A brief exploration of neurological art history

The invention of realistic portraiture to reveal "inner life" is attributed by some art historians to Jan van Eyck who worked in Flanders from 1420 onwards. We show, using clinical neurological examination of the gold mask of Agamemnon dating from 1550-1500 BC and of the portraits of Henry III and his son Edward I -- important English royals -- painted between 1216 and 1307, that realistic portraits were made well before the 15th Century. Thus artists unwittingly used neurology as part of their realistic approach to the presentation of the face. Because neurological diagnosis is often visual, neurology, in turn, has a rich potential to unveil examples of realism in art. We consider the art pieces examined here also pertinent to art historians, as they assess the role of art in documenting history.     

The changing definition of China in middle school history textbooks

Inspired by the dichotomous understanding of nationhood contributed by Brubaker (1992), this paper explores how Chinese nationhood is constituted by particular symbols in middle school historiography since the 1950s. In response to the analysis on the high school textbooks done by Baranovitch (2000), this study finds that the narratives in the middle school history textbooks have a similar transition from equating China to Han to defining China as a multi‐ethnic nation. However, the analysis also demonstrates that the transition of the middle school history textbooks is not as complete and absolute as that of their high school counterparts. A textbook may follow different principles in nationhood configuration simultaneously. In the textbook narratives before the change, the jus sanguinis logic was dominant over the jus soli logic; in those in the textbooks after the change, Chinese nationhood was constituted by the jus soli principle and the jus sanguinis principle complementarily. This study questions the perception that a nation only consistently follows one philosophy in the symbolic consolidation of nationhood, and casts doubt on the understanding that jus sanguinis or jus soli logic is deeply rooted in the historical development of a nation and cannot change.     

初中历史教学创新面面观

教学创新是现代教学发展的必然趋势,运用新的教学手段和理念,培养学生的创新能力,是初中历史教学创新的客观要求。为了适应历史教学新形势的需要,必须遵照新课标下的历史教学要求,创新历史教学原则、教学理念、教学手段等等。     

The history of the neurological examination. Part 1: ancient and pre-modern history--3000 BC to AD 1850

Every time a physician conducts a neurological examination the process continues a biomedical search for understanding the nervous system which is as ancient as the earliest civilizations in human history. Most of the modern neurological examination evolved in a short time span, between 1850 and 1914, but the origins of neurology as a medical quest for knowledge date to the first evolution of urban life, in the valleys of the Euphrates and the Nile. This paper reviews this history in two chronological segments: part 1 up to 1850 and part 2 the subsequent period.     

初中历史教学如何体现艺术性

科学的、适当的教学方法,是新的教育教学理念的具体体现,是达成教学目标的具体途径。教师应在充分掌握本学科特点的基础上,使学生自觉的、多方面捕获历史信息,增强学生的兴趣和提高学生的积极性,形成健全的人格和健康的审美情趣,为树立正确的世界观、人生观和价值观打下良好的基础。     

The history of neurosonology

A multitude of nonpharmacological interventions to terminate hiccup belong to the public-domain hiccup “mythology” or have been described in the medical literature as case reports. While usually effective in terminating bouts of acute hiccup, they are mostly ineffective in cases of hiccupping that have been present for an extended period. The common denominator of most of these therapeutic maneuvers (some also used to terminate paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia) is their ability to directly or indirectly increase efferent vagal activity. Among the best known “vagal maneuvers” are the oculo-cardiac reflex (Dagnini-Aschner), the carotid sinus massage, the Valsalva maneuver, stimulation of the ear/auditory canal, ice ingestion, and induction of emesis. This short report provides an overview on hiccups and attempts to identify the lesser known personalities who pioneered its treatment by vagal maneuvers. The recent introduction of electrical vagus nerve stimulation for therapy-resistant hiccup is the ultimate compliment to these pioneers.     

The non-graded elementary school

The history of education in a number of industrialized countries during the first part of the 20th century testifies to the political will behind school centralization and the closure of small and non-graded rural elementary schools. A closer examination shows that school centralization throughout these countries can be associated with the development of a more unified educational system and that a unified school system is in turn seen as a political tool for the advancement of social welfare. In particular, this article discusses the development of the Norwegian non-graded elementary school. It examines the nature and the effects of the applied policies, and analyses the rationales – both political and educational – behind political decisions on education. The overall conclusions can be linked to and complement international research in this area.     

Women's history and gender history: The Italian experience

Since the early nineteenth century political opposition became a central concept of political representation in constitutional monarchies. While this concept marked the political language of unified Italy on the national level, in local administration the legitimacy of political opposition remained an issue of dispute, as illustrated in this analysis of the political language in Bologna's city council. Local perceptions of national events, like Garibaldi's unsuccessful Mentana-campaign, assumed a significant symbolic meaning and challenged traditional understandings of local administration by introducing notions of political opposition. In Bologna, the second city of the former Papal State, the Moderates were able to form a political hegemony after the Unification of Italy and remained the predominant political force also after the parliamentary revolution of 1876 and the electoral reforms of the 1880s. Due to its limited influence on the local administration, Bologna's Left defined its ideological profile earlier and more clearly than the Left in other parts of Italy and integrated issues of national importance into local political discourse. Illustrating the relationship between central administration and the periphery, the article analyses the development of political language and changing meanings of political representation on the local level between Unification and World War One.