abab

BACKGROUND: Classroom lighting, usually bright fluorescent light, can significantly influence the learning environment and emotions of students. OBJECTIVE: To assess the emotional impact of classroom lighting on students during an academic year. METHODS: This study used an ABAB withdrawal research design in the following manner: in phase A, the baseline condition, classroom lighting was provided by conventional overhead white fluorescent classroom lights; in phase B, the intervention condition, the conventional overhead white fluorescent classroom lights were covered with fabric filters (thin, translucent, creamy-colored plastic sheets) that were attached to the lighting fixture frame with magnetic discs...

INTRODUCTION: Neonatal near miss is a condition of newborn infant characterized by severe morbidity (near miss), but survived these conditions within the first 27 days of life. It is considered as the first step to design management strategies that can contribute in reducing long term complication and mortality. The aim of this study was to assess prevalence and determinants of neonatal near miss in Ethiopia. METHODS: The protocol of this systematic review and meta-analysis was registered at the Prospero with a registration number of (PROSPERO 2020: CRD42020206235)...

The colonic delivery system of toxin neutralizing antibody is a promising method for treating Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) and has some advantages over the parental administration of a neutralizing antibody. However, colonic delivery of biologics presents several challenges, including instability of biologics during encapsulation into the delivery system and harsh conditions in the upper GI tract. In this work, we described a multi-particulate delivery system encapsulating a tetra-valent antibody ABAB-IgG1 with the potential to treat CDI...

[Purpose] This study investigated the effects of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation on trunk extension muscle strength, walking ability, and the Japanese Orthopedic Association Back Pain Evaluation Questionnaire items of gait disturbance in one case of a subacute osteoporotic vertebral fracture. [Participant and Methods] An 88-year-old female with the first and third lumbar vertebral fractures underwent standard physical therapy (A1 and A2 phases) and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation to the sclerotome region of the fractured vertebra (B1 and B2 phases)...

We evaluated audience control over children's honest reports using a reversal (ABA or ABAB) design. Four typically developing children performed a computer game in which they had to shoot a target and then report on their performance during and at the end of each session. Baseline assessed the accuracy of their reports in the absence of an experimenter. During the audience condition, an adult was present in the room and observed the child during the task. Participants accurately reported their errors when an adult was present, whereas they lied about their performance by systematically reporting errors as correct responses when an adult was absent...

OBJECTIVES: This study assessed whether a simple technology-aided program (i.e., a program involving the use of microswitches linked to a smartphone) could be set up to enable people with motor, sensory and intellectual disabilities to control preferred environmental stimulation through two different response movements. METHODS: Ten participants were involved in the study. Each of them was exposed to an ABAB design, in which A represented baseline phases without the program and B intervention phases with the use of the program...

Due to the unique social cognitive profiles of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with and without intellectual disability (ID) sharing coherent and complex personal narratives can be challenging. To address these challenges research has focused on teaching macrostructure components using visual supports and repeated opportunities to practice. Despite success by young children with ASD and ID, the application of this instruction for adults with ASD with and without ID is still largely unknown. An ABAB single case withdrawal design was used to determine the effects of a personal narrative intervention to teach macrostructure within participant-generated personal narratives...

Background and objective It has been reported that physicians spend about 50% of their time in the outpatient department doing non-face-to-face patient work, such as charting and desk activities. Work outside of patient consultations is often considered a burden. In this study, we aimed to examine whether the use of pre-consultation tablet-based questionnaires for first-visit diabetic patients had any impact on the time spent for consultation. Methods The sole participant was a diabetologist with more than 20 years of experience...

BACKGROUND: Dietary restraint is a key factor for maintaining engagement in binge eating among individuals with binge eating disorder (BED) and bulimia nervosa (BN). Reducing dietary restraint is a mechanism of change in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for individuals with BN and BED. However, many individuals who undergo CBT fail to adequately reduce dietary restraint during treatment, perhaps owing to difficulty in using treatment skills (eg, regular eating) to reduce dietary restraint during their daily lives...

Sequential auditory scene analysis (ASA) is often studied using sequences of two alternating tones, such as ABAB or ABA_, with "_" denoting a silent gap, and "A" and "B" sine tones differing in frequency (nominally low and high). Many studies implicitly assume that the specific arrangement (ABAB vs ABA_, as well as low-high-low vs high-low-high within ABA_) plays a negligible role, such that decisions about the tone pattern can be governed by other considerations. To explicitly test this assumption, a systematic comparison of different tone patterns for two-tone sequences was performed in three different experiments...

In the title compound, [NiCl2 (C20 H18 N4 )2 ] n , the Ni2+ cation is situated on an inversion center and is coordinated by two chloride ions and four imidazole N atoms of four different 4,4'-bis-[(1 H -imidazol-1-yl)meth-yl]-1,1'-biphenyl (BIMB), forming a slightly distorted octa-hedral geometry. Each BIMB ligand adopts a linear linker to connect Ni2+ ions, forming a two-dimensional layer with an sql network. In the crystal, neighboring layers repeat in an ABAB stacking mode, and weak inter-molecular C-H⋯Cl hydrogen bonds between alternate layers lead to a three-dimensional, twofold inter-penetrated, supra-molecular framework with a pcu topology net...

This 17-month longitudinal study on a representative sample of 4,361 Norwegian adults employs an observational ABAB design across 6 repeated assessments and 3 pandemic waves to systematically investigate the evolution of depressive symptomatology across all modifications of social distancing protocols (SDPs) from their onset to termination. Using Latent Change Score Models to analyze 26,166 observations, the study empirically corroborates that critical fluctuations in depressive symptomatology within and across individuals occur during the first 3 months of the pandemic, after which symptom profiles are predominantly consolidated throughout the pandemic period...

Currently, the design standards for single-case experimental designs (SCEDs) are based on validity considerations as prescribed by the What Works Clearinghouse. However, there is a need for design considerations such as power based on statistical analyses. We compute and derive power using computations for (AB)k designs with multiple cases which are common in SCEDs. Our computations show that effect size has the maximum impact on power followed by the number of subjects and then the number of phase reversals...

In tetralayer graphene, three inequivalent layer stackings should exist; however, only rhombohedral (ABCA) and Bernal (ABAB) stacking have so far been observed. The three stacking sequences differ in their electronic structure, with the elusive third stacking (ABCB) being unique as it is predicted to exhibit an intrinsic bandgap as well as locally flat bands around the K points. Here, we use scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy and confocal Raman microscopy to identify and characterize domains of ABCB stacked tetralayer graphene...

In the realm of particle self-assembly, it is possible to reliably construct nearly arbitrary structures if all the pieces are distinct1-3 , but systems with fewer flavours of building blocks have so far been limited to the assembly of exotic crystals4-6 . Here we introduce a minimal model system of colloidal droplet chains7 , with programmable DNA interactions that guide their downhill folding into specific geometries. Droplets are observed in real space and time, unravelling the rules of folding. Combining experiments, simulations and theory, we show that controlling the order in which interactions are switched on directs folding into unique structures, which we call colloidal foldamers8 ...

The Integrated Therapy Model is a practice framework designed to promote multi-disciplinary collaboration to accommodate the holistic needs of children with special education needs. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the model adopted in a pilot preschool in China on children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A single-case, ABAB reversal design was employed with three children with ASD, and data were collected using direct observation and semi-structured interviews. The results demonstrated that while the model piloted in China was effective at improving fine motor ability, gross motor ability, imitation and problem behavior, it had mild to questionable effects on self-care and independent living capacity...

Fidget toys, one class of sensory-based interventions, enjoy favorable coverage in popular media outlets supporting their impact on attention, memory, and stress. However, there is minimal data supporting their use in the classroom. The present study used an ABAB withdrawal design to investigate the impact of noncontingent access to a commercially available fidget toy, the Fidget Cube, on academically engaged behavior, off-task behavior, Fidget Cube engagement, math problems attempted, and math problems completed accurately during independent seatwork...

The synthesis of well-defined block copolymers from one-pot monomer mixtures is particularly challenging when monomers are from the same class and show similar reactivity. Herein, an indium-based catalyst that shows comparable rates in the ring-opening homopolymerization of β -butyrolactone ( β -BL) and ε -decalactone ( ε -DL), demonstrates monomer-selective behavior in one-pot copolymerizations of β -BL and ε -DL. This provides simple and rapid access to well-defined di-, tri-, or tetra-block copolyesters from monomer mixtures...

BACKGROUND: Gamification applies game design elements to non-game contexts in order to engage participation and increase learner motivation. Robotic surgery is gaining popularity in general surgery but requires specialized technical skills. We sought to determine whether gamification of robotic simulation training could increase robotic simulator utilization among general surgery residents. METHODS: General surgery residents were recruited and sent weekly progress on simulator performance including leaderboards for 4 weeks during the intervention periods...

Three ABAB-type cobalt meso -tetraarylporphyrins with fluorine ( F-CoPor ), acetic acid ( AC-CoPor ), and cyanoacetic acid ( CN-CoPor ) groups at the para -positions of phenyl rings at the 10,20-positions are synthesized and evaluated as catalysts for oxygen reduction reactions (ORRs). In density functional theory calculations, the frontier molecular orbitals of these complexes were found to be stabilized relative to model complexes with electron-withdrawing atoms or moieties on the meso -aryl rings. Electrochemical measurements suggest that electrodes with CN-CoPor ( CN-CoPor/C) exhibit the most positive ORR potential values and the highest limiting current density in both acidic and alkali electrolytes, while the F-CoPor/C electrocatalyst exhibits extremely low ORR performance...