“ALPHABET SOUP”: Examining Acronym and Abbreviation Style in Headlines

ABSTRACT

Through a content analysis and survey, this project explores the prevalence and clarity of acronyms in news headlines. Acronyms popular in a local newspaper were largely unknown to a sample of target readers. When asked about their reactions to unfamiliar published acronyms, about half said they would try to figure it out, and about one-third expressed negative emotions (e.g., frustration, annoyance). Additionally, most said unfamiliar acronyms affect their desire to continue reading, at least some of the time. These findings suggest that an increased focus on comprehension over brevity could help journalists better engage their readers.     

A comparison of the nurse–patient interaction criteria among geriatric clients in home health care and community settings: a trade-off analysis

While the nurse–patient relationship plays a vital role in enhancing a client’s well-being, in this study, it was observed that most nurses only communicate with their clients when dealing with administrative or functional activities. Although previous studies had been conducted involving the nature of nurse–patient interaction, none has yet investigated the potential of conjoint or trade-off analysis in understanding elderly patients’ preferences in home care and community settings. This study contributes to the gap in such knowledge about the nurse–patient relationship. A total of 238 Filipino elderly patients were recruited from home health care and community settings to participate in the research. A set of 36 choice bundles with 4 holdouts were extracted from a pool 144 orthogonal array. In this quantitative study, respondents were asked to sort and rank each card based on its importance and utility value. All data gathered were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Notably, the analysis found that the most important factor for elderly clients in home health care is non-verbal communication followed by verbal, gender and type of care provider while for elderly clients in community settings, gender is the most important consideration in nurse–patient interaction and this was followed by non-verbal cues, care provider and verbal cues. Findings of the study provide valuable inputs that could inform guidelines in implementing nurse professional development programs specifically in matters that relate to the effective communication between the nurse and patient in all health-care settings.     

Benefits of Writing an Explanation During Pauses in Multimedia Lessons

Educational Psychology Review - Generative learning theory posits that learners engage more deeply and produce better learning outcomes when they engage in selecting, organizing, and integrating...     

Qujiang Launches High-end Tailored Tourism Service

<正>High-end tailored tourism is a new trend that gains increasing popularity worldwide. In China, more and more tourists show interest in this innovative type o...     

Spring Festival Celebrations in Qujiang

In celebration of the Chinese lunar year of the snake, a great variety of cultural events have been presented in scenic spots managed by Qujiang Culture and Tourism Group. During the Spring Festival holidays, these places of interest have attracted nearly 1.3 million visitors and registered a revenue of 16.58 million RMB     

Technologies on the Horizon: Teachers Respond to the Horizon Report

The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers’ beliefs regarding the integration of technologies from the 2011 K-12 edition of the Horizon Report into their local, public school contexts. Teachers read the Horizon Report and then participated in an asynchronous, threaded discussion focusing on technologies they would like to see integrated into their classrooms and technologies they do not see possible in the near term. Qualitative methods were used to analyze the discussion. Findings include the teachers’ desire to see mobile technologies integrated into their classrooms, and their belief that there are significant barriers to game-based learning.     

A New Approach to Developing Interactive Software Modules Through Graduate Education

Educational technology has attained significant importance as a mechanism for supporting experiential learning of science concepts. However, the growth of this mechanism is limited by the significant time and technical expertise needed to develop such products, particularly in specialized fields of science. We sought to test whether interactive, educational, online software modules can be developed effectively by students as a curriculum component of an advanced science course. We discuss a set of 15 such modules developed by Harvard University graduate students to demonstrate various concepts related to astronomy and physics. Their successful development of these modules demonstrates that online software tools for education and outreach on specialized topics can be produced while simultaneously fulfilling project-based learning objectives. We describe a set of technologies suitable for module development and present in detail four examples of modules developed by the students. We offer recommendations for incorporating educational software development within a graduate curriculum and conclude by discussing the relevance of this novel approach to new online learning environments like edX.     

The Temple of the Deity of Wealth

<正>Louguantai, located at the foot of Mt. Zhongnan in Zhouzhi County in the suburb of Xi’an, is said to be the hometown of Zhao Gongming, the Taoist deity of we...     

Cooperation and Development：2011China Forum for Top 100 Travel Agencies Held in Xi＇an

<正>The 2011 China Forum for Top 100 Travel Agencies was held in the Tang Paradise’s Imperial Banquet Palace in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province from April 14 to 17, 2011...