Inspiring Active Citizenship Through Alternative Break Trips

In this paper I reflect on the alternative break movement and the impact it makes on community partners. I also give an overview of the Honors Learning Community alternative break trip to serve with Appalachia Service Project during the spring of 2014 and how it meets the Bowling Green State University learning outcomes. Finally there is a trip manual that provides readers with a better idea of what goes into planning an alternative break trip

Influence of process variables on the properties of simvastatin self-emulsifying granules obtained through high shear wet granulation

Improvements of the oral bioavailability of lipophilic drugs can be obtained using lipidic formulations such as the self-emulsifying drug delivery systems. The high shear wet granulation (HSWG), using microemulsions as binder, is a viable process to produce self-emulsifying granules. However only few information are present in the literature on the effect of process variables on the properties of the granules obtained with these binders. Consequently, this article compares the effects of some relevant experimental variables (impeller speed and massing time) on thefinal technological and pharmaceutical properties of the granules produced using simple water, or alternatively, a microemulsion as binder and containing simvastatin (SV) as model drug. The effects of the variables were determined by evaluating the granule median diameter, their particle size distribution, roundness, disintegration time and dissolution rate of SV. Results clearly demonstrated that the microemulsion-based process was less sensitive tooperating conditions than the water-based process. With microemulsion the nucleation process and growth regimes were more difficult to control, resulting in products with broader PSDs. At the same operatingconditions microemulsion-based granules were more brittle but rounder and showed smaller median diameter compared to water-based granules. The dissolution rate of simvastatin was not significantly affected by the operating conditions

Mechanochemical Synthesis of Praziquantel Hemihydrate in the Presence of Five Solvents with Different Water Miscibility

In this study, we report the mechanochemical synthesis of praziquantel hemihydrate in the presence of five solvents with different water miscibility. The commercially available praziquantel Form A (a racemic anhydrate structure) was ground in the presence of several water–solvent mixtures using two grinding procedures (i.e., direct liquid-assisted grinding and neat grinding plus liquidassisted grinding). Five organic solvents (i.e., acetic acid, 2-pyrrolidone, ethanol, ethyl acetate and hexane) were chosen considering their different miscibility with water and their capability to form solvates with praziquantel (documented for acetic acid and 2-pyrrolidone). The results suggested that the use of a second solvent has a detrimental effect on the formation of the hemihydrate. The inclusion of water in the solid is even worse in the case of water-miscible solvents, probably due to the favored interactions between the liquids. In fact, hexane is the only solvent permitting the mechanochemical crystallization of praziquantel hemihydrate to a limited extent. Importantly, interconversion studies between the hydrate/monosolvate/anhydrous forms revealed a preferential inclusion of solvents over water in the crystal lattice when using acetic acid or 2-pyrrolidone and complete dehydration of the hemihydrate and conversion in the most thermodynamically stable polymorph A of praziquantel with ethanol, ethyl acetate and hexane

Medicine, Biology and Mathematics

Although mathematics finds large application in physical sciences, its use in the medical and biological field is less usual. Nevertheless, mathematical models can help in understanding many medical and biological phenomena and they can be a powerful tool in the designing process of many technological devices connected to the above mentioned phenomena. Of course, fundamental pre-requisite for building up a reliable mathematical model is the deep cooperation of different competences such as those of medical doctors, biologists, pharmacists and engineers. This paper deals with four different examples of mathematical models developed by our group and dealing with restenosis, enzyme action on two dimensional DNA brushes, oral delivery of drug in amorphous or nano-crystalline form and tumour cell behaviour

Az angol irodalom története

The aim of this paper is to study how the processes of spatial and identity recomposition brought about by a globalized world affect traditional religious rituals, with particular reference to the Semana Santa Marinera processions in Valencia (Spain). Instead of the ritual giving rise to a single local identity, it can be seen that levels of local identity —while not disappearing— overlap more and more with increasingly vague new territorialities ranging from processional networks based on canon law to state-organized meetings. Media coverage of the ritual means that new virtual communities with no fixed territorial base are created, and the complexity of this phenomenon further increases with the creation of virtual online communities. The spatial decentration of ritual, therefore implies the creation of new forms of identity constructed along hybrid and cross-sectional lines, thereby strengthening the process of secularization.El propósito del artículo es estudiar los procesos de recomposición identitaria y espacial que la modernidad globalizada opera sobre los rituales religiosos tradicionales, a partir del caso de la Semana Santa Marinera de Valencia (España). Frente a la visión del ritual como reproductor de una única identidad local, se constata cómo los niveles de identidad locales, sin desaparecer, se ven progresivamente solapados con nuevas territorialidades de base cada vez más incierta, que incluyen desde redes de procesiones basadas en el derecho canónico hasta encuentros de extensión estatal. Por fin, la proyección mediática del ritual supone la creación de nuevas comunidades virtuales y desterritorializadas, fenómeno cuya complejidad se incrementa con la creación de comunidades virtuales a través de Internet. El descentramiento espacial del ritual supone así la activación de nuevas formas de identidad, construidas de manera híbrida y transversal, y refuerza su proceso de secularización