Spatio-Temporal Image-Based Encoded Atlases for EEG Emotion Recognition

Emotion recognition plays an essential role in human-human interaction since it is a key to understanding the emotional states and reactions of human beings when they are subject to events and engagements in everyday life. Moving towards human-computer interaction, the study of emotions becomes fundamental because it is at the basis of the design of advanced systems to support a broad spectrum of application areas, including forensic, rehabilitative, educational, and many others. An effective method for discriminating emotions is based on ElectroEncephaloGraphy (EEG) data analysis, which is used as input for classification systems. Collecting brain signals on several channels and for a wide range of emotions produces cumbersome datasets that are hard to manage, transmit, and use in varied applications. In this context, the paper introduces the Empátheia system, which explores a different EEG representation by encoding EEG signals into images prior to their classification. In particular, the proposed system extracts spatio-temporal image encodings, or atlases, from EEG data through the Processing and transfeR of Interaction States and Mappings through Image-based eNcoding (PRISMIN) framework, thus obtaining a compact representation of the input signals. The atlases are then classified through the Empátheia architecture, which comprises branches based on convolutional, recurrent, and transformer models designed and tuned to capture the spatial and temporal aspects of emotions. Extensive experiments were conducted on the Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) Emotion EEG Dataset (SEED) public dataset, where the proposed system significantly reduced its size while retaining high performance. The results obtained highlight the effectiveness of the proposed approach and suggest new avenues for data representation in emotion recognition from EEG signals

Vernalization affects the germination performance of the wetland endangered species Eleocharis carniolica

Eleocharis carniolica W.D.J. Koch (Cyperaceae) is an endangered wetland spike rush mainly threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation. Understanding the germination ecology of this species is essential to perform successful conservation and restoration actions. In this study, we investigated the effect of vernalization (i.e. cold stratification), gibberellic acid (GA3) and chemical scarification on seed germination of E. carniolica from wild populations in northern Italy. The results showed that vernalization (i.e. 8-weeks at 4 °C) significantly improved germination probability, speed, and uniformity compared to non-stratified seeds. Gibberellic acid treatment alone or in combination with vernalization did not show a significant improvement in germination. Chemical scarification using sodium hypochlorite increased germination probability, with 8 h of scarification showing the highest success rate. However, 24-h scarification had a negative impact on germination. Overall, vernalization was found to be the most effective method to enhance germination in E. carniolica. These findings provide valuable insights into the seed germination ecology of this endangered species, aiding in its exsitu conservation, propagation, and in-situ restoration efforts. Moreover, they have important implications on future germination dynamics of this endangered species, especially with predicted climate change scenarios

Reinterpreting Low Resistance in Sb–MoS2_\text{2} Ohmic Contacts by Means of Ab Initio Transport Simulations

By using an in-house nonequilibrium Green’s function (NEGF)-based ab initio simulator, we investigate the physical mechanisms driving the Sb(0112)–MoS2 system to exhibit the lowest reported contact resistance, RC =42 Ω·μm, to the 2-D semiconductor MoS2. We can find that the transport from the hybridized bands in the Sb–MoS2 heterojunction is quite ineffective and that the back-gateinduced doping of MoS2 in the contact region is crucial to explain the experiments. In fact, by accounting in our ab initio simulations for the presence of a back gate according to the experiments, it is possible to match the band structure of the MoS2 in the Sb–MoS2 heterojunction with that of the external MoS2 layer, which drastically increases the electronic transmission throughout the contact, and ultimately pushes RC close to the quantum limit. Furthermore, we extend the applicability of our previously demonstrated simulation methodology and thus investigate a field-effect transistors (FETs)-like device including an ab initio description of the carrier injection at the Sb–MoS2 contac

Pediatric kidney transplantation: is it safe to perform during night-time or day-off?

Purpose: To investigate the impact of after-hours surgery on the outcomes of pediatric kidney transplantation (KT). Methods: Medical records of pediatric KTs performed at a single institution between 2013 and 2021 were retrospectively reviewed. The population was split into three groups according to the incision time and calendar: ordinary day (8.00 AM – 6.30 PM), day-off, and night-time (6.30 PM – 8.00 AM). The following endpoints were compared: ischemia times, length of surgery, complications, delayed graft function (DGF), primary graft non-function (PGNF), and eGFR at three-month follow-up. Results: Ninety-six non-living donor KTs were performed, median age 11 (IQR 4.3–14) years and median body weight 26 (IQR 13–50) kg. Forty-one (43%) were performed during night-time and 28 (29%) during day-off. Ischemia times were similar (p = 0.769, p = 0.536). Day-off KTs presented an extended length of surgery (p = 0.011). Thirty-two complications were reported in 31 KTs. No difference in the overall rate of complications, DGF, PNGF, and three-month eGFR was found (p = 0.669, p = 0.383, p = 0.949, p = 0.093). Post-operative bleedings were more common in days-off (p = 0.003). Conclusion: The number of pediatric KTs performed during after-hours was considerable. Even though similar outcomes were reported, more caution should be focused on the KTs performed in days-off to avoid severe complications

Combining image and point cloud segmentation to improve heritage understanding

Current 2D and 3D semantic segmentation frameworks are developed and trained on specific benchmark datasets, often rich of synthetic data, and when they are applied to complex and real-world heritage scenarios they offer much lower accuracy than expected. In this work, we present and demonstrate an early and late fusion of methods for semantic segmentation in cultural heritage applications. We rely on image datasets, point clouds and BIM models. The early fusion utilizes multi-view rendering to generate RGBD imagery of the scene. In contrast, the late fusion approach merges image-based segmentation with a Point Transformer applied to point clouds. Two scenarios are considered and inference results show that predictions are primarily influenced by whether the scene has a predominantly geometric or texture-based signature, underscoring the necessity of fusion methods

La favola ‘passata in istoria’: da La Fontaine a Crudeli a Gatteschi

L’articolo si concentra sulle traduzioni in versi delle "Fables" di La Fontaine da parte di Tommaso Crudeli, il poeta di Poppi che per la sua apertura intellettuale fu l’ultima vittima dell’Inquisizione fiorentina. Le traduzioni crudeliane, che risalgono al periodo successivo alla liberazione dalle carceri del Sant’U√zio, pur nella fedeltà al testo originale, alludono a quella vicenda biografica: in particolare, la traduzione di "Le Chat, la Belette et le petit Lapin", che indirizza la polemica contro l’Inquisitore e l’ingiustizia subita. La traduzione di Crudeli fu poi il modello per Angelo Gatteschi, anch’egli poeta e tra i primissimi imitatori di La Fontaine. Nei suoi apologhi egli riprende da Crudeli tessere linguistiche e, soprattutto, nella "Galliceide" riutilizza l’emblematica figura del ‘dottor Mordigraffiante’, punito alfine con la morte dal capo della Reggenza toscana

Architetture proattive

Se d’argento è la società che ci attende, cominciamo già oggi a lucidare il nostro patrimonio edilizio, è molto, ma pare ancora troppo arrugginito

Attorno al monumento in ricordo di Roberto Franceschi. Metafora, invenzione strutturale e funzionalità nel dibattito della cultura militante di metà anni Settanta

Il presente contributo si propone di analizzare gli eventi che portarono alla scelta di un maglio industriale quale monumento in ricordo di Roberto Franceschi, studente bocconiano militante del Movimento Studentesco ucciso durante una manifestazione nel 1973. Nel dibattito sorto attorno alla scelta dell'oggetto si confrontarono prospettive culturali antitetiche: da una parte i membri del Movimento Studentesco - supportati anche da una serie di artisti, come Alik Cavaliere - che avrebbero voluto ricordare Franceschi con una scultura di ispirazione realista, dall'altra i "progettisti", tra cui spiccava Enzo Mari, che avrebbero voluto commemorare il giovane attraverso una metaforizzazione dei contenuti cari alla cultura comunista e studentesca di metà anni Settanta: il lavoro e lo studio. Il distacco del monumento dedicato a Franceschi rispetto ai classici attributi di una scultura di stampo realista risulta evidente dal confronto con un altro monumento dedicato negli stessi anni a due "martiri" della Nuova Sinistra, la stele bronzea dedicata a Giannino Zibecchi e Claudio Varalli dallo scultore Nicola Neonato

Preserving the grape-associated microbiota to improve the hologenome plasticity and adaptability to climate change

Plants’ genetic improvement has been exploited for a long time as an important approach to cope with environmental stresses (both biotic and abiotic) or to improve traits useful for human needs. As a shortcoming of the incessant selection of genomic plant traits, and the considerable number of inputs needed to sustain the selected genotypes, nowadays a negative impact on the biodiversity of the plant-associated microbes can be observed. It is worth noting that these microbes represent an extended plant genome, termed as the hologenome, which can play a pivotal role in plant adaptation to several stresses. In recent years, many researchers have increasingly focused their attention on the isolation, characterization, and preservation of plant-associated microbes (termed as the holobiont). In this context a publicly available repository of grapevine-associated microbes has been established with the aim of preserving the microbial biodiversity and exploit such arsenal to improve viticulture sustainability and resilience. To reach such objective, we attempted the manipulation of the holobiont/hologenome through the development of tailored synthetic microbial communities (SynComs). Specifically, a collection of endophytic bacterial isolates obtained from grapevine woody tissues has been exploited to produce an ad-hoc inoculum comprising potential biological control agents to counteract the esca syndrome. Employing a comprehensive approach that integrates molecular, biochemical, and eco-physiological assessments, we demonstrated that SynCom treatment influenced the trade-off between plant growth and defence features. Plants inoculated with SynComs redirected their energy allocation towards defence pathways, thereby affecting their physiological performance. Our findings suggest that a holistic approach considering both the attributes of the bacteria and their impacts on plant growth and defence mechanisms can unveil the intricate mechanisms underlying plantendophyte interactions. Despite the enormous potential of SynComs, important information is still lacking, and it is crucial to shed light on the ‘dark-side effects’ of SynCom applications with the aim to harness their potential with a refined awareness