The Distant neighbors — EU, Middle East, North Africa and the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership

The Barcelona Euro-Mediterranean Conference (1995) was intended to be a launching pad" for creating a new, innovative relationship between the EU-Fifteen and a selected set of non-member Middle Eastern and North African countries. The Barcelona Process was to become the European Union´s first attempt, of several, to create postmodern inclusive policy spheres as a way to deal with the post-enlargement problems of ´ins´ and outs´ in its immediate periphery. Nevertheless, in spite of geographical proximity, common problems and stated interest in creating amorphous EU borders in different sectors, the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership is today all but abandoned. This paper will examine some of the factors behind the current degeneration of the EU´s post-bipolar foreign policy strategy in the Mediterranean, by exploring the dialectic between the Union´s desire to expand its geopolitical, economic and cultural boundaries and the need to secure its territorial area (from migration, proliferation, social instability etc.). In the final part of the paper some suggestions for how to revive the relationship across the Mare Nostrum will be forwarded.

A case of dissection of intracranial cerebral arteries with segmental mediolytic "arteritis".

The intravital diagnosis of intracranial arterial dissection is not always possible due to atypic and non-specific clinical and radiological presentations. The postmortem pathological examination of cerebral blood vessels is therefore necessary to establish or confirm the presence of a dissecting aneurysm of intracranial arteries. Most of the described cases showed no significant underlying vascular pathology. Here we present the case of a 24-year-old women who died 5 days after admission to the hospital for a rapidly developing right-sided hemisyndrome. Neuroradiological examination had revealed ill-defined bifrontal hypodense lesions and angiographic findings were compatible with a dissection of the left extracranial internal carotid artery with embolic subocclusion of both anterior cerebral arteries. The pathological evaluation ruled out a thromboembolic occlusion of cerebral arteries and an extracranial internal carotid artery dissection but showed an extended dissecting process of variable age in the anterior circulation of the circle of Willis. The dissected vessels showed pathological changes characteristic of segmental mediolytic "arteritis" [Slavin and Gonzalez-Vitale 1976]. To our knowledge this is the first report on intracranial arteries being affected by this pathologic entity. Our case illustrates the importance of a postmortem examination of dissecting aneurysms of intracranial arteries. Careful serial section studies of dissected intracranial arteries in young subjects should be performed and may allow for a better understanding of the vascular pathology underlying the dissection processus.

Mophological analysis of the human vasculature from medical imaging. Application to cerebral and coranary arteries

In this project, we have investigated new ways of modelling and analysis of human vasculature from Medical images. The research was divided in two main areas: cerebral vasculature analysis and coronary arteries modeling. Regarding cerebral vasculature analysis, we have studed cerebral aneurysms, internal carotid and the Circle of Willis (CoW). Aneurysms are abnormal vessel enlargements that can rupture causing important cerebral damages or death. The understanding of this pathology, together with its virtual treatment, and image diagnosis and prognosis, includes identification and detailed measurement of the aneurysms. In this context, we have proposed two automatic aneurysm isolation method, to separate the abnormal part of the vessel from the healthy part, to homogenize and speed-up the processing pipeline usually employed to study this pathology, [Cardenes2011TMI, arrabide2011MedPhys]. The results obtained from both methods have been also compared and validatied in [Cardenes2012MBEC]. A second important task here the analysis of the internal carotid [Bogunovic2011Media] and the automatic labelling of the CoW, Bogunovic2011MICCAI, Bogunovic2012TMI]. The second area of research covers the study of coronary arteries, specially coronary bifurcations because there is where the formation of atherosclerotic plaque is more common, and where the intervention is more challenging. Therefore, we proposed a novel modelling method from Computed Tomography Angiography (CTA) images, combined with Conventional Coronary Angiography (CCA), to obtain realistic vascular models of coronary bifurcations, presented in [Cardenes2011MICCAI], and fully validated including phantom experiments in [Cardene2013MedPhys]. The realistic models obtained from this method are being used to simulate stenting procedures, and to investigate the hemodynamic variables in coronary bifurcations in the works submitted in [Morlachi2012, Chiastra2012]. Additionally, another preliminary work has been done to reconstruct the coronary tree from rotational angiography, and published in [Cardenes2012ISBI].

Automated Segmentation of Cerebral Vasculature with Aneurysms in 3DRA and TOF-MRA using Geodesic Active Regions: an Evaluation Study

Purpose: To evaluate the suitability of an improved version of an automatic segmentation method based on geodesic active regions (GAR) for segmenting cerebral vasculature with aneurysms from 3D X-ray reconstruc-tion angiography (3DRA) and time of °ight magnetic resonance angiography (TOF-MRA) images available in the clinical routine.Methods: Three aspects of the GAR method have been improved: execution time, robustness to variability in imaging protocols and robustness to variability in image spatial resolutions. The improved GAR was retrospectively evaluated on images from patients containing intracranial aneurysms in the area of the Circle of Willis and imaged with two modalities: 3DRA and TOF-MRA. Images were obtained from two clinical centers, each using di®erent imaging equipment. Evaluation included qualitative and quantitative analyses ofthe segmentation results on 20 images from 10 patients. The gold standard was built from 660 cross-sections (33 per image) of vessels and aneurysms, manually measured by interventional neuroradiologists. GAR has also been compared to an interactive segmentation method: iso-intensity surface extraction (ISE). In addition, since patients had been imaged with the two modalities, we performed an inter-modality agreement analysis with respect to both the manual measurements and each of the two segmentation methods. Results: Both GAR and ISE di®ered from the gold standard within acceptable limits compared to the imaging resolution. GAR (ISE, respectively) had an average accuracy of 0.20 (0.24) mm for 3DRA and 0.27 (0.30) mm for TOF-MRA, and had a repeatability of 0.05 (0.20) mm. Compared to ISE, GAR had a lower qualitative error in the vessel region and a lower quantitative error in the aneurysm region. The repeatabilityof GAR was superior to manual measurements and ISE. The inter-modality agreement was similar between GAR and the manual measurements. Conclusions: The improved GAR method outperformed ISE qualitatively as well as quantitatively and is suitable for segmenting 3DRA and TOF-MRA images from clinical routine.

Learning design twofold strategies for teacher-led inquiry andstudent active learning

This workshop paper states that fostering active student participation both in face-to-face lectures / seminars and outside the classroom (personal and group study at home, the library, etc.) requires a certain level of teacher-led inquiry. The paper presents a set of strategies drawn from real practice in higher education with teacher-led inquiry ingredients that promote active learning. Thesepractices highlight the role of the syllabus, the importance of iterative learning designs, explicit teacher-led inquiry, and the implications of the context, sustainability and practitioners’ creativity. The strategies discussed in this paper can serve as input to the workshop as real cases that need to be represented in design and supported in enactment (with and without technologies).

Universal Design for Better Living The Essential Bathroom, May 2004

An easy-living home requires a full-sized bathroom on the main level. Family members will appreciate the extra space and guests of all ages and abilities will feel more welcome. At a minimum, you’ll need a five foot circle of open floor space for maneuvering a wheelchair between bathroom fixtures. A small powder room won’t work for guests who use walkers or wheelchairs. A shower stall—with no curb to step over—is more convenient than a tub for most guests. Make sure the doorway opening for the bathroom is at least 32 inches wide (preferably 36 inches). Universal design features, such as these, make homes better for everyone.

Governmental surveillance system of healthcare-associated infection in Brazil


Objective: This study aimed to describe the structure of governmental surveillance systems for Healthcare Associated Infection (HAI) in the Brazilian Southeastern and Southern States. Method: A cross-sectional, descriptive and exploratory study, with data collection by means of two-phases: characterization of the healthcare structure and of the HAI surveillance system. Results: The governmental teams for prevention and control of HAI in each State ranged from one to six members, having at least one nurse. All States implemented their own surveillance system. The information systems were classified into chain (n=2), circle (n=4) or wheel (n=1). Conclusion: Were identified differences in the structure and information flow from governmental surveillance systems, possibly limiting a nationwide standardization. The present study points to the need for establishing minimum requirements in public policies, in order to guide the development of HAI surveillance systems.


Does Prison Substance Abuse Treatment Reduce Recidivism?Performance Audit Report Iowa Department of Corrections Licensed Substance Abuse Programs, May 25, 2007

The Iowa Department of Corrections faces a growing prison population expected to quickly exceed current capacities. Additionally, nine out of every ten offenders have a history of alcohol or drug problems often both. Research suggests that alcohol and drugs lead to criminal behavior, which lead offenders right back to prison creating a vicious circle and placing a financial and societal burden on the state. However, research also shows that substance abuse treatment can minimize criminal behavior, and offers a way to shut the revolving prison door. Substance abuse programming attempts to change offender thinking patterns and behavior in order to facilitate re-entry back into the community, lessen substance abuse relapse and reduce recidivism. Yet nearly 60% of offenders with identified needs are not treated, and many lacking treatment are high risk. Additionally, the percentage of offenders returning to prison varies significantly from program to program and some programs can not show they have reduced recidivism when compared to offender groups with substance abuse problems and receiving no treatment at all. All of which minimize the effect substance Abuse programming has in curbing prison population growth and reducing crime.

Avoiding crimes of obedience: A comparative study of the autobiographies of M. K. Gandhi, N. Mandela and M. L. King

This research aims to provide a contribution towards understanding how and why certain people can display disobedience behaviors, to overcome unjust situations, and withstand persecutions deployed by authority. The paper presents a hermeneutic content analysis of the autobiographical speeches and texts of Gandhi, M. L. King and Mandela. Our results show that parents' value orientation, experience of injustice during childhood and exploration of alternative viewpoints during adolescence play a crucial role in structuring prosocial disobedience. Findings show also that social responsibility and ingroup communication are important conditions for facing persecutions without dropping original goals.

Identidade e Pertença: para além das Dimensões Materiais do Sofrimento Social

Um olhar antropológico sobre as relações sociais em dois microcosmos etnográficos – um bairro e um centro de saúde – revela as limitações de encarar a pobreza material como o único critério para compreender os processos de sofrimento social. De forma a explorar como o sofrimento social pode ser vivenciado através das identificações e das pertenças, a identidade étnica e a identidade profissional são examinadas como exemplos da identidade social em geral. A relação dialética entre a identidade social e a identidade pessoal demonstra como o poder não está depositado nas pessoas, mas depende das suas relações sociais. Dado que o exercício de poder não pode ser garantido pelo simples estatuto de uma determinada categoria social, urge procurar vivências e subjetividades nas fissuras das categorias, distinguindo entre uma categoria de prática e uma categoria de análise, de forma a alargar o horizonte sobre a natureza dos processos de sofrimento social.

Cannabis use as a means of socialization?: new consumption patterns among heavy users

Purpose: After tobacco and alcohol, cannabis is the most used substance among adolescents in Switzerland. Our aim is to assess whether cannabis use has become an ordinary means of socialization. We hypothesize that cannabis consumption has become a normative, although still illegal, behavior. Methods: As part of a larger qualitative study aimed at assessing new ways [patterns] of cannabis consumption, 16 daily cannabis consumers (11 males) and 2 former heavy consumers (both females), aged 15 to 20 years, participated in interviews and focus groups. Data were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using Atlas.ti qualitative analysis software. Results: Most consumers define the beginning of their consumption as a moment when they made new friends. They commonly use cannabis in group settings, which encourages the belief that all adolescents use cannabis. Thus, cannabis is mainly identified as an everyday social act. Joints are smoked like cigarettes: at all times of the day, during or after school or work with peers, often starting at lunch break, and mostly in public places. Friends offer a joint in a group setting, much like beer in a bar, as a means of making contact. Consumption invariably increases while socializing on vacation: "During vacation, we smoke up to 10-15 joints a day; at the end we're just dead." Additionally, in order to obtain cannabis, consumers have to be part of the right networks; they generally have several dealers to assure their supply, buy and sell themselves, or practice group-buying. As a result, all friends or acquaintances of consumers are themselves cannabis users. For instance, 4 boys, who say they are best friends, always smoke together and that, in order to quit, "All four of us should say to ourselves, 'Okay, now, let's all stop smoking'. That would be the only solution. . .but it would be impossible!" The 2 former consumers state that when they started using cannabis, "I found myself little by little in a vicious circle where I saw only people who also smoked". When they quit, they separated from their group of friends: "Either you make new friends who don't smoke or you smoke." Conclusions: Discussions with consumers demonstrate a normative facet of cannabis consumption as part of teenage socialization. Consequently, cannabis consumers develop a significant dependency since a majority of their friends use cannabis and their consumption involves most of their daily social life. Our study highlights the need for clear messages about the harmful aspects of using this substance while also suggesting that cessation efforts should include helping users separate from their consumption milieu. Sources of Support: Dept. of Public Health of the canton of Vaud.

Fermat's treatise on quadrature: A new reading

The Treatise on Quadrature of Fermat (c. 1659), besides containing the first known proof of the computation of the area under a higher parabola, R x+m/n dx, or under a higher hyperbola, R x-m/n dx with the appropriate limits of integration in each case , has a second part which was not understood by Fermat s contemporaries. This second part of the Treatise is obscure and difficult to read and even the great Huygens described it as'published with many mistakes and it is so obscure (with proofs redolent of error) that I have been unable to make any sense of it'. Far from the confusion that Huygens attributes to it, in this paper we try to prove that Fermat, in writing the Treatise, had a very clear goal in mind and he managed to attain it by means of a simple and original method. Fermat reduced the quadrature of a great number of algebraic curves to the quadrature of known curves: the higher parabolas and hyperbolas of the first part of the paper. Others, he reduced to the quadrature of the circle. We shall see how the clever use of two procedures, quite novel at the time: the change of variables and a particular case of the formulaof integration by parts, provide Fermat with the necessary tools to square very easily curves as well-known as the folium of Descartes, the cissoid of Diocles or the witch of Agnesi.

Private borrowing during the financial revolution: Hoare’s Bank and its customers, 1702-1724

The financial revolution improved the British government s ability to borrow, andthus its ability to wage war. North andWeingast argued that it also permitted privateparties to borrow more cheaply and widely.We test these inferences with evidencefrom a London bank.We confirm that private bank credit was cheap in the earlyeighteenth century, but we argue that it was not available widely. Importantly, thegovernment reduced the usury rate in 1714, sharply reducing the circle of privateclients that could be served profitably.

Homéostasie, marqueurs somatiques et intentionnalité : le statut de la représentation et ses implications en psychanalyse et en neuroscience

Résumé : Si la psychanalyse est régulièrement remise en cause pour son manque de fondement scientifique, de nombreux travaux issus des neurosciences en appellent paradoxalement à un retour aux thèses freudiennes. Cette étude se propose, dans ce contexte, de revisiter les bases neurobiologiques de la métapsychologie et de montrer comment celle-ci repose sur une conception homéostatique du vivant. On en tire plusieurs conséquences. Premièrement, contre Brentano, selon qui l'intentionnalité est la marque du psychologique, on propose que celle-ci s'avère être, plus originellement, la marque des régulations biologiques. Deuxièmement, on montre comment Freud et Damasio développent des conceptions similaires sur le fonctionnement homéostatique de la cognition. Sur le plan épistémologique, on plaide en faveur de la complémentarité de ces deux approches. Si Damasio met au jour les variables somatiques permettant de mesurer les effets de la vie psychique, la théorie pulsionnelle permet de dépasser les problèmes liés à l'ambiguïté de la notion de «représentation cérébrale ». C'est à partir de cette thèse que l'on peut, selon nous, appréhender la psychanalyse comme un double projet visant à articuler une naturalisation de l'appareil psychique à une herméneutique de ses productions. On considère cette double visée comme une réponse à la difficulté centrale que rencontrent les sciences de l'esprit quant aux conditions de possibilité d'une naturalisation de l'intentionnalité. A partir de cette problématique, il devient pertinent d'évaluer la solution freudienne à la lumière de la posture intentionnelle dennettienne et de la théorie gazzaniguienne de l'interpreter. II ne s'agit pas, selon ces dernières approches, de naturaliser directement l'intentionnalité, au risque de commettre une erreur de catégorie. Il est question, au contraire, d'utiliser les principes du fonctionnement homéostatique comme autant de «règles »interprétatives permettant, sur le plan psychologique, de construire du sens. On trouve enfin dans le modèle de l'espace global de travail un moyen de remettre au goût du jour la conception freudienne, dynamique et conflictuelle, du fonctionnement psychique. On avance enfin, à partir de ce modèle, des hypothèses sur les mécanismes cérébraux susceptibles de sous-tendre l'efficacité thérapeutique de la cure analytique. Abstract : While Psychoanalysis' scientific basis is open to question, some neuroscience works are paradoxically calling for a return to Freud. Therefore, the first aim of our study consists in revisiting metapychology's neurobiological roots and to show how it is grounded on a homeostatic theory of life. Several consequences can be drawn from this statement. Firstly, in opposition to Brentanian definition of intentionality, as the specific mark of psychology, we argue that it is more specifically the mark of biological balance. Secondly, this statement allows to show how Freud's and Damasio's theories share common views on the homeostatic functioning of cognition. From an epistemological point of view, they complete one another. If Damasio has highlighted the measurable somatic variables from which we can infer psychic life, the theory of drives allows conceptual difficulties linked to the use of the ambiguous notion of "cerebral representation" to be overcome. According to us, this thesis leads psychoanalysis to be approached as a twin project aiming to articulate psyche naturalization, to a hermeneutic of its productions. It maybe seen as a way to respond to the central issue of mind sciences, that is, to account for the naturalization of intentionality. Given this theoretical framework, it seems relevant to reconsider freudism in the light of the dennettian intentional stance and the gazzanigan theory of interpreter. Then, freudism can be seen as a way to avoid a category mistake. Its solution rejects direct intentionality naturalization in favor of a construction of sense. In this framework, interpretation is regulated by the rules abstracted from the homeostatic functioning of life. Furthermore, we show how the dynamic and conflictual Freudian psyche can be evaluated using the Global workspace model, which allows us to put forth hypotheses on the cerebral mechanisms that may underlie the efficiency of analytical cure.

Una Cort italianitzant a València. Notes sobre la recepció d’Ariosto a Espanya

Aquest estudi pretén mostrar com una cort perifèrica dins de la monarquia espanyola com la dels Centelles, comtes d’Oliva, tot imitant fil per randa la dels Este de Ferrara i la seva brillant presència en la Itàlia renaixentista mitjançant el mecenatge de Boiardo i d’Ariosto, va importar aquells esquemes i es va envoltar d’un grup d’escriptors que van constituir el nucli inicial de la recepció, difusió i continuació castellana de l’èpica d’Ariosto a la península Ibèrica. Gairebé es podria afirmar que la propagació en castellà de l’Orlando furioso a la península Ibèrica estava monopolitzada en gran part pel clan dels Centelles. Un cercle en el qual localitzem, segons tots els indicis, el traductor de Gli asolani de Bembo al castellà: Lluís Santàngel