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http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/07/steve-omohundro-and-future-of.html
Steve Omohundro and the future of superintelligence
Steve Omohundro is a computer scientist who has spent decades designing and writing artificial intelligence software. He now heads a startup corporation, Omai Systems, which will license intellectual property related to AI. In an interview with Sander Olson, Omohundro discuss Apollo style AGI programs, limiting runaway growth in AI systems, and the ultimate limits of machine intelligence.
Question: How long have you been working in the AI field?
It's been decades. As a student, I published research in machine vision and after my PhD in physics I went to Thinking Machines to develop parallel algorithms for machine vision and machine learning. Later, at the University of Illinois and other research centers, my students and I built systems to read lips, learn grammars, control robots, and do neural learning very efficiently. My current company, Omai Systems, and several other startups I've been involved with, develop intelligent technologies.
Question: Is it possible to build a computer which exhibits a high degree of general intelligence but which is not self-aware?
Omai Systems is developing intelligent technologies to license to other companies. We are especially focused on smart simulation, automated discovery, systems that design systems, and programs that write programs. I've been working with the issues around self-improving systems for many years and we are developing technology to keep these systems safe. We are working on exciting applications in a number of areas.
I define intelligence as the ability to solve problems using limited resources. It's certainly possible to build systems that can do that without having a model of themselves. But many goal-driven systems will quickly develop the subgoal of improving themselves. And to do that, they will be driven to understand themselves. There are precise mathematical notions of self-modeling, but deciding whether those capture our intuitive sense of "self-awareness" will only come with more experience with these systems, I think.
Question: Is there a maximum limit to how intelligent an entity can become?
Analyses like Bekenstein's bound and Bremermann's limit place physical limits on how much computation physical systems can in principal perform. If the universe is finite, there is only a finite amount of computation that can be performed. If intelligence is based on computation, then that also limits intelligence. But the real interest in AI is in using that computation to solve problems in ever more efficient ways. As systems become smarter, they are likely to be able to use computational resources ever more efficiently. I think those improvements will continue until computational limits are reached. Practically, it appears that Moore's law still has quite a way to go. And if big quantum computers turn out to be practical, then we will have vast new computational resources available.
Question: You have written extensively of self-improving systems. Wouldn't such a system quickly get bogged down by resource limitations?
Many junior high students can program computers. And it doesn't take a huge amount more study to be able to begin to optimize that code. As machines start becoming as smart as humans, they should be able to easily do simple forms of self-improvement. And as they begin to be able to prove more difficult theorems, they should be able to develop more sophisticated algorithms for themselves. Using straightforward physical modeling, they should also be able to improve their hardware. They probably will not be able to reach the absolutely optimal design for the physical resources they have available. But the effects of self-improvement that I've written about don't depend on that in the least. They are very gross drives that should quickly emerge even in very sub-optimal designs.
Question: How would you respond to AI critics who argue that digital computation is not suitable for any form of "thinking"?
They may be right! Until we've actually built thinking machines, we cannot know for sure. But most neuroscientists believe that biological intelligence results from biochemical reactions occurring in the brain, and these processes should be able to be accurately simulated using digital computer hardware. But although brute-force approaches like this are likely to work, I believe that there are much better ways to emulate intelligence on digital machines.
Question: The AI field is seen to be divided between the "neat" and "scruffy" approaches. Which side are you on?
John McCarthy coined the term "Artificial Intelligence" in 1956. He started the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Lab with a focus on logical representations and mathematically "neat" theories. Marvin Minsky started the MIT lab and explored more "scruffy" systems based on neural models, self-organization, and learning. I had the privilege of taking classes on proving lisp programs correct with McCarthy and of working with Minsky at Thinking Machines. I have come to see the value of both approaches and my own current work is a synthesis. We need precise logical representations to capture the semantics of the physical world and we need learning, self-organization, and probabilistic reasoning to build rich enough systems to model the world's complexity.
Question: What is the single biggest impediment to AI development? Lack of funding? Insufficient hardware? An ignorance of how the brain works?
I don't see hardware as the primary limitation. Today's hardware can go way beyond what we are doing with it, and it is still rapidly improving. Funding is an issue. People tend to work on tasks for which they can get funding. And most funding is focused on building near term systems based on narrow AI. Brain science is advancing rapidly, but there still isn't agreement over such basic issues as how memories are encoded, how learning takes place, or how computation takes place. I think there are some fundamental issues we still need to understand.
Question: An Apollo style AGI program would be quite difficult to implement, given the profusion of approaches. Is there any way to address this problem?
The Apollo program was audacious but it involved solving a set of pretty clearly defined problems. The key sub-problems on the road to general AI aren't nearly as clearly defined yet. I know that Ben Goertzel has published a roadmap claiming that human-level AGI can be created by 2023 for $25 million. He may be right, but I don't feel comfortable making that kind of prediction. The best way to address the profusion of ideas is to fund a variety of approaches, and to clearly compare different approaches on the same important sub-problems.
Question: Do you believe that a hard takeoff or a soft takeoff is more likely?
What actually happens will depend on both technological and social forces. I believe either scenario is technologically possible. But I think slower development would be preferable. There will be many challenging moral and social choices we will need to make. I believe we will need time to make those choices wisely. We should do as much experimentation and use as much forethought as possible before making irreversible choices.
Question: What is sandboxing technology?
Sandboxing runs possibly dangerous systems in protected simulation environments to keep them from causing damage. It is used in studying the infection mechanisms of computer viruses, for example. People have suggested that it might be a good way to keep AI systems safe as we experiment with them.
Question: So is it feasible to create a sandboxing system that effectively limits an intelligent machine's ability to interface with the outside world?
Eliezer Yudkowsky did a social experiment in which he played the AI and tried to convince human operators to let him out of the sandbox. In several of his experiments he was able to convince people to let him out of the box, even though they had to pay fairly large sums of real money for doing so. At Omai Systems we are taking a related, but different, approach which uses formal methods to create mathematically provable limitations on systems. The current computing and communications infrastructure is incredibly insecure. One of the first tasks for early safe AI systems will be to help design an improved infrastructure.
Question: If you had a multibillion dollar budget, what steps would you take to rapidly bring about AGI?
I don't think that rapidly bringing about AGI is the best initial goal. I would feel much better about it if we had a clear roadmap for how these systems will be safely integrated into society for the benefit of humanity. So I would be funding the creation of that kind of roadmap and deeply understanding the ramifications of these technologies. I believe the best approach will be to develop provably limited systems and to use those in designing more powerful ones that will have a beneficial impact.
Question: What is your concept of the singularity? Do you consider yourself a singulitarian?
Although I think the concept of a singularity is fascinating, I am not a proponent of the concept. The very term singularity presupposes the way that the future will unfold. And I don't think that presupposition is healthy because I believe a slow and careful unfolding is preferable to a rapid and unpredictable one.
Read more from Interviews
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Survival horror game SOMA is getting an update that removes the "survival" aspect of it. Monsters won't kill you.
I wanted to mention it here because that's the kind of gameplay mode I always wanted to play in these games. I like exploring, enjoying a good storyline. I like scary atmospheres, but I don't particularly enjoy being killed or being afraid for my life. This is what's prevented me from purchasing SOMA... so far.
I play all games on the easiest setting, and I'm not ashamed to admit it.
SOMA was never a particularly scary game. It's psychological-"scary" if anything. It brings up interesting questions about the nature of the self and personhood.
The horror elements always felt shoehorned in; I felt like they were put in there because Frictional didn't want to get accused of making a Walking Sim. (Like the Machine for Pigs Devs). There was actually a mod released a while ago that did this already.
BTW if you've played it and you'd like more science fiction that deals with these themes, I recommend the work of Greg Egan, especially Permutation City and Diaspora.
So I finished the game. Good story, with interesting "metaphysical" implications, even though I had thought about all these questions before.
Some parts of certain levels are still a bit boring and bring little to the game, there are cheap jump scares and unanswered questions, but I enjoyed the game overall.
"Answered questions" are overrated. It's the unanswered ones that you think about.


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Dialogue of Cultures - Culture of Dialogue: f..
10.15405/epsbs.2020.11.03.10
Socio-Cultural Adaptation Of Students In A Foreign Language Environment: Factor Analysis
Fatima I. Valieva ,
Ekaterina A. Ivanova ,
Aleksandra I. Dashkina
The research is devoted to the problem of socio-cultural adaptation of foreign students. The main purpose of the work was to identify and test experimentally the concept of the most probable, significant combination of factors affecting the process of adaptation in a foreign language environment. The article presents a rather complete analysis of the currently available works on the subject under study. The experimental part includes a description of the research tools and method. The analysis of data from the survey of a representative sample of foreign students is presented through statistical analysis of data on average values. Correlation and factor analysis were carried out using SPSS 22. The results obtained identified the most and least significant factors that can optimize and intensify the process of socio-cultural adjustment. In particular, indicators of situational and personal anxiety were identified as basic factors with the highest level of correlation with other characteristics. The factor analysis allowed identifying four block factors, each of which was represented by a set of components. The strongest factor included components of situational and personal anxiety, general indicators of culture shock, and components of linguistic anxiety with a negative value. Gender indicators and methodological aspects of foreign language learning showed minimal importance.
Keywords: Adaptationsocio-culturalanxietyculture shockfactors
Nowadays academic mobility is on the increase with thousands of international students pursuing their educational goals in various countries. It is beneficial for host universities to enroll international students on their study programs, as this would enable them to ensure further prosperous growth. Incoming students not only enrich intellectual and cultural campus environment, but also bring substantial revenue to national economy, making education one of the most profitable service segments (Gebregergis et al., 2020). Students take the advantages of academic mobility programs for several reasons; perfecting foreign language proficiency, developing intercultural communication competence, improving prospects for career development are among the key motivators.
Transition from home country to a new cultural and educational setting can be rather challenging. In this process international students, separated from their natural home culture environment, can experience feelings of uncertainty, loss of confidence, homesickness, apprehension of communication, anxiety and stress (Haverila et al., 2020). This issue was addressed in a number of scientific research with the aim of analyzing the factors influencing international students' adjustment to a new culture.
However, the problem of adaptation in a foreign-language environment remains one of the most topical, as each time it concerns representatives of different cultural and ethnic groups, changing internal and foreign policy situations and other important concomitant factors.
Socio-cultural and psychological adaptation of international students has been at the center of numerous studies (Akarowhe, 2018; Valieva et al., 2019; Yu et al., 2019). Such factors, or variables, as language proficiency, host national contact, cultural distance, perceived discrimination influence the level of students' social adjustment to host culture and psychological well-being (Wilson et al., 2017).
In research literature there have been attempts to investigate the strategies that international students use to overcome the challenges of cross-cultural adaptation (Fu et al., 2018; Peng & Wu, 2019; Wang et al., 2018). Russel et al. (2010) found that generally there are three patterns of adjusting to host culture: positive and connected, unconnected and stressed, and distressed and risk-taking. The majority of international students at Melbourne university (60%) showed constructive and positive approach to their self-identification in a new environment, they experienced a lower level of stress, led a more balanced lifestyle, coped better with their academic assignments. Students within "unconnected and stressed" pattern (34%) found it much more difficult to adapt to a new host setting, showed a high level of dissatisfaction with various aspects of life and were more exposed to stress, anxiety and depression. Students in group three (distressed and risk-taking) were also psychologically distressed but reported lower levels of social exclusion; a characteristic feature of this pattern was students' involvement in extreme behaviours such as drugs, alcohol, gambling, self-harm (Russel et al., 2010). Similarly, positive findings were reported by Gu (2009), who researched the adaptation of Chinese students at a UK university. Although some of the international students had to undergo a difficult and challenging process of finding their path in a new environment, the majority of the examined students managed to survive and successfully adapt to host cultural and educational setting, achieving personal independence, broadening life experience and improving interpersonal and communication skills (Gu, 2009).
A recent review of theoretical approaches to cross-cultural adaptation carried out by Bierwiaczonek and Waldzus (2016) has revealed that one of the most influential models applied in various studies is the bi-dimensional adaptation model proposed by Ward and colleagues. According to this model, cross-cultural adaptation may be divided into two domains: psychological (emotional, affective), which refers to "psychological well-being or satisfaction", and sociocultural (behavioral), "related to the ability to "fit in", to acquire culturally appropriate skills and to negotiate interactive aspects of the host environment" (Ward & Kennedy, 1999, p. 660).
Research aimed at revealing the peculiarities of socio-cultural adaptation of foreign students in Russia has been and is being conducted with sufficient activity. Previous studies show that international students in Russian educational institutions experience major difficulties with socio-cultural adaptation. Language barrier is regarded by most researchers of cross-cultural adaptation as a universal obstacle to integration into host culture environment (Bierwiaczonek & Waldzus, 2016; Teimouri et al., 2019). The Russian language is generally used as language of instruction on the territory of the Russian Federation; at the same time this language in not very widespread outside the country (apart from former Soviet Union republics) and not very often learned as a second or third foreign language. Thus, the majority of international students (from countries other than former Soviet Union) have not learned host language before arriving to Russia.
Given the complexity of the language, it can be assumed that students do not achieve sufficient language proficiency for comprehensive engagement into academic and social interaction. Nevedomskaya et al. (2006) found that international students at a Russian technical university cannot fully understand lectures, seminars and academic literature due to poor knowledge of technical terms and peculiarities of academic style. Language barrier hinders not only communication on campus, but also social contacts with host students and residents outside classroom, which leads to loss of interest and motivation in learning, a decrease in social activity and a low level of adaptation (Lyakh, 2014). To prevent social isolation and widen social network of international students at a Russian university it is essential to gradually involve more personalities into the classroom and arrange opportunities for extracurricular activities and interaction (Vladimirova & Sheveleva, 2017).
A study of Chinese postgraduate students at American universities, for example, revealed that students who had been successfully using English in their home academic environment faced difficulties with speaking English in real-world usage in the USA (Heng, 2019). Such phenomenon is generally referred to as language barrier, which means a lack of ability to communicate freely in a foreign language with native and non-native speakers, even with a relatively high level of language skills. It results in negative feelings like apprehension, anxiety, shame, fear of being tested and evaluated, low self-esteem. International students experiencing language anxiety are generally passive in classes, prefer to avoid speaking or use basic vocabulary, they often lose attention and concentration, do not control their emotions.
Social contact in host language has positive correlation with socio-cultural and psychological adaptation of international students (Hei et al., 2019). The more students are involved in social interaction on and off campus, the more they learn about peculiarities of social norms, behavioral patterns and other aspects of host culture, which also helps to overcome language barrier and lower language anxiety. In some cases, external factors such as living conditions can play a certain role in integrating into host culture.
Cultural distance between home and host culture is recognized as one of the factors affecting the adaptation process. If socio-cultural norms and values, communicative behavior of the two cultures vary to a great extent, international students face tougher challenges and experience culture shock (Cheng & Erben, 2012); exposed to a new cultural context, students may feel disoriented, anxious and lose self-confidence. According to Cheng and Erben (2012), even such factor as gender peculiarities of home culture may play a certain role, too.
The issue of socio-cultural and psychological adaptation is not completely eliminated even if linguistic, ethnical and cultural background of international students and host country is more or less similar. Yu et al. (2019) surveyed a large sample of Hong Kong's international university students, the majority coming from other Asian countries, and observed that although generally students reported high level of socio-cultural adjustment to host setting, some of them were affected by stereotypes, perceived discrimination and cultural differences (Page & Chahboun, 2019; Yu et al., 2019).
In our study, we tried to consider some features of adaptation of Chinese students in the Russian-speaking educational environment. In particular, we intended to study the extent to which various factors, including both linguistic characteristics and individual psychological data, influence the adaptation of students. We were interested in the degree of influence of such characteristics as gender and a certain commitment to correct methods of learning a foreign language, different types of anxiety and cultural shock.
The main objective was to identify the most relevant and important combination of factors that can influence the adaptability of the above group in a foreign language environment. The goal was achieved through the following tasks: to consider the concept of socio-cultural adaptation; to analyze the available research results in this field, with special emphasis on the adaptation problems of Chinese/Asian students; to build a model of factors influencing successful socio-cultural adaptation; to use specially selected research tools to identify the most significant factors of socio-cultural adaptation and analyze the obtained research data.
The main issue that actualized our research was the correlation of factors and their components in the conditions of socio-cultural adaptation of Chinese students. This aspect is extremely important for creating more comfortable adaptation conditions and reducing various socio-cultural adaptation barriers.
The following research methods were used: theoretical analysis and synthesis of research results, content analysis, partial modeling, survey, asserting experiment, mathematical-statistical analysis of obtained data, including correlation and factor types of analysis.
The study involved two stages: theoretical and experimental. The theoretical part analyzed modern research in the field of socio-cultural adaptation of students and young people. Based on these studies were identified factors that can have a significant impact on the successful adaptation of foreign students in the educational environment. The experimental stage involved a stated experiment to identify the most/lowest influencing adaptation factors and their components.
The respondents were Chinese students studying at Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University. They were surveyed in 2019-2020. The respondents were given block-questionnaires, which consisted of four parts:
personal data about students including questions about the frequency of their use of the Russian language in various situations; Language Anxiety Test by Horwitz; Spielberger-Hanin Questionnaire; Culture Shock Test.
The questionnaires were translated into three languages: Russian, English and Chinese; the respondents had to answer the questions in written form on paper, no time limit was set for filling in the form. It was not obligatory to sign the questionnaire, so that students did not feel any discomfort when disclosing their personal data, preferences and aspects of their personality. Overall, 110 questionnaires were handed out. Only 81 of them were returned, 5 questionnaires were anonymous.
The following data were received about the respondents. 43 out of 81 students surveyed (53%) were women and 38 students (47%) were men. The age of the respondents varied from 18 to 26. The majority of them were 2nd-year students (45 students, 56%), 31 students (39%) attended intensive preparatory courses of the Russian language, and 5 of them were 3rd-year students (5%). The period of learning Russian: less than a year - 25%, 1 year - 14%, 2 years - 14%, 3 years – 36%, 4 years – 10%, 5 years – 1%.
The leading response to the question about reasons of learning the Russian language was to study in Russia, receive higher education or get a degree in this country – 51% (36 students). 14% (10 students) said that they want to study Russian as a foreign language, some of the reasons were that they like the language, some find it beautiful, some admire Russian art and culture.
As regards receptive language activity, the respondents most frequently listen to Russian music and radio programs (21% do it daily, 28% 3-4 times a week, 31% 1-2 times a week). Reading books, newspapers, etc. in Russian was among the most popular activities, for entertainment, Chinese students prefer watching Russian films to watching television programs.
Concerning productive language activities, we can conclude that the participants of the survey quite often communicate with their Russian friends and acquaintances in the native language of the host country (27% on a daily basis, 20% 3-4 times a week, 24% 1-2 times per week).
As for the data on various types of anxiety, some checked up indicators gave a somewhat unexpected picture. The results of a comparative analysis of data on situational, personal and linguistic anxiety revealed the following picture. More than 60% have increased rates of personal anxiety. A little over 20% showed a low level of personal disturbances. The remaining 18% of respondents took an intermediate place. As for situational anxiety, the picture is slightly more positive. Less than 50% showed high data on this type of anxiety, data on the remaining respondents were distributed roughly equally - rounded off by 25% in each group. An interesting fact about gender indicators is that female respondents had higher scores on situational anxiety. The data on language anxiety were as neutral as possible. High linguistic anxiety was recorded for single representatives. The data tended to decrease, i.e. they were recorded at average and below average levels. Most of our research involved students from technical and economic fields. This, to some extent, can also explain the rather averaged scores on language anxiety.
In case of the culture shock survey, we analyzed the most salient characteristics of the phenomenon. The first seven questions covered the "core" culture shock items, whereas the second five questions dealt with the "Interpersonal stress" items experienced by students doing a course at a foreign university.
Most of the students surveyed find it difficult to adapt to the new culture. 63.4% of the respondents feel stressed, whereas 10 % even claim to be extremely stressed.
The second element that contributed to the culture shock to a much greater extent than the first one was feeling homesick. Of the total number of the respondents 56.3% said that they were seriously affected by homesickness, whereas fewer than 40 % of the students say that even though it occasionally affects them, they can cope with feeling stressed, isolated and lonely. The questionnaire revealed that homesickness is one of the principal contributors to the stress experience by foreign students.
Over two-thirds (67.6%) of the respondents pointed out that they are affiliated with the local national group, since both the local students and the teachers go to great lengths to make them feel at home. However, about 10% of the participants pointed out that they do not feel accepted by the local students.
A significant number of the respondents (31%) wish to escape from their new surroundings and two-thirds of the students said that they sometimes experience such feelings.
The vast majority of the respondents (89%) sometimes feel confused about their identity and their new social role. Only 5.5% of the respondents are shocked at and disgusted with many things in their new environment/Most of the students (79%) experience such negative emotions only occasionally. As the participants of the survey are young people, they are more open-minded than the older generation and adapt better than them to the new environment. For the same reason only a small minority (about 8.5%) of the respondents feel helpless and vulnerable when they try to adapt to the new culture. Roughly 40% experience such feelings just occasionally, and more than half of them (51.5%) do not have difficulty adapting to the new environment.
The vast majority of the respondents (60.5%) sometimes feel anxious and awkward when they have contact with the local residents. Only a small minority on the students (5.6%) feel this way under all circumstances.
Only 15% of the students participating in the survey feel highly embarrassed and uncomfortable when they are stared at. Many respondents (45%) said that they sometimes feel uneasy when locals' eyes are riveted to them. A significant number of the students (40.1%) do not mind being looked at. Probably these reactions depend on the personality traits of the students in question: some of them are accustomed to getting a lot of attention, whereas others would rather go unnoticed.
Only 2.8% feel as if being cheated when they buy something, whereas almost half of the respondents (49.3%) feel this way just occasionally. More than half of the students (50.7%) have to take sustained effort to be polite to their hosts, while only 7 % of the respondents claim that they do not face such a challenge.
Pearson's formula was taken for the correlation analysis, allowing to consider linear interdependence between the investigated indicators of sociocultural adaptation.
The following individual psychological characteristics were taken as variables for the analysis: age, sex, data on frequency of use of a foreign language (language of the receiving culture), an indicator of linguistic anxiety, personal psychological anxiety, situational psychological anxiety, cultural shock. In general, the correlation coefficient of these variables varied between values from -0.456 to 0.820, with r=0.01 (r=0.05).
The largest number of correlated links was found in the variables of individual and situational anxiety, as well as in the variables of the general indicators of cultural shock. Thus, personal and situational anxiety, according to the results of this study, positively correlated with each other in the range from 0.466** to 0.820**. However, these characteristics negatively correlate with language anxiety data. The correlation range is - 0.456** to - 0.334**.
Separately, we should mention the identified stable correlation links between the above components and cultural shock indicators. As it was mentioned earlier, we used the Mumford scale as an identifier of the cultural shock. According to the obtained data, general and interpersonal indicators of cultural shock have positive bilateral and one-sided correlation with data on situational and personal anxiety. The correlation coefficient between the general indicators of cultural shock and the data on mental anxiety ranges from 0.395** to 0.331**. While interpersonal indicators of cultural shock have a one-sided positive correlation with the results on situational anxiety. This feature can be interpreted as a need to reduce situational anxiety, which will further reduce interpersonal communication problems among students. Separately, we should mention the revealed negative one-sided correlation between the general characteristics of cultural shock and age (-0,258*). This to some extent indicates the natural predisposition of the younger generation to adaptation problems, especially at the first stage of entering a foreign-language sociocultural environment.
The results of the correlation analysis allowed us to draw some important conclusions. Primarily, it concerns the strongest, most important variables. This category includes indicators of personal anxiety and general characteristics of cultural shock; these characteristics are systemic in our study. The second place, according to the correlation coefficient, is occupied by situational and linguistic anxiety data. The third place is occupied by interpersonal characteristics of cultural shock and age. Gender characteristics and data on the frequency and diversity of forms of learning a foreign language (in our case Russian) have not shown significant correlations. Therefore, in developing a strategy to ensure the successful socio-cultural adaptation of students one should focus on forms and techniques to reduce personal and situational anxiety and provide students with more professional support at the stage of primary adaptation in a foreign language environment. Linguistic anxiety has a somewhat different picture of both prerequisites and mitigation strategies.
The main component method was used for factor analysis. The data were processed again with the varimax rotation method with Kaiser normalization. According to the data of factor analysis, 4 factors were identified, each referred to the bipolar type. The first factor, which includes all types of anxiety and basic components of cultural shock, is the most significant in terms of load (34,992). The second factor includes age indicators, language anxiety and general characteristics of cultural shock (47,713). The third factor combined the gender characteristics and frequency data of foreign language learning. The fourth factor included age indicators and interpersonal aspects of the cultural shock.
All these factors indicate the greatest importance of the data on anxiety, including language, situational and personal. To a lesser extent, gender characteristics, interpersonal characteristics of the cultural shock and peculiarities of building the process of learning a foreign language influence social and cultural adaptation. We should remind that the majority of the surveyed students by the level of foreign language proficiency belongs to the elementary or higher levels. The intermediate place is occupied by age and some components of the basic characteristics of cultural shock.
They feel anxious because they have to get accustomed to a new lifestyle and acquire new habits, and some of them feel that they are not open-minded enough to deal with unfamiliar situations. Probably some of the questioned students are less sociable and they would feel isolated in any social group.
As for the results on culture shock, perhaps the condition may be explained by the fact that in many cases foreign students tend to set themselves apart from the locals as they do not get out of their comfort zone when they socialize with the representatives of their own culture. Probably it occasionally happens when they cannot fully understand the way in which they are perceived by the locals. They may feel that they do not live up to the locals' expectations, but they do not know how to address this problem.
Foreign students need a certain period of time to adapt to their new environment. They also need a preparatory language course that will allow them to adapt more quickly in a foreign language environment. This is particularly true when languages belong to completely different language groups. Moreover, not all of students are fully aware of stereotypical patterns of behavior in their new cultural environment. Due to the so-called "Disneyland effect" they only have a limited understanding of the locals' personality traits, so they feel uncertain about the ways they may be perceived by them.
Speaking about three patterns of adjusting to host culture (Russel et al., 2010), we can say that among the students in our representative sample were identified representatives of two groups: positive and connected, unconnected and stressed.
The results of correlation and factor analysis showed that the basic factor can be called personal anxiety, and then successively we can arrange situation anxiety, components of cultural shock and language anxiety. Gender characteristics, as found in our study, do not play a significant role. The data can be used by teachers in foreign groups (with Chinese students), specialized faculties and training courses to develop more effective technology for socio-cultural adaptation.
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Lyakh, P. P. (2014). Trudnosti yazykovoj adaptacii inostrannyh studentov v tihookeanskom gosudarstvennom universitete [Language difficulties adaptation of foreign students in the pacific national university]. Electronic scientific journal "Scientists notes PNU", 5(3), 232 – 238. [In Rus.]
Nevedomskaya, T. D., Popov, A. S., Prokhorov, A. V., & Telpukhovskaya, O. N. (2006). Nekotorye aspekty yazykovoj adaptacii inostrannyh studentov v rossijskom tekhnicheskom universitete [Some aspects of language adaptation of foreign students in a russian technical university]. The Civil Aviation High Technologies. Series: International activities of higher education institutions, 102, 172-179. [In Rus.]
Page, A. G., & Chahboun, S. (2019). Emerging empowerment of international students: how international student literature has shifted to include the students' voices. Higher Education, 78, 871–885. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-019-00375-7
Peng, R., & Wu, W. (2019). Measuring communication patterns and intercultural transformation of international students in cross-cultural adaptation. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 7, 78-88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2019.03.004
Russel, J., Rosenthal, D., & Thomson, G. (2010). The international student experience: three styles of adaptation. Higher Education, 60(2), 235-249.
Teimouri, Y., Goetze, J., & Plonsky, L. (2019). Second language anxiety and achievement: a matter-analysis. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 41(2), 363-387. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263118000311
Valieva, F., Sagimbayeva, J., Kurmanayeva, D., & Tazhitova, G. (2019). The Socio-Linguistic Adaptation of Migrants: The Case of Oralman Students' Studying in Kazakhstan. Education Sciences, 9(3), 164. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci9030164
Vladimirova, T. L., & Sheveleva, S. I. (2017). Povyshenie stepeni sub"ektnosti obrazovatel'nogo processa kak uslovie yazykovoj adaptacii studentov iz stran ATR [Student steps subjection of educational process as concerning language adaptation of students from APR]. Materials of the All-Russian scientific conference "Professional training of students of technical university in a foreign language: exclusive competences of the teacher". Tomsk, pp.117-119. [in Rus.]
Wang, Y., Li, T., Noltemeyer, A., Wang, A., & Shaw, K. (2018). Cross-cultural adaptation of international college students in the United States. Journal of International Students, 8(2), 821-842. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v8i2.116
Ward, C., & Kennedy, A. (1999). The measurement of sociocultural adaptation. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 23, 659-676.
Wilson, J., Ward, C., Fetvadjiev, V. H., & Bethel, A. (2017). Measuring Cultural Competencies: The Development and Validation of a Revised Measure of Sociocultural Adaptation. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 48(10), 1475–1506.
Yu, B., Bodycott, P., & Mak, A. S. (2019). Language and Interpersonal Resource Predictors of Psychological and Sociocultural Adaptation: International Students in Hong Kong. Journal of Studies in International Education, 30, 572–588. https://doi.org/10.1177/1028315318825336
https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2020.11.03.10
European Publisher
Sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, bilingualism, multilingualism
Valieva, F. I., Ivanova, E. A., & Dashkina, A. I. (2020). Socio-Cultural Adaptation Of Students In A Foreign Language Environment: Factor Analysis. In Е. Tareva, & T. N. Bokova (Eds.), Dialogue of Cultures - Culture of Dialogue: from Conflicting to Understanding, vol 95. European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences (pp. 82-91). European Publisher. https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2020.11.03.10

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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The verdict in the O.J. Simpson murder trial will be rendered at noon Tuesday and a large segment of the captive audience will include sports memorabilia entrepreneurs anxious to make a buck on the sentencing fate of the Hall of Fame running back.
"A guilty verdict, from a business standpoint, would help the entrepreneurs," said Arnold Bowling, a licensed ticket broker who runs Sports Source, 1470 W. Irving Park Road, Chicago.
"We had 20 cards prior to his arrest and we sold one or two of them," said Bowling. "Then, after his arrest we went through 17 cards right away, priced from $5 to $75. If he is found guilty, my speculation is that the cards would continue to go up. At least double, without a doubt. Autographed memorabilia also will go up."
Bowling said the harsh reality of his business saw him bombarded by speculators while Mickey Mantle lay on his death bed, and even more swooped in to buy up items after his death.
An executive at Sportmart in Chicago said he thinks that true sports fans will not try to make a buck off a sports celebrity's personal misfortune.
Charles Halevi, another representative for Sportmart, pointed out that unlike Mantle's permanent demise, Simpson might be able to sign autographs in prison if he is found guilty, making his signature less valuable.
Hair appointment: How will Dennis Rodman's act fly in Chicago?
Several prominent advertising executives question the marketability in Chicago of the Bulls' latest acquisition.
"I think he has to sell himself to Chicagoans," said public relations executive Jennifer Hauser-Bragg. "I wonder if he will tone down his act? But I think he is going to buy into this city."
Hauser-Bragg said she thought Chicagoans even grew tired of Scottie Pippen's off-court misadventures during the off-season and will be less inclined to tolerate Rodman if he crosses the line.
"The stuff has shown so far is questionable," said Jackie Meyers of Coppock-Meyers Public Relations. "I don't think Chicago fans embrace athletes for better or worse. We have had our share of characters in Chicago, but we accept them within limits. We still have our role models."
Bulls marketing director Steve Schanwald welcomes the addition of Rodman, orange hair and all.
"Life is going to be anything but dull for the next several months," said Schanwald. "I think he is going to be very popular with our fans."
Schanwald thinks Bulls fans should be more concerned with Rodman being a skilled basketball player than a public curiosity.
"There is a window of opportunity to win another championship, but it is closing rapidly," said Schanwald. "The message that our organization is sending to the fans is: `We're going for it.' "
No doubt the Bulls are willing to take a chance with a player of questionable habits. The Bears refused to even bid on talented free agents such as Andre Rison and Deion Sanders because executives thought they would become a distraction.
Cubs win, Cubs win! Let's see, if baseball had not realigned and gone to expanded playoffs, the Cubs would be in the postseason and Boston, the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers and Cincinnati would be going home.
"That's the way it goes," says Cubs manager Jim Riggleman. "It usually takes an act of congress to get traditions changed in baseball."
Without realignment, the Cubs would have won the National League East at 73-71, four games ahead of the New York Mets and Philadelphia. Atlanta would have won the NL West, five games ahead of the Reds and 12 ahead of the Dodgers. Cleveland would have run away with the American League East, finishing 14 games ahead of the Red Sox and 21 ahead of the Yankees.
In the AL West, California and Seattle would have finished their regular schedule tied, still forcing the one-game playoff.
Great bid: Those two Joe DiMaggio serigraphs that sold at the Rick Wilkins dinner last Thursday night at Carlucci restaurant actually were auctioned off for $9,500 apiece (purchased by Mark Grace of the Cubs and Jeff Bagwell of Houston) to help benefit the new facility for adults with cerebral palsy. . . . The eighth annual Christian Brothers Bene-Fest will be held at Sportsman's Park at 3300 S. Cicero Ave. from 5 p.m. to midnight Oct. 28. . . . Coaches and players from DePaul's men's and women's basketball teams will conduct a basketball clinic for boys and girls ages 13-and-under at Northbrook Court (Lake Cook Road west of the Edens Expressway) on Saturday. . . . William Gates, a central figure in the critically acclaimed film documentary "Hoop Dreams" will speak at Illinois Benedictine College at 7 p.m. Oct. 11. . . . Bears defensive end Richard Dent and Cubs pitcher Anthony Young were spotted dining at Magnum's restaurant on Ontario Street over the weekend before heading to Excalibur nightclub. . . . The Chicago Housing Authority's Midnight Basketball League held its annual player draft Monday night at Altgeld Gardens. The season begins Oct. 11.
Fit and trim: Cubs pitching coach Fergie Jenkins thinks his pitchers were in better shape than many of those on other clubs following last year's strike.
"We got our fellows in good shape and it proved to be worthwhile," said Jenkins. "We worked on the lower body first, and then our arms."
Jenkins says he is looking for Kevin Foster, Steve Trachsel and Jim Bullinger to take a significant step forward next season.
"And who knows with Jamie ," said Jenkins. "Jamie won 14 games this year and he should have won 17 if our bullpen had saved games for him. He could possibly be a 20-game winner for us next year. If we can get the contracts that we need . . . lets play some baseball."


The Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9), And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.
After listening to everything I have just said, has your idea of fate changed? How do you understand the fact of God's sovereignty over human fate?
After marrying, one begins to nurture the next generation. One has no say in how many and what kind of children one has; this too is determined by a person's fate, predestined by the Creator.
God had once said such words: What God says counts and shall come to pass, can't be changed by anyone. No matter if it's words said before or words yet to be said, they all shall be fulfilled, so that everyone can see everything in the universe is determined by God.
The Israelites, descendants of Abraham, fled to live in exile in Egypt due to famine. The Egyptians were terrified of the Israelites' expansion, so they enslaved them and maltreated them.
Today's Bible Verse is Luke 1:37 about God's authority. From this Bible verse, we know that there is power and authority in God's words.
Today's Bible Verse is Isaiah 46:11 about God's authority. From this Bible verse, we experience the authority and power of God's words.


What is this? A new Pokemon game for Nintendo Switch? You better believe it, because we got our first bit of info from the good folks at Nintendo! On May 30, 2018, Nintendo had a big press conference where they unveiled not one, but two new games for the Switch. They're called Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let's Go Eevee! And the best thing is they're coming out this year!
In a nutshell, these are two new upcoming games in the Pokémon series, taking us back to the old Kanto region from the original generation of Pokémon. From what I have found, these are taking a big inspiration from Pokémon Yellow, a game which came out 19 years ago (don't I feel old!) These are also spinoff games, and not actually a "core" game, per se. They were also designed with the intention of introducing newcomers to the series, so veterans of the core series may not be interested. Still, it's Pokémon!
Pikachu or Eevee: Take your pick!
As you can no doubt tell from the 2 games' titles, you can play either respective version with Pikachu or Eevee as your starter Pokémon. Just like Ash or Gary, you will have a trusty buddy to accompany you across the land, searching far and wide for all of your favorites! They don't enter any Poké Balls, and appear in the game world alongside your character.
In the games, trainers throw Poké Balls at wild Pokémon in the hopes of adding them to their ever growing collection. On a Game Boy, we pressed some buttons to make our character throw the ball. This time, we get to throw the ball!
Using only one Joy-Con controller, players can relive their childhood moments by catching Pokémon just like they do in the games and TV series. To catch Pokémon, you simply swing the controller towards the screen. Hopefully we won't end up with too many accidents involving TVs!
The catching mechanic is very similar to that of Pokémon GO. Beyond that, it doesn't look like there's much else to say at this point, as we have only just got news about this game.
Share the Experience with a Friend!
The game features drop-in co-op play! If you have a friend over, and you need some help playing the game, your friend can grab the second Joy-Con and drop in to play too!
Multiplayer gameplay involves no split-screen; players move around the screen, with player one taking the lead with their starter Pokémon following along too. You can team up against other trainers, and do battle against Team Rocket in certain cases.
Needless to say, fans are going to have a lot of fun with their buddies!
The Pokemon series has been known for allowing their games to connect across platforms, and it looks like they've gone this route once more. If you play Pokémon GO, you can transfer your hard-earned Pokémon into the Switch game.
One thing that was of interest is a Sending/Recieving Present feature that was demonstrated in a recent gameplay trailer. It looks like we may have the option of getting rewards in Pokémon GO as well!
Just as the Pokémon GO Plus was used to play the hit mobile game, Pokémon: Let's Go plans on introducing a new optional peripherial device to use with the game. Aptly named the Poké Ball Plus, this little controller has motion controls, vibrates, lights up and plays sound effects not unlike the Plus. In fact, it can even be used as a replacement for the Pokémon GO Plus while playing said game.
You can take one of your Pokémon with you outside the game, where you will feel it moving around in the ball. From what I've heard, there may be some rewards for players who take their pokemon for a walk. There have been many popular accessories that do the same kind of thing, but with older games.
All in all, this looks to be a very promising game. It feels like Pokémon GO, only with the features of a handheld game. Now, this may not be the core game that players have been expecting at first, but it's great to be able to jump back in to the old generation, right? If this gets more newcomers to jump on the already massive bandwagon that is Pokémon, I'm all in favor of this game.
What are your thoughts? Are you interested in Pokémon Let's Go? Feel free to leave a comment down below!


Stories on a supernatural theme with secret agents Laura Turnbull and Robert Parker. Exciting storylines, with full colour illustrations give these books broad appeal for reluctant or struggling readers. Attention-grabbing titles such as Dawn of the Zombies; Alien Implants and Spider Invasion. Contains fun quiz and useful glossary at the back. Two sets each of 8 titles with accompanying Teacher's Book. Available as eBooks.


text:
La triazavirina è un farmaco antivirale ad ampio spettro sviluppato in Russia. Chiamato anche TZV o Riamilovir è stato sviluppato dalla Università federale degli Urali, dall'Accademia russa delle scienze, dal Ural Center for Biopharma Technologies e dalla Medsintez Pharmaceutical.

Usi
È stato originariamente creato per l'influenza come l'H5N1.

Ha effetti antivirali anche contro il tick-borne encephalitis virus, e contro il virus dell'encefalite Forest-Spring, e contro la febbre di Lassa e l'Ebola virus disease.

Nel febbraio 2020, è stato usato contro il virus SARS-CoV-2.

Note

Voci correlate
 BCX4430
 Brincidofovir
 Favipiravir
 Umifenovir

Antivirali

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Is President Obama to blame for the current state of Syria? In a word: Yes.
Read more about Is Syria Obama's Fault?
How the impending humanitarian disaster in Aleppo looks against the background of the rationale for intervening in Libya.
Stephen Watts and Sean Mann argue that the United States should continue to invest in Afghanistan's stability following the drawdown of U.S. and NATO forces in order to preserve the modest gains that have been made in Afghanistan and to reduce the chances that the Afghan government will collapse.
In the wake of Thursday's statements by Joint Chiefs Chairman Martin Dempsey and Friday's comments by Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes, it sounds like the U.S. Government is at least considering whether to conduct air strikes against ISIS in Syria. A decision to do so clearly is not a done deal.
The question on everyone's lips is whether the United States will use force – most likely air strikes -- in Iraq to help suppress the threat posed by ISIS. Jack, Wells, and Bobby discussed here, here, and here the domestic legal basis for that use of force.
Russian forces have seized control of Crimea and reportedly are digging trenches in the land bridge that connects Crimea with the rest of Ukraine. Is this a flagrant violation of international law regulating the use of force, or does Russia have some credible justification for what it's done? Bottom Line Up Front (as DOD would say): It appears to be an unjustifiable armed attack on Ukraine, which means that under international law, Ukraine may use force in self-defense against Russia. Here's the analysis, broken down into steps.
I agree with Jack's analysis of the UK statement.


Even in the richest countries on the planet such as the U.S., not everyone has easy access to this cornucopia of connectivity, the Internet.
The Internet is a tremendous growth engine, responsible for 21% of economic growth in the more advanced countries in the world, according to a McKinsey study.
While those of us in the United States complain about how we have to pay more for Internet service that's slower than those of other first-world countries, within the United States there's a gaping chasm between the haves and the have-nots.
In this infographic by OnlineITdegree.net, an ad-free website describing itself as "an online informational resource for individuals looking to pursue IT degree of related education and careers," you'll find surprising information about the differences in Internet access in the United States.
There are vast gaps between Internet accessibility in cities and rural areas, racial disparities in Internet access (which isn't as pronounced as it was a decade ago), and the growing gap between rich and poor and its influence on who goes without computers or Internet access.
Beyond that, you'll see more information about how the U.S. lags behind other countries in Internet technology, broadband speed and access. This is the part that has us scratching our heads. Why do you think the United States lags behind less-wealthy countries when it comes to Internet access? Do find that as frustrating as we do?
What do you think should be done about this persistent digital divide? Let us know in the comments.


text:
Who was Alexander?
Alexander was born in Australia in 1869. From a young age he wanted to be an actor, and he worked and to achieve this. In his twenties he encountered a problem: when he used his voice on stage he would gradually grow hoarse and lose his voice. He consulted doctors and followed their remedies and nothing worked except that rest gradually restored his voice. Alexander realised it was something he was doing himself when speaking on stage that caused the problem, and so he set out to study his movements by looking in mirrors to discover the cause of the problem.
What did he discover?
Alexander observed that when he raised his voice he was compressing his voice box by wrongly moving his head. Practising with 3 mirrors, he worked hard at changing this habit for 9 years, and he gradually realised that he was making uncoordinated movements with his whole body which were all part of the problem. He saw that if he could prevent himself from following these habit patterns, he would be able to use his voice properly and naturally. Using his experiences, Alexander developed a technique for teaching other people to gain a new awareness of the body, and learn to give up the habits which cause un-coordinated movements. Small children and healthy animals provide a good example of how natural movement should be, but many people put too much unhealthy strain on their bodies, through such things as bad posture at the computer, slouching in front of the TV and rushing through life without paying attention to the body – until it hurts.
"You can't tell a person what to do, because the thing you have to do is a sensation." - F.M. Alexander
>>Photo Gallery
Colin Openshaw - Alexander Technique Teaching, Oxford
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text:
Tosapusia myurella is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk, in the family Costellariidae, the ribbed miters.

Description
The length of the shell attains 29.1 mm.

Distribution
This species occurs in the following locations:
 Papua New Guinea
 Solomon Islands

References

Costellariidae
Gastropods described in 2017


Why #BTVSMB? Why are you doing this and what's the purpose of these events?
Instead we got a lot of the same questions: Who's doing social media? Who's doing social media well? Why do you think social media is important? Good questions, but they tend to incur the same responses over and over again.
1) Great Speakers – I don't travel a lot and I don't go to a lot of conferences. That means I don't see a lot of the big speakers around the country. There are people in Burlington who do, but I think most of us are too busy in our jobs to do that regularly. I wanted to be able to see the top speakers without having to travel so much. That was my first hope.
I also wanted to bring in speakers who would set the bar high in the discussions about social media. I wanted people to leave inspired and thinking about things they normally wouldn't in their day-to-day jobs. I find that those types of talks make me better at what I do, even if I can't always do everything that we talk about.
We have received a lot of feedback asking how come we don't do more practical hands on training about Twitter and Facebook. We've received those questions after almost every event. My thought is that there are lots of places to get that already and you can get those easily online. I'm more interested in ideas than training for these types of talks.
One other thing about bringing in some of the smartest people from outside of Vermont: I don't want this to turn into a sales event for the speakers. I see lots of local speakers at various events (and there are still a lot of them) where the talk is in some sense a veiled pitch. It raises all sorts of issues and raises a lot of why them and not me questions. I'm too busy to deal with that kind of stuff.
2) Community – One of my great disappointments in moving back to Burlington was the lousy digital and creative community we had. I came from Boston where I was involved with MITX (and still am for that matter). What a great community that is! Up here, though, it seemed like we didn't really want to talk with each other.
Social media, it turns out, is the one digital topic that everyone wants to connect around. I love that we're able to bring together at all of the events some of the biggest companies and brands in Vermont and some of the smallest companies and brands. Big agencies and marketers show up and freelancers show up. Politicians and people from non-profits come to learn. I love that we're able to bring together such a diverse group of people around one specific topic.
To be honest, I think the networking and connections are by far the best part of #BTVSMB. I've met more people in the last two years than I did in the previous nine! And I've pushed business towards those people as well. The community part is an economic accelerator for everyone.
3) Promote Burlington – Finally, my hope was that we'd start putting Burlington on the digital map in a more substantial way. I'm completely biased here, but I'd like to see Burlington's digital community drive the economic development of the region (or at least contribute to it more substantially). I think we're a perfect place for this type of thinking, for this type of business, and for the types of people who work in the industry.
One of the great responses we get from speakers is "I had no idea there were so many smart people up here. I knew it was beautiful, but what an amazing turnout!" They're surprised to learn that companies like Gardners Supply is based in Vermont! When the outside speakers come here, we start showing that Burlington is a digital and social hub, especially when we outdraw events in New York and Boston.
My big hope is that those speakers will decide to open their next shop or satellite in Vermont. That's when I'll know we've succeeded.
It's not a moneymaking business. I've never made a dime on these events, nor do I intend to. All ticket prices cover costs for food, venue and speaker costs. Maybe that's stupid of me, but I'm not in this for the money.
It's not a full-time job. It has to fit between my business and client needs. Neither Nicole nor I have employees assigned to running this. We bring in people based mainly on our relationships.
It's not just us. Anyone can do an event, and we hope that if you have an idea for a social breakfast you want to organize, go for it. The more the merrier. Just don't expect us to do it for you.
When I look back on Monday's event, I think it hit all of my criteria. It doesn't mean that it's perfect. But it sure made me think about a number of new things.
What are your expectations for #BTVSMB?


That's a photo of my veggie beds. What, you don't see any tomatoes, kale, lettuce, or anything else that appears to be even remotely edible? You won't, because not only have these beds been fallow for the summer, but there's a curtain of weeds growing in front of them. Time to fix that!
Still, I'm giving no mercy right now, and everything is going!
That's the good news. The bad news is that you can now see the decrepit fence (that was apparently being held up in spots by the woody dogbane stems).
I'll be fixing the fence soon -- I've had the materials for months.
...some garlic cloves that I missed digging up this summer! I'm not sure if I'll be growing garlic again, as I don't think these beds get enough direct sunlight to make it worthwhile.
...the removal of several Pennisetum 'Moudry'... is going to be a tough one I think. Will I be motivated enough to start on it today I wonder?
I am sure you've shared this info before, but just how big is your lot? These photos (and others you've shared) make it look absolutely huge.
I had to laugh--out of sympathy, not schadenfreude or anything. If I gardened in the same climate as yours, my veggie beds would look very similar. Fortunately, it's been so dry here this summer that very few weeds are tough enough to grow around our mostly fallow veggie beds.
Loree: Zillow lists it as 0.31 acres (13,500 sq ft). It only seems big when I have chores to do. It's a downhill lot too.
Gerhard: Better laugh than cry, right? :) I want to get my kale planted soon, but that fence isn't going to stop anything!
Rest on your laurels for now, big job you got done there!
Reminds me, I need to clear out the tomatoes. At least the summer heat is gone where you are, making the job easier. Hopefully.


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This makes it perfect for yoga bras and sleeping applications as well.
It also has a seamless construction that eliminates any side seams and chafing.
Glamorise women's sports bra is designed to provide full support to almost all the important sections of the body.
It comes with a special moisture-wicking fabric mesh panel and in front and hook closure for added comfort.
The inclusion of the adjustable shoulder straps makes the bra much easier to customize to suit your needs.
It also has a machine washable design and durable material that provides years of unmatched performance benefits.
The straps are also simple to install to provide optimal user convenience.
Change the way in which you experience the outdoors by using the Fittin Racerback Sports Bras that comes with a special pull on closure and pullover design for optimal comfort.
The super comfortable and soft fabric construction makes the bra perfect for long-term performance benefits.
With its climacool design, this bra will provide the ideal heat and moisture management based on high-quality ventilation.
Take your performance levels to the next level with the SYROKAN Women's sports bra.
This bra comes with a seam-free and elasticated chest band that ensures a secure and comfortable fit for your needs.
This unique design is backed with padded straps and a professional racer design, that reduces bounces to provide optimal chest protection.
The bra is also made using moisture wicking and breathable fabric which makes it comfortable for long-term use.
Improve your comfort regime by using the Fruit of the Loom Sports Bra that is made using a special cotton material to provide optimal comfort.
This bra is designed with a full coverage crop top neckline and flaunted undershirts and tanks for a cool flash of color.
With the inclusion of smooth lines, these sports bra also qualifies as the ideal undergarment for casual wear and workout applications.
It is available in various colors and users can choose from any bra design.
Mirity has done it yet again with the unveiling of the Mirity Women Sports bra.
It is a comfortable bra which has body wick fabric to keep you cool and to improve your cycling regime.
More so, this bra also has an in-built bra design for added support and special ventilation panels to make the perfect for physical activity.
The bra also has wide shoulder straps for a cool and comfortable fit and the stretch material which makes it perfect for long lasting performance benefits.
Finally, choosing the appropriate regime is important if you want to achieve all your unique physical activity goals.
This is why we recommended the most comfortable women's sports for bras for jogging as the ideal place for you to start.
These bras are simple to use and with various design functionalities for an unrivaled performance.