Improving students’ use of argumentation is front and center in the increasing emphasis on scientific practice in K-12 Science and STEM programs. We explore the construct validity of scenario-based assessments of claim-evidence-reasoning (CER) and the structure of the CER construct with respect to a learning progression framework. We also seek to understand how middle school students progress. Establishing the purpose of an argument is a competency that a majority of middle school students meet, whereas quantitative reasoning is the most difficult, and the Rasch model indicates that the competencies form a unidimensional hierarchy of skills. We also find no evidence of differential item functioning between different scenarios, suggesting

An Intelligent Internet of Things network based on an Artificial Intelligent System, can substantially control and reduce the congestion effects in the network. In this paper, an artificial intelligent system is proposed for eliminating the congestion effects in traffic load in an Intelligent Internet of Things network based on a deep learning Convolutional Recurrent Neural Network with a modified Element-wise Attention Gate. The invisible layer of the modified Element-wise Attention Gate structure has self-feedback to increase its long short-term memory. The artificial intelligent system is implemented for next step ahead traffic estimation and clustering the network. In the proposed architecture, each sensing node is adaptive and able to

Ground-based active optical sensors (GBAOS) have been successfully used in agriculture to predict crop yield potential (YP) early in the season and to improvise N rates for optimal crop yield. However, the models were found weak or inconsistent due to environmental variation especially rainfall. The objectives of the study were to evaluate if GBAOS could predict YP across multiple locations, soil types, cultivation systems, and rainfall differences. This study was carried from 2011 to 2013 on corn (Zea mays L.) in North Dakota, and in 2017 in potatoes in Maine. Six N rates were used on 50 sites in North Dakota and 12 N rates on two sites, one dryland and one irrigated, in Maine. Two active GBAOS used for this study were GreenSeeker and Holl

Background: MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) is a global health problem. Many people are looking for new ways to combat MRSA, for example by using bacteriophages (phages). It has been extremely challenging to isolate a sufficient quantity of lytic anti-MRSA phages. Therefore, new techniques for separating, refining, and reworking anti-MRSA phages were sought in this study.

Methods: Of 437 S. aureus isolates, nine clinical MRSA isolates were obtained from three hospitals in Baghdad, Iraq and two ATCC MRSA strains were used to separate wild anti-MRS

Soil tillage is a critical agricultural practice that creates favorable conditions for seedbed preparation and plant growth. This study presents an innovative application of artificial intelligence (AI) in agriculture by employing the YOLOv7 algorithm to classify and assess post-tillage soil surface conditions, a domain underexplored in current research. The integration of mechanical operation parameters with AI-based image classification enables optimization of tillage quality and mitigation of soil compaction, highlighting the novelty of this approach. The study aims to improve the efficiency of moldboard plow operations by examining the effects of tillage speed and depth on soil clod distribution, fuel consumption, and power requ

Twisting and coiling actuators (TCAs) are lightweight artificial muscles that can produce large linear contractions while lifting heavy loads with low power. A TCA consists of two or more strings connected to a rotational motor and a load. When activated, the strings twist and coil, causing contraction. This study presents a data-driven framework for modeling TCA behavior using experimental data. Polynomial regression, Support Vector Regression (SVR), and symbolic regression were applied using the motor angle and payload weight as inputs. The models were evaluated under various loads and implemented in a neck-rehabilitation prototype. SVR showed the highest accuracy (RMSE: 6.17 mm upward, 4.98 mm downward); however, it lacks a closed-form e