Methods to estimate the circular economy rebound effect: A review

The transition to a circular economy can be undermined by rebound effects, which could mean secondary production does not fully displace virgin raw materials. So called ‘circular economy rebound’ is under examined in the academic literature and thus requires greater attention if it is to be successfully estimated and mitigated by decision and policy makers. Accordingly, this paper undertakes a systematic review of the methods that have been deployed to measure rebound effects of all types and identifies those quantitative tools that have yet to be utilised in the nascent area of circular economy rebound but which could have application in this context. In so doing, the paper also reflects on the data needs of different methods, as well as the magnitude of the different rebounds identified and potential mitigating strategies. Findings suggest clear research gaps within the rebound literature and identify areas in which estimation of the circular economy rebound specifically could benefit from this wider body of work on rebound assessment

Sustainability In Safety: Evaluating Passive Safety Components Through Life Cycle Assessment

In recent years, growing concerns for environmental sustainability and workplace health and safety, as emphasized in the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations, have become increasingly prominent. This paper delves into the environmental impact assessment of passive safety devices for machine tools, aligning with international standards. Through a detailed Life Cycle Assessment, we analyse two distinct passive protective devices: a fixed fairing tailored for parallel CNC lathes and a perimeter fairing for large-size milling machines. The findings highlight steel as the predominant contributor to various environmental impact categories, showing its significant role in environmental damage. Consequently, the main way for enhancing the environmental sustainability of machine tool passive protective devices lies in minimizing and substituting, whenever feasible, the use of steel with less environmentally harmful materials

La comunità educante come percorso d'infrastrutturazione sociale. Uno studio di caso multiplo per la valutazione d'impatto

L’infrastrutturazione sociale e le strategie di rivitalizzazione delle capacità protettive e promozionali delle “comunità” sono al centro delle riflessioni sulle pratiche e sulle architetture locali del welfare. Anche nel dibattito sul contrasto alla povertà educativa si è fatta strada una strategia d’intervento, quella della “comunità educante”, che vede nel contesto comunitario e nella collaborazione tra attori con competenze diverse i mezzi per favorire l’inclusione socio-educativa dei minori. Il volume sviluppa una proposta innovativa d’analisi e valutazione dell’impatto di strategie in cui il concetto di comunità educante riveste il ruolo sia di modello organizzativo sia di obiettivo “da costruire”

I soggetti

Il documento comprende la trattazione del profilo soggettivo nell'ambito del contratto di assicurazione.The paper is making a focus on the insurance companies and insured people through the particular contract law

Edge HPC Architectures for AI-Based Video Surveillance Applications

The introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) in video surveillance systems has significantly transformed security practices, allowing for autonomous monitoring and real-time detection of threats. However, the effectiveness and efficiency of AI-powered surveillance rely heavily on the hardware infrastructure, specifically high-performance computing (HPC) architectures. This article examines the impact of different platforms for HPC edge servers, including x86 and ARM CPU-based systems and Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), on the speed and accuracy of video processing tasks. By using advanced deep learning frameworks, a video surveillance system based on YOLO object detection and DeepSort tracking algorithms is developed and evaluated. This study thoroughly assesses the strengths, limitations, and suitability of different hardware architectures for various AI-based surveillance scenarios

Evaluation of the Therapeutic Effects of Harmine on Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer Cells

Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) is an extremely difficult disease to tackle, with an overall patient survival of only a few months. The currently used therapeutic drugs, such as kinase inhibitors or immune checkpoint inhibitors, can prolong patient survival but fail to eradicate the tumor. In addition, the onset of drug resistance and adverse side-effects over time drastically reduce the chances of treatment. We recently showed that Twist1, a transcription factor involved in the epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT), was strongly upregulated in ATC, and we wondered whether it might represent a therapeutic target in ATC patients. To investigate this hypothesis, the effects of harmine, a B-carboline alkaloid shown to induce degradation of the Twist1 protein and to possess antitumoral activity in different cancer types, were evaluated on two ATC-derived cell lines, BHT-101 and CAL-62. The results obtained demonstrated that, in both cell lines, harmine reduced the level of Twist1 protein and reverted the EMT, as suggested by the augmentation of E-cadherin and decrease in fibronectin expression. The drug also inhibited cell proliferation and migration in a dose-dependent manner and significantly reduced the anchorage-independent growth of both ATC cell lines. Harmine was also capable of inducing apoptosis in BHT-101 cells, but not in CAL-62 ones. Finally, the activation of PI3K/Akt signaling, but not that of the MAPK, was drastically reduced in treated cells. Overall, these in vitro data suggest that harmine could represent a new therapeutic option for ATC treatment

The impact of banks’ climate engagement on systemic risk. Does committing a little or a lot make a difference?

We investigate the relationship between climate change commitment and systemic risk using a sample of 211 international banks over the period 2011–2020. We hypothesize that banks that are more committed to climate change, which is measured by a score scale provided by the Carbon Disclosure Project, contribute less to systemic risk. Furthermore, we expect that banks that slip into the lowest score category by not even providing sufficient information on their climate change activity (“worst rating”), and banks that reduce their commitment along the climate change score scale will increase their exposure to systemic risk (“downgrade” effect). The results confirm all our hypotheses. Banks’ commitment to climate change is an important driver of systemic risk, and the level of this commitment also matters. We demonstrate the effectiveness of climate change management in reducing a bank’s contribution to the overall financial crisis and thereby increasing financial stability. Our study confirms the importance of the efforts to combat climate change for the benefit of financial stability

'Blossoms and flowers, in laughing plenty': La Toscana nella narrativa di Mary Shelley

Mary Shelley loved Italy, the country where she resided for more than five years (from 30 March 1818 to 25 July 1823), after having fled England with her husband, who left unpaid debts behind him. Tuscany is where the couple lived longest, and the region figures prominently in Mary’s fiction. Referring, occasionally, to the author’s letters and journals, and Percy Bysshe Shelley’s poetry and letters, my article intends to explore the various forms such a presence assumes in a selection of works, namely, the novel Valperga (1823), the narrative essay “Recollections of Italy” (1824) and the story “A tale of the Passions” (1823). From this survey, it will emerge how Tuscany is present with its landscapes, its topography, its climate, its language, its literary tradition, its customs, its folklore and the daily life of the common people