Quantification of mercury in XVIII century books by Energy Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence (EDXRF)

This work describes the quantitative analysis of mercury present in the ink used to colour some books of XVIII century. The mercury content was determined by Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometry. This is a non-destructive technique which allows elemental identification and quantification (Z > 13) by atomic physics processes. The organic pigments cannot be identified by this technique, taking into account that its composition is mainly C, O and H. Levels of 2 wt.% and 4.5 wt.% were measured in 1756 and 1753 books respectively. No significant amount of mercury was observed in other red books, on a total of 11, all from XVIII century: 1720, 1732, 1753, 1756, 1780, 1798, 1800. More than one book for each year were analysed. The studied books belong to a private collection, and were selected taking into account the age and the reddish colour of their external parts. High content on Fe were observed in some of the books. This work highlights the application of a physics technique in a very important aspect for art and cultural heritage conservation and restoration, considering that high levels of toxic elements might be found in ancient documents. It is of great importance that preliminary elemental analyses are performed on ancient documents before handling them, because they might constitute some danger for restorers, conservators and collectors. This work highlights, for the first time, the danger of some ancient books. They might contain a very high concentration of mercury, which is toxic for the organism. This is also a particularly important problem of public health never mentioned in literature before.     

The association of major patterns of physical activity,sedentary behavior and sleeping with mortality in older adults

Objective: To identify major patterns of physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior (SB) and sleeping (all self-reported), and their association with long-term mortality.

Methods: Cohort of 2,851 individuals aged ≥ 60 from Spain. Mortality was ascertain from 2003 up to July 2013. Patterns of PA, SB and sleeping were identified by factor analysis.

Results: During follow-up, 1,145 deaths occurred. The first pattern, named “sedentary and non-active pattern”, was characterized by long sleeping or lying time, and not doing even light PA (household chores or walking). The second pattern was named “active and non-sedentary pattern”, and was characterized long time devoted to vigorous activities, long walking time, and short seating time. Compared to those in the first quartile of the “sedentary and non-active pattern”, those in the highest quartile showed a 71% higher mortality (HR: 1.71; 95%CI: 1.42–2.07; p-trend:<0.001); it corresponds to being 6-year older. By contrast, being in the highest versus the lowest quartile of the “active and non-sedentary pattern” was associated with a 32% lower mortality (HR: 0.68: 0.57–0.82; p-trend:<0.001); it corresponds to being 4-year younger.

Conclusion: The “sedentary and non-active” pattern had a large impact on mortality. The “active and non-sedentary” pattern showed an opposite and slightly lower association.     

Effects of a nonlinear pedagogy intervention programme on the emergent tactical behaviours of youth footballers

Purpose: This study analysed the effects of a training intervention programme using principles of Non-Linear Pedagogy (NLP) on the decision making (DM) and performance behaviours (P) of youth footballers.

Method: 19 footballers (U12 yrs) participated in 14 training sessions, spread over three phases: Pre-intervention, Intervention, Retention. The intervention was based on Small-Sided and Conditioned Games. We assessed progress during the intervention phase at two different points: intermediate and final. The GPET instrument was used to analyse the DM and P during the completion of 3208 passes in the intervention.

Results: Results shown significant improvements in the DM and P after the intermediate and final points of the acquisition phase. Moreover, significantly higher values were also obtained in both variables in the retention, compared to the pre-intervention phase.

Conclusion: Results indicated that the NLP intervention programme was effective in improving both aspects of team games performance in youth players, with effects consolidated over time.     

Significant life experiences and their relationship with the education of the scrutinizing gaze in the beauty ecologist César Manrique

The reality of the nature that we see can have multiple messages and meanings. Some of these are patent and continuously communicate with the individual, but others are hidden and are more difficult to unravel. A deep, contemplative and scrutinizing gaze is necessary to detect these messages. Educating this “new” way of seeing can help reinforce a person-nature bond that includes the aesthetic appreciation of beauty. This work shows the education of the gaze related to the artist César Manrique and the special bond that he established with the island of Lanzarote. He describes some key experiences, considered to be significant life experiences (SLEs), that revealed deep and secret messages to him and made him understand the true magnitude of the person-nature bond.     

Search for autonomy in motor task learning in physical education university students

The study focused on discovering the influence that an autonomous motor task learning programme had on the improvement of perceived competence, intrinsic regulation, incremental belief and motivational orientations. The study was performed with two groups of participants (n = 22 and n = 20) aged between 19 and 35 years. The instruments used were the incremental factor of the Conceptions of the Nature of Athletic Ability Questionnaire (CNAAQ-2), the Goal Orientation in Exercise Scale (GOES), the intrinsic regulation factor of the Behavioural Regulation in Exercise Questionnaire (BREQ-2), the perceived autonomy factor of the autonomy measurement scale (EMA) and the perceived competence factor of the Motives for Physical Activity Measure Revised Scale (MPAM-R). The questionnaires were handed out over 3 months in a weekly session with pre-test and post-test. The results showed that the use of an autonomy-based teaching programme increased perceived competence, intrinsic motivation, incremental ability belief and task-involving motivational orientation.     

The path to information in the public domain: Official publications in Spain

Official publications are aimed towards editing and spreading the messages created by governments and other bodies of the public domain. At the beginning, the aim of this activity is twofold: on the one hand, fulfilling the principle of publicity of the norms, as it constitutes a basis for the efficiency of those, and, on the other hand, fulfilling a general function of information about the activities of public authorities. As the action of government generalises, this function of communication between those governing and those governed has extended to other fields of activity, thus, free and pay materials, both printed and electronic, are published.     

Regression Analysis and the Sociological Imagination

Regression analysis is an important aspect of most introductory statistics courses in sociology but is often presented in contexts divorced from the central concerns that bring students into the discipline. Consequently, we present five lesson ideas that emerge from a regression analysis of income inequality and mortality in the USA and Canada.