The role of decorative pictures in learning

Three experiments with students from 7th and 8th grade were performed to investigate the effects of decorative pictures in learning as compared to instructional pictures. Pictures were considered as instructional, when they were primarily informative, and as decorative, when they were primarily aesthetically appealing. The experiments investigated, whether and to what extent decorative pictures affect the learner’s distribution of attention, whether they have an effect on the affective and motivational state and whether they affect the learning outcomes. The first experiment indicated with eye-tracking methodology that decorative pictures receive only a bit initial attention as part of the learner’s initial orientation and are largely ignored afterwards, which suggests that they have only a minor distracting effect if any. The second experiment showed that despite the small amount of attention they receive, decorative pictures seem to induce better mood, alertness and calmness with learners. The third experiment indicated that decorative pictures did not intensify students’ situational interest, but reduced perceived difficulty of the learning material. Regarding outcomes of learning, decorative pictures were altogether neither harmful nor beneficial for learning. However, they moderated the beneficial effect of instructional pictures––in essence: the multimedia effect. The moderating effect was especially pronounced when learners had lower prior knowledge. The findings are discussed from the perspective of cognitive, affective and motivational psychology. Perspectives of further research are pointed out.     

The expertise reversal effect concerning instructional explanations

The expertise reversal effect occurs when learner’s expertise moderates design principles derived from cognitive load theory. Although this effect is supported by numerous empirical studies, indicating an overall large effect size, the effect was never tested by inducing expertise experimentally and using instructional explanations in a computer-based environment. The present experiment used an illustrated introductory text and a computer program about statistical data analyses with 93 students. Retention and transfer tests were employed as dependent measures. Each learner was randomly assigned to one condition of a 2 × 2 between subjects factorial design with the two factors expertise (novices vs. ‘experts’) and explanations (with vs. without). Expertise was induced by adding expository examples and illustrations to the introductory text to enhance text coherence and facilitate text comprehension. The expertise reversal effect was replicated for the dependent measure transfer, but not for retention. Results and implications for adaptive learning environments are discussed.     

Quantification of wall surface heterogeneity and its influence on species diversity at medieval castles – implications for the environmentally friendly preservation of cultural heritage

Historic buildings are important for cultural history and provide a variety of habitats for animals and plants. Especially structural heterogeneity of wall surfaces is perceived to support biological diversity. Nevertheless, in traditional approaches goals of biodiversity preservation and monument restoration are perceived to interfere and to be mutually exclusive. As a consequence, priority is often given to constructional restoration accepting the loss of local populations and biodiversity. At walls of medieval castles, including an experimental restoration project where conventional and less intensive restoration techniques were applied, we relate species composition and richness to wall properties. Especially wall surface structure is quantified using a novel approach. The study focuses on lichens, mosses and vascular plants. Boosted regression tree analyses and non-metric multidimensional scaling techniques are applied to detect the influence of abiotic site conditions on biodiversity. We find species richness to be promoted by wall surface heterogeneity. However, species composition is more affected by restoration approaches than species richness. Lichen composition varies considerably while vascular plants and mosses are less affected by wall properties. We suggest strategies that are combining both societal targets, the preservation of historic monuments and of species diversity. Careful restoration is capable of supporting both, the maintenance of cultural heritage and of rare and unique anthropogenic habitats. Wall surface heterogeneity needs to be witnessed for both aspects as it affects both species composition as well as the effectiveness of cleaning methods.     

Yo-Yo IR2 testing of elite and sub-elite soccer players: Performance,heart rate response and correlations to other interval tests

Abstract

We examined performance, heart rate response and construct validity of the Yo-Yo IR2 test by testing 111 elite and 92 sub-elite soccer players from Norway and Denmark. VO₂max, Yo-Yo IR1 and repeated sprint tests (RSA) (n = 51) and match-analyses (n = 39) were also performed. Yo-Yo IR2 and Yo-Yo IR1 performance was 41 and 25% better (P < 0.01) for elite than sub-elite players, respectively, and heart rate after 2 and 4 min of the Yo-Yo IR2 test was 20 and 15 bpm (9 and 6% HRmax), respectively, lower (P < 0.01) for elite players. RSA performance and VO₂max was not different between competitive levels (P > 0.05). For top-teams, Yo-Yo IR2 performance (28%) and sprinting distance (25%) during match were greater (P < 0.05) than for bottom-teams. For elite and sub-elite players, Yo-Yo IR2 performance was correlated (P < 0.05) with Yo-Yo IR1 performance (r = 0.74 and 0.76) and mean RSA time (r = ?0.74 and ?0.34). We conclude that the Yo-Yo IR2 test has a high discriminant and concurrent validity, as it discriminates between players of different within- and between-league competitive levels and is correlated to other frequently used intermittent elite soccer tests.     

Soccer and Zumba as health-promoting activities among female hospital employees: a 40-weeks cluster randomised intervention study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the physiological effects of soccer and Zumba among female hospital employees during a 40-week intervention period. Hospital employees (n = 118) were cluster-randomised to either a soccer group (n = 41), a Zumba group (n = 38) or a control group (n = 39). Both training groups were encouraged to perform 1-h training sessions twice a week outside working hours throughout the 40 weeks. Maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂ max), blood pressure and body composition were measured and blood samples collected before and after the intervention period. Using intention-to-treat analyses, the Zumba group improved VO₂ max compared to the control group (2.2 mL · kg^?1 · min^?1, 95% CI, 0.9, 3.5, P = 0.001), with no significant increase in the soccer group (1.1 mL · kg^?1 · min^?1, 95% CI, ?0.2, 2.4, P = 0.08). Both intervention groups reduced total body fat mass and fat percentage compared to the control group (P < 0.01). In the soccer group, but not the Zumba group, a significant difference in lower limb bone mineral density and bone mineral content was observed in comparison to the control group (P < 0.01). Furthermore, the soccer group, but not the Zumba group, had increased plasma osteocalcin (6.6 µg · L^?1, 95% CI, 2.2, 11.0, P < 0.01) and decreased plasma leptin (?6.6 µg · L^?1, 95% CI, ?12.5, ?0.7, P < 0.05) compared to the control group. The present study suggests that workplace-initiated soccer and Zumba training comprising 1–2 sessions per week outside working hours may promote physiological health among female hospital employees.     

Development and reliability quantification of a novel test set-up for measuring footwear bending stiffness

Since footwear flexibility impacts functional design factors, numerous studies have investigated footwear bending stiffness. However, the various methods used to measure footwear bending stiffness have some limitations. Hence, the scope of this study was to develop and quantify the reliability of a novel test set-up for measuring footwear bending stiffness. A test set-up consisting of a hydraulic testing machine, a bending apparatus and a fixation unit was created that fulfilled the requirements specified in the initial phase of the study. The test set-up was evaluated by testing 15 different boots in three series of measurements. Bending stiffness of the boots ranged from 0.61 ± 0.03 to 2.38 ± 0.08 Nm/°. Two-way analysis of variance test yielded that the test set-up enabled the reliable measurement of footwear bending stiffness. Relative measurement uncertainty ranged from 1.3 to 6.1 %.     

An exploration of the feature-positive effect in adult humans

Experiment 1 compared the acquisition of a feature-positive and a feature-negative discrimination in humans. In the former, an outcome was signaled by two stimuli together, but not by one of these stimuli alone. In the latter, the outcome was signaled by one stimulus alone, but not by two stimuli together. Using a within-group design, the experiment revealed that the feature-positive discrimination was acquired more readily than the feature-negative discrimination. Experiment 2 tested an explanation for these results, based on the Rescorla-Wagner theory, by examining how novel discriminations, based on a combination of a feature-positive and a feature-negative discrimination, were solved. The results did not accord with predictions from the theory. Alternative explanations for the results are considered.     

Gamma heavy chain disease in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis – a laboratory evaluation

Introduction:

Heavy chain diseases (HCD) are neoplastic proliferations of B cells which secrete truncated immunoglobulin heavy chains without associated light chains. Being rare and probably underdiagnosed diseases the aim of this report is to show an additional case of gamma heavy chain disease in a 48 year old female patient with rheumatoid arthritis focusing on the laboratory presentation.

Materials and methods:

Laboratory work-up included agarose gel electrophoresis (AGE), capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE), immunofixation and nephelometrically determined immunoglobulin and immunoglobulin subclasses of the patient’s serum. Urine samples were also subjected to immunofixation and to a SDS-PAGE with consecutive immunoblot.

Results:

Nephelometrically measured elevated IgG concentrations were noted in combination with a decreased gamma globulin region and an increased beta globulin region on AGE. A definite monoclonal spike was not identified on AGE but at least suspected on CZE; finally serum and urine immunofixation demonstrated a monoclonal gamma heavy chain devoid of any corresponding light chains confirming the diagnosis of HCD. Analysis of the gamma heavy chain (HC) with means of SDS-PAGE revealed proteins of 40 kD and 80 kD most likely presenting a truncated HC in its monomeric and dimeric form and possibly leading to the failure of IgG-subclass typing with the applied IgG subclass antisera.

Conclusion:

This case report illustrates a new case of gamma HCD demonstrating variable laboratory manifestations and therefore the need for heightened awareness concerning this disease when confronted with abnormal and discrepant protein profiles in routinely applied laboratory tests.     

Development and validation of a low cost blood filtration element separating plasma from undiluted whole blood

Clinical point of care testing often needs plasma instead of whole blood. As centrifugation is labor intensive and not always accessible, filtration is a more appropriate separation technique. The complexity of whole blood is such that there is still no commercially available filtration system capable of separating small sample volumes (10-100 μl) at the point of care. The microfluidics research in blood filtration is very active but to date nobody has validated a low cost device that simultaneously filtrates small samples of whole blood and reproducibly recovers clinically relevant biomarkers, and all this in a limited amount of time with undiluted raw samples. In this paper, we show first that plasma filtration from undiluted whole blood is feasible and reproducible in a low-cost microfluidic device. This novel microfluidic blood filtration element (BFE) extracts 12 μl of plasma from 100 μl of whole blood in less than 10 min. Then, we demonstrate that our device is valid for clinical studies by measuring the adsorption of interleukins through our system. This adsorption is reproducible for interleukins IL6, IL8, and IL10 but not for TNFα. Hence, our BFE is valid for clinical diagnostics with simple calibration prior to performing any measurement.