The eagle and the starlings: Galileo's argument for the autonomy of science-how pertinent is it today?

After Galileo's argument for the autonomy of science is analysed and adapted to take into account later developments of scientific practices, we conclude that, in the final analysis, it is not compelling. Nevertheless, Galileo's argument still provides a useful point of reference, for aspects of it can be interpreted to anticipate central components of the often acclaimed ideal of science as value free, so that appraising it contributes to the larger purpose of exploring how well that ideal stands up today. Finally, we will argue that residue from Galileo's struggle with the Church remains with us, making it difficult to identify the conditions that would need to be put into place today for any robust sense of the autonomy of science to be defensible. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cost-effectiveness and budget impact of saxagliptine as additional therapy to metformin for the treatment of diabetes mellitus type 2 in the Brazilian private health system

Cost-effectiveness and budget impact of saxagliptine as additional therapy to metformin for the treatment of diabetes mellitus type 2 in the Brazilian private health system Objectives: To compare costs and clinical benefits of three additional therapies to metformin (MF) for patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2). Methods: A discrete event simulation model seas built to estimate the cost-utility ratio (cost per quality-adjusted life years [QALY)) of saxagliptine as an additional therapy to MF when compared to rosiglitazone or pioglitazone. A budget impact model (BIM) was built to simulate the economic impact of saxagliptine use in the context of the Brazilian private health system. Results: The acquiring medication costs for the hypothetical patient group analyzed in a time frame of three years, were R$ 10,850,185, R$ 14,836,265 and R$ 14,679,099 for saxagliptine, pioglitazone and rosiglitazone, respectively. Saxagliptine showed lower costs and greater effectiveness in both comparisons, with projected savings for the first three years of R$ 3,874 and R$ 3,996, respectively. The BIM estimated cumulative savings of R$ 417,958 with the repayment of saxagliptine in three years from the perspective of a health plan with 1,000,000 covered individuals. Conclusion: From the perspective of private paying source, the projection is that adding saxagliptine with MF save costs when compared with the addition of rosiglitazone or pioglitazone in patients with DM2 that have not reached the HbA1c goal with metformin monotherapy. The BIM of including saxagliptine in the reimbursement lists of health plans indicated significant savings on the three-year horizon.

Harassment at work? Empowerment and autonomy as coping strategies of young workers

There is a considerable number of researches about workplace violence, but few relate young workers and work harassment. This study aimed to investigate the reported perceptions of young apprentices and trainees about moral harassment at work and related coping strategies. Forty adolescent workers (22 men and 18 women) between 15 and 20 years old who received training by a non-governmental organization in Sao Paulo, Brazil, participated in the study. Data collection included individual and collective interviews. It was used an in-depth semi structured interview protocol. The discourses were analyzed using the hermeneutic-dialectic frame. Results showed that young workers reported little or no knowledge of strategies to cope with moral harassment at work, showing vulnerability to the effects of aggression. Effective coping strategies at work should embrace two important concepts of health promotion: empowerment and autonomy.

Hands-on experiments in the Practicum: repositioning student teachers' autonomy.

Following a worldwide trend, the Initial Teacher Education (ITE) Programmes in Brazil are recently searching for ways of integrating practice into curriculum. It raises question about what practice must be integrated and how. Notably, university-based courses are disconnected from school and have low commitment with school issues (Zeichner, 2009).The student teacher induction into school daily life is not an easy task, mainly when the practitioners are transforming physics classroom practice toward an active learning. Drawing on cultural-historical framework (Wolff-Michael Roth & Lee, 2007; Vygotsky, 1978) this study addresses the articulation between Practicum in Physics Classes and the Hands-on Experiments (HoE) used throughout the Practicum. Although in a different level, both Practicum and HoE are linked with an idea of practice. Particularly, this study focuses on how HoE might foster student teachers' autonomy and agency in the Practicum. Data was gathered in the course Practice of Physics Teaching at University of São Paulo/Brazil in 2010; in a cohort of 60 student teachers doing a year-long Practicum in urban school in São Paulo city. Data was analysed using qualitative research methods (Roth, 2005), based on 14 interviews and video records of the student teacher preparing the HoE for Practicum we will present in general lines the role of HoE for student teacher autonomy.