834 research outputs found

    Rhinolithiasis-an unsual cause for a common symptom

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    info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

    Developmental social case work : a process model

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    Abstract: Social development has been adopted as South Africa’s social welfare approach and is increasingly being adopted in Africa and other parts of the developing world. The translation of developmental social welfare to social work has, however, been difficult for many social workers. A particularly challenging aspect of this translation concerns the practice of social case work within a social development approach, a topic that has received virtually no attention in the social development literature. This paper constructs a process model for a form of social case work that is informed by social development principles and priorities

    Promoting health-enhancing physical activity in Europe: Surveillance, policy development and implementation 2015-2018

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    In the European Union (EU), the low levels of health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA) and high levels of sedentary behaviour are a concerning public health issue common to all Member States. In 2013, the Council of the EU recognized the need for more data related to HEPA to support policymaking across the region and proposed a monitoring framework that included 23 indicators covering different themes relevant to HEPA promotion in the EU context. In 2014, the EU Physical Activity Focal Points Network was established to support the implementation of the monitoring framework and in 2015 and 2018 surveys were conducted to collect epidemiological and policy information related to HEPA for each Member State. This paper aims to provide an update on the status of HEPA policies and surveillance in the EU and describe the changes that have occurred since 2015. In 2018, all countries had implemented more than 10 indicators, 8/28 had implemented 20 or more indicators, and only one country had completed all 23 indicators. From 2015 to 2018, 19 indicators improved, one remained unchanged, and three regressed. From the country perspective, 17 improved the number of accomplished indicators, five maintained the indicators, and five worsened the number of indicators. Overall, there has been a clear increase in the number of countries implementing HEPA policies and strategies across the different sectors, although some heterogeneity between Members Sates was still observed. Implementation of regional physical activity strategies and the establishment of the EU-wide monitoring framework appears to have had an overall positive impact on HEPA policy development and implementation.This study was funded by the European Commission Directorate-General for Education and Culture

    Identification of most relevant variables and processes to assess the environmental impacts of remediation technologies along their life cycles: Focus on the waste management scenarios

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    The application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to remediation technologies is still not a consolidated practice and it is especially lacking in the assessment of the environmental impacts associated to the management of the waste produced during remediation. This study aims at addressing these methodological gaps by identifying the typologies of waste typically generated during the remediation of a contaminated site and classifying them according to the European Waste Catalogue (EWC) codes. Thereafter, the following steps are: (i) the identification of the waste management scenarios (WMSs) applicable to the identified waste typologies, (ii) the selection of Life Cycle Assessment processes that can be used to assess the impacts of the different WMSs and (iii) the quantification and comparison of the environmental impacts caused by the different WMSs applied considering hazardousness levels to which the same waste may belong in relation to its contamination levels and characteristics: inert, non-hazardous and hazardous waste (Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC). As results, a matrix reporting the classes and typologies of waste, their EWC codes, their different WMSs and the suitable LCA processes from the Ecoinvent database that can be applied to each EWC within a specific WMS, has been developed. Additionally, the comparative assessment of the impacts caused by the Ecoinvent processes applicable to the same waste typology within the same WMS has been performed to support the selection of the most appropriate WMS case by case

    Mapping the stranger: genetic diversity of Manila clam in European coastal lagoons.

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    Manila clam Ruditapes philippinarum - synonym Venerupis philippinarum (Adams and Reeve, 1850) is one of the most successful marine invaders worldwide and represents almost 20% of worldwide mollusc total production. Originally distributed in the Indo-Pacific region, the species was introduced for aquaculture and fisheries in North America, Polynesia, the US Virgin Islands, as well as in Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of Europe. Due to the commercial value of the species, population genetics and stock composition are of primary importance both in natural and invaded environments. Moreover, molecular genetics can provide valuable data in invasion biology, as, for example, the structure of the exploited populations, the origin of source populations and the routes of invasions. Furthermore, molecular data might be useful for the tracking of seafood products, as requested by the European Commission for European seafood products (see EC laws n° 178/2002, 509/2006, 510/2006 and their improvements). Despite all these considerations genetic data are lacking, especially for introduced populations, and should be urgently provided. In a framework of an European network of researchers involved in Manila clam studies, clams were collected in coastal lagoons and estuaries in both Mediterranean (Northern Adriatic Sea, Italy) and Atlantic (Spain and Portugal) coasts of Europe. Both mitochondrial and nuclear molecular markers were applied to investigate the genetic structure of populations, specifically by the direct sequencing of 16S rDNA gene fragments and by the genotyping of 7 microsatellite markers previously used in native populations. Results demonstrated the occurrence of multiple haplotypes for 16S rDNA, even if one main haplotype was identified in the European analyzed populations. However, few sequences were available in Genbank to make comparisons with native populations. Concerning the microsatellite data, the genotyping of Manila clam populations showed low genetic diversity among them, considering the Fst values, and a lack of genetic structuring when analysed by Structure software. Both these data suggest the absence of geographic differentiation among the introduced populations of Manila clam, as a result of introgression due to translocations and other human activities. The levels of genetic diversity within introduced populations were comparable to those described from native regions, suggesting that multiple introduction events and mixed source populations can counterbalance the loss of genetic diversity caused by the founder effect. However, it must be remarked that microsatellites showed a strong occurrence of null alleles when tested by Micro-checker, as previously observed in other bivalves, suggesting that the problem is differently distributed among Manila clam populations or specific loci, thus microsatellites should be carefully checked before used in extensive population studies. In the near future, population genetics and stock identification of this species on a large scale should be assessed using new powerful markers such as those obtained by NGS (Next Generation Sequencing) methods. In conclusion, this research represents the very first extensive genetic investigation on Manila clam’s European populations, defining the levels of genetic diversity that will help to inform management practices

    Electron-phonon interaction in C70

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    The matrix elements of the deformation potential of C70_{70} are calculated by means of a simple, yet accurate solution of the electron-phonon coupling problem in fullerenes, based on a parametrization of the ground state electronic density of the system in terms of sp2+xsp^{2+x} hybridized orbitals. The value of the calculated dimensionless total electron-phonon coupling constant is λ≈0.1\lambda\approx0.1, an order of magnitude smaller than in C60_{60}, consistent with the lack of a superconducting phase transition in C70_{70}A3_3 fullerite, and in overall agreement with measurements of the broadening of Raman peaks in C70_{70}K4_4. We also calculate the photoemission cross section of C70−_{70}^-, which is found to display less structure than that associated with C60−_{60}^-, in overall agreement with the experimental findings.Comment: To be published in Phys. Rev.
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