UAV and Structure from Motion Approach to Monitor the Maierato Landslide Evolution

In February 2010 a large landslide affected the Maierato municipality (Calabria, Italy). The landslide, mainly caused by a period of prolonged and intense rainfalls, produced a mass displacement of about 5 million m³ and several damages to farmlands, houses and infrastructures. In the aftermath several conventional monitoring actions were carried out. In the current post emergency phase, the monitoring was resumed by carrying out unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) flights in order to describe the recent behavior of the landslide and to assess residual risk. Thanks to the potentialities of the structure from motion algorithms and the availability of post emergency reconnaissance photos and a previous 3D dataset, the three-dimensional evolution of the area was computed. Moreover, an experimental multispectral flight was carried out and its results supported the interpretation of local phenomena. The dataset allowed to quantify the elevation losses and raises in several peculiar sectors of the landslide. The obtained results confirm that the UAV monitoring and the structure from motion approach can effectively contribute to manage residual risk in the medium and long term within an integrated geotechnical monitoring network

Awake Da Vinci robotic partial nephrectomy: First case report ever in a situation of need

We report a unique case of a robotic partial nephrectomy performed under continuous spinal anesthesia (CSA). A 63-year-old woman, active smoker with mild obesity and previous right pneumonectomy, was diagnosed with a growing 5.5-cm renal right cystic tumor. Being at high risk for general anesthesia, a loco-regional approach was indicated. Therefore, after multidisciplinary discussion, a robotic-assisted partial nephrectomy under CSA was considered mandatory. After T4-T5 sensory and motor block, retroperitoneoscopic robot-assisted surgery was successfully performed. Postoperative period was uneventful, with optimal pain control. This unique case demonstrates the feasibility of robotic surgery under CSA, for imperative indications

Assessment of post-failure evolution of a large earthflow through field monitoring and numerical modelling

AbstractThe analysis of the residual hazard existing after the emergency phases generated by the activation or reactivation of landslides is rarely taken into account in a proper manner. However, the assessment of landslide post-failure evolution should represent a key factor to control potential landslide reactivations and prevent new landslide-induced damages. This paper presents the results of a long-term field monitoring activity performed in the years after the emergency phase of the Montaguto (Italy) earthflow reactivation occurred in 2010 as well as the results of 2-D and 3-D numerical analyses aimed at interpreting the post-emergency landslide behaviour. The results of the numerical simulations, which agree well with the in situ monitoring data, allow to define a conceptual model of the earthflow behaviour that is related to the pore water pressure variations resulting from the drained or undrained processes occurring in the landslide body. The study proposed confirms a general reduction of the landslide activity, as well as allows to detect the factors that control the residual activity existing in a specific area of the landslide and to infer possible critical scenarios for landslide reactivations

The prognostic value of basal DNA damage level in peripheral blood lymphocytes of patients affected by bladder cancer

Bladder cancer (BC) is one of the most aggressive malignancies of the urinary tract, with the highest lifetime treatment costs per patient of all cancers, due to the high rate of recurrences requiring continuous surveillance. An early diagnosis is essential to improve survival of patients with BC. Noninvasive and sensitive molecular biomarkers are needed to improve current strategies for the detection and monitoring of BC. Previous studies suggested that elevated DNA damage levels and suboptimal nucleotide excision DNA repair (NER) may be associated with BC

1054 Noninvasive Qp/Qs ratio measurement with phase-contrast cine MRI in patients with atrial septal defect: comparison with heart catheterization

The correlation analysis showed a good overlap between measurements (Qp: r = 0.65, p = 0.0004; Qs: r = 0.64, p = 0.0005; Qp/Qs ratio: r = 0.68, p = 0.0002), also confirmed by regression analysis (R2 = 0.42, p < 0.001 for Qp; R2 = 0.41, p = 0.001 for QS; R2 = 0.46, p < 0.001 for Qp/Qs ratio), and by the Bland-Altman statistical analysis for method comparison (see Figure 1). The interobserver variability was low

Pyrgi. Analysis of possible climatic effects on a coastal archaeological site

This work refers to an interdisciplinary study on the archaeological site of Pyrgi, an Etruscan harbour still under excavation, located on the Lazio’s coast in Santa Severa, in the province of Rome. The site in question is subject to frequent flooding which compromises its accessibility and delays the archaeological excavation operations. The study is based on the combined use of geomatic technologies, meteorological and climatic models, and hydrogeological knowledge of the examined site, to have a global view of the hazard to which it is exposed. Different geomatic techniques at different scales are used in the analysis. Large scale surveys are carried out to define the water networks and to monitor the site using satellite images. On a small scale, drone photogrammetry techniques are used to assess the morphology of the territory and eventual protection from natural hazards present in the site. Using these images, a detailed digital surface model (DSM) has been generated. The objective of the research is to assess the main cause of the floods and the time the water stays in the site and to determine if the floods are periodic phenomena over time or random events. The study was conducted using images captured by Sentinel 2 satellites processed at level 2-A. These images enabled the identification of the flooding periods of the site for the years of monitoring. The study was conducted by comparing the captured images with rainfall data, paying attention to extreme weather phenomena that occurred from 2012 to date. The rainfall data are provided by the National Department of Civil Protection to CNR-ISAC by an agreement between the two institutions. The same images have been compared with the wind data recorded by the anemometer located in the Civitavecchia harbour and the wave height data available from ERA5 reanalysis. Knowledge of the main cause of the floods and a possible periodicity will allow to plan correct conservation of the site through specific protection measures designed according to the hazards to which it is exposed

Chapter Pyrgi: analysis of possible climatic effects on a coastal archaeological site

This work refers to an interdisciplinary study on the archaeological site of Pyrgi, an Etruscan harbour still under excavation, located on the Lazio’s coast in Santa Severa, in the province of Rome. The objective of the research is to assess the main cause of the floods and the time the water stays in the site to determine if the floods are periodic phenomena over time or random events for guarantee a correct conservation of the site . The study is based on the combined use of geomatic technologies, meteorological and climatic models, and hydrogeological knowledge