Weak rock zone (soft interlayer, fault zone and soft rock) is the highlight of large-scale geological engineering research. It is an important boundary for analysis of rock mass stability. Weak rock zone has been form...Weak rock zone (soft interlayer, fault zone and soft rock) is the highlight of large-scale geological engineering research. It is an important boundary for analysis of rock mass stability. Weak rock zone has been formed in a long geological period, and in this period, various rocks have undergone long-term consolidation of geostatic stress and tectonic stress; therefore, under in-situ conditions, their density and modulus of deformation are relatively high. Due to its fragmentary nature, once being exposed to the earth's surface, the structure of weak rock zone will soon be loosened, its density will be reduced, and its modulus of deformation will also be reduced significantly. Generally, weak rock zone can be found in large construction projects, especially in the dam foundation rocks of hydropower stations. These rocks cannot be eliminated completely by excavation. Furthermore, all tests nowadays are carried out after the exposure of weak rock zone, modulus of deformation under in-situ conditions cannot be revealed. In this paper, a test method explored by the authors has been introduced. This method is a whole multilayered medium deformation method. It is unnecessary to eliminate the relatively complete rocks covering on weak rock zone. A theoretical formula to obtain the modulus of deformation in various mediums has also been introduced. On-site comparative trials and indoor deformation modulus tests under equivalent density conditions have been carried out. We adopted several methods for the prediction researches of the deformation modulus of weak rock zone under in-situ conditions, and revealed a fact that under in-situ conditions, the deformation modulus of weak rock zone are several times higher than the test results obtained after the exposure. In a perspective of geological engineering, the research findings have fundamentally changed peoples' concepts on the deformation modulus of weak rock zone, provided important theories and methods for precise definition of deformation modulus of deep weak rock zone under cap rock conditions, as well as for reasonable engineering applications.展开更多
As far as we are concemed, one of the elements of assessing EFL/ESL （English as a Foreign Language/English as a Second Language） learners＇ language proficiency in institutions and universities in our country ＂lran...As far as we are concemed, one of the elements of assessing EFL/ESL （English as a Foreign Language/English as a Second Language） learners＇ language proficiency in institutions and universities in our country ＂lran＂ are multiple-choice reading comprehension tests. We also know that, it comprises one major section of the standard and TOEFL （Test of English as a Foreign Language） tests. Taking into account its importance and the problems which EFL learners have answered them, I get motivated to uncover some of the test-taking strategies which they employ to answer multiple-choice reading comprehension questions when dealing with familiar versus unfamiliar topics. To get a better conclusion, I choose 20 advanced male and female candidates whose English proficiency is at an acceptable level and at least at the same age level, and they major in English language from different colleges and universities. They are given two reading comprehension passages （familiar and unfamiliar）, each one with five final questions and allotted time to answer the questions. Two main instruments in this study are a retrospective think-aloud protocol and a semi-structured interview. The results of the reading comprehension tests and interview part revealed that advanced learners＇ high scores in the familiar topic were not because of their strategy use but because of their high linguistic and background knowledge on the topic. I also concluded that the number, kind, and sequence of strategies employed, were greatly dependent on the degree of testees＇ familiarity on the topic. In other words, test-takers used more strategies to compensate for their lack of linguistic knowledge.展开更多
This paper deals with the importance of idioms in English as a Foreign Language （EFL） acquisition in general and the effect of three techniques applied in teaching and learning them by the undergraduate university s...This paper deals with the importance of idioms in English as a Foreign Language （EFL） acquisition in general and the effect of three techniques applied in teaching and learning them by the undergraduate university students in particular. To accomplish this aim, the study firstly tried to investigate English students＇ attitude toward learning L2 idioms through a 10-item questionnaire. The second part of the study passed on two stages; a list of 20 unknown idioms was presented to 30 second-year EFL students who were divided into three groups. The first group of students was given the list of idioms with （L2） English definition; the second group was given the same list of idioms with their （L2） English contextual representation these unknown idioms were used, and the third group was given （LI） Albanian translation equivalent. At the second stage, after learning and revising the unknown idioms for a period of four weeks, the participants received a common test consisting of two types of exercises-multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blanks-to check the impact of three techniques used for the long-term retention of idioms： definition, context, and translation. The results of the survey showed that the third-group students performed better than the two other groups who were exposed to English idioms definition and context; i.e., translation was the most effective technique that helped students＇ retention and acquisition of idioms.展开更多
文摘Weak rock zone (soft interlayer, fault zone and soft rock) is the highlight of large-scale geological engineering research. It is an important boundary for analysis of rock mass stability. Weak rock zone has been formed in a long geological period, and in this period, various rocks have undergone long-term consolidation of geostatic stress and tectonic stress; therefore, under in-situ conditions, their density and modulus of deformation are relatively high. Due to its fragmentary nature, once being exposed to the earth's surface, the structure of weak rock zone will soon be loosened, its density will be reduced, and its modulus of deformation will also be reduced significantly. Generally, weak rock zone can be found in large construction projects, especially in the dam foundation rocks of hydropower stations. These rocks cannot be eliminated completely by excavation. Furthermore, all tests nowadays are carried out after the exposure of weak rock zone, modulus of deformation under in-situ conditions cannot be revealed. In this paper, a test method explored by the authors has been introduced. This method is a whole multilayered medium deformation method. It is unnecessary to eliminate the relatively complete rocks covering on weak rock zone. A theoretical formula to obtain the modulus of deformation in various mediums has also been introduced. On-site comparative trials and indoor deformation modulus tests under equivalent density conditions have been carried out. We adopted several methods for the prediction researches of the deformation modulus of weak rock zone under in-situ conditions, and revealed a fact that under in-situ conditions, the deformation modulus of weak rock zone are several times higher than the test results obtained after the exposure. In a perspective of geological engineering, the research findings have fundamentally changed peoples' concepts on the deformation modulus of weak rock zone, provided important theories and methods for precise definition of deformation modulus of deep weak rock zone under cap rock conditions, as well as for reasonable engineering applications.
文摘As far as we are concemed, one of the elements of assessing EFL/ESL （English as a Foreign Language/English as a Second Language） learners＇ language proficiency in institutions and universities in our country ＂lran＂ are multiple-choice reading comprehension tests. We also know that, it comprises one major section of the standard and TOEFL （Test of English as a Foreign Language） tests. Taking into account its importance and the problems which EFL learners have answered them, I get motivated to uncover some of the test-taking strategies which they employ to answer multiple-choice reading comprehension questions when dealing with familiar versus unfamiliar topics. To get a better conclusion, I choose 20 advanced male and female candidates whose English proficiency is at an acceptable level and at least at the same age level, and they major in English language from different colleges and universities. They are given two reading comprehension passages （familiar and unfamiliar）, each one with five final questions and allotted time to answer the questions. Two main instruments in this study are a retrospective think-aloud protocol and a semi-structured interview. The results of the reading comprehension tests and interview part revealed that advanced learners＇ high scores in the familiar topic were not because of their strategy use but because of their high linguistic and background knowledge on the topic. I also concluded that the number, kind, and sequence of strategies employed, were greatly dependent on the degree of testees＇ familiarity on the topic. In other words, test-takers used more strategies to compensate for their lack of linguistic knowledge.
文摘This paper deals with the importance of idioms in English as a Foreign Language （EFL） acquisition in general and the effect of three techniques applied in teaching and learning them by the undergraduate university students in particular. To accomplish this aim, the study firstly tried to investigate English students＇ attitude toward learning L2 idioms through a 10-item questionnaire. The second part of the study passed on two stages; a list of 20 unknown idioms was presented to 30 second-year EFL students who were divided into three groups. The first group of students was given the list of idioms with （L2） English definition; the second group was given the same list of idioms with their （L2） English contextual representation these unknown idioms were used, and the third group was given （LI） Albanian translation equivalent. At the second stage, after learning and revising the unknown idioms for a period of four weeks, the participants received a common test consisting of two types of exercises-multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blanks-to check the impact of three techniques used for the long-term retention of idioms： definition, context, and translation. The results of the survey showed that the third-group students performed better than the two other groups who were exposed to English idioms definition and context; i.e., translation was the most effective technique that helped students＇ retention and acquisition of idioms.
