Digital competencies to support the learning process: what skills for teachers

Current research states a new educational approach that includes technologies by analyzing the structure, limits and potential. According to the constructivist theory of Papert, it intends to illustrate how it is possible, starting with nursery school, to crteate special "learning environments" in which a digital matrix can promote attitudes ofdiscovery, group dynamics and forms of inclusive teaching in addition to basic language skills,logical-mathematical, topological and manipulative, thus creating the basis for future learning.Keym terms: multimedia elements constructivism, learning, technology, robotics,LOGO programming, roame

MY SIRR: Minimalist agro-hYdrological model for Sustainable IRRigation management—Soil moisture and crop dynamics

The paper introduces a minimalist water-driven crop model for sustainable irrigation management using an eco-hydrological approach. Such model, called MY SIRR, uses a relatively small number of parameters and attempts to balance simplicity, accuracy, and robustness. MY SIRR is a quantitative tool to assess water requirements and agricultural production across different climates, soil types, crops, and irrigation strategies. The MY SIRR source code is published under copyleft license. The FOSS approach could lower the financial barriers of smallholders, especially in developing countries, in the utilization of tools for better decision-making on the strategies for short- and long-term water resource management. Keywords: Irrigation management, Soil moisture, Crop dynamics, Agro-hydrolog

Chapter L’architettura manicomiale dei primi del Novecento a Potenza: da luogo della marginalità a luogo dell’abitare

The 43rd UID conference, held in Genova, takes up the theme of ‘Dialogues’ as practice and debate on many fundamental topics in our social life, especially in these complex and not yet resolved times. The city of Genova offers the opportunity to ponder on the value of comparison and on the possibilities for the community, naturally focused on the aspects that concern us, as professors, researchers, disseminators of knowledge, or on all the possibile meanings of the discipline of representation and its dialogue with ‘others’, which we have broadly catalogued in three macro areas: History, Semiotics, Science / Technology. Therefore, “dialogue” as a profitable exchange based on a common language, without which it is impossible to comprehend and understand one another; and the graphic sign that connotes the conference is the precise transcription of this concept: the title ‘translated’ into signs, derived from the visual alphabet designed for the visual identity of the UID since 2017. There are many topics which refer to three macro sessions: - Witnessing (signs and history) - Communicating (signs and semiotics) - Experimenting (signs and sciences) Thanks to the different points of view, an exceptional resource of our disciplinary area, we want to try to outline the prevailing theoretical-operational synergies, the collaborative lines of an instrumental nature, the recent updates of the repertoires of images that attest and nourish the relations among representation, history, semiotics, sciences

A Sub-kT/q Voltage Reference Operating at 150 mV

We propose a subthreshold CMOS voltage reference operating with a minimum supply voltage of only 150 mV, which is three times lower than the minimum value presently reported in the literature. The generated reference voltage is only 17.69 mV. This result has been achieved by introducing a temperature compensation technique that does not require the drain-source voltage of each MOSFET to be larger than 4kT/q. The implemented solution consists in two transistors voltage reference with two MOSFETs of the same threshold-type and exploits the dependence of the threshold voltage on transistor size. Measurements performed over a large sample population of 60 chips from two separate batches show a standard deviation of only 0.29 mV. The mean variation of the reference voltage for VDD ranging from 0.15 to 1.8 V is 359.5 μV/V, whereas the mean variation of VREF in the temperature range from 0°C to 120°C is 26.74 μV/°C. The mean power consumption at 25 °C for VDD = 0.15 V is 26.1 pW. The occupied area is 1200 μm2

25C-NBOMe: preliminary data on pharmacology, psychoactive effects and toxicity of a new potent hallucinogenic drug

Copyright © 2014 Francesco Saverio Bersani et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly citedIntroduction. The use of novel psychoactive substances (NPSs) has rapidly increased as well as their online availability. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of the nature and the risks associated with 25C-NBOMe, which has recently appeared in the drug market. Methods. A systematic analysis of the scientific literature and a qualitative assessment of online and media resources (e.g., e-newsgroups, chat-rooms, and e-newsletters) in 10 languages were carried out. Results. 25C-NBOMe is sold online as legal LSD or as research chemical with different designations such as “Boom,” “Pandora,” “Holland film,” or “N-bomb.” It is a partial agonist of 5-HT2A receptors. It is usually ingested orally/sublingually and, less commonly, nasally, through injection, vaginally, rectally, and smoked. Its effects include sublingual numbing, stimulation, “body high,” hallucinations, dissociation, and anxiety. 25C-NBOMe presents high risk of overdoses; acute toxicity and fatalities have been reported. Conclusions. 25C-NBOMe consumption represents an emerging phenomenon with potential harmful effects. Its use is increased by its online availability at low costs. Health and other professionals should be informed about this new trend of substance usePeer reviewedFinal Published versio

The “Eyeballing” technique : an emerging and alerting trend of alcohol misuse

Alternative methods of alcohol consumption have recently emerged among adolescents and young adults, including the alcohol “eyeballing”, which consist in the direct pouring of alcoholic substances on the ocular surface epithelium. In a context of drug and behavioural addictions change, “eyeballing” can be seen as one of the latest and potentially highly risky new trends. We aimed to analyze the existing medical literature as well as online material on this emerging trend of alcohol misusePeer reviewedFinal Published versio

¿Neumodesplazamiento vigente? Uso en hemorragia subretiniana y agujero macular traumático

ResumenObjetivoMostrar la efectividad del neumodesplazamiento en hemorragia subretiniana y agujero macular postraumático.MétodoReporte de caso.ResultadosPaciente masculino de 39 años de edad quien tras trauma contuso en ojo izquierdo presenta disminución de agudeza visual. Examen oftalmológico: agudeza visual del ojo izquierdo: movimiento de mano. Fundoscopia ojo izquierdo: hemorragia subretiniana en polo posterior y agujero macular. Se coloca burbuja de gas (C3F8), obteniéndose desplazamiento de la hemorragia subretiniana del área foveolar con cierre del agujero macular.ConclusionesEl trauma ocular representa todo un desafío para el oftalmólogo, en este caso producto de un trauma ocular contuso. Para la resolución de la hemorragia subretiniana producto de una rotura coroidea yuxtapapilar y del agujero macular traumático, tenemos varias opciones quirúrgicas que dependerán de la decisión del especialista en cuanto conocimiento, experiencia y experticia del mismo. El neumodesplazamiento sin vitrectomía vía pars plana ha sido utilizado para desplazar sangre subretiniana secundaria a degeneración macular relacionada con la edad. Usando el mismo principio pero aplicado a diferente patología, se decidió realizar desplazamiento neumático, obteniendo como resultado drenaje a cavidad vítrea de la hemorragia subretiniana y cierre del agujero macular. El neumodesplazamiento puede ser considerado una opción terapéutica eficaz versus la vitrectomía vía pars plana en el manejo de esta dolencia.AbstractObjectiveShow the effectiveness of pneumodisplacement in subretinal hemorrhage and post traumatic macular hole.MethodCase report.ResultsMale patient, 39 years of age who after blunt trauma left eye have decreased visual acuity. Eye exam: visual acuity left eye: hand movement. Funduscopy left eye: subretinal hemorrhage in the posterior pole and macular hole. Gas bubble is placed (C3F8), whereby displacement of subretinal hemorrhage foveal area with macular hole closure.ConclusionsOcular trauma represents a challenge for the ophthalmologist, in this case the result of a blunt ocular trauma. For the resolution of subretinal hemorrhage juxtapapillary product of choroidal rupture and traumatic macular hole, we have several surgical options that depend on the decision as specialist knowledge, experience and expertise of it. The pneumatic displacement without vitrectomy has been used to displace subretinal blood secondary to macular degeneration related to age. Using the same principle but applied to different diseases, we decided to perform pneumatic displacement resulting in vitreous cavity drainage of sub-retinal hemorrhage and macular hole closure. The pneumatic displacement can be considered an effective treatment option versus vitrectomy in the management of this condition

Negative symptoms as key features of depression among cannabis users: a preliminary report.

OBJECTIVE: Cannabis use is frequent among depressed patients and may lead to the so-called "amotivational syndrome", which combines symptoms of affective flattening and loss of emotional reactivity (i.e. the so-called "negative" symptomatology). The aim of this study was to investigate the negative symptomatology in depressed patients with concomitant cannabis use disorders (CUDs) in comparison with depressed patients without CUDs. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty-one patients with a diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and concomitant CUD and fifty-one MDD patients were enrolled in the study. The 21-Item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) and the negative symptoms subscales of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) were used to assess depressive and negative symptomatology. RESULTS: Patients with cannabis use disorders presented significantly more severe negative symptoms in comparison with patients without cannabis use (15.18 ± 2.25 vs 13.75 ± 2.44; t100 = 3.25 p = 0.002). DISCUSSION: A deeper knowledge of the "negative" psychopathological profile of MDD patients who use cannabis may lead to novel etiopathogenetic models of MDD and to more appropriate treatment approaches

Hypereosinophilia with a pinch of salt and pepper

Unavailable

Thiazides induce glucose intolerance through inhibition of mitochondrial carbonic anhydrase 5b in β-cells

Thiazides are associated with glucose intolerance and new onset diabetes mellitus, but the molecular mechanisms remain elusive. The aim of this study was to decipher the molecular basis of thiazide-induced glucose intolerance. In mice, hydrochlorothiazide induced a pathological glucose tolerance, characterized by reduced first phase insulin secretion but normal insulin sensitivity. In vitro, thiazides inhibited glucose- and sulfonylurea-stimulated insulin secretion in islets and the murine β-cell line Min6 at pharmacologically relevant concentrations. Inhibition of insulin secretion by thiazides was CO2 /HCO3- -dependent, not additive to unselective carbonic anhydrase (CA) inhibition with acetazolamide and independent of extracellular potassium. In contrast, insulin secretion was unaltered in islets of mice lacking the known molecular thiazide targets NCC (SLC12A3) or NDCBE (SLC4A8). CA expression profiling with subsequent knock-down of individual CA isoforms suggested mitochondrial CA5b as molecular target. In support of these findings, thiazides significantly attenuated Krebs cycle anaplerosis through reduction of mitochondrial oxalacetate synthesis. CA5b KO mice were resistant to thiazide-induced glucose intolerance, and insulin secretion of islets isolated from CA5b KO mice was unaffected by thiazides. In summary, our study reveals attenuated insulin secretion due to inhibition of the mitochondrial CA5b isoform in β-cells as molecular mechanism of thiazide-induced glucose intolerance