Exploring the psychological rewards of a familiar semirural landscape: connecting to local nature through a mindful approach

This study analyses a 53,000 word diary of a year engaging with nature through over 200 trips to a semi-rural landscape. Thematic analysis revealed two themes; the transition from observer to nature connectedness and the ways in which the natural environment was experienced once a connection was made. These themes are discussed in relation to theories that seek to explain the positive effect of nature and nature connectedness. The findings are important as they suggest that repeated engagement with local semi-rural countryside can lead to a mindful approach and psychological rewards that do not require travel into the wilderness. The work informs further research into outcomes and processes of nature based interventions such as: trip frequency, duration and diary keeping

Geospatial analysis and living urban geometry

This essay outlines how to incorporate morphological rules within the exigencies of our technological age. We propose using the current evolution of GIS (Geographical Information Systems) technologies beyond their original representational domain, towards predictive and dynamic spatial models that help in constructing the new discipline of "urban seeding". We condemn the high-rise tower block as an unsuitable typology for a living city, and propose to re-establish human-scale urban fabric that resembles the traditional city. Pedestrian presence, density, and movement all reveal that open space between modernist buildings is not urban at all, but neither is the open space found in today's sprawling suburbs. True urban space contains and encourages pedestrian interactions, and has to be designed and built according to specific rules. The opposition between traditional self-organized versus modernist planned cities challenges the very core of the urban planning discipline. Planning has to be re-framed from being a tool creating a fixed future to become a visionary adaptive tool of dynamic states in evolution

Education can improve the negative perception of a threatened long-lived scavenging bird, the Andean condor

Human-wildlife conflicts currently represent one of the main conservation problems for wildlife species around the world. Vultures have serious conservation concerns, many of which are related to people's adverse perception about them due to the belief that they prey on livestock. Our aim was to assess local perception and the factors influencing people's perception of the largest scavenging bird in South America, the Andean condor. For this, we interviewed 112 people from Valle Fértil, San Juan province, a rural area of central west Argentina. Overall, people in the area mostly have an elementary education, and their most important activity is livestock rearing. The results showed that, in general, most people perceive the Andean condor as an injurious species and, in fact, some people recognize that they still kill condors. We identified two major factors that affect this perception, the education level of villagers and their relationship with livestock ranching. Our study suggests that conservation of condors and other similar scavengers depends on education programs designed to change the negative perception people have about them. Such programs should be particularly focused on ranchers since they are the ones who have the worst perception of these scavengers. We suggest that highlighting the central ecological role of scavengers and recovering their cultural value would be fundamental to reverse their persecution and their negative perception by people.Fil: Cailly Arnulphi, Verónica Beatríz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Juan. Centro de Investigaciones de la Geosfera y Biosfera. Universidad Nacional de San Juan. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Centro de Investigaciones de la Geosfera y Biosfera; ArgentinaFil: Lambertucci, Sergio Agustin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Centro Regional Universidad Bariloche. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente; ArgentinaFil: Borghi, Carlos Eduardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Juan. Centro de Investigaciones de la Geosfera y Biosfera. Universidad Nacional de San Juan. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Centro de Investigaciones de la Geosfera y Biosfera; Argentin

Recurrent versus first cervical artery dissection - a retrospective study of clinical and vascular characteristics

Background and purpose Most recurrent cervical artery dissection (CeAD) events occur shortly after the acute first CeAD. This study compared the characteristics of recurrent and first CeAD events and searched for associations between subsequent events of an individual person. Methods Cervical artery dissection patients with a new CeAD event occurring during a 3-6 month follow-up were retrospectively selected in seven specialized stroke centers. Clinical and vascular characteristics of the initial and the recurrent CeADs were compared. Results The study sample included 76 patients. Recurrent CeADs were occlusive in one (1.3%) patient, caused cerebral ischaemia in 13 (17.1%) and were asymptomatic in 39 (51.3%) patients, compared to 29 (38.2%) occlusive, 42 (55.3%) ischaemic and no asymptomatic first CeAD events. In 52 (68.4%) patients, recurrent dissections affected both internal carotid arteries or both vertebral arteries, whilst 24 (31.6%) patients had subsequent dissections in both types of artery. Twelve (28.6%) of 42 patients with an ischaemic first dissection had ischaemic symptoms due to the recurrent CeADs, too. However, only one (1.3%) of 34 patients with a non-ischaemic first CeAD suffered ischaemia upon recurrence. Conclusion Recurrent CeAD typically affects the same site of artery. It causes ischaemic events less often than the first CeAD. The risk that patients who presented with solely non-ischaemic symptoms of a first CeAD will have ischaemic symptoms in the case of a recurrent CeAD seems very small.Peer reviewe

Theranostics in Boron neutron capture therapy

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) has the potential to specifically destroy tumor cells without damaging the tissues infiltrated by the tumor. BNCT is a binary treatment method based on the combination of two agents that have no effect when applied individually:10B and thermal neutrons. Exclusively, the combination of both produces an effect, whose extent depends on the amount of10B in the tumor but also on the organs at risk. It is not yet possible to determine the10B concentration in a specific tissue using non-invasive methods. At present, it is only possible to measure the10B concentration in blood and to estimate the boron concentration in tissues based on the assumption that there is a fixed uptake of10B from the blood into tissues. On this imprecise assumption, BNCT can hardly be developed further. A therapeutic approach, combining the boron carrier for therapeutic purposes with an imaging tool, might allow us to determine the10B concentration in a specific tissue using a non-invasive method. This review provides an overview of the current clinical protocols and preclinical experiments and results on how innovative drug development for boron delivery systems can also incorporate concurrent imaging. The last section focuses on the importance of proteomics for further optimization of BNCT, a highly precise and personalized therapeutic approach

Incremental Value of Computed Tomography Perfusion for Final Infarct Prediction in Acute Ischemic Cerebellar Stroke

Background The diagnosis of ischemic cerebellar stroke is challenging because of nonspecific symptoms and very limited accuracy of commonly applied computed tomography (CT) imaging. Advances in CT perfusion imaging provide increasing value in the detection of posterior circulation stroke, but the prognostic value remains unclear. We aimed to identify imaging parameters that predict morphologic outcome in cerebellar stroke patients using advanced CT including whole‐brain CT perfusion (WB‐CTP). Methods and Results We selected all subjects with cerebellar WB‐CTP perfusion deficits and follow‐up‐confirmed cerebellar infarction from a consecutive cohort with suspected stroke who underwent WB‐CTP. Posterior‐circulation‐Acute‐Stroke‐Prognosis‐Early‐CT‐Score (pc‐ASPECTS) was determined on noncontrast CT, CT angiography source images, and on parametric WB‐CTP maps. Cerebellar perfusion deficit volumes on all maps and the final infarction volume on follow‐up imaging were quantified. Uni‐ and multivariate regression analyses were performed. Sixty patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria. pc‐ASPECTS on CT angiography source images (ß, −9.239; 95% CI, −14.220 to −4.259; P0.05). Conclusions In contrast to noncontrast CT and CT angiography, WB‐CTP imaging contains prognostic information for morphologic outcome in patients with acute cerebellar stroke

'The nourishing soil of the soul': The role of horticultural therapy in promoting well-being in community-dwelling people with dementia.

Two-thirds of people with dementia reside in their own homes; however, support for community-dwelling people with dementia to continue to participate in everyday activities is often lacking, resulting in feelings of depression and isolation among people living with the condition. Engagement in outdoor activities such as gardening can potentially counteract these negative experiences by enabling people with dementia to interact with nature, helping to improve their physical and psychological well-being. Additionally, the collaborative nature of community gardening may encourage the development of a sense of community, thereby enhancing social integration. Despite increasing evidence supporting its therapeutic value for people with dementia in residential care, the benefits of horticultural therapy have yet to be transposed into a community setting. This paper will examine the theoretical support for the application of horticultural therapy in dementia care, before exploring the potential of horticultural therapy as a means of facilitating improved physical and psychological well-being and social integration for people living with dementia within the community

The ‘Biophilic Organization’: An Integrative Metaphor for Corporate Sustainability

This paper proposes a new organizational metaphor, the ‘Biophilic Organization’, which aims to counter the bio-cultural disconnection of many organizations despite their espoused commitment to sustainability. This conceptual research draws on multiple disciplines such as evolutionary psychology and architecture to not only develop a diverse bio-cultural connection but to show how this connection tackles sustainability, in a holistic and systemic sense. Moreover, the paper takes an integrative view of sustainability, which effectively means that it embraces the different emergent tensions. Three specific tensions are explored: efficiency versus resilience, organizational versus personal agendas and isomorphism versus institutional change. In order to illustrate how the Biophilic Organization could potentially provide a synthesis strategy for such tensions, healthcare examples are drawn from the emerging fields of Biophilic Design in Singapore and Generative Design in the U.S.A. Finally, an example is provided which highlights how a Taoist cultural context has impacted on a business leader in China, to illustrative the significance of a transcendent belief system to such a bio-cultural narrative

Thrombolysis in Stroke With Unknown Onset Based on Non-Contrast Computerized Tomography (TRUST CT).

Background Intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) in wake-up stroke (WUS) or stroke with unknown onset (SUO) has been recently proven to be safe and effective using advanced neuroimaging (magnetic resonance imaging or computerized tomography-perfusion) for patient selection. However, in most of the thrombolyzing centers advanced neuroimaging is not instantly available. We hypothesize that pragmatic non-contrast computed tomography-based IVT in WUS/SUO may be feasible and safe. Methods and Results TRUST-CT (Thrombolysis in Stroke With Unknown Onset Based on Non-Contrast Computerized Tomography) is an international multicenter registry-based study. WUS/SUO patients undergoing non-contrast computed tomography-based IVT with National Institute of Health Stroke Scale ≥4 and initial Alberta Stroke Program Early Computerized Tomography score ≥7 were included and compared with propensity score matched non-thrombolyzed WUS/SUO controls. Primary end point was the incidence of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage; secondary end points included 24-hour National Institute of Health Stroke Scale improvement of ≥4 and modified Rankin Scale at 90 days. One hundred and seventeen WUS/SUO patients treated with non-contrast computed tomography-based IVT were included. As compared with 112 controls, the median admission National Institute of Health Stroke Scale was 10 and the median Alberta Stroke Program Early Computerized Tomography score was 10 in both groups. Four (3.4%) IVT patients and one control patient (0.9%) suffered symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (adjusted odds ratio 7.9, 95% CI 0.65-96, P=0.1). A decrease of ≥4 National Institute of Health Stroke Scale points was observed in 67 (57.3%) of IVT patients as compared with 25 (22.3%) in controls (adjusted odds ratio 5.8, CI 3.0-11.2, P<0.001). A months, 39 (33.3%) IVT patients reached a modified Rankin Scale score of 0 or 1 versus 23 (20.5%) controls (adjusted odds ratio 1.94, CI 1.0-3.76, P=0.05). Conclusions Non-contrast computed tomography-based thrombolysis in WUS/SUO seems feasible and safe and may be effective. Randomized prospective comparisons are warranted. Clinical Trial Registration URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/. Unique identifier: NCT03634748