S10-01 Is empathy always good?

Empathy is a complex phenomenon. First of all empathy means the capacity to understand someone else's state of mind or to identify with his emotional state. From this point of view, empathy plays a fundamental role in psychotherapy and has been studied as a fundamental therapeutic factor. It is true that an emphatic attitude can help other people and lead to a better understanding of their feelings. But empathy can also be used as a horrible instrument to manipulate and abuse the other. We can see this kind of malign empathy in perverted narcissistic relationships, in sadism or in torture, where the torturer can use empathy in order to figure out the most effective ways to make each of his victims suffer

Pavao Skalić: njegova misao, izvori i fortuna

The essay explores the life, thought and fortune of the controversial philosopher and theologian Paulus Scalichius / Pavao Skalić (1534–1575). In the first part, a short biography is provided, followed by an overview of some of the most significant cultural trends characterizing Europe between the 15th and 16th centuries. Outside of such context, in fact, Scalichius’ thought remains difficult to grasp. In the second part, a brief survey of his fortune between the 16th and 18th centuries shows that Scalichius did not play a marginal role in the history of encyclopedism, magic, Christian cabalism, and in the literature dedicated to emblems and symbols. Next, some of the most relevant aspects of his thought are addressed, focusing on some of the treatises collected in his Encyclopaediae … Epistemon (Basel, 1559), which was republished in Köln in 1571 with a number of significant variations. In the conclusion, it is stressed that it remains difficult to fully understand the evolution of Scalichius’ thought, to assess his originality, and to identify his place in the cultural context of his time until a proper examination of his sources and his use of them is carried out. Much work is yet to be done in this direction.Ovaj esej istražuje život, misao i fortunu kontroverznog filozofa i teologa Pavla Skalića (1534–1575). U prvom se dijelu prikazuje njegova kratka biografija, a potom slijedi pregled nekih najznačajnijih kulturnih trendova koji karakteriziraju Europu 15. i 16. stoljeća. Skalićeva misao izvan takvog konteksta zapravo ostaje teško shvatljiva. Kratko istraživanje njegove fortune između 16. i 18. stoljeća, provedeno u drugom dijelu, pokazuje da Skalić nije igrao marginalnu ulogu u povijesti enciklopedizma, magije, kršćanskog kabalizma i u literaturi posvećenoj amblemima i simbolima. U trećem dijelu pri obradi nekih od najrelevantnijih aspekata njegove misli usredotočuje se na neke traktate sabrane u njegovoj knjizi Encyclopaediae Epistemon (Basel, 1559), koja je s nizom značajnih varijacija objavljena i u Kölnu 1571. godine. Zaključno je naglašeno da je i dalje teško u potpunosti razumjeti evoluciju Skalićeve misli, procijeniti njegovu originalnost i identificirati njegovo mjesto u kulturnom kontekstu njegova vremena prije nego se provede odgovarajuće istraživanje njegovih izvora i Skalićeve uporabe tih izvora. U tom je pravcu potrebno poduzeti još mnoga istraživanja

Impaired Cerebral Perfusion in Multiple Sclerosis: Relevance of Endothelial Factors.

Magnetic resonance imaging techniques measuring in vivo brain perfusion and integrity of the blood-brain barrier have developed rapidly in the past decade, resulting in a wide range of available methods. This review first discusses their principles, possible pitfalls, and potential for quantification and outlines clinical application in neurological disorders. Then, we focus on the endothelial cells of the blood-brain barrier, pointing out their contribution in regulating vascular tone by production of vasoactive substances. Finally, the role of these substances in brain hypoperfusion in multiple sclerosis is discussed

ncRNA Classification with Graph Convolutional Networks

Non-coding RNA (ncRNA) are RNA sequences which don't code for a gene but instead carry important biological functions. The task of ncRNA classification consists in classifying a given ncRNA sequence into its family. While it has been shown that the graph structure of an ncRNA sequence folding is of great importance for the prediction of its family, current methods make use of machine learning classifiers on hand-crafted graph features. We improve on the state-of-the-art for this task with a graph convolutional network model which achieves an accuracy of 85.73% and an F1-score of 85.61% over 13 classes. Moreover, our model learns in an end-to-end fashion from the raw RNA graphs and removes the need for expensive feature extraction. To the best of our knowledge, this also represents the first successful application of graph convolutional networks to RNA folding data

São Paulo Design Visions: design estratégico como um agente de diálogo e transformação

This essay aims at reporting the development of a research project for Senac São Paulo. From the valorization of the actions and projects already promoted by the Brazilian partner, the project promoted by Design System from Politecnico di Milano outlines a different role and positioning of design in social, cultural and economic contexts locally, based on experimental international experience. The whole project starts from the belief that nowadays, even in the countries characterized by strong industrial growth, design plays the role of both antenna and interpreter of emerging social and economic principles, as well as agent of cultural change of productive and consumption systems. Thus, besides being characterized as a generator of ideas and solutions, design is seen as promoting changes through activities of mediation between training and production system; between university, profession, company and society. The research project has started a strategic dialog between the Italian and Brazilian partners, targeting the generation of a different and original vision of design that leads the Brazilian institution to develop and propose a new educational and economic model in the design area, established in the territory and strongly distinguished. The project methodology is shaped in sharing the experiences of both partners and valorizing their reciprocal competence and sensitivity, which are strong due to their cultural Latin root in common linking both countries: Italy and Brazil. Key words: strategic design, co-project, cultural dialog, change.Este ensaio visa relatar o desenvolvimento de um projeto de investigação do Senac São Paulo. A partir da valorização das ações e projetos já promovidos pelo parceiro brasileiro, o projeto promovido pelo Sistema de Design do Politécnico de Milão esboça um papel e posicionamento diferente do design na vida social, cultural e econômica de contextos locais, baseada na experiência internacional experimental. Todo o projeto começa a partir da convicção de que hoje em dia, mesmo em países caracterizados por um forte crescimento industrial, o design desempenha o papel de ambas as antenas e intérprete de princípios econômicos e sociais emergentes, bem como agente de mudança cultural dos sistemas produtivos e de consumo. Assim, além de ser caracterizado como um gerador de ideias e soluções, design é visto como promotor de mudanças através de atividades de mediação entre a formação e o sistema de produção, entre a universidade, profissão, empresa e sociedade. O projeto de investigação já se iniciou com um diálogo estratégico entre os parceiros italianos e brasileiros, visando a geração de uma visão diferente e original do projeto. Essa busca por inovação leva a instituição brasileira a desenvolver e propor um novo modelo educacional e econômico na área da concepção, estabelecida no território e fortemente diferenciada. O projeto metodologia é moldado para compartilhar as experiências de ambos os parceiros, valorizando as suas recíprocas competências e sensibilidades, que são fortes devido às suas raízes culturais latinas em comum ligando os dois países: Itália e Brasil. Palavras-chave: concepção estratégica, co-projeto, diálogo cultural, mudanças

Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Questionnaire-Nonsuicidal (SITBQ-NS): Development and validation of a revised version of the Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Interview (SITBI) for the self-assessment of nonsuicidal self-injury

Objective: Despite the fact that nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) has become an important issue among clinicians and researchers all over the world, in Italy there is still a lack of instruments able to assess it. The objective of this study is to develop and validate the Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Questionnaire-Nonsuicidal (SITBQ-NS), a self-report measuring the whole NSSI spectrum, that is, from ideation to act. Method: SITBQ-NS was administered to 51 adult patients recruited from public mental health services together with the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI-III), the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS), the Deliberate Self-Harm Inventory (DSHI), and the Nepean Dysphoria Scale (NDS-I). Results: SITBQ-NS demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α=0.983). NSSI thoughts were present in 56.9% of participants, and NSSI behaviors were present in 49% of participants. Similar NSSI functions were found among participants, except for “To end suicidal ideation,” which was more common among those having NSSI thoughts (34.1%) than those exhibiting NSSI behaviors (21.6%). There were strong positive correlations between the scores of SITBQ-NS and the scores of BHS, DSHI and NDS-I. Also, there were weak to strong positive correlations between the scores of SITBQ-NS and some MCMI-III scales. Conclusions: The SITBQ-NS shows very good psychometric properties, being a useful and easy-to-handle instrument for measuring the whole NSSI spectrum. Further research in clinical samples is neede

The Use of Fiberoptic Bronchoscopy During Percutaneous Dilatational Tracheostomy With Laryngeal Mask

The aim of our research is to evaluate the advantage by the combined use of fiberoptic bronchoscopy and laryngeal mask during the performance of percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy in an intensive care unit