Improving the understanding of Circular Economy potential at territorial level using Systems Thinking

The definition of Circular Economy (CE) has evolved over time. It includes intervention options for reducing consumption, improving the efficiency of production, introducing recycling and reuse for materials management, including new business models geared at waste prevention. With the use of Systems Thinking and the creation of Causal Loop Diagrams (CLDs) we explore how CE strategies are related to territorial dynamics and how the outcomes of such strategies can support sustainable development. We first reviewed the literature, to identify the main drivers of change (i.e. feedback loops) triggered by CE interventions. We then applied the same systemic approach to six case studies across Europe in synergy with ESPON CIRCTER project. This allowed us to review, validate and improve the general systemic approach and further explore the role that specific territorial characteristics can play in the identification, selection and effective implementation of CE interventions. We find that some of the feedback loops emerged from the case studies are not found in the literature. On the one hand, new balancing loops have emerged, representing localized challenges to the implementation of CE strategies. On the other hand, new dynamics related to behavioural change have also emerged, which lead to self-reinforcing mechanisms in the case studies analysed, creating a stronger will for the implementation of CE interventions. The main result of our research is comprehensive CLD that can be used to assess and compare different CE strategies, fully considering the complexity of the CE and its various outcomes across social, economic and environmental indicators

PRACTICAL TRAINING IN THE CURRICULUM OF THE CIVIL ENGINEERING EDUCATION

Abstract This paper is intended to show the importance of the practical training activities in the civil engineering education process. The incorporation of such activities within the undergraduate curriculum, allows students to face real engineering problems in early stages, which provide them a valuable experience for their future professional career

Desarrollo del pensamiento crítico y creativo con estrategias motivacionales virtuales en una institución primaria en Perú

The research work aimed to create a model of virtual motivational strategies for strengthening the development of critical and creative thinking of girls in the V cycle, of primary education of a public institution, was guided by the basic type, non-experimental design, descriptive-propositional, with a quantitative approach. The use of virtual learning tools or environments was considered as motivation. The data was obtained through a survey administered by a questionnaire with 30 items, applied to identify the level of development of critical and creative thinking in which the students were located. The electronic means Google and WhatsApp form allowed the girls to take the sample, valued with a Likert scale. The results indicated that most of the students who participated are at the beginning and process level of achievement; with this information, the proposal of the strategy model was elaborated, validated by expert judgment, with the aim of solving the problem encountered as well as allowing students to achieve characteristics of skillful, sophisticated thinkers with improvements in their decisions, actions, and qualifications.El trabajo de investigación tuvo como objetivo crear un modelo de estrategias motivacionales virtuales para el fortalecimiento del desarrollo del pensamiento crítico y creativo (PCC) de las niñas del V ciclo, de educación primaria de una institución pública, se orientó por el tipo básica, diseño no experimental, de carácter descriptiva propositiva, con enfoque cuantitativo. Se consideró el uso de herramientas o entornos virtuales de aprendizaje como motivación. Los datos fueron obtenidos por medio de una encuesta administrada por un cuestionario con 30 ítems, aplicada con la finalidad de identificar el nivel de desarrollo del PCC en el cual se ubicaron las estudiantes. Los medios electrónicos formulario Google y WhatsApp permitieron tomar la muestra a las niñas, valorados con escala Likert. Los resultados señalaron que la mayoría de las estudiantes que participaron se encuentran en el nivel de logro inicio y proceso; con esta información se elaboró la propuesta del modelo de estrategias, validado por juicio de expertos, con la pretensión de dar solución a la problemática encontrada además de permitir lograr estudiantes con características de pensadoras hábiles, sofisticadas con mejoras en sus decisiones, actuaciones y calificaciones

Efficacy of free glutathione and niosomal glutathione in the treatment of acetaminophen-induced hepatotoxicity in cats

Acetaminophen (APAP) administration results in hepatotoxicity and hematotoxicity in cats. The response to three different treatments against APAP poisoning was evaluated. Free glutathione (GSH) (200mg/kg), niosomal GSH (14 mg/kg) and free amino acids (180 mg/kg of N-acetylcysteine and 280 mg/kg of methionine) were administered to cats that were intoxicated with APAP (a single dose of 150 mg/kg, p.o.). Serum concentration of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) along with serum, liver and erythrocyte concentration of GSH and methemoglobin percentage were measured before and 4, 24 and 72 hours after APAP administration. Free GSH (200 mg/kg) and niosomal GSH (14 mg/kg) were effective in reducing hepatotoxicity and hematotoxicity in cats intoxicated with a dose of 150 mg/kg APAP. We conclude that both types of treatments can protect the liver and haemoglobin against oxidative stress in APAP intoxicated cats. Furthermore, our results showed that treatment with niosomal GSH represents an effective therapeutic approach for APAP poisoning.Fil: Denzoin Vulcano, L. A.. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatologia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; ArgentinaFil: Confalonieri, O.. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Clinicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; ArgentinaFil: Franci, R.. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Clinicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; ArgentinaFil: Tapia, Maria Ofelia. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatologia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; ArgentinaFil: Soraci, Alejandro Luis. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Fisiopatologia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tandil. Centro de Investigacion Veterinaria de Tandil; Argentin

Polidata: Modelo de inteligencia artificial para la evaluación del diseño de interfaz de usuario en dispositivos móviles

Given the proliferation of chats and prompts for the use of artificial intelligence, especially in the field of content design and generation, challenges and opportunities for design appear. This article proposes the research and development of a  multiclass deep learning model, aimed at evaluating the design of user interfaces for mobile devices, especially as support during the prototyping process of high fidelity interfaces. It also presents the creation of a dataset intended to be the knowledge base of the model. The examples that constitute the dataset have been selected, coming from applications for the Android system, using, as a selection criterion, the consistency and standards of them, for this purpose, the design system Material Design of Google has been used as a style guide. The model has been integrated into an interface that allows intuitively to obtain the inferences or the level of confidence in front of a designed interface that is presented to the model.Dada la proliferación de chats y prompts para el uso de inteligencia artificial, especialmente en el ámbito del diseño y generación de contenidos, aparecen desafíos y oportunidades para el diseño. Este artículo propone la investigación y el desarrollo de un  modelo de aprendizaje profundo multiclase, destinado a evaluar el diseño de interfaz de usuario para dispositivos móviles, especialmente como apoyo durante el proceso de prototipado de interfaces en alta fidelidad. También, presenta la creación de un dataset o conjunto de datos destinado a ser la base de conocimiento del modelo. Se han seleccionado los ejemplos que constituyen el dataset, provienen desde aplicaciones para el sistema Android, empleando, como criterio de selección, la consistencia y estándares de ellas, para este propósito, se ha utilizado como guía de estilo el sistema de diseño Material Design de Google. El modelo se ha integrado a una interfaz que permite de manera intuitiva obtener las inferencias o el nivel de confianza frente a una interfaz diseñada que se le presente al modelo

Placenta Succenturiata (Tripartita), Asociada a Placenta Previa y Acreta

The accessory placenta or succenturia is a pathological condition with a worldwide incidence of approximately 0.6% to 1%. However, untimely and late diagnosis can have serious repercussions on maternal and fetal well-being. We present the case of a 37-year-old patient with a diagnosis of placenta accreta and satisfied parity is presented, which had termination of pregnancy by cesarean section in which a healthy and strophic newborn was obtained, the result of pathology with placenta succenturiata of 3 fragments. In conclusion, the placenta succenturiata is a relatively rare morphological abnormality, clinically and morphologically diagnosed in the puerperium, which can be diagnosed by Doppler ultrasound as it carries risks that can compromise the health and life of both the fetus and the mother.La placenta accesoria o succenturia es una afección patológica con una incidencia mundial de aproximadamente el 0,6% al 1 %. Sin embargo, el diagnóstico inoportuno y tardío puede tener graves repercusiones en el bienestar materno y fetal. Se presenta caso de paciente de 37 años con diagnóstico de placenta acreta y paridad satisfecha, la cual tuvo finalización de la gestación por cesárea en el que se obtuvo recién nacido estrófico y sano, el resultado de patología con con placenta succenturiata de 3 fragmentos. En conclusión la placenta succenturiata es una anormalidad morfológica relativamente rara, de diagnostico clínico y morfológico en el puerperio, la cual es posible diagnosticarse mediante ultrasonido Doppler ya que conlleva riesgos que pueden comprometer la salud y la vida tanto del feto como de la madre

Coagulopathy as initial manifestation of concomitant celiac disease and cystic fibrosis: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Celiac disease and cystic fibrosis have many common manifestations, such as malabsorption, steatorrhea and growth failure, and were for many years recognized as one clinical entity. Since their recognition as two separate diseases, their co-existence in a patient has been described sporadically; around 20 cases have been described in the literature. Taking into consideration the incidences of the two diseases, the chance of them occurring together is one in 2,000,000 in the general population.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We describe the case of a five-year-old boy of Turkish ethnicity with both celiac disease and cystic fibrosis, who presented initially with a skin hemorrhage. The diagnosis of celiac disease was made with a positive serum anti-tissue transglutaminase antibody test and the presence of HLA-DQ2 heterodimer, and confirmed on histology with small intestinal villous atrophy. A positive sweat test confirmed the diagnosis of associated cystic fibrosis.</p> <p>To the best of our knowledge there has been no previous report of this rare presentation of associated celiac disease and cystic fibrosis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The clinical significance of this case is the consideration of malabsorption with both celiac disease and cystic fibrosis in patients who present with unexplained coagulopathy.</p

Phage typing or CRISPR typing for epidemiological surveillance of Salmonella Typhimurium?

Objective: Salmonella Typhimurium is the most dominant Salmonella serovar around the world. It is associated with foodborne gastroenteritis outbreaks but has recently been associated with invasive illness and deaths. Characterization of S. Typhimurium is therefore very crucial for epidemiological surveillance. Phage typing has been used for decades for subtyping of S. Typhimurium to determine the epidemiological relation among isolates. Recent studies however have suggested that high throughput clustered regular interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) typing has the potential to replace phage typing. This study aimed to determine the efficacy of highthroughput CRISPR typing over conventional phage typing in epidemiological surveillance and outbreak investigation of S. Typhimurium. Results: In silico analysis of whole genome sequences (WGS) of well-documented phage types of S. Typhimurium reveals the presence of different CRISPR type among strains belong to the same phage type. Furthermore, different phage types of S. Typhimurium share identical CRISPR type. Interestingly, identical spacers were detected among outbreak and non-outbreak associated DT8 strains of S. Typhimurium. Therefore, CRISPR typing is not useful for the epidemiological surveillance and outbreak investigation of S. Typhimurium and phage typing, until it is replaced by WGS, is still the gold standard method for epidemiological surveillance of S. Typhimurium

An international review of tobacco smoking in the medical profession: 1974–2004

Background\ud Tobacco smoking by physicians represents a contentious issue in public health, and regardless of what country it originates from, the need for accurate, historical data is paramount. As such, this article provides an international comparison of all modern literature describing the tobacco smoking habits of contemporary physicians.\ud \ud Methods\ud A keyword search of appropriate MeSH terms was initially undertaken to identify relevant material, after which the reference lists of manuscripts were also examined to locate further publications.\ud \ud Results\ud A total of 81 English-language studies published in the past 30 years met the inclusion criteria. Two distinct trends were evident. Firstly, most developed countries have shown a steady decline in physicians' smoking rates during recent years. On the other hand, physicians in some developed countries and newly-developing regions still appear to be smoking at high rates. The lowest smoking prevalence rates were consistently documented in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom. Comparison with other health professionals suggests that fewer physicians smoke when compared to nurses, and sometimes less often than dentists.\ud \ud Conclusion\ud Overall, this review suggests that while physicians' smoking habits appear to vary from region to region, they are not uniformly low when viewed from an international perspective. It is important that smoking in the medical profession declines in future years, so that physicians can remain at the forefront of anti-smoking programs and lead the way as public health exemplars in the 21st century

High Quality Long-Term CD4+ and CD8+ Effector Memory Populations Stimulated by DNA-LACK/MVA-LACK Regimen in Leishmania major BALB/c Model of Infection

Heterologous vaccination based on priming with a plasmid DNA vector and boosting with an attenuated vaccinia virus MVA recombinant, with both vectors expressing the Leishmania infantum LACK antigen (DNA-LACK and MVA-LACK), has shown efficacy conferring protection in murine and canine models against cutaneus and visceral leishmaniasis, but the immune parameters of protection remain ill defined. Here we performed by flow cytometry an in depth analysis of the T cell populations induced in BALB/c mice during the vaccination protocol DNA-LACK/MVA-LACK, as well as after challenge with L. major parasites. In the adaptive response, there is a polyfunctional CD4+ and CD8+ T cell activation against LACK antigen. At the memory phase the heterologous vaccination induces high quality LACK-specific long-term CD4+ and CD8+ effector memory cells. After parasite challenge, there is a moderate boosting of LACK-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Anti-vector responses were largely CD8+-mediated. The immune parameters induced against LACK and triggered by the combined vaccination DNA/MVA protocol, like polyfunctionality of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells with an effector phenotype, could be relevant in protection against leishmaniasis