A Psychoanalytical Reading of Jordi Sierra i Fabra’s Kafka and the Traveling Doll

Drawing principally on Freudian classical psychoanalysis and Nathaniel Branden’s concept of self-esteem along with Susan Forward’s notion of toxic parents and Barbara De Angelis’s idea of emotional programming, this paper aims to cast light on Jordi Sierra i Fabra’s Kafka and the Traveling Doll (2006). According to Freud, the psyche consists of three parts the Id, Ego, and the Superego, and core issues define our being fundamental. In addition, this article uses modern psychoanalysis to examine characters’ behavior, especially Kafka. It will reveal that Kafka suffers from low self-esteem, which influences his behavior throughout the novel. It will also suggest that Kafka’s traumatic experiences in childhood psychologically incapacitate him. In addition, the article highlights and discusses several passages from the novel according to psychoanalytic theories, focusing on Kafka, Dora, Elsi, and the doll.

MANAGEMENT OF SIMPLE FEBRILE SEIZURES; A STUDY CONDUCTED IN IMAM HOSPITAL, OROMIEH

ObjectiveWhatever the health field, compliance with the recommended practice guidelines or parameters for diagnosis by specialists and expert health professionals benefits the patients. This study was conducted to determine the whether or not these guidelines or parameters are applied to the evaluation of children with first simple febrile convulsion (SFC) in a regional teaching hospital.Materials & MethodsIn a prospective study conducted on children with SFC, admitted in the Pediatric ward of Imam hospital, Oromieh, records of investigations ordered between Jan 2003 and Dec 2004 for children diagnosed with SFC were collected. Practice parameters of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) were employed as diagnostic standards. Applied practices were compared with AAP recommended practice parameters. Investigations performed included lumbar puncture, complete blood count, CRP, ESR, blood glucose, serum calcium, electrolytes, renal function tests, urinalysis, urine culture, and blood culture, chest X-ray, EEG and CT scan.ResultsTwo hundred and fifty-one consecutive cases, aged 6-60 months, were evaluated. Complete blood count, blood glucose, serum calcium, serum electrolytes, renal function tests, urinalysis, urine culture, and blood culture were tested in all cases (100%). Lumbar puncture, chest X-ray, EEG and CT brain scan had been performed in 10%, 24%, 1.4% and 0.65% of cases, respectively. The mean number of routine investigations was twelve.ConclusionCompared to recommended practice guidelines the results of this study highlighted that children with first SFC had more often than necessary investigation. These, not only resulted in significant expense, they proved to be of little diagnostic value. Compliance with a centrally organized national program would significantly help to improve SFC evaluation.Keywords: Febrile convulsion, Simple fébrile seizure, Lumbar puncture, Convulsion, Feve

A Quantum Inspired Bi-level Optimization Algorithm for the First Responder Network Design Problem

In the aftermath of a sudden catastrophe, First Responders (FR) strive to promptly reach and rescue immobile victims. Simultaneously, other mobile individuals take roads to evacuate the affected region, or access shelters. The escalated traffic congestion significantly hinders critical FR operations if they share some of the same roads. A proposal from the Turkish Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure being discussed for implementation is to allocate a subset of road segments for use by FRs only, mark them clearly, and pre-communicate them to the citizens. For the FR paths under consideration: (i) there should exist an FR path from designated entry points to each demand point in the network, and (ii) evacuees try to leave the network (through some exit points following the selfish routing principle) in the shortest time possible when they know that certain segments are not available to them. We develop a mixed integer non-linear programming formulation for this First Responder Network Design Problem (FRNDP). We solve FRNDP using a novel hybrid quantum-classical heuristic building on the Graver Augmented Multi-Seed Algorithm (GAMA). Using the flow-balance constraints for the FR and evacuee paths, we use a Quadratic Unconstrained Binary Optimization (QUBO) model to obtain a partial Graver Bases to move between the feasible solutions of FRNDP. To efficiently explore the solution space for high-quality solutions, we develop a novel bi-level nested GAMA within GAMA: GAGA. We test GAGA on random graph instances of various sizes and instances related to an expected Istanbul earthquake. Comparing GAGA against a state-of-the-art exact algorithm for traditional formulations, we find that GAGA offers a promising alternative approach. We hope our work encourages further study of quantum (inspired) algorithms to tackle complex optimization models from other application domains.Comment: 28 pages, 5 figure

Vitamin D in neurological and neurodegenerative patients: Current knowledge and future perspectives

Effective pharmacological treatments for neurological and neurodegenerative patients have not yet been identified. Previous studies show that vitamin D may be involved in neurodevelopment adult brain. Reduced status of vitamin D have been reported in various neurological and neurodegenerative disorders. Insufficient levels of vitamin D in neurological and neurodegenerative have been confirmed. The neuroprotective effect of vitamin D is associated with its effects on neurotrophin synthesis and prevention of oxidative or inflammation damage to nervous tissue. We here review the role of vitamin D in the pathogenesis disease, such as seizure, Pain, depression and anxiety, sleep, sexual dysfunction, addiction, alzheimer's, parkinson's. Adequate administrate of vitamin D in the lifetime seems to be crucial in terms of prevention of these diseases. The aim of this review is to assess the current knowledge related to the role of vitamin D supplementation on the pathogenesis and disease course of neurological and neurodegenerative. © 2018, Advanced Scientific Research. All rights reserved

Prevalence of Anxiety Disorders in Iranian Men in the Last 10 Years: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective: To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to provide an estimate of the prevalence of anxiety disorders during 2010-2020 among Iranian men.  Methods: We searched international and national databases including PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane library, SID, and Magiran with related keywords. The selected studies were also qualitatively evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) checklist. I2 test was used to measure the heterogeneity of the studies and a random strategy for meta-analysis was considered using the result. Results: We reviewed 782 articles identified through our search. Then, 51 articles were selected according to the inclusion criteria and, data were extracted from 24 articles. After carefully reviewing these articles, 24 articles were ultimately selected for meta-analysis. The overall estimated prevalence of anxiety among men was 12% (95% CI: 0.11, 0.13). The highest prevalence of anxiety was 50% (95%CI: 0.38-0.62) in Tehran and the lowest prevalence of anxiety was 0.014% (95%CI:0.003-0.025) in Shiraz. Conclusions: Anxiety disorders are common and the substantive identified here explain much of the prevalence of mental disorders. These results showed the potential in men to suffer from anxiety disorders

The Predominant Microorganism During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Toxicological Intensive Care Unit

Background: Although many studies have investigated the prevalence of hospital infections during the COVID-19 pandemic, the results are still challenging. Methods: In this routine data-based study, the medical records of 2213 poisoned patients admitted to the Toxicological Intensive Care Unit (TICU) of the Loghman Hakim Hospital from 2018 to 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. After the implementation of exclusion criteria, 220 patients were separated into the control and case groups. The information of the patients was extracted based on a preplanned form and analyzed with SPSS software, version 26. Results: Unlike the prepandemic period, when Staphylococcus aureus was the predominant pathogen, during the pandemic period, the predominant pathogen in tracheal culture was Acinetobacter spp., which increased from 11.3% in the prepandemic period to 14.9% during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, coagulase-negative staphylococci in blood culture and Enterobacter spp. in tracheal culture both significantly decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic (P=0.035 and P=0.05, respectively), while Streptococcus viridans in the tracheal culture and Enterococcus in the urine culture both significantly increased (P=0.013). Conclusion: Although in the prepandemic period, S. aureus was usually the most common pathogen among poisoned patients in TICU, the predominant pathogen changed to Acinetobacter spp. during the COVID-19 pandemic period. Some hospital-acquired infections decreased and others increased in a different way between the two groups

Cosmology from LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey data release 2: angular clustering of radio sources

Covering ∼ 5600 deg2 to rms sensitivities of ∼70−100 μJy beam−1, the LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey Data Release 2 (LoTSS-DR2) provides the largest low-frequency (∼150 MHz) radio catalogue to date, making it an excellent tool for large-area radio cosmology studies. In this work, we use LoTSS-DR2 sources to investigate the angular two-point correlation function of galaxies within the survey. We discuss systematics in the data and an improved methodology for generating random catalogues, compared to that used for LoTSS-DR1, before presenting the angular clustering for ∼900 000 sources ≥1.5 mJy and a peak signal-to-noise ≥ 7.5 across ∼80 per cent of the observed area. Using the clustering, we infer the bias assuming two evolutionary models. When fitting angular scales of 0.5 ≤ θ < 5◦, using a linear bias model, we find LoTSS-DR2 sources are biased tracers of the underlying matter, with a bias of bC = 2.14+0.22 −0.20 (assuming constant bias) and bE(z = 0) = 1.79+0.15 −0.14 (for an evolving model, inversely proportional to the growth factor), corresponding to bE = 2.81+0.24 −0.22 at the median redshift of our sample, assuming the LoTSS Deep Fields redshift distribution is representative of our data. This reduces to bC = 2.02+0.17 −0.16 and bE(z = 0) = 1.67+0.12 −0.12 when allowing preferential redshift distributions from the Deep Fields to model our data. Whilst the clustering amplitude is slightly lower than LoTSS-DR1 (≥2 mJy), our study benefits from larger samples and improved redshift estimates

Clinical Study Endovascular Treatment of Intracranial Artery Dissection: Clinical and Angiographic Follow-Up

Background. Intracranial artery dissections are rare and many controversies exist about treatment options. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of the endovascular approach in patients with an intracranial dissection presenting with different symptoms. Methods. We prospectively evaluated the clinical features and treatment outcomes of 30 patients who had angiographically confirmed nontraumatic intracranial dissections over 4 years. Patients were followed up for 17 months, and their final outcomes were assessed by the modified Rankin Score (mRS) and angiography. Results. Sixteen (53.3%) patients had a dissection of the anterior circulation, whereas 14 (46.7%) had a posterior circulation dissection. Overall, 83.3% of the patients suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Grade IV Hunt and Hess score was seen in 32% of the SAH presenting cases. Parent artery occlusion (PAO) with coil embolization was used in 70% of the cases. The prevalence of overall procedural complications was 23.3%, and all were completely resolved at the end of follow-up. No evidence of in-stent occlusion/stenosis or rebleeding was observed in our cases during follow-up. Angiography results improved more frequently in the PAO with coil embolization group (100%) than in the stent-only-treated group (88.9%) ( = 0.310) and the unruptured dissection group (5/5, 100%) in comparison with the group that presented with SAH (95.8%) ( = 0.833). Conclusion. Favorable outcomes were achieved following an endovascular approach for symptomatic ruptured or unruptured dissecting aneurysms. However, the long-term efficacy and durability of these procedures remain to be determined in a larger series

Cosmology from LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey Data Release 2: Angular Clustering of Radio Sources

Covering ∼5600 deg2 to rms sensitivities of ∼70−100 μJy beam−1, the LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey Data Release 2 (LoTSS-DR2) provides the largest low-frequency (∼150 MHz) radio catalogue to date, making it an excellent tool for large-area radio cosmology studies. In this work, we use LoTSS-DR2 sources to investigate the angular two-point correlation function of galaxies within the survey. We discuss systematics in the data and an improved methodology for generating random catalogues, compared to that used for LoTSS-DR1, before presenting the angular clustering for ∼900,000 sources ≥1.5 mJy and a peak signal-to-noise ≥7.5 across ∼80% of the observed area. Using the clustering we infer the bias assuming two evolutionary models. When fitting {angular scales of 0.5≤θ&lt;5°, using a linear bias model, we find LoTSS-DR2 sources are biased tracers of the underlying matter, with a bias of bC=2.14+0.22−0.20 (assuming constant bias) and bE(z=0)=1.79+0.15−0.14 (for an evolving model, inversely proportional to the growth factor), corresponding to bE=2.81+0.24−0.22 at the median redshift of our sample, assuming the LoTSS Deep Fields redshift distribution is representative of our data. This reduces to bC=2.02+0.17−0.16 and bE(z=0)=1.67+0.12−0.12 when allowing preferential redshift distributions from the Deep Fields to model our data. Whilst the clustering amplitude is slightly lower than LoTSS-DR1 (≥2 mJy), our study benefits from larger samples and improved redshift estimates

Search for the Higgs boson in events with missing transverse energy and b quark jets produced in proton-antiproton collisions at s**(1/2)=1.96 TeV

We search for the standard model Higgs boson produced in association with an electroweak vector boson in events with no identified charged leptons, large imbalance in transverse momentum, and two jets where at least one contains a secondary vertex consistent with the decay of b hadrons. We use ~1 fb-1 integrated luminosity of proton-antiproton collisions at s**(1/2)=1.96 TeV recorded by the CDF II experiment at the Tevatron. We find 268 (16) single (double) b-tagged candidate events, where 248 +/- 43 (14.4 +/- 2.7) are expected from standard model background processes. We place 95% confidence level upper limits on the Higgs boson production cross section for several Higgs boson masses ranging from 110 GeV/c2 to 140 GeV/c2. For a mass of 115 GeV/c2 the observed (expected) limit is 20.4 (14.2) times the standard model prediction.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let