Holiday sun exposure increases level of vitamin D and thymine dimmers in children

Wstęp: Ekspozycja na słońce powoduje syntezę witaminy D, która odgrywa istotną rolę w wielu procesach zachodzących w organizmie człowieka. Celem pracy było ustalenie wpływu UVR na syntezę witaminy D oraz uszkodzenie DNA w populacji dzieci w wieku szkolnym w odniesieniu do indywidualnej dawki promieniowania. Materiał i metody: Badanie przeprowadzono w okresie wakacyjnym na grupie 32 dzieci rasy kaukaskiej podczas 2-tygodniowego pobytu nad Morzem Bałtyckim. Od wszystkich ochotników pobrano próbki krwi w celu pomiaru stężenia witaminy D, parathormonu, cross-laps, osteokalcyny i moczu w celu analizy uszkodzenia DNA na podstawie oceny stężenia dimerów tymidynowych (T = T). Pomiarów dokonano 24 godziny przed wyjazdem oraz 24 godziny po powrocie z wakacji. Wyniki: Analiza statystyczna wykazała znaczne różnice w wartościach PPF zmierzonych na czole oraz wartościach PPF i pigmentacji mierzonych na ramionach i przedramionach. Wykazano dodatnią korelację pomiędzy PPF zmierzonym na czole a zmianą stężenia 25(OH) D. Mediana stężenia 25(OH)D po powrocie z obozu wzrosła istotnie w stosunku do poziomu wyjściowego. Stężenie PTH (parathormonu), osteokalcyny oraz cross-laps nie zmieniło się istotnie statystycznie po ekspozycji na promieniowanie słoneczne. Stężenie dimerów tymidynowych wzrosło znamiennie statystycznie po ekspozycji na słońce, uzyskując wyższe wartości wśród dzieci z I/II fototypem skory. Nie wykazano korelacji pomiędzy stężeniem T = T a stężeniem witaminy D w surowicy. Wnioski: Uzyskane wyniki wskazują zarówno korzystne, jak i szkodliwe działanie ekspozycji słonecznej na zdrowie dzieci. Zwiększenie poziomu witaminy D i z drugiej strony wzrost w syntezie T = T są niejednoznaczne w interpretacji. Dlatego wciąż aktualne wydaje się prowadzenie badań dotyczących indywidualnej ekspozycji na promieniowanie słoneczne, ochrony przeciwsłonecznej oraz suplementacji witaminą D.Introduction: Sun exposure involves to synthesis of vitamin D, which is associated with many processes in the human body. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of UVR on the synthesis of vitamin D and DNA damage in the population of children including the individual radiation dose. Material and methods: The study was conducted on a group of 32 children during 2-week stay by the Baltic Sea. Blood samples were taken to measure levels of vitamin D, PTH, cross-laps and osteocalcin, and urine samples for analysis of DNA damage based on the concentration of thymidine dimers (T = T). Measurements were performed 24 hours before and 24 hours after returning. Statistical analysis revealed significant difference in PPF values measured on forehead and on upper and lower arm. Results: Positive correlation between PPF on the forehead and change (Δ) 25(OH)D was founded. Median value of 25(OH)D after camp increased statistically comparing to baseline level. Levels of PTH, osteocalcine and cross-laps didn’t differ significantly after sun exposure. T = T levels increased statistically significant after esposure and higher values was obtained among the children with I/II phototype. Statistical analysis gave no significant correlations between T = T levels and vitamin D concentration. Conclusions: The results show both beneficial and harmful effects of natural sun exposure on children’s health. Increase of vitamin D levels and on the other hand increase in T = T synthesis are confusing to be interpreted. Therefore, it still seems to be valid to conduct research involved individual exposure to sunlight, UVR protection and supplementation of vitamin D

Pest Management : A case study from Babati District, Tanzania

The essay covers the subject of pest management in the developing world with focus on Africa. A small study was conducted in the Babati district in Tanzania. The division of labour is usually quite gender specific. Men have the main responsibility for cash crops while women often are responsible for the families food crops as well as household work and taking care of the children. Pest management often also falls on their lot. Yet women get very little information and education as well as gain access to important resources that could lighten their work load. Farmers generally use chemical pesticides as their main method. In the larger cash crops fields especially, farmers feel that it is too difficult to use other methods with exception for crop rotation and in some cases intercropping. In the smaller plots for family use it was however more common that other methods were used. However chemical pesticides were still used if they could be afforded. Tasks being so gender specific women have different needs than men but they are rarely asked what they need and how they perceive things. There seems to be a lot of bias and great misconceptions when it comes to the importance of women in agriculture

The soothing of music on postoperative pain

Otillräckligt behandlad postoperativ smärta är ett problem som sjuksköterskor i allmänhet kommer i kontakt med i sitt dagliga arbete och som åsamkar patienten både fysiska och emotionella kval. Musik, med tusenåriga traditioner som läkande, har länge varit en bortglömd intervention då sjukvården under lång tid varit strikt biomedicinskt inriktad. Syftet var att belysa musikens inverkan som omvårdnadsåtgärd i samband med postoperativ smärta, ur ett patientperspektiv. Metoden bestod av en litteraturstudie, nio vetenskapliga artiklar har analyserats och ligger som grund till resultatet. Analysen av artiklarna har lett fram till tre olika kategorier; Lindrad smärtupplevelse, lindrad upplevelse av känslomässigt lidande och underlättad mobilisering. Att som komplement till sedvanlig smärtlindrande behandling låta patienter som lider av postoperativsmärta lyssna på lugn musik efter eller under operationen lindrar både upplevelsen av fysiska och emotionella smärtsymtom. Dessutom ökar interventionen välbefinnandet, tidigarelägger och minskar besvär vid mobilisering, har en lugnande inverkan, och minskar patientens upplevelse av omgivande ljud och ljus som störande

The soothing of music on postoperative pain

Otillräckligt behandlad postoperativ smärta är ett problem som sjuksköterskor i allmänhet kommer i kontakt med i sitt dagliga arbete och som åsamkar patienten både fysiska och emotionella kval. Musik, med tusenåriga traditioner som läkande, har länge varit en bortglömd intervention då sjukvården under lång tid varit strikt biomedicinskt inriktad. Syftet var att belysa musikens inverkan som omvårdnadsåtgärd i samband med postoperativ smärta, ur ett patientperspektiv. Metoden bestod av en litteraturstudie, nio vetenskapliga artiklar har analyserats och ligger som grund till resultatet. Analysen av artiklarna har lett fram till tre olika kategorier; Lindrad smärtupplevelse, lindrad upplevelse av känslomässigt lidande och underlättad mobilisering. Att som komplement till sedvanlig smärtlindrande behandling låta patienter som lider av postoperativsmärta lyssna på lugn musik efter eller under operationen lindrar både upplevelsen av fysiska och emotionella smärtsymtom. Dessutom ökar interventionen välbefinnandet, tidigarelägger och minskar besvär vid mobilisering, har en lugnande inverkan, och minskar patientens upplevelse av omgivande ljud och ljus som störande

Shape Representation Using a Volume Coverage Model

Geometric shapes can be represented in a variety of different ways. A distancemap is a map from points to distances. This can be used as a shape representationwhich can be created through a process known as a distance transform. This the-sis project tests a method for three-dimensional distance transforms using frac-tional volume coverage. This method produces distance maps with subvoxel dis-tance values. The result which is achieved is clearly better than what would beexpected from a binary distance transform and similar to the one known fromprevious work. The resulting code has been published under a free and opensource software license.The developed code is available under a GPL license here https://gitlab.com/Emiluren/3d-distance-transform</p

På låtsas och på riktigt. Verklighetsnära lärande i Freinetpedagogik och entreprenöriell pedagogik

Structuring education so that students can discover connections between schoolwork and their everyday lives is a crucial task for a teacher. This is especially true in today’s school system that seeks to foster a spirit of lifelong learning, since educational motivation depends on being able to connect to the tasks at hand. In a system where these connections are not present, students will be motivated only by institutional mechanisms such as test results and grades. This leads to them using a number of techniques for “optimizing the system” by getting maximal results for minimal effort. This essay looks at two pedagogical movements that aim to decrease the gap between schoolwork and students’ reality. Freinet pedagogy, named after Célestin Freinet (1896-1966) is a “pedagogy of labour” that concentrates on equating the “labour of the hand” and the “labour of the mind”. Entrepreneurial pedagogy, which has been gaining ground during the last few years, is centred on project-based learning that stimulates the skills commonly found among successful entrepreneurs. These movements have several important differences, most notably the idealistic political visions of the Freinet movement that are absent in the more modern, pragmatic entrepreneurial pedagogy. In spite of this, they are united by the principle of school being as close to the students’ reality as possible – a fact that gives hope for the school of tomorrow