Exploring reader responses to young adult literature in the Malaysian English language classroom

This article presents the results of a study exploring the reader-responses of Malaysian young adults (YAs) to the literature texts used in Malaysian secondary schools, Dear Mr. Kilmer by Anne Schraff, Captain Nobody by Dean Pitchford, and Sing to the Dawn by Minfong Ho. The study aimed to determine the extent to which the YAs found these texts engaging and relevant, and how they identified aspects of their own young adulthood in the novels. The study employed both qualitative and quantitative data collection methods through questionnaires completed by 30 Malaysian YAs, semi-structured qualitative interviews with a sub-group of six participants, and their journal reflections. Using reader-response literary theory as the guiding framework, the data were analysed quantitatively through descriptive statistical analyses, and qualitatively through inductive thematic analysis, in order to examine the extent to which Malaysian YAs could identify with the main characters, themes, issues, or events in the novels and determine the relevance of the novels to their lives. The findings showed that the participants identified with the characters’ conflict between being true to one’s self and conforming to societal and gender expectations. The themes of standing up for one’s beliefs and right to education, combating social inequities, and family relationships were also relevant aspects that surfaced in responses towards the novels. This study provides recommendations for the selection of literary texts for the English language classroom that connect to the developmental phase of young adults and allow learners to see themselves reflected in what they read.

Dynamic Changes of Endogenic or Exogenic β-Carboline Alkaloid Harmine in Different Mammals and Human in vivo at Developmental and Physiological States

ObjectiveSeveral β-carboline alkaloids (βCBs), such as harmine, harmaline, harmane, and nor-harmane, are effective for Alzheimer’s disease mouse models. They can be found in some plants, common foodstuffs, and blank plasma of various mammals. However, whether these compounds in mammals are exogenous or endogenous remain unclear.MethodsThe exposure levels of βCBs and of neurotransmitters in plasma and tissues of pup rats, aging rats, mice of different physiological states, and healthy volunteers were detected by using UPLC-MS/MS. Plasma and tissue samples from 110 newborn rats up to 29 days old at 11 sampling points were collected and were analyzed to determine the concentration variation of βCBs in the developmental phase of newborn rats. The plasma of rats aged 2 to 18 months was used to detect the variation trend of βCBs and with some neurotransmitters. The plasma samples of normal C57BL/6 mice, APP/PS1 double transgenic mice, and scopolamine-induced memory impairment mice were collected and were analyzed to compare the difference of βCBs in different physiological states. The exposure levels of βCBs such as harmine, harmaline, and harmane in plasma of 550 healthy volunteers were also detected and analyzed on the basis of gender, race, and age.ResultsResults showed that harmine was the main compound found in rats, mice, and human, which can be detected in a newborn rat plasma (0.16 ± 0.03 ng/ml) and brain (0.33 ± 0.14 ng/g) without any exogenous consumption. The concentration of harmine in rat plasma showed a decreasing trend similar to the exposure levels of neurotransmitters such as 5-hydroxytryptamine, acetylcholine chloride, glutamic acid, tyrosine, and phenylalanine during the growth period of 18 months. The harmine exposure in rats and human indicates high dependence on the physiological and pathological status such as aging, gender, and race.ConclusionThe dynamic changes of harmine exposure in different animals and human, in vivo, at developmental and physiological states indicate that harmine is a naturally and widely distributed endogenous substance in different mammals and human. In addition to exogenous ingestion, spontaneous synthesis might be another important source of harmine in mammals, which should be verified by further experiment.

Towards Self-organized Control: Using Neural Cellular Automata to Robustly Control a Cart-pole Agent

Neural cellular automata (Neural CA) are a recent framework used to model biological phenomena emerging from multicellular organisms. In these systems, artificial neural networks are used as update rules for cellular automata. Neural CA are end-to-end differentiable systems where the parameters of the neural network can be learned to achieve a particular task. In this work, we used neural CA to control a cart-pole agent. The observations of the environment are transmitted in input cells while the values of output cells are used as a readout of the system. We trained the model using deep-Q learning where the states of the output cells were used as the Q-value estimates to be optimized. We found that the computing abilities of the cellular automata were maintained over several hundreds of thousands of iterations, producing an emergent stable behavior in the environment it controls for thousands of steps. Moreover, the system demonstrated life-like phenomena such as a developmental phase, regeneration after damage, stability despite a noisy environment, and robustness to unseen disruption such as input deletion.

Regeneration Status of Sal (Shorea robusta Gaertn.) in Community Managed Forests, Tanahun District, Nepal

The present research aims to know the regeneration status of community managed Shorea robusta (Sal) forests; managed for 6-21 years in Tanahun district, a part of Gandaki Province, Nepal. These forests were categorized into two groups according to management duration (more than 10 years and equal or less than 10 yrs). The regeneration status of the forest was estimated by calculating the density of each species in each developmental phase (seedling, sapling and tree). The total tree density of community forest managed for more than 10 years (MCF forest; 1230 plants/ha) was less than the community forest managed for equal or less than 10 years (LCF forest; 1314 plants/ha). The results suggest that the size class distribution of the trees resembling inverse-J shaped indicates the good regenerating capability of both forests. After the handover of forests to the community, Sal density had increased rapidly in both the forests. Community management had a significant positive impact on the regeneration of the forest, and thus, the productivity of the forest. Thus, the study of regeneration of forest trees has important implications for the conservation and management of natural forests.

Synthetic Strigolactone GR24 Improves Arabidopsis Somatic Embryogenesis through Changes in Auxin Responses

Somatic embryogenesis in Arabidopsis encompasses an induction phase requiring auxin as the inductive signal to promote cellular dedifferentiation and formation of the embryogenic tissue, and a developmental phase favoring the maturation of the embryos. Strigolactones (SLs) have been categorized as a novel group of plant hormones based on their ability to affect physiological phenomena in plants. The study analyzed the effects of synthetic strigolactone GR24, applied during the induction phase, on auxin response and formation of somatic embryos. The expression level of two SL biosynthetic genes, MOREAXILLARY GROWTH 3 and 4 (MAX3 and MAX4), which are responsible for the conversion of carotene to carotenal, increased during the induction phase of embryogenesis. Arabidopsis mutant studies indicated that the somatic embryo number was inhibited in max3 and max4 mutants, and this effect was reversed by applications of GR24, a synthetic strigolactone, and exacerbated by TIS108, a SL biosynthetic inhibitor. The transcriptional studies revealed that the regulation of GR24 and TIS108 on somatic embryogenesis correlated with changes in expression of AUXIN RESPONSIVE FACTORs 5, 8, 10, and 16, known to be required for the production of the embryogenic tissue, as well as the expression of WUSCHEL (WUS) and Somatic Embryogenesis Receptor-like Kinase 1 (SERK1), which are markers of cell dedifferentiation and embryogenic tissue formation. Collectively, this work demonstrated the novel role of SL in enhancing the embryogenic process in Arabidopsis and its requirement for inducing the expression of genes related to auxin signaling and production of embryogenic tissue.

Calcium Alginate-Based Carbon Composite Adsorbents for Lean Methyldiethanolamine Reclamation: Laboratory to Pilot Scale Testing and Validation

Calcium alginate-based carbon composite (CAC) adsorbents have been proved to effectively remove total organic acid anions as HSS anions, metal ions, and organic degraded products from lean methyldiethanolamine (MDEA solvents) used as solvent in natural gas sweetening unit. During the material developmental phase, the CAC adsorbent was synthesized and utilized to remove various contaminants, including heat stable salts (HSS), organic degraded products, and heavy metal ions from lean MDEA using a lab-scale adsorption setup. Based on the results, a "demo-scale" fixed bed adsorption unit was designed and simulated using adsorption model to predict breakthrough behavior. In the current work, the efficiency of the CAC adsorbent in removing HSS and total organic acid anions were investigated. Analysis of treated samples demonstrated the removal efficiency of the adsorbent under plant scale conditions. Further experiments performed at lab scale indicated the effectiveness of the adsorbent in the removal of bicine from lean MDEA samples. This work provides a framework for future testing and comprehensive process performance evaluation of adsorbents for lean MDEA reclamation in actual plant conditions. A fast, simple, and reliable scale up procedure for fixed bed adsorber developed earlier was validated through this work.

Parenting Styles and Mental Health of Adolescents

Adolescence is a developmental phase marked with a heightened risk of inception of mental health disorders. The neglect in addressing mental health issues during childhood and adolescence could lead to the development of mental health problems in later life. The perspective with which children perceive their parent's parenting influences the children's mental health. Furthermore, the gender of the parent has its impacts on the shaping of a child's personality under the patriarchal society. The present research attempted to investigate the impact of different parenting styles (paternal) on adolescents' mental health. The study sample comprised 150 adolescents of 14-17 years in age from different schools located in the state of Haryana, India. Parenting Authority Questionnaire and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) were used to assess parenting styles and mental health. The present study's findings suggest that adolescents with a permissive parenting style have poor mental health compared with authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles. The study recommends incorporating healthy practices in parenting styles to prevent mental health issues among adolescents.

DIGITALIZACIJA JAVNIH USLUGA DRŽAVE KAO SEGMENT REFORME JAVNE UPRAVE U REPUBLICI SRBIJI

Information - communication technologies perhaps represent the most significant drive for the development of contemporary society and market. State is always the constant, unavoidable element in the functioning of every society and market and is, itself and through its bodies, susceptible to the influence of new trends and concepts. Their effects are so large that they change the role of the state and the nature of its bodies reflecting the need for continuous reform of public administration worldwide. One of the principal reforming elements and concepts in modern public administration refers to its digitalization, that is the process of electronization. Electronic government, that is e-government as a modern concept which assumes the digitalization of the entire work of public sector by replacing the traditional institutes and functions with modern concepts that include the application of information and communication systems. Thanks to digital reform, the work of public administration has become more transparent and efficient making it more accessible to interested parties and stakeholders, but also leading to the changed role – from public government to public service. The process of electronization and reform of public administration includes the digitalization of public services which public bodies offer to their citizens, enterprises, commercial sector and other persons they come in contact with, and whose rights and interests they protect. Public services include numerous services from different spheres of life: health, economy, ecology, internal affairs, etc. Bearing in mind the significance of public services for the citizens’ and companies’ regular work and functioning, their digitalization represents an important developmental phase which requires adequate academic and scientific approach.

Daily Steps Buffer the Impact of Daily Stress on Mood in Youth and Middle-aged/Older Adults

Physical activity has known associations with lower stress and improved well-being. These studies often include samples from one developmental phase at a time, which is helpful for researchers in those developmental areas, but less informative for identifying predictors of health and well-being across the lifespan. The current study examined whether protective aspects of physical activity (steps) on stress and mood worked similarly in widely different age cohorts. We also examined these relationships at the daily level, as opposed to global/macro levels. Participants (n = 119, 67% female) were 44 adolescents between 13-18 years (Mage (SD) = 15.73 (1.48) years, 57% female) and 77 middle-aged/older adults between 55-76 years (Mage (4.97) = 59.67, 74% female). They self-reported global life satisfaction and demographic characteristics at baseline and completed ecological momentary assessments (three per day for three consecutive days, across six measurement bursts, each spaced two weeks apart) via smart phones, reporting on their mood, stressor exposures/types, and end-of-day pedometer step count. Multilevel models showed that daily steps had protective effects against social network stressors on both daily mood and life satisfaction, such that more steps weakened the negative relationship between network-related stressors, mood, and life satisfaction. This protective effect was uniform for both older and younger adults, and across boys/men and girls/women. Overall, the present study suggested the importance of physical activity, even that of general step count, on buffering daily stress on daily mood and general life satisfaction for participants at multiple phases of the lifespan.

Discrete Affective States, Cortisol, and Self-Rated Health in Old Age

Old age is a developmental phase in which physical vulnerability increases and discrete affective states are uniquely important. The current project combines data from four studies (total N = 476 participants) to investigate within-person fluctuations in salivary cortisol (a marker of physiological arousal), seven discrete affective states, and the moderating role of self-rated health. Each participant provided affect reports and collected salivary cortisol 5-7 times a day for a 7-day period, and rated their health status. Multi-level models showed that cortisol levels were decreased in moments when participants felt happier, more relaxed, and more interested than usual and increased in moments when participants felt angrier, more nervous, more overwhelmed, and sadder than usual. Associations of happy, nervous, overwhelmed, and sad with cortisol were more pronounced in participants of better as compared to those of worse self-rated health. Findings suggest that higher HPA reactivity may indicate preserved health in older adults.