Freestanding non-covalent thin films of the propeller-shaped polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon decacyclene

Molecularly thin, nanoporous thin films are of paramount importance in material sciences. Their use in a wide range of applications requires control over their chemical functionalities, which is difficult to achieve using current production methods. Here, the small polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon decacyclene is used to form molecular thin films, without requiring covalent crosslinking of any kind. The 2.5 nm thin films are mechanically stable, able to be free-standing over micrometer distances, held together solely by supramolecular interactions. Using a combination of computational chemistry and microscopic imaging techniques, thin films are studied on both a molecular and microscopic scale. Their mechanical strength is quantified using AFM nanoindentation, showing their capability of withstanding a point load of 26 ± 9 nN, when freely spanning over a 1 μm aperture, with a corresponding Young’s modulus of 6 ± 4 GPa. Our thin films constitute free-standing, non-covalent thin films based on a small PAH

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

Studio computazionale dei meccanismi di fotoprotezione nei fotosistemi delle piante

Lavoro di ricerca concentrato sui processi fotoprotettivi nei complessi antenna di piante ed alghe, in particolare sul Light Harvesting Complex II (LHCII) e sul meccanismo di Charge-Transfer nell'ambito del Non-Photochemical Quenching (NPQ). L'analisi computazionale studia il meccanismo di Charge-Transfer intermolecolare in dimeri clorofilla-clorofilla e clorofilla-carotenoide, e la sua competitività con altri processi di quenching molecolare

Design and Impact of a Teacher Training Course, and Attitude Change Concerning Educational Robotics

Current initiatives and laboratories concerning Educational Robotics (ER) are often not based on strong pedagogical backgrounds. Additionally, they are carried out by inadequately trained teachers, and are not evaluated properly in terms of effectiveness. Moreover, according to teachers, ER usability is often neglected. The main goal of the present article is to present a training course on ER (Edu.Ro.Co.), grounded in pedagogical insights, and to discuss the results of the course and teacher’s opinion about ER in terms of: (i) teachers’ attitudes and perceptions of using ER; (ii) the potential impact of ER on students’ key competences for lifelong learning; and (iii) strengths and weaknesses of ER. These aspects were analysed by means of questionnaires specifically designed by the authors, and administered before and after the training course. A total of 339 teachers attended the training course and 254 completed the questionnaires. The article describes the methodology utilised in the realisation of the course and analyses the questionnaire’s results. In particular, the number of teachers that considered themselves prepared to apply ER significantly improved after the training course. ER is considered by teachers an important tool for the improvement of students’ motivation, planning skills, team working, problem solving and creativity development. Finally, the results from questionnaires indicate that teachers consider ER, a method that improves team-working abilities and motivation in the students. In contrast, the main disadvantage is the cost of the robotic kits. Based on these results, new directions for future research in ER are discussed

COVID-19 as a Paradigmatic Model of the Heterogeneous Disease Presentation in Older People: Data from the GeroCovid Observational Study

COVID-19 may have a heterogeneous onset, especially in older age. However, whether and how COVID-19 signs and symptoms may present and aggregate together according to sociodemographic and health factors is unclear, as well as their prognostic value. This study included 981 COVID-19 inpatients who participated in the GeroCovid Observational study. Signs/symptoms at disease onset, sociodemographic, health, cognitive status, and mobility were systematically recorded. Clusters of signs/symptoms were identified through agglomerative hierarchical clustering. The associations of single signs/symptoms and symptom clusters with longer hospitalization (>= 16 days) and in-hospital mortality were explored through logistic and Cox regressions. The signs/symptoms most reported in our sample (age 78.3 +/- 9.39 years; 49.4% women) were fever (62.5%), cough (45.5%), and dyspnea (62.7%). Atypical symptoms were reported by up to one-third of patients, and delirium by 9.1%. Atypical symptoms were more frequent with advancing age and with lower pre-COVID-19 cognitive and mobility levels. Older men more likely reported respiratory symptoms than women. Dyspnea (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.47, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.02-2.12), tachypnea (HR = 1.53, 95% CI: 1.14-2.07), low oxygen saturation (HR = 1.95, 95% CI: 1.32-2.88) and delirium (HR = 1.60, 95% CI: 1.13-2.28) were associated with higher in-hospital mortality. Four symptom clusters were identified. Compared with the mild respiratory symptoms cluster, the severe clinical impairment cluster was associated with higher mortality (HR = 2.57, 95% CI: 1.58-4.18). The severe clinical impairment and aspecific symptoms clusters were associated with longer hospitalization (odds ratio [OR] = 2.38, 95% CI: 1.56-3.63, and OR = 1.75, 95% CI: 1.08-2.83, respectively). Multiple health aspects influence COVID-19 clinical presentation. A symptom clusters approach may help predict adverse health outcomes in older patients. In addition to respiratory symptoms, delirium is independently associated with mortality risk.ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04379440)