Bandersnatch, ovvero sulla possibilità di altri futuri. Distopie e linee di fuga al tempo del realismo capitalista ricerca

This paper demonstrates that Bandersnatch (2018), an episode of the Black Mirror series, reflects the current condition of the subjectivities in the participative society of ‘capitalist realism’ (Fisher 2018). Additionally, the proposed study aims to shed light on the underlying idea of subversion or resistance promoted by Charlie Brooker, the screenwriter of the TV series. Since the film blends fiction and fact, we will firstly discuss how the episode has been constructed by Brooker and David Slade (the film director) focusing on references to past events. Secondly, we will argue that interactivity can be seen as a metaphor for the actual paradigm of participative politics. Then, we will discuss the connections between contemporary subjectivity (or, according to some scholars, ‘techné’) and the web (which is intended here as the connections between structure and human/non-human actors). Finally, we will present the idea of ‘retroactivism’, that is opening new possibilities of the imaginary (which is an essential element of the Bandersnatch episode). Additionally, we will discuss the idea of ‘capitalist realism’, that is the most coherent description of the actual society and the relevance of dystopia as a narrative that influences and shapes reality

Methods for preparation and administration of lutetium-177 oxodotreotide 3.7 GBq: proceedings from an Italian advisory board

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Serum Albumin Is Inversely Associated With Portal Vein Thrombosis in Cirrhosis

We analyzed whether serum albumin is independently associated with portal vein thrombosis (PVT) in liver cirrhosis (LC) and if a biologic plausibility exists. This study was divided into three parts. In part 1 (retrospective analysis), 753 consecutive patients with LC with ultrasound-detected PVT were retrospectively analyzed. In part 2, 112 patients with LC and 56 matched controls were entered in the cross-sectional study. In part 3, 5 patients with cirrhosis were entered in the in vivo study and 4 healthy subjects (HSs) were entered in the in vitro study to explore if albumin may affect platelet activation by modulating oxidative stress. In the 753 patients with LC, the prevalence of PVT was 16.7%; logistic analysis showed that only age (odds ratio [OR], 1.024; P = 0.012) and serum albumin (OR, -0.422; P = 0.0001) significantly predicted patients with PVT. Analyzing the 112 patients with LC and controls, soluble clusters of differentiation (CD)40-ligand (P = 0.0238), soluble Nox2-derived peptide (sNox2-dp; P < 0.0001), and urinary excretion of isoprostanes (P = 0.0078) were higher in patients with LC. In LC, albumin was correlated with sCD4OL (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient [r(s)], -0.33; P < 0.001), sNox2-dp (r(s), -0.57; P < 0.0001), and urinary excretion of isoprostanes (r(s), -0.48; P < 0.0001) levels. The in vivo study showed a progressive decrease in platelet aggregation, sNox2-dp, and urinary 8-iso prostaglandin F2 alpha-III formation 2 hours and 3 days after albumin infusion. Finally, platelet aggregation, sNox2-dp, and isoprostane formation significantly decreased in platelets from HSs incubated with scalar concentrations of albumin. Conclusion: Low serum albumin in LC is associated with PVT, suggesting that albumin could be a modulator of the hemostatic system through interference with mechanisms regulating platelet activation

Motivazione al trattamento con psicotrapia breve: studio condotto su 30 casi valutati nel day hospital psichiatrico

The most important predictive factor for a successful outcome in Brief Psychotherapy is the motivation of patients to the treatment itself. Against the scarcity of literature on the subject, so far limited to offer standardized tools to assess motivation, applied mainly to education and work's areas, in spite of a possible application in psychotherapy, it was considered necessary to develop a questionnaire ad hoc. MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was therefore created a pattern of motivational diagnosis of the problem based on a sequence of questions and answers, which would make possible the classification of each case and then that could lead to the use of a specific method. It is the result of the attempt to create an orderly pattern and that it would be easy to use and then be analyzed. The questionnaire consists of twenty one questions and requires that the patient answers with a "yes" or a "no" to each applicant. It was administered to thirty patients who came from the psychiatric day hospital. The questionnaire was used as a "not standardized thread" in which, through groups of questions, are addressed some central cores: the spontaneous activity, motivation controlled from the outside, motivation directed to an activity that leads to results, motivation to and activity for a purpose, expectations of self-efficacy, the presence/absence of resistance and finally the area of the will. The purpose of this work is to show, bringing a contribution in agreement with the few studies on the subject, how motivation is a key parameter for predicting the effectiveness of a psychotherapy, in this case, Brief Psychotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: The study clearly shows how the motivation is the most important positive predictor in the preliminary assessment of a Brief Psychotherapy: results in treatment are most likely to be rapid and favorable if patients are motivated to change andif they are engaged with the therapist

Conventional MRI findings in hereditary degenerative ataxias: a pictorial review

PURPOSE: Cerebellar ataxias are a large and heterogeneous group of disorders. The evaluation of brain parenchyma via MRI plays a central role in the diagnostic assessment of these conditions, being mandatory to exclude the presence of other underlying causes in determining the clinical phenotype. Once these possible causes are ruled out, the diagnosis is usually researched in the wide range of hereditary or sporadic ataxias. METHODS: We here propose a review of the main clinical and conventional imaging findings of the most common hereditary degenerative ataxias, to help neuroradiologists in the evaluation of these patients. RESULTS: Hereditary degenerative ataxias are all usually characterized from a neuroimaging standpoint by the presence, in almost all cases, of cerebellar atrophy. Nevertheless, a proper assessment of imaging data, extending beyond the mere evaluation of cerebellar atrophy, evaluating also the pattern of volume loss as well as concomitant MRI signs, is crucial to achieve a proper diagnosis. CONCLUSION: The integration of typical neuroradiological characteristics, along with patient’s clinical history and laboratory data, could allow the neuroradiologist to identify some conditions and exclude others, addressing the neurologist to the more appropriate genetic testing