Lýðfræðilegar breytingar : aldurssamsetning og farsæl öldrun

Neðst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenÁ síðustu árum hafa menn snúið vörn í sókn til að takast á við vaxandi fólksfjölda á nýrri öld. Mikil áhersla er einkum lögð á heilsusamlega lifnaðarhætti, ábyrgð einstaklingsins á eigin heilsu og ábyrgð þjóðfélagsins hvað varðar sýn á aldraða í að efla jákvæða sjálfsímynd, í að virkja aldraða og skapa þeim svigrúm til þátttöku í þjóðfélaginu. Er ekki laust við að aukinnar bjartsýni gæti á að afleiðingar fólksfjölgunar og breyttrar aldurssamsetningar verði jafnvel viðráðanlegar. Í greininni er fjallað um breytingar á aldurssamsetningu í heiminum og þá fjölgun sem á sér stað í elstu aldurshópunum. Nefndir eru helstu álitaþættir við mat á lífslíkum og framreikning mannfjölda og ræddar helstu leiðir sem menn sjá færar við að takast á við vaxandi fólksfjölda

Merkingarminni og Alzheimersjúkdómurinn : nokkur orð um mikið efni

Neðst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenMinnisskerðing er það fyrsta sem flestum dettur í hug þegar rætt er um Alzheimer sjúkdóm enda eru fyrstu merki sjúkdómsins oftast minnisglöp. Minnisglöpin ná í fyrstu einkum til þess hluta minnis sem sálfræðingar kalla atburðaminni (e. episodic minni). Eins og nafnið gefur til kynna geymir atburðaminni upplýsingar um atburði í lífi okkar sem við getum staðsett í tíma og rúmi og sem við rifjum upp á meðvitaðan hátt (Tulving, 1972; Wheeler, Stuss og Tulving, 1997). Atburðaminni gerir okkur kleift að rifja upp hvað okkur var sagt í fréttum í afmælisveislunni hennar ömmu í fyrradag og söguþráðinn í kvikmyndinni sem við sáum í sjónvarpinu í gær með fjölskyldunni í stofunni heima. Atburðaminni er hluti langtímaminnis en langtímaminni rúmar einnig annars konar upplýsingar. Staðreyndaþekking af ýmsum toga, sem ekki er bundin stað eða stund, eigin upplifun eða samhengi (t.d. hver var með okkur og hvernig okkur leið), er einnig hluti af langtímaminni. Við kunnum margföldunartöfluna en munum ekki hvar og hvenær við lærðum hana þótt við vitum að við lærðum hana í skólanum. Það sama gildir um ýmsar sögulegar staðreyndir og fræðilega þekkingu. Sá hluti langtímaminnis sem geymir þessa staðreyndaþekkingu er kallaður merkingarminni (e. semantic memory). Einstök hugtök eru líka geymd í merkingarminni. Merkingaminnið gerir okkur kleift að þekkja hluti og rifja upp heiti þeirra, framkalla merkingu orða sem við lesum og umbreyta hugsun okkar og hugtakalegri þekkingu í töluð orð (Chertkow og Bub, 1990). Tungumálið og merkingarminni eru því tengd órjúfanlegum böndum

Self-care and empowerment in diabetes care: Use of instruments in clinical practice - a review

Neðst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenPrevalence of diabetes is increasing worldwide. Education is regarded as an essential part in diabetes care to enable people with diabetes self-care. Self-care in diabetes can be demanding and it is regarded impossible to separate treatment and education. Clinical guidelines in diabetes care recommend using empowerment approach in diabetes education. The empowerment approach emphasizes that people with diabetes are assisted to make informed decisions. Instruments measuring knowledge, self-care, empowerment, well-being and distress were translated into Icelandic, according to internationally accepted guidelines. The questionnaires were tested in a cross-sectional study and used in an educational intervention study. It was found that the instruments are practical and useful and can be used in clinical practice in Iceland. It is argued that in diabetes care, health care practitioners should make more use of appointed instruments that enable them to focus their care on specific needs of each person. The care should be based on answers from the instruments and goals which people with diabetes choose to work towards. The education should be based on the empowerment approach. Keywords: diabetes, education, empowerment, instruments used in clinical practice. Correspondence: Arun K. Sigurdardottir, [email protected] sykursýki vex stöðugt í heiminum. Kennsla í sykursýki er talin einn af hornsteinum meðferðar við sykursýki og nú er almennt álitið að aðgreining læknisfræðilegar meðferðar frá kennslu og leiðbeiningum um sjálfsumönnun sé ógerleg. Alþjóðlegar klínískar leiðbeiningar mæla með því að fólk með sykursýki sé virkir þátttakendur í kennslunni og bandaríska sykursýkissambandið leggur auk þess til að kennslan sé byggð á hugmyndafræði sjálfseflingar. Hugmyndafræði sjálfseflingar leggur áherslu á að markmið kennslu og meðferðar sé að hvetja til upplýstrar ákvarðanatöku, þar sem fólk með sykursýki beri ábyrgð á og stjórni meðferð sinni í samvinnu við fagfólk. Mikilvægt er að Íslendingar með sykursýki fái meðferð sem tekur mið af ofangreindu og að heilbrigðisstarfsfólk hafi sambærilega aðferðafræði og sýn er byggi eftir föngum á gagnreynd-um aðferðum. Hér er gefið yfirlit yfir þessi fræði og kvarða sem nota má til að greina þekkingu, sjálfsumönnun, eflingu, vellíðan og streitu meðal fólks með sykursýki. Kvarðarnir voru þýddir á íslensku eftir alþjóðlegum viðmiðum um þýðingar mælitækja, prófaðir í þverskurðarkönnun og notaðir í meðferðarrannsókn þar sem niðurstaðan var að hluti kvarðanna hefði notagildi í klínískri vinnu með fólki með sykursýki. Lagt er til að nota tiltekna kvarða til að auðvelda markvissa meðferð sem veitt er eftir hugmyndafræði sjálfseflingar, en meðferðin er síðan byggð á svörum kvarðanna og markmiðum sem fólk setur sér

Influential factors behind parents’ general satisfaction with compulsory schools in Iceland

Parents’ experiences and satisfaction with their child’s compulsory school are affected by several factors. Some, such as parents’ education and marital status, are social factors, while others are school factors that local leaders and school personnel can address. Findings build on data from an online questionnaire to parents in 20 compulsory schools in Iceland (n = 2129). Factor analysis generated two factors: communication and teaching. These, together with a question on parents’ overall satisfaction with the school, were used as outcome variables in a regression analysis exploring what influences parents’ satisfaction with the school. The majority of parents were satisfied, which may make it is easy to overlook those who are dissatisfied. Parents who felt that their children had special needs that were not acknowledged in school were more likely to be dissatisfied than other parents. Educational background was also influential. Single mothers were overrepresented in the group of unsatisfied parents; they experienced more difficulties in communicating with school personnel, believed less in the possibility for parents to influence the school, and more frequently experienced that their child’s need for special support was not met in school. The findings imply that equity in Icelandic schools is disputable.Peer Reviewe

State and Transition Models in Space and Time – Using STMs to Understand Broad Patterns of Ecosystem Change in Iceland

Managing ecological systems sustainably requires a deep understanding of ecosystem structure and the processes driving their dynamics. Conceptual models can lead to improved management, by providing a framework for organizing knowledge about a system and identifying the causal agents of change. We developed state-and-transition models (STMs) to describe landscape changes in Iceland over three historical periods with different human influence, from pre-settlement to present days. Our models identified the set of possible states, transitions and thresholds in these ecosystems and their changes over time. To illustrate the use of these models for predicting and improving management interventions, we applied our present-day STM to a case study in the central highlands of Iceland and monitored ecosystem changes within an ongoing field experiment with two management interventions (grazing exclusion and fertilization) in areas experiencing contrasting stages of degradation. The results of the experiment broadly align with the predictions of the model and underscore the importance of conceptual frameworks for adaptive management, where the best available knowledge is used to continuously refine and update the models

Post-eruptive volcano inflation following major magma drainage: Interplay between models of viscoelastic response influence and models of magma inflow at Bárðarbunga caldera, Iceland, 2015-2018

&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Unrest at B&amp;amp;#225;r&amp;amp;#240;arbunga after a caldera collapse in 2014-2015 includes elevated seismicity beginning about six months after the eruption ended, including nine Mw&amp;gt;4.5 earthquakes. The earthquakes occurred mostly on the northern and southern parts of a caldera ring fault. Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS, in particular, Global Positioning System; GPS) and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) geodesy are applied to evaluate the spatial and temporal pattern of ground deformation around B&amp;amp;#225;r&amp;amp;#240;arbunga caldera outside the icecap, in 2015-2018, when deformation rates were relatively steady. The aim is to study the role of viscoelastic relaxation following major magma drainage versus renewed magma inflow as an explanation for the ongoing unrest.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;The largest horizontal velocity is measured at GPS station KISA (3 km from caldera rim), 141 mm/yr in direction N47&amp;lt;sup&amp;gt;o&amp;lt;/sup&amp;gt;E relative to the Eurasian plate in 2015-2018. GPS and InSAR observations show that the velocities decay rapidly outward from the caldera. We correct our observations for Glacial Isostatic Adjustment and plate spreading to extract the deformation related to volcanic activity. After this correction, some GPS sites show subsidence.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;We use a reference Earth model to initially evaluate the contribution of viscoelastic processes to the observed deformation field. We model the deformation within a half-space composed of a 7-km thick elastic layer on top of a viscoelastic layer with a viscosity of 5 x 10&amp;lt;sup&amp;gt;18&amp;lt;/sup&amp;gt; Pa s, considering two co-eruptive contributors to the viscoelastic relaxation: &amp;amp;#8220;non-piston&amp;amp;#8221; magma withdrawal at 10 km depth (modelled as pressure drop in a spherical source) and caldera collapse (modelled as surface unloading). The other model we test is the magma inflow in an elastic half-space. Both the viscoelastic relaxation and magma inflow create horizontal outward movements around the caldera, and uplift at the surface projection of the source center in 2015-2018. Viscoelastic response due to magma withdrawal results in subsidence in the area outside the icecap. Magma inflow creates rapid surface velocity decay as observed.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;We explore further two parameters in the viscoelastic reference model: the viscosity and the &amp;quot;non-piston&amp;quot; magma withdrawal volume. Our comparison between the corrected InSAR velocities and viscoelastic models suggests a viscosity of 2.6&amp;amp;#215;10&amp;lt;sup&amp;gt;18&amp;lt;/sup&amp;gt; Pa s and 0.36 km&amp;lt;sup&amp;gt;3&amp;lt;/sup&amp;gt; of &amp;amp;#8220;non-piston&amp;amp;#8221; magma withdrawal volume, given by the optimal reduced Chi-squared statistic. When the deformation is explained using only magma inflow into a single spherical source (and no viscoelastic response), the optimal model suggests an inflow rate at 1&amp;amp;#215;10&amp;lt;sup&amp;gt;7&amp;lt;/sup&amp;gt; m&amp;lt;sup&amp;gt;3&amp;lt;/sup&amp;gt;/yr at 700 m depth. A magma inflow model with more model parameters is also a possible explanation, including sill inflation at 10 km together with slip on caldera ring faults. Our reference Earth model and the two end-member models suggest that there is a trade-off between the viscoelastic relaxation and the magma inflow, since they produce similar deformation signals outside the icecap. However, to reproduce details of the observed deformation, both processes are required. A viscoelastic-only model cannot fully explain the fast velocity decay away from the caldera, whereas a magma inflow-only model cannot explain the subsidence observed at several locations.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt; </jats:p

Creative Pedagogy as a Practice of Resistance: Rhizo-textual analysis of Artist Educators’ Practices within Differing European Curriculum Policy Contexts.

Creative learning is increasingly being recognised as a crucial part of children’s holistic education. In this paper, we critically explore our experiences as artist-educators working across four differing European countries, namely, England, Iceland, Germany, and Greece. These experiences of prac-tice are set against educational policy landscapes which have progressively eroded opportunities for young people to engage in the creative arts in education across many European states. We are involved in a three-year Erasmus+ funded project, “arted,” which aims to transfer the knowledge of artists working in education to school and home contexts, offering more equitable arts opportunities for young people through the co-creation of open access resources. Combining Deleuzoguattarian theory and narrative, we examined our collective ideologies of creativity and principles of arts practices within differing national curricular policy contexts as part of our co-creation process. This rhizo-textual analysis highlighted the heterogenous features of our work as artist-educators, which have enabled us to hold spaces for creative arts learning within differing national policy contexts. These resistance spaces act as a social critique of educational policy. Through the process of this analysis three ethical principles emerged which collectively underpin our interactive guides for teachers and parents within the project

Power system modelling as stochastic functional hybrid differential-algebraic equations

This paper presents the software tools developed for the research project Advanced Modelling for Power System Analysis and Simulation (AMPSAS) funded by Science Foundation Ireland from 2016 to 2021. The main objective of AMPSAS was the development of novel analytical and computational tools to understand, efficiently design, and optimise ever-changing modern power systems and smart grids, through model-based approaches. In particular, the paper discusses (i) stochastic differential equations for modelling power systems, which are subject to large stochastic perturbations (e.g. wind and solar generation); (ii) the effect of controller and modelling imperfections, for example, delays, discontinuities, and digital signals, on both local and area-wide regulators in power systems; and (iii) the stability analysis and dynamic performance of power systems modelled through stochastic, delay and hybrid implicit differential-algebraic equations. The software tool developed during the execution of AMPSAS integrates areas of applied mathematics, automatic control, and computer science. Several implementation features and open challenges of this software tool are also discussed in the paper. A variety of examples that illustrates the features of this software tool are based on a dynamic model of the all-island Irish transmission system.Science Foundation Irelan

Higher Education and behavior analysis in Europe::Creating a unified approach for the training of autism professionals

Training of behaviour analysts for autism services, has improved notably within a European higher education context. However, regional discrepancies associated with economic, health care, social services, and institutional policies magnify the importance of creating appropriate unified training and consumer protection. Although the European Association for Behaviour Analysis (EABA) has endorsed the Behavior Analyst Certification Board’s (BACB) designations, the absence of European and national regulations, recognition, and accreditation remain significant barriers to quality training and implementation. These challenges are  particularly pertinent in light of BACB decision to limit certification to residents in the USA and Canada after 2022. Advances, challenges, and future directions are discussed within the context of higher education in the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Norway, and Sweden. The post-Bologna European agenda for higher education, globalization and opportunities for the training of behaviour analysts within European higher education are outlined