1,004 research outputs found
Fertility and Social Security
No full textThe data show that an increase in government provided old-age pensions is strongly correlated with a reduction in fertility. What type of model is consistent with this finding? We explore this question using two models of fertility: one by Barro and Becker (1989), and one inspired by Caldwell (1978, 1982) and developed by Boldrin and Jones (2002). In Barro and Becker's model parents have children because they perceive their children's lives as a continuation of their own. In Boldrin and Jones' framework parents procreate because children care about their parents' utility, and thus provide them with old-age transfers. The effect of increases in government provided pensions on fertility in the Barro and Becker model is very small, whereas the effect on fertility in the Boldrin and Jones model is sizeable and accounts for between 55 and 65% of the observed Europe-U.S. fertility differences both across countries and across time.Social security ; Financial markets
Nota alle sentenze della Corte di Giustizia dell'Unione europea dd. 18 luglio 2013 - cause C-201/11 P, UEFA c. Commissione europea, Regno del Belgio e Regno Unito; C-204/11 P, FIFA c. Commissione europea, Regno del Belgio e Regno Unito; C-205/11 P, FIFA c. Commissione europea, Regno del Belgio e Regno Unito
No full textLa nota affronta il tema dei limiti alla tutela dei diritti audiovisivi sugli eventi sportivi derivanti dal necessario bilanciamento del diritto d'autore degli organizzatori delle competizioni con il diritto di ogni cittadino all'informazione in merito ad eventi riconosciuti di interesse generale da parte delle autorità nazionali preposte all'attuazione della direttiva 89/552/CEE così come modificata dalla direttiva 97/36/CE
Costruire conoscenza attraverso internet: attivazione della metacognizione epistemica nella ricerca on-line di informazioni
No full textInformation searching on the Web has become a routine, even among young students (Brem, et al., 2001; Clark & Slotta, 2000; Hess, 1999; Tsai, 2004; Windschitl, 2001). Dealing with a huge amount of information requires not only to recognize what is more pertinent and useful, but also to compare, evaluate and often integrate different or contradictory knowledge, transmitted by more or less authoritative sources. The ability to select, assess and interpret on-line information is influenced by our more or less naïve beliefs about knowledge and knowing (Hofer & Pintrich, 1997, 2002), namely epistemic beliefs. Given the changing nature of the task requested by individuals when they navigate on the Internet, it becomes relevant to situate and analyze epistemic awareness as a part of metacognition (Kuhn, 1999, 2000; Kuhn & Weinstock, 2002; Hofer, 2004). Moreover, it is important to examine epistemic beliefs in action, that is when they are activated in a context, in this case the context of on-line searching on the Web.
Study 1. Forty-six university students from the Faculties of Psychology and Engineering are involved. The aims of the study are to examine: a) whether students spontaneously activate epistemic reflections during on-line information searching about a controversial topic; b) whether there are evidence of different epistemic profiles; c) whether higher levels of prior knowledge, need for cognition and argumentative reasoning promote the verbalization of more sophisticated epistemic comments and influence how students navigate on the Net; d) whether these individual differences promote Web-based learning. Findings reveal that most students express epistemic reflections on the source, justification and simplicity/complexity of knowledge, although at different levels of sophistication. The selection of information is mainly influenced by the credibility of websites. A few students evaluate the veracity of what they find on the Net. Finally, more sophisticated epistemic comments are related to a higher level of need for cognition.
Study 2. Sixty-four high school students are involved. The aims of this second study are to examine: a) whether students younger than those involved in study 1 verbalize spontaneous epistemic reflections; b) whether there are differences in their epistemic profiles; c) whether individual differences previously investigated affect their verbalization of epistemic comments of different sophistication, as well as Web-based learning. Results show that high school students mainly express epistemic reflections about the source, justification and simplicity/complexity of knowledge, showing the same epistemic patterns, identified in university students. However, unlike the previous study, findings reveal that more sophisticated epistemic comments are related to higher prior knowledge and that higher argumentative reasoning skill promotes learning through the Web.
Study 3. Eighty-three middle school students are involved, with the aim to investigate: a) what epistemic reflections affect on-line information searching of younger students; b) whether knowing which theories explained a scientific controversial topic influences epistemic evaluation in context, as well as students' choice of the more convincing theory/ies; c) whether individual differences in self-regulation skills and in general epistemic beliefs about scientific knowledge affect epistemic evaluation during on-line searching, as well as Internet-based learning. On the one hand, findings show that most students select and evaluate the credibility of the sources on the basis of naïve epistemic criteria but, on the other hand, they reflect on the changing nature of knowledge and judge the veracity of information even through sophisticated epistemic standards. Unlike the previous study, prior-knowledge only affect students'choice of the more convincing explanation/s. In addition, a more effective learning approach and more sophisticated general epistemic beliefs about scientific knowledge are related to more advanced epistemic reflections in context. Overall these learner characteristics promote learning.
Conclusions. The examination of how students manage and evaluate epistemically the information available with a simple click of the mouse can contribute to understanding metacognitive processes that are still scarcely investigated. Finally, it is posited that, in educational context, Internet as an epistemic tool can promote the development of more sophisticated views of knowledge and knowing
T Regulatory Lymphocytes Function Increased, by Induction Of Ho-1, Improves Type-1 Cardio-Renal Syndrome
No full textRationale: Type-1 cardio-renal syndrome (CRS) is characterized by an acute kidney dysfunction due to renal arteriolar vasoconstriction following an acute worsening of cardiac function. It is well know that HO-1 upregulation has a cardio protective and renoprotective function mediated by anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic and vasodilating effects. An alteration of T-lymphocyte-related immune response seems to be one of the potential mechanisms involved in type-1 CRS.
Objective: The aim of this study was to assess 1) if HO-1 upregulation could be a therapeutic target for type 1 CRS and 2) the role of T-lymphocytes in HO-1 induced effects on renal function in type 1 CRS.
Methods: Post-ischemic heart failure was induced by left anterior coronary artery ligation in C57Bl6 and SCID (T lymphocytes deficient) mice. Animals were divided into 4 groups: sham, myocardial infarction (MI), MI treated with HO-1 inducer cobalt protoporphyrin (CoPP) with and without the HO activity inhibitor stannous mesoporphyrin (SnMP). All mice underwent echocardiography (fractional area shortening, FAS) and renal Doppler sonography (intrarenal pulsatility index, PI) 30 days after surgery.
Results: Heart function was significantly reduced in MI groups (C57: FAS: sham 0.36±0.06, MI 0.26±0.04, p<0.05; SCID: FAS: sham 0.34±0.04, MI: 0.24±0.04, p<0.01) and PI was significantly increased in MI groups compared to sham groups (C57: PI: sham 0.98±0.05, MI: 1.12±0.11, p<0.05; SCID: PI: sham 0.72±0.08, MI 1.37±0.37, p<0.05). HO-1 induction improved heart function in both C57 and SCID mice but only in SCID mice was a significant improvement of renal vasoconstriction observed (SCID; PI: MI+CoPP 0.9±0.19 p<0.05). In SCID mice SnMP treatment reversed the effect of CoPP on heart function and renal vasoconstriction.
Conclusion: Our novel study showed that T lymphocyte mediated immunity is involved in type 1 CRS and upregulation of HO-1, in this setting, could be a therapeutic target for improving type 1 CRS.
Author Disclosures: P. Pesce: None. D. Sacerdoti: None. M. Boldrin: None. R. Rezzani: None. N.G. Abraham: None.
Key Words: Renal circulation • Heart failure • Immunologic factors • Oxidative stres
Riciclo, cambiamenti ecologici e mobilità neandertaliana. Nuovi elementi interpretativi emersi da uno studio sui manufatti litici.
No full textRole of human Protein C receptor (hEPCR) on activation of Protein C on transgenic porcine aortic endothelial cells expressing human thrombomodulin and hEPCR
No full text
Immunological characterization of the Prothrombinase Complex and Protein C anticoagulant pathway in primates and pigs
No full textMetal and metallothionein distribution in different tissues of the Mediterranean clam Venerupis philippinarum during copper treatment and detoxification
No full textA response surface-based approach to predict spinal rod contouring parameters
No full textRod contouring can be intraoperatively performed
by surgeons to obtain bent spinal rods that better fit the
physiological curvature of the spine. However, this procedure
exploits the material plastic deformation, which is known to affect
fatigue behavior in vivo.
Numerical models allow the assessment of the residual stress
field due to contouring, but at a high computational cost, which
is not compatible with the extensive use of in silico models in
preoperative clinical planning.
For this reason, after preparing a finite element analysis of
titanium rod contouring, a response surface-based approach is
proposed to correlate contouring-related parameters with
residual stress field and rod curvature
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