The school environment as a teacher. The role of space and place in enhancing ecological literacy and social competence development in children and young people

Can space and place foster child development, and in particular social competence and ecological literacy? If yes, how can space and place do that? This study shows that the answer to the first question is positive and then tries to explain the way space and place can make a difference. The thesis begins with the review of literature from different disciplines – child development and child psychology, education, environmental psychology, architecture and landscape architecture. Some bridges among such disciplines are created and in some cases the ideas from the different areas of research merge: thus, this is an interdisciplinary study. The interdisciplinary knowledge from these disciplines is translated into a range of design suggestions that can foster the development of social competence and ecological literacy. Using scientific knowledge from different disciplines is a way of introducing forms of evidence into the development of design criteria. However, the definition of design criteria also has to pass through the study of a series of school buildings and un-built projects: case studies can give a positive contribution to the criteria because examples and good practices can help “translating” the theoretical knowledge into design ideas and illustrations. To do that, the different case studies have to be assessed in relation to the various themes that emerged in the literature review. Finally, research by design can be used to help define the illustrated design criteria: based on all the background knowledge that has been built, the role of the architect is to provide a series of different design solutions that can give answers to the different “questions” emerged in the literature review.

Adipose-derived stem cells and tissue revascularization: enhancing islet survival and performance for diabetes care.

Pancreatic islet transplantation represents a fascinating procedure that, at the moment, can be considered as alternative to standard insulin treatment or pancreas transplantation only for selected categories of patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus. Among the factors responsible for leading to poor islet engraftment, hypoxia plays an important role. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were recently used in animal models of islet transplantation not only to reduce allograft rejection, but also to promote revascularization. Currently adipose tissue represents a novel and good source of MSCs. Moreover, the capability of adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) to improve islet graft revascularization was recently reported after hybrid transplantation in mice. Within this context, we have previously shown that hyaluronan esters of butyric and retinoic acids can significantly enhance the rescuing potential of human MSCs. Here we evaluated whether ex vivo preconditioning of human ASCs (hASCs) with a mixture of hyaluronic (HA), butyric (BU), and retinoic (RA) acids may result in optimization of graft revascularization after islet/stem cell intrahepatic cotransplantation in syngeneic diabetic rats. We demonstrated that hASCs exposed to the mixture of molecules are able to increase the secretion of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), as well as the transcription of angiogenic genes, including VEGF, KDR (kinase insert domain receptor), and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF). Rats transplanted with islets cocultured with preconditioned hASCs exhibited a better glycemic control than rats transplanted with an equal volume of islets and control hASCs. Cotransplantation with preconditioned hASCs was also associated with enhanced islet revascularization in vivo, as highlighted by graft morphological analysis. The observed increase in islet graft revascularization and function suggests that our method of stem cell preconditioning may represent a novel strategy to remarkably improve the efficacy of islets-hMSCs cotransplantation.

Enhancing the efficiency of solar concentrators by controlled optical aberrations

The diameters of traditional dish concentrators can reach several tens of meters, the construction of monolithic mirrors being difficult at these scales: cheap flat reflecting facets mounted on a common frame generally reproduce a paraboloidal surface. When a standard imaging mirror is coupled with a PV dense array, problems arise since the solar image focused is intrinsically circular. Moreover, the corresponding irradiance distribution is bell-shaped in contrast with the requirement of having all the cells under the same illumination. Mismatch losses occur when interconnected cells experience different conditions, in particular in series connections. In this PhD Thesis, we aim at solving these issues by a multidisciplinary approach, exploiting optical concepts and applications developed specifically for astronomical use, where the improvement of the image quality is a very important issue. The strategy we propose is to boost the spot uniformity acting uniquely on the primary reflector and avoiding the big mirrors segmentation into numerous smaller elements that need to be accurately mounted and aligned. In the proposed method, the shape of the mirrors is analytically described by the Zernike polynomials and its optimization is numerically obtained to give a non-imaging optics able to produce a quasi-square spot, spatially uniform and with prescribed concentration level. The freeform primary optics leads to a substantial gain in efficiency without secondary optics. Simple electrical schemes for the receiver are also required. The concept has been investigated theoretically modeling an example of CPV dense array application, including the development of non-optical aspects as the design of the detector and of the supporting mechanics. For the method proposed and the specific CPV system described, a patent application has been filed in Italy with the number TO2014A000016. The patent has been developed thanks to the collaboration between the University of Bologna and INAF (National Institute for Astrophysics).

The application of a new psychotherapeutic strategy for enhancing eudaimonic well-being in children with mood and anxiety disorders

The aim of the dissertation was to test the feasibility of a new psychotherapeutic protocol for treating children and adolescents with mood and anxiety disorders: Child-Well-Being Therapy (CWBT). It originates from adult Well-Being Therapy protocol (WBT) and represents a conceptual innovation for treating affective disorders. WBT is based on the multidimensional model of well-being postulated by Ryff (eudaimonic perspective), in sequential combination with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Results showed that eudaimonic well-being was impaired in children with affective disorders in comparison with matched healthy students. A first open investigation aimed at exploring the feasibility of a 8-session CWBT protocol in a group of children with emotional and behavioural disorders has been implemented. Data showed how CWBT resulted associated to symptoms reduction, together with the decrease of externalizing problems, maintained at 1-year follow-up. CWBT triggered also an improvement in psychological well-being as well as an increasing flourishing trajectory over time. Subsequently, a modified and extended version of CWBT (12-sessions) has been developed and then tested in a controlled study with 34 patients (8 to 16 years) affected by mood and anxiety disorders. They were consecutively randomized into 3 different groups: CWBT, CBT, 6-month waiting list (WL). Both treatments resulted effective in decreasing distress and in improving well-being. Moreover, CWBT was associated with higher improvement in anxiety and showed a greater recovery rate (83%) than CBT (54%). Both groups maintained beneficial effects and CWBT group displayed a lower level of distress as well as a higher positive trend in well-being scores over time. Findings need to be interpret with caution, because of study limitations, however important clinical implications emerged. Further investigations should determine whether the sequential integration of well-being and symptom-oriented strategies could play an important role in children and adolescents’ psychotherapeutic options, fostering a successful adaptation to adversities during the growth process.

Enhancing Workers’ Well-Being. Scientific and social relevance of managing stress in the workplace

Purpose. Despite work-related stress is one of the most studied topic in organizational psychology, many aspects as for example the use of different measures (e.g. subjective and objective, qualitative and quantitative) are still under debate. According to this, in order to enhance knowledge concerning which factors and processes contribute to create healthy workplaces, this thesis is composed by four different studies aiming to understand: a) the role of relevant antecedents (e.g. leadership, job demands, work-family conflict, social support etc.) and outcomes (e.g. workplace phobia, absenteeism etc.) of work-related stress; and b) how to manage psychosocial risk factors in the workplace. The studies. The first study focused on how disagreement between supervisors and their employees on leadership style (transformational and transactional) could affect workers well-being and work team variables. The second and third study used both subjective and objective data in order to increase the quality of the reliability of the results gained. Particularly, the second study focused on job demand and its relationship with objective sickness leave. Findings showed that despite there is no direct relationship between these two variables, job demand affects work-family conflict, which in turn affect exhaustion, which leads to absenteeism. The third study analysed the role of a new concept never studied before in organizational settings (workplace phobia), as a health outcome in the JD-R model, demonstrating also its relationship with absenteeism. The last study highlighted the added value of using the mixed methods research approach in order to detect and analyse context-specific job demands which could affects workers’ health. Conclusion. The findings of this thesis answered both to open questions in the scientific literature and to the social request of managing psychosocial risk factors in the workplace in order to enhance workers well-being.

Enhancing quality of service in software-defined networks

Resource management is of paramount importance in network scenarios and it is a long-standing and still open issue. Unfortunately, while technology and innovation continue to evolve, our network infrastructure system has been maintained almost in the same shape for decades and this phenomenon is known as “Internet ossification”. Software-Defined Networking (SDN) is an emerging paradigm in computer networking that allows a logically centralized software program to control the behavior of an entire network. This is done by decoupling the network control logic from the underlying physical routers and switches that forward traffic to the selected destination. One mechanism that allows the control plane to communicate with the data plane is OpenFlow. The network operators could write high-level control programs that specify the behavior of an entire network. Moreover, the centralized control makes it possible to define more specific and complex tasks that could involve many network functionalities, e.g., security, resource management and control, into a single framework. Nowadays, the explosive growth of real time applications that require stringent Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees, brings the network programmers to design network protocols that deliver certain performance guarantees. This thesis exploits the use of SDN in conjunction with OpenFlow to manage differentiating network services with an high QoS. Initially, we define a QoS Management and Orchestration architecture that allows us to manage the network in a modular way. Then, we provide a seamless integration between the architecture and the standard SDN paradigm following the separation between the control and data planes. This work is a first step towards the deployment of our proposal in the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) campus network with differentiating services and stringent QoS requirements. We also plan to exploit our solution to manage the handoff between different network technologies, e.g., Wi-Fi and WiMAX. Indeed, the model can be run with different parameters, depending on the communication protocol and can provide optimal results to be implemented on the campus network.

Nanoparticle preparation process using novel microjet reactor technology for enhancing dissolution rates of poorly water soluble drugs

In this study a novel method MicroJet reactor technology was developed to enable the custom preparation of nanoparticles. rnDanazol/HPMCP HP50 and Gliclazide/Eudragit S100 nanoparticles were used as model systems for the investigation of effects of process parameters and microjet reactor setup on the nanoparticle properties during the microjet reactor construction. rnFollowing the feasibility study of the microjet reactor system, three different nanoparticle formulations were prepared using fenofibrate as model drug. Fenofibrate nanoparticles stabilized with poloxamer 407 (FN), fenofibrate nanoparticles in hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose phthalate (HPMCP) matrix (FHN) and fenofibrate nanoparticles in HPMCP and chitosan matrix (FHCN) were prepared under controlled precipitation using MicroJet reactor technology. Particle sizes of all the nanoparticle formulations were adjusted to 200-250 nm. rnThe changes in the experimental parameters altered the system thermodynamics resulting in the production of nanoparticles between 20-1000 nm (PDI<0.2) with high drug loading efficiencies (96.5% in 20:1 polymer:drug ratio).rnDrug releases from all nanoparticle formulations were fast and complete after 15 minutes both in FaSSIF and FeSSIF medium whereas in mucodhesiveness tests, only FHCN formulation was found to be mucoadhesive. Results of the Caco-2 studies revealed that % dose absorbed values were significantly higher (p<0.01) for FHCN in both cases where FaSSIF and FeSSIF were used as transport buffer.rn

Toward optimal display of physiologic status in critical care: I. Recreating bedside displays from archived physiologic data

BACKGROUND: Physiologic data display is essential to decision making in critical care. Current displays echo first-generation hemodynamic monitors dating to the 1970s and have not kept pace with new insights into physiology or the needs of clinicians who must make progressively more complex decisions about their patients. The effectiveness of any redesign must be tested before deployment. Tools that compare current displays with novel presentations of processed physiologic data are required. Regenerating conventional physiologic displays from archived physiologic data is an essential first step. OBJECTIVES: The purposes of the study were to (1) describe the SSSI (single sensor single indicator) paradigm that is currently used for physiologic signal displays, (2) identify and discuss possible extensions and enhancements of the SSSI paradigm, and (3) develop a general approach and a software prototype to construct such "extended SSSI displays" from raw data. RESULTS: We present Multi Wave Animator (MWA) framework-a set of open source MATLAB (MathWorks, Inc., Natick, MA, USA) scripts aimed to create dynamic visualizations (eg, video files in AVI format) of patient vital signs recorded from bedside (intensive care unit or operating room) monitors. Multi Wave Animator creates animations in which vital signs are displayed to mimic their appearance on current bedside monitors. The source code of MWA is freely available online together with a detailed tutorial and sample data sets.