Il sistema informativo territoriale archeologico della città di Parma

The «Sistema Informativo Territoriale Archeologico di Parma» is a project promoted by the National Archaeological Museum of Parma in partnership with the «Centro di Geotecnologie» of the University of Siena, the municipality of Parma and the «Compagnia Generale di Ripreseaeree». The aim of the project was to create an archaeological resource management GIS, which would be useful both to archaeologists and to the municipality for city planning. The GIS was built with ESRI ArcInfo. The relational structure of its geo-database, managed with ArcCatalog, permits the use of a data model based on separate tables for the attributes of archaeological sites, associated archaeological investigations, and the data that constitutes the archive of the sites. The attribute tables link directly to spatial objects and base maps managed in ArcMap and provide the essential spatial search and quaery needed to manage the data effectively. The system is based on the 1:5.000 Regional Technical Map, that provides a spatial framework and information about roads, properties and administrative boundaries; it is integrated with aerial photographs and historical charts. This GIS consists of a spatial object that defines the location and/or boundaries of a broad range of data, from prehistoric sites to larger Roman and medieval structures. The associated attribute information for each of those sites is defined by default thesauri, i.e. lists of preferred terms for describing types of archaeological sites. In the first step the study had concerned the old town centre of Parma; at this time the GIS holds nearly 400 archaeological sites and provides the main source of information about the archaeological excavations in the city. Some thematic maps of Parma have been created including a distribution map, chronological maps, an archaeological potential map. In the next phase the project will be extended to the whole municipal territory

Study on inactivation kinetics of hepatitis A virus and enteroviruses with peracetic acid and chlorine. New ICC/PCR method to assess disinfection effectiveness

The virucidal activity of chlorine-compounds was studied using hepatitis A virus (HAV) and Poliovirus 2 and comparing the disinfectant efficiency of peracetic acid. HAV presented a higher resistance to HClO than Poliovirus did. With ClO2 the inactivation times of HAV were markedly shorter. A comparison between these data and those resulting from the tive than chlorine. As a preliminary to future research, the PCR-test integrated with cell-cultures was experimentally introduced for a quick evaluation of the HAV-infectiveness, with the aim of possible application in the field of disinfection and of viruses isolation from environmental and food samples

The influence of open innovation on firm performance

Innovation is crucial for growth and business development, and represents a reliable way through which to gain competitiveness within the marketplace. Open innovation is expressed through three different processes: the acquisition of external technology (inbound innovation); the external exploitation of technology (outbound innovation); and coupled innovation. Based on a comprehensive and systematic review of the literature best able to detect the main thematic areas of the research topic, the aim of this paper is to investigate how the paradigm of open innovation influences firm performance and to provide suggestions for future research avenues

Investigation on virucidal activity of chlorine dioxide. Experimental data on Feline calicivirus, HAV and Coxsackie B5

Introduction. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of ClO2 with regard to viruses which show a particular resistance to oxidizing agent such as HAV and Norwalk and Norwalk-like viruses, and which play an important role in the epidemiology of viral foodborne diseases. In the food industry, disinfection of processing systems and equipment is a very important instrument to prevent secondary contamination and to guarantee food safety. Among disinfectants, chlorine dioxide (ClO2) presents a good efficacy at wide range of pH values, its action is rapid and generates few reaction byproducts if compared to hypoclorite. Experimental studies have highlighted that ClO2 shows a good bactericidal activity and it is also active towards viruses. Furthermore, the low concentrations and low contact times required to obtain microbial load reduction are favourable elements for the application of this compound in the industrial sanitizing practices. Methods. As it is impossible to cultivate the Norwalk virus in vitro, we tested the resistance of Feline calicivirus (F9 strain) vs. ClO2, in comparison with HAV (strain HM-175) and CoxsackieB5. Chlorine dioxide was used at concentrations ranging from 0.2 to 0.8 mg/l in water solution, at pH 7 and at +20 °C. Viral suspensions were added to disinfecting solution and, at pre-set times, were sampled to undergo to titration after blocking the disinfectant action with thiosulphate 0.05 M. On the basis of the data obtained, for each virus and in relation to different concentrations, mean reduction times were calculated for 99%, 99.9% and 99.99% using the regression analysis model. Results. As regards Feline calicivirus, at a concentration of 0.8 mg/l of ClO2, we obtained the complete elimination of the viral titre in 2 min while 30 min were required at concentrations of 0.2 mg/l. Coxackie B5 showed a similar behaviour, being completely inactivated in 4 min with 0.4 mg/l of ClO2 and after 30 min at a concentration of 0.2 mg/l. Inactivation was quicker for HAV, which was eliminated after only 30 sec at a concentration of 0.8 mg/l and after 5 min at 0.4 mg/l. Conclusion. Our data show that for complete inactivation of HAV and Feline calicivirus, concentrations ? 0.6 mg/l are required. This observation is true for Coxsackie B5 too, but this virus has shown a good sensitivity at all concentration tested according to regression analysis results. For Feline calicivirus and HAV, at low concentrations of disinfectant, prolonged contact times were needed to obtain a 99.99% reduction of viral titres (about 16 and 20 minutes respectively)

Path Approximation Strategies for Robot Manufacturing: A Preliminary Experimental Evaluation

Industrial Robots (IRs) are increasingly adopted for material subtraction or deposition functions owing to their advantages over machine tools, like cost-effectiveness and versatility. Unfortunately, the development of efficient robot manufacturing processes still faces unsolved issues related to the IRs poor positioning accuracy and to the tool path generation process. Novel engineering methods and tools are needed for CAD based programming of accurate paths and continuous robot motions to obtain the required manufacturing quality and tolerances. Within this context, to achieve smoothness along the tool path formed by linear G-code segments, the IR controllers’ approximation strategies, summarily reported in the manufacturer’s manuals, must be considered. The aim of this paper is to present the preliminary work carried out to identify the approximation algorithms of a Kuka IR when executing linear moves. An experimental study is conducted by varying the controller settings and the maximum translational velocity. The robot behavior has been acquired thanks to the controller tracing function and then processed to yield relations readily employable for the interpretation of G-Code commands and the subsequent generation of proper robot motion instructions. The obtained formulas allow to accurately predict the robot geometric path and kinematics within the corner transition between two linear segments

Middle cerebral artery ischemic stroke and COVID-19: a case report

We present a clinical case of a patient with SARS-CoV-2 infection and respiratory symptoms, complicated with a pro-thrombotic state involving multiple vascular territories and concomitant interleukin-6 increase. This case underlines the possibility to develop a COVID-19-related coagulopathy

Why Me? To Be an Ultra-Responder to Antiplatelet Therapy: A Case Report

Background: Platelet function testing is a valid tool to investigate the clinical response to antiplatelet therapy in different clinical settings; in particular, it might supply helpful information in patients with cerebrovascular disease. Oral antiplatelet treatment, such as Aspirin (ASA) and Clopidogrel, is the gold standard in secondary stroke prevention of non-cardiogenic ischemic stroke; conversely, its application as a primary prevention therapy is not routinely recommended in patients with vascular risk factors. Multiple electrode platelet aggregometry (MEA) impedance aggregometer is a validated device to test platelet inhibition induced by ASA or Clopidogrel. Case Report: We report the case of a 78-year-old patient without relevant clinical history, taking ASA as primary prevention strategy, who was admitted for sudden onset of dysarthria and left facial hyposthenia during physical effort. Brain CT revealed two small subcortical bilateral spontaneous intracranial hemorrhages. Platelet aggregometry with MEA performed upon admission revealed a very strong platelet inhibition induced by ASA (result of the ASPI Test was 5 U, consistent with an ultra-responsiveness to ASA, and the cutoff value of correct responsiveness is <40 U). MRI at longitudinal follow-up revealed the presence of two small cavernous angioma underlying hemorrhagic spots. Conclusion: The evaluation of platelet reactivity in stroke patients undergoing antiplatelet therapies, not commonly performed in clinical practice, could be useful to optimize prevention strategies; the verification of the biological effectiveness of ASA or Clopidogrel could be a valid tool in the definition of each patient's risk profile, particularly in patients with cerebrovascular disease known to be at increased risk for both hemorrhagic and thrombotic complications

In-hospital and out-of-hospital stroke in patients with COVID-19: two different diseases?

Background: Ischemic stroke is a known complication of COVID-19. It may have a different pathogenesis and worse outcome compared to stroke in patients without COVID-19. Furthermore, patients with COVID-19 and out-of-hospital stroke onset might have different characteristics compared to patients with COVID-19 and in-hospital stroke onset. The aim of our study was to analyze the characteristics of patients with stroke with and without COVID-19 and of patients with COVID-19 with in-hospital and out-of-hospital stroke. Methods: We performed a retrospective study of all consecutive patients admitted to our hospital with ischemic stroke between October 2020 and February 2021. We compared functional outcome, lab test, demographic, and clinical characteristics between patients with or without COVID-19. We performed a sub-analysis comparing patients with COVID-19 and in-hospital and out-of-hospital stroke onset. Results: We included in the final analysis 137 patients of whom 26 with COVID-19. Half (13) had out-of-hospital stroke and half in-hospital stroke onset. Overall, patients with COVID-19 had higher mortality compared to the control group (27% vs 9%, p: 0.02), and non-significantly lower rate of good functional outcome (50% vs 63%, p: 0.22). Patients with COVID-19 and out-of-hospital stroke had higher rate of good functional outcome (69% vs 39%, p: 0.05), higher lymphocyte count, and lower D-dimer compared with patients with in-hospital stroke onset. Conclusions: Patients with stroke and COVID-19 had higher mortality compared to patients without COVID-19. Among patients with COVID-19 those with out-of-hospital stroke had better outcome and fewer blood test abnormalities compared to patients with in-hospital stroke