First aid: A Critical Component of School Health Education

There exists a paucity of evidence pertaining to first aid education in Canadian schools. With personal safety being an important component of health education, first aid is positioned less prominently within provincial school health curricula or programming in Canada. Normally performed by laypeople, first aid refers to the urgent and initial assistance given to anyone suffering a sudden illness or injury in order to preserve life, prevent rapid health deterioration, and promote recovery (Canadian Red Cross, 2017a). This study examines first aid education (FAE) in Canada’s provincial health education curricula. It also analyzes and discusses the taxonomy of first aid core content and outcomes within these curricula. Further, the study examines what FAE incorporates, while also analyzing why and how it is integral with health education. The findings in this study may provide scholars and practitioners with a deeper understanding of school-based FAE. Suggestions for future revisions in health education curriculum and future research directions are provided

Villa-Lobos\u27 Choros No. 5 - Alma Brasileira (Brazilian Soul)

Villa-Lobos (1887-1959) is one of the most famous Brazilian composers of all time. He is known for composing in a unique and exotic style, especially given his frequent use of Brazilian elements in his music. He is also associated with Brazilian Modernism, most notably for the nationalistic influences in his compositions. Scholars agree that one of his greatest works is his set of Choros, composed during the 1920s. His Choros no. 5 (composed for solo piano) exemplifies characteristics of Modernism, nationalism and Brazilian popular music. The purpose of this thesis is to try to identify these elements in his Choros no. 5 and to try to understand the influence they may have for the work’s performance. This thesis discusses Villa-Lobos’ life and influences during his early years; Brazilian Modernism (associated with nationalism); the choros genre as a popular music manifestation; and finally, Villa-Lobos’ set of Choros, focusing on Choros no.5

Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury and Ischemic-Type Biliary Lesions following Liver Transplantation

Ischemia-reperfusion (I-R) injury after liver transplantation (LT) induces intra- and/or extrahepatic nonanastomotic ischemic-type biliary lesions (ITBLs). Subsequent bile duct stricture is a significant cause of morbidity and even mortality in patients who underwent LT. Although the pathogenesis of ITBLs is multifactorial, there are three main interconnected mechanisms responsible for their formation: cold and warm I-R injury, injury induced by cytotoxic bile salts, and immunological-mediated injury. Cold and warm ischemic insult can induce direct injury to the cholangiocytes and/or damage to the arterioles of the peribiliary vascular plexus, which in turn leads to apoptosis and necrosis of the cholangiocytes. Liver grafts from suboptimal or extended-criteria donors are more susceptible to cold and warm I-R injury and develop more easily ITBLs than normal livers. This paper, focusing on liver I-R injury, reviews the risk factors and mechanisms leading to ITBLs following LT

Un docente Freedom Writers. Diario di un’esperienza

This article deals with the development of teacher professionalism through the experience of letting students write about themselves. It draws on the personal experience of the author, who applied this approach while teaching in an Italian high school.Since there is no one-size-fits-all model of teaching, teachers’ professionalism unfolds as the capability of answering the existential questions of classes that are framed within the boundaries of a localized context. Drawing on these assumptions, literature teacher Erin Gruwell helped the students ofRoom 203 of the Woodrow Wilson High School (Long Beach, California) to re-write their own stories in a diary form. Her writing workshop activity gave new hope to low-performing students.Erin Gruwell’s experience has been reproduced at the Institute for Hospitality “Paolo Baffi” (Fiumicino, Italy), Class 2F. With the awareness that every educational path is unique, the following paper describes the nature of the on-going research, which has been written down in the form of a private journal. At the end of such experience, the undersigned has become a teacher for Freedom Writers, that is somebody who records his own mistakes,the injustices he suffered, and who takes care of the fragile stories of his students: a teacher who teaches how to hope.L’articolo si interessa al costruirsi come docente attraverso l’esperienza dello scrivere di sé mentre si pensa, si fa, si incontrano le storie dei ragazzi della Seconda F Alberghiero Istituto “Paolo Baffi” di Fiumicino (Roma, Italia). Non c’è un modello di docente valido per tutti. La professionalità del docente è una risposta alle domande esistenziali di una classe inserita in un territorioconcreto. Questa è l’esperienza dell’insegnante di letteratura Erin Gruwell che ha aiutato a riscrivere, attraverso un diario, la storia degli studenti dell’aula 203 del Liceo di Long Beach (Los Angeles, California). Una storia che ha generato speranza. Ho provato a ripercorrere l’esperienza della Erin Gruwell consapevole che i cammini sono unici. Nessuna imitazione. Questa ricerca èun diario formativo che racconta il mio diventare docente Freedom Writers nella mia classe dell’Istituto “Paolo Baffi” di Fiumicino. Docente Freedom Writers che scrive i propri errori e le proprie ingiustizie subite, si prende cura delle storie fragili dei suoi studenti. Insegna a sperare

Determinants of price fluctuations in the electricity market: a study with PCA and NARDL models

In the modern electricity markets, negative prices and spike prices coexist as a pair of opposite economic phenomena. This study investigates how these extreme prices play as the determinants to drive price fluctuations in the electricity market. We construct a two-stage analysis including a principal component analysis (PCA) and a nonlinear autoregressive distributed lags model (NARDL). We apply this analytical method to the wholesale Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland (PJM) electricity market. We find that according to PCA, in the individual transmission lines, spike prices are determinants with largest explanatory power to the variation of prices, while according to NARDL, from the standpoint of the overall market, negative prices have a larger potential effect on both the real-time market and the forward market. These results are valuable and contributive to managers and operators in the electricity markets for policy decision making

Case report: Childhood epilepsy and borderline intellectual functioning hiding an AADC deficiency disorder associated with compound heterozygous DDC gene pathogenic variants

Aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) deficiency is a rare autosomal recessive neurometabolic disorder leading to severe combined serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine deficiency. We report on a female patient with borderline functioning and sporadic clear-cut focal to bilateral seizures from age 10 years. A neuropsychological assessment highlighted a mild impairment in executive functions, affecting attention span and visual-spatial abilities. Following the diagnosis of epilepsy with a presumed genetic etiology, we applied a diagnostic approach inclusive of a next-generation sequencing (NGS) gene panel, which uncovered two variants in trans in the DOPA decarboxylase (DDC) gene underlying an AADC deficiency. This compound heterozygous genotype was associated with a mild reduction of homovanillic acid, a low level of the norepinephrine catabolite, and a significant reduction of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid in cerebrospinal fluid. Remarkably, 3-O-methyldopa (3-OMD) and 5-hydroxytryptophan were instead increased. During the genetically guided re-evaluation process, some mild signs of dysautonomic dysfunction (nasal congestion, abnormal sweating, hypotension and fainting, excessive sleepiness, small hands and feet, and increased levels of prolactin, tiredness, and fatigue), more typical of AADC deficiency, were evaluated with new insight. Of the two AADC variants, the R347Q has already been characterized as a loss-of-function with severe catalytic impairments, while the novel L391P variant has been predicted to have a less severe impact. Bioinformatic analyses suggest that the amino acid substitution may affect affinity for the PLP coenzyme. Thus, the genotype corresponds to a phenotype with mild and late-onset symptoms, of which seizures were the clinical sign, leading to medical attention. This case report expands the spectrum of AADC deficiency phenotypes to encompass a less-disabling clinical condition including borderline cognitive functioning, drug-responsive epilepsy, and mild autonomic dysfunction

Flexible 3D-Printed EEG Electrodes

For electroencephalography (EEG) in haired regions of the head, finger-based electrodes have been proposed in order to part the hair and make a direct contact with the scalp. Previous work has demonstrated 3D-printed fingered electrodes to allow personalisation and different configurations of electrodes to be used for different people or for different parts of the head. This paper presents flexible 3D-printed EEG electrodes for the first time. A flexible 3D printing element is now used, with three different base mechanical structures giving differently-shaped electrodes. To obtain improved sensing performance, the silver coatings used previously have been replaced with a silver/silver-chloride coating. This results in reduced electrode contact impedance and reduced contact noise. Detailed electro-mechanical testing is presented to demonstrate the performance of the operation of the new electrodes, particularly with regards to changes in conductivity under compression, together with on-person tests to demonstrate the recording of EEG signals