The Views of Non-Psychiatric Medical Specialists about People with Schizophrenia and Depression

This study explored the views of non-psychiatric medical specialists about people with schizophrenia and depression and examined whether specialists’ approach to these clients, and their perception of dangerousness and social distance, differed by disorder. Non-psychiatric medical specialists working in community centers in Italy read either a schizophrenia or depression description and then completed a questionnaire on their views about people with that disorder. The schizophrenia-group (N=114) was more sure than the depression-group (N=97) that the patients should be approached differently in outpatient specialized clinics like those where the respondents worked; are incapable of caring for their open health; and are kept at distance by others. Perceived dangerousness did not significantly differ between the two groups. These findings highlight the potential effects of attitudes on medical practice and outline the need to educate non-psychiatric medical specialists on stigma as a strategy to reduce health discrepancies, particularly toward people diagnosed with schizophrenia

Radon concentration in self-bottled mineral spring waters as a possible public health issue

Since 2013, the Council Directive 2013/51/Euratom has been regulating the content of radioactive substances in water intended for human consumption. However, mineral waters are exempted from this regulation, including self-bottled springs waters, where higher radon concentration are expected. Therefore, a systematic survey has been conducted on all the 33 mineral spring waters of Lazio (a region of Central Italy) in order to assess if such waters, when self-bottled, may be of concern for public health. Waters have been sampled in two different ways to evaluate the impact of bottling on radon concentration. Water sampling was possible for 20 different spring waters, with 6 samples for each one. The results show that 2 (10%) of measured mineral spring waters returned radon concentrations higher than 100 Bq L−1, i.e., the parametric value established by the Council Directive. These results, if confirmed by other surveys involving a higher number of mineral spring waters, would suggest regulating also these waters, especially in countries like Italy for which: (i) mineral water consumption is significant; (ii) mineral concession owners generally allow the consumers to fill bottles and containers, intended for transport and subsequent consumption, directly from public fountains or from fountains within the plant; (iii) the consumers’ habit of drinking self-bottled mineral water is widespread

Functional expression of PHO1 to the Golgi and trans-Golgi network and its role in export of inorganic phosphate.

Arabidopsis thaliana PHO1 is primarily expressed in the root vascular cylinder and is involved in the transfer of inorganic phosphate (Pi) from roots to shoots. To analyze the role of PHO1 in transport of Pi, we have generated transgenic plants expressing PHO1 in ectopic A. thaliana tissues using an estradiol-inducible promoter. Leaves treated with estradiol showed strong PHO1 expression, leading to detectable accumulation of PHO1 protein. Estradiol-mediated induction of PHO1 in leaves from soil-grown plants, in leaves and roots of plants grown in liquid culture, or in leaf mesophyll protoplasts, was all accompanied by the specific release of Pi to the extracellular medium as early as 2-3 h after addition of estradiol. Net Pi export triggered by PHO1 induction was enhanced by high extracellular Pi and weakly inhibited by the proton-ionophore carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone. Expression of a PHO1-GFP construct complementing the pho1 mutant revealed GFP expression in punctate structures in the pericycle cells but no fluorescence at the plasma membrane. When expressed in onion epidermal cells or in tobacco mesophyll cells, PHO1-GFP was associated with similar punctate structures that co-localized with the Golgi/trans-Golgi network and uncharacterized vesicles. However, PHO1-GFP could be partially relocated to the plasma membrane in leaves infiltrated with a high-phosphate solution. Together, these results show that PHO1 can trigger Pi export in ectopic plant cells, strongly indicating that PHO1 is itself a Pi exporter. Interestingly, PHO1-mediated Pi export was associated with its localization to the Golgi and trans-Golgi networks, revealing a role for these organelles in Pi transport

In situ sulphated CuOx/ZrO2 and CuOx/sulphated-ZrO2 as catalysts for the reduction of NOx with NH3 in the presence of excess O2

Sulphated catalysts containing the same amount of sulphates (2.6 SO4 nm2) and a different amount of copper (0.3–3.9 Cu atoms nm2), Cu/SZ, were prepared by impregnation of sulphated-ZrO2 with toluene solutions of Cu(acetylacetonate)2. Sulphated catalysts containing the same amount of copper (0.3 or 2.5 atoms nm2) and a different amount of sulphates (up to 4.9 SO2 nm2), Cu/ZSg, were prepared by sulphation of CuOx/ZrO2 (Cu/Z) via the gas-phase. Samples were characterised by Fourier transformed IR spectroscopy. The selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH3 in the presence of excess O2 (SCR reaction), the NH3 + O2 and the NO + O2 reactions were studied in a flow apparatus. Activity and selectivity did not depend on the sulphation method used for catalyst preparation but depended on the amount of copper and sulphate, particularly on the sulphate/copper ratio. As on Cu/Z, on Cu/SZ CuII was active for both SCR and NH3 + O2 reactions. The presence of covalent sulphates caused lower reducibility of CuII to CuI and higher Lewis acid strength of CuI in Cu/SZ than in Cu/Z. For (i) SCR, (ii) NH3 + O2 and (iii) NO + O2, Cu/ZSg were less active than the parent Cu/Z. As the sulphate content in Cu/ZSg increased, the NO yield in the NH3 + O2 reaction markedly decreased, thus accounting for the increased selectivity in the SCR reaction. In CuOx/ sulphated-ZrO2 copper ions were less prone reversibly to undergo the redox process CuII/CuI. These findings provide new information on the role of copper and sulphate in determining the activity and selectivity for the SCR with NH

Efektifitas Implementasi Smm Iso 9001:2008 Pada Smk Negeri Di Kota Singaraja

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk memberikan gambaran tentang : 1) efektivitas penerapan Sistem Manajemen Mutu (SMM) ISO 9001:2008 pada SMK Negeri di kota Singaraja dilihat dari konteks, masukan, proses, dan hasil penerapan; 2) kendala-kendala yang dihadapai dalam melaksanakan SMM ISO 9001:2008 pada SMK Negeri dikota Singaraja serta alternatif pemecahannya. Penelitian ini dilaksanakan pada SMK Negeri dikota Singaraja pada tahun pelajaran 2013/2014, dengan menggunakan model evaluasi CIPP dari Stufflebeam yang melibatkan 354 responden. Variabel konteks yang terdiri dari sub variabel SMM sekolah dan keterlibatan komite sekolah. Variabel masukan terdiri dari sub variabel manajemen sekolah dan keterlibatan dunia USAha/dunia industri (DU/DI). Variabel proses yang terdiri dari sub variabel pemeliharaan dan pengadaan sarana pendidikan, kegiatan belajar mengajar oleh guru, dan kegiatan belajar mengajar siswa. Variabel produk dengan sub variabel nilai ujian tahun pemelajaran 2013/2014 (UN, US dan UK). Metode kuesioner digunakan untuk menjaring data SMM sekolah, manajemen sekolah dengan responden semua staff manajemen, keterlibatan dunia USAha/dunia industri (DU/DI), dan proses pembelajaran siswa. Metode wawancara untuk menjaring data keterlibatan komite sekolah. Metode observasi untuk menjaring data kegiatan belajar mengajar oleh guru. Metode studi dokumen untuk menjaring data SMM sekolah, pengadaan dan pemeliharaan sarana pendidikan, dan nilai ujian. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa : 1) efektif dilihat dari variabel konteks dengan frekuensi kategori positif 54.286% untuk SMM dan frekuensi kategori positif 75% untuk keterlibatan komite; 2) efektif dilihat dari variabel masukan dengan frekuensi kategori positif 57.6271% untuk manajmen sekolah dan frekuensi kategori positif 52.041% untuk keterlibatan DU/DI; 3) kurang efektif dilihat dari variabel proses dengan frekuensi kategori negatif 63.1578% untuk pemeliharaan dan pengadaan saran pendidikan, dan frekuensi kategori positif 57.4713% untuk kegiatan belajar mengajar oleh guru, dan frekuensi kategori positif 52.308% untuk kegiatan belajar mengajar siswa; 4) efektif dilihat dari variabel produk dengan frekuensi kategori positif 52.055.00% untuk nilai ujian. Bertolak dari hasil penelitian tersebut dapat direkomendasikan: 1) meningkatkan koordinasi setiap kebijakan baru; 2) penerapan SMM perlu disosialisasikan secara terus menerus pada setiap kesempatan; 3) meningkatkan komitmen warga sekolah untuk menerapakan SMM; 4) meningkatkan koordinasi dengan industri menuju Manajemen Partisipatif; 5) memberikan tugas dan tanggungjawab yang jelas kepada kepala program

Understanding how grammatical aspect influences legal judgment

Recent evidence suggests that grammatical aspect can bias how individuals perceive criminal intentionality during discourse comprehension. Given that criminal intentionality is a common criterion for legal definitions (e.g., first-degree murder), the present study explored whether grammatical aspect may also impact legal judgments. In a series of four experiments participants were provided with a legal definition and a description of a crime in which the grammatical aspect of provocation and murder events were manipulated. Participants were asked to make a decision (first- vs. second-degree murder) and then indicate factors that impacted their decision. Findings suggest that legal judgments can be affected by grammatical aspect but the most robust effects were limited to temporal dynamics (i.e., imperfective aspect results in more murder actions than perfective aspect), which may in turn influence other representational systems (i.e., number of murder actions positively predicts perceived intentionality). In addition, findings demonstrate that the influence of grammatical aspect on situation model construction and evaluation is dependent upon the larger linguistic and semantic context. Together, the results suggest grammatical aspect has indirect influences on legal judgments to the extent that variability in aspect changes the features of the situation model that align with criteria for making legal judgments

Drenes subsuperficiales: control de la salinización edáfica en producciones intensivas bajo cubierta

La actividad productiva del Cinturón Hortícola del Gran La Plata, con características comunes a todo el cinturón metropolitano, se desarrolla en suelos con restricciones de permeabilidad. El manejo productivo junto con el riego con agua de baja calidad y con las características de los suelos provoca degradaciones por salinización, alcalinización y anegamiento, favoreciendo la incidencia de plagas y enfermedades y afectando el desarrollo del cultivo. Se estudió la eficiencia de drenes subsuperficiales para controlar la salinización de un suelo Hapludert típico degradado con cultivos protegidos. Se compararon drenes con dos diámetros (10 y 15 cm) instalados sobre el techo del Bt, distanciados entre sí a 5 m, respecto a un tratamiento con yeso. Se siguió la evolución del suelo y cultivo en tres ciclos productivos. Los drenes disminuyeron marcadamente la salinidad sin diferencias atribuibles al diámetro. El yeso solo tuvo mejoras temporales. Se observó hacia el segundo y tercer ciclo productivo, el efecto de los drenes en todo el sitio, incluido el testigo (CE inicial promedio del sitio 4,5 dS.m-1 vs. CE final 1,77 dS.m-1). La alcalinización no se modificó con ningún tratamiento. El rendimiento del cultivo aumentó con el uso de drenes, cubriendo el costo adicional de instalación, y mejorando el resultado económico del sistema.The productive activity of the horticulture belt of Gran La Plata region, with common features throughout the metropolitan ´s belt, develops in soils with restricted permeability. The production management, along with irrigation using poor quality water and the characteristics of the soil, cause degradation by salinization, alkalinization and waterlogging, favoring the incidence of pests and diseases and affecting crop development. The subsurface drainage efficiency was studied to control soil salinization of a Typic Hapludert soil degraded for protected crops. Drains of two diameters (10 and 15 cm) installed on the roof of Bt, spaced to 5 m, about gypsum application were compared. Soil evolution and cultivation was evaluated during three production cycles. Drains markedly decreased soil salinity, independently to the diameter of them. The use of gypsum only showed temporary improvements. It was noted to the second and third production cycle, the effect of the drains around the site, including the control (average initial site CE 4.5 dS.m-1 vs 1.77 dS.m-1 end CE). Alkalinization was unchanged with any treatment. Crop yield increases with the use of drains, covering the additional cost of installation, and improving the economic performance of the system.EEA Área Metropolitana de Buenos AiresFil: Cuellas, Marisol Virginia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Área Metropolitana de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Alconada Magliano, A. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestales. Edafología; Argentin

Changing How Students Process and Comprehend Texts with Computer-based Self-Explanation Training

This study assessed whether and how self-explanation reading training, provided by iSTART (Interactive Strategy Training for Active Reading and Thinking), improves the effectiveness of comprehension processes. iSTART teaches students how to self-explain and which strategies will most effectively aid comprehension from moment-to-moment. We used RSAT (Reading Strategy Assessment Tool) to assess how iSTART changes the relation between important selfexplanation reading strategies—bridging and elaboration—and online comprehension, and how often they are produced. College and high school students received iSTART and were administered RSAT prior to and post-training. Results from three experiments showed that iSTART primarily benefits bridging inferences when self explaining. The frequency of bridging inferences was higher post training than prior to training, but only in the experiments involving college students. Additionally, prior to exposure to iSTART, RSAT bridging scores did not predict comprehension performance, whereas they did after iSTART, suggesting that iSTART may improve comprehension processes by teaching students how to appropriately use selfexplanation to address comprehension difficulties. Finally, the results from this study suggest that RSAT may provide a valuable computer-based assessment of the effectiveness of selfexplanations that could be used in conjunction with iSTART and in future research on selfexplanation

Changing How Students Process and Comprehend Texts with Computer-based Self-Explanation Training

This study assessed whether and how self-explanation reading training, provided by iSTART (Interactive Strategy Training for Active Reading and Thinking), improves the effectiveness of comprehension processes. iSTART teaches students how to self-explain and which strategies will most effectively aid comprehension from moment-to-moment. We used RSAT (Reading Strategy Assessment Tool) to assess how iSTART changes the relation between important selfexplanation reading strategies—bridging and elaboration—and online comprehension, and how often they are produced. College and high school students received iSTART and were administered RSAT prior to and post-training. Results from three experiments showed that iSTART primarily benefits bridging inferences when self explaining. The frequency of bridging inferences was higher post training than prior to training, but only in the experiments involving college students. Additionally, prior to exposure to iSTART, RSAT bridging scores did not predict comprehension performance, whereas they did after iSTART, suggesting that iSTART may improve comprehension processes by teaching students how to appropriately use selfexplanation to address comprehension difficulties. Finally, the results from this study suggest that RSAT may provide a valuable computer-based assessment of the effectiveness of selfexplanations that could be used in conjunction with iSTART and in future research on selfexplanation