The treatment of epilepsies with Convulsofin

The testing of Convulsofin carried out in 220 patients at 14 clinics over a period of six months confirms the international experience gained with valproic acid and sodium valproinate. The main field of application of Convulsofin according to the experience gained will again be the treatment of fits in generalised primary epilepsy for which it permits to carry out a monotherapy to a remarkable extent. The favourable effect of the preparation in photosensitivity could be confirmed. Also in generalised secondary epilepsy and in fits of partial epilepsy. Convulsofin is partly effective, so that it can recommended as a co-medication in the treatment of therapy-resistant forms of these epilepsies which are difficult to treat. Decrease in thrombocytes, transient increase in serum transaminases, gastrointestinal disorders, loss of hair and undesired increases in body-weight were the more frequently occurring side-effects.     

Treatment of handwriting problems utilizing EMG biofeedback training.

The effects of EMG biofeedback training on cursive handwriting were investigated for 4 girls and 5 boys in Grade 4. A significant reduction in EMG between the first baseline session and the last training session was obtained. Four of 5 characteristics of handwriting improved significantly. The need for carefully designed research comparing EMG biofeedback training and relaxation training was indicated. A self-control factor in handwriting was hypothesized.     

SHORT- AND LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF CONTINGENCY MANAGED INSTRUCTION ON LOW,MEDIUM, AND HIGH GPA STUDENTS1

Undergraduate students had been assigned to a contingency managed course or a conventional lecture course (Du Nann and Fernald, Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 1976, 9 , 373–374). Two years later, some 35% (N = 86) of the original classes responded to a letter offering them $2.00 to participate in a study of their educational experiences. These students completed a multiple-choice test on material from the course, and answered questions about activities and attitudes that might have been affected by the experience in Introductory Psychology. In the contingency management course 2 yr past, students were tested each week on a chapter of textbook material with 10-item multiple-choice quizzes. The course employed a modified “Doomsday Contingency”, requiring each student to achieve 80% mastery on one of the four weekly quizzes or drop the course. Quizzes were given in small groups and scored individually, while the student stood near, by an undergraduate proctor assigned to that group. The proctor was asked to show interest in the students' quiz performances, help clear up difficult areas, and develop a friendly working relationship with each student. While many students passed the quiz on the first attempt, others were given individual tutoring, so that no one was in fact forced to drop the course. In addition to the weekly quiz assignment, students in the contingency managed group were asked to attend one lecture each week. While the contingency management course procedures had much in common with PSI (Keller, Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 1968, 1 , 79–89), several departures made them unique. First, self-pacing was curtailed because students were required to master one unit per week or drop the course. Second, proctors met with students in small groups, usually giving individual tutoring only to those students who did not pass the quiz on the first attempt. Finally, students were asked to attend one lecture per week. Students in the conventional lecture group were not asked to pass weekly quizzes, but instead attended three 50-min lectures each week. Two of these lectures followed the textbook material closely, while the third, which was also attended by students from the contingency management course, covered material only indirectly related to the text. This partition of lecture content allowed material to be similar across the two instructional groups. Although students in the lecture condition were told they could obtain copies of the quizzes, few of them did so. Course grades were determined by scores on two 45-item multiple-choice hourly exams, each covering half the semester material (each worth 25%), and by a 90-item final exam, which served as a measure of short-term retention. Before analyzing the follow-up data, several characteristics of the returning students were compared to determine the comparability of the sample from the two original classes. Most important, both attrition and the current mean GPAs of students from the two classes were very similar. These considerations, and others, suggested there was no systematic sampling bias to confound comparisons of student performance. A 2 (contingency management versus traditional lecture) by 3 (high, medium, and low GPA) analysis of variance was computed on the course final-exam scores and the follow-up measures. Instructional procedure and GPA interacted on the final exam such that low and medium GPA students performed significantly better under contingency management, but there was no significant effect of instructional procedure with high GPA students. On the 2-yr retention measures, students from the contingency management course performed significantly (p < 0.01) better on items drawn from quizzes used in their original course, and marginally better (p < 0.10) on items drawn from the final exams, but no interactions with GPA appeared. Furthermore, instructional method produced no significant main effects or interaction with how many students became majors or minors in psychology, how many psychology courses were later taken, how many books in psychology were reported to have been read, or on students' evaluation of the interest and importance of psychology.     

关于科学无神论学科建设的若干意见——在中国无神论学会2008年学术年会上的发言

无神论越来越受到学术界的关注，科学无神论的学科建设已迫在眉睫。本文分析了国内外关于无神论问题的发展形势，提出该学科的建设具有非常重要的意义。本文还对学科建设的有关研究领域与课题提出了建设性意见。     

The Association between Home Environment and Quality of Life in Children and Adolescents in Hangzhou City,China

To investigate the influence of the home environment, defined as family socioeconomic status (SES) (parent education level, household income), student resource-mediated SES (access to nutritional resources and cognitively stimulating experiences), reading ability, and difficulty with homework on quality of life in children and adolescents residing in urban and suburban areas in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China. This study included 3200 Grade 3–6 students from 8 elementary schools in Hangzhou City. Assessments included questionnaires that evaluated student quality of life, family SES, resource-mediated SES (dietary behavior and the home literacy environment), reading ability, and difficulty with homework. The effects of the home environment on student quality of life were analyzed by univariate analysis, multiple linear regression analysis, and structural equation modeling. Overall, 80.6% of students had a medium or better quality of life. Young age (Grade 3 or 4), female sex, household income of 10000–15000 RMB, high breakfast consumption, daily intake of fruit, a balanced diet, and good reading habits were positively correlated with student quality of life (P?<?0.05), while overuse of electronic devices was negatively correlated with quality of life (P?<?0.05). Dietary behaviors, home literacy environment, and student reading ability and difficulty with homework directly affected quality of life. Family SES indirectly affected student quality of life. Children and adolescents in China should have access to good nutrition and cognitively stimulating experiences to enhance their well-being and provide them with social and academic advantages.

     

唯物辩证法与自然科学

在人类几千年的历史长河中,科学技术的发展总是和辩证法交织在一起的,二者是相互促进的,甚至在某些阶段是密不可分的。当然在科学发展史中包含着科学和伪科学的斗争,在辩证法的发展史上也同样包含着唯心主义辩证法和唯物主义辩证法的斗争,这种正反两方面的斗争从来就没有停止过,发生剧烈冲突的例子也是数不胜数,尽管如此,但真理在这条曲折的道路上却一直前进着,这盏照亮人类进步道路的指路明灯虽然时暗时亮,但却从来没有熄灭过,也将永远不会熄灭。反省人类的整个科技史,我们知道当科学和唯心主义辩证法甚至是机械唯物主义辩证法相结合时,会…     

孔子的诚信思想及其社会意义

在孔子思想中,诚信作为一项重要的道德规范,在社会生活的诸多领域发挥着重要作用。就每一个人而言,它是人自身安身立命、成就事业的基础和条件;就人们之间的关系而言,它是人与人之间正常交往、友好相处、建立良好人际关系的重要纽带;就经济和商业活动而言,它是降低成本、提高效益、保障其健康有序运行的前提;就社会政治领域而言,它是基本的立国立民之道,是一个社会文明繁荣、稳定发展的重要保证。今天,在诸多生活领域出现所谓“信用危机”的情况下,批判地继承和弘扬孔子的诚信思想,深入挖掘传统诚信资源,确立诚信观念,对于和谐的人际关系的建立,对于克服经济活动、人际交往和政府行为中的信用危机和失信现象,对于实现社会风气的根本好转,都有着极为重要的意义。