The Effects of the Work Environment on the Employees Optimal Performance: A Study of Ebonyi State College of Education, Ikwo

The study sought to investigate the effects of the work environment on the employees’optimal performance in Ebonyi State College of Education,Ikwo,as one of government organizations.The research design for this study was the survey research design to assess the relationship between the work environment and the employee’s performance in Ebonyi State College of Education.Thus,the population of the study comprised all employees of the college.The college which has total staff strength of 493 employees and seven management members making total of 500 was used as the study area.In an attempt to realize the objectives of the study,222 questionnaires were administered to both the management team and the employees of Ebonyi State College of Education.In order to ensure that all the strata of the population were fairly represented and all cases within each stratum had equal chance of being selected,stratified random sampling was used to select a sample of 215 employees and seven members of the management team for this research.A response rate of 78%was achieved.The data collected from both employees and managers was analyzed,using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions and t-test statistics to test the hypotheses at alpha level of 0.05 significance.It was found that each of the components that define the work environment were statistically significant to performance of the college.However,the social work environment of employees of the college was the most conducive work environment in the institution and the psychological environment of the college was least conducive.In the end,the work environment of the Ebonyi State College of Education,Ikwo,was statistically significant to the performance of employees of the college.It was among other things recommended that for the performance of staff of the college to be enhanced,the college managers must improve its psychological environment so as to improve the psychological health of its employees.

Current Situation and Implementation Paths of International Understanding Education in Local Application-oriented Universities

It is urgent and necessary to implement international understanding education in local application-oriented colleges and universities.Improving the international competitiveness of talents and cultivating global citizens is one of the goals of higher education.This paper discussed the problems of international understanding education in local application-oriented colleges and universities,including weak policy orientation,insufficient practical exploration,aphasia of national culture,etc.It is recommended to implement the international understanding education from two ways:subject penetration and project-based professional courses.In addition,the introduction of Chinese culture cannot be ignored to prevent the absence of national culture in cross-cultural communication.

AMachine Learning Approach to User Profiling for Data Annotation of Online Behavior

The user’s intent to seek online information has been an active area of research in user profiling.User profiling considers user characteristics,behaviors,activities,and preferences to sketch user intentions,interests,and motivations.Determining user characteristics can help capture implicit and explicit preferences and intentions for effective user-centric and customized content presentation.The user’s complete online experience in seeking information is a blend of activities such as searching,verifying,and sharing it on social platforms.However,a combination of multiple behaviors in profiling users has yet to be considered.This research takes a novel approach and explores user intent types based on multidimensional online behavior in information acquisition.This research explores information search,verification,and dissemination behavior and identifies diverse types of users based on their online engagement using machine learning.The research proposes a generic user profile template that explains the user characteristics based on the internet experience and uses it as ground truth for data annotation.User feedback is based on online behavior and practices collected by using a survey method.The participants include both males and females from different occupation sectors and different ages.The data collected is subject to feature engineering,and the significant features are presented to unsupervised machine learning methods to identify user intent classes or profiles and their characteristics.Different techniques are evaluated,and the K-Mean clustering method successfully generates five user groups observing different user characteristics with an average silhouette of 0.36 and a distortion score of 1136.Feature average is computed to identify user intent type characteristics.The user intent classes are then further generalized to create a user intent template with an Inter-Rater Reliability of 75%.This research successfully extracts different user types based on their preferences in online content,platforms,criteria,and frequency.The study also validates the proposed template on user feedback data through Inter-Rater Agreement process using an external human rater.

The Effects of Disruptive Thinking on the Food Industry*

This study aimed to understand disruptive thinking and how its ideas can change the food industry. This was achieved by identifying, studying, and understanding the impacts, current trends, and different disruptive ideas and innovations emerging in the food industry. The study was conducted through interpretive research philosophy by carrying out secondary data collection processes, where both qualitative and quantitative information was presented. Deductive approaches were also selected to apply existing theories and models, which were used to construct research hypotheses and present detailed findings. The study finds that, with disruptive thinking, enhancements in the product life cycle, new flavors, and improvements in food packaging have been possible. The supply chain, which is always considered a complex part of the food industry, has been streamlined, offering greater transparency and real-time tracking and improving quality control across distribution systems.

How University Athletics Can Impact Mental Health among Student Athletes at the University of Evansville

In recent years, the NCAA student athlete population in the United States has surpassed 500,000, and is continuing to rise each year [1]. These student athletes work their entire lives academically and athletically to reach the ultimate goal: competing in university athletics. However, when these athletes reach university, they are met with non-stop training, homework, exams, and evolving social lives. We have conducted a study at the University of Evansville evaluating how participation in university athletics may impact mental health status among these student athletes, as well as measuring players’ awareness of accessible mental health resources. Over fifty percent of participants reported experiencing at least one mental health condition while competing in their sport;eighty percent reported having knowledge of the mental health resources available to them on campus, however, nearly thirty percent of those knowledgeable reported not knowing how to access these resources. This has indicated a gap in awareness and utilization of mental health resources among student athletes at the University of Evansville.

Considerations for the use of porcine organ donation models in preclinical organ donor intervention research

Use of animal models in preclinical transplant research is essential to the optimization of human allografts for clinical transplantation.Animal models of organ donation and preservation help to advance and improve technical elements of solid organ recovery and facilitate research of ischemia-reperfusion injury,organ preservation strategies,and future donor-based interventions.Important considerations include cost,public opinion regarding the conduct of animal research,translational value,and relevance of the animal model for clinical practice.We present an overview of two porcine models of organ donation:donation following brain death(DBD)and donation following circulatory death(DCD).The cardiovascular anatomy and physiology of pigs closely resembles those of humans,making this species the most appropriate for pre-clinical research.Pigs are also considered a potential source of organs for human heart and kidney xenotransplantation.It is imperative to minimize animal loss during procedures that are surgically complex.We present our experience with these models and describe in detail the use cases,procedural approach,challenges,alternatives,and limitations of each model.

Evidence for the Reliability and Validity of the Arabic Version of the Student Risk Screening Scale for Internalizing and Externalizing Behaviors (SRSS-IE)

School-based universal screening for behavioral/emotional risk is a necessary first step to providing services in an educational setting for students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBDs). Psychometric properties are critical to making decisions about choosing a screening instrument. The purpose of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the student risk screening scale for internalizing and externalizing behaviors (SRSS-IE). Participants included 3145 students and their teachers. Item-level analyses of the current sample supported the retention of all items. The internal consistency of the SRSS items ranged from 0.83 to 0.85. Convergent validity between the SRSS-IE and a well-established screening tool, the strength and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ), was found for the total score (r = 0.70). Additionally, the results of this study demonstrate strong social validity, suggesting the SRSS-IE to be a useful and functional screening tool. We conclude that the SRSS-IE is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing the level of emotional and behavioral difficulties among elementary students.

A Review on the Advancement of Renewable Natural Fiber Hybrid Composites: Prospects, Challenges, and Industrial Applications

Naturalfibre(NFR)reinforced functional polymer composites are quickly becoming an indispensable sustainable material in the transportation industry because of their lightweight,lower cost in manufacture,and adaptability to a wide variety of goods.However,the major difficulties of using thesefibres are their existing poor dimensional stability and the extreme hydrophilicity.In assessing the mechanical properties(MP)of composites,the interfacial bonding(IB)happening between the NFR and the polymer matrix(PM)plays an incredibly significant role.When compared to NFR/syntheticfibre hybrid composites,hybrid composites(HC)made up of two separate NFR are less prevalent;yet,these hybrid composites also have the potential to be valuable materials in terms of environmental issues.A new dimension to theflexibility of composites reinforced with NFR is added by the cost-effective manufacture of hybrid composites utilising NFR.The purpose of this study is to offer an over-view of the keyfindings that were presented on hybrid composites.The emphasis was focused on the factors that influence the performance of the naturalfiber composites,diverse approaches to enhancing MP,physical,electri-cal,and thermal characteristics of the HC.HC study in polymer science gains interest for applications in con-struction and automotive industries.

Exploring the Dual Subjectivity of Kindergarten's Self-made Play and Teaching Aids Activities from the Perspective of Children's Play Development in China

The joint development of teachers and young children is the basis for promoting the development of high-quality preschool education in the new era,and encouraging early childhood teachers to make playthings according to local conditions is both the fine tradition of China's early childhood education and the direct orientation of China's preschool education policy.Homemade play and teaching aids are some of the methods often used in kindergartens,which skillfully combine young children's daily life objects with toys and early childhood teaching,not only enriching the collective activities of young children but also cultivating children's abilities in various aspects.Kindergarten homemade"play and teaching aids"for early childhood teachers and children have their special educational significance and value,therefore,this paper is based on the children and teachers double subject basis,discussing the homemade"play and teaching aids"for children and teachers of the double subject meanings,and puts forward the realization of the This paper discusses the double-subjective meaning of homemade teaching aids for children and teachers on the basis of the double-subjective foundation of children and teachers,and puts forward specific suggestions for realizing the double-subjectivity of kindergarten homemade teaching aids to enrich the theoretical value and practical significance of homemade teaching aids,to provide theoretical references and support for the relevant staff.

Growth, Development and Yield of Kenaf as Affected by Planting Dates and N Fertilization

Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L) consists of various beneficial components like stalks, seeds, leaves, fibers, oils, proteins, allelopathic chemicals, and fiber strands, among other things. Despite the numerous uses of the crop, there is little or no information on optimum agronomic practices such as planting date and N fertilization of the crop in the Upper East Region (UER) of Ghana where the crop is widely cultivated by smallholder farmers. Field experiments were therefore carried out in 2020 and repeated during the 2021 cropping season in the study area. The objective of the study was to determine appropriate planting date and N fertilization for increased kenaf productivity. In each year, the treatments consisted of 3 × 5 factorial combinations of three planting dates (1st July, 7th July and 14th July) and five levels of N (0, 20, 40, 60 and 80 kg/ha) replicated three times. The design of the experiment was a split-plot with the N fertilizer as the main plot and the planting date assigned to sub plot. The results showed that, planting kenaf in early (1st) July or N fertilization at the rate of 60 kg/ha increased plant density, stem height, stem diameter, dry bast and core yields in both cropping seasons.

Effects of Perceived Teacher Support on Student Behavioral Engagement in the Blended Learning Environment:Learning Experience as a Mediator

Blended learning(BL)has been widely adopted to improve students’academic achievements in higher education.However,its success relies mainly on student engagement,which plays an essential role in active learning and provides a rich understanding of students’experiences.The study utilized three self-designed scales-the Teacher Support Scale,Student Engagement Scale,and Student Learning Experience Scale-to gauge and examine the impact and relationship between perceived teacher support,student behavioral engagement,and the intermediary role of learning experiences.A cohort of 899 college students undertaking the obligatory College English course through BL modes across five Chinese universities actively participated by completing a comprehensive questionnaire.The results showed significant correlations between perceived teacher support,learning experience,and behavioral engagement.Perceived teacher support significantly predicted students’behavioral engagement,with socio-affective support exerting the most substantial predictive effects.All predictive effects were partially mediated by learning experience(learning mode,online resources,overall LMS-based learning,interaction with their instructor and peers,and learning outcome).The influence of perceived teacher support on behavioral engagement differed between students who reported the most positive(vs.negative)learning experiences.Suggestions for further research are offered for consideration.

Analysis of Extreme Temperature Variability in Rwanda

The temperature is one of the most important factors in weather and climate forecasting.Studying its behaviour is crucial to understanding climate variability,which could vary spatially and temporally at local,regional,and global scales.Several recent studies on air temperature findings show that the Earth’s near surface air temperature increased between 0.6℃ and 0.8℃ throughout the twentieth century.Using temperature records from ten meteorological stations,this study examined climate variability in Rwanda from the 1930s to 2014.The air temperature data were collected from Meteo Rwanda.Before making the analysis,the authors used software,such as Excel 2007 and INSTAT to control the quality of the raw data.The analysis of maxima and minima indicated that the trends of maximum air temperature were positive and significant at height meteorological stations,whereas the trends for minimum air temperature were found to be at 10 meteorological stations.For all parameters analysed,Kigali Airport meteorological station indicated the higher significance of the trends.The majority of meteorological stations showed an increase in both hot days and nights,confirming Rwanda’s warming over time.The analysis of average seasonal air temperature showed almost similar trends even though not all were significant.This similarity in trends could be attributed to the fact that Rwanda’s short and long dry seasons coincide with rainy seasons.

Effects of land-use types and the exotic species,Hypochaeris radicata,on plant diversity in human-transformed landscapes of the biosphere reserve,Jeju Island,Korea

Land-use and plant invasion influence biodiversity.Understanding the effects of land-use types and invasive plants on the ecosystem is crucial for better management and the development of strategic plans for increasing biodiversity in Jeju Island,Korea,a designated Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations Education,Scientific,and Cultural Organization.The effect of the most dominant invasive exotic species,Hypochaeris radicata,on the four land-use types of Jeju Island was investigated.Plant composition,soil characteristics,and plant diversity among four land-use types(cropland,green space,neglected land,and residential)were compared.Among the land-use types,croplands had the most diverse plant composition and the highest richness in exotic and native plant species.Croplands,such as tangerine orchards,which are widely distributed throughout Jeju Island,showed the highest plant diversity because of medium intensity disturbance caused by weed removal.The relative cover of H.radicata did not differ between land-use types.However,H.radicata invasion was negatively related with plant species richness,making this invasive species a threat to the biodiversity of native herbs present in land-use areas.H.radicata adapts to areas with a broad range of soil properties and a variety of land-use types.Therefore,it is crucial to monitor land-use types and patterns of plant invasion to guide the implementation of consistent management and conservation strategies for maintaining ecosystem integrity of the transformed habitat in Jeju Island.

Fusarium wilt of banana:Current update and sustainable disease control using classical and essential oils approaches

Fusarium species were reported to produce biofilms.Biofilms are superficial societies of microbes bounded and endangered by being situated or taking place outside a cell or cells.The most destructive fungal diseases caused by phytopathogens are as a result of biofilms formation.Fusarium wilt of banana(Panama disease)is caused by a soil-borne pathogen called Fusarium oxysporum f.sp.cubense.Fusarium oxysporum occurs in a form of a species complex(FOSC)which encompasses a crowd of strains.Horizontal genetic factor transfer may donate to the observed assortment in pathogenic strains,while sexual reproduction is unknown in the FOSC.Fusarium wilt is a notorious disease on several crops worldwide.Yield loss caused by this pathogen is huge,and significant to destroy crop yields annually,thereby affecting the producer countries in various continents of the world.The disease is also resistant to various synthetic chemical fungicides.However,excessive use of synthetic fungicides during disease control could be lethal to humans,animals,and plants.This calls for alternative eco-friendly management of this disease by targeting the biofilms formation and finally suppressing this devastating phytopathogen.In this review,we,therefore,described the damage caused by Fusarium wilt disease,the concept of filamentous fungal biofilms,classical control strategies,sustainable disease control strategies using essential oils,and prevention and control of vegetables Fusarium wilt diseases.

The Effects of Thermal Radiation and Viscous Dissipation on the Stagnation Point Flow of a Micropolar Fluid over a Permeable Stretching Sheet in the Presence of Porous Dissipation

In this paper,the effects of thermal radiation and viscous dissipation on the stagnation–point flow of a micropolar fluid over a permeable stretching sheet with suction and injection are analyzed and discussed.A suitable similarity transformation is used to convert the governing nonlinear partial differential equations into a system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations,which are then solved numerically by a fourth–order Runge–Kutta method.It is found that the linear fluid velocity decreases with the enhancement of the porosity,boundary,and suction parameters.Conversely,it increases with the micropolar and injection parameters.The angular velocity grows with the boundary,porosity,and suction parameters,whereas it is reduced if the micropolar and injection parameters become larger.It is concluded that the thermal boundary layer extension increases with the injection parameter and decreases with the suction parameter.

Nanoparticle Shape Effect on a Sodium–Alginate Based Cu–Nanofluid under a Transverse Magnetic Field

Sodium-alginate(SA)based nanofluids represent a new generation of fluids with improved performances in terms of heat transfer.This work examines the influence of the nanoparticle shape on a non–Newtonian viscoplastic Cu–nanofluid pertaining to this category.In particular,a stretching/shrinking sheet subjected to a transverse magnetic field is considered.The proposed Cu–nanofluid consists of four different nanoparticles having different shapes,namely bricks,cylinders,platelets,and blades dispersed in a mixture of sodium alginate with Prandtl number Pr=6.45.Suitable similarity transformations are employed to reduce non–linear PDEs into a system of ODEs and these equations and related boundary conditions are solved numerically by means of a Runge–Kutta–Fehlberg(RKF)method.Moreover,analytical solutions are obtained through the application of a MAPLE built–in differential equation solver(Dsolve).The behavior of prominent parameters against velocity and temperature is analyzed.It is found that the temperature increases for all shapes of nanoparticles with the viscoplastic parameter and the Eckert number.

Survey of Robotics in Education, Taxonomy, Applications, and Platforms during COVID-19

The coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)is characterized as a disease caused by a novel coronavirus known as severe acute respiratory coronavirus syndrome 2(SARS-CoV-2;formerly known as 2019-nCoV).In December 2019,COVID-19 began to appear in a few countries.By the beginning of 2020,it had spread to most countries across the world.This is when education challenges began to arise.The COVID-19 crisis led to the closure of thousands of schools and universities all over the world.Such a situation requires reliance on e-learning and robotics education for students to continue their studies to avoid the mingling between people and students.In relation to this alternative learning solution,the present study was conducted.A systematic literature review on educational robotics(ER)keywords between 2015–2020 was carried out for the purpose to review a total of 2253 articles from the selected sources;Scopus(452),Taylor&Francis(311),Science Direct(427),IEEE Xplore(221),and Web of Science(842).This review procedure was labelled as Taxonomy 1.After ltering Taxonomy 1,it was found that 98 scientic articles formed the so-called Taxonomy II that was categorized into six categories:(i)Robotics concepts,(ii)Device,(iii)Robotic applications,(iv)Manufacturing robots,(v)Robotics analysis,and(vi)Education/taxonomy.For this study,only 35 articles in this specic eld were selected,of which were then assigned into three categories:(i)Application,(ii)Platform,and(iii)Educational.The results show that the application category carries 17.4%,platform 20%,and education 22.85%.This study serves as the application platform to help students,academics,and researchers.