La introducción de la alquimia griega en el Cristianismo: Inclusión y exclusión de elementos religiosos en las Lecciones de Stephanus

One of the most noticeable features distinguishing Byzantine works on alchemy from the earlier Greco-Egyptian alchemical tradition is the widespread presence of Christian prayers and direct references to specifically Christian ideas and beliefs. By focusing on Stephanus’s Lessons (7th cent.), the first alchemical work including extensive references to Christianity, the paper will explore how alchemy was Christianised in the early Byzantine period. The first part of this study will analyse the strategies adopted by the author of the Lessons to frame alchemy as a Christianised discipline aiming at discovering the divine principle hidden in the natural world. In the second part, the limitations of this process of Christianisation of alchemy will be pointed out by examining if and to what extent specifically Christian ideas were included in Stephanus’ treatment of alchemy and its operations, and if the introduction of a Christianised framework into an alchemical work entailed the exclusion of previous non-Christian alchemical ideas. The results of this twofold analysis will show the complexity and inextricable tensions of the process of Christianisation undergone by the alchemical discipline when it started to be practiced in the socio-cultural context of the Byzantine world.Una de las características más notables que distinguen las obras bizantinas sobre alquimia de la anterior tradición alquímica greco-egipcia es la presencia generalizada de oraciones cristianas y referencias directas a ideas y creencias específicamente cristianas. Centrándose en las Lecciones de Stephanus (siglo VII d.C.), la primera obra alquímica que incluye amplias referencias al cristianismo, el artículo explorará cómo se cristianizó la alquimia a principios del período bizantino. La primera parte de este estudio analizará las estrategias adoptadas por el autor de las Lecciones para enmarcar la alquimia como una disciplina cristianizada destinada a descubrir el principio divino oculto en el mundo natural. En la segunda parte, se señalarán las limitaciones de este proceso de cristianización de la alquimia examinando si y en qué medida se incluyeron ideas específicamente cristianas en el tratamiento de la alquimia de Stephanus y sus operaciones, y si la introducción de un marco cristianizado en un trabajo alquímico implicó la exclusión de las ideas alquímicas no cristianas anteriores. Los resultados de este doble análisis mostrarán la complejidad y las inextricables tensiones del proceso de cristianización que experimentó la disciplina alquímica cuando comenzó a practicarse en el contexto sociocultural del mundo bizantino

Metals as Living Bodies. Founts of Mercury, Amalgams, and Chrysocolla

Ancient and medieval alchemical works include several comparisons between the generation and development of metals and those of plants, animals, and living beings. These comparisons could refer to adopt physiological models in the explanation of the natural formation of metals and their artificial transformation, to justify the place occupied by alchemy within the broader study of the natural world, and to stand as metaphorical descriptions of specific alchemical procedures. This article analyses these features by focusing on the relationship between mercury and gold, the latter being the "perfect " metal that constituted both an ambitious goal of alchemical practice and one of its key ingredients. The interrelationship between gold and mercury emerges in complex myths about metallic rivers, in the use of gold-mercury amalgams in ancient technology, and in the discussion that alchemists developed around the enigmatic chrysocolla (literally "gold solder "). These three foci are discussed in relation to a variety of ancient sources - from Aristotle and the Stoics to late antique, Byzantine, and Syriac alchemical texts - to explore the different forms of conceptualising metals as living bodies and the interactions of these models with ancient theories on the formation of metals and the alchemical practices aimed at their transformation

Umbilical Cord Blood and Serum for the Treatment of Ocular Diseases: A Comprehensive Review

Several blood derivatives have been proposed for the treatment of various ocular diseases that affect either the anterior or the posterior segment of the eye. Blood sources may range from the patient's own peripheral blood (autologous) to donor tissues, mainly allogeneic peripheral blood and umbilical cord blood (UCB). The utilization of the latter permits the collection of a large amount of serum all at once, and is characterized by therapeutic feasibility in patients with a poor general condition or anemia and blood dyscrasia. Products derived from UCB have two potential uses. First, serum in the form of eye drops can be applied topically onto the ocular surface to efficiently treat anterior segment disorders such as dry eye syndrome or corneal epithelial defects with different etiologies. The rationale for and efficacy of this application derive from the high concentrations of biologically active components and growth factors in UCB, which can nourish the ocular surface. Second, UCB is a source of stem cells, which are used in the field of regenerative medicine because they differentiate into various mature cells, including corneal and retinal cells. Therefore, UCB-derived stem cells have been proposed as a replacement therapy for the treatment of retinal and optic nerve diseases, given that current standard treatments often fail. The present review explores the clinical results that have been obtained using UCB-derived products in the field of ophthalmology, as well as the current limitations of those products in this field. Furthermore, given the promising development of UCB-based therapies, possible future directions in this area are discussed

Exotic atoms at extremely high magnetic fields: the case of neutron star atmosphere

The presence of exotic states of matter in neutron stars (NSs) is currently an open issue in physics. The appearance of muons, kaons, hyperons, and other exotic particles in the inner regions of the NS, favored by energetic considerations, is considered to be an effective mechanism to soften the equation of state (EoS). In the so-called two-families scenario, the softening of the EoS allows for NSs characterized by very small radii, which become unstable and convert into a quark stars (QSs). In the process of conversion of a NS into a QS material can be ablated by neutrinos from the surface of the star. Not only neutron-rich nuclei, but also more exotic material, such as hypernuclei or deconfined quarks, could be ejected into the atmosphere. In the NS atmosphere, atoms like H, He, and C should exist, and attempts to model the NS thermal emission taking into account their presence, with spectra modified by the extreme magnetic fields, have been done. However, exotic atoms, like muonic hydrogen $(p\,\mu^-)$ or the so-called Sigmium $(\Sigma^+\,e^-)$, could also be present during the conversion process or in its immediate aftermath. At present, analytical expressions of the wave functions and eigenvalues for these atoms have been calculated only for H. In this work, we extend the existing solutions and parametrizations to the exotic atoms $(p\,\mu^-)$ and $(\Sigma^+\,e^-)$, making some predictions on possible transitions. Their detection in the spectra of NS would provide experimental evidence for the existence of hyperons in the interior of these stars.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, proceedings of the "International Conference on Exotic Atoms and Related Topics - EXA2017", Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria, September 11-15, 201

A New Approach to Land-Use Structure. Patch Perimeter Metrics as a Spatial Analysis Tool

This work introduces a new class of landscape metrics characterizing basic features of patch perimeters. Specific computation on patch perimeters was carried out on fine-grained land-use maps with the aim to characterize spatial patterns of neighbor patches, evidencing contact points and perimeter length between two (or more) land-use types. A detailed set of class and landscape metrics were derived from such analysis. This approach is complementary to classical landscape metrics and proved to be particularly useful to characterize complex, fragmented landscapes profiling metropolitan regions based on integrated evaluations of their structural (landscape) and functional (land-use) organization. A multivariate analysis was run to characterize distinctive spatial patterns of the selected metrics in four metropolitan regions of southern Europe reflecting different morphological configurations (Barcelona: compact, polycentric; Lisbon: dispersed, mono-centric; Rome: dispersed, polycentric; and Athens: compact, mono-centric). Perimeter metrics assumed different values for each investigated land-use type, with peculiar characteristics associated to each city. Land-use types assessing residential, discontinuous urban patches were associated to particularly high values of perimeter metrics, possibly indicating patch fragmentation, spatially-associated distribution of land-use types and landscape complexity. Multivariate analysis indicates substantial differences among cities, reflecting the range of morphological configurations described above (from compact mono-centric to dispersed polycentric) and suggesting that urban expansion is accompanied with multiple modifications in the use of the surrounding non-urban land. The computational approach proposed in this study and based on spatially-explicit metrics of landscape configuration and proximity may reflect latent changes in local socio-spatial structures. Our results demonstrate that scattered urban expansion determines a polarization in suburban areas with highly fragmented and more homogeneous landscapes, respectively, associated with mixed cropland and forest systems

Psychiatric patients at the emergency department: factors associated with length of stay and likelihood of hospitalization

Emergency department (ED) care for psychiatric patients is currently understudied despite being highly utilized. Therefore, we aimed to analyze psychiatric patients' length of stay (LOS) and LOS-related factors at the ED and to investigate and quantify the likelihood of being hospitalized after an emergency psychiatric evaluation. Charts of 408 individuals who sought help at the ED were retrospectively assessed to identify patients' sociodemographic and clinical data upon ED admission and discharge. All interventions performed at the ED (e.g., medications, hospitalization, clinical advice at discharge) were collected as well. The LOS for psychiatric patients was relatively short (6.5 h), and substance/alcohol intoxication was the main factor impacting LOS. Upon ED arrival, hospitalized patients were mostly men, most often had a yellow/severe triage code, and most often had a positive history of psychiatric illness, psychotic symptoms, euphoric mood, or suicidal ideation. Manic symptoms and suicidal ideation were the conditions most frequently leading to hospitalization. Given the paucity of real-world data on psychiatric patients’ LOS and outcomes in the ED context, our findings show that psychiatric patients are evaluated in a reasonable amount of time. Their hospitalization is mostly influenced by clinical conditions rather than predisposing (e.g., age) or system-related factors (e.g., mode of arrival)

Clinical and anatomical variables associated in the literature to limb graft occlusion after endovascular aneurysm repair compared to the experience of a tertiary referral center

Introduction: Limb graft occlusion (LGO) is the third reason for hospital readmission after endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) for abdominal aortic aneurysm. We reviewed the clinical features, incidence, anatomical and devices related predictive factors for LGO after EVAR, and compared them with our experience. Evidence acquisition: EVAR between 2010-2017 were included. Patients with LGO (LGO group) were matched for age and type of endograft with the rest of the entire cohort without LGO (control group). Clinical, anatomical, operative, outcome, and follow-up data were collected. Evidence synthesis: Two hundred seventy-six EVAR, (30 aorto-uniliac), 276 patients. The incidence of LGO was 2.5% (seven limbs, seven patients) at 27±24.6 days. Symptomatic patients were successfully treated. No mortality, limb loss, critical limb ischemia or residual claudication due to LGO was observed. Fifty patients resulted from the matching. Among the predictive factors of LGO between the two groups, significant differences were observed in graft limb oversizing ≥15% (57.1% vs. 8%, P=0.005), or kinking (42.9% vs. 2%, P=0.01), and diameter of the aortic bifurcation <20 mm (71.4% vs. 20%, P=0.01). Logistic regression analysis showed that these three variables increased the risk of LGO (P=0.003, P=0.006, and P=0.01, respectively). Conclusions: The strongest predictive factors of LGO issued from our review were: extension in the external iliac artery, or small diameter; tortuous, angled, and calcific iliac axis; excessive oversizing of the limb graft, or kinking; use of old generation devices; EVAR performed outside the instructions for use. Limb graft oversizing >15%, or kinking, and aortic bifurcation <20 mm appear to be independent predictive factors of LGO

Second Trimester Amniocentesis Is Not a Risk Factor for Very Low Birth Weight and Extremely Low Birth Weight

Objectives. To assess the risk of very low birth weight (VLBW) and extremely low birth weight (ELBW) attributable to second trimester amniocentesis. Methods. Records of 4,877 consecutive amniocentesis, performed between 1997 and 2003, were analyzed. Only VLBW and ELBW in the study population (exposed) and in the control group (unexposed) were evaluated. Comparisons were made between the amniocentesis group versus nonexposed. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated for VLBW and ELBW classes. Results. In the study population, the VLBW were 35 (0.71%) and the ELBW were 20 (0.41%). In the control group, the VLBW were 220 (0.67%) and the ELBW were 112 (0.34%). The Odds ratios of the VLBW between the study and the control group did not show any statistical significant risk (OR = 1.07, 95% CI = 0.72–1.54). Also in ELBW odds ratios between study and control group were not statistically significant (OR = 1.20, 95% CI = 0.7–1.95). Conclusions. No effect of the second trimester amniocentesis was noted on VLBW and ELBW

SOCIALITÀ DIGITALE E COVID-19. Service Design per l’analisi del coinvolgimento emotivo nella città digitale

La recente emergenza mondiale e la conseguente virtualizzazione della quotidianità che l’essere umano ha dovuto fronteggiare, hanno fatto emergere il ruolo delle tecnologie digitali nella vita di ognuno e le criticità ad esse connesse. L’articolo riporta l’analisi delle piattaforme digitali più diffuse durante il periodo di lockdown 2020, volta a evidenziare una correlazione fra il successo in termine di fruizione e la componente emotiva-relazionale dei servizi stessi. A tal fine, è stato definito uno strumento di indagine derivante dal Service Design in grado di affiancare a un’azione di analisi prestazionale del servizio i relativi effetti in termini di fattori emozionali: un’opportunità per la comunità scientifica di riflettere sul miglioramento delle componenti socio-relazionali di una metaforica città digitale.The recent world health emergency and the consequent virtualisation of daily life that human beings had to tackle, have brought to light the role of digital technologies in our lives and the problems linked to them. In this context, the article deals with the analysis of the most used digital platforms during the 2020 lockdown, aimed at highlighting the link between its success and the emotional-relational component of the services.To this purpose, an investigation tool coming from Service Design was created. A tool capable of supporting the action of a service performance analysis and its effects in terms of emotional factors: an opportunity for the scientific community to think on the improvement of the socio-relational components of a metaphorical digital city