Being Mindful: A Long-term Investigation of an Interdisciplinary Course in Mindfulness

Background: Burnout and work-related stress in health-care professionals (HCPs) is a growing concern to the optimal functioning of the health-care system. Mindfulness-based interventions may be well-suited to address burnout in HCPs. Objective: The purpose of this study was (1) to quantitatively evaluate the effect of a mindfulness-based intervention for interdisciplinary HCPs over time and at a long-term follow-up and (2) to explore perceived benefits, facilitators, and barriers to the practice of mindfulness at the long-term follow-up. Design: A mixed-method, repeated measures, within-subjects design was used to investigate Mindfulness for Interdisciplinary HCPs (MIHP) at baseline, post-MIHP, and a follow-up (6 months to 1.5 years after MIHP). MIHP is an 8-week, group-based course for interdisciplinary HCPs and students, with weekly meditation training, gentle yoga, and discussions on the application of mindfulness to common stressors faced by HCPs. Main outcome measures were the Maslach Burnout Inventory—Health Services Survey and the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire. A semistructured interview was used to explore participants’ perceptions of sustained effects and practice in the context of HCP work at the long-term follow-up. The study protocol was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02736292). Results: Eighteen HCPs (88% female) participated in the study. Significant reductions were found after the intervention for 2 subscales of burnout: depersonalization, F(2, 17) = 5.98, P = .01, and emotional exhaustion, F(2, 17) = 2.64, P = .10. Three facets of dispositional mindfulness showed significant increases at long-term follow-up, act aware: F(2, 15) = 4.47, P = .03, nonjudge: F(2, 15) = 4.7, P = .03, and nonreactivity: F(2, 15) = 3.58, P = .05. Continued practice of skills long term was facilitated by the use of informal practice and perceived improvement in work and personal life. Conclusion: In sum, MIHP improved subscales of burnout and mindfulness. These findings should be further explored with a larger, controlled study. Interventions should focus on developing mindfulness practice that can be integrated into the work of HCPs

Energy Efficiency and Arhitectural Heritage: The Reconstruction of the French Pavilion in Zagreb

The exhibition pavilion of the Republic of France was built for the Zagreb Fair during the years 1936 and 1937 at 25 Savska Street 25 in Zagreb according to the design of the French architect Robert Camelot and the civil engineer Bernard Lafaille. The French Pavilion represents a unique engineering innovation, since a thin steel shell was applied for the first time as a load-bearing structure in high-rise building. Therefore, it is a building of exceptional cultural and historical, as well as technical and technological value. The reconstruction design envisaged that the Pavilion would keep its original use as an exhibition space with the possibility of holding some other public events such as lectures, promotions, round-table discussions and smaller performances. In order to enable the use of the Pavilion all year round, it was necessary to adapt the Pavilion appropriately to contemporary standards. In this process, special attention was given to energy efficiency with a contemporary treatment of the perimeter elements of the Pavilion structural system (non- and load bearing structures), which did not damage the authenticity of its idea and design in any segment

Kinetic microscale thermophoresis

We established an extension of Microscale Thermophoresis (MST) to measure binding kinetics together with binding affinity in a single experimental run, by increasing the thermal dissipation of the sample. After the switch-off of an IR laser, that locally heated the sample, the temperature re-equilibrated within 250 ms. The kinetic relaxation fingerprints were extracted from the fluorescence changes back to thermodynamic equilibrium. We measured DNA hybridization on-rates and off-rates in the range between 104-106 M-1s-1 and 10-4-10-1 s‑1, respectively. We observed the expected exponential dependence of the DNA hybridization off-rates on salt concentration, strand length and inverse temperature. The measured on-rates showed a linear dependence on salt and weak if no dependence at all on length and temperature. For biological binding reactions with sufficient enthalpic contributions, Kinetic MST offers a robust and immobilization-free determination of kinetic rates and binding affinity and also in crowded solutions

Origin of Multikinks in Dispersive Nonlinear Systems

We develop {\em the first analytical theory of multikinks} for strongly {\em dispersive nonlinear systems}, considering the examples of the weakly discrete sine-Gordon model and the generalized Frenkel-Kontorova model with a piecewise parabolic potential. We reveal that there are no $2\pi$-kinks for this model, but there exist {\em discrete sets} of $2\pi N$-kinks for all N>1. We also show their bifurcation structure in driven damped systems.Comment: 4 pages 5 figures. To appear in Phys Rev

Supporting forced migrant resettlement with a location based freecycling service

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial TechnologiesForced migrants face many challenges when trying to settle into life in a new city. Social isolation is one common consequence of the upheaval they experience. Research has shown that technology can ease various parts of the resettlement process, but work is needed to see how it can address social isolation in particular. We hypothesized that a location-based freecycling service would be particularly suitable for this purpose, due to freecycling's potential to bolster social engagement and location-based services' ability to adapt to the user's context. We conducted needs assessment interviews with ve forced migrants and six freecyclers in M unster, Germany. We analyzed the results of the interviews to develop user requirements for a theoretical service. We implemented a subset of the user requirements as part of a prototype mobile app. Then we evaluated the app with 6 forced migrants and 16 freecyclers during a two-week trial. Our investigation showed that, with careful design, a location-based freecycling service can meet the needs of both locally established freecyclers and forced migrants seeking to reduce their social isolation. These ndings contribute to literature on the needs of forced migrants and how to meet those needs with geospatial technologies. Our ndings can bene t researchers of forced migrant social isolation and developers of location-based and other services to support forced migrant resettlement

Analysis of the Town Planning, Communal and Building Rules in the Medieval Statute of the Town of Ilok from 1525*

U radu se analiziraju statutarne odredbe s područja urbanističkoga i građevinskog zakonodavstva koje su mogle utjecati na način izgradnje i urbanog oblikovanja srednjovjekovnog Iloka. Zanimljivi su protupožarni propisi, pravila o pozicioniranju kuća prema ulici i susjedima, obveza održavanja zgrada, pitanja odvodnje, gradske čistoće i razne sanitarno-higijenske mjere. Tesarima i kamenarima propisuju se odredbe o sigurnosti gradnje. Statut donosi podatke o različitim javnim zgradama i gradskim prostorima, te o prirodnom okolišu i socijalnoj slici Iloka.The authors analyses how the Ilok Town Statute regulates town planning and construction, which affected the way of building and urban layout of medieval Ilok. There are interesting fire-defence regulations, rules about how houses should be located in relation to the street and neighbours, the obligation to maintain buildings, regulations about sewerage, keeping the town clean and various sanitation and hygienic measures. Carpenters and stonemasons had to obey regulations about building security. The Statute includes data about various public buildings and areas in the town, and about the natural environment and social picture of Ilok