Thermo-formation process of plastic shells for winter sport boots for improved comfort

We have performed a study on the thermo-formation process of plastic shells of boots for winter sports. The aim of the work has been to determine how the process parameters can improve the ergonomic and thermal comfort for athletes and winter sports participants. We have found that the initial deformation and memory effect are strongly influenced by the type of thermoplastic material used, heating time and cooling procedure. We have also found that the ovens currently used for this process are not correctly designed to obtain an efficient heat transfer and, therefore, a heating time of at least 12 min is necessary to achieve an average deformation of more than 2 mm. The measure of the boot flexural stiffness has shown that there are no changes in the load–deflection behavior after the thermo-formation process of a ski boot made of thermoplastic polyurethane. We have also found that the thermo-formation process decreases the pressure on skier’s feet of more than five times and, therefore, improves the comfort of the skier.     

Measuring ICT Use and Learning Outcomes: evidence from recent econometric studies

Based on PISA 2009 data, this article studies the relationship between students’ computer use and their achievement in reading, mathematics and science in 23 countries. After having categorised computer use into a set of different activities according to the skills they involve, we correlate students’ PISA test-scores with an index capturing the intensity of use for each of these activities and with the total number of activities they perform. Overall, we find that students’ PISA test scores in reading, mathematics and science increase with the intensity of computer use for Gaming activities while they decrease with the intensity of computer use for activities that are more related with school curricula (i.e. Communication and Collaboration activities; Technical Operations/Info Retrieval activities; Creation of Content and Knowledge Problem Solving activities). However, the number of activities (and hence the diversification of activities), irrespective of the intensity of computer use, is positively correlated with students’ proficiency in all three PISA domains in the vast majority of countries, indicating that computers breadth of use, as opposed to intensity of use in a given activity, has some positive effect on students’ PISA test scores.     

Long term narrative training can enhance cognitive performances in patients living with cognitive decline

Listening to narrative material stimulates and activates multiple areas in the cerebral cortex. It has been shown that such activations produce significant changes in the connectivity of the brain. In literature, findings have shown that in pathological aging (i.e., cognitive decline) patients who underwent a daily narrative training showed some improvements in many psychological and cognitive aspects. Here we aim to investigate the effect of a narrative cognitive training in patients living in a nursing home, by testing them with a neuropsychological battery (RBANS – Randolph, 1998) before and during the training, after 40 days and then after 30 days from the beginning. Results were compared to a control group of patients and showed a significant increase in performances of the experimental group in different cognitive performances. This suggest that these types of trainings could be implemented as an effective non-pharmacological treatment for cognitive decline in the elderly.     

Physiological intensity profile,exercise load and performance predictors of a 65-km mountain ultra-marathon

The aims of the study were to describe the physiological profile of a 65-km (4000-m cumulative elevation gain) running mountain ultra-marathon (MUM) and to identify predictors of MUM performance. Twenty-three amateur trail-runners performed anthropometric evaluations and an uphill graded exercise test (GXT) for VO_2max, ventilatory thresholds (VTs), power outputs (PMax, PVTs) and heart rate response (HRmax, HR@VTs). Heart rate (HR) was monitored during the race and intensity was expressed as: Zone I (VT2) for exercise load calculation (training impulse, TRIMP). Mean race intensity was 77.1%±4.4% of HRmax distributed as: 85.7%±19.4% Zone I, 13.9%±18.6% Zone II, 0.4%±0.9% Zone III. Exercise load was 766±110 TRIMP units. Race time (11.8±1.6h) was negatively correlated with VO_2max (r = ?0.66, P <0.001) and PMax (r = ?0.73, P <0.001), resulting these variables determinant in predicting MUM performance, whereas exercise thresholds did not improve performance prediction. Laboratory variables explained only 59% of race time variance, underlining the multi-factorial character of MUM performance. Our results support the idea that VT1 represents a boundary of tolerable intensity in this kind of events, where exercise load is extremely high. This information can be helpful in identifying optimal pacing strategies to complete such extremely demanding MUMs.     

The F3-index. Valuing reviewers for scholarly journals

This paper presents an index that measures reviewer contribution to editorial processes of scholarly journals. Following a metaphor of ranking algorithms in sports tournaments, we created an index that considers reviewers on different context-specific dimensions, i.e., report delivery time, the length of the report and the alignment of recommendations to editorial decisions. To test the index, we used a dataset of peer review in a multi-disciplinary journal, including 544 reviewers on 606 submissions in six years. Although limited by sample size, the test showed that the index identifies outstanding contributors and weak performing reviewers efficiently. Our index is flexible, contemplates extensions and could be incorporated into available scholarly journal management tools. It can assist editors in rewarding high performing reviewers and managing editorial turnover.