Sequential evacuation strategy for multiple rooms toward the same means of egress

This paper examines different evacuation strategies for systems where several rooms evacuate trough the same means of egress, using microscopic pedestrian simulation.As a case study, a medium-rise office building is considered. It was found that the standard strategy, whereby the simultaneous evacuation of all levels is performed, can be improved by a sequential evacuation, beginning with the lowest floor and continuing successively with each one of the upper floors after a certain delay. The importance of the present research is that it provides the basis for the design and implementation of new evacuation strategies and alarm systems that could significantly improve the evacuation of multiple rooms trough a common means of escape.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure

Dual-use Molecules from Yeast

This year the OPCW, the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, celebrates the 20th anniversary of entry into forces. In 2014, this organization examined the impact of new technologies in the field of chemical and biological weapons, in particular the “Convergence” of Chemistry and Biology. An OPCW report of the Scientific Advisory Group highlighted the importance of monitoring developments in science and technology: “New production processes, combined with developments in drug discovery and delivery, could be exploited in the development of new toxic chemicals that could be used as weapons.” 1 Indeed, since 2008, Synthetic Biology is monitored also by other international organizations, such as the Nonproliferation Export Control Regimes Australia Group

Star formation in early-type galaxies: the role of stellar winds and kinematics

Early-type galaxies (ETGs) host a hot ISM produced mainly by stellar winds, and heated by Type Ia supernovae and the thermalization of stellar motions. High resolution 2D hydrodynamical simulations showed that ordered rotation in the stellar component results in the formation of a centrifugally supported cold equatorial disc. In a recent numerical investigation we found that subsequent generations of stars are formed in this cold disc; this process consumes most of the cold gas, leaving at the present epoch cold masses comparable to those observed. Most of the new stellar mass formed a few Gyrs ago, and resides in a disc.Comment: 2 pages, 1 figure, to appear in proceedings of IAU Symposium 315, "From Interstellar Clouds to Star-Forming Galaxies: Universal Processes?", P. Jablonka, F. Van der Tak & P. Andre', ed

The Effect of the AGN Feedback on the Interstellar Medium of Early-Type Galaxies: 2D Hydrodynamical Simulations of the Low-Rotation Case

We present 2D hydrodynamical simulations for the evolution of early-type galaxies containing central massive black holes (MBHs), starting at age 2 Gyr. The code contains accurate and physically consistent radiative and mechanical AGN wind feedback, with parsec-scale central resolution. Mass input comes from stellar evolution; energy input includes Type Ia and II supernova and stellar heating; star-formation is included. Realistic, axisymmetric dynamical models for the galaxies are built solving the Jeans' equations. The lowest mass models (Mstar = 8 10^{10}Msun) develop global outflows sustained by SNIa's heating, ending with a significantly lower amount of hot gas and new stars. In more massive models, nuclear outbursts last to the present epoch, with large and frequent fluctuations in nuclear emission and from the gas (Lx). Each burst last ~ 10^{7.5} yr, during which (for r < 2-3 kpc) cold, inflowing, and hot, outflowing gas phases coexist. The Lx-T relation for the gas matches that of local galaxies. AGN activity causes positive feedback for star formation. Roughly half of the total mass loss is recycled into new stars (DeltaMstar), just ~ 3% of it is accreted on the MBH, the remainder being ejected from the galaxy. The ratio between the mass of gas expelled to that in to new stars, the load factor, is ~0.6. Rounder galaxies shapes lead to larger final MBH masses, DeltaMstar, and Lx. Almost all the time is spent at very low nuclear luminosities, yet one quarter of the total energy is emitted at an Eddington ratio > 0.1. The duty-cycle of AGN activity approximates 4% (Abridged).Comment: 26 pages, 15 figure, submitted to ApJ. Comments welcom

Religious freedom and inviolable lines in pluralist societies : the case of cultural crimes

Pluralist societies pose new challenges to legal systems, having to find trade-offs between accommodating the necessities of minorities and security concerns. Religions often impose prescriptive rules on the behaviour of their believers, leading to moral internal conflicts when these lead to break State laws. In Italy, this subject was already discussed between legal scholars, before it received large public attention in 2017, where a judgement of the Cassation Court has upheld the conviction of a Sikh indian for withholding a kirpan, a ritual dagger central to his faith. This work provides an overview of the debate raised by the ruling, with particular emphasis on the challenges in devising policies that address security concerns without sacrificing religious freedom and pluralism. The Italian answer to cultural crimes will be analysed in depth, given the distinctive element of positive laicit\ue0 in 1948 Constitution that characterizes its context. In the conclusion, a possible solution focused on human dignity is suggested

Between populism and egalitarianism: mapping attitudes toward social and political issues during the Draghi government using exploratory graph analysis

Using a community sample of 323 individuals (74% women; Mean Age = 26.9 years), who completed an online survey from April 2021 to April 2022, the present study explored the relations among attitudes towards a variety of social and political issues that sparked social media debate. The study used the Attitudes towards Social and Political Issues (ASPI) survey, which covers attitudes towards COVID-19, vaccines, the European Union, migrants, LGBTQ+ rights, gender equality, religion, and conspiracy beliefs. Using an Exploratory Graph Analysis, the study discovered three attitude communities. The first community, labeled equal rights &amp; inclusion, encompassed positive attitudes towards LGBTQ+ rights and gender equality. The second community, labeled national populism, included hostility towards immigrants and anti-EU sentiments. The third community, labeled religiosity, emerged as an autonomous cluster related to national populism positively and equal rights and inclusion negatively. The ASPI scores were sensitive to individual differences in political and religious orientation. The national populism score was the most likely proxy for political orientation, while religiosity marked the difference between those who said they were Christians, or followed other religious or spiritual doctrines, and atheists or agnostics. Overall, the study provides insight into the complex social and political landscape in Italy during the Draghi government

The prevention of jihadist radicalisation in prison in Italy

Faith always constitutes an essential aspect of prison life and its relevance in the European scenario has been emphasised in recent times because of the religious pluralism that characterises the current prison population. In this context, the rise of jihadist terrorism has shed light on the problem of radicalisation in prison, already known and studied by the experts, which poses new challenges for policymakers, prison staff, and detainees. In Italy, Prison Administration has been focused on religious freedom, its boundaries and its relationship with religious extremism and has already adopted some measures to combat and monitor jihadist proselitism in Italian prisons. The lecture will provide an overview of these anti-radicalisation strategies in prisons, highlighting unresolved issues. In particular, these include the lack of an integrated plan with regards to prevention of radicalisation and de-radicalisation, not limited by the prison context. The lecture will further highlight the challenges in devising policies that address security concerns without sacrificing religious freedom and diversity, as provided for by the Italian Constitution

Linguistic Predictors of Psychological Adjustment in Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic

COVID-19 broke out in China in December 2019 and rapidly became a worldwide pandemic that demanded an extraordinary response from healthcare workers (HCWs). Studies conducted during the pandemic observed severe depression and PTSD in HCWs. Identifying early predictors of mental health disorders in this population is key to informing effective treatment and prevention. The aim of this study was to investigate the power of language-based variables to predict PTSD and depression symptoms in HCWs. One hundred thirty-five HCWs (mean age = 46.34; SD = 10.96) were randomly assigned to one of two writing conditions: expressive writing (EW n = 73) or neutral writing (NW n = 62) and completed three writing sessions. PTSD and depression symptoms were assessed both pre- and post-writing. LIWC was used to analyze linguistic markers of four trauma-related variables (cognitive elaboration, emotional elaboration, perceived threat to life, and self-immersed processing). Changes in PTSD and depression were regressed onto the linguistic markers in hierarchical multiple regression models. The EW group displayed greater changes on the psychological measures and in terms of narrative categories deployed than the NW group. Changes in PTSD symptoms were predicted by cognitive elaboration, emotional elaboration, and perceived threat to life; changes in depression symptoms were predicted by self-immersed processing and cognitive elaboration. Linguistic markers can facilitate the early identification of vulnerability to mental disorders in HCWs involved in public health emergencies. We discuss the clinical implications of these findings

AOIPS 3 User's guide. Volume 1: Overview and software utilization

This is Volume I of the Atmospheric and Oceanographic Information Processing System (AOIPS) User's Guide. AOIPS 3 is the version of the AOIPS software as of April 1989. The AOIPS software was developed jointly by the Goddard Space Flight Center and General Sciences Corporation. Volume 1 is intended to provide the user with an overall guide to the AOIPS system. It introduces the user to AOIPS system concepts, explains how programs are related and the necessary order of program execution, and provides brief descriptions derived from on-line help for every AOIPS program. It is intended to serve as a reference for information such as: program function, inmput/output variable descriptions, program limitations, etc. AOIPS is an interactive meteorological processing system with capabilities to ingest and analyze the many types of meteorological data. AOIPS includes several applications in areas of relevance to meteorological research. AOIPS is partitioned into four applications components: satellite data analysis, radar data analysis, aircraft data analysis, and utilities