Introducing computers into education : a case study of the Greek situation.

The study explores the process of the introduction of computers into education as an\ud educational innovation.\ud The thesis distinguishes two fundamental categories of computer use in schools (IT and\ud ITE), and identifies the different rationales for their initiation at a national level, and the different\ud objectives they reflect at the school level. It also provides a conceptual framework to explore the\ud process of the innovation. It identifies the value that the computer use represents and the\ud complexity it involves as the main factors that influence its initiation into education. Moreover, it\ud explores the ways in which the meaning of the computer use as well as the context of its\ud implementation influence the computer use. The cases of England and Germany illustrate the\ud theoretical considerations of the thesis.\ud The case study of the introduction of computers into Greek general education attempts to\ud capture the complexity of the process as shaped by the characteristics of computer use and by the\ud specific Greek context. The Greek case study confirms that the value and the complexity of\ud computer use influence its initiation. However, it shows that their codification depends on the\ud specific characteristics of an educational system, the priorities of a country, and its infrastructure. It\ud indicates that the interrelations of these factors at particular points in time, is more important than\ud the factors themselves. It stresses the high levels of technical complexity of the particular\ud innovation. It indicates, however, that a highly centralised bureaucratic educational system can not\ud easily cope with this issue, while more flexible schemata are needed to combine local initiatives with\ud centralised support.\ud Next, it shows that the meaning of computer use is perceived differently by participants and\ud is shaped in the transition from policy to implementation. It demonstrates how policy documents are\ud often contradictory to each other, creating a lack of clarity about the meaning of the attempted\ud computer use. Additionally, the study illustrates that the proposed computer use is not always\ud implemented the way its initiators envisaged it. It suggests that the reasons for discrepancies may\ud differ among educational systems. In the Greek case study discrepancies were due to a lack of\ud clarity in meaning, as well as to a lack of resources. Moreover, the infrastructure provided by the\ud Greek prescriptive educational system to support the implementation of IT did not encourage\ud initiatives on behalf of the teachers.\ud Finally, the case study points that although the fast evolution of technology requires flexible\ud procedures to keep up with change, it also stresses the importance of continuity. Therefore, flexible\ud management structures need to co-exist with long term plans

Integrating protein networks and machine learning for disease stratification in the Hereditary Spastic Paraplegias.

The Hereditary Spastic Paraplegias are a group of neurodegenerative diseases characterized by spasticity and weakness in the lower body. Owing to the combination of genetic diversity and variable clinical presentation, the Hereditary Spastic Paraplegias are a strong candidate for protein-protein interaction network analysis as a tool to understand disease mechanism(s) and to aid functional stratification of phenotypes. In this study, experimentally validated human data were used to create a protein-protein interaction network based on the causative genes. Network evaluation as a combination of topological analysis and functional annotation led to the identification of core proteins in putative shared biological processes, such as intracellular transport and vesicle trafficking. The application of machine learning techniques suggested a functional dichotomy linked with distinct sets of clinical presentations, indicating that there is scope to further classify conditions currently described under the same umbrella-term of Hereditary Spastic Paraplegias based on specific molecular mechanisms of disease

Holistic approach to dissolution kinetics : linking direction-specific microscopic fluxes, local mass transport effects and global macroscopic rates from gypsum etch pit analysis

Dissolution processes at single crystal surfaces often involve the initial formation and expansion of localized, characteristic (faceted) etch-pits at defects, in an otherwise comparatively unreactive surface. Using natural gypsum single crystal as an example, a simple but powerful morphological analysis of these characteristic etch pit features is proposed that allows important questions concerning dissolution kinetics to be addressed. Significantly, quantitative mass transport associated with reactive microscale interfaces in quiescent solution (well known in the field of electrochemistry at ultramicroelectrodes) allows the relative importance of diffusion compared to surface kinetics to be assessed. Furthermore, because such mass transport rates are high, much faster surface kinetics can be determined than with existing dissolution methods. For the case of gypsum, surface processes are found to dominate the kinetics at early stages of the dissolution process (small etch pits) on the cleaved (010) surface. However, the contribution from mass transport becomes more important with time due to the increased area of the reactive zones and associated decrease in mass transport rate. Significantly, spatial heterogeneities in both surface kinetics and mass transport effects are identified, and the morphology of the characteristic etch features reveal direction-dependent dissolution kinetics that can be quantified. Effective dissolution velocities normal to the main basal (010) face are determined, along with velocities for the movement of [001] and [100] oriented steps. Inert electrolyte enhances dissolution velocities in all directions (salting in), but a striking new observation is that the effect is direction-dependent. Studies of common ion effects reveal that Ca2+ has a much greater impact in reducing dissolution rates compared to SO42−. With this approach, the new microscopic observations can be further analysed to obtain macroscopic dissolution rates, which are found to be wholly consistent with previous bulk measurements. The studies are thus important in bridging the gap between microscopic phenomena and macroscopic measurements

Cytosolic sequestration of spatacsin by Protein Kinase A and 14-3-3 proteins

Mutations in SPG11, encoding spatacsin, constitute the major cause of autosomal recessive Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia (HSP) with thinning of the corpus callosum. Previous studies showed that spatacsin orchestrates cellular traffic events through the formation of a coat-like complex and its loss of function results in lysosomal and axonal transport impairments. However, the upstream mechanisms that regulate spatacsin trafficking are unknown. Here, using proteomics and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated tagging of endogenous spatacsin, we identified a subset of 14-3-3 proteins as physiological interactors of spatacsin. The interaction is modulated by Protein Kinase A (PKA)-dependent phosphorylation of spatacsin at Ser1955, which initiates spatacsin trafficking from the plasma membrane to the intracellular space. Our study provides novel insight in understanding spatacsin physio- pathological roles with mechanistic dissection of its associated pathways

Standardized outcome measures for preterm and hospitalized neonates : an ICHOM standard set

Introduction: Approximately, one in ten infants is born preterm or requires hospitalization at birth. These complications at birth have long-term consequences that can extend into childhood and adulthood. Timely detection of developmental delay through surveillance could enable tailored support for these babies and their families. However, the possibilities for follow-up are limited, especially in middle- and low-income countries, and the tools to do so are either not available or too expensive. A standardized and core set of outcomes for neonates, with feasible tools for evaluation and follow-up, could result in improving quality, enhance shared decision-making, and enable global benchmarking. Methods: The International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement (ICHOM) convened an international working group, which was comprised of 14 health-care professionals (HCP) and 6 patient representatives in the field of neonatal care. An outcome set was developed using a three-round modified Delphi process, and it was endorsed through a patient representative-validation survey and an HCP survey. Results: A literature review revealed 1,076 articles and 26 registries which were screened for meaningful outcomes, patient-reported outcome measures, clinical measures, and case mix variables. This resulted in a neonatal set with 21 core outcomes covering three domains (physical, social, and mental functioning) and 14 tools to assess these outcomes at three timepoints. Discussion: This set can be implemented globally and it will allow comparison of outcomes across different settings and countries. The transparent consensus-driven development process which involved stakeholders and professionals from all over the world ensures global relevance

Molybdenum and sulfur incorporation as oxyanion substitutional impurities in calcium carbonate minerals: a computational investigation

Marked increases in sulfur and molybdenum concentration in stalagmites have been proposed as possible evidence of volcanic activity in the past. Thus, speleothems have great potential to deliver long and continuous records of volcanic activity. However, little is known about the chemical nature of these impurities in the calcium carbonate (CaCO3) phases forming stalagmites, which hinders the rationalization of the incorporation mechanisms. While sulfur is known to incorporate as a sulfate anion in CaCO3 polymorphs, the nature and stability of molybdenum incorporation in these minerals has not been investigated yet. Here, we present a computer simulation study, based on density functional theory, comparing the thermodynamics of incorporation of sulfur and molybdenum as tetrahedral oxyanions [XO4]2- (X=S, Mo) in anion sites of CaCO3 polymorphs (calcite, aragonite, vaterite, monohydrocalcite and ikaite). Among the different polymorphs, vaterite incorporates [XO4]2- ions most favourably, which reflects the relatively low density of this carbonate phase. We show that molybdate anions are very unstable (more so than sulfate anions) in the bulk of all three anhydrous carbonate phases, with respect to the formation of naturally occurring competing phases. Most of the Mo impurities found in typical calcite/aragonite stalagmites is therefore likely to concentrate at surface/interface regions such as grain boundaries. Using the calcite (10.4) surface as a model, we show that the energies of substitution are indeed much lower at the surface than at the bulk. Our results suggest that factors affecting the crystallinity of CaCO3 in stalagmites, and therefore the specific surface area, will have a significant effect on the concentration of incorporated molybdenum, which should be a key consideration when interpreting data from Mo-based speleothem archives

Synthesis of Zeolites from Greek Fly Ash and Assessment of Their Copper Removal Capacity

The objective of this study was to synthesize zeolites through fusion of lignite fly ash and NaOH or KOH pellets at 600 °C and assess their removal efficiency in terms of decontamination of solutions containing Cu(II) ions. The removal efficiency of the produced zeolites was tested in batch kinetic experiments using different zeolites and Cu(II) ion concentrations. Experimental data revealed that zeolites synthesized with the use of NaOH exhibited higher removal efficiency compared with those synthesized with the use of KOH. Kinetic data showed that the pseudo-second-order equations described well the removal process. Copper removal was mainly accomplished through the concerted action of chemisorption and intraparticle diffusion. Analytical techniques involving XRF, XRD, FTIR, SEM/EDS and XPS were used for the characterization and morphology analysis of the produced zeolites. SEM/EDS confirmed the presence of copper on the zeolite surface. XPS spectra of Cu2p at 934.3 eV proved the presence of Cu(II) oxidation state, confirming the possible formation of CuO and/or Cu-Cl

Systems biology approaches for neurodegeneration and macroautophagy

Neurodegenerative diseases have been identified and studied for decades but disease-modifying drugs are still unavailable for their majority. Their genetic and clinical complexity renders the identification of the precise molecular disease mechanism challenging. Holistic approaches that allow the analysis of diseases in a systems level, studying multiple genes and their protein products simultaneously, could aid in the endeavour to find treatment for neurodegenerative diseases, such as the Hereditary Spastic Paraplegias (HSPs) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). Firstly, a protein-protein interaction network (PPIN) analysis was performed centred on proteins derived from genes that lead to HSPs, revealing that their majority share at least one interactor. This suggests that they participate in common biological processes and pathways. Enrichment analysis highlighted membrane trafficking and vesicle mediated pathways as important for the HSPs. Furthermore, the clinical complexity of the disease led to the investigation of potential mechanistic differences of the disease depending on the mode of inheritance, type of HSP, and clinical features. The analysis of the latter also utilised basic machine learning tools (principal component analysis and hierarchical clustering) and suggested the existence of 2 subgroups of HSPs with divergent disease mechanisms. To investigate how a fundamental cellular process can contribute to disease, macroautophagy was studied, as it is associated with multiple neurodegenerative diseases. This connection was investigated initially by creating 5 PPINs (macroautophagy, PD, Alzheimer’s disease, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and Frontotemporal dementia), and examining their overlap. As the intersection between all studied neurodegenerative diseases and macroautophagy was extensive, I focused on the relationship between macroautophagy and PD. This required the creation of a mathematical model of the initial stages of macroautophagy, in which differential protein amounts were used to simulate a healthy person versus a person with PD. Interestingly, this distinction in amounts was sufficient to simulate differential kinetics of macroautophagy

Εκπαίδευση επαγγελματιών υγείας στη χρήση του motivational interviewing (υποκινητική συνέντευξη) για τη βελτίωση των διατροφικών συμπεριφορών και της φυσικής κατάστασης των ασθενών πρωτοβάθμιας φροντίδας.

Στην παρούσα μελέτη έγινε προσπάθεια αξιολόγησης εκπαιδευτικής παρέμβασης σε επαγγελματίες υγείας πάνω στην Υποκινητική Συνέντευξη (Motivational Interviewing-MI) για τη βελτίωση των διατροφικών επιλογών και της φυσικής κατάστασης των ασθενών που χρήζουν πρωτοβάθμιας περίθαλψης. Στο γενικό μέρος της εργασίας πραγματοποιήθηκε ανασκόπηση της υπάρχουσας βιβλιογραφίας πάνω στη διαδικασία και τη σημασία της Υποκίνησης, των βασικών διαθέσιμων θεωριών της αλλαγής της συμπεριφοράς, καθώς επίσης και των βασικών αρχών της MI και στο πως αυτή μπορεί να εφαρμοστεί στην καθημερινή κλινική πράξη. Στο ειδικό μέρος της εργασίας πραγματοποιήθηκε διερεύνηση των Στάσεων, της Ευχέρειας, της Εκπαίδευσης και των Δεξιοτήτων πάνω στην MI επαγγελματιών υγείας (Ν=47) που εργάζονται ως ιατρικό προσωπικό στα νοσοκομεία «Ευαγγελισμός» και «Λαϊκό». Έγινε προσπάθεια αξιολόγησης μιας εκπαιδευτικής παρέμβασης που στόχο είχε τη βελτίωση των Στάσεων των συμμετεχόντων απέναντι στην ΜΙ, της Ευχέρειας κατά την εφαρμογή της ΜΙ στην καθημερινή κλινική πράξη και των Δεξιοτήτων που απαιτούνται για την αποτελεσματική εφαρμογή της. Ειδικότερα, η παρέμβαση πραγματοποιήθηκε στο νοσοκομείο «Λαϊκό» (Ν=26), ενώ οι εργαζόμενοι στο νοσοκομείο «Ευαγγελισμός» αποτέλεσαν την ομάδα ελέγχου (Ν=21). Την παρέμβαση συνιστούσαν μια ομιλία και ένας εκπαιδευτικός οδηγός στα οποία γινόταν αναφορά στην MI γενικότερα, στις βασικές αρχές και δεξιότητες που απαιτούνται για την αποτελεσματική εφαρμογή της, τα πιθανά οφέλη της για τους ασθενείς, ενώ περιείχε και παραδείγματα αποτελεσματικής εφαρμογής της ΜΙ για τη βελτίωση των διατροφικών συνηθειών των ασθενών και την εισαγωγή της άσκησης στην καθημερινότητά τους. Οι βασικές μεταβλητές της μελέτης ήταν οι Στάσεις, οι Τεχνικές, η Ευχέρεια, και οι Δεξιότητες, οι οποίες μετρήθηκαν με ερωτηματολόγιο το οποίο περιείχε ερωτήσεις κλειστού τύπου σε κλίμακα Likert (1-5). Το ερωτηματολόγιο δημιουργήθηκε από την ίδια την ερευνήτρια και βασίστηκε σε προηγούμενες έρευνες. Στην πειραματική ομάδα πραγματοποιήθηκαν μετρήσεις σε 3 χρονικές στιγμές: πριν την παρέμβαση (Τ0), αμέσως μετά την παρέμβαση (Τ1) και 1 μήνα μετά την παρέμβαση (Τ2). Αντίστοιχα, στην ομάδα ελέγχου πραγματοποιήθηκαν μετρήσεις τις χρονικές στιγμές Τ0 και Τ2. Κατά την ανάλυση των δεδομένων, στην ομάδα παρέμβασης προέκυψαν στατιστικά σημαντικές ενδείξεις για την αποτελεσματικότητα της παρέμβασης, καθώς σημειώθηκε βελτίωση της πλειοψηφίας των μεταβλητών μετά την παρέμβαση σε σχέση με πριν, τόσο βραχυπρόθεσμα (Τ1), όσο και μακροπρόθεσμα (Τ2). Επιπλέον, συγκρίνοντας τις μεταβολές μεταξύ των δυο ομάδων, δεν φάνηκε να υπάρχει σημαντική μεταβολή των Στάσεων της ομάδας παρέμβασης σε σχέση με την ομάδα ελέγχου. Από την άλλη, φαίνεται να υπάρχει βελτίωση στην πλειοψηφία των ερωτήσεων για τις Τεχνικές, την αυτοαναφερόμενη Ευχέρεια και στις Δεξιότητες «Διερευνώ τους λόγους που ωθούν τον ασθενή σε μη ισορροπημένες διατροφικές συμπεριφορές», και «Κάνω θετικά σχόλια επιβεβαίωσης». Τέλος, το ποσοστό των συμμετεχόντων που αναφέρει ότι χρησιμοποιεί την ΜΙ κατά την καθημερινή κλινική πράξη αυξήθηκε κατά 37.9% στην ομάδα παρέμβασης ένα μήνα μετά την παρέμβαση. Συνολικά, φαίνεται πως η παρέμβαση είχε θετικά αποτελέσματα, παρά τη μικρή της χρονική διάρκεια και το περιορισμένο δείγμα στο οποίο εφαρμόστηκε. Στην Ελλάδα υπάρχει έλλειψη πλήρως δομημένων προγραμμάτων αγωγής και προαγωγής υγείας για τη διατροφή και τη φυσική δραστηριότητα. Η χρήση της ΜΙ στην καθημερινή κλινική πράξη έχει βρεθεί ότι μπορεί να βοηθήσει στη βελτίωση των διατροφικών συνήθειων και της φυσικής κατάστασης των ασθενών. Οπότε, σύμφωνα με τα ευρήματα της παρούσας έρευνας, η εκπαίδευση των επαγγελματιών υγείας πάνω στην ΜΙ φαίνεται να αποτελεί έναν αποτελεσματικό τρόπο ώστε να βελτιωθούν αρχικά οι Στάσεις και η Ευχέρεια, και μακροπρόθεσμα οι Δεξιότητες των επαγγελματιών υγείας πάνω στην ΜΙ, ώστε να μπορούν να την εφαρμόζουν αποτελεσματικά.Ιn present study, an attempt was made to evaluate educational intervention in health professionals on Motivational Interviewing (MI) to improve nutritional behaviors and physical activity of patients in need of primary care. In the general section of this thesis, a review of the current literature on the process and importance of Motivation, the basic theories of behavioral change, as well as the basic principles of MI and how it can be applied to the daily clinical practice was reviewed. In the specific part of the work, an investigation of Attitudes, Confidence, Education and Skills was carried out on MI health professionals (N = 47) working as medical staff at “Evangelismos” and “Laiko” hospitals. An attempt was made to evaluate an educational intervention aimed at improving participants' attitudes towards MI, confidence in the application of MI to the daily clinical practice and skills required for its effective implementation. In particular, intervention was performed at the "Laiko" hospital (N = 26), while the employees at the "Evangelismos" Hospital consisted the control group (N = 21). Intervention included a slide presentation and a training guide referring to MI in general, the basic principles and skills required for its effective implementation, its potential benefits for patients, as well as examples of effective MI implementation to improve nutritional habits of patients and the introduction of exercise into their everyday lives. Main variables of the study were: Attitudes, Techniques, Confidence, and Skills; which were measured with the use of a questionnaire containing closed-ended questions on a Likert scale (1-5). The questionnaire was created by the researcher herself and was based on previous research. In the experimental group, measurements were made at baseline (T0), directly after (T1) and 1 month after intervention (T2). Correspondingly, control group performed measurements at time points T0 and T2. Following data analysis, intervening group showed statistically significant indications for the effectiveness of the intervention, as the majority of the post-intervention variables were improved compared to both short-term (T1) and long-term (T2) results. Moreover, by comparing the changes between the two groups, appeared to be no significant change in the intervening group's attitudes relative to the control group. On the other hand, there seems to be an improvement in the majority of questions about Techniques, Self-Confidence and Skills "I Investigate the Reasons That Induce the Patient to Unbalanced Eating Behaviors", and "I Make Positive Confirmation Comments". Finally, the percentage of participants who reported using MI in the daily clinical practice was increased by 37.9% in the intervention group one month after the intervention. Overall, it appears that the intervention has had positive results, despite its short duration and the limited sample to which it was applied to. In Greece there is a lack of fully structured health education and health promotion programs for nutrition and physical activity. The use of MI in everyday clinical practice has been found to help improve the eating habits and the physical activity of patients. So, according to the findings of this research, training health professionals on MI seems to be an effective way to initially improve attitudes and confidence, and in the long run the skills of health professionals on MI, so that they can apply it effectively

Κρυστάλλωση και διάλυση αλάτων ηλεκτρολυτών

The research made in the present PhD Thesis entitled “Crystallization and dissolution study of electrolyte salts”. The objective of the dissertation concerned both crystallization and dissolution processes of soluble sodium sulfate and insoluble calcium carbonate electrolyte salts approached by different experimental aspects but directly connected to environmental and scientific issues. Salt crystallization is an important cause for the weathering and damage of historical and cultural heritage artifacts and ornamental stones. Soluble salts (i.e. sodium sulfate, magnesium sulfate, sodium chloride) have also a damaging and fateful impact on civil engineering structures of roads and building foundations. Most damaging salt for such built frameworks is proven to be sodium sulfate salt. Only when we have a better understanding of sodium sulfate crystallization in an unconstrained fluid medium can we progress to a study of sodium sulfate crystallization in porous building materials. At the beginning of this study batch crystallization experiments of sodium sulfate salt were conducted. Additionally potential organic inhibitors (i.e. organophosphonate, polyacrylates) were tested in the same batch experimental system. Popular and applicable limestone building material is of uniform composition consisting mainly calcium (calcitic material). Granada’s calcarenite has been selected as one of the target material to study. This natural stone is representative of the building material utilized in construction material monuments and susceptible to salt crystallization. In situ AFM experiments of both calcite crystal growth and dissolution were performed in the presence of different electrolyte solutions (i.e. sodium sulfate and sodium fluoride). Nanoscale phenomena during the growth of solid solutions on calcite surfaces were performed in the presence of sodium sulfate electrolyte solutions. Further molecular-scale surface processes during both growth and dissolution of calcite in the presence of sodium fluoride electrolyte solutions were carried out. In all cases significant kinetic data and reaction mechanisms were extracted. Accelerated degradation of Granada’s limestone and Czech sandstone experiments were executed. Tested materials were exposed and impregnated in concentrated solutions of soluble salts (i.e. sodium sulfate, magnesium sulfate and sodium chloride). Immersed limestone type material showed susceptibility to sodium sulfate and sandstone type material to sodium chloride salt solution. Different pre-treatments of limestone specimens with organophosphonate compounds resulted in limiting material damage from sodium sulfate influence. The use of such organic compounds may direct towards a potential implication of conserving building frameworks. Finally suspended limestone rods were subjected to sodium sulfate spray chamber. Pre-treatment of limestone rods with organophosphonate compounds were completed. Again applications of organophosphonate compounds to exposure of limestone material in salt spray chamber may work towards a case of preventing porous material from salt damage and protect building stones