First visits of a local mountain psychiatric service.

INTRODUCTION We analyzed the first visits carried out by a local mountain psychiatric service in 9 months from January to September 2013. OBJECTIVES and AIMS Analyze the mode of access to the service, and the continuation of the course of treatment. METHODS Different variables were considered: sex, how to access, the level of urgency, the prescription drug, the previous psychiatric history, duration of taking charge and sending to other facilities of the Mental Health Department. RESULTS The total number of patients was 176, of which 64% were female; scheduled visits were the most (146), the remaining (30) were urgent. The majority (110) were sent from their GPs, among these, more than half (63) are still in load. Half had a positive psychiatric history, and most (92) had a positive psychiatric drug history. It was set to a drug therapy to the majority of patients visited (147), especially anxiolytics (112) and secondarily antidepressants (109). A small part was hospitalized (3) or sent to Psychogeriatrics (11) or Pathological Addictions or Clinical Psychology; about one-third (57) were discharged. CONCLUSIONS According to the literature the women access more frequently than men. From the data it can be inferred that submissions by GPs have become more appropriate in

Distance learning : rethinking learning design in higher education during the Covid-19 pandemic

During the second semester of the 2019/2020 academic year, due to the regulatory restrictions arising from the Covid-19 pandemic, Bologna University, like many others, was compelled to stop delivering its face-to-face offering and to switch, in a very short time, to the creation of a technological architecture that would enable students to continue their education through teaching via Distance Learning. After illustrating the active teaching model adopted in two courses offered by the University of Bologna Department of Education Studies, this paper addresses future educators by focusing on the main findings from a semi-structured online questionnaire completed by 84 students. The first part of the paper considers a rethinking of educational planning at the time of Covid-19, while the second and final part analyses student perceptions (using the questionnaire’s open questions) of their Distance Learning experience in the initial phases of the pandemic scenario

Prima e durante la pandemia: pratiche didattiche e di formazione degli insegnanti nei diversi ordini e gradi scolastici

How did the teaching practices of teachers change during the Covid-19 emergency? How did the teachers train to deal with it? The case study presented in this article is based on data collected through an online questionnaire administered to a sample of almost 1000 teachers (from kindergarten to upper secondary school) participating in a MOOC (“massive” online course) made available by HOC-LAB of the Politecnico di Milano between March and June 2020. The results tell us that remote teaching is significantly adopted when the pandemic arrives, with an increase in the synchronous mode compared to the asynchronous one as the school level increases. New forms of interaction between teacher and pupils are born (individual meetings, small group meetings in extra-school hours); there is a correlation between the commitment to guarantee synchronous lessons and the availability for these further meetings (proactive approach), as well as between the sharing of videos (found on the internet) and the sharing of asynchronous materials compared to synchronous meetings (more “traditional” approach). As for training, teachers have resorted to forms that are not particularly institutionalized (MOOCs, web resources, colleagues...), confirming an already existing pre-pandemic trend.Come sono cambiate le pratiche didattiche dei docenti durante l'emergenza Covid-19? Come si sono formati i docenti per affrontarla? Lo studio di caso presentato in questo articolo si basa su dati raccolti tramite un questionario online somministrato a un campione di quasi 1000 docenti (dalla scuola dell’infanzia alla se-condaria di secondo grado) partecipanti a un MOOC (corso online “massivo”) reso disponibile da HOC-LAB del Politecnico di Milano tra marzo e giugno del 2020. I risultati ci dicono che la didattica remota viene significativamente adottata all’arrivo della pandemia, con aumento di quella sincrona rispetto all’asincrona al crescere del livello scolastico. Nascono nuove forme di interazione tra docente e allievi (incontri individuali, incontri a piccoli gruppi in orari extra-scolastici); si riscontra una correlazione tra l’impegno nel ga-rantire lezioni sincrone e la disponibilità per questi incontri ulteriori (approccio proattivo), come di contro tra la condivisione di video (rinvenuti su internet) e la condivisione di materiali asincrona rispetto ad incontri sincroni (approccio più “tradizionale”). Quanto alla formazione, i docenti hanno fatto ricorso a forme non particolarmente istituzionalizzate (MOOC, risorse web, colleghi...), confermando una tendenza già esistente pre-pandemia

Cooperation by necessity: condition- and density-dependent reproductive tactics of female house mice

Optimal reproductive strategies evolve from the interplay between an individual’s intrinsic state and extrinsic environment, both factors that are rarely fixed over its lifetime. Conditional breeding tactics might be one evolutionary trajectory allowing individuals to maximize fitness. We apply multi-state capture-mark-recapture analysis to a detailed 8-year data set of free-ranging house mice in a growing population to discern causes and fitness consequences of two alternative reproductive tactics in females, communal and solitary breeding. This allows us to integrate natural variation in life-history traits when analysing the expression of two alternative reproductive tactics in females. We find that communal breeding reduces average population fitness, but nevertheless increases over our 8-year study period. The tactic proves to be expressed conditionally dependent on both population density and female body mass – allowing females to breed under subpar conditions, i.e. at high density or when of low body mass. Our results contradict previous laboratory studies and emphasize the importance of studying cooperation under natural conditions, including natural variation in state-dependent survival and breeding probabilities

Riflessioni sulle possibilit\ue0 di sviluppo di una flotta navale "LNG-fuelled"

\uc8 noto che il settore dei trasporti \ue8 al tempo stesso particolarmente energivoro e inquinante, anche se negli ultimi decenni sono stati compiuti notevoli passi avanti. Il trasporto via mare condivide, pur se in misura differente rispetto ad altre modalit\ue0, tali caratteristiche. In particolare, il trasporto via mare si distingue dalle altre modalit\ue0 per la diversa percezione degli impatti ambientali negativi da parte della popolazione. Questa infatti percepisce e si concentra in particolare modo su quanto accade nella navigazione costiera e quando la nave sosta in porto. Ci\uf2 spiega la normativa internazionale che obbliga le navi ad adottare - quando navigano in particolare aree (cd. ECA, Emissions Control Area) o quando entrano in un porto - un particolare tipo di combustibile che riduce l'emissione di zolfo, ma che \ue8 molto pi\uf9 costoso. Da diversi anni si discute della possibilit\ue0 di utilizzare il gas naturale liquefatto come combustibile per le navi. Esso infatti ridurrebbe in modo drastico le emissioni - lungo l'intero tragitto della nave e non solo in alcuni punti - portando la navigazione via mare ad essere pienamente compatibile con qualunque forma di vita ed attivit\ue0 produttiva. Il lavoro, concentrandosi sulla situazione italiana, fa il punto su questo possibile processo di ristrutturazione e discute gli elementi che possono frenarne o accelerarne l'adozione

DOPAL derived alpha-synuclein oligomers impair synaptic vesicles physiological function

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the death of dopaminergic neurons and by accumulation of alpha-synuclein (aS) aggregates in the surviving neurons. The dopamine catabolite 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL) is a highly reactive and toxic molecule that leads to aS oligomerization by covalent modifications to lysine residues. Here we show that DOPAL-induced aS oligomer formation in neurons is associated with damage of synaptic vesicles, and with alterations in the synaptic vesicles pools. To investigate the molecular mechanism that leads to synaptic impairment, we first aimed to characterize the biochemical and biophysical properties of the aS-DOPAL oligomers; heterogeneous ensembles of macromolecules able to permeabilise cholesterol-containing lipid membranes. aS-DOPAL oligomers can induce dopamine leak in an in vitro model of synaptic vesicles and in cellular models. The dopamine released, after conversion to DOPAL in the cytoplasm, could trigger a noxious cycle that further fuels the formation of aS-DOPAL oligomers, inducing neurodegeneration

Italian teachers and Technology-Knowledge training

This article aims to answer the question “how are Italian teachers trained in technological skills (TK)?”, in the framework of the distributed TPACK model. According to this model, different supports and sources interplay in a learning context. The discussion is based on data collected through a questionnaire delivered to more than 1,300 teachers on the job; the focus is, in particular, on lower and upper secondary school teachers. The results show how teachers benefit from a plurality of sources, preferring the “informal” ones.   I docenti italiani e la formazione alle competenze tecnologiche Questo articolo mira a rispondere alla domanda “come i docenti italiani si formano alle competenze tecnologiche”, nel quadro di riferimento del modello TPACK distribuito, secondo il quale una varietà di supporti e fonti agisce in un contesto d’apprendimento. La discussione si basa sui dati raccolti attraverso un questionario erogato a più di 1300 docenti in servizio; il focus è in particolare sui docenti di scuola secondaria inferiore e superiore. I risultati mostrano come i docenti fruiscano di una pluralità di fonti, prediligendo quelle “informali”

Italian teachers and Technology-Knowledge training

This article aims to answer the question “how are Italian teachers trained in technological skills (TK)?”, in the framework of the distributed TPACK model. According to this model, different supports and sources interplay in a learning context. The discussion is based on data collected through a questionnaire delivered to more than 1,300 teachers on the job; the focus is, in particular, on lower and upper secondary school teachers. The results show how teachers benefit from a plurality of sources, preferring the “informal” ones. I docenti italiani e la formazione alle competenze tecnologicheQuesto articolo mira a rispondere alla domanda “come i docenti italiani si formano alle competenze tecnologiche”, nel quadro di riferimento del modello TPACK distribuito, secondo il quale una varietà di supporti e fonti agisce in un contesto d’apprendimento. La discussione si basa sui dati raccolti attraverso un questionario erogato a più di 1300 docenti in servizio; il focus è in particolare sui docenti di scuola secondaria inferiore e superiore. I risultati mostrano come i docenti fruiscano di una pluralità di fonti, prediligendo quelle “informali”

Italian teachers and Technology-Knowledge training = I docenti italiani e la formazione alle competenze tecnologiche

Questo articolo mira a rispondere alla domanda \u201ccome i docenti italiani si formano alle competenze tecnologiche\u201d, nel quadro di riferimento del modello TPACK distribuito, secondo il quale una variet\ue0 di supporti e fonti agisce in un contesto d\u2019apprendimento. La discussione si basa sui dati raccolti attraverso un questionario erogato a pi\uf9 di 1300 docenti in servizio; il focus \ue8 in particolare sui docenti di scuola secondaria inferiore e superiore. I risultati mostrano come i docenti fruiscano di una pluralit\ue0 di fonti, prediligendo quelle \u201cinformali\u201d.This article aims to answer the question \u201chow are Italian teachers trained in technological skills (TK)?\u201d, in the framework of the distributed TPACK model. According to this model, different supports and sources interplay in a learning context. The discussion is based on data collected through a questionnaire delivered to more than 1,300 teachers on the job; the focus is, in particular, on lower and upper secondary school teachers. The results show how teachers benefit from a plurality of sources, preferring the \u201cinformal\u201d ones