L’efficacia degli strumenti di comunicazione visiva nel trattamento del disturbo dello spettro autistico: un’osservazione

I bambini e gli adolescenti con disturbo dello spettro autistico sono caratterizzati da difficoltà nell’area della comunicazione e dell’interazione sociale. In alcuni casi l’autismo si presenta anche con deficit nell’area linguistica. L’uso di strumenti di comunicazione visiva, come agende della giornata o task analysis realizzati con immagini e icone, appare fondamentale per la strutturazione di percorsi educativi destinati a questi soggetti.In questo articolo si presentano i risultati di un’osservazione effettuata su un campione di 20 bambini e preadolescenti con autismo combinato con deficit linguistico ed età cognitiva bassa, che hanno svolto un percorso educativo cognitivo-comportamentale caratterizzato da un forte utilizzo di strumenti di comunicazione visiva

Il Web per capire il Web: possibili percorsi per l’educazione critica delle generazioni “Digitali”

The social evolution of the new media changes the life of new generations. Today’s young people can be called “Digital Generation” because the web 2.0 conditions their daily life and , consequently, modifies their perception of the world and their cognitive characteristics. Nowadays, for example, boys and girls learn better by real experience than being told. Internet offers a large number of resources but we can not ignore the risks of the web-sphere. This paper designs the use of popular websites, social-networks or blogs in educative structured environments. The purpose of this project is to develop analytic abilities of learners and make them aware of web virtues and dangersL’evoluzione sociale dei nuovi media trasforma la vita delle nuove generazioni.Possiamo definire i ragazzi che vivono quest’epoca “Generazione Digitale” perché il web 2.0 condiziona il loro quotidiano e , conseguentemente, modifica la loro percezione del mondo e i loro profili cognitivi. Oggi, per esempio, i ragazzi imparano più facilmente attraverso le esperienze dirette piuttosto che attraverso l’ascolto. Internet offre molte risorse, ma non possiamo ignorare anche i rischi presenti nella web-sfera. Questo paper progetta l’uso di siti, social network e blog famosi in ambienti educativi strutturati.L’obiettivo del lavoro è sviluppare le abilità critiche degli educandi erenderli coscienti delle virtù e dei pericoli del web

Γ\Gamma-convergence for functionals depending on vector fields. II. Convergence of minimizers

Given a family of locally Lipschitz vector fields $X(x)=(X_1(x),\dots,X_m(x))$ on $\mathbb{R}^n$, $m\leq n$, we study integral functionals depending on $X$. Using the results in \cite{MPSC1}, we study the convergence of minima, minimizers and momenta of those functionals. Moreover, we apply these results to the periodic homogenization in Carnot groups and to prove a $H$-compactness theorem for linear differential operators of the second order depending on $X$

UA2TPG: An untestability analyzer and test pattern generator for SEUs in the configuration memory of SRAM-based FPGAs

This paper presents UA2TPG, a static analysis tool for the untestability proof and automatic test pattern generation for SEUs in the configuration memory of SRAM-based FPGA systems. The tool is based on the model-checking verification technique. An accurate fault model for both logic components and routing structures is adopted. Experimental results show that many circuits have a significant number of untestable faults, and their detection enables more efficient test pattern generation and on-line testing. The tool is mainly intended to support on-line testing of critical components in FPGA fault-tolerant systems

Poincaré-type inequality for Lipschitz continuous vector fields

open4noG. C. and M. M. are partially supported by MAnET Marie Curie Initial Training Networks (ITN). A. P. was supported by the Progetto CaRiPaRo “Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations: models, analysis, and control-theoretic problems” and now is supported by ERC ADG GeMeThNES n∘ 246923 and GNAMPA of INDAM. F. S.C. is supported by MIUR, Italy, GNAMPA of INDAM, University of Trento and MAnET Marie Curie Initial Training Networks (ITN) n∘ 607643.The scope of this paper is to prove a Poincaré type inequality for a family of nonlinear vector fields, whose coefficients are only Lipschitz continuous with respect to the distance induced by the vector fields themselves.openCitti, Giovanna; Manfredini, Maria; Pinamonti, Andrea; Serra Cassano, FrancescoCitti, Giovanna; Manfredini, Maria; Pinamonti, Andrea; Serra Cassano, Francesc

Time domain diffuse optical spectroscopy: In vivo quantification of collagen in breast tissue

Time-resolved diffuse optical spectroscopy provides non-invasively the optical characterization of highly diffusive media, such as biological tissues. Light pulses are injected into the tissue and the effects of light propagation on re-emitted pulses are interpreted with the diffusion theory to assess simultaneously tissue absorption and reduced scattering coefficients. Performing spectral measurements, information on tissue composition and structure is derived applying the Beer law to the measured absorption and an empiric approximation to Mie theory to the reduced scattering. The absorption properties of collagen powder were preliminarily measured in the range of 600-1100 nm using a laboratory set-up for broadband time-resolved diffuse optical spectroscopy. Optical projection images were subsequently acquired in compressed breast geometry on 218 subjects, either healthy or bearing breast lesions, using a portable instrument for optical mammography that operates at 7 wavelengths selected in the range 635-1060 nm. For all subjects, tissue composition was estimated in terms of oxy- and deoxy-hemoglobin, water, lipids, and collagen. Information on tissue microscopic structure was also derived. Good correlation was obtained between mammographic breast density (a strong risk factor for breast cancer) and an optical index based on collagen content and scattering power (that accounts mostly for tissue collagen). Logistic regression applied to all optically derived parameters showed that subjects at high risk for developing breast cancer for their high breast density can effectively be identified based on collagen content and scattering parameters. Tissue composition assessed in breast lesions with a perturbative approach indicated that collagen and hemoglobin content are significantly higher in malignant lesions than in benign ones

OLT(RE)2: an On-Line on-demand Testing approach for permanent Radiation Effects in REconfigurable systems

Reconfigurable systems gained great interest in a wide range of application fields, including aerospace, where electronic devices are exposed to a very harsh working environment. Commercial SRAM-based FPGA devices represent an extremely interesting hardware platform for this kind of systems since they combine low cost with the possibility to utilize state-of-the-art processing power as well as the flexibility of reconfigurable hardware. In this paper we present OLT(RE)2: an on-line on-demand approach to test permanent faults induced by radiation in reconfigurable systems used in space missions. The proposed approach relies on a test circuit and on custom place-and-route algorithms. OLT(RE)2 exploits partial dynamic reconfigurability offered by today’s SRAM-based FPGAs to place the test circuits at run-time. The goal of OLT(RE)2 is to test unprogrammed areas of the FPGA before using them, thus preventing functional modules of the reconfigurable system to be placed on areas with faulty resources. Experimental results have shown that (i) it is possible to generate, place and route the test circuits needed to detect on average more than 99 % of the physical wires and on average about 97 % of the programmable interconnection points of an arbitrary large region of the FPGA in a reasonable time and that (ii) it is possible to download and run the whole test suite on the target device without interfering with the normal functioning of the system