What Portion of Illinois Residents Eligible for Safety Net Benefits Receive Those Benefits?: Estimates by Program, Population Subgroups, and Counties

Safety net benefits can help to improve the economic well-being of families with lower income levels, but many families and individuals who are eligible for benefits do not receive them. Designing the best interventions to increase participation rates requires knowing more about who receives assistance. We explored program participation rates in Illinois, focusing on seven programs: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), Public and Subsidized Housing, the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). The analysis rests on detailed estimates of program eligibility produced by the Urban Institute's ATTIS (Analysis of Transfers, Taxes, and Income Security) microsimulation model. Statewide participation rates in 2018 varied from a low of 13 percent among families eligible for TANF to a high of 57 percent among those eligible for SNAP. Some subgroups of eligible families—for example, families with children with a single parent compared to those with two parents—are generally more likely to participate. Other patterns, including differences by race and ethnicity and by county population-size, vary across the programs

Measuring Poverty at the State Level

Outlines a model for using the National Academy of Sciences poverty measure, which accounts for all income, non-discretionary work and out-of-pocket health expenses, and geographic cost variations, to estimate the effects of poverty reduction policies

How Do States' Safety Net Policies Affect Poverty?

Using Georgia, Illinois, and Massachusetts as illustrative examples, examines how states' narrow, medium, or broad policies on cash, non-cash, and tax elements of the safety net affect poverty rates among non-elderly adults and children

Analisi e sviluppo di un intervento migliorativo per la gestione dei rifiuti urbani nella provincia di Massa Carrara - svolto in collaborazione con CERMEC SpA

L’elaborato descrive il progetto realizzato presso CERMEC, il Consorzio Ecologia e Risorse della Provincia di Massa Carrara, ente pubblico per le attività di trattamento e trasformazione dei rifiuti urbani ad esso conferiti. Trascorso un primo, propedeutico momento di avvicinamento agli aspetti legislativi propri del settore della gestione dei rifiuti, il mio lavoro è iniziato con l’analisi qualitativa e quantitativa dei conferimenti, a cui è seguito uno studio del processo di raccolta degli RSU, volto ad individuarne le criticità. Dalla definizione di queste ultime è nata l’idea portante della soluzione proposta, basata sui concetti di economicità, efficacia ed efficienza caposaldo della normativa di riferimento. Vero cuore dello studio è stata l’individuazione e la mappatura dei processi necessari all’implementazione dell’intervento, a cui segue la definizione di un set di indicatori. Il tutto interpretando e superando i concetti e l’approccio promosso dal pacchetto UNI ISO 9000

The course of cancer related fatigue up to ten years in early breast cancer patients. What impact in clinical practice?

Little is known about the cancer related fatigue (CRF) along cancer course and risk factors that could predict CRF development and persistence in breast cancer (BC) survivors. This prospective study detected incidence, timing of onset, duration of CRF, impact on QoL and psychological distress. Seventy-eight early BC patients, undergoing chemotherapy (CT) followed or not by hormonal therapy were assessed for QoL and psychological distress by EORTC QLQC30 and HADs questionnaires. Fatigue was investigated with mix methods, structured interview and psychometric measures. A qualitative analysis was added to assess the behavioral pattern of CRF. Low fatigue levels were identified after surgery (9%), increasing during (49%) and at the end of CT (47%), maintaining after 1 year (31%) and declining up to ten years of follow-up. Prevalence of CRF was higher at the end of CT and lower at follow-up. At the end and after 1 and 2 years from CT, persistence of CRF was associated to anxiety in 20%, 11% and 5% and to depression in 15%, 10% and 5% respectively. A relationship between CRF and psychological distress was observed; patients presenting depression and anxiety before CT were at higher risk for fatigue onset at a later period. A relationship between fatigue and QoL was noted at the end of CT. Our study shows the fatigue timely trend in early BC patients from surgery, CT and follow-up. Identification of biological, psychological, social predictor factors related to fatigue could be helpful for early interventions in patients at higher risk of developing fatigue

Lo specchio e il ritratto. Scansioni dell’età, topoi e modelli femminili fra paganesimo e cristianesimo

The mythical Helen at the mirrow crying her lost beauty and youth, the old courtesan Laide vowing her mirrow to Aphrodite as she needs it no more, introduce to the problem of gradus aetatum (the ages of life) for women in Greek and Latin literature, both pagan and Christian. The second part of the research deals with the common places of puer senex, puer maior sua aetate as used by ancient writers for a girl. Physical and spiritual age were considered in opposition in a philosophical and religious perspective. The transformation of a young girl into an old woman is strictly linked to the transformation of a woman into a man, according to the typology of mulier virilis. So on a spiritual level young women may become models for old men; however women have no age as their social role prevails. The last part focuses on the problem of old women in antiquity. Youth and beauty, positive values in pagan texts, were considered as belonging to the earthly life in Christian works and had to be overcome. Holy beauty is the only recognized form of beauty for ascetic women and they acquired it after death. In late antiquity ideal women had no sex and no age, no mirrow and no physical portrait

Thermodynamic analysis of POPs interaction with biosubstrates

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), pesticides and herbicides are nowadays ubiquitous [1]. These species are highly lipophilic and all at least suspected of carcinogenic effects [2,3]. However, information on their toxic activity is often related to in vitro/in vivo studies, whereas a detailed analysis of the mechanistic/chemical aspects of the binding to biosubstrates is sometimes missing. To contribute to this field and in the frame of our participation to PNRA (National Antarctic Research Program) we have done some tests on the binding of model targets (two PAHs, two pesticides and two herbicides, Fig. 1) to biosubstrates (natural DNA and bovine serum albumin - BSA). The interaction with micelles and liposomes was also tested, both as to scale the lipophilicity and to get information on the possible accumulation on membranes. The results collected show that the high hydrophobicity of these species turns into very high affinity for DNA. Absorbance and fluorescence titrations suggest complex binding modes that are discussed in relation with the different pollutant/DNA ratio. BSA binding is also found to occur. Ultrafiltration coupled with absorbance spectroscopy enables the percentage of retention (R%) on the micelle/liposome be measured. R% dependence on the molecule and on the type of system (sodium dodecyl sulphate anionic micelles, TritonX-100 neutral micelles, dodecyl trimethyl ammonium chloride positive micelles and 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine liposomes) is discussed. References: [1] A. Lo Giudice, P. Casella, V. Bruni, L. Michaud, Ecotoxicology 2013, 22, 240-250. [2] H. Yu, Journal of Enviromental Science and Health 2002, 20, 149-183. [3] M.C.R. Alavanja, M.R. Bonner, Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health B 2012, 15, 238-263

Fuori dal canone? Voci della critica e della letteratura femminile contemporanea.

Questo elaborato si propone l’obiettivo di analizzare l’avvento e lo sviluppo di Femminismo, Queer Studies e Postcolonial Studies, le tre metodologie critiche che, sotto la spinta del decostruzionismo di Derrida e del post-strutturalismo, hanno rivoluzionato il canone critico e letterario del ‘900: l’eredità decostruttivista lasciata da Derrida, infatti, mise in moto una serie di meccanismi che condussero verso una specializzazione della letteratura, che, a sua volta, rimise in gioco quelle voci che, fino ad allora, erano state taciute o ignorate dal canone letterario di matrice essenzialmente fallo-logocentrica (cioè patriarcale, eterosessuale ed eurocentrica); nello specifico: la voce femminile, quella omosessuale, e quella post-coloniale. E’ bene precisare che in questo elaborato non si analizzeranno queste tre posizioni critiche e letterature in toto, ma si seguirà piuttosto un percorso guidato da una prospettiva femminile, che, partendo dal femminismo più “puro” delle origini, continuerà all’interno dei Gender and Postcolonial Studies, focalizzandosi rispettivamente sul Lesbian Criticism e sul Black Feminism. Dopo un’introduzione sulla formazione del canone nel corso dell’800, i capitoli dell’elaborato analizzeranno le tre metodologie critiche, focalizzandosi sulle diverse fasi che hanno scandito il loro sviluppo e sulle affinità e differenze che li caratterizzano, riportando i contributi più importanti. Ogni capitolo di matrice teorica sarà seguito da un capitolo dedicato, invece, alla letteratura: in essi verranno riportate, come esempi concreti delle teorie affrontate, tre testi primari, di cui verranno analizzati struttura, impianto narrativo e tematiche, avendo come linea guida le idee di molteplicità, apertura verso l’altro, ibridismo e di rottura delle categorizzazioni e dei binarismi sociali, i concetti cardine su cui si fonda la decostruzione degli “ismi” messa in atto dalle metodologie critiche. Nello specifico, sono stati presi in esame i romanzi The Golden Notebook (1962) di Doris Lessing per la letteratura femminile, The Gracekeepers (2015) di Kirsty Logan per la letteratura lgbt e Small Island (2004) di Andrea Levy per la letteratura femminile “blak”; tutte e tre le opere sono state scelte in quanto realizzazioni positive e costruttive delle istanze teoriche

Physical Activity, Immune System, and the Microbiome in Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular health is a primary research focus, as it is a leading contributor to mortality and morbidity worldwide, and is prohibitively costly for healthcare. Atherosclerosis, the main driver of cardiovascular disease, is now recognized as an inflammatory disorder. Physical activity (PA) may have a more important role in cardiovascular health than previously expected. This review overviews the contribution of PA to cardiovascular health, the inflammatory role of atherosclerosis, and the emerging evidence of the microbiome as a regulator of inflammation

Primary prophylaxis of neutropenia in women affected by breast cancer undergoing adjuvant chemotherapy with fec 100+/- docetaxel. Comparison of efficacy and tolerability between lenograstim and pegfilgrastim

Objectives: evaluate safety and toxicity of a single injection of pegfilgrastim compared to daily administration of lenograstim in breast cancer patient undergoing adjuvant chemotherapy