusingly as possible). When ordinary and humorous answers were compared, it was found that humorous answers contained more expressions of high aggression and fantasy denials. Ordinary answers contained low aggression and rational denials. Humorous answers manifested the use of special techniques as specified by Freud: displacement, representation by the opposite, play on words, absurdity, and fantasy. Results show that Ss applied clear rules when answering with humor. They used more aggression, more sex, and more fantasy and they used Freud's techniques as if they had read his writings. Results are discussed by contrasting incongruity explanations with motivational explanations. Results do not support Freud's cathartic hypothesis. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Motivational effects in the social comparison of opinions.

Four experiments were executed to test the effects of different epistemic motivations on subjects' tendency to compare with agreeing or disagreeing others. We found that under high (vs. low) fear of invalidity, subjects tend more to compare with disagreeing (vs. agreeing) others. By contrast, under high (vs. low) need for self-confirmation or a high (vs. low) need for cognitive structure, subjects tended more to compare with agreeing others. These results are discussed in reference to social comparison formulations (Festinger, 1954; Goethals & Darley, 1977) and the theory of lay epistemology (Kruglanski & Ajzen, 1983; Kruglanski & Freund, 1983). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)