The Role of Color-Magnetic Monopoles in a Gluonic Plasma

The role of color-magnetic monopoles in a pure gauge plasma at high temperature $T>2T_c$ is considered. In this temperature regime, monopoles can be considered heavy, rare objects embedded into matter consisting mostly of the usual "electric" quasiparticles, quarks and gluons. The gluon-monopole scattering is found to hardly influence thermodynamic quantities, yet it produces a large transport cross section, significantly exceeding that for pQCD gluon-gluon scattering up to quite high $T$. This mechanism keeps viscosity small enough for hydrodynamics to work at LHC.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, Talk presented at the Quark Matter 2009 Conference, Knoxville, T

Mediterranean Dietary Pattern Adjusted for CKD Patients: The MedRen Diet

A number of studies in the general population showed that healthy dietary patterns, such as the Mediterranean Diet, can improve or prevent the development of several chronic diseases and are associated with a significant reduction in all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. The Mediterranean diet may also have favorable effects for the prevention of chronic kidney disease (CKD), but no evidence of renoprotection exists in CKD patients. The Mediterranean Renal (MedRen) diet is an adaptation of the Mediterranean diet recommendations comprising a quantitative reduction in the RDA values of protein, salt and phosphate intake for the general population. Hence, MedRen supplies 0.8 g/Kg of protein, 6 g of salt and less than 800 mg of phosphate daily. Obviously, there is a preference for products of plant origin, which contain more alkali, fibers, unsaturated fatty acids than animal-based food. The MedRen diet can be implemented easily in mild-to-moderate stages of CKD with good results, both in terms of adherence to prescriptions and metabolic compensation. In our opinion, it should be the first step of CKD stage 3 nutritional management. This paper describes the features and reports our experience in the implementation of the MedRen diet as an early nutritional approach to CKD

Hypoproteic diet in patients' community: reports from University of Pisa

Nutrition is considered by the National Health Authorities as part of the clinical care process. In this perspective, the catering service of a hospital represents a powerful therapeutic and educational aid for the in-patients.The catering service of our University Hospital in Pisa is based on a collection of standardized diets with indications concerning the type of patient which they are addressed. The present paper deals with our experience in this field, and in particular with the diets for renal patients.The so called "special" diets, such as low protein (0.6 g / kg b. w. / day) low phosphorus diet, the low protein (0.7 g / kg b.w./ day) vegetarian diet and the very low protein (0.3 g / kg b. w./day) low phosphorus diet are prescribed by the doctors and developed by the dietician for the individual patient.Since its preparation, the low-protein diets have several critical points, namely processing - packaging and distribution of the diet, no customization, the low protein artificial foods).In order t..

Compliance alla terapia dietetica

La terapia nutrizionale è uno dei cardini della terapia conservativa dell'Insufficienza Renale Cronica (IRC). È in grado di contrastare segni, sintomi e complicanze dell'insufficienza renale, di procrastinare l'inizio della dialisi e di mantenere lo stato nutrizionale. La dieta deve essere ridotta in proteine perché molte delle tossine e dei cataboliti ritenuti derivano dalle proteine esogene, e perché la restrizione proteica rappresenta una condizione necessaria, anche se non sufficiente, per la contestuale riduzione dell'apporto di sodio e fosforo che contribuisce agli effetti terapeutici. Altra caratteristica fondamentale della terapia dietetica è l'adeguatezza energetica. I due casi descritti rappresentano quello che spesso accade nella pratica clinica nel paziente con IRC cui viene prescritta una dieta ipoproteica, e sottolineano l'importanza del counselling dietetico per la sicurezza e l'efficacia della terapia nutrizionale nel paziente renale con o senza diabete mellito

RAASi Therapy Attenuates the Association between 24-h Urinary Potassium Excretion and Dietary Potassium Intake in CKD Patients

The aim of this study was to evaluate urinary potassium (K) excretion as a reliable marker of dietary K intake, in a cohort of CKD patients with or without Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone System (RAAS) inhibitor therapy. One hundred and thirty-eight consecutive out-patients (51 f and 87 m) aged 60 +/- 13 years and affected by CKD stage 3-4, who were metabolically and nutritionally stable, entered the study between November 2021 and October 2022. No difference was observed between patients with (n = 85) or without (n = 53) RAAS inhibitor therapy, regarding dietary intakes, blood biochemistry, and 24-h urine excretion parameters. Considering all patients, urinary K showed a weak relationship with eGFR (r = 0.243, p < 0.01), and with dietary K intake (r = 0.184, p < 0.05). Serum K was not associated with dietary K intake, but an inverse relationship was observed with eGFR (r = -0.269, p < 0.01). When patients were examined depending on whether they were receiving RAAS inhibitor therapy, the weak inverse relationship between serum K and eGFR was maintained in both groups. Conversely, urinary K excretion remained positively associated with dietary K intake only in the no RAAS inhibitor group. In conclusion, 24-h urine K excretion may be used as a surrogate of K intake, but RAAS inhibitor therapy reduces the association between 24-h urine K excretion and dietary K intake in CKD patients

Reescrita de textos-fonte e autoria: serão mesmo incompatíveis?

O que ocorre quando crianças de 8 anos são solicitadas a reescrever, em provas escolares, textos-fonte previamente lidos por sua professora? Analisando 116 textos escritos por 30 estudantes de terceiro ano do Ensino Fundamental em escola pública paulista, o estudo procurou investigar: 1) As operações de escrita utilizadas pelos participantes; e 2) A possibilidade de encontrar criação em textos cuja proposta inicial era a de reprodução parafrástica. Partiu-se de uma concepção de linguagem que a vê tanto como um trabalho linguístico, um elemento ontológico fundador do ser humano (ROSSI-LANDI, 1985) quanto salienta seu caráter voltado para à variação e para a criatividade (BENVENISTE, 1991). Concluiu-se que, mesmo em exercícios escolares nos quais aparentemente existe pouco espaço para a inventividade, o exercício da escrita autoral pode irromper, pois as brechas de incompreensão e/ou equívoco que os textos apresentam para as crianças abrem oportunidades para o surgimento da subjetividade. Palavras-chave: escrita; reformulação parafrástica; autoria

Effect of PCM on the Hydration Process of Cement-Based Mixtures: A Novel Thermo-Mechanical Investigation

The use of Phase Change Material (PCM) for improving building indoor thermal comfort and energy saving has been largely investigated in the literature in recent years, thus confirming PCM's capability to reduce indoor thermal fluctuation in both summer and winter conditions, according to their melting temperature and operation boundaries. Further to that, the present paper aims at investigating an innovative use of PCM for absorbing heat released by cement during its curing process, which typically contributes to micro-cracking of massive concrete elements, therefore compromising their mechanical performance during their service life. The experiments carried out in this work showed how PCM, even in small quantities (i.e., up to 1% in weight of cement) plays a non-negligible benefit in reducing differential thermal increases between core and surface and therefore mechanical stresses originating from differential thermal expansion, as demonstrated by thermal monitoring of cement-based cubes. Both PCM types analyzed in the study (with melting temperatures at 18 and 25 ºC) were properly dispersed in the mix and were shown to be able to reduce the internal temperature of the cement paste by several degrees, i.e., around 5 ºC. Additionally, such small amount of PCM produced a reduction of the final density of the composite and an increase of the characteristic compressive strength with respect to the plain recipe.Funding: The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under Grant agreement No. 657466 (INPATH-TES) and No. 765057 (SaferUp!). The authors also thank the Microtek Laboratories, Inc. for providing the capsulated materials. The work is also partially funded by the Spanish government (ENE2015-64117-C5-1-R). Acknowledgments: Acknowledgments are due to the “CIRIAF program for UNESCO” in the framework of the UNESCO Chair “Water Resources Management and Culture”. Luisa F. Cabeza would like to thank the Catalan Government for the quality accreditation given to her research group (2017 SGR 1537)