Il Sexting

L’avvento trasversale della tecnologia ha impattato tutti i campi della vita sociale umana, in particolar modo sulla sessualità. Uno dei fenomeni che ne deriva è il sexting, crasi dei termini “sex” e “texting” ossia lo scambio digitale di materiale sessualmente esplicito, quali messaggi di testo, fotografie e video, attraverso device e social network. Dinamica di ampia diffusione sia nel mondo di adolescenti e giovani, sia in quello adulto, è stato al centro di numerose ricerche accademiche, nonché dell’opinione pubblica, anche a seguito di terribili fatti di cronaca che lo hanno messo in luce, poiché legato a episodi di (cyber-)bullismo e suicidio. Sono qui presentate le caratteristiche principali del sexting, partendo dalla definizione, passando alle tipologie, le motivazioni fino a conseguenze e fattori di rischio, secondo la letteratura psicologica internazionale. Viene presentato inoltre uno studio condotto sull’area fiorentina tramite l’Università degli Studi di Firenze, che indaga in modo empirico il sexting nel contesto italiano

Analisi sperimentale degli ioni metallici presenti nella saliva di soggetti portatori di apparecchi ortodontici mobili

Fino a pochi decenni addietro, il fenomeno dell’esposizione a basse concentrazioni di agenti tossici era considerato soltanto un problema di igiene ambientale. In realtà vari studi1-5 hanno approfondito, grazie al monitoraggio biologico, il concetto di “esposizione a basse dosi” di agenti tossici o elementi in tracce: pertanto nei suddetti studi, gli autori concludono che le “basse dosi” corrispondono a una esposizione tale che le concentrazioni della sostanza in esame si mantengono, nei fluidi biologici (per la popolazione esposta), al di sopra dei valori massimi di riferimento (stabiliti per la popolazione generale) e al di sotto dei valori-limite biologici

A hyperbolic model for the effects of urbanization on air pollution

AbstractA hyperbolic model to study effects of industrialization and urbanization on air pollution propagation is proposed.The existence of smooth and discontinuous traveling wave-like solutions, related to the spread of both the pollution in the atmosphere and the level of urbanization, is discussed. Validation of the model in point is also accomplished by searching for numerical solutions of the system of PDEs

Curved domain walls dynamics driven by magnetic field and electric current in hard ferromagnets

Abstract The propagation of curved domain walls in hard ferromagnetic materials is studied by applying a reductive perturbation method to the generalized Landau–Lifshitz–Gilbert equation. The extended model herein considered explicitly takes into account the effects of a spin-polarized current as well as those arising from a nonlinear dissipation. Under the assumption of steady regime of propagation, the domain wall velocity is derived as a function of the domain wall curvature, the nonlinear damping coefficient, the magnetic field and the electric current. Threshold and Walker-like breakdown conditions for the external sources are also determined. The analytical results are evaluated numerically for different domain wall surfaces (planes, cylinders and spheres) and their physical implications are discussed

Zu der neuen Auffassung der Katechese und Katechetik?

Autor promišlja o suvremenom značenju kateheze i katehetike. Riječ "kateheza" ukazuje na hod u crkvenom okruženju. Njome se označava sustavno crkveno djelovanje u obliku prijedloga koji je usmjeren na umnažanje vjere u župnoj zajednici. Naslovnici kateheze su ljudi koji žele biti vjernici i spremni su sučeliti se s prijedlogom vjere. Kateheza je ljudska riječ koja podsjeća na Božju riječ i njezin je odjek. Katehetika je refleksivna i teološka svijest kateheze. Danas je posebice pozvana na ozbiljnije sučeljavanje s aktualnom filozofijom. Poštujući antropološke i komunikacijske znanosti, katehetika treba jasnije izraziti proroštvo o komuniciranju. Potaknuta novijim filozofskim razmišljanjima, i katehetika treba u govoru uočiti ne samo govor, nego i više od govora: etičku dimenziju, drugotnost, razliku. Vodeći se temeljnim teološkim kriterijem, katehetika je pozvana prericati, odzvanjati, biti iskreni ljudski odjek Božjeg govora.Der Autor bedenke zeitgenössische Bedeutung der Katechese und Katechetik. Das Wort "Katechese" weise auf den Gang in der kirchlichen Umgebung hin. Es bezeichne eine systematische, kirchliche Wirkung in Form eines Vorschlags, welcher auf Vervielfältigung des Glaubens in der Pfarrgemeinschaft gerichtet sei. Die Adressaten der Katechese seien Menschen, die Gläubiger sein wollen und seien bereit, sich mit dem Glaubensvorschlag zu konfrontieren. Katechese sei ein menschliches Wort, das an das Wort Gottes erinnere und sei ihr Widerhall. Katechetik sei ein reflexives und theologisches Gewissen der Katechese. Heutzutage sei sie besonders zu einer ernsthafteren Konfrontierung mit der aktuellen Philosophie gerufen. Indem sie anthropologische und Kommunikationswissenschaften respektiere, solle Katechetik Weissagung über Kommunikation deutlicher ausdrücken. Durch neue philosophische Überlegungen angeregt, solle Katechetik in der Rede nicht nur Gespräch beobachten, sondern auch mehr als Gespräch: ethische Dimension, das Verschiedensein, Unterschied. Geleitet durch grundlegende theologische Kriterien sei Katechetik dazu gerufen, zu prophezeien, widerhallen, einen echten menschlichen Widerhall der Rede Gottes zu sein

L’idea di Europa nell’età delle Rivoluzioni: l’identità europea tra «umanità», «civiltà» e «nazione»

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A Comparative Study between Lycorine and Galantamine Abilities to Interact with AMYLOID β and Reduce In Vitro Neurotoxicity

Galantamine is a natural alkaloid extracted from the Amaryllidaceae plants and is used as the active ingredient of a drug approved for the treatment of the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. It mainly acts as an acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor, increasing concentrations of the acetylcholine neurotransmitter. Recent cellular studies have also shown the ability of galantamine to protect SH-SY5Y cell lines against amyloid-beta (A beta)-induced toxicity. Such investigations have supported and validated further in-depth studies for understanding the chemical and molecular features associated with galantamine-protective abilities. In addition to galantamine, other natural alkaloids are known to possess AChE inhibitory activity; among them lycorine has been extensively investigated for its antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antitumoral activities as well. Despite its interesting biological properties, lycorine's neuroprotective functions against A beta-induced damages have not been explored so far. In this research study, the ability of galantamine and lycorine to suppress A beta-induced in vitro neuronal toxicity was evaluated by investigating the chemical interactions of the two alkaloids with A beta peptide. A multi-technique spectroscopic analysis and cellular cytotoxicity assays were applied to obtain new insights on these molecular associations. The comparison between the behaviors exhibited by the two alkaloids indicates that both compounds possess analogue abilities to interact with the amyloidogenic peptide and protect cells

Leishmaniasis of the eyelid mimicking an infundibular cyst and review of the literature on ocular leishmaniasis

Abstract Cutaneous leishmaniasis is an infection caused by protozoa belonging to the genus Leishmania . The disease is transmitted by sandflies. Reservoirs are represented by dogs, mice, rats, and wild rodents. Cutaneous leishmaniasis is usually characterized by a single, polymorphous lesion located in an uncovered area. We report a case of cutaneous leishmaniasis localized on the left upper eyelid in a 36-year-old woman. The disease was characterized by a single, asymptomatic nodule, which was clinically diagnosed as an inflammatory infundibular cyst. The lesion was excised surgically. Histopathological examination showed an inflammatory infiltrate consisting of lymphocytes, histiocytes, and plasma cells. Several Leishmania spp amastigotes were observed in the cytoplasm of macrophages. Culture examination on Novy–MacNeal–Nicolle medium was positive for Leishmania spp . PCR was positive for Leishmania infantum . No relapses were observed during follow-up (17 months). The purpose of this report is to emphasize the changeability of clinical presentation in cutaneous leishmaniasis

Oscillatory periodic pattern dynamics in hyperbolic reaction-advection-diffusion models

In this work we consider a quite general class of two-species hyperbolic reaction-advection-diffusion system with the main aim of elucidating the role played by inertial effects in the dynamics of oscillatory periodic patterns. To this aim, first, we use linear stability analysis techniques to deduce the conditions under which wave (or oscillatory Turing) instability takes place. Then, we apply multiple-scale weakly nonlinear analysis to determine the equation which rules the spatiotemporal evolution of pattern amplitude close to criticality. This investigation leads to a cubic complex Ginzburg-Landau (CCGL) equation which, owing to the functional dependence of the coefficients here involved on the inertial times, reveals some intriguing consequences. To show in detail the richness of such a scenario, we present, as an illustrative example, the pattern dynamics occurring in the hyperbolic generalization of the extended Klausmeier model. This is a simple two-species model used to describe the migration of vegetation stripes along the hillslope of semiarid environments. By means of a thorough comparison between analytical predictions and numerical simulations, we show that inertia, apart from enlarging the region of the parameter plane where wave instability occurs, may also modulate the key features of the coherent structures, solution of the CCGL equation. In particular, it is proven that inertial effects play a role, not only during transient regime from the spatially-homogeneous steady state toward the patterned state, but also in altering the amplitude, the wavelength, the angular frequency, and even the stability of the phase-winding solutions

Cyberbullismo 2.0: una ricerca qualitativa del fenomeno

Denso è il dibattito nel mondo scientifico su come l’uso delle tecnologie stia cambiando il modo di approcciarsi all’Altro delle nuove generazioni e di come si sta modificando il loro modus agendi della componente emotiva, sempre più contrassegnata dell’aggressività: il fenomeno del bullismo così come tutte le fenomenologie devianti, messe in atto da minori, destano infatti una preoccupazione crescente. A questa va aggiunta l’apprensione di molti genitori davanti al ‘ritiro sociale’, che sempre più minori adottano per isolarsi dal mondo reale e rifugiarsi in quello virtuale. Strettamente correlato al bullismo, il cyberbullismo consiste in reiterati atteggiamenti e comportamenti finalizzati ad offendere, spaventare, umiliare la vittima tramite mezzi elettronici. Necessaria, quindi si fa un’analisi delle peculiarità possedute dai comportamenti aggressivi online, elementi strettamente connessi alle caratteristica proprie del cyberspace, che possa rendere più preparati, coloro che sono chiamati ad educare