The Friulian language in education in Italy. 2nd Edition

The Italian State approved Law 482/1999 to protect the many historical linguistic minorities that are present in its territory, including Friulian. Despite emphasising Italian as the official language of the Italian Republic, the law requires the teaching of minority languages in schools, among other provisions. Based on this State Law, the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia passed Regional Law 29/2007, which governs the presence of Friulian in education. Following a challenging law-making process, which saw the State Government firmly oppose the introduction of Friulian as a default educational offer, this Regional Law stipulates that the language should be offered as an optional subject for at least 30 hours per year in kindergartens, primary schools, and lower secondary schools in the Friulian-speaking territory (closely corresponding to the former provinces of Udine, Pordenone, and Gorizia). However, the extent of Friulian class atten- dance varies across educational levels and provinces. While over 80% of kindergarten pupils in the area of Udine attend Friulian classes, the percentage drops to below 20% in primary schools in the former province of Pordenone and falls to zero in lower secondary schools in the territory of Gorizia. Research on the use of Friulian in education began in the late 1970s. Since then, it has been continued by the University of Udine, which is the main and only university in the Friulian-speaking territory, as well as by other entities, such as the Friulian Philological Society. Although a noteworthy development occurred in 2016, when a specific curriculum for the initial training of teachers of Friulian was inaugurated in the MA programme in Primary Teacher Education at the University of Udine, Friulian has limited presence at university. Apart from that curriculum and a few other linguistics, philology, and literature courses, which generally have low enrolment numbers, there are no other programmes that teach Friulian or use it as a language of instruction. Prospects for Friulian in Italy Today’s situation of Friulian in schools is far from ideal. There is a need for political will and more concrete commitments to ensure that schools in the Friulian-speaking territory utilise their autonomy and grant Friulian a worthier place in their educational offers. This change would reverse the current trend where many centres in the former provinces of Udine, Pordenone, and Gorizia do not offer Friulian to their pupils. It would be a welcome step for the Regional Government of the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, as well as the Governments of other Italian Regions where minority languages are present, to demand that the central State complete the ratification process and adopt the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. This would better protect Friulian and ensure its survival into the future

Sfinge (Eugenia Codronchi Argeli), La costola di Adamo

Riedizione del romanzo "La costola di Adamo", di Eugenia Codronchi Argeli, opera del 1918, corredato di un saggio introduttivo e di un apparato biobliografico conclusivo. Quest'ultimo è a cura di J. Simonini e di A. De Gasperis, mentre il saggio è a cura di J. Simonini

Global patterns and environmental drivers of forest functional composition

AimTo determine the relationships between the functional trait composition of forest communities and environmental gradients across scales and biomes and the role of species relative abundances in these relationships.LocationGlobal.Time periodRecent.Major taxa studiedTrees.MethodsWe integrated species abundance records from worldwide forest inventories and associated functional traits (wood density, specific leaf area and seed mass) to obtain a data set of 99,953 to 149,285 plots (depending on the trait) spanning all forested continents. We computed community-weighted and unweighted means of trait values for each plot and related them to three broad environmental gradients and their interactions (energy availability, precipitation and soil properties) at two scales (global and biomes).ResultsOur models explained up to 60% of the variance in trait distribution. At global scale, the energy gradient had the strongest influence on traits. However, within-biome models revealed different relationships among biomes. Notably, the functional composition of tropical forests was more influenced by precipitation and soil properties than energy availability, whereas temperate forests showed the opposite pattern. Depending on the trait studied, response to gradients was more variable and proportionally weaker in boreal forests. Community unweighted means were better predicted than weighted means for almost all models.Main conclusionsWorldwide, trees require a large amount of energy (following latitude) to produce dense wood and seeds, while leaves with large surface to weight ratios are concentrated in temperate forests. However, patterns of functional composition within-biome differ from global patterns due to biome specificities such as the presence of conifers or unique combinations of climatic and soil properties. We recommend assessing the sensitivity of tree functional traits to environmental changes in their geographic context. Furthermore, at a given site, the distribution of tree functional traits appears to be driven more by species presence than species abundance

Characterization of DC performance and low-frequency noise of an array of nMOS Forksheets from 300 K to 4 K

The DC and low-frequency noise performance of an array of 800 parallel Forksheet MOSFETs were investigated by performing measurements over a wide temperature range from 300 K to 4 K. The array structure allowed to measure a representative average performance of the devices and provided a large effective area for 1/f noise analysis. Results showed an improvement in the saturation drain current when going from room temperature to cryogenic temperatures, with the subthreshold swing saturating around 100 K and the threshold voltage shifting by approximately 150 mV, following similar trends observed in Silicon cryogenic electronics. Additionally, the study confirms that the noise at cryogenic temperatures does not follow the commonly assumed linear scaling with temperature. This deviation from the linear scaling has been associated with the presence of tail states at the interface in bulk and silicon-on-insulator (SOI) devices. These results suggest that the excess 1/f noise in this advanced device architecture is not related to the device architecture but rather to the microscopic material properties of semiconductor/dielectric interfaces

Continuità assistenziale: un case-report su Neisseria meningitidis nel distretto sanitario di Grado (Gorizia) [Out-of-hours General Practice: a case-report about Neisseria meningitidis in the health district of Grado (Gorizia), Italy]

Neisseria meningitidis causes life-threatening invasive diseases, such as sepsis, pneumonia, and meningitis. In Italy, as in many other countries, despite vaccination programs, the misdiagnosis of meningococcal infections and the persistence of vaccination hesitancy and of unvaccinated people can lead to possible epidemics. Following the CARE Guidelines, this case-report describes a young woman presented with fever and a strange rash to the General Practice out-of-hours in the island of Grado (Gorizia - Italy), lately recognized as Neisseria meningitidis infection. After a prompt evaluation, she was referred to a central hospital for correct diagnosis and treatment. Study and management of the case and its close-contacts was also carried out by the Prevention Department to provide prophylaxis. The Italian Ooh service is active every night, weekend and on holidays, representing an aid to limit improper access to the Emergency Department, but especially in rural areas, patients with urgent conditions also mainly go to the Ooh, first or alternatively to reach a hospital equipped with ER. The presented case underlines the fundamental role played by Ooh in the timely identification of a meningococcal infection in a patient presenting with non-neurological symptoms, making the correct referral to the specialist department of the nearest central hospital. It is essential to conduct a detailed medical history, even by telephone, and carry out a visit to evaluate the opportunity for hospital admission, especially to achieve early identification of life-threatening communicable diseases. It is also important that medical training, even after graduation, emphasizes the importance of maintaining awareness and making rapid recognition of the key symptoms of these conditions, although rare

How To Report the Minor Component of a High-grade Pattern in Radical Prostatectomy Specimens: Time To Abandon the “Tertiary” Terminology?

: The International Society of Urological Pathology and Genitourinary Pathology Society differ in their recommendations for reporting of minor components of high-grade pattern in prostatectomy specimens. This can affect the grade group assigned, particularly when there are only two Gleason patterns in a cancer nodule. We therefore argue that the term "tertiary" should be changed to "minor" component

Geografie d'acqua: paesaggi ibridi

I fiumi entrano nel radar della nostra vita, mediatica e materiale, soprattutto in occasione delle loro estreme manifestazioni di assenza (siccità) e presenza (inondazioni). Queste polarità permettono di comprendere come le geografie d’acqua possano essere identificate sia come 'fasce di conflittualità' che come 'laboratori concettuali e politici' in cui individuare le dinamiche più generali che caratterizzano contesti territoriali a diversa scala. Nell’ampio palinsesto di cambiamenti climatici, sociali, culturali, spaziali o politici, l’acqua rappresenta una possibile lente attraverso la quale studiare l’instabilità e la policronicità dei territori e dei suoi abitanti (umani e non). Proprio per questo diventa fondamentale apprezzare l’assetto dell’idrografia in quanto grande assemblaggio tecnico, un 'ibrido paesaggistico' in cui la trasformazione della natura non è un’eccezione, bensì la regola. Indagare questa potenziale conflittualità in relazione alla trasformazione fa sì che questa non diventi solo strumento di controllo, ma di dialogo per raggiungere un efficace connubio tra società e idraulica

Botulinum toxin type A improves pain in numb chin syndrome

Numb chin syndrome is a rare pain disorder characterized by decreased sensation and paresthesia in the territory of the mental nerve. Neuropathic pain is sometimes described in this setting, and the most common treatments include oral analgesics, gabapentinoids, and carbamazepine; however, botulinum toxin type A has never been used in this setting. We describe a case of bilateral numb chin syndrome, secondary to Burkitt lymphoma, associated with refractory and persistent burning neuropathic pain, effectively treated twelve times with subcutaneous Botulinum toxin type A (BoNT/A) injections. The procedure was well tolerated, but the patient reported incomplete mouth closure of minimal entity. BoNT/A could be a safe and effective therapy for neuropathic pain associated with numb chin syndrome