Influences on students' internal locus of attribution for academic success in the first year of college

This study sought to determine the extent to which students' development of internal locus of attribution for academic success during the first year of college was influenced by institutional characteristics, students' academic experiences, and their social/nonacademic experiences. The sample was 2,392 first-year students attending 23 diverse two- and four-year institutions Iocated in 16 states throughout the country. Controlling for precollege internal attribution, academic ability, and other potentially confounding influences, a number of variables had significant, net, positive associations with end-of-first-year internal attribution. These included attending a two-year (versus a four-year) college, level of exposure to postsecondary education, work responsibilities, the extent of course organization, instructional clarity, and instructor support in the teaching received, and participation in intercollegiate athletics. Additional analyses indicated that many of the associations with internal attribution were conditional rather than general, differing in magnitude for different kinds of students.     

The Association Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Child Telomere Length: Examining Self-Regulation as a Behavioral Mediator

Childhood adversity is linked to shortened telomere length (TL), but behavioral indicators of telomere attrition remain unclear. This study examined the association between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and child TL, and if ACEs were indirectly associated with TL through children’s self-regulatory abilities (i.e., effortful control and self-control). Hypotheses were tested using national data from teachers, parents, and their children (N = 2,527; M_age = 9.35, SD = .36 years). More ACEs were uniquely associated with short TL, and low self-control mediated the association between more ACEs and short TL. While longitudinal studies are needed to strengthen claims of causation, this study identifies a pathway from ACEs to TL that should be explored further.     

Further studies of pigeons’ spatial working memory in the open-field task

In Experiments 1 and 2, pigeons’ spatial working memory in an open-field setting was examined under conditions that differed in terms of working-memory load (number of sites visited prior to a retention test) at various delays between initial choices and the retention test. In Experiment 1, pigeons were tested under two conditions of memory load (three or five sites visited prior to the delay) and two delay intervals (15 and 60 min). Accuracy declined as a function of delay but was not affected significantly by memory load. In Experiment 2A, pigeons were tested under three conditions of memory load (two, four, or six sites visited prior to the delay). In separate phases, the delay was 2, 15, and 60 min. Accuracy was not affected by memory load in any of these phases. In Experiment 2B, three conditions of memory load (two, four, or six sites visited prior to the delay) were tested at two delays (2 and 60 min) within a test phase. Accuracy declined with increasing delay, but memory load again had no significant effects. These results are inconsistent with previous suggestions that pigeons’ retention of spatial information may decline as working-memory load is increased. In Experiment 3, cue-manipulation tests confirmed that pigeons’ choice behavior in the open-field task is controlled by memory for previously visitad room locations.     

Document familiarity, relevance, and bradford''s law: The getty online searching project report no. 5

The Getty Online Searching Project studied the end-user searching behavior of 27 humanities scholars over a 2-year period. Surprising results were that a number of scholars anticipated—and found—that they were already familiar with a very high percentage of the records their searches retrieved. Previous familiarity with documents has been mentioned in discussion of relevance and information retrieval (IR) theory, but it has generally not been considered a significant factor. However, these experiences indicate that high document familiarity can be a significant factor in searching. Some implications are drawn regarding the impact of high document familiarity on relevance and IR theory. Finally, some speculations are made regarding high document familiarity and Bradford's Law.     

图档博领域的智慧数据及其在数字人文研究中的角色

近年来,随着“大数据”的飞速发展,一个重要却鲜为人知的概念“智慧数据”应运而生,智慧数据已经并将持续在数字人文领域发挥巨大作用。图书馆、档案馆和博物馆（简称“图档博”）所拥有的数据资源是数据时代各个领域,尤其是数字人文领域的无价之宝。如果采纳大数据的模式和思维方式、智慧数据的实现方式,以非结构化数据到结构化数据的组织和整合过程为手段,产生机器可理解并可采取行动的、一源多用、高效率运作的数据,图档博以及相关行业将携带这些丰富的资源进入数字时代的主流。本文在阐释智慧数据的概念、方法论的转变、数字人文及其与图书馆关系的基础上,通过一些范例来展示信息服务的新思路,特别是针对文本型和非文本型原始数据的结构化和语义化处理新方法,由此证明:在语义网和大数据时代,图档博机构不仅是智慧数据的提供者也是直接受益者,智慧数据建设不仅能有效促进数字人文的发展,也将成为图档博机构最重要的新兴工作。