Evaluation of the effects of the metal foams geometrical features on thermal and fluid-dynamical behavior in forced convection

Metal foams are a material, featuring interesting characteristics for the aeronautical and automotive fields because of their low specific weight, high thermal properties, and mechanical performances. In particular, this paper deals with thermal and fluid dynamic study of 24 open-cell aluminum EN43500 (AlSi10MnMg) metal foams produced by indirect additive manufacturing (I-AM), combining 3D printing and metal casting to obtain a controllable morphology. A study of foam behavior function of the morphological features (pores per inch (PPI), branch thickness (r), and edges morphology (smooth-regular)) was performed. The samples produced were heated by radiation and tested in an open wind circuit gallery to measure the fluid dynamic properties such as pressure drop (Delta p), inertial coefficient (f), and permeability (k), in an air forced convection flow. The thermal characterization was performed evaluating both the theoretical (k(th)) and effective (k(eff)) thermal conductivity of the foams. Also, the global heat transfer coefficient (HTCglobal) was evaluated with different airflow rates. Analysis of variance (ANoVA) was performed to figure out which geometrical parameters are significant during both thermal and fluid dynamic processes. The results obtained show how the controllable foam morphology can affect the involved parameters, leading to an ad hoc design for industrial applications that require high thermo-fluid-dynamical performances

Cervicoscopy and Microcolposcopy in the Evaluation of Squamo Columnar Junction and Cervical Canal in LSIL Patients with Inadequate or Negative Colposcopy

OBJECTIVE: The present study evaluated indications’ validity of cervicoscopic and microcolposcopic examination in LSIL patients with unsatisfactory or negative colposcopy. MATHERIAL AND METHODS: In the cervico-vaginal pathology unit of the “San Giovanni Calibita Fatebenefratelli” University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 119 patients with a positive cervical cytology (LSIL), were submitted to the exam for the following two indications: 1) unsatisfactory colposcopy 37 (31.1%); 2) negative colposcopy 82 (68.9%). RESULTS: Cervicoscopy allowed the SCJ visualization in 115 (9.6%) patients. In 4 patients 3.4%, the SCJ visualization was not possible due to cervical stenosis. Cervicoscopy without staining, revealed endocervical squamous columnar junction in 33 (28.7%) patients. The blue dye in panoramic view detected endocervical SCJ in 41 (35.7%), out of 115 patients (>5 mm in 34 (29.6%) patients and >10 mm in 7 (6.1%)). CONCLUSIONS: Cervicoscopic examination revealed 7.8% of CIN2-3 in LSIL patients with inadequate or negative colposcopy. In patients with negative colposcopy the percentage of undiagnosed lesions inside the cervical canal was very low. The blue dye added sensitivity to the exam

Parents and children during the COVID-19 lockdown: the influence of parenting distress and parenting self-efficacy on children’s emotional well-being

On March 10, 2020, Italy went into lockdown due to the Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic. The World Health Organization highlighted how the lockdown had negative consequences on psychological well-being, especially for children. The present study aimed to investigate parental correlates of children’s emotion regulation during the COVID-19 lockdown. Within the Social Cognitive Theory framework, a path model in which parenting self-efficacy and parental regulatory emotional self-efficacy mediated the relationship between parents’ psychological distress and both children’s emotional regulation, and children’s lability/negativity, was investigated. A total of 277 parents of children aged from 6 to 13 years completed an online survey that assessed their psychological distress, regulatory emotional self-efficacy, and parenting self-efficacy. Parents reported also children’s emotional regulation and lability/negativity. A structural equation model (SEM) using MPLUS 8.3 was tested. Results showed that the hypothesized model exhibited excellent fit, chi-square (83) = 140.40, p < 0.01, RMSEA = 0.05, CFI = 0.97, TLI = 0.96, SRMR = 0.04. The influences of parents’ psychological distress and parents’ regulatory emotional self-efficacy on children’s emotional regulation and lability/negativity were mediated by parenting self-efficacy. The mediation model was invariant across children’s biological sex and age, and geographical residence area (high risk vs. low risk for COVID-19). Results suggested how parents’ beliefs to be competent in managing parental tasks might be a protective factor for their children’s emotional well-being. Implications for intervention programs are discussed

Comprehensive track-structure based evaluation of DNA damage by light ions from radiotherapy- relevant energies down to stopping

Track structures and resulting DNA damage in human cells have been simulated for hydrogen, helium, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and neon ions with 0.25–256 MeV/u energy. The needed ion interaction cross sections have been scaled from those of hydrogen; Barkas scaling formula has been refined, extending its applicability down to about 10 keV/u, and validated against established stopping power data. Linear energy transfer (LET) has been scored from energy deposits in a cell nucleus; for very low-energy ions, it has been defined locally within thin slabs. The simulations show that protons and helium ions induce more DNA damage than heavier ions do at the same LET. With increasing LET, less DNA strand breaks are formed per unit dose, but due to their clustering the yields of double-strand breaks (DSB) increase, up to saturation around 300 keV/μm. Also individual DSB tend to cluster; DSB clusters peak around 500 keV/μm, while DSB multiplicities per cluster steadily increase with LET. Remarkably similar to patterns known from cell survival studies, LET-dependencies with pronounced maxima around 100– 200 keV/μm occur on nanometre scale for sites that contain one or more DSB, and on micrometre scale for megabasepair-sized DNA fragments

A novel strategy for molecular interfaces optimization: the case of ferritin-transferrin receptor interaction

Protein-protein interactions regulate almost all cellular functions and rely on a fine tune of surface amino acids properties involved on both molecular partners. The disruption of a molecular association can be caused even by a single residue mutation, often leading to a pathological modification of a biochemical pathway. Therefore the evaluation of the effects of amino acid substitutions on binding, and the ad hoc design of protein-protein interfaces, is one of the biggest challenges in computational biology. Here, we present a novel strategy for computational mutation and optimization of protein-protein interfaces. Modeling the interaction surface properties using the Zernike polynomials, we describe the shape and electrostatics of binding sites with an ordered set of descriptors, making possible the evaluation of complementarity between interacting surfaces. With a Monte Carlo approach, we obtain protein mutants with controlled molecular complementarities. Applying this strategy to the relevant case of the interaction between Ferritin and Transferrin Receptor, we obtain a set of Ferritin mutants with increased or decreased complementarity. The extensive molecular dynamics validation of the method results confirms its efficacy, showing that this strategy represents a very promising approach in designing correct molecular interfaces

GARFIELD + RCo Digital Upgrade: a Modern Set-up for Mass and Charge Identification of Heavy Ion Reaction Products

An upgraded GARFIELD + Ring Counter (RCo) apparatus is presented with improved performances as far as electronics and detectors are concerned. On one side fast sampling digital read out has been extended to all detectors, allowing for an important simplification of the signal processing chain together with an enriched extracted information. On the other side a relevant improvement has been made in the forward part of the setup (RCo): an increased granularity of the CsI(Tl) crystals and a higher homogeneity in the silicon detector resistivity. The renewed performances of the GARFIELD + RCo array make it suitable for nuclear reaction measurements both with stable and with Radioactive Ion Beams (RIB), like the ones foreseen for the SPES facility, where the Physics of Isospin can be studied.Comment: 13 pages, 19 figures - paper submitted to Eur. Phys. J.

LGBT+ Training needs for health and social care professionals: a cross-cultural comparison among seven European countries

Introduction Research suggests that specific training on LGBT+ issues may improve the competencies and skills of health and social care (HSC) professionals, which reduces the negative attitudes toward LGBT+ people. Despite this, there seems to be a lack of coverage of LGBT+ needs in HSC education. The present study aims to explore the specific LGBT+ training needs of HSC professionals and to examine the relationship between these training needs and the four dimensions of the Papadopoulos model, i.e. cultural awareness, cultural knowledge, cultural sensitivity, and cultural competence. Methods The research used data from a cross-cultural project, “Intercultural Education for Nurses in Europe (IENE9),” which was administered to 412 HSC academics and workers (62% females; Mage=46.06, SDage=10.48) between February 2020 and July 2020, in seven European countries: UK (coordinator), Denmark, Spain, Germany, Cyprus, Italy, and Romania. Results Hierarchical multiple regression showed that higher training needs were associated with cultural awareness, cultural knowledge, and cultural competence. The need for training on LGBT+ issues was higher for Cyprus, Romania, Spain, Italy, and the UK, compared with Denmark (no differences between Germany and Denmark were found). Conclusions We believe that there has been a lack of focus on the LGBT+ training needs of HSC professionals: Greater efforts are required to develop a culturally competent and compassionate LGBT+ curriculum. Social Policy Implications Findings from the present study will inform the development of a free, Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), for culturally competent and compassionate HSC professionals in Europe to improve the quality of their car

Longitudinal associations between positive parenting and youths’ engagement in sexting behaviors: the mediating role of filial self-efficacy beliefs

Youths who enter emerging adulthood with a background of familial relations grounded in positive parent-child interactions are better equipped to cope with transitional stressors, to voice effectively their opinions with parents, and to resist engaging in risky activities. However, little is known about the longitudinal associations between positive parenting, filial self-efficacy beliefs and youths’ engagement in sexting behaviors. This study examined if positive parenting (mothers’ and fathers’ reports at child ages 13, 14, and 15) were related to youths’ engagement in sexting behaviors (child’s reports at age 19) both directly and indirectly, through adolescents perceived filial self-efficacy beliefs (child’s reports at age 18). Participants included 194 Italian children (MAgeAtTime1 = 13.54, 52.6% girls), their mothers (n = 193), and fathers (n = 150), who provided data across five waves over seven years. The mediation model was tested through a path analysis. Overall, results showed that, controlling for child gender and family SES, the effect of positive parenting on sexting behaviors was fully mediated by higher levels of perceived filial self-efficacy beliefs. The study reveals filial self-efficacy beliefs as central to the benefits conveyed to teens by parents in reducing their sexting behaviors

Crystal structure of Y10F mutant of Sh28GST: insight into GSH activation mechanism and isomerisation of prostaglandin H2 to prostaglandin D2

Suite à notre conférence du 20 septembre, un séminaire de travail sur les recherches collaboratives s’est déroulé hier après-midi à la faculté des sciences de l’éducation de l’Université Saint Joseph. L’objectif était d’identifier les thématiques de recherches prioritaires pour les quarante participants, et de travailler collectivement sur les modalités possibles de mise en œuvre de ce type de recherche au Liban. Après une introduction présentant l’exemple des trois LéA Collège Garcia Lorca, ..