Modernist Ecology: Modernism and the Reimagination of Nature

Countering the trend in contemporary ecocriticism to advance realism as an environmentally responsible mode of representation, this essay argues that the anti-realist aesthetics of literary modernism were implicitly “ecological.” In order to make this argument I distinguish between contemporary and modernist ecological culture (both of which I differentiate in turn from ecological science); while the former is concerned primarily with the practical reform characteristic of what we now call “environmentalism,” the latter demanded an all-encompassing reimagination of the relationship between humanity and nature. “Modernist ecology,” as I call it, attempted to envision this change, which would be ontological or metaphysical rather than simply social, through thematically and formally experimental works of art. Its radical vision, suggestive in some ways of today’s “deep” ecology, repudiated modern accounts of nature as a congeries of inert objects to be manipulated by a sovereign subject, and instead foregrounded the chiasmic intertexture of the subject/object relationship. In aesthetic modernism we encounter not “objective” nature, but “nature-being” – a blank substratum beneath the solid contours of what philosopher Kate Soper calls “lay nature” – the revelation of which shatters historical constructions of nature and alone allows for radical alternatives. This essay looks specifically at modernist ecology as it appears in the works of W. B. Yeats, D. H. Lawrence, and Samuel Beckett, detailing their attempts to envision revolutionary new ecologies, but also their struggles with the limited capacity of esoteric modernist art to effect significant ecological change on a collective level.

Non-conventional advertising formats in television versus spots: An analysis based on the generated recall

Advertising investment and audience figures indicate that television continues to lead as a mass advertising medium. However, its effectiveness is questioned due to problems such as zapping, saturation and audience fragmentation. This has favoured the development of non-conventional advertising formats. This study provides empirical evidence for the theoretical development. This investigation analyzes the recall generated by four non-conventional advertising formats in a real environment: short programme (branded content), television sponsorship, internal and external telepromotion versus the more conventional spot. The methodology employed has integrated secondary data with primary data from computer assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) were performed ad-hoc on a sample of 2000 individuals, aged 16 to 65, representative of the total television audience. Our findings show that non-conventional advertising formats are more effective at a cognitive level, as they generate higher levels of both unaided and aided recall, in all analyzed formats when compared to the spot.

Understandings of transnational families in debates on Migration and development

International migration sets in motion a range of significant transnational processes that connect countries and people. How migration interacts with development and how policies might promote and enhance such interactions have, since the turn of the millennium, gained attention on the international agenda. The recognition that transnational practices connect migrants and their families across sending and receiving societies forms part of this debate. The ways in which policy debate employs and understands transnational family ties nevertheless remain underexplored. This article sets out to discern the understandings of the family in two (often intermingled) debates concerned with transnational interactions: The largely state and policydriven discourse on the potential benefits of migration on economic development, and the largely academic transnational family literature focusing on issues of care and the micro-politics of gender and generation. Emphasizing the relation between diverse migration-development dynamics and specific family positions, we ask whether an analytical point of departure in respective transnational motherhood, fatherhood or childhood is linked to emphasizing certain outcomes. We conclude by sketching important strands of inclusions and exclusions of family matters in policy discourse and suggest ways to better integrate a transnational family perspective in global migration-development policy.

¿Fue la crisis política del Occidente musulmán del siglo XIII debida a un cambio climático? Una aproximación histórica al fin del Periodo Cálido Medieval

Durante el siglo XIII se produjo una sucesión de revueltas que supuso la desaparición del Imperio almohade y su sustitución por poderes regionales en al-Andalus, el Magreb y el Magreb al-Aqsà. La historiografía ha presentado el surgimiento y pugna entre estos poderes como un fenómeno social, político e, incluso, cultural y religioso, con el que se ha podido explicar su aniquilación o marginalización. Este trabajo pretende contextualizar los hechos desde una perspectiva medioambiental, de forma que la desintegración del califato almohade, el surgimiento de aquellos poderes y la progresión de los reinos cristianos en la península ibérica puedan entenderse desde una visión global de cambio climático y una posible crisis agrícola.

The mental health and wellbeing of first generation migrants: a systematic-narrative review of reviews

Background
First generation migrants are reportedly at higher risk of mental ill-health compared to the settled population. This paper systematically reviews and synthesizes all reviews on the mental health of first generation migrants in order to appraise the risk factors for, and explain differences in, the mental health of this population.
Methods
Scientific databases were searched for systematic reviews (inception-November 2015) which provided quantitative data on the mental ill-health of first generation migrants and associated risk factors. Two reviewers screened titles, abstracts and full text papers for their suitability against pre-specified criteria, methodological quality was assessed.
Results
One thousand eight hundred twenty articles were identified, eight met inclusion criteria, which were all moderate or low quality. Depression was mostly higher in first generation migrants in general, and in refugees/asylum seekers when analysed separately. However, for both groups there was wide variation in prevalence rates, from 5 to 44 % compared with prevalence rates of 8–12 % in the general population. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder prevalence was higher for both first generation migrants in general and for refugees/asylum seekers compared with the settled majority. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder prevalence in first generation migrants in general and refugees/ asylum seekers ranged from 9 to 36 % compared with reported prevalence rates of 1–2 % in the general population. Few studies presented anxiety prevalence rates in first generation migrants and there was wide variation in those that did. Prevalence ranged from 4 to 40 % compared with reported prevalence of 5 % in the general population. Two reviews assessed the psychotic disorder risk, reporting this was two to three times more likely in adult first generation migrants. However, one review on the risk of schizophrenia in refugees reported similar prevalence rates (2 %) to estimates of prevalence among the settled majority (3 %). Risk factors for mental ill-health included low Gross National Product in the host country, downward social mobility, country of origin, and host country.
Conclusion
First generation migrants may be at increased risk of mental illness and public health policy must account for this and influencing factors. High quality research in the area is urgently needed as is the use of culturally specific validated measurement tools for assessing migrant mental health.

Marketing de localidades: uma abordagem ampliada sobre o desenvolvimento da cidade ou região

Muito poucas localidades buscam seu desenvolvimento através de um sério planejamento estratégico voltado para o mercado. Estamos falando de Marketing, a atividade que tem por fi nalidade administrar processos de troca, visando sempre maximizar a satisfação das partes envolvidas. Na realidade, a essência da questão do desenvolvimento de uma localidade reside em gerenciar bem um processo de troca entre a cidade ou região e seus diversos públicos ou mercados-alvo. Essa troca é, em tudo e por tudo, comparável ao que acontece, por exemplo, com as empresas que trocam os benefícios que seus produtos ou serviços possam oferecer a um determinado segmento de mercado, pela remuneração decorrente da venda do mesmo. Neste ensaio objetiva-se apresentar um modelo desenvolvido pelos autores a partir de uma revisão bibliográfi ca, no qual se identifi cam os diferentes públicos-alvo que devem ser considerados no Planejamento de Marketing aplicado a uma localidade e o contexto da aplicação de Marketing às localidades. A revisão da literatura possibilita uma interessante discussão conceitual acerca dessa aplicação de Marketing, inclusive abordando os cuidados para sua implementação.

Análisis de las dinámicas culturales al interior de un clúster empresarial

Los clústeres empresariales se han constituido en mecanismos para impulsar la competitividad de sectores en regiones y tradicionalmente han sido analizados desde la perspectiva económica (por su aporte en variables macroeconómicas), pero para su consolidación todo conglomerado empresarial requiere la comprensión de relaciones sociales, culturales y políticas. Resulta difícil estudiar estas relaciones desde teorías organizacionales tradicionales como la estructuralista o la contingencial, y se debe recurrir a otras perspectivas como el neoinstitucionalismo sociológico, enfoque que es utilizado en la presente investigación. La investigación fundamento del artículo se hizo en un sector considerado dinámico para el eje cafetero como es el de herramientas, la cual fue abordada desde un enfoque cualitativo mediante la aplicación de dos guías de entrevista semiestructurada (se aplicaron a treinta empresas de la cadena productiva y a nueve entidades de apoyo), diario de campo y análisis de fuentes documentales. Se concluye que en el clúster predominan el individualismo, la desconfianza y la ausencia de elementos identitarios, simultáneamente con fuertes lazos comerciales y prácticas de gestión que se han institucionalizado por procesos isomórficos.

Variación fenotípica y correlación de rendimiento con características morfo-agronómicas en una población de maíz (Zea mays L.) variedad NB-6 en la época de primera, Sábana Grande, Managua, 2014.

Con el objetivo de describir variación fenotípica y correlación de rendimiento con características morfo-agronómicas en una población de maíz (zea mays L.) variedad NB-6 en la época de primera, Sábana Grande, Managua, 2014, se estableció un ensayo en la Finca Santa Rosa Sabana Grande, Managua propiedad de la Universidad Nacional Agraria. La muestra consistió en 93 individuos para caracteres del tallo y hoja, diámetro del tallo (DiamT), altura de la mazorca (AltM), número de hojas (Nho), longitud de la hoja (LonHo), ancho de la hoja (AncHo), altura de la planta (AltP), y 393 individuos para rasgos asociados al rendimiento, longitud de la mazorca (LM), diámetro de la mazorca (DM), número de hilera por mazorca (NH), granos por hilera (GH), peso de granos de la mazorca (PGMAZ), peso de 100 granos (P100G) y peso de la mazorca (PMAZ). El análisis de los datos consistió en estadísticos descriptivos: media, desviación estándar, coeficiente de variación, valores máximos y mínimos, así como correlaciones entre variables morfológicas, correlaciones entre variables asociadas al rendimiento. Finalmente mediante regresión paso a paso (stepwise) se determinaron parámetros de estimación del rendimiento en grano a través de las variables PMAZ y GH. La media y desviación estándar para los caracteres evaluados fueron, 2.21±0.21 AltP, 1.14±0.17 AltM, 94.71±8.18 LonHo, 14.33±1.17 Nho,10.51±0.92 AncHo, 22.81±2.53 DiamT, 16.56±1.83 LM,48.22±3.48 DM, 14.39±1.83 NH, 33.85±4.74 GH, 183.65±40.15 PMAZ, 153.20±33.39 PGMAZ, 34.38±6.08 P100G. El coeficiente de variación mostró valores entre 14.88 y 8.13 % para los caracteres de tallo y hoja correspondientes a AltP y Nho respectivamente. Hubo correlación positiva y significativa AltP con AltM y LonHo (0.74, 036) y DiamT y AncHo (0.39). Para los caracteres relacionados al rendimiento el coeficiente de variación mostró valores entre 21.86 y 7.21 correspondiente a PMAZ y PGMAIZ. Se encontró correlación positiva y significativa para la mayoría de variables del rendimiento exceptuando DM con NH que fue significativa y negativa y LM y NH que no mostraron correlación. El PGMAZ mostró correlaciones positivas y significativas, el resto de variables asociadas al rendimiento con valores que oscilaron entre 0.95 y 0.19 la de mayor correlación fue el PMAZ. El peso de la mazorca contribuyó mas (R2 0.99) al ajuste del modelo de estimación seguido por el número de granos por hilera, para la ecuación final: Yij = 0.7705X1 + 0.3470X2, que puede ser utilizada en selección fenotípica inicial.

Leonardo da Vinci: Ingeniero

Leonardo comprendió y utilizó el auténtico método experimental un siglo antes de que Francis Bacon filosofase sobre él, y antes de que Galileo lo pusiese en práctica. Leonardo no escribió tratados metodológicos, pero en sus cuadernos de apuntes nos dejó esparcidas sus ideas. Decía que las matemáticas, la geometría y la aritmética, podían llegar a la certeza absoluta dentro de su propio ámbito, pues manejan conceptos mentales ideales de valor universal. En cambio, la verdadera ciencia (refiriéndose a las ciencias empíricas), se basa en la observación; si pudiera aplicarse a ella el razonamiento matemático podría lograrse mayor grado de certeza, siendo hoy en día, uno de los pasos fundamentales del método científico. "No hay certeza en la ciencia si no se puede aplicar una de las ciencias matemáticas". En sus apuntes, Leonardo dejó constancia de la importancia que concede al método en la investigación (adelantándose a autores de la Modernidad tales como Descartes) y los preceptos que establece en su método en nada difieren de las modernas definiciones que hoy utilizamos para hablar del método científico. Podemos ver en estos textos una clara definición de los procesos de inducción y deducción que hoy explicamos en nuestras clases de Física o Filosofía. Una de las cuestiones que aborda la presente tesis es por qué autores de reputado prestigio, historiadores de la ciencia y de la tecnología, no conceden a Leonardo su verdadero valor como Ingeniero. Por citar algunos ejemplos, gran parte del famoso libro de “Los ingenieros del Renacimiento” está dedicado a la vida de Leonardo da Vinci, su carrera de ingeniero, su lado técnico, y su "método", según Bertrand Gille, no existe. Como señala el autor, es inexistente porque Leonardo está dotado de una curiosidad inmensa que desgraciadamente lo lleva a dispersarse, lo cual le impide especializarse en ciertos sectores, y por ende, a erigir los pilares de una investigación metódica. Además, Bertrand Gille indica que, aun si Leonardo Da Vinci lega un número amplio de dibujos a la posteridad, su aporte a nivel de innovaciones técnicas fue mínimo, dado que no brindaba soluciones prácticas viables, pero quedaba de una manera u otra fijado en el espíritu de su tiempo orientado hacia el análisis y la reproducción literal de los dibujos anteriores. George Basalla, catedrático emérito de historia de la técnica en la Universidad de Delaware, publicó “La evolución de la tecnología”, en donde comentó expresamente: “La más famosa colección de máquinas visionarias del Renacimiento no se reveló al público hasta finales del siglo XIX. Estuvo oculta entre los cuaderno personales no publicados de Leonardo da Vinci […]. Muchos de estos artefactos son imposibles tal como se presentan, y pocos, si acaso alguno, influyeron en el ulterior desarrollo tecnológico; sin embargo permiten hacerse una inusual idea de la mente de un gran genio técnico y del tipo de exuberancia tecnológica que había de convertirse en uno de los rasgos distintivos de la civilización occidental”. Observamos cómo una vez más se cuestiona la figura de Leonardo como ingeniero o inventor poco más que de artefactos o artilugios imposibles. Pero que hay de verdad en tales afirmaciones. Precisamente la contestación a esta pregunta es una de las cuestiones que se abordan en la presente tesis. Gran parte de la presente tesis doctoral está dirigida a ordenar todos los temas de carácter ingenieril que Leonardo trató en sus manuscritos y de comprobar fehacientemente y documentalmente consultando las fuentes primarias (sus manuscritos) y los artículos y libros publicados de reconocidos y prestigiosos leonardistas que abordan la cuestión. Hasta qué punto se puede considerar que Leonardo fuera un ingeniero del Renacimiento. Como resumen de lo que se pretende en la presente Tesis Doctoral se enumeran los objetivos que se desean alcanzar. Objetivos: El principal y primer objetivo de la investigación sobre Leonardo es reivindicar su figura como uno de los grandes ingenieros de todas las Historia. “Ser o no ser…ingeniero…esa es la cuestión”. Identificar, analizar y ordenar los principales temas que Leonardo escribió y dibujó sobre Ingeniería Militar, Ingeniería Mecánica, Ingeniería Hidráulica, Ingeniería Civil e Ingeniería Aeronáutica, dispersos por sus manuscritos. Reflexionar sobre la figura del ingeniero hoy día. Investigar las diferentes interpretaciones que ha tenido a lo largo de la historia y elaborar un modelo tridimensional en 3D del famoso automóvil de Leonardo, folio 812 recto del Códice Atlántico.

Determinantes das perturbações musculoesqueléticas nos trabalhadores de cuidados pessoais em residências de apoio ao idoso

Introdução: O enfermeiro especialista em reabilitação é o profissional com competências e conhecimentos para, após o diagnóstico, implementar e monitorizar os resultados dos programas de redução do risco das perturbações musculosqueléticas relacionadas com o trabalho (PME), junto dos trabalhadores de cuidados pessoais em residências de apoio ao idoso, avaliando e introduzindo no processo de prestação de cuidados os necessários ajustamentos, promovendo assim, práticas mais seguras e eficazes. Assim, o presente estudo centrou-se em identificar os determinantes das PME nestes trabalhadores e suas repercussões na saúde. Métodos: Estudo de natureza quantitativa, de tipologia transversal e descritivocorrelacional, com recurso a uma amostra não probabilística por conveniência, constituída por 120 indivíduos, na sua maioria do género feminino (95,8%) e com uma média de idades de 43,21 anos (Dp=10,812 anos). Como instrumento de colheita de dados utilizou-se o inquérito de saúde e trabalho (INSAT), aferido para este domínio de investigação. Resultados: Estes cuidadores formais manifestam défices de saúde com principal relevância para os relacionados com a mobilidade física e dor, quer pela existência de constrangimentos de natureza física e biomecânica, organizacional e psicossocial, bem como de natureza individual. Os problemas de saúde identificados por estes trabalhadores, resultantes das condições e características do trabalho foram: dores de costas (90,8%), dores musculares e articulares (82,5%), varizes (64,2%), dores de cabeça (49,2%) e ansiedade ou irritabilidade (47,5%). Ser do género feminino, ter idade entre os 49-58 anos, ser viúvo ou divorciado, ter doenças crónicas, tomar medicação e efetuar horário diurno, revelaram-se como determinantes percursores das PME assim como, a nível laboral, as características e os constrangimentos organizacionais e relacionais relacionados com o esforço físico, a intensidade e tempo de trabalho, as exigências emocionais, a insuficiência de autonomia e a má qualidade das relações sociais. Conclusão: Estes resultados apontam para a necessidade de desenvolvimento de estratégias preventivas das PME neste grupo profissional, onde é fundamental a intervenção do enfermeiro de reabilitação na implementação de programas de promoção da saúde, gestão do stresse e riscos psicossociais e formação profissional. Palavras-chave: Doenças musculosqueléticas; Enfermagem de Reabilitação; Saúde Ocupacional.

Sexual self-awareness and body Image

broadly describes the internal representations of the body structure and the physical appearance of the individual in regards him/herself and others. Sexual self-awareness (ACS) can be understood as the evaluation that each of us makes of his/her feelings and actions related to his/her sexuality and sexual behaviour, describing what each of us thinks about sex and what we feel about behaviours. Objective: Identify dimensions of sexual self-awareness and body image in sexual satisfaction of the young. Methods Correlational descriptive study, a convenience sample of 84 students of a health school (29.8 % male, 20.2 % female), with ages between 19 and 34 years. As data collection instrument a poll through questionnaire, incorporating a Body Image Satisfaction and a Multidimensional Sexual Self-awareness scale, was used. Results The majority of the sample subjects indicate having a partner (59.5 %), perceive themselves as having the ideal weight (75.0 %), the ideal height (65.5 %) and a normal appearance (76.2 %). Globally a high and statistically significant ACS was observed (t-Student = 12.520; GL = 83; p-value < 0.001) and significant statistical differences exist between having/not having a partner and the ACS (Student t = 2,965; GL = 82; p-value = 0.004) showing that those who mention having a partner have a higher average ACS (average = 3.812; SD = 0.412) compared to those without (average = 3.496; SD = 0.563). No statistically significant correlations were observed between ACS and Body Image.

Medical Device Development: the challenge for ergonomics

High quality, well designed medical devices are necessary to provide safe and effective clinical care for patients as well as to ensure the health and safety of professional and lay device users. Capturing the user requirements of users and incorporating these into design is an essential component of this. The field of ergonomics has an opportunity to assist, not only with this area, but also to encourage a more general consideration of the user during medical device development. A review of the literature on methods for assessing user requirements in engineering and ergonomics found that little published work exists on the ergonomics aspects of medical device development. In particular there is little advice available to developers on which issues to consider during design and development or recommendations for good practice in terms of the methods and approaches needed to capture the full range of user requirements. The Multidisciplinary Assessment of Technology Centre for Healthcare (MATCH) is a research collaboration that is working in conjunction with industrial collaborators to apply ergonomics methods to real case study projects with the ultimate aim of producing an industry-focused guide to applying ergonomics principles in medical device development.

Dipyridamole plus aspirin versus aspirin alone in the secondary prevention after TIA or stroke: a meta-analysis by risk

Objectives: Our aim was to study the effect of combination therapy with aspirin and dipyridamole (A+D) over aspirin alone (ASA) in secondary prevention after transient ischemic attack or minor stroke of presumed arterial origin and to perform subgroup analyses to identify patients that might benefit most from secondary prevention with A+D. Data sources: The previously published meta-analysis of individual patient data was updated with data from ESPRIT (N=2,739); trials without data on the comparison of A+D versus ASA were excluded. Review methods: A meta-analysis was performed using Cox regression, including several subgroup analyses and following baseline risk stratification. Results: A total of 7,612 patients (5 trials) were included in the analyses, 3,800 allocated to A+D and 3,812 to ASA alone. The trial-adjusted hazard ratio for the composite event of vascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction and non-fatal stroke was 0.82 (95% confidence interval 0.72-0.92). Hazard ratios did not differ in subgroup analyses based on age, sex, qualifying event, hypertension, diabetes, previous stroke, ischemic heart disease, aspirin dose, type of vessel disease and dipyridamole formulation, nor across baseline risk strata as assessed with two different risk scores. A+D were also more effective than ASA alone in preventing recurrent stroke, HR 0.78 (95% CI 0.68 – 0.90). Conclusion: The combination of aspirin and dipyridamole is more effective than aspirin alone in patients with TIA or ischemic stroke of presumed arterial origin in the secondary prevention of stroke and other vascular events. This superiority was found in all subgroups and was independent of baseline risk. ---------------------------7dc3521430776 Content-Disposition: form-data; name="c14_creators_1_name_family" Halkes