Investigation of the Thermochemiluminescent (TCL) phenomenon as innovative detection technique for (bio)analytical applications: from the synthesis of new TCL candidates to the realization of TCL-based probes for immunoassays

In the present PhD thesis, thermochemiluminescence (TCL) phenomenum as a new promising tool for development of innovative (bio)analytical detection methods has been investigated. The first part of this work was focused on the synthesis of new TCL candidates, aiming the optimization of the TCL properties in terms of lower decomposition temperatures and higher fluorescence quantum yields of the generated excited fragments. Moreover, through a chemometric approach, both the structural and electronic molecular descriptors for each molecule were analysed and used to elaborate a model able to predict the olefin photooxygenation outcome. Moving forward, the focus was shifted to the realization of TCL-based nanosensors for immunoassay applications. In particular, the fabrication of both molecular and nanometric-scale probes was performed, linking the TCL substrate (1,2-dioxetane) directly to universal biomarker or encapsulating it within a polymeric nanoshell. Concerning the molecular probe, acridin 1,2-dioxetane was functionalized with biotin in order to create a TCL sensor for detection of streptavidin-based targets. TCL process was, then, combined with the semiconductive polymer dots (Pdots) technology to realize ultrabright thermo-responsive nanoparticles able to detect biotinylated compounds of interest. In particular, the FRET mechanism occurring between the polymeric matrix of Pdots and TCL substrate has been exploited to both enhance the light generation and shift the emission towards longer wavelengths. Furthermore, TCL-Pdots were tested in a noncompetitive sandwich-type immunoassay for detection of Immunoglobuline G (IgG). The last part of this work was focused on the realization of a home-made portable device to combine TCL-based detection technique with smartphone technology. All the different items constituting the apparatus have been fabricated exploiting a 3D printing process and acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), as starting material. The device was tailored to the camera of a Nokia Lumia 1020 exploiting, thus, the performance of the complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor sensor of the smartphone’s camera

Gulliver - Guided Navigation inside the Computer

Gulliver was born from the requirement for a tool able to develop computers architecture projects primarily for didactic purposes. Using Gulliver it is possible:- to define computei.- architectures in an incremental way, starting from a minimal structure building up to more complex ones;- to define symbolic program languages coherently with the model of the architecture implemented;- to simulate functionality of the architecture and the language proposed for each stage of the development.Such a system is of considerable utility both for the teacher, who can strengthen the effect of a traditional lesson by simple experiments directed at the topic to be deepened, and for the student as an instrument of study and/or for the autoevaluation of the learning level acquired in the subject. Finally, Gulliver can be considered to be the nucleus of a development tool for system architectural projects

Non è possibile sostituire l'insegnante: benissimo

Riflessioni sul rapporto fra le tecnologie, in particolare il software didattico, ed il ruolo del docente. Vengono esaminate le potenzialita’ ed i limiti dei mezzi informatici nel contesto dell’apprendimento/insegnamento

DIDAMATICA 2010

IDAMATICA (Informatica per la Didattica) è il Convegno promosso annualmente da AICA che si propone di fornire un quadro ampio ed approfondito delle ricerche, degli sviluppi innovativi e delle esperienze in atto nel settore dell'Informatica applicata alla Didattica, nei diversi domini e nei molteplici contesti di apprendimento. L'edizione DIDAMATICA 2010, organizzata in collaborazione con le tre Università di Roma, coordinate dal Dipartimento di Informatica di Sapienza, si propone in particolare di coinvolgere il mondo della formazione a tutto campo: dai docenti di scuola a quelli universitari, dagli esperti di formazione finanziata e professionale a quelli inseriti in contesti di organizzazioni pubbliche e private

Sperimentazione di un ipertesto di geometria analitica nella Scuola Media Superiore

Questo lavoro si propone di descrivere la fase di validazione di un ipertesto per la geometria in una Scuola Media Superiore

Game-based mobile learning with augmented reality: Are teachers ready to adopt it?

Although only recently mobile augmented reality (AR) games have been adopted for educational purposes, research recognizes their potential and offers guidelines for their use in education, to create smart-learning ecosystems. It is time for teachers to adopt these technologies, but are they receptive to them? The aim of this study is to reveal teachers’ readiness to adopt mobile AR technologies in their practices, after training, bridging the gap between educational practices and research in educational sciences. This paper reports a case study based on a workshop designed to support teachers’ adoption of teaching strategies involving game-based mobile learning (mLearning) with AR. The workshop was conducted under the EduPARK project and offered trainees the opportunity to collaboratively experience the use, in loco, of the EduPARK app for outdoor learning with AR, as well as prompted them to plan educational resources appropriating these technologies. Data were collected through individual questionnaires and focus group interviews, and they were analysed through descriptive statistics, the computing of the educational value scale (EVS) and of the system usability scale (SUS), as well as content analysis. The results show that teachers consider they are ready to integrate mobile AR games in their practices, but they are foreseeing difficulties that need to be addressed. This paper contributes to the field of teacher training in game-based mLearning with AR as it unveils teachers’ readiness to adopt these technologies and why. Moreover, it characterizes a typology of teacher training in this area that, according to the trainee teachers, is successful.publishe