English for General Academic Purpose (EGAP) is crucial for cultivating high-quality innovative talents, focusing on developing their practical competence in academic English for communication, research and professional practice. With the in-depth integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into education, traditional EGAP teaching faces challenges like insufficient interaction and inefficient personalized guidance. Thus, human-computer collaborative teaching becomes an inevitable direction for EGAP reform. Based on previous research deficiencies and the latest AIGC development, this study optimizes the “one-core, three-orders and seven-synergies” model (grounded in PBL and supported by AIGC), integrating strengths of teachers, AI systems and students to expand EGAP teaching boundaries. Supplemented with new empirical data and cases, it verifies the upgraded model’s effectiveness, providing targeted theoretical and practical support for AI-EGAP integration and promoting EGAP teaching quality.

This study examines a comparative rhetorical analysis of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s 2015 and 2023 open letters. It explores how he strategically employs Aristotelian appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos to influence political discourse in Nigeria. Through a qualitative analysis of both texts, the research reveals a clear evolution in Obasanjo’s rhetorical approach, shaped by the country’s shifting political and socio-economic landscape. The 2015 letter adopts a confrontational tone anchored in authoritative ethos and fear-based pathos, reflecting national instability and leadership dissatisfaction, while, by contrast, the 2023 letter embodies a more inclusive and hopeful rhetoric, emphasizing collective responsibility and logical argumentation to engage an increasingly participatory electorate. The study demonstrates how political communication adapts to contextual realities and public expectations. It contributes to the growing body of African rhetorical scholarship by highlighting the dynamic interplay between credibility, emotion, and logic in shaping persuasive political messages. The findings suggest that rhetorical evolution is not merely stylistic but a strategic response to democratic maturation and audience awareness.

Background: Clear aligner therapy (CAT) offers aesthetic and hygienic advantages over traditional fixed orthodontic appliances. However, its uptake is influenced by patients' knowledge, attitudes, perceptions (KAP) and acceptance of the treatment. This study aimed to evaluate the KAP towards CAT among patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment and to identify demographic and socioeconomic factors influencing these attitudes. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted at a private hospital in Lagos, Nigeria, involving all consenting follow-up orthodontic patients undergoing fixed appliance orthodontic therapy. A validated self-administered questionnaire assessed demographic characteristics and KAP toward CAT. Data were analysed using SPSS v26 and R software, employing chi-square and logistic regression. Results: Among 232 participants, only 50% had heard of CAT, and just 27.6% demonstrated good knowledge. About 52.2% showed a positive attitude, and 50.9% had a favourable perception. Significant associations were found between attitude and age (p = 0.022), education (p = 0.030), ethnicity (p = 0.035), and income (p = 0.013). Income uncertainty was a negative predictor of a favourable attitude (OR = 0.42, p = 0.025). Conclusion: Knowledge of CAT among patients treated with fixed appliances is limited, despite moderate awareness and positive attitudes. Educational and economic factors significantly influence acceptance. Improved education and affordability could enhance uptake of aligner therapy.

Managerial pricing decisions are central to organizational profitability but are often compromised by systematic cognitive biases. This study investigates how anchoring, loss aversion, and overconfidence distort managerial pricing judgments and identifies the psychological mechanisms through which these effects occur. The study pursues four objectives: first, to quantify the individual effects of anchoring, loss aversion, and overconfidence on pricing accuracy; second, to examine their joint and interactive influence on pricing distortions; third, to develop and empirically test a bias-corrected managerial pricing framework integrating behavioral factors; and fourth, to generate robust empirical evidence that advances the fragmented behavioral pricing literature and informs debiased pricing practices. Using a between-subjects experimental design, 240 experienced managers were randomly assigned to anchoring, loss-aversion, overconfidence, or control conditions and completed a realistic pricing simulation. Pricing error was measured as deviation from optimal benchmarks, alongside assessments of cognitive distortion and confidence bias. Results show that all three biases significantly increased pricing errors, with anchoring and loss aversion exerting the strongest direct effects. Mediation and structural equation modeling reveal that cognitive distortion is the primary pathway through which bias-inducing conditions translate into pricing errors, while confidence bias plays a secondary but reinforcing role, particularly under overconfidence. When multiple biases co-occur, their effects compound, producing larger deviations from optimal prices. The findings make a theoretical contribution by providing an integrated, pricing-specific account of multiple managerial biases and empirically validating a dual-mediation framework linking bias, cognition, and pricing outcomes. Practically, the results highlight the value of structured decision protocols, calibration training, and decision-support systems as effective interventions for improving pricing accuracy and managerial decision quality.

Laser dentistry has emerged as a significant advancement in modern dental practice, offering a minimally invasive alternative to conventional instruments such as scalpels and rotary devices. Its growing popularity is driven by improved precision, enhanced patient comfort, reduced postoperative complications, and expanding clinical applications across multiple dental specialties. This narrative review aims to explore the expanding role of lasers in dentistry, focusing on their fundamental principles, clinical applications, advantages, limitations, and future directions. The literature consistently highlights benefits such as reduced bleeding, decreased pain, faster healing, and improved patient acceptance. However, challenges including high cost, operator dependency, learning curve, and variability in clinical evidence continue to limit universal adoption. Overall, laser dentistry represents a transformative tool in contemporary dental care, with strong potential for further integration into routine practice as technology advances and evidence continues to grow.

This study examines the evolution of the center–periphery structure in Japanese intellectual history through the thought of Motoori Norinaga and Yanagita Kunio. It explores how Japan sought self-identity and independence under external cultural and academic pressures. During the Edo period, under the influence of Chinese civilization, Motoori Norinaga reinterpreted the Huayi distinction, emphasizing indigenous tradition and Shinto thought while rejecting China’s absolute centrality and repositioning Japan as a cultural center. In the modern era, facing a Western-dominated academic system, Yanagita Kunio proposed “national folklore studies” to secure the autonomy of Japanese scholarship through a strategy of relative centralization. By comparing their approaches, this study reveals both continuity and transformation in Japan’s center–periphery structure. It argues that despite differences in historical context and disciplinary focus, both thinkers retained the hierarchical logic of the center–periphery framework while redefining Japan’s position within it.

The present study examined the impact of treadmill and resistance training packages on selected motor fitness components and skill performance variables among hockey players. A pre-test and post-test randomized group design was employed. Forty-five male hockey players (aged group 19–25 years) were selected from affiliated colleges of Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, Tamilnadu, India. They were randomly assigned into three groups: group I Treadmill Training Group (TTG), group II Resistance Training Group (RTG) and group III Control Group (CG), with fifteen participants in each group. The TTG and RTG underwent their respective training interventions on alternate days for twelve weeks, while the control group followed their regular academic routine without additional training. Motor fitness variables such as cardiovascular endurance and agility, along with performance variables including stick control and passing accuracy, were assessed. Statistical analysis was conducted by using paired sample t-tests and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) at a 0.05 level of significance. The results revealed significant improvements (p ≤ .05) in all selected motor fitness and performance variables for both experimental groups compared to the control group. The findings indicate that treadmill training and resistance training packages are effective methods for enhancing physical fitness and skill performance among university hockey players.