Informa(c)tion: How to do things with medicine information leaflets

Abstract – This paper analyses how Patient Information Leaflets (PILs) of over-the-counter medical products convey information. More precisely, the article focuses on “instructions” on how to use medicines and related “instructional information” (Trimble 1985). The latter is used in PILs to explain why consumers should follow the instructions. The aim is to show, then, how and whether the PILs sampled help consumers to translate effectively the information contained into actions. The first part of the article examines the deontic devices employed in 8 English and Italian PILs of the most common over-the-counter medicines for human consumption used to relieve the same symptoms. The second part, instead, analyses whether and how the eight leaflets sampled followed the ‘instructions’ contained in one of the authoritative works by Sless and Shrensky in this field (2006). Both Australian authors, indeed, provide useful advice on how to write directives and related explanations in PILs.Riassunto – Questo lavoro si propone di analizzare come i foglietti illustrativi dei medicinali da banco veicolano le informazioni. Nel caso specifico, l’attenzione è rivolta alle “istruzioni” per l’uso (dei medicinali) e alle “informazioni sulle istruzioni” (Trimble 1985). Quest’ultime vengono utilizzate nei foglietti illustrativi per spiegare ai consumatori perché seguire specifiche istruzioni. L’intento è quello di mostrare, quindi, come e se i foglietti illustrativi dei medicinali presi a campione aiutino i consumatori a tradurre in modo efficace le informazioni in azioni. La prima parte dell’articolo è incentrata sulle strategie deontiche utilizzate in 8 foglietti illustrativi di medicinali da banco inglesi e italiani per uso umano, usati comunemente per curare la stessa tipologia di sintomi. La seconda parte, invece, analizza se e come gli otto foglietti illustrativi presi a campione hanno seguito, a loro volta, le ‘istruzioni’ contenute in uno degli lavori considerati più autorevoli nel campo dei foglietti illustrativi dei medicinali (Sless e Shrensky 2006). Entrambi gli autori australiani, infatti, offrono una serie di consigli utili su come scrivere le istruzioni e le relative spiegazioni

Quality Analysis of Liquid Soap Formulation Made from Virgin Coconut Oil with Addition of White Tea Extract

The production of bath soap based on natural ingredients is still rarely found in the market. Many in circulation still use synthetic materials as active ingredients. In this soap-making formulation using natural antioxidants in the form of white tea extract, anti-oxidants from plant extracts are usually added as additives (1-8% of the final soap composition). The research method used is a response surface methodology with a Central Composite Design (CCD) design. The resulting liquid soap product will be analyzed including physicochemical tests and organoleptic tests. Soap with the most appropriate quality according to SNI fell on the 4th variable, with the addition of KOH of 67 grams and a reaction time of 35 minutes. Variable soap 4 has a pH of 10, a free alkali content of 0.0541%, and an unsaponifiable fat content of 0.37%

Phonaesthetics and personality—Why we do not only prefer Romance languages

Introduction: Previous aesthetic research has set its main focus on visual and auditory, primarily music, stimuli with only a handful of studies exploring the aesthetic potential of linguistic stimuli. In the present study, we investigate for the first time the effects of personality traits on phonaesthetic language ratings. Methods: Twenty-three under-researched, “rarer” (less learned and therefore less known as a foreign language or L2) and minority languages were evaluated by 145 participants in terms of eroticism, beauty, status, and orderliness, subjectively perceived based on language sound. Results: Overall, Romance languages (Catalan, Portuguese, Romanian) were still among the top six erotic languages of the experiment together with “Romance-sounding,” but less known languages like Breton and Basque. Catalan and Portuguese were also placed among the top six most beautiful languages. The Germanic languages (Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, and Icelandic) were perceived as more prestigious/higher in terms of status, however to some degree conditioned by their recognition/familiarity. Thus, we partly replicated the results of our earlier studies on the Romance language preferences (the so-called Latin Lover effect) and the perceived higher status of the Germanic languages and scrutinized again the effects of familiarity/language recognition, thereby calling into question the above mentioned concepts of the Latin Lover effect and the status of Germanic languages. We also found significant effects of personality traits (neuroticism, extraversion, and conscientiousness) on phonaesthetic ratings. Different personality types appreciated different aspects of languages: e.g., whereas neurotics had strong opinions about languages' eroticism, more conscientious participants gave significantly different ratings for status. Introverts were more generous in their ratings overall in comparison to extroverts. We did not find strong connections between personality types and specific languages or linguistic features (sonority, speech rate). Overall, personality traits were largely overridden by other individual differences: familiarity with languages (socio-cultural construals, the Romanization effect—perceiving a particular language as a Romance language) and participants' native language/L1. Discussion: For language education in the global context, our results mean that introducing greater linguistic diversity in school and universities might result in greater appreciation and motivation to learn lesser-known and minority languages. Even though we generally prefer Romance languages to listen to and to study, different personality types are attracted to different language families and thus make potentially successful learners of these languages

La campagna elettorale inglese e italiana in prima pagina

Abstract – This paper examines the front pages of four printed newspapers (The Guardian, The Times, Corriere della Sera and la Repubblica) on the first day of the general election campaign in 2005 in the UK (4th April) and the Italian campaign in 2006 (11th February). The aim is to show first of all how the positioning of elements (i.e. pictures, cartoons, headlines, articles and even advertisements), on the left and on the right of the page, or in the upper or lower sections is not at random and in fact conveys specific information. Secondly, it will also illustrate how words, images and colours on the same page bond with each other by means of a common theme or “topic of the day” suggested by the newspaper itself. The second part of this work, instead, focuses on the language of the headlines (and their articles) adopted on the front pages of the four dailies during both the 2005 and 2006 election campaigns in the UK and in Italy respectively and how they are designed to affect and influence their readers, who are, after all, prospective voters.Keywords: newspapers, front page, headlines, topic, election campaign

Vaghezza, indeterminatezza e incertezza nei foglietti illustrativi dei medicinali in inglese e in italiano

Abstract - This paper analyses vague words and expressions contained in 8 Patient Information Leaflets (PILs) of over-the-counter medical products (4 sold in the U.K. and 4 in Italy). More precisely, the article focuses on qualifying adjectives describing scale of “seriousness” together with the recommended “dosage”. It also looks at epistemic modal verbs (Halliday 2004; Palmer 1986), as well as adverbial adjuncts (Halliday 2004). “Vagueness is a form of unclarity – specifically, an unclarity about the boundaries of things” (Raffman 2014, p. 2). As a consequence, a concept or word is vague if it allows borderline cases (Smith 2008, p. 1; Van Deemter 2010, p. 8). PILs (and not only) are rich in vague expressions: sometimes they are “necessary” (Encott 200), but at other times they can be omitted so as to make a text more comprehensible for the addressee. For example, is it really necessary to use multiple adjectives such as “bad”, “severe”, “serious” within the same PIL or in several PILs, instead of using only one, perhaps the most common and understandable, for example the word “bad”?Abstract - Questo lavoro si propone di analizzare le parole ed espressioni vaghe contenute in 8 foglietti illustrativi (F.I.) di medicinali da banco (4 venduti in Inghilterra e 4 in Italia). L’analisi si sofferma in particolare sugli aggettivi qualificativi sulla scala della “gravità” e della “quantità”, e sulle forme verbali modali con funzione epistemica (Halliday 2004; Palmer, 1986) e sui connettivi di probabilità e di frequenza con funzione avverbiale e non di complemento (Halliday 2004). “La vaghezza è una forma di non chiarezza sui confini delle cose” (Raffman 2014, p. 2). Pertanto, una parola o un concetto sono vaghi se ammettono casi limite  (Smith 2008, p. 1; Van Deemter 2010, p. 8). La vaghezza è una caratteristica dei F.I. (e non solo), a volte “necessaria” (Encott 2000), ma che in altre circostanze si può evitare per rendere il testo più comprensibile al fruitore. Per esempio, è proprio necessario inserire in uno stesso F.I. o più F.I. gli aggettivi “severo”, “serio”, “grave” e non impiegare invece sempre e solo lo stesso aggettivo più comune e più conosciuto come “grave”

Effects of Inflow Condition on RANS and LES Predictions of the Flow around a High-Rise Building

An increasing number of engineering applications require accurate predictions of the flow around buildings to guarantee performance and safety. This paper investigates the effects of variations in the turbulent inflow, as predicted in different numerical simulations, on the flow pattern prediction around buildings, compared to wind tunnel tests. Turbulence characteristics were assessed at several locations around a model square high-rise building, namely, above the roof region, at the pedestrian level, and in the wake. Both Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS, where turbulence is fully modelled) equations and large-eddy simulation (LES, where turbulence is partially resolved) were used to model an experimental setup providing validation for the roof region. The performances of both techniques were compared in ability to predict the flow features. It was found that RANS provides reliable results in regions of the flow heavily influenced by the building model, and it is unreliable where the flow is influenced by ambient conditions. In contrast, LES is generally reliable, provided that a suitable turbulent inflow is included in the simulation. RANS also benefits when a turbulent inflow is provided in simulations. In general, LES should be the methodology of choice if engineering applications are involved with the highly separated and turbulent flow features around the building, and RANS provides reliable information when regions of high wind speed and low turbulence are investigated

Effect of acetaldehyde intoxication and withdrawal on NPY expression: focus on endocannabinoidergic system involvement

Acetaldehyde (ACD), the first alcohol metabolite, plays a pivotal role in the rewarding, motivational, and addictive properties of the parental compound. Many studies have investigated the role of ACD in mediating neurochemical and behavioral effects induced by alcohol administration, but very little is known about the modulation of neuropeptide systems following ACD intoxication and withdrawal. Indeed, the neuropeptideY (NPY) system is altered during alcohol withdrawal in key regions for cerebrocortical excitability and neuroplasticity.The primary goal of this research was to investigate the effects of ACD intoxication and withdrawal by recording rat behavior and by measuring NPY immunoreactivity in hippocampus and NAcc, two brain regions mainly involved in processes which encompass neuroplasticity in alcohol dependence. Furthermore, on the basis of the involvement of endocannabinoidergic system in alcohol and ACD reinforcing effects, the role of the selective CB1 receptor antagonist AM281 in modulating NPY expression during withdrawal was assessed. Our results indicate that (i) ACD intoxication induced a reduction in NPY expression in hippocampus and NAcc; (ii) symptoms of physical dependence, similar to alcohol’s,were scored at 12 h from the last administration of ACD; and (iii) NPY levels increased in early and prolonged acute withdrawal in both brain regions examined. The administration of AM281 was able to blunt signs of ACD-induced physical dependence, to modulate NPY levels, and to further increase NPY expression during ACD withdrawal both in hippocampus and NAcc. In conclusion, the present study shows that complex plastic changes take place in NPY system during ACD intoxication and subsequent withdrawal in rat hippocampal formation and NAcc. The pharmacological inhibition of CB1 signaling could counteract the neurochemical imbalance associated with ACD, and alcohol withdrawal, likely boosting the setting up of homeostatic functional recover

Drinking pattern matters: effects on maternal care and offspring vulnerability to alcohol in rats

Alcohol drinking during pregnancy and post-partum period is a major concern because of the persistent neurobehavioral deficits in the offspring, which include increased vulnerability to substance abuse (1). The intermittent pattern of alcohol consumption induces higher drinking levels and deeper neurobiological changes in addiction-related brain regions, with respect to traditional free-access paradigms in male rats (2, 3). Nevertheless, no studies investigated on the effects of the drinking pattern on female subjects during pregnancy and perinatal time. To this aim, this study explored the consequences of continuous vs. intermittent drinking pattern on maternal behaviour and on offspring vulnerability to alcohol, during adulthood. Dams were given two-bottle choice to water and 20% alcohol with either continuous- or intermittent access (CA vs IA), along a 12-week period. They suspended alcohol drinking during breeding and resumed alcohol self-administration from late gestation throughout lactation, when they were assessed for home-cage undisturbed maternal behaviour. In the adulthood, alcohol-exposed offspring were assessed for alcohol drinking behaviour in a free-choice paradigm and tested for the deprivation effect. Our results show that alcohol consumption and preference significantly decreased in IA group during pregnancy, returning to baseline during lactation. Alcohol drinking was able to disrupt spontaneous maternal behaviour, especially in IA exposed dams. On the other hand, perinatal CA exposure did not increase alcohol-drinking behaviour in the offspring with respect to controls, while rats perinatally exposed to IA displayed a high vulnerability to alcohol, in terms of drinking behaviour and deprivation effect. In conclusion, this study indicates for the first time that the pattern of alcohol consumption can be responsible for different extents of maternal behaviour disruption and detrimental consequences in the offspring. Therefore gender- but also pattern-related differences should be taken into account for contrasting alcohol abuse and dependence, especially during perinatal time.   1. McMurray MS, Williams SK, Jarrett TM, Cox ET, Fay EE, Overstreet DH, Walker CH, Johns JM. Neurotoxicol Teratol. 2008;30(6):475-86. 2. Stuber GD, Hopf FW, Hahn J, Cho SL, Guillory A, Bonci A. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2008 Oct;32(10):1714-20 3. George O, Sanders C, Freiling J, Grigoryan E, Vu S, Allen CD, Crawford E, Mandyam CD, Koob GF. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012;109(44):18156-6

Intracranial tuberculous mass lesions treated with thalidomide in an immunocompetent child from a low tuberculosis endemic country: A case report

Rationale: Tuberculous meningitis is a highly morbid, often fatal disease. Patient concern: We describe a case of an Italian child. Diagnoses: we diagnosed early a Tuberculous meningitis complicated by the occurrence of hydrocephalus, stroke, and paradoxical reaction with brain pseudo-abscesses. Interventions: The child started readily a specific therapy associated with steroids and thalidomide was introduced few month later. Outcomes: the patient had a favorable outcome without neurologic sequelae. Lessons: Despite the prompt specific anti-tubercular and adjuvant corticosteroid therapies, only the addition of thalidomide to the treatment allow to a favorable clinical outcome