Patronage and indebtedness Portugal, Castile and the Papal Court around the year 1300

Based on previously unexamined documentation at Lisbon, Braga and the Vatican, this paper considers two separate but related matters for the history of Portugal: the role of Cardinal Giacomo Colonna in the foundation of the Lisbon Studium Generale, and the use of Portuguese gold at the court of Pope Boniface VIII to purchase the dispensation for the marriage of Fernando IV of Castile to Constança of Portugal. It also demonstrates the bankrupt state of the Castilian crown after ten years of Fernando IV’s rule.A partir de documentación hasta ahora no estudiada, conservada en Lisboa, Braga y el Vaticano, en este artículo se analizan dos asuntos diferentes aunque relacionados, referentes a la historia de Portugal: el papel desempeñado por el Cardenal Giacomo Colonna en la fundación del Studium Generale de Lisboa y el uso del oro portugués en la corte del papa Bonifacio VIII para obtener la dispensa para que pudiese efectuarse el matrimonio entre Fernando IV de Castilla con Constanza de Portugal, hija del rey D. Dinis. Esto demuestra también el estado de bancarrota de la corona castellana después de diez años de gobierno de Fernando IV

On further thought: Lucas of Tuy, Rodrigo of Toledo and the Alfonsine Histories

The revival of historiographical activity in early thirtheenth-century Castile requires explanation. It is not self-evident. Some possible reasons are suggested here, and the interplay between the principal actors in the process, Lucas of Tuy and Rodrigo of Toledo, is further investigated, as are their respective contributions to the development of the Alfonsine history and the sensitivity of its compilers both to contemporary developments and to their own private loyalties.[fr] La renaissance de l'historiographie dans la Castille à la quatrième décade du XllIᵉ siècle ne va pas de soi et mérite donc une explanation. Nous suggérons ici quelques pistes possibles et analysons la relation entre les principaux acteurs de ce phénomème, Lucas de Tuy et Rodrigue de Tolède, ainsi que leurs contributions respectives au développement de l'histoire Alphonsine. Nous nous intéressons aussi à l'influence des évolutions contemporaines sur les choix personnels de loyauté des compilateurs de cette histoire

An archbishop in angustiis : May 1280

This paper offers a privileged view of the epistolary gymnastics of thirteenth-century ecclesiastical careerist intent on serving the interests of God, king, pope and family.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologi

Cooperative approach in GPS training

As Global Positioning System (GPS) technology becomes more commonly used in many aspects of natural resource management, the need for education and training in this area has also increased. However, the high cost of the equipment and the high level of technical knowledge required has been a barrier to including GPS in forestry and other natural resources curricula. This fall the forest technology program at Penn State-Mont Alto and the Bartlett Tree Experts Company collaborated on a two-day training session in GPS using Trimble receivers and data collectors. Ten students and faculty from Mont Alto and ten Bartlett personnel participated in the program. The first day of field procedures and data processing was taught by a Trimble-certified trainer. The second day consisted of training by Bartlett Tree Research Laboratory staff in Bartlett’s tree inventory system and management plan writing. As a practical project over 400 trees in the campus’s arboretum were inventoried with the Bartlett tree inventory and appraisal system. The workshop was mutually beneficial to both groups. Bartlett was able to train its personnel in a well-equipped computer lab and typical landscaped environment on campus. The university students used the latest equipment and were able to get career and practical insights from arborists employing the technology in the field. The combined efforts of all the participants in the tree inventory facilitated a long-standing need in the arboretum’s management. Sharing resources in joint training exercises such as this one provides a realistic teaching opportunity in a time of budget restraint

Hypothermic Cooling Measured by Thermal Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Feasibility and Implications for Virtual Imaging in the Urogenital Pelvis.

OBJECTIVE: To study the combination of thermal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and novel hypothermic cooling, via an endorectal cooling balloon (ECB), to assess the effective dispersion and temperature drop in pelvic tissue to potentially reduce inflammatory cascade in surgical applications. METHODS: Three male subjects, before undergoing robot-assisted radical prostatectomy, were cooled via an ECB, rendered MRI compatible for patient safety before ECB hypothermia. MRI studies were performed using a 3T scanner and included T2-weighted anatomic scan for the pelvic structures, followed by a temperature mapping scan. The sequence was performed repeatedly during the cooling experiment, whereas the phase data were collected using an integrated MR-high-intensity focused ultrasound workstation in real time. Pelvic cooling was instituted with a cooling console located outside the MRI magnet room. RESULTS: The feasibility of pelvic cooling measured a temperature drop of the ECB of 20-25 degrees in real time was achieved after an initial time delay of 10-15 seconds for the ECB to cool. The thermal MRI anatomic images of the prostate and neurovascular bundle demonstrate cooling at this interface to be 10-15 degrees, and also that cooling extends into the prostate itself ~5 degrees, and disperses into the pelvic region as well. CONCLUSION: An MRI-compatible ECB coupled with thermal MRI is a feasible method to assess effective hypothermic diffusion and saturation to pelvic structures. By inference, hypothermia-induced rectal cooling could potentially reduce inflammation, scarring, and fistula in radical prostatectomy, as well as other urologic tissue procedures of high-intensity focused ultrasound, external beam radiation therapy, radioactive seed implants, transurethral microwave therapy, and transurethral resection of the prostate

Sweat and saliva cortisol response to stress and nutrition factors

Cortisol is a biomarker for stress monitoring; however, the biomedical and clinical relevance is still controversial due to the complexity of cortisol secretion mechanisms and their circadian cycles as well as environmental factors that afect physiological cortisol level, which include individual mood and dietary intake. To further investigate this multifaceted relationship, a human pilot study examined cortisol concentration in sweat and saliva samples collected from 48 college-aged participants during aerobic exercise sessions along with mental distress and nutrition surveys. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays determined highly signifcant diferences between apocrine-dominant sweat (AP), saliva before exercise (SBE), and saliva after exercise (SAE) cortisol concentration (AP-SBE: p = 0.0017, AP-SAE: p = 0.0102). A signifcantly greater AP cortisol concentration was detected in males compared to females (p = 0.0559), and signifcant SAE cortisol concentration diferences were also recorded between recreational athletes and non-athletes (p= 0.044). However, Kessler 10 Psychological Distress Scale (K10) scores, an examination administered to deduce overall wellness, provided no signifcant diferences between males and females or athletes and non-athletes in distress levels, which statistically signifes a direct relationship to cortisol was not present. For further analysis, dietary intake from all participants was considered to investigate whether a multiplexed association was prevalent between nutrition, mood, and cortisol release. Signifcant positive correlations between AP cortisol, SAE cortisol, K10 scores, and fat intake among female participants and athletes were discovered. The various machine learning algorithms utilized the extensive connections between dietary intake, overall well-being, sex factors, athletic activity, and cortisol concentrations in various biofuids to predict K10 scores. Indeed, the understanding of physiochemical stress response and the associations between studied factors can advance algorithm developments for cortisol biosensing systems to mitigate stress-based illnesses and improve an individual’s quality of life

D\u27Amico Risk Stratification Correlates with Degree of Suspicion of Prostate Cancer on Multiparametric Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

PURPOSE: We determined whether there is a correlation between D\u27Amico risk stratification and the degree of suspicion of prostate cancer on multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging based on targeted biopsies done with our electromagnetically tracked magnetic resonance imaging/ultrasound fusion platform. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 101 patients underwent 3 Tesla multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging of the prostate, consisting of T2, dynamic contrast enhanced, diffusion weighted and spectroscopy images in cases suspicious for or with a diagnosis of prostate cancer. All prostate magnetic resonance imaging lesions were then identified and graded by the number of positive modalities, including low-2 or fewer, moderate-3 and high-4 showing suspicion on multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging. The biopsy protocol included standard 12-core biopsy, followed by real-time magnetic resonance imaging/ultrasound fusion targeted biopsies of the suspicious magnetic resonance lesions. Cases and lesions were stratified by the D\u27Amico risk stratification. RESULTS: In this screening population 90.1% of men had a negative digital rectal examination. Mean±SD age was 62.7±8.3 years and median prostate specific antigen was 5.8 ng/ml. Of the cases 54.5% were positive for cancer on protocol biopsy. Chi-square analysis revealed a statistically significant correlation between magnetic resonance suspicion and D\u27Amico risk stratification (p CONCLUSIONS: Our data support the notion that using multiparametric magnetic resonance prostate imaging one may assess the degree of risk associated with magnetic resonance visible lesions in the prostate