The subject of the study is the cultural code "Rimon", covering phytomorphic symbolic images in the Jewish pictorial semiosis. The object of the study is the traditional symbolism in the pictorial practice of the Jews of the Crimea. The article uses the methods of semantic and semiotic analysis in deciphering the meanings of plant symbols of the pictorial semiosis of the Jews of the Crimea, the method of analysis of previous studies, the method of synthesis in structuring groups of signs. (...) The authors consider the following aspects of the topic: the codes of the pictorial semiosis of the Jews of the Crimea are designated, their morphology, semantics, key meanings and the main code are substantiated. The phytomorphic Rimon code and its features are considered in detail. The main conclusions of the study are: 1. As a result of studying the traditional culture of the Jews of the Crimea, five main codes of the Jewish pictorial semiosis were identified, covering the following groups of symbols: skewomorphic (subject), phytomorphic (plant), zoomorphic (animal), numeric. The source of all codes and the generalizing code is the Sefer code (Book). The interrelationships between the codes, four key meanings – Creation, Paradise, Torah persons and Messianic aspirations are revealed. The semantic center of the code system is defined – the Torah and Aron Hakodesh, as a repository of the Torah. 2. The considered phytomorphic code Rimon is a symbolism of traditional images of plants, the mention of which is found in the Torah, as well as in the Talmud and Midrash. The images of plants in the Jewish reading convey the meanings of human virtues and negative qualities, and also indicate the Messianic hopes laid down in the Torah and especially in the Midrash of the Talmud.The scientific novelty of the study consists in the fact that for the first time a semantic-semantic analysis was carried out and the interrelationships of cultural codes in the pictorial semiosis of the Jews of the Crimea were determined, with an emphasis on the Rimon code. (shrink)

The article provides the results of a comparative study of the main theories of language and communication in the philosophical thought of the twentieth century. The authors focus on the social significance of the considered phenomena, their role in the transformation and consolidation of society. An analysis of the ideas of existentialist thinkers, analytical philosophy, the theory of communicative action by J. Habermas and others shows their relevance and practical importance for creating a universal mechanism for the development of modern (...) society based on the principles of agreement, mutual understanding and openness. (shrink)

The purpose of the study is to reveal the features of the formation and functioning of Russian business ecosystems in modern conditions, to identify their main advantages and disadvantages, to propose ways to solve problems caused by a radical change in the digital space. The article examines the prerequisites for the emergence of business ecosystems, the features of their legal regulation, analyzes the options for organizational and technological structures, the problems of interaction of all participants in the process. Scientific novelty (...) lies in the development of theoretical provisions, the analysis of modern models that determine the organizational and technological structure of business ecosystems, the development of applied management tools and the definition of starting points for their research. As a result, the main features that characterize business ecosystems and most fully reflect their differentiation have been identified. The author's classification has been developed, the practical scope of which will allow to study the functioning of systems, both as a whole, and their individual elements, being at the same time a management tool. (shrink)

The purpose of the study is to propose the author's approach to the complex application of strategic analysis methods based on SWOT analysis. The article discusses the well-known and presented in various sources methods of strategic analysis. Special attention is paid to SWOT-analysis, various points of view on its role are investigated. The scientific novelty lies in the determination of the logical connection between the methods of strategic analysis and SWOT-analysis and the development of the author's approach to the procedure (...) for conducting strategic analysis based on their integrated use. As a result, found that a strategic analysis of stepwise character. In this case, the result of one step of analysis simultaneously serves as the initial information for conducting another step of analysis. To systematize the information obtained during the analysis, a SWOT analysis matrix is used. (shrink)

A common approach for measuring the effectiveness of an education system or a school is the estimation of the impact that school interventions have on students’ academic performance. However, the latest trends aim to extend the focus beyond students’ acquisition of knowledge and skills, and to consider aspects such as well-being in the academic context. For this reason, the 2015 edition of the international assessment system PISA incorporated a new tool aimed at evaluating the socio-affective variables related to the well-being (...) of students. It is based on a definition focused on the five dimensions proposed in PISA theoretical framework: cognitive, psychological, social, physical and material. The main purpose of this study is to identify the well-being components that significantly affect student academic performance and to estimate the magnitude of school effects on the well-being of students in OECD countries, the school effect being understood as the ability of schools to increase subjective student well-being. To achieve this goal, we analyzed the responses of 234,000 students from thirty-five OECD countries to PISA 2015 questionnaires. Specifically, we considered non-cognitive variables in the questionnaires and student performance in science. The results indicated that the cognitive well-being dimension, composed of enjoyment of science, self-efficacy and instrumental motivation, as well as the test anxiety all had a consistent relationship with student performance across countries. In addition, the school effect, estimated through a two-level hierarchical linear model, in terms of student well-being was systematically low. While the school effect accounted for approximately 25% of the variance in the results for the cognitive dimension, only 5-9% of variance in well-being indicators was attributable to it. This suggests that the influence of school on student welfare is weak, and the effect is similar across countries. The present study contributes to the general discussion currently underway about the definition of well-being and the connection between well-being and achievement. The results highlighted two complementary concerns: there is a clear need to promote socio-emotional education in schools, and it is important to develop a rigorous framework for well-being assessment. The implications of the results and proposals for future studies are discussed. (shrink)

It has been a long-standing puzzle that Negative Polarity Items appear to split into two subvarieties when their effect on the interpretation of questions is taken into account: while questions with any and ever can be used as unbiased requests of information, questions with so-called `minimizers', i.e. idioms like lift a finger and the faintest idea, are always biased towards a negative answer (cf. Ladusaw 1979). Focusing on yes/no questions, this paper presents a solution to this puzzle. Specifically it is (...) shown that in virtue of containing even (cf. Heim 1984), minimizers, unlike any, trigger a presupposition, which reduces the set of the possible answers to a question to the singleton containing the negative answer. (shrink)

Asking students to generate a prediction before presenting the correct answer is a popular instructional strategy. This study tested whether a person’s degree of confidence in a prediction is related to their curiosity and surprise regarding the answer. For a series of questions about numerical facts, participants (N = 29) generated predictions and rated their confidence in the prediction before seeing the correct answer. The increase in pupil size before viewing the correct answer was used as a physiological marker of (...) curiosity, and the increase in pupil size after viewing the correct answer was used as a physiological marker of surprise. The results revealed that the pupillometric marker of curiosity was most pronounced if students were slightly more confident in their prediction than usual, and it was lower for predictions made with either very high or very low confidence. Furthermore, the results showed that high-confidence prediction errors and low-confidence correct responses yielded a pupillary surprise response, suggesting that highly unexpected results evoke surprise, independent of the correctness of the prediction. Together, results suggest that confidence in a prediction plays an important role in the occurrence of epistemic emotions such as curiosity and surprise. (shrink)

The most enigmatic feature of polytene chromosomes is their banding pattern, the genetic organization of which has been a very attractive puzzle for many years. Recent genome‐wide protein mapping efforts have produced a wealth of data for the chromosome proteins of Drosophila cells. Based on their specific protein composition, the chromosomes comprise two types of bands, as well as interbands. These differ in terms of time of replication and specific types of proteins. The interbands are characterized by their association with (...) “active” chromatin proteins, nucleosome remodeling, and origin recognition complexes, and so they have three functions: acting as binding sites for RNA pol II, initiation of replication and nucleosome remodeling of short fragments of DNA. The borders and organization of the same band and interband regions are largely identical, irrespective of the cell type studied. This demonstrates that the banding pattern is a universal principle of the organization of interphase polytene and non‐polytene chromosomes.Editor's suggested further reading in BioEssaysCaught in the act: Rapid, symbiont‐driven evolution AbstractFunction and evolution of sex determination mechanisms, genes and pathways in insects Abstract. (shrink)

Although it is widely accepted that personal values of Self-Transcendence are a positive predictor of environmentalism, and Self-Enhancement values are a negative one, these results are not conclusive for all cultural contexts. Regarding political ideologies, research concludes that liberals tend to be more concerned about the environment than conservatives. However, this two-dimensional take on political ideologies does not grasp the diversity of political views, which could be achieved by focusing on political values. In this research, we studied the role of (...) personal and political values in predicting environmental attitudes and behavior in Kazakhstan, a developing country in Central Asia. Using an online survey, we found that Security was a strong predictor of both environmental concern and New Environmental Paradigm, overshadowing the effect of traditionally accepted value dimensions of Self-Transcendence and Self-Enhancement. While Self-Direction positively predicted environmental concern, Universalism and Benevolence were positive predictors of NEP. Among political values, Civil Liberties predicted NEP positively, and had no significant effect on environmental concern, while Free Enterprise predicted environmental concern negatively, and had no significant effect on NEP. Environmental concern was a strong predictor of all pro-environmental behaviors included in the study, fully mediating the effect of NEP. Based on personal and political values, three profiles of Kazakhstanis who engaged differently in pro-environmental behavior were identified. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Re-examining Empirical Data on Conflicts of Interest Through the Lens of Personal NarrativesEmily E. Anderson and Elena M. KrausIntroductionThe personal stories submitted by physicians and researchers for this symposium add much–needed dimension to conversations on conflicts of interest in medicine and research. Narratives from individuals living with conflicts of interest can serve as a unique lens through which to consider psychological and economic theories and survey data on (...) physician and patient views. In our reading of these personal narratives, we identified four primary themes that will serve as springboards for our commentary. We aim to triangulate clusters of meaning drawn from the narratives with relevant data from published empirical studies and identify gaps in knowledge where more research is needed. These themes are: the unique environments of medicine and research; weighing the potential benefits of conflicts of interest against the risks; conflict of interest management; and the roles and responsibilities of diverse stakeholder groups.The Unique Challenges of the Medical and Research EnvironmentsThe reflections of the narrative authors draw attention to many of the unique environmental aspects of medicine and medical research that make physicians and researchers especially vulnerable to conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest may be more ubiquitous in medicine than in any other industry (Kassirer, 2006). As the narratives demonstrate, conflicts of interest emerge across a range of health care delivery and research activities. Surveys have shown that 94 percent of physicians have some kind of relationship with industry (Campbell, Gruen, Mountford, et al., 2007). There is also evidence that physician interactions with medical industry begin early and are a regular part of a physician’s professional practice along the career continuum (Wazana, 2000).Medicine as a profession is distinct from banking or law. It is often said that medicine is an art; in treating patients, creative individualized solutions and gut instinct are as (if not more) important than the application of scientific knowledge. Uncertainty surrounds medical decision making. There is limited precision with respect to diagnoses and prognoses, limited data regarding the effectiveness of many treatments, and a range of patient values and preferences. Because of this uncertainty, rules about practice standards, especially with respect to avoidance and management of conflicts of interest, cannot be as explicit as they are in law or business. As demonstrated by the story presented by Sal Cruz–Flores, research and practice often intersect. And, there is no system in greater need of reform—and no system about which there are more divergent opinions as to what shape that reform should take—than the United States health care [End Page 91] system. The narratives of Tony Mikulec, Govind Nagaldinne, and David M. Zientek demonstrate how various aspects of the structure of healthcare service provision and third–party payer arrangements have the potential to harm patients. Conflicts of interest comprise more than relationships with pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers.The narratives of Laura Jean Bierut and David M. Zientek also discuss examples of conflicts of interest that arise from factors beyond relationships with industry or the direct potential for financial gain. This may be somewhat unique to the medical milieu. Non-financial conflicts such as a desire for the prestige bestowed upon scientists who make key discoveries, a requirement to publish for tenure and promotion, the need to maintain one’s license or other privileges, or simply the pressure of a competitive environment can influence physician and researcher behavior. As noted by Bierut, more research on how to identify and manage non-financial conflicts is needed.The Potential Benefits and Harms of Conflicts of InterestConflicts of interest are usually presented in a negative light, particularly those that involve physician relationships with the pharmaceutical industry. To “have a conflict of interest” is to be in a situation or role where there is potential for personal interests to be prioritized over professional responsibilities. However, in terms of public perception, it seems that conflicts of interest have become almost synonymous with wrongdoing. Perhaps this is due to the barrage of media reports during the last decade on significant harms caused by financial conflicts of interest in business, journalism, and sports as well as in medicine (Steinbrook, 2004). Amidst... (shrink)

If natural kinds were defined on the basis of fixed and immutable essences, then – with the end of essentialism in life sciences – their end, at least for those kinds confined to the living realm, would ensue as well (1-2). If appropriately revised and adapted, however, natural kinds may still play an important theoretical role, not only for the sake of philosophical speculation, but also in accomodating scientific practices and in providing an adequate rendering of human reasoning. The proposal (...) outlined in this paper moves from the historical and disjunctive solutions of Millikan and Boyd, but it departs from them in that it offers a conventionalist interpretation of natural kinds. The bulk of the theory is presented through the case study of the distinction between sexes and genders (3). A few remarks on how to further the proposal are offered in the final section (4). (shrink)

Lotman’s contribution to semiotic theory, anthroposemiotics, the study of artistic texts and defining the relationship between language and culture represent some of the most powerful work produced within the Tartu–Moscow School of Semiotics. The importance of translation is one of the central principles that unites all of Lotman’s work. In the following paper, we will consider Lotman’s definition of translatability in the context of (1) the definition of semiospheric internal and external boundaries and the importance of crossing these boundaries, (2) (...) the role of no fewer than two languages as a minimal unit of semiotic meaning-generation, (3) culture text-level generation of collective memory, and (4) the ever-present tension in the communication act. In our concluding section, we will offer an extended model of the communication act, based on the fundamental principles given in Jakobson, Sebeok and Lotman, in order to specify important moments of the translation process. (shrink)

In this article I discuss about the options anthropology has to study practices of production of knowledge into science and technology as normative frames throughout specific practices and representations as part of the schooling processes. In the construction of this object I consider the theoretic..

Straipsnyje apžvelgiamos filosofijos ir sociologijos perspektyvos skaitmeninių medijų akivaizdoje, atskleidžiama, kaip skaitmeninių medijų raida prisideda prie naujųjų disciplinų atsiradimo, sėkmingai jungiančių tiek filosofines, tiek sociologines prieigas. Remiantis garsaus medijų filosofo Michaelio Heimo tyrimais, nagrinėjamos sąsajos tarp kibernetinės erdvės ir technologijų raidos, išryškinamas jų poveikis transformacijoms, vykstančioms kibernetinės erdvės „žemėlapiavime“. Svarstant filosofijos ir sociologijos perspektyvas medijuotoje kultūroje pristatomi Franko Hartmanno tyrimai, skirti mediologijos problematikai, parodoma, kaip mediologijos rėmuose „žemėlapiuojama“ virtualioji tikrovė. Galiausiai, taikant mediologijos metodinę prieigą, nagrinėjami konk­retūs virtualios (augmentuotos) tikrovės pavyzdžiai. (...) Argumentuojama, kad aug­mentuotos erdvės projekcijos yra gana jauna, itin dinamiška ir sparčiai kintanti medijų meno sritis, o jos sąsajos su technologijomis yra itin glaudžios, todėl mediologija yra itin paranki jos analizei. (shrink)

The results of the investigation were aligned with the objective of determining the influence of the program in the strengthening of social skills in university students of Medical Technology of the National University of Jaén. It is an applied, explanatory, longitudinal research, with a quantitative approach and quasi-experimental design, with pre-test and post-test in experimental and control groups. The hypothetical-deductive method was used, with a population of 289 students and 80 for the sample. The Observation Form and the Social Skills (...) Evaluation Scale were used. The results showed a good to excellent level of social skills in all the participants of the experimental group of the II and VI cycle. The means per academic cycle increased by 32 and 35.75 respectively. By dimensions according to academic cycle, the first social skills increased by 6.2 and 5.4, advanced social skills by 5.05 and 4.85, skills related to feelings by 5.45 and 5.1, alternative social skills to aggression by 3.95 and 6.7, social skills to cope with stress by 7.4 and 8.45, and finally social planning skills by 3.95 and 5.25 respectively. In conclusion, the program has a significant influence on strengthening social skills in university students, with a greater influence in the experimental group of the VI cycle (35.75 percentage points). (shrink)

It has been demonstrated that executive functions play a significant role in different aspects of the development of children. Development of language is also one of the most important accomplishments of the preschool years, and it has been linked to many outcomes in life. Despite substantial research demonstrating the association between executive function and language development in childhood, only a handful of studies have examined the direction of the developmental pathways between EF skills and language skills, therefore little is known (...) about how these two constructs are connected. In this review paper, we discuss three possible directional relationships between EFs and language development throughout childhood. First, we discuss how EF might affect language functioning. Next, we discuss how language functioning might affect EF. Lastly, we consider other possible relationships between EF and language. Given that children with better EF and language skills are more likely to succeed in educational settings and demonstrate greater social–emotional competencies, investigating the relationship between EF and language in the preschool period provides insight into mechanisms that have not been extensively studied. Furthermore, it could create new opportunities for designing effective and efficient interventions aimed at addressing EF and language deficits during the preschool period which could in turn influence later development. (shrink)

The place occupied by Kant’s philosophical ideas in the reflections of the Russian philosopher, Nikolay Strakhov, needs further study. The material for a historical-philosophical reconstruction of Strakhov’s reception of Kant’s philosophy is the Russian thinker’s home library catalogue, his correspondence and his own philosophical works. Among Strakhov’s interlocutors were not only philosophers and natural scientists, but also writers, including Fyodor Dostoevsky, Leo Tolstoy and Afanasy Fet, who in many ways determined the cultural and intellectual horizon of the epoch. The many (...) years of correspondence with the last two writers went a long way to shape and develop Strakhov’s perception of Kant as a thinker. Indeed, without a virtual dialogue with Kant no modern philosophical system can be built. Strakhov’s reflections on the Kantian style of thinking, adoption of Kantian criticism as the model of epistemic analysis in many ways determined the features of his own philosophical work and became a catalyst of renewed interest in Russia in the Kantian philosophy in the last third of the nineteenth century. (shrink)

This contribution deals with the relationship between psychiatry and prison, taking a pedagogical perspective, despite the complexity and interdisciplinary nature of the subject. We started from the reconstruction of the historical and cultural context by linking up with the teachings of Franco Basaglia (one hundred years after his birth), recovering his model of democratic psychiatry that is still relevant and to be reread in a contemporary key, also in the light of new emergencies, as shown by the data collected by (...) the Antigone Association. In particular, a research project carried out at the “Vittorio Madia” Institute in Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, a former Judicial Psychiatric Hospital, was resumed, also with a view to valorising good educational and cultural practices carried out at other institutes in the national territory in line with what was promoted by the Sicilian reality. The gender perspective was therefore assumed for the development of further research on the topic. (shrink)

En este trabajo se intentan mostrar algunas tensiones entre el discurso de la conservación, el multiculturalismo y los prejuicios racistas, tomando como punto de referencia el caso de los Montes de María en el Caribe colombiano, donde han tenido lugar proyectos de cooperación a propósito de la biodiversidad y existen iniciativas locales para su conservación. Se describen tres niveles en los que pueden encontrarse los prejuicios racistas en el discurso de la conservación, y las tensiones que los caracterizan, asociadas tanto (...) a las ideas de resistencia y de comunidad, como a la necesidad de corrección de las prácticas por parte de quienes habitan los bosques. El propósito de estas reflexiones es cuestionar el discurso de la conservación y el multiculturalismo para ampliar las perspectivas frente a las apuestas por la conservación y las luchas étnico-campesinas que se llevan a cabo en la alta montaña de los Montes de María, similares seguramente a otros casos en América Latina. (shrink)

Toulmin (2001) sostiene que la invención de las disciplinas,un cambio iniciado en el siglo XVII, involucró factores tantointelectuales como institucionales. Intelectualmente, el uso dela geometría cartesiana como modelo de conocimiento proveyólos fundamentos; institucionalmente, la división del trabajo enprofesiones y disciplinas hizo el resto. Sin embargo, este cambiose produjo lentamente y sólo alcanzó su apogeo durante el sigloXX, con la conformación de lo que Snow (2012) reconoce comolas dos culturas: las Humanidades y las Ciencias Naturales.Focalizando esta distinción, proponemos reflexionar sobre laargumentación (...) escrita en dos disciplinas (Letras y Biología)desde la perspectiva toulminiana. Al respecto, consideramosque los argumentos y los modos de escribirlos están tanprofundamente ligados a las disciplinas que resulta esencialsaber y reconocer cómo operan estos procesos a fin de entenderla lógica de dichos campos. En efecto, las particularidades decada disciplina están siempre presentes a la hora de escribir yde argumentar por escrito. Todo texto pertenece, por lo menos,a un género y a una disciplina; como tal, emplea movimientosretóricos particulares que varían de comunidad en comunidady de un tipo de discurso a otro. Este trabajo, retoma lapropuesta de Toulmin (2003, 2001) y busca dar cuenta de lasespecificidades de la argumentación escrita en dos carrerasuniversitarias argentinas (Letras y Biología). Así, después dehaber efectuado un trabajo de campo que comprendió, duranteun semestre, observación participante de clases, entrevistasa docentes y alumnos y recolección de documentos áulicos(exámenes escritos y trabajos prácticos), distinguimos cuatrorasgos que caracterizan la argumentación en los ámbitosdisciplinares de las Humanidades y de las Ciencias Naturales:(1) los grados de formalidad; (2) los grados de precisión; (3) losmodos de resolución; y (4) las metas de la argumentación. Estoscuatro rasgos permiten complejizar los elementos estables delesquema toulminiano y pensar sus usos, sus aplicaciones y susalcances en las disciplinas. (shrink)

Next SectionDiscourse particles typically express the attitudes of interlocutors with respect to the propositional content of an utterance – for example, marking whether or not a speaker believes the content of the proposition that she uttered. In German, the particle doch – which has no direct English translation – is commonly used to correct a belief that is thought to be common ground among those present. We asked whether German adults and 5-year-olds are able to infer that a speaker who (...) utters doch intends to be understood in this way. Sixty-four children (4;9–5;3 years) and twenty-four adults participated in a comprehension task in which a speaker explicitly expressed either a positive belief or a negative belief. Subsequently, in both conditions, the speaker checked the truth of her previous belief and corrected her belief with doch. In both the group of adults and the group of children, polarity of the speaker’s belief affected hearers’ interpretations of the speaker’s utterance. In a third condition we investigated whether participants could also perform the more difficult task of interpreting the speaker’s utterance with doch while inferring the speaker’s belief. Whereas adults showed a similar performance as in the explicit belief conditions, children showed limited abilities in keeping track of the speaker’s belief. (shrink)

The article is devoted to the problem of the expert knowledge crisis, which consists in a decrease in public trust in scientific experts, the transformation of the role of experts in making socially significant decisions, escapism or neglect on the part of experts in relation to the society. We believe that in order to resolve the existing confrontation between society and experts, it is necessary to compare the positions of both, and then formulate common grounds that can serve for resolving (...) the conflict. We assign the role of moderator in the practice of resolving this conflict to politicians, who are forced to maneuver between the advice of experts and the opinions of voters, and also take responsibility for the consequences of implementing decisions. Reconstructing the position of experts, we rely primarily on the work of T. Nichols “The Death of Expertise”. We believe that it very clearly articulates the concerns of the scientific community about its current status, role and future fate, as well as the expert community’s understanding of the reasons for the current situation. The position of society is expressed in the works of P. Feyerabend. So, as the first task of our article, we see a comparison of these positions and identification of key points of conflict contradiction. Looking for resolving the conflict contradiction, we rely on the concept of communicative action by J. Habermas and the ideas of the actor-network theory of B. Latour. It is possible to compare all four positions thanks to the analytical approach to the history of philosophy of J. Barnes. An argumentative analysis makes it possible to clearly identify both the basic points of their contradiction and the positions common to all parties, which should form the basis for the search for consensus. Such basic positions are not the assessment of expert or profane knowledge, but the desire by all parties of communication to preserve the democratic structure of society. (shrink)

Background Undergraduate nursing students may experience several ethical challenges during their clinical learning placement that can lead to moral distress and intention to leave the profession. Ethical challenges are complex phenomena and ethical frameworks may help improve their understanding and provide actionable recommendations to enhance students’ readiness for practice. Aim To explore undergraduate nursing students’ ethical challenges experienced during their clinical learning and their suggestions for better ethics education; to illuminate students’ experience against a foundational ethical framework. Research design Qualitative (...) study based on interpretative phenomenology. Semi-structured, in-person or at distance, one-to-one interviews were performed, audio-recorded, and transcribed verbatim. The ‘Dignity-enhancing care framework’ was employed to frame the study findings. Participants and research context Nineteen nursing graduands attending seven sites of one Northwestern Italian University were interviewed. Ethical consideration The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of the University of Torino (number 0187646/2023). All participants provided written informed consent. Findings Students experienced several ethical challenges concerning daily practice such as pain control or the decision to restrain patients, and reported deficient professional ethics with healthcare professionals who demonstrated poor caring attitudes and teamwork. Moreover, they perceived professionals poorly committed to their role of educators and complained of poor support in the learning process. When a supportive, dialogical, and relational context lacked, students experienced negative feelings about the profession and the healthcare system and reported the intention to leave the profession. Dialogue with peers, family members or significant others, nursing educators, and clinical nurse supervisors, as well as self-learning activities and discussion-based teaching methods grounded on real scenarios helped to overcome challenging situations. Conclusion While complying with normative standards, nursing education policies should encourage the adoption of dynamic teaching methods and sustain a regular, dialogical approach within and between the clinical and academic contexts to improve readiness for practice. (shrink)

In Orthodox Christianity icons play a central role in the Liturgy, which they complete and explain. In front of these images, the faithful enter a process of communication with the holy person depicted. That is possible because icons convey the spiritual energies of the archetype of the holy person or of the sacred event they represent. Icon-painters follow Hermeneias — Grammar books — containing canonical indications to help them in their work. These books also give attention to the material elements (...) from which the icons are made; since they are a part of God’s creation, they also need to be treated with reverence. The history of Eastern Christian iconography will be presented as an alternation of moments when an ‘abstract’ style of painting was employed with moments when a more naturalistic/realistic approach was at work. (shrink)

Most of the Latin American population, including in places like Mexico and Brazil, is becoming extremely poor, slipping in the last ten years from poverty to extreme poverty. Native communities are in this condition: to live only to survive, lacking any opportunity to improve or at least meet their basics needs of food and shelter. I practiced P4C in the multicultural community of Juchitán, Oaxaca, to find if P4C overcame the limitations of extreme poverty, respecting the cultural diversity while obtaining (...) positive results. (shrink)