Data mining traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) lessons learnt from mining in law and allopathic medicine

Key decisions at the collection, pre-processing, transformation, mining and interpretation phase of any knowledge discovery from database (KDD) process depend heavily on assumptions and theorectical perspectives relating to the type of task to be performed and characteristics of data sourced. In this article, we compare and contrast theoretical perspectives and assumptions taken in data mining exercises in the legal domain with those adopted in data mining in TCM and allopathic medicine. The juxtaposition results in insights for the application of KDD for Traditional Chinese Medicine.

A framework for mathematics graphical tasks : The influence of the graphic element on student sense making

Graphical tasks have become a prominent aspect of mathematics assessment. From a conceptual stance, the purpose of this study was to better understand the composition of graphical tasks commonly used to assess students’ mathematics understandings. Through an iterative design, the investigation described the sense making of 11–12-year-olds as they decoded mathematics tasks which contained a graphic. An ongoing analysis of two phases of data collection was undertaken as we analysed the extent to which various elements of text, graphics, and symbols influenced student sense making. Specifically, the study outlined the changed behaviour (and performance) of the participants as they solved graphical tasks that had been modified with respect to these elements. We propose a theoretical framework for understanding the composition of a graphical task and identify three specific elements which are dependently and independently related to each other, namely: the graphic; the text; and the symbols. Results indicated that although changes to the graphical tasks were minimal, a change in student success and understanding was most evident when the graphic element was modified. Implications include the need for test designers to carefully consider the graphics embedded within mathematics tasks since the elements within graphical tasks greatly influence student understanding.

Prevalence of papillary changes and folliculosis of the palpebral conjunctiva in asymptomatic Chinese children

Purpose To determine the prevalence of papillary changes of the upper palpebral conjunctiva and folliculosis of the lower palpebral conjunctiva in Chinese children with no history of contact lens wear. Method Ninety-nine subjects (aged 6–15 years old) who were interested in a myopia control study were screened for papillary changes and folliculosis of the palpebral conjunctiva. Photodocumentation was performed under white and blue light (after the application of fluorescein) with a yellow filter and the photographs were graded by a group of practitioners according to a pre-set grading scale. Analysis was performed with the subjects divided into groups according to gender and age. Results More than 48% of the subjects had clinically significant (≥Grade 3) papillary changes in the upper palpebral conjunctiva. The prevalence of significant folliculosis in the lower lid was about 33%. The prevalence of significant papillary changes and folliculosis were similar between genders. No differences were observed between younger (age ≤ 10 years old) and older (age > 10 years old) in papillary changes but younger subjects showed a higher prevalence of folliculosis. Conclusions The prevalences of clinically significant papillary changes and folliculosis of unknown aetiology are high in Chinese children.

Chinese fashion designers in Shanghai : identifying a fresh perspective about their role in the world order of fashion

Shanghai possesses an apt legacy, once referred to as “Paris of the East”. Municipal aspirations for Shanghai to assume a position among the great fashion cities of the world have been integrated in the recent re-shaping of this modern city into a role model for Chinese creative enterprise yet China is still known primarily as centre of clothing production. Increasingly however, “Made in China” is being replaced by “Created in China” drawing attention to two distinct consumer markets for Chinese designers. Fashion designers who have entered the global fashion system for education or by showing their collections have generally adopted a design aesthetic that aligns with Western markets, allowing little competitive advantage. In contrast, Chinese designers who rest their attention on the domestic Chinese market find a disparate, highly competitive marketplace. The pillars of authenticity that for foreign fashion brands extend far into their cultural and creative histories, often for many decades in the case of Louis Vuitton, Hermes and Christian Dior do not yet exist in China in this era of rapid globalisation. Here, the cultural bedrock allows these same pillars to extend only thirty years or so into the past reaching the moments when Deng Xiaoping granted China’s creative entrepreneurs passage. To this end, interviews with fashion designers in Shanghai have been undertaken during the last twelve months for a PhD dissertation. Production of culture theory has been used to identify working methods, practices of production and the social and cultural milieu necessary for designers to achieve viability. Preliminary findings indicate that some fashion designers have adopted an as-yet unexplored strategy of business and brand development with a distinct Chinese aesthetic at its core, in contrast to the clichéd cultural iconography often viewed by Western viewers as representative of Chinese creativity.

Chinese fashion designers in Shanghai : a new perspective about their role in the construction of a fashion city

Shanghai possesses an apt legacy, once referred to as ‘Paris of the East’. Municipal aspirations for Shanghai to assume a position among the great fashion cities of the world have been integrated in the recent re-shaping of this modern city into a role model for Chinese creative enterprise yet China is still known primarily as centre of clothing production. Increasingly however, ‘Made in China’ is being replaced by ‘Created in China’ drawing attention to two distinct consumer markets for Chinese designers. Fashion designers who have entered the global fashion system for education or by showing their collections have generally adopted a design aesthetic that aligns with Western markets, allowing little competitive advantage. In contrast, Chinese designers who rest their attention on the domestic Chinese market find a disparate, highly competitive marketplace. The pillars of authenticity that for foreign fashion brands extend far into their cultural and creative histories, often for many decades in the case of Louis Vuitton, Hermes and Christian Dior do not yet exist in China in this era of rapid globalisation. Here, the cultural bedrock allows these same pillars to extend only thirty years or so into the past reaching the moments when Deng Xiaoping granted China’s creative entrepreneurs passage. To this end, interviews with fashion designers in Shanghai have been undertaken during the last twelve months for a PhD dissertation. Production of culture theory has been used to identify working methods, practices of production and the social and cultural milieu necessary for designers to achieve viability. Preliminary findings indicate that some fashion designers have adopted an as-yet unexplored strategy of business and brand development with a distinct Chinese aesthetic at its core, in contrast to the clichéd cultural iconography often viewed by Western viewers as representative of Chinese creativity. The development of this aesthetic is similar to the development of the Scandinavian design ethos that emerged during the 1950s.

Teacher aides and their pedagogical contributions in the underachieving Indigenous mathematics classroom

This study examines the pedagogical contributions made by teacher aides in underperforming Indigenous mathematics secondary classrooms. Three teaching teams, each consisting of a teacher and their teacher aide, responded to semi-structured interviews. Their mathematics classrooms were observed for details of pedagogical contributions to the mathematics lessons. It was found that the pedagogical contributions of the teacher aides varied from co-teaching contributions, to the provision of menial support and behaviour management. The techniques used by the teacher aides to provide student feedback, to support behaviour management and to undertake questioning vary greatly, and this variance is also evident in the classroom atmosphere. Teacher aides are providing pedagogical contributions, and are engaged in instructional interactions, and are in a sense “teaching”.

A sociological quantitative study about Chineseness and Chinese heritage language for young Chinese Australian adults in urban Australia

The relationship between Heritage Language and ethnic identity has gained significant research ground in North America. However, there is a dearth of similar research conducted in other regions of the world. There seems to be little if any work investigating the link between Chinese Australians’ ethnic identity and their Chinese Heritage Language. This sociological quantitative study interpreted Chinese Australians’ “Chineseness” as their ethnic identity, linked this “Chineseness” to their Chinese Heritage Language, and did so by virtue of Bourdieu’s key concept ‘habitus’. 227 cases were analyzed by Structural Equation Modelling. The result demonstrated a statistically significant strong positive relationship between Chinese Australian urban young adults’ “Chineseness” and their self-perceptions of their Chinese Heritage Language proficiency (r=.73). This paper explained the findings in light of Bourdieu’s (1991) contention that people make choices about languages according to the habitus they have.

The process and patterns of combining the use of traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine in Taiwanese people with cancer

Objective: The nature of contemporary cancer therapy means that patients are faced with difficult treatment decisions about surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. For some, this process may also involve consideration of therapies that sit outside the biomedical approach to cancer treatment, in our research, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Thus, it is important to explore how cancer patients in Taiwan incorporate TCM into their cancer treatment journey. This paper aims to explore of the patterns of combining the use of TCM and Western medicine into cancer treatment journey in Taiwanese people with cancer. Methods: The sampling was purposive and the data collected through in-depth interviews. Data collection occurred over an eleven month. The research was grounded in the premises of symbolic interactionism and adopted the methods of grounded theory. Twenty four participants who were patients receiving cancer treatment were recruited from two health care settings in Taiwan. Results: The study findings suggest that perceptions of health and illness are mediated through ongoing interactions with different forms of therapy. The participants in this study had a clear focus on “process and patterns of using TCM and Western medicine”. Further, ‘different importance in Western medicine and TCM’, ‘taken for granted to use TCM’, ‘each has specialized skills in Western medicine and TCM’ and ‘different symptoms use different approaches (Western medicine or TCM)’ may explicit how the participants in this study see CAM and Western medicine. Conclusions/Implications for practice: The descriptive frame of the study suggests that TCM and Western medicine occupy quite distinct domains in terms of decision making over their use. People used TCM based on interpretations of the present and against a background of an enduring cultural legacy grounded in Chinese philosophical beliefs about health and healthcare. The increasingly popular term of 'integrative medicine' obscures the complex contexts of the patterns of use of both therapeutic modalities. It is this latter point that is worthy of further exploration.

Heritage language for young Chinese Australian adults in urban Australia : Capital and habitus in fields

Studies of Heritage Language learners‟ commitment and their ethnic identity are increasing, yet there is scant sociological research addressing topics relating to Chinese Heritage Language learners. Drawing on Bourdieu‟s signature notions of „habitus‟, „capital‟, and „field‟, this mixed methods study investigates two problems: (1) impacts of “Chineseness” and accessible resources on Chinese Heritage Language proficiency of young Chinese Australian adults in urban Australia; and (2) the meanings of Chinese Heritage Language to these young people.

ICT driven pedagogies and its impact on learning outcomes in high school mathematics

ICT (Information and Communication Technology) creates numerous opportunities for teachers to re-think their pedagogies. In subjects like mathematics which draws upon abstract concepts, ICT creates such an opportunity. Instead of a mimetic pedagogical approach, suitably designed activities with ICT can enable learners to engage more proactively with their learning. In this quasi-experimental designed study, ICT was used in teaching mathematics to a group of first year high school students (N=25) in Australia. The control group was taught predominantly through traditional pedagogies (N=22). Most of the variables that had previously impacted on the design of such studies were suitably controlled in this yearlong investigation. Quantitative and qualitative results showed that students who were taught by ICT driven pedagogies benefitted from the experience. Pre and post-test means showed that there was a difference between the treatment and control groups. Of greater significance was that the students (in the treatment group) believed that the technology enabled them to engage more with their learning.

Factors that influence Chinese TEFL academics' research capacity building : an institutional case study

Research capacity building has become a prominent theme in higher education institutions across the world. To build research capacity, it is necessary to identify areas of challenges academics face within the academia. This case study focuses on Chinese teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) academics with the purpose of identifying factors that influence their research capacity building. Six TEFL academics from a Chinese national university were interviewed and institutional research documents were analysed. Findings showed that obstacles and difficulties in conducting research were more related to departmental factors than individual characteristics. The institution was keen on developing a research culture, and encouraged research and publications. Departmental support for research was improving, but it seems that it was more generic than tailored to individual needs. The findings of this study provide implications for research administrators in further supporting TEFL academics’ research capacity building.

Cultural diplomacy with Chinese characteristics : the case of Confucius Institutes in Australia

Since 2004,China has set up more than 400 Confucius Institutes and 500 Confucius Classrooms in 108 countries to promote Chinese language and culture. Despite these impressive numbers, these institutions are still surprisingly under-studied. This article uses Confucius Institutes in Australia as a case study to deepen the understanding of China’s new cultural diplomacy tool. The article describes Confucius Institutes as a form of strategic stakeholder engagement and argues that this collaborative tool of cultural diplomacy depends heavily on the commitment of its local stakeholders.

Theories of learning mathematics

According to Karl Popper, widely regarded as one of the greatest philosophers of science in the 20th century, falsifiability is the primary characteristic that distinguishes scientific theories from ideologies – or dogma. For example, for people who argue that schools should treat creationism as a scientific theory, comparable to modern theories of evolution, advocates of creationism would need to become engaged in the generation of falsifiable hypothesis, and would need to abandon the practice of discouraging questioning and inquiry. Ironically, scientific theories themselves are accepted or rejected based on a principle that might be called survival of the fittest. So, for healthy theories on development to occur, four Darwinian functions should function: (a) variation – avoid orthodoxy and encourage divergent thinking, (b) selection – submit all assumptions and innovations to rigorous testing, (c) diffusion – encourage the shareability of new and/or viable ways of thinking, and (d) accumulation – encourage the reuseability of viable aspects of productive innovations.