According to the experience of people with schizophrenia, their psychiatrists' attitude towards the outcome of their illness is lacking in hope, which directly affects mutual faith in treatment. Here we discuss the scientific basis of hope and show its instrumental role in optimising the best treatment strategies for schizophrenia.

Meat from lambs finished with high-starch diets often contains low concentration of vaccenic (t11-18:1) and rumenic (c9,t11-18:2) acids and high concentration of t10-18:1. We hypothesized that replacing cereals by dehydrated citrus pulp (DCP) and the inclusion of tanniferous feed sources in oil supplemented diets might reduce the accumulation of t10-18:1 and increase the t11-18:1 and c9,t11-18:2 in lamb meat, without affecting the productive performance. In total, 32 lambs were assigned to four diets which combine two factors: basal diet (BD) (cereals v. DCP) and Cistus ladanifer (CL) (0 v. 150 g/kg dry matter). Feed intake, average daily weight gain and carcass traits were not affected by treatments, except for dressing percentage that was reduced with DCP (P=0.046). Both DCP and C. ladanifer reduced tenderness and juiciness of meat, and C. ladanifer also reduced (P<0.001) meat overall acceptability. Intramuscular fat and the concentration of saturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (FA) were not affected (P>0.05) by diets. However, DCP increased the proportions of odd-chain FA (P=0.005) and several minor biohydrogenation (BH) intermediates in meat lipids. C. ladanifer had few effects on meat FA profile. The proportions of t11-18:1 and c9,t11-18:2 were high in all diets (5.4% and 1.5% of total FA, respectively) and were not influenced by the treatments. Basal diet and CL showed some significant interactions concerning FA composition of intramuscular fat. In diets without C. ladanifer, replacement of cereals by DCP increased the 18:0 (P<0.05) and decreased t10,c12-18:2 (P<0.05), t10-18:1 (P<0.10) and t10-/t11-18:1 ratio (P<0.10) with a large reduction of the individual variation for t10-18:1 and of t10-/t11-18:1 ratio. Combined with cereals, C. ladanifer increased 18:0 and reduced the BH intermediates in meat. Replacement of cereals by DCP seems to promote a more predictable FA profile in lamb meat, reducing the risk of t10-shifted BH pathways in the rumen.

Using evolutionary tracks computed by Alongi et al.(1991) for the two chemical compositions Z=0.020, Y=0.28 and Z=0.008, Y=0.25 we constructed theoretical isochrones from 20 · 109 yr to 3 · 106 yr.

Direct measures of luminosity functions, UV fluxes and colors of the hot stars that produce the UV turn–up in the SED of ellipticals and spiral bulges is the scientific goal of the HST observations presented here (see Bertola et al. 1995 for details). We concentrated our analysis on the hot stellar content of the M31 bulge. HST/FOC f/48 images were analyzed as observed (before the repair mission) through the F150W broad-band UV filter. We find that both individual stars and unresolved objects contribute to about 50% of the UV (1200-2450 Å) flux. Making use of the isochrones calculated by Bertelli et al. (1994) and Chiosi et al. (1994) together with the models of population synthesis presented by Bressan et al. (1994), we constructed theoretical CMDs to be compared with the CMD obtained by combining our F150W observations with the F175W observations of King et al. (1992). We conclude that the stars we resolved in M31 are classical P-AGB stars belonging to an old standard metallicity population. However, the P-EAGB and AGB-manqué stages as well as H-HB stars could be the source of the diffuse UV emission.

We analyze the HR diagram of LMC supergiant stars using a new set of evolutionary models for massive stars.

We present a scenario for the evolution of massive stars in which a new mixing mechanism (named global diffusion) is taken into account. This type of mixing stands on the critical Reynolds number and radiative viscosity (Schatzman 1977) and allows mixing of material to take place between the core and the surface during the whole evolution on a very slow time scale. The physical processes triggering global diffusion deserve further study. We find that stellar models of massive stars calculated with global diffusion offer interesting clues to understanding the properties of Wolf-Rayet stars and their location in the HRD.

Field #3 of the Palomar–Groningen survey (PG3) is thought to be ideal for the study of stellar evolution in the Galactic Bulge (GB). In this field the work of Plaut (1973) and Wesselink (1987) is extended with the aim of constructing a Color Magnitude Diagram (CMD) for a great many stars. This is done by means of automated photographic photometry.

Preliminary results are shown of our study on the metallicities and ages of the stellar populations present in different components along the line of sight to field #3 of the Palomar-Groningen Variable Star Survey (PG3) with synthetic Hertzsprung-Russell Diagrams (HRDs).

We present models of chemical and photometric evolution of galaxies. We show that the onset of the AGB phase at a few 108yr causes a sudden change in the infrared colours of the galaxy. However, this powerful indicator of the time of galaxy formation is wiped out by cosmological effects.

With classic models of stars, in which overshooting from convective cores is not taken into account, the transition mass, Mtr, separating stars which undergo core He-flash from stars which ignite He-burning nonviolently in a non degenerate core, is set around 2.2 M⊙ (Iben 1967) for Pop I chemical composition (X = 0.700, Z = 0.020). This value is known however to depend on the chemical abundances, being lower at increasing Y and decreasing Z (Wagner 1974; Sweigart and Gross 1978). However, in recent years many independent arguments have indicated that convective overshooting from the central cores may play an important role in stellar evoluion (Bertelli et al 1985). In order to assess the dependence of Mtr on overshooting, we have computed evolutionary sequences of 1.4 M⊙, 1.5 M⊙ and 1.6 M⊙ with chemical composition X = 0.700 and Z = 0.020 adopting the description of convective overshooting formulated by Bressan et al (1981) for their parameter λ = 1/Hp = 1. As shown in the Tc vs pc diagram of Fig 1, while the tracks of 1.4 M⊙ and 1.5 M⊙ stars deeply penetrate into the region of high degeneracy and likely undergo core He-flah, the 1.6 M⊙ star succeeds in igniting helium in non degenerate conditions. This means that the classic value of 2.2 M⊙ for Mtr is now lowered to the mass range 1.6 to 1.5 M⊙. The HR diagram of the 1.4 M⊙, 1.5 M⊙ and 1.6 M⊙ stars in presence of convective overshooting is shown in Fig 2. The region of stationary core He-burning for the 1.6 M⊙ and the extension of the red giant branches for the 1.4 M⊙ and 1.5 M⊙ stars are also indicated.

If the integrated colours of a star cluster mainly depend on chemical composition and age, then theoretical calibrations of colours as function of age for different chemical compositions are very useful to obtain quantitative determinations of the age and composition of individual clusters, and thus to trace the chemical history of nearby galaxies. Several calibration curves exist in the literature which rest on the standard theory of stellar evolution. However, a growing amount of observational evidence seems to indicate that overshooting from convective cores may be an important phenomenon in stellar evolution. In fact models computed with overshooting are significantly different from the standard ones. The aim of this preliminary investigation is to study the effects of convective overshooting on the integrated colours of clusters whose turnoff mass is in that range in which convective overshooting is effective.

If the integrated colours of a star cluster mainly depend on chemical composition and age, then theoretical calibrations of colours as function of age for different chemical compositions are very useful to obtain quantitative determinations of the age and composition of individual clusters, and thus to trace the chemical history of nearby galaxies. Several calibration curves exist in the literature which rest on the standard theory of stellar evolution. However, a growing amount of observational evidence seems to indicate that overshooting from convective cores may be an important phenomenon in stellar evolution. In fact models computed with overshooting are significantly different from the standard ones. The aim of this preliminary investigation is to study the effects of convective overshooting on the integrated colours of clusters whose turnoff mass is in that range in which convective overshooting is effective.

It is shown that a moderate increase in the opacity due to heavy elements in models of massive stars, incorporating convective overshoot and mass loss by stellar wind, can remove the well known discrepancy between theoretical expectation and observed frequencies of luminous stars in the HR diagram. These models in fact extend their main sequence band far beyond the classical limit.

In the recent years it has been generally accepted that seismic parameters add an important observational constraint for the study of stellar populations and galaxy evolution. Padova-Trieste (PARSEC) evolutionary tracks are widely used to characterise stellar objects and stellar populations. Stellar models at the base of these studies suffer from uncertainties and, more important, degeneracy among different input parameters: stellar mass, chemical composition, central chemical mixing, age, etc. Adding seismic properties to the classic parameters for stars at different evolutionary states, from the H main-sequence to the asymptotic giant branch, is a powerful tool to calibrate physical processes in stellar models, and hence to improve our interpretation of Galactic and extra-Galactic observations.

We show that a certain amount of non-local overshoot at the base of the outer convective envelop of low mass stars, while climbing along the RGB toward central He-ignition, explains the shift of about 0.4V mag required to bring the luminosity of the bump predicted in the theoretical RGB luminosity functions into agreement with the observational one.

We find that a certain amount of non-local overshoot at the base of the outer convective envelope affects the evolution of intermediate mass stars in the H-R diagram, producing extended loops even for models computed with significant overshoot from the central convective core, improving in this way upon a weak point of models with core overshoot.

Stellar evolution can nowadays be modelled with a high degree of accuracy and completeness up to the most advanced stages. However in spite of the progresses, complex physical processes exist that still suffer of large uncertainties even in the most placid evolutionary phases. The straightforward drawback is that models lose their predictive power and this is particularly critical for stellar population synthesis. Here I will focus on one of such processes, convective mixing, and briefly review potentially helpful observational tests to decipher its efficiency during the main nuclear burning phases of intermediate mass stars.

We present a new database of alpha enhanced evolutionary tracks and isochrones, computed with PARSEC (the PAdova & TRieste Stellar Evolution Code). The new isochrones are tested against Color-Magnitude Diagrams of well studied Globular Clusters, tacking into account multiple population effects. They are also compared with observations of dwarf stars in the Solar vicinity. After these preliminary computations, we will provide the full sets of isochrones with chemical compositions suitable for Globular Clusters and Bulge stars, that will be fully implemented into galaxy simulators. We will also provide new models suitable for the analysis of unresolved stellar populations in early type galaxies.