The relationship between grade 11 learners’ procedural and conceptual knowledge of algebra

The acquisition of procedural and conceptual knowledge is imperative for the development of problem solving skills in mathematics. However, while there are mixed research findings on the relationship between the two domains of knowledge in some branches of mathematics, the relationship between learners’ procedural and conceptual knowledge of algebra has not been well explored. This research paper examined the relationship between Grade 11 learners’ procedural and conceptual knowledge of algebra. Data for the study was collected using an algebra test administered to 181 grade 11 learners in Gauteng province, South Africa. Descriptive statistics and Pearson’s correlation coefficient were used to analyse the data in SPSS. The study revealed that the learners have low levels of both procedural and conceptual knowledge of algebra. However, they displayed better procedural knowledge than the conceptual knowledge of algebra. In addition, a statistically significant moderate positive linear relationship was found between the learners’ procedural and conceptual knowledge of algebra.

Auditors’ Professional Experience and its Effect in Reducing the Impact of Audit Problems – An Empirical Study in the Private Offices of Audit in Iraq

This study aims to identify the benefits of the auditor's professional experience in reducing the impact of audit’s problems. The elements representing the professional experience of the auditor were identified by three elements and considered representative of the independent variables of the study, namely: (1) the period of the auditor's professional experience, (2) the level of qualifications that the auditor holds, (3) the nature of the auditor's specialization. It also diagnosed the problems that the auditor faces in his work based on previous studies and through polling the auditors' opinions . These Problems are : (1) Problems related to laws and legislation, (2) Problems related to professional associations and colleagues, (3) problems related to clients and managements, (4) behavioral aspects of Colleagues and social pressures.. The research uses the questionnaire method to gather the necessary information and data , and the statistical methods are used to analyze the information gathered. The results of the statistical tests showed that there is a positive linear relationship between the three independent variables and the four problems the auditor faces in his professional work. The analysis of the results indicates that the first variable(The length of the professional experience) takes the priority in terms of its impact on the problems faced by the auditor.

Association between health-related fitness, perceived stress, and metabolic syndrome prevalence in a sample of law enforcement officers

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the association between components of metabolic syndrome with health-related fitness (HRF) and perceived stress in a sample of law enforcement officers.Design/methodology/approachLaw enforcement officers (N = 28) from the Mountain West region of the US reported their HRF scores (1.5 mile run, push-up, and sit-ups), had their blood drawn (glucose, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL)) and had their waist circumference and blood pressure measured in a fasted state. Officers also completed a short questionnaire to assess health-enhancing physical activity (SQUASH) and both the Organizational and Operational Police Stress Questionnaires (PSQ-Org, PSQ-Op).FindingsLinear regression models revealed a positive linear relationship between glucose levels and 1.5 mile run times (beta = 0.560, p = 0.021, R2 = 0.24). A bivariate positive linear relationship between waist circumference and 1.5 mile run times was found to be significant (R2 = 0.17, p = 0.041). For every minute increase in 1.5-mile run times, PSQ-Org scores significantly increased by 0.543 standard deviations (p = 0.022) with 25% of the variance explained (R2 = 0.25). There were no statistically significant parameter estimates from the logistic regression equations when dependent variables were treated on the categorical measurement scale using recommended cut-points.Research limitations/implicationsIn conclusion, those who performed better on the 1.5 mile run were more likely to have lower fasting glucose levels, experience less stress and have a smaller waist circumference.Practical implicationsTherefore, according to these findings, it is imperative for those in law enforcement to improve their cardiorespiratory endurance to minimize stress and reduce their risk of metabolic syndrome.Originality/valueThis research is novel according to a recent PubMed search using the keywords “law enforcement,” “Metabolic Syndrome” and “fitness testing.”

The effects of weather on the spread of COVID-19: evidence from Ghana

Background Climatic factors have been shown to influence communicable disease dynamics especially in tropical regions where temperature could swing from extreme heat and dryness to wet and cold within a short period of time. This is more pronounced in the spread of airborne diseases. In this study, the effect of some local weather variables (average temperature, average relative humidity, average wind speed and average atmospheric pressure) on the risk of Severe Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in Ghana is investigated. The daily confirmed new COVID-19 cases were compiled from the Ghana Health Service and the weather data extracted from Weatherbase. The type of relationship between the climatic variable and risk of spread were explored using the Generalized Additive Model (GAM). Results Results obtained showed that wind speed and atmospheric pressure have positive linear relationship with the spread of infection an increase in the risk of COVID-19 spread. In addition, the risk of spread fluctuates for temperature between 24 and 29 °C but sharply decreases when average temperature exceeds 29 °C. The risk of spread of COVID-19 significantly decrease for relative humidity between 72 and 76% and leveled afterwards. Conclusion The results indicate that wind speed and pressure have a positive linear relationship with the risk of spread of COVID-19 whilst temperature and humidity have a non-linear relationship with the spread of COVID-19. These findings highlight the need for policy makers to design effective countermeasures for controlling the spread as we are still within the low temperature season.

Are digital financial payments constrained by the country's income: Evidence from the Global Findex database

The combined effect of ICT improvement, digitalization and change in clients' habits lead to changes in the financial sector worldwide. Increased use of digital financial services (DFS) is a change that might help to increase financial inclusion, which is particularly important for developing countries. As income is considered a critical driver of digital payments, this study aims to determine whether there is a linear relationship between a country's income measured by the level of Gross National Income per capita (GNI p.c.) and the use of digital payment services, i.e., making and receiving digital payments. We used data from the Global Findex and World Bank databases for 2017 to conduct the research, which covered 141 countries. The presence of a linear relationship between the level of GNI p.c. and the use of digital payments was tested using correlation analysis. The results of the correlation analysis show that there is a significant strong positive linear relationship between the level of GNI p.c. and the use of digital payment services in both segments, i.e., making and receiving payments. Findings are consistent with previous research and confirmed the important role of income as a driver of the use of DFS.

The Relationship Between Anxiety and Incident Agitation in Alzheimer’s Disease

Background: Agitation in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been hypothesized to be an expression of anxiety, but whether anxiety early in the course of dementia could be a risk factor for developing later agitation is unknown. Objective: We used the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) database to examine the longitudinal relationship between anxiety and incident agitation in individuals with a diagnosis of AD at baseline or during follow-up. Methods: Longitudinal neuropsychiatric symptom data from AD individuals who were agitation-free at study baseline (N = 272) were analyzed using mixed effects regression models to test the longitudinal relationship between baseline and incident anxiety with incident agitation. Results: Anxiety at baseline was not associated with subsequent agitation, but there was a positive linear relationship between incident anxiety and agitation over the study duration. Baseline apathy and delusions were consistently associated with subsequent agitation and greater disease severity and illness duration also appeared to be risk factors for agitation. Conclusion: Our findings support the concept that anxiety and agitation are likely to be distinct rather than equivalent constructs in mild-moderate AD. Future longitudinal cohort studies are needed to replicate these findings and further characterize potential risk factors for agitation, such as apathy and delusions.

Resistance to the alfalfa weevil in the Iranian collection of Medicago sativa

The Iranian collection of Medicago sativa (alfalfa, 502 accessions) was evaluated under field conditions to identify variation in resistance to the alfalfa weevil (Hypera postica Gyllenhal) between accessions over 4 years. Twenty-one accessions were identified as resistant (score 3) to semi-resistant (score 5) based on K-means cluster analysis. These materials were grouped into 10 groups by means of Duncan's Multiple Range Test. Susceptibility to alfalfa weevil was significantly correlated with some of the agro-morphological traits such as plant height (r = 0.314, P<0.01), regrowth rate (r = 0.435, P<0.01) and fall dormancy score (r = 0.284, P<0.01). In general, the resistant germplasm originated from elevated regions at high latitudes, where a co-evolution between the plant and the pest may have taken place. Multiple regression analysis showed a positive linear relationship between susceptibility to the alfalfa weevil and traits such as growth habit, plant height, length and width of the central leaflet and regrowth rate. The resulting bi-plot based on factor analysis ranked accessions for susceptibility to the pest. The identified germplasm should prove useful in alfalfa breeding programs to develop accessions resistant to the alfalfa weevil.

Analysis of Spatiotemporal Features of Cassava Evapotranspiration in Benin Using Integrated FAO-56 Method and Terra/MODIS Data

This study analyzed the temporal and spatial features of cassava evapotranspiration from 1985 to 2015 in Benin using linear regression, Mann-Kendall trend test, Sen&rsquo;s slope estimator, and interpolation. The study used basic meteorological data from the Met office of Benin and the Terra/MODIS vegetation index. The estimated crop coefficients (Kc) from FAO and NDVI have shown a strong and positive linear relationship with a correlation coefficient of r = 0.968, while NDVI-Kc presented values slightly lower than FAO-Kc. The rates of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) varied from 1.23 to 7.63 mm/day and 2.92 mm/day on average. At the local level, there were significant upward trends in the seasonal ETc for stations located in the bimodal rainfall pattern area (Cotonou, Bohicon, and Save) and non-significant for stations in the unimodal rainfall pattern area (Kandi, Parakou, and Natitingou). At the country level, both methods revealed a non-significant positive trend in cassava evapotranspiration in the study area while showing a strong and positive linear relationship in variations throughout the growing season, r = 0.956. Cassava&rsquo;s growth in Benin may encounter in the future the risk of water deficit.

Application of Luojia 1-01 Nighttime Images for Detecting the Light Changes for the 2019 Spring Festival in Western Cities, China

This study analyzed changes in nighttime light during the 2019 Spring Festival using Luojia 1-01 nighttime images in six western cities of China (Chengdu, Panzhihua, Kunming, Yuxi, Lhasa, and Jinchang). First, the radiance of the nighttime images was calculated. Second, the light area (LA) and average light intensity (ALI) were estimated for both Spring Festival and non-festival dates. Third, the differences in LA and ALI between the Spring Festival and non-festival were analyzed for all six cities. Migration population data from Baidu Inc. were used to examine the relationship between the changes of nighttime light and the population migration. The results show that, during the non-festival to Spring Festival period, the decrease in LA values coincided with negative net immigration. During the Spring Festival to non-festival period, the LA values increased, which coincided with positive net immigration. The F-test shows that the positive linear relationship between the normalized change in LA and the normalized net immigration is significant at the 0.05 level. This strongly indicates that population migration causes changes in LA. Moreover, while the population is considerably less in these cities during the Spring Festival, the ALI is noticeably higher, which suggests that urban activities are intensified during this period. This study demonstrates the applicability of using Luojia 1-01 nighttime images to detect the nighttime light changes for the Spring Festival in western cities, China, which can then be used to evaluate population migration and urban activities in the Spring Festival. Considering the higher spatial resolution of Luojia 1-01 than NPP (National Polar-orbiting Partnership) / VIIRS (Visible infrared Imaging Radiometer), this study may inspire more applications of Luojia 1-01 to track the activities in a variety of festival-cultures and cities.

Impact of dietary oxidized protein on oxidative status and performance in growing pigs

Rendered products from the meat industry can provide economical quality sources of proteins to the animal and feed industry. Similar to lipids, rendered proteins are susceptible to oxidation, yet the stability of these proteins is unclear. In addition, interest in understanding how oxidative stress can impact efficiency in production animals is increasing. Recent studies show that consumption of oxidized lipids can lead to a change in the oxidative status of the animal as well as decreases in production efficiency. To date, little is known about how consumption of oxidized proteins impacts oxidative status and growth performance. The objectives of this study were to determine if feeding diets high in oxidized protein to growing pigs would: 1) impact growth performance and 2) induce oxidative stress. Thirty pigs (42 d old; initial body weight [BW] 12.49 ± 1.45 kg) were randomly assigned to one of three dietary treatments with increasing levels of oxidized protein. Spray-dried bovine plasma was used as the protein source and was either unheated upon arrival, heated at 45 °C for 4 d, or heated at 100 °C for 3 d. Diets were fed for 19 d and growth performance was measured. Blood plasma (days 0 and 18), jejunum, colon, and liver tissues (day 19) were collected to analyze for markers of oxidative stress (e.g., protein oxidation, lipid oxidation, DNA damage, and glutathione peroxidase activity). Average daily gain (ADG;P &lt; 0.01) and average daily feed intake (ADFI;P &lt; 0.01) had a positive linear relationship to increased protein oxidation, but there was no effect on gain to feed ratio. Furthermore, protein (P = 0.03) and fat (P &lt; 0.01) digestibility were reduced with increased protein oxidation in the diet. Crypt depth showed a positive linear relationship with dietary protein oxidation levels (P = 0.02). A trend was observed in liver samples where pigs fed the plasma heated to 45 °C had increased lipid oxidation compared with pigs fed the plasma either unheated or heated to 100 °C (P = 0.09). DNA damage in the jejunum tended to have a linear relationship with the dietary protein oxidation level (P = 0.07). Even though results suggest dietary oxidized protein did not induce oxidative stress during short-term feeding, differences in performance, gut morphology, and digestibility are likely a result of reduced protein availability.