Radial nonlinear elliptic problems with singular or vanishing potentials

In this paper we prove existence of radial solutions for the nonlinear elliptic problem $$-\mathrm{div}(A(|x|)\nabla u)+V(|x|)u=K(|x|)f(u) \quad \text{in }\mathbb{R}^{N},$$ \noindent with suitable hypotheses on the radial potentials $A,V,K$. We first get compact embeddings of radial weighted Sobolev spaces into sum of weighted Lebesgue spaces, and then we apply standard variational techniques to get existence results

Body image perception and body composition: assessment of perception inconsistency by a new index

BACKGROUND: A correct perception of the body image, as defined by comparison with actual anthropometric analyses, is crucial to ensure the best possible nutritional status of each individual. Bioimpedance analysis (BIA) represents a leading technique to assess body composition parameters and, in particular, the fat mass. This study examined the self-perception of body image at various levels of adiposity proposing a new index. METHODS: We investigated 487 young Italian adults (mean age of males: 21.9 ± 2.4 years; mean age of females: 21.0 ± 2.2 years). Each subject could choose, on the Contour Drawing Rating Scale, the silhouette that he/she considered most resembling his/her perceived body image as well as his/her ideal body image. On each subject, we performed anthropometric measurements and determined the values of Fat mass and  út with BIA. A new index, FAIFAT (Feel fat status minus Actual fat status Inconsistency), was developed to evaluate possible fat status perception inconsistencies by BIA. RESULTS: Based on ideal and feel body image comparison, women showed higher dissatisfaction than men and preferred slimmer silhouettes. FAIFAT values indicated that the fat status perception was correct in the majority of the examined individuals and only three subjects showed a serious misperception. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that FAIFAT is an appropriate index for assessing the perceived fat status from the body image when compared with data obtained by BIA. In a population, the use of this index will allow the correct identification of groups at risk for eating disorders

Strength Training for Children and Adolescents: Benefits and Risks

Physical activity has proved to be an effective means of preventing several diseases and improving general health. In most cases, though, light to moderate efforts are suggested, for both youngsters and adults. Common sense advices call for late inception of intense, strength training-related activities, like weight lifting and plyometrics, which are usually postponed at the end of the growth age, even among sport practitioners. However, such advices seem to have a mainly anecdotal nature. The purpose of this review is to evaluate risks and benefits of early inception of strength training, at adolescence or even earlier, and to verify whether concerns can be grounded scientifically. Current literature does not seem to have any particular aversion against the practice of strength training by children and adolescents, provided that some safety rules are followed, like medical clearance, proper instruction from a qualified professional and progressive overload. At the same time, several studies provide consistent findings supporting the benefits of repeated, intense physical efforts in young subjects. Improved motor skills and body composition, in terms of increased fat free mass, reduced fat mass and enhanced bone health, have been extensively documented, especially if sport practice began early, when the subjects were pubescent. It can be therefore concluded that strength training is a relatively safe and healthy practice for children and adolescents

Strength Training for Children and Adolescents: Benefits and Risks

Physical activity has proved to be an effective means of preventing several diseases and improving general health. In most cases, though, light to moderate efforts are suggested, for both youngsters and adults. Common sense advices call for late inception of intense, strength training-related activities, like weight lifting and plyometrics, which are usually postponed at the end of the growth age, even among sport practitioners. However, such advices seem to have a mainly anecdotal nature. The purpose of this review is to evaluate risks and benefits of early inception of strength training, at adolescence or even earlier, and to verify whether concerns can be grounded scientifically. Current literature does not seem to have any particular aversion against the practice of strength training by children and adolescents, provided that some safety rules are followed, like medical clearance, proper instruction from a qualified professional and progressive overload. At the same time, several studies provide consistent findings supporting the benefits of repeated, intense physical efforts in young subjects. Improved motor skills and body composition, in terms of increased fat free mass, reduced fat mass and enhanced bone health, have been extensively documented, especially if sport practice began early, when the subjects were pubescent. It can be therefore concluded that strength training is a relatively safe and healthy practice for children and adolescents

Current immigration to Europe from North Africa. Health and physical activity

Immigration to Europe - especially from neighbouring North Africa - is a consistent phenomenon with social and health-related implications. Even if in many cases immigrants come from lower-income countries, their health status is better than that of European-born citizens at immigration time, given their younger age. Still, the adoption of a Western life style, with increased caloric intake and reduced physical activity, may soon lead to a deterioration of individual health. European-born individuals engage more often in leisure-time physical activity than immigrants (especially women) and follow a more healthy diet. Thus, obesity, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes may have a higher prevalence in accustomed immigrants

Mathematics camps: A gift for gifted students?

We evaluate the short-run impact of a mathematics camp for gifted high school students. During the camp, studets work in teams, trying to solve advanced mathematical prob- lems with the help of manipulatives. We randomize participation in the camp and test the effects of such participation on problem-solving skills, personality traits, and career intentions. Results show that participants improve their problem-solving skills, especially in questions that require the use of logic. We also find positive effects on students’ person- ality traits: students declare to be less neurotic and more extroverted. Gifted students with relatively lower school math scores benefit more from the program. Finally, participating in the mathematics camp makes students more willing to go to university

Perinatal depression and patterns of attachment: a critical risk factor?

Background. This study aims to verify if the presence and severity of perinatal depression are related to any particular pattern of attachment. Methods. The study started with a screening of a sample of 453 women in their third trimester of pregnancy, who were administered a survey data form, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the Experience in Close Relationship (ECR). A clinical group of subjects with perinatal depression (PND, 89 subjects) was selected and compared with a control group (C), regarding psychopathological variables and attachment patterns. Results. The ECR showed a prevalence of “Fearful-Avoidant” attachment style in PND group (29.2% versus 1.1%, < 0.001); additionally, the EPDS average score increases with the increasing of ECR dimensions (Avoidance and Anxiety). Conclusion. The severity of depression increases proportionally to attachment disorganization; therefore, we consider attachment as both an important risk factor as well as a focus for early psychotherapeutic intervention

Anthropometric parameters in relation to glycaemic status and lipid profile in a multi-ethnic sample in Italy.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the health status of ethnic minorities in Italy. Furthermore, we aimed to assess the association between anthropometric and blood parameters connected with health status. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. Anthropometric data were collected by direct measurements and blood glucose, total cholesterol and TAG were analysed. SETTING: Bologna, northern Italy. SUBJECTS: A multi-ethnic sample of adult immigrants and Roma. RESULTS: Significant correlations between anthropometric and blood parameters were found. Among the ethnic groups, Roma males had the highest values of glucose, total cholesterol and TAG. In the females the situation was more balanced among ethnic groups. CONCLUSIONS: The data from this survey indicate that poor health status is a very common problem among ethnic groups living in Italy, especially the Roma. The use of anthropometric parameters as rapid indicators of health status in screenings of a large number of subjects could be an effective and cheap method to provide preliminary indications on individuals or ethnic groups at greater risk of poor health

Dream and delirium as desecrating tools in the writing of Giannis Skarimbas

Giannis Skarimbas (1893-1984), writer, poet, theatrical author, karagiozopaichtis (shadow theater puppet-eer), created in his oeuvre a universe inhabited by beings that are not always human, or at least not entirely human. This dreamlike prose, in which the subconscious is inserted by finding masks and skirmishes to conceal one's strength, is very close to poetic expression. In Skarimbas’ writing, this nearly achieves a kind of marked modernism and hermetic lyricism, the level of reality and that of the dream-thought alternate with often unpredictable rhythms, capable of immersing the reader in a deep descent into the subconscious, where everything can be said, expressed and desecrated. This article aims to find stylistic elements that can be traced back to the influence of the world of the dream on the written page

Using Blockchain to Ensure Reputation Credibility in Decentralized Review Management

In recent years, there have been incidents which decreased people's trust in some organizations and authorities responsible for ratings and accreditation. For a few prominent examples, there was a security breach at Equifax (2017), misconduct was found in the Standard & Poor's Ratings Services (2015), and the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (2022) validated some of the low-performing schools as delivering higher standards than they actually were. A natural solution to these types of issues is to decentralize the relevant trust management processes using blockchain technologies. The research problems which are tackled in this thesis consider the issue of trust in reputation for assessment and review credibility at different angles, in the context of blockchain applications. We first explored the following questions. How can we trust courses in one college to provide students with the type and level of knowledge which is needed in a specific workplace? Micro-accreditation on a blockchain was our solution, including using a peer-review system to determine the rigor of a course (through a consensus). Rigor is the level of difficulty in regard to a student's expected level of knowledge. Currently, we make assumptions about the quality and rigor of what is learned, but this is prone to human bias and misunderstandings. We present a decentralized approach that tracks student records throughout the academic progress at a school and helps to match employers' requirements to students' knowledge. We do this by applying micro-accredited topics and Knowledge Units (KU) defined by NSA's Center of Academic Excellence to courses and assignments. We demonstrate that the system was successful in increasing accuracy of hires through simulated datasets, and that it is efficient, as well as scalable. Another problem is how can we trust that the peer reviews are honest and reflect an accurate rigor score? Assigning reputation to peers is a natural method to ensure correctness of these assessments. The reputation of the peers providing rigor scores needs to be taken into account for an overall rigor of a course, its topics, and its tasks. Specifically, those with a higher reputation should have more influence on the total score. Hence, we focused on how a peer's reputation is managed. We explored decentralized reputation management for the peers, choosing a decentralized marketplace as a sample application. We presented an approach to ensuring review credibility, which is a particular aspect of trust in reviews and reputation of the parties who provide them. We use a Proof-of-Stake based Algorand system as a base of our implementation, since this system is open-source, and it has a rich community support. Specifically, we directly map reputation to stake, which allows us to deploy Algorand at the blockchain layer. Reviews are analyzed by the proposed evaluation component using Natural Language Processing (NLP). In our system, NLP gauges the positivity of the written review, compares that value to a scaled numerical rating given, and determines adjustments to a peer's reputation from that result. We demonstrate that this architecture ensures credible and trustworthy assessments. It also efficiently manages the reputation of the peers, while keeping reasonable consensus times. We then turned our focus on ensuring that a peer's reputation is credible. This led us to introducing a new type of consensus called "Proof-of-Review". Our proposed implementation is again based on Algorand, since its modular architecture allows for easy modifications, such as adding extra components, but this time, we modified the engine. The proposed model then provides a trust in evaluations (review and assessment credibility) and in those who provide them (reputation credibility) using a blockchain. We introduce a blacklisting component, which prevents malicious nodes from participating in the protocol, and a minimum-reputation component, which limits the influence of under-performing users. Our results showed that the proposed blockchain system maintains liveliness and completeness. Specifically, blacklisting and the minimum-reputation requirement (when properly tuned) do not affect these properties. We note that the Proof-of-Review concept can be deployed in other types of applications with similar needs of trust in assessments and the players providing them, such as sensor arrays, autonomous car groups (caravans), marketplaces, and more