As clinical trials end, little is understood about how participants exiting from clinical trials approach decisions related to the removal or post-trial use of investigational brain implants, such as deep brain stimulation (DBS) devices. This empirical bioethics study examines how research participants experience the process of exit from research at the end of clinical trials of implanted neural devices. Using a modified grounded theory study design, we conducted semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 16 former research participants from clinical trials of DBS (...) and responsive neurostimulation (RNS). Open-ended questions elicited motivations for joining the trial, understanding of study procedures at the time of initial informed consent, the process of exiting from research, and decisions about device removal or post-trial device use. Thematic analysis identified categories related to: limited preparedness for the end of research participation, straightforwardness of decisions to explant or keep the device, reconciling with the end of research participation, reconciling post-trial expectations, and achieving a sense of closure after exit from research. A preliminary theoretical model describes contextual factors influencing the process and experience of exit from research. Experiences of clinical trial participants should guide research practices to enhance the ethical design and conduct of clinical trials in DBS and other brain devices. (shrink)

The objective of the present review on the evolution of Green Chemistry, since its emergence until 2016, aimed an integrated vision of its progress along the three phases of its development: emergence, divulgation and consolidation. The methodology involved the analysis of a selection of bibliography on the evolution of GC collected from issues of the ACS symposia series; editorials in specialized GC journals; and commemorative birthday papers/editorials of these journals and of the GC itself. The analysis allowed to identify and (...) discuss the characteristics and conceptions of GC agents about fundamental concepts and procedures, in order to visualize and better understand the state of knowledge and the subject areas that make up the field. The main alterations identified in the evolution of GC were: it acquired a better defined identity, with more participation of academy and increased scope; was progressively framed in sustainability; has been aspiring to a holistic frame and to a change on the nature of the innovation for its implementation, from incremental to transformative. The analysis suggests that for supporting expansion and consolidation of GC the following aspects deserve attention: full validation of chemical greenness by metrics; better characterization of the frontiers of GC research areas/themes; increased integration between academy and industry; and penetration in chemistry curricula. Its basic philosophy being the practice of a chemistry more focused on the environment preservation, GC means a new stage in nature and in the history of Chemistry. (shrink)

Objective: To examine changes in patients’ desired control of the deep brain stimulator and perception of global life control throughout DBS.Methods: A consecutive cohort of 52 patients with Parkinson’s disease was recruited to participate in a prospective longitudinal study over three assessment points. Semi-structured interviews assessing participants’ desire for stimulation control and perception of global control were conducted at all three points. Qualitative data were coded using content analysis. Visual analog scales were embedded in the interviews to quantify participants’ perceptions (...) of control over time.Results: Participants reported significant increases in their perception of global control over time and significant declines in their desired control of the stimulation. These changes were unrelated to improvements in motor symptoms. Improvements in global control were negatively correlated with a decline in desired stimulation control. Qualitative data indicate that participants have changed, nuanced levels of desired control over their stimulators. Increased global life control following DBS may be attributed to increased control over PD symptoms, increased ability to engage in valued activities, and increased overall self-regulation, while other domains related to global control remained unaffected by DBS.Conclusions: There are few empirical data documenting patients’ desire for stimulation control throughout neuromodulation and how stimulation control is related to other aspects of control despite the growing application of neuromodulation devices to treat a variety of disorders. Our data highlight distinctions in different types of control and have implications for the development of patient-controlled neurostimulation devices. (shrink)

Features of threatening cues and the associated context influence the perceived imminence of threat and the defensive responses evoked. To provide additional knowledge about how the directionality of a threat (i.e. directed-towards or away from the viewer) might impact defensive responses in humans, participants were shown pictures of a man carrying a gun (threat) or nonlethal object (neutral) directed-away from or towards the participant. Cardiac and electrodermal responses were collected. Compared to neutral images, threatening images depicting a gun directed-towards the (...) participant induced sustained bradycardia and an increased electrodermal response, interpreted as immobility under attack. This defensive immobility reaction is evoked by high perceived threat and inescapable situations and indicates intense action preparation. Pictures of guns directed-away from the participant induced shorter bradycardia and no significant modulation of the electrodermal response compared to neutral pictures, which might be consistent with the perception of a less threatening situation. The results show that the directionality of threat stimuli is a key factor that prompts different patterns of defensive responses. (shrink)

Si de la manne tombait du ciel, quelle en serait la juste distribution? Dans une perspective de justice sociale rawlsienne, une telle question théologique paraît vaine, puisqu’elle se situe hors du cadre de la distribution équitable des résultats de la coopération entre des citoyens. Pour autant, deux des plus grands critiques de Rawls, Robert Nozick, du côté libertarien, et Gerald Cohen, du côté socialiste, introduisent le scénario hypothétique de la manne céleste dans leurs objections respectives au principe de différence. Ils (...) le font de manière opposée, le premier pour contester, le second pour accentuer l’égalitarisme de ce principe. Dans cet article, nous nous proposons d’analyser la nature de ces deux objections à la lumière de l’expérience de pensée qu’elles introduisent, afin de comprendre le prolongement donné à ces objections et le sens de la réponse que Rawls leur adresse. (shrink)

This book assesses how Vatican II opened up the Catholic Church to encounter, dialogue, and engagement with other world religions. Opening with a contribution from the President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, it next explores the impact, relevance, and promise of the Declaration Nostra Aetate before turning to consider how Vatican II in general has influenced interfaith dialogue and the intellectual and comparative study of world religions in the postconciliar decades, as well as the contribution (...) of particular past and present thinkers to the formation of current interreligious and comparative theological methods. Additionally, chapters consider interreligious dialogue vis-à-vis theological anthropology in conciliar documents; openness to the spiritual practices of other faith traditions as a way of encouraging positive interreligious encounter; the role of lay and new ecclesial movements in interreligious dialogue; and the development of Monastic Interreligious Dialogue. Finally, it includes a range of perspectives on the fruits and future of Vatican’s II’s opening to particular faiths such as Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism. (shrink)

IntroductionMother–child interactions during the first years of life have a significant impact on the emotional and cognitive development of the child. In this work, we study how a prenatal diagnosis of malformation may affect maternal representations and the quality of these early interactions. To this end, we conducted a longitudinal observational study of mother–child interactions from the gestational stage until the baby completed 12 months of age.Participants and MethodsWe recruited 250 pregnant women from a local university hospital. Among them, 50 (...) mother–infant dyads participated in all stages of the study. The study group consisted of 25 pregnant women with fetuses with some structural alteration and the control group consisted of 25 pregnant women with fetuses without structural anomalies. We collected obstetric and socio demographic data and pregnancy outcomes. Anxiety and depressive state data were collected using the COVI and Raskin Scales. We video-recorded the mother–infant interactions during several stages, including when the child was a newborn and when the child was 2, 4, 6, 9, and 12 months of age. The quality of the mother infant interactions were measured using the Coding Interactive Behavior. The interactive moments recorded on video was composed of three different activities, each one lasting appoximately 3 min, which included Free Interaction, where the mother was instructed to interact “as usual” without any toy, Toy Interaction, where the mother and baby played with a puppv, and Song Interaction, where the mother and baby interacted while the mother sang the “Happy Birthday” song.ResultsIn the gestational phase, there was a significant difference between the groups with respect to anxiety and depression scores, which were significantly higher for the study group. In the postnatal phase, we found significant differences between the groups with respect to CIB scales after the child completed 6 months of age: the study group presented significantly higher values of Maternal Sensitivity at 6 months of age, of Baby Involvement at 9 and 12 months of age, and of Dyadic Reciprocity at 6, 9, and 12 months of age, while the control group presented significantly higher values of Withdrawal of the Baby at 6 months of age, and of Dyadic Negative States at 6 and 9 months of age.ConclusionThe support offered by the study favored the mother–infant bond and had a positive effect on the quality of interaction during the first year of life, despite the presence of prenatal diagnosis. (shrink)

O que se segue tem como objetivo expor um argumento de Wittgenstein contrauma versão do realismo filosófico, o realismo forte sobre a verdade. O argumento deWittgenstein tem a forma geral de um modus tollens, cuja premissa condicional diz que orealismo forte sobre a verdade implica a hipótese do erro maciço. A negação do conseqüenteestá baseada na incompatibilidade entre a hipótese do erro maciço e a normatividadeessencial da linguagem. Mas o argumento de Wittgenstein é compatível com umaversão fraca do realismo sobre (...) a verdade. Na última secção eu examino o argumento deStroud contra a tese suposta por Austin no seu argumento contra o ceticismo segundo aqual verdades sobre o modo de uso de “conhecimento” (e expressões correlatas) implicamverdades sobre o conhecimento. Procuro mostrar que o argumento de Stroud pressupõe aforma de realismo que alvo do argumento de Wittgenstein. (shrink)

O artigo objetiva apresentar um panorama da filosofia africana contemporânea, para isso pensa a filosofia, o contexto, a cultura fazendo uma interface com a educação e o currículo. Apresenta a Filosofia Africana surgida pela motivação, inquietude e necessidade de resolver seus problemas de ordem política, econômica e social. Apresenta-se as correntes filosóficas e a compreensão de que é uma filosofia que prima pelos princípios e valores culturais, que se abre para as possibilidades, resignificando e saindo da totalidade pra pensar a (...) alteridade. (shrink)

Esta nota tem como objetivo formular questões que mostram certas dificuldades na compreensão da dúvida metódica cartesiana. Trata-se de uma avaliação crítica que parte da seguinte hipótese: ou a dúvida metódica não é inteligível ou ela não é uma dúvida. Prima facie, a dúvida metódica parece ser irracional, pois em seu escopo estão proposições que parecem ser paradigmas de racionalidade. Algumas explicações da inteligibilidade da dúvida metódica parecem destituí-la do caráter de dúvida, como aquelas que procuram compatibilizar a dúvida metódica (...) e a crença. As principais questões tratadas nesta nota são: (1) Qual é a motivação epistêmica da dúvida metódica? (2) Dado o que está disponível ao meditador na Primeira Meditação, o que é apresentado como razão para duvidar pode ser considerado realmente desse modo? Em especial, por que o apelo ao provável não neutraliza essas supostas razões? (3) A dúvida metódica é compatível com as necessidades epistêmicas da vida prática? (4) Qual é a natureza da atitude denominada dúvida” e qual é o seu objeto? (shrink)

A partir da implantação da República, surgiu um movimento de intelectuais que procurou congregar e dinamizar num esforço comum os pensadores de várias áreas do conhecimento, através da revista A Águia, tendo em vista uma nova ordem moral e cívica dentro do ideal democrático. Procurámos dar a conhecer as linhas principais que consubstanciaram o espaço aberto pela revista, as influências recebidas e os debates que a animaram.

Esse artigo tem o intuito de pensar o ensino de história e cultura africana e afro-brasileiro desde a perspectiva da filosofia africana contemporânea. Tem o encantamento como delineador para a formação em torno das relações étnico-raciais, refletindo uma educação inclusiva e que valoriza a diversidade. Traz reflexões e perspectivas para um currículo outro por meio do personagem Ananse, onde o conhecimento só faz sentido compartilhado.

Resumo: Focamos neste trabalho algumas das tensões vivenciadas por professores pesquisadores vinculados ao sistema de Pós-graduação brasileiro, no contexto das transformações recentes da universidade. Os protagonistas da PG buscam alternativas éticas para o que consideram descaminhos na produção de conhecimentos no contexto científico. O trabalho decorre dos resultados de um conjunto de pesquisas sobre temas associados à produção em nível stricto sensu, desenvolvidas na última década por diversos pesquisadores em grupos ou projetos de investigação. Os resultados vêm mostrando cada vez (...) maior interferência de organismos nacionais de regulação, controle e avaliação do sistema de PG no funcionamento da universidade, ferindo a sua autonomia. Em consequência, os professores pesquisadores que atuam na PG veem-se compelidos a obedecer a dois ‘patrões’, ou ‘senhorios’, cujas exigências são distintas e não raro antagônicas. Diante dos frequentes conflitos entre as exigências, prevalece a subserviência ao órgão externo, já que as próprias IES estão sob avaliação destes órgãos. Neste contexto, emerge o debate sobre a excelência da produção acadêmico-científica, trazendo-se à tona os limites da produção/produtivismo. Como contribuição trazemos a noção de pertinência territorial para pensar outra possível modalidade de excelência. Por fim, enriquecemos a discussão da problemática, a partir da perspectiva do pensamento decolonial, que envolve a crítica ao eurocentrismo vigente em nossa academia e propõe o ‘penso onde sou’ como caminho para que a produção científica encontre alternativas, conectadas com as realidades e necessidades dos territórios em que estão instaladas as universidades e seus programas de PG. (shrink)

Nosso objetivo aqui é o de expor uma tradução do poema Ulysses (1842), de Lord Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892). Uma tradução de Ulysses nos parece importante para termos mais uma fonte para investigar as relações entre estudos de gênero, história das mentalidades e representações literárias 1) na Antiguidade homérica e 2) numa relação dialética entre o tempo no qual o poema se passa e o tempo no qual ele é produzido, a Modernidade oitocentista.

Deep brain stimulation is a well-established therapy for the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, but there remains an opportunity to improve symptom relief. The temporal pattern of stimulation is a new parameter to consider in DBS therapy, and we compared the effectiveness of Temporally Optimized Patterned Stimulation to standard DBS at reducing the motor symptoms of PD. Twenty-six subjects with DBS for PD received three different patterns of stimulation while on medication and using stimulation parameters optimized for standard DBS. Side (...) effects and motor symptoms were assessed after 30 min of stimulation with each pattern. Subjects experienced similar types of side effects with TOPS and standard DBS, and TOPS were well-tolerated by a majority of the subjects. On average, the most effective TOPS was as effective as standard DBS at reducing the motor symptoms of PD. In some subjects a TOPS pattern was the most effective pattern. Finally, the TOPS pattern with low average frequency was found to be as effective or more effective in about half the subjects while substantially reducing estimated stimulation energy use. TOPS DBS may provide a new programing option to improve DBS therapy for PD by improving symptom reduction and/or increasing energy efficiency. Optimizing stimulation parameters specifically for TOPS DBS may demonstrate further clinical benefit of TOPS DBS in treating the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. (shrink)

The “A-not-B” error is consistent with an old memory principle, Jost's Law. Quantitative properties of the effect can be explained by a dynamic model for habituation that is also consistent with Jost. Piaget was well aware of the resemblance between adult memory errors and the “A-not-B” effect and, contrary to their assertions, Thelen et al.'s analysis of the object concept is much the same as his, though couched in different language.

This study discusses the relationship between Green Chemistry and Environmental Sustainability as expressed in textbooks and articles on Green Chemistry authored by their promoters. It was found that although the Brundtland concept of Sustainable Development/Sustainability has been mentioned often by green chemists, a full analysis of that relationship was almost never attempted. In particular, green chemists have paid scarce attention to the importance of The Second Law of thermodynamics on Environmental Sustainability and the consequences of the limitations it imposes on (...) Green Chemistry, which are discussed in this paper. (shrink)