Inclusive education for children with disabilities in a refugee camp

Children in refugee camps, and particularly those with disabilities, face unique challenges in accessing education and are at high risk of being marginalised. Best practices suggest that main-streaming is the optimal strategy for serving students with disabilities. This study examines the extent to which mainstreaming in a refugee camp helps to promote children's prosocial behaviours, taking into account their emotional and behavioural problems. In Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya, researchers collected data from the parents of children currently enrolled in special needs education centres (n=65) and from those formerly enrolled at these facilities who transitioned to mainstream classrooms (n=81). Children in mainstream schools functioned better in terms of prosocial behaviours, but this relationship disappeared when factoring in children's emotional and behavioural difficulties. In the context of a refugee camp, mainstreaming alone is not likely to help children's psychosocial and educational functioning, which requires dedicated supports, appropriate facilities and infrastructure, and a dual focus on disability-specific and disability-inclusive initiatives.     

DGT use in contaminated site characterization. The importance of heavy metal site specific behaviour

The objective of this study is to provide an insight into the techniques for measuring the lability of heavy metals in solid-phase pool of soils in order to assess the environmental risk arising from pollution. The technique of diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT) and a sequential extraction procedure were used to quantify the labile pools of Cu, Fe, Mn and Ni. These results were compared to metal concentrations in groundwater, measured directly using the in situ piezometers, and to the total concentration of metal in the soils. High concentrations of metal in the directly analysed soil solution compared to DGT measurement were attributed to the presence of colloidal metal. The use of DGT allowed only to calculate leaching parameters of the free ions and labile fractions of the metals. For this reason DGT technique needs preliminary investigation on metal speciation in soil solution before its application as a good tool in the characterization procedure of contaminated sites.     

Effects of male dominance and courtship display on female choice in the ring-necked pheasant

Male traits and behaviours acting in mate choice and intrasexual competition are expected to be congruent. When studying their evolution, this often makes it difficult to differentiate between these two components of sexual selection. Studies are therefore needed on mate choice in conjunction with the role of displays and dominance. We present the results from two experiments conducted to investigate the effects of male dominance and courtship displays on female choice in the ring-necked pheasant, Phasianus colchicus, controlling for differences in morphological male traits. We found: (1) different courtship behaviours had different effects on female choice: females were mainly attracted by the feeding courtship behaviour, while another courtship display (the lateral display) was effective in producing the copulation-acceptance response by the females; (2) subordinate males performed the courtship behaviour before females less frequently than dominant males, and females reinforced intrasexual selection by choosing dominant males, and (3) subordinate males in visual contact with a dominant became less attractive to females. The results support the idea (armament-ornament model) that female pheasants may benefit from using traits selected in male-male competition as clues for mate choice. Received: 23 October 1997 / Accepted after revision: 7 October 1998     

Hazardous bauxite red mud and ferrous slag management to produce sustainable construction materials

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - This paper reports the development and characterization of new ceramics from hazardous bauxite red mud (50...     

Psychological consequences of prenatal diagnosis in a case of familial Angelman Syndrome

Angelman Syndrome (AS), characterized by mental retardation, absence of speech, seizures and motor dysfunction, is caused by genetic defects leading to loss of expression of the maternal copy of the chromosome 15q11–13 imprinted region. Most cases are sporadic, being caused by de novo deletion of maternal chromosome 15q11–13 (75%) or by paternal uniparental disomy (3–4%). Familial cases can occur, due to mutations in the UBE3A gene or in the imprinting center. We describe the case of a pregnant woman having two nephews with AS caused by a UBE3A mutation; lack of communication within the family led the woman to be completely unaware of the risk of disease recurrence until 15 weeks of gestation. UBE3A genetic testing revealed she carried the familial mutation 892–893delCT. Prenatal diagnosis was performed on amniotic fluid and demonstrated that the fetus had inherited the mutation. The unexpected diagnosis and the subsequent termination of the pregnancy caused the woman to undergo acute psychological distress showing relevant psychopathological symptoms. Nevertheless, at 2-year follow-up, adverse consequences were minimized, and the couple was planning a new pregnancy. Factors affecting the psychological outcome of abortion and the role of psychological support in reducing the risk of long-term unfavorable consequences are discussed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

SOIL ZINC CONTAMINATION FROM CORROSION OF GALVANIZED STRUCTURES

The present work relates to galvanized structures with several years of time life subjected to atmospheric corrosion, like galvanized high tension steel pylons. The mass and fate of zinc released is evaluated both via empirical and experimental procedures. The corrosion rate determination requested atmospheric condition characterization, especially for SO 2 concentration and experimental activities focused on soil sampling around pylons. The soil zinc content, total and exchangeable, is determinates by different analytical procedures. The zinc diffusion in environment and the zinc extension under the top soil is evaluated using 1-dimensional mathematical model for miscible species in porous soil.     

Assessing health risk from benzene pollution in an urban area

A health hazard, specifically the leukaemia risk, is evaluatedfrom different sources of benzene exposure with relation to apopulation living in an urban area of Italy. The population exposure is calculated for a reference year by sexand lyfestyle, with respect to smokers and non smokers. Potentialhealth risk is therefore quantified by means of mathematicalmodels and the relative significance of the different sources is described. The results of the analysis are useful for the identification ofappropriate risk reduction strategies to minimize exposure, inparticular when resulting from lifestyle and personal activities.     

The effects of anthropogenic particulate emissions on roadway dust and Nerium oleander leaves in Messina (Sicily, Italy)

Complementary studies on the inorganic chemical composition of Nerium oleander leaves collected in the town of Messina (Sicily, Italy) and seven grain-size fractions of local roadway dust have been carried out. Data and maps are presented to show that the particulate matter present in the air of Messina contains trace elements significantly in excess with respect to the average continental earth crust. The anomalies follow the outline of the urban area, the highest concentrations of trace elements being observed where traffic density is highest. Chemical and isotopic analyses of both road dust and Nerium oleander leaves indicate that Pb contamination still characterizes roads with heavy traffic. In addition to Pb, other metals such as Pt, Pd, Sb, Au, Br, Zn, Cu, Mo, and Cd are significantly enriched in roadway dust, indicating their common anthropogenic origin, especially from traffic. SEM/EDS study of some roadway dust particles has shown the presence of gypsum probably of secondary origin, mixed particles formed by coagulation or gas-to-particle conversion, and porous spherical particles apparently emanating from combustion processes.     

Optimum Dose Of Lime And Fly Ash For Treatment Of Hexavalent Chromium–Contaminated Soil

The presence of hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), in soil is an environmental concern due to its effect on human health. The concern arises from the leaching and the seepage of Cr(VI) from soil to groundwater. In this paper, a stabilization technology to prevent this problem was simulated on an artificial soil contaminated with hexavalent chromium. The process is a physico-chemical treatment in which the toxic pollutant is physically entrapped within a solid matrix formed by the pozzolanic reactions of lime and fly ash to reduce its leachability and, therefore, its toxicity. This paper presents the optimum ratio of fly ash and lime in order to stabilize artificial soils contaminated with 0.4 wt.% of Cr (VI) in a brief term process. The degree of chromium released from the soil was evaluated using a modified Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) by US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Overall, experimental results showed reduced leachability of total and hexavalent chromium from soils treated with both fly ash and quicklime, and that leachability reduction was more effective with increasing amount of fly ash and quicklime. Stabilization percentages between 97.3% and 99.7% of the initial chromium content were achieved, with Cr(VI) concentration in the TCLP leachates below the US EPA limit for chromium of 5 mg/l. Adequate treatment was obtained after 1 day of curing with just 25% fly ash and 10% quicklime.     

Air quality biomonitoring through pollen viability of Fabaceae

In this study, pollen viability and germination of three plant species, Cercis siliquastrum L., Robinia pseudoacacia L., and Spartium junceum L., belonging to the Fabaceae family, was evaluated in sites with different intensity of road traffic, constantly monitored with continuous analysers for air pollutants (carbon monoxide (CO), sulphur dioxide (SO₂), and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)) by the Municipality of Catania. Two sites, in which road traffic was absent, were selected, too. The percentages of viable pollen by 2,3,5-trypheniltetrazolium chloride (TTC) test ranged from 59.0 to 90.2 % in C. siliquastrum, from 61.5 to 83.5 % in S. junceum and from 67.5 to 84.3 % in R. pseudoacacia. The percentages of germination varied from 41.0 to 72.7 % in C. siliquastrum, from 42.0 to 64.7 % in S. junceum and from 38.3 to 66.3 % in R. pseudoacacia. The highest percentages of viable pollens were found in no-road traffic stations by either TTC or germination tests, while the lowest values were detected in a site characterised by heavy road traffic. In the monitored period (2007–2009), pollen viability, germinability and tube length of C. siliquastrum resulted in a significant negative correlation to CO, SO₂ and NO₂, whereas data from TTC and germination tests on S. junceum and R. pseudoacacia pollens were not well correlated to air pollutants. The results showed that pollen viability, germination and tube growth in C. siliquastrum were affected by air pollution. S. junceum and R. pseudoacacia were not very influenced by air pollutants, suggesting a different pollen sensitivity of these species.