Joint supervised and self-supervised learning for 3D real world challenges

Point cloud processing and 3D shape understanding are challenging tasks for which deep learning techniques have demonstrated great potentials. Still further progresses are essential to allow artificial intelligent agents to interact with the real world. In many practical conditions the amount of annotated data may be limited and integrating new sources of knowledge becomes crucial to support autonomous learning. Here we consider several scenarios involving synthetic and real world point clouds where supervised learning fails due to data scarcity and large domain gaps. We propose to enrich standard feature representations by leveraging self-supervision through a multi-task model that can solve a 3D puzzle while learning the main task of shape classification or part segmentation. An extensive analysis investigating few-shot, transfer learning and cross-domain settings shows the effectiveness of our approach with state-of-the-art results

Biomonitoring survey of the hydrographical network in a MAB UNESCO Biosphere Reserve

The knowledge of microbial biodiversity (bacteria and protists) in aquatic ecosystems is far from complete. This is mainly due to the inadequacy of conventional taxonomic identifications, which are based on the discrimination of diacritical morphological traits. Further, investigations are mainly focused on specific lake and river typologies that are usually also of interest for economic exploitation, often disregarding the small and/or ephemeral water bodies. Nevertheless, due to their physiographical complexity and temporal dynamics, these neglected hydrographical elements can host a vast microbial diversity. In order to fill the gap in the biodiversity estimates in the Alpine region, we carried out a survey using high throughput sequencing (HTS) of 16S and 18S rDNA markers from water and sediments collected in the MAB UNESCO Alpi Ledrensi and Judicaria Biosphere Reserve (Project Acqua Viva). The study sites are located between Lake Garda and the Brenta Dolomites, and include natural environments in a semi- anthropized Alpine context with agricultural and tourist vocation. The survey was carried out during the summer 2019, covering 20 sites of different sizes and characteristics, including lakes, alpine pasture ponds and wetlands. The results allowed disclosing a high number of amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) belonging to a wide variety of bacterial and protists groups, and significant differences linked to lake and sample typologies. Despite a wide presence of potentially toxigenic cyanobacteria, microcystins and anatoxin-a were detected only in a few water bodies, including Lake Ledro, which showed the presence of both Planktothrix rubescens and Tychonema bourrellyi in the pelagic samples

Potential impact of dreissenids species in relation to the first report of quagga mussel (Dreissena bugensis) at the end of winter 2022 in Lake Garda (Northern Italy)

Along with Dreissena polymorpha (zebra mussel), Dreissena bugensis (quagga mussel) is considered one of the most widespread and successful invasive species in Europe, Russia, and North America. The quagga mussel is a bivalve mollusc of the dreissenids family originating from the estuarine region of the rivers Dnieper and Southern Bug (Black Sea). The spread in Europe began after the 1940s and was associated with construction of canal-river systems. D. polymorpha was observed in Lake Garda since the end of the 1960s. In the last years, D. bugensis was found in the northern perialpine region and in late winter 2022 it was identified along the eastern shores of Lake Garda. Both species are defined as ecosystems engineers because they can strongly change the substrate structure, causing great economic damage in water pipes, potable water treatment plants, and port constructions. Moreover, they can affect resource availability for the other species. A few significant ecological differences between the two species suggest that the impact of quagga mussel could be even larger compared to that caused by zebra mussel. In this poster we will discuss the main expected ecological impacts following the introduction of quagga mussel into new aquatic habitats

Expansion of cyanobacteria outbreaks in the Alpine region: first report of an intense Microcystis bloom in Lake Serraia

Lake Serraia is a small eutrophic dimictic lake located in the town of Baselga di Pinè, in the Province of Trento. The lake has an average depth of 7 m and a maximum depth of 18 m and is mainly used for recreational activities. During the last decade, summer blooms of non-toxigenic populations of Dolichospermum spp. were documented over the entire lake. Conversely, at the end of August 2023, an intense toxigenic bloom of Microcystis aeruginosa developed over several weeks, resulting in a bathing ban by the local authorities. Besides the usual monitoring for the control of bathing waters, a few opportunistic samples were collected for microscopical examinations, toxins analyses using LC-MS techniques, and strain isolation and cultivation. In the areas where the surface scums developed, the MC-LR and MC-RR congeners of microcystins showed concentrations of 200 μg L-1 and 42 μg L-1, respectively. The bloom episodes documented in Lake Serraia are part of a more general increasing trend of cyanobacterial outbreaks actively documented in the southern Alpine region. Besides persisting high trophic status, as in Lake Serraia, the causes were also connected to the general increasing temperature trends at the global and local levels

Gallstones in Elderly Patients: Impact of Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

The use of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) in elderly patients may pose problems because of their poor general condition, especially of cardiopulmonary function. Moreover, these patients present with acute cholecystitis and associated common bile duct stones more often than their younger counterparts. From 1990 to 1999, the authors performed 943 LCs; 31 (3.2%) were attempted on elderly patients, 11 (35%) of which were on an emergency basis because of acute cholecystitis, cholangitis or acute biliary pancreatitis. Ten per cent of LCs needed to be converted to an open cholecystectomy, most often because of an increase in the partial pressure of carbon dioxide in the blood produced by excessive operative time. A gasless procedure was used in the last three years of the study on eight cases; the overall rate of conversion from LC to open cholecystectomy in this group was 0%. Associated gallbladder and common bile duct stones were found in five (16%) patients (four preoperative LC endoscopic sphincterotomy and one transcystic approach). The success rate in both of these cases was 100%, overall morbidity was 29% and there was no mortality. These results show that LC is a feasible and safe procedure for use in elderly patients. Gasless LC should be preferred in patients classified as American Society of Anesthesiologists' class III because an excessive duration of operation is the most common reason for converting to an open cholecystectomy

Draft genome sequence of the anatoxin-a producing cyanobacterium Tychonema bourrellyi B0820 isolated from the epilimnion of the deep Alpine Lake Garda

We report the draft genome sequence of strain B0820 of the cyanobacterium Tychonema bourrellyi isolated from the epilimnion of Lake Garda and assembled from a metagenome of a non-axenic culture. The strain analyzed was shown to produce anatoxin-a, a potent neurotoxin that can cause fatal intoxication in exposed organism

Cranial Anatomy and Paleoneurology of the Extinct Sloth Catonyx tarijensis (Xenarthra, Mylodontidae) From the Late Pleistocene of Oruro, Southwestern Bolivia

Extinct scelidotheriine sloths are among the most peculiar fossil mammals from South America. In recent decades, the external cranial anatomy of Pleistocene scelidotheres such as Scelidotherium, Catonyx, and Valgipes has been the subject of numerous studies, but their endocranial anatomy remains almost completely unknown. Today, computed tomographic (CT) scanning methodologies permit the exploration of previously inaccessible anatomical areas through a completely non-destructive process. For this reason, we undertook an analysis of the external and internal cranial anatomy of Catonyx tarijensis from the late Pleistocene of the Department of Oruro, in southwestern Bolivia. One particularly well-preserved specimen allowed detailed observation of all the main cranial osteological features, including the ear region and an almost complete hyoid apparatus, previously unknown for this taxon. Moreover, CT-scanning and subsequent elaboration of digital models of this specimen allowed observation of the brain cavity and cranial sinuses, and reconstruction of the trajectory of the main cranial nerves for the first time in an extinct scelidotheriine sloth. Additionally, we recovered the first three-dimensional reconstructions of the nasal cavity and the turbinates of an extinct sloth. In contrast to the usual depiction, the combined information from the external and internal anatomy suggests reduced lingual protrusion in Catonyx tarijensis, or at least a consistently more limited protrusion of the tongue in comparison with other mylodontid sloths such as Glossotherium robustum. The new morphological information recovered from this extinct sloth is compared with the available information for both extant and extinct forms, providing insights in the paleobiology of the extinct species. The present study reveals the importance of applying these novel non-destructive techniques to elucidate the evolutionary history of sloths.Fil: Boscaini, Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales; ArgentinaFil: Iurino, Dawid A.. Università degli studi di Roma "La Sapienza"; ItaliaFil: Mamani Quispe, Bernardino. Museo Nacional de Historia Natural de la Paz; BoliviaFil: Andrade Flores, Rubén. Museo Nacional de Historia Natural de la Paz; BoliviaFil: Sardella, Raffaele. Università degli studi di Roma "La Sapienza"; ItaliaFil: Pujos, François Roger Francis. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales; ArgentinaFil: Gaudin, Timothy. University Of Tennessee At Chattanooga; Estados Unido