General Discussion Sample Clauses

General Discussion. A Local Agency Agreement is an agreement between a local agency and the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). An agreement is prepared for each federal aid project, and it covers all phases of work involved in the project (preliminary engineering, right of way acquisition, construction). Its purpose is to ensure that the federal funds in the agreed-upon amount are spent in accordance with all applicable state and federal laws and regulations. The agreement also specifies the procedure for payment and reimbursement on the project. If the federal aid participation ratio entered in the agreement is not the maximum rate allowed by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), then the participation ratio entered becomes the maximum rate allowed. No costs are eligible for federal aid reimbursement until authorized in writing by WSDOT. This authorization is separate from the agreement. The total cost of a project (including federal, state, agency, and private funds) must be shown on the Local Agency Agreement for each phase of work that includes federal or state funds. At the time of each phase authorization, all funds necessary to complete the scope of work for that phase must be secured.

General Discussion. Colorectal cancer is the cancer with the second highest cancer incidence in Europe.1 Roughly, one out of three patients with a colorectal malignancy has a rectal carcinoma. Surgery is the cornerstone in the curative treatment of rectal cancer. In the 1980s with conventional surgery, the 5-year local recurrence rate was over 20% and the 5-year over- all survival rate around 50%.2,3 In the Swedish Rectal Cancer trial in which 1168 patients were included, preoperative radiotherapy in addition to conventional surgery resulted in a reduction of more than 50% in the 5-year local recurrence rate in comparison to conventional surgery alone (11% versus 27%; P < 0.001).2 Besides, the 5-year overall survival rate improved from 48% to 58% if patients were treated with preoperative radiotherapy in addition to conventional surgery (P = 0.004).2 With the total mesorectal excision (TME), by which the rectum with its mesorectum and visceral fascia are dissect- ed sharply and under direct vision,4 local recurrence rates dropped and overall survival improved.5,6 In the Dutch TME trial, 5 x 5 Gy preoperative radiotherapy in combination with TME surgery was compared to TME surgery alone (1861 patients). In this trial, the 5-year local recurrence rate for patients treated with TME surgery alone was similar to patients treated in the Swedish Rectal Cancer trial with blunt dissection in combination with preoperative 5 x 5 Gy radiotherapy (11%)2,7 If preoperative radiotherapy was added to TME surgery, 5-year local recurrence rate was reduced to 5.6%7 The overall survival rate at 5 year was 64% for both patients treated with TME surgery alone and patients treated with preoperative radiotherapy followed by TME surgery,7 compared to 48% for patients treated with blunt dissection alone in the previously mentioned Swedish trial.2 TME surgery is now considered the standard surgical procedure for rectal cancer.4 However, even if TME surgery is performed, surgical quality varies.8,9 First, these results indicate that improvements in the surgical procedure itself can result in major progress regarding long-term oncological outcome such as decreased local recurrence rates and improved overall survival. Second, it illustrates that variation in surgical quality could lead to large differences in outcome. Recently, it was shown that surgical variation is not only important for patients with rectal cancer, but also plays an important role for the outcome of patients with colon cancer.10,11

General Discussion. Our results for British and American collective agreement suggest that lexically controlled features are responsible for the differences in plural agreement between the varieties. In spontaneous speaking, specifications of plurality for particular collectives and not dynamic variations in underlying conceptualization create the differences. This is consistent with the third of the three hypotheses we tested, the one that attributes the differences between the dialects to differences in lexically specified number among collective nouns. The lexicons of individual speakers of a dialect may differ as to which collectives are specified as plural, for reasons that may be tracedto differences in linguistic experience but in any case are typical of most types of lexical variation. Across speakers, there will be variability in which collectives are treated as plurals, but lexical rather than notional variability drives the patterns of usage that we found in both experimental elicitation and corpus distribution.

General Discussion. The results of the second study were in accordance with our predictions, and consistent with the results of our first study. Participants who had received high or average respect for their behavioral descriptions, perceived themselves as respected and showed higher feelings of affective commitment in comparison with participants who perceived themselves as disrespected (see also Branscombe et al., 2002; ▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2002, 2003; ▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇▇, 2003; Ellemers et al., 2004; ▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇▇, 1988; ▇▇▇▇▇ and ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2003; ▇▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇, 1992; ▇▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2000, 2003). Additionally, in contrast with the respected participants, those who were disrespected showed higher levels of situational group attachment an>iety and indicated more psychological disengagement as e>pressed in intentions to leave the group. When focusing on the motivational basis of the engagement participants displayed on the discretionary group efforts measure, we found that the e>tra behavioral efforts that contribute to the group are indeed activated by two different motives. This confirms the validity of our argument that different underlying motives can evoke outwardly similar behavioral displays: Whereas respected participants were stimulated to e>ert more discretionary group efforts to the e>tent that they e>perienced more feelings of affective commitment with the task-group (the carrot), disrespected people showed enhanced behavioral engagement in discretionary group efforts when they felt more situational group attachment an>iety (the stick; see also ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2000). Thus, in E>periment 4, we successfully replicated the effect on actual discretionary group efforts. As predicted, and similar to E>periment 3, compared to average respected group members both high and low respected participants showed enhanced effort e>ertion on discretionary group efforts, but only when they perceived the respect received as diagnostic and related to their position within the group (cf. De Cremer, 2002; ▇▇▇▇▇▇ et al., 2002, 2003; ▇▇▇▇ et al., 1995). In the non-diagnostic condition, where it was made clear to participants that the respect received was not predictive of their ingroup position and could be regarded as occasional feedback, the effect on e>tra effort did not appear as predicted. The results of the present contribution uncover new directions in research on intra-group dynamics. Specifically, by e>amining the operation of a collective motive, enhanced by higher levels of affective com...

General Discussion. 7.1 Key findings The key findings of this dissertation pertain to the following topics: - Plant knowledge retentions in Brazil, taking as a historical reference the HNB and considering the phytogeographical range of the documented useful species. - The presence of these species in contemporary Brazilian markets and the preservation of their vernacular names. - The depiction of a specific plant (Cascabela thevetia– Ahoay) in Late-Renaissance and Early Modern treatises (including the HNB) and its representation in museums today. - The floristic composition of the Libri Picturati, its connection with the printed works (▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ & Piso, 1648; Piso, 1658), and ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇’s herbarium. - The sources used to elaborate the plant woodcuts in the HNB and IURNM and the methods of plant collection employed by naturalists and artists in the colony. Regarding botanical knowledge and plant distribution, we found substantial retentions of plant practices between contemporary and seventeenth century (Dutch) Brazil. These practices, although in majority associated with Indigenous Brazilians, reflect a mix of cultures and ethnical backgrounds that resulted from pre-Columbian migrations and plant trade between Indigenous groups, as well as their (forced) contact with the Europeans. The HNB reported crops and weeds of African origin due to the numerous shipments of plants and people during the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Botanical adaptation strategies and the resilience of the enslaved population in the unknown land facilitated the persistence of these plants in tropical America. Although the territory of Dutch Brazil was relatively small compared to the vast extension of the country, its flora encompassed a broad distribution range. Hence, the HNB was partly representative of the whole country (as was advertised at the time) and fulfilled the purposes of naturalists, physicians, and traders who wanted to study or commodify the tropical flora. Regarding our study of Brazilian plant markets, we concluded that the large geographical range of the HNB species, migrations, and the diversity in market survey methods, explained that most of the HNB plants are being sold in northern markets instead of Recife, where the HNB originated. Regarding vernacular names, we also found the greatest correlation with the HNB in northern markets (Bélem and Boa Vista). Most of the overlapping names were Indigenous plant names, mostly belonging to the macro-linguistic Tupi family, except for a few th...

General Discussion. The present study is the first electrophysiological investigation of the effect of name agreement during covert picture naming (in which images are seen and named silently ‗in the head‘). We found that, following picture onset, a P1 occurs at around 120ms, followed by an N1 at around 170ms, a P2 at around 220ms, followed by an N2 at around 290ms; finally a P3 showed at around 400ms in clusters over the parietal and occipital areas. The peaks of the ERP waveform thus appear very similar to the average ERP waveform reported in Greenham et al.‘s (2000) study where a similar paradigm, covert picture naming, was used. Our prime motivation was to observe and report on differences between ERP waves during covert naming of pictures with low and with high name agreement. We were also interested in whether the apparent timing of name agreement phenomena might suggest where further targeted work should be done. We observed an early main effect of Name Agreement, and an early interaction between Name Agreement, Hemisphere, and Cluster in the P1 time window. In the left frontal and parietal clusters, P1 to HNA pictures was more positive than P1 to LNA pictures, while there was no such difference in the right parietal cluster. For LNA pictures, amplitude in the left frontal and parietal clusters was lower than for HNA pictures. Somewhat later, another main effect of Name Agreement and an interaction with Hemisphere was found in the N2 time window. In the left parietal cluster, N2 to HNA pictures was less negative than N2 to LNA pictures, while no such difference was observed in the right parietal cluster. Similarly, N2 amplitude to LNA pictures was lower in the left parietal cluster than in the right parietal cluster. Finally, we observed a main effect of Name Agreement in the late time window. We will first consider potential low level attentional explanations for these data, before discussion of mechanisms more specific to the lexical-semantic system. The two early ERP components, P1 and N1, have been well documented in previous literature on attention (e.g., reviewed in ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2001; ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇▇-▇▇▇▇▇, 1998). In the visual attention literature, P1 typically peaks around 120ms after stimulus presentation (Heinze, Mangun, ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, Hinrichs, Scholz, ▇▇▇▇▇, Gos, ▇▇▇▇▇▇, ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ et al., 1994). It may reflect a facilitation of early sensory processing for stimuli presented at an attended location (cited in ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2001, p469; ▇▇▇▇,...

General Discussion. Do teacher-student congruent perceptions predict intrinsic motivation?‌ The study’s main hypothesis was confirmed; congruency in teacher-student perception of assessment for learning practices (i.e., monitoring and scaffold- ing) predicted higher student intrinsic motivation (Chapter 4). In a multilevel structural equation model this effect accounted for 70% of classroom (aggre- gated group level) and 33% of individual students’ intrinsic motivation. In accordance with Self-Determination Theory (▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇, 2000), the con- gruency of monitoring and scaffolding perceptions predicts students’ intrinsic motivation. The relationship between intrinsic motivation and congruency in the perception of scaffolding was found to be fully mediated by the fulfilment of students’ basic needs for competence, autonomy and relatedness, whereas the relationship between congruent teacher-student perceptions of monitoring with interest was mediated by relatedness only. The reason to focus on intrin- sic motivation in particular, rather than on intrinsic motivation in addition to extrinsic motivation, lies in earlier research findings. The Self-Determination Theory has been found to accurately describe the process of becoming intrinsi- cally motivated (e.g., ▇▇▇▇▇, 2005), but similar validations of how differential fulfilment of self-determination theory’s basic needs of motivation affect the more extrinsic forms of motivation (▇▇▇▇ & Deci, 2000) are still lacking. The relationship between the two is not well understood and its study is hampered by conceptual as well as instrumental challenges (▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ et al., 2006; ▇▇▇▇▇▇ & ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2007). The question remains in what way perceptual congruency between teach- ers and students is a more important predictor of intrinsic motivation than solely the perspective of the student. The results of this dissertation offer an insight into the complex relation between perceptions and classroom factors. The reported cross-sectional association between perception congruencies and motivational factors, such as relatedness towards the teacher (Chapter 3), sup- port our hypothesis and confirm conclusions or hypotheses of earlier studies (▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2010; ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2001). Now that it has become apparent that congruent perceptions associate positively with need fulfillment and intrinsic motivation, it would be of particular interest to confirm this hypothesis in ex- periments to determine whether congruencies are important causes of intrinsic m...

General Discussion. The effectiveness of eRehabilitation is not only influenced by the intervention itself, but also by the implementation strategy and the context in which the intervention is implemented. These latter two aspects often vary from one intervention, organisation or country to the other [1,2]. This complex interplay between the effectiveness, the implementation and the context of an eRehabilitation intervention in stroke care constitutes the focus of the present thesis. The Fit After Stroke @Home (▇▇▇▇@▇▇▇▇) project is the central study in this thesis. It consisted of the following phases (Figure 1): 1. a thorough and structured investigation of the anticipated barriers/facilitators in the context of the specialised rehabilitation facility. With this information, an eRehabilitation intervention and a tailored implementation strategy were developed, simultaneously with the control period of the effect study. After this, 2. the effectiveness; and 3. the implementation strategy of the eRehabilitation intervention was evaluated. Studying these three different phases in the same clinical setting enabled us to interpret the effect of the intervention in the context in which it was used and evaluated the extent to which the implementation and context influenced the effects. Considering the results of the studies, this thesis leads to a deeper understanding of how and why eRehabilitation works, compared to merely studying the effectiveness of an eRehabilitation intervention as independent tool. Apart from the relevance of the results for patients and healthcare professionals, the outcomes can be used to inform other stakeholders, including directors, managers and policymakers regarding the future implementation and upscaling of eRehabilitation [3]. This chapter discusses the interplay between the multiple phases of the research projects (the effectiveness, the implementation and the context). Besides, recommendations for future research and clinical practice are given. Executing and evaluating the implementation strategy (15 months) 7

General Discussion. The findings of the five studies included in this thesis show that rehabilitation greatly influences the lives of individuals with HL concerning their speech understanding, language development, social wellbeing, and school career. We would like to further delve into the perspective of patients with HL who are confronted with obstacles and future possibilities in the following sections.