The organic aquaculture sector in Italy: a Delphi evaluation of the market potentialities

The paper draws out the possibilities of development and increase of organic farmed fish in Italy, evaluating both technical and economic aspects, for breeding, market, political, regulatory and environmental issues. The survey has been conducted using the Delphi technique, in three rounds with a panel of national experts. The analysis offers interesting insights and useful suggestions addressed to the organic aquaculture sector. Authors chose Delphi methodology according to the paper’s objective: the study is in fact aimed at exploring the evolution dynamics (positive or absent) for a less-developed market like the one of the Italian organic fish. This method allows to create a forecast by collecting and evaluating experts’ opinions about the organic fish market; these experts are divided in homogeneous groups and selected as privileged observers of the phenomenon

Land rent values determinants: a Hedonic Pricing approach at local scale

Farmland values are driven by a complex set of factors. Starting from the idea that land rent values may reflect several characteristics both internal and external to agricultural sector, the paper has implemented a hedonic model based on land rent values in the metropolitan area of Milan, Northern Italy, assessing the influence of climate, soil, territorial and farm variables on a sample of farms. The model is based on data at rent contract level, matched with data at farm and municipal scale retrieved from different sources. Results confirm that land rent prices are affected by some climate variables, along with territorial and farm characteristics

Faulting and deformation in chalk

peer reviewe

Half-Time Strategies to Enhance Second-Half Performance in Team-Sports Players: A Review and Recommendations

The competitive demands of numerous intermittent team sports require that two consecutive periods of play are separated by a half-time break. Typically, half-time allows players to: return to the changing rooms, temporarily relax from the cognitive demands of the first half of match-play, rehydrate, re-fuel, attend to injury or equipment concerns, and to receive tactical instruction and coach feedback in preparation for the second half. These passive practices have been associated with physiological changes which impair physical and cognitive performance in the initial stages of the second half. An increased risk of injury has also been observed following half-time. On the day of competition, modification of half-time practices may therefore provide Sports Scientists and Strength and Conditioning Coaches with an opportunity to optimise second half performance. An overview of strategies that may benefit team sports athletes is presented; specifically, the efficacy of: heat maintenance strategies (including passive and active methods), hormonal priming (through video feedback), post-activation potentiation, and modified hydro-nutritional practices are discussed. A theoretical model of applying these strategies in a manner that compliments current practice is also presented

Skill execution and sleep deprivation: effects of acute caffeine or creatine supplementation - a randomized placebo-controlled trial

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>We investigated the effects of sleep deprivation with or without acute supplementation of caffeine or creatine on the execution of a repeated rugby passing skill.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>Ten elite rugby players completed 10 trials on a simple rugby passing skill test (20 repeats per trial), following a period of familiarisation. The players had between 7-9 h sleep on 5 of these trials and between 3-5 h sleep (deprivation) on the other 5. At a time of 1.5 h before each trial, they undertook administration of either: placebo tablets, 50 or 100 mg/kg creatine, 1 or 5 mg/kg caffeine. Saliva was collected before each trial and assayed for salivary free cortisol and testosterone.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Sleep deprivation with placebo application resulted in a significant fall in skill performance accuracy on both the dominant and non-dominant passing sides (p < 0.001). No fall in skill performance was seen with caffeine doses of 1 or 5 mg/kg, and the two doses were not significantly different in effect. Similarly, no deficit was seen with creatine administration at 50 or 100 mg/kg and the performance effects were not significantly different. Salivary testosterone was not affected by sleep deprivation, but trended higher with the 100 mg/kg creatine dose, compared to the placebo treatment (p = 0.067). Salivary cortisol was elevated (p = 0.001) with the 5 mg/kg dose of caffeine (vs. placebo).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Acute sleep deprivation affects performance of a simple repeat skill in elite athletes and this was ameliorated by a single dose of either caffeine or creatine. Acute creatine use may help to alleviate decrements in skill performance in situations of sleep deprivation, such as transmeridian travel, and caffeine at low doses appears as efficacious as higher doses, at alleviating sleep deprivation deficits in athletes with a history of low caffeine use. Both options are without the side effects of higher dose caffeine use.</p

The effects of traditional, superset, and tri-set resistance training structures on perceived intensity and physiological responses.

PURPOSE: Investigate the acute and short-term (i.e., 24 h) effects of traditional (TRAD), superset (SS), and tri-set (TRI) resistance training protocols on perceptions of intensity and physiological responses. METHODS: Fourteen male participants completed a familiarisation session and three resistance training protocols (i.e., TRAD, SS, and TRI) in a randomised-crossover design. Rating of perceived exertion, lactate concentration ([Lac]), creatine kinase concentration ([CK]), countermovement jump (CMJ), testosterone, and cortisol concentrations was measured pre, immediately, and 24-h post the resistance training sessions with magnitude-based inferences assessing changes/differences within/between protocols. RESULTS: TRI reported possible to almost certainly greater efficiency and rate of perceived exertion, although session perceived load was very likely lower. SS and TRI had very likely to almost certainly greater lactate responses during the protocols, with changes in [CK] being very likely and likely increased at 24 h, respectively. At 24-h post-training, CMJ variables in the TRAD protocol had returned to baseline; however, SS and TRI were still possibly to likely reduced. Possible increases in testosterone immediately post SS and TRI protocols were reported, with SS showing possible increases at 24-h post-training. TRAD and SS showed almost certain and likely decreases in cortisol immediately post, respectively, with TRAD reporting likely decreases at 24-h post-training. CONCLUSIONS: SS and TRI can enhance training efficiency and reduce training time. However, acute and short-term physiological responses differ between protocols. Athletes can utilise SS and TRI resistance training, but may require additional recovery post-training to minimise effects of fatigue

Psychological pressure and changes in food consumption: the effect of COVID-19 crisis

: In this paper, we investigate the short-term and long-term effects of the COVID-19 emergency on consumers' decision of changing dietary habit. We used a certified dataset reporting information about 456 Italian consumers during the lockdown in the first wave of the pandemic emergency (April 2020). The survey collected data about changes in food purchases, respondents' mood during the lockdown, conspiracist beliefs, exposure to the virus, and planned food purchasing behavior after the lockdown. We used the data to construct measures of the psychological pressure exerted by the COVID-19 emergency on consumers. We use an endogenous selection regression model to assess the impact of psychological pressure on the decision of changing food purchased. The analysis identified two opposite approaches to change in food purchasing decisions: impulsive approach and reflective approach. The former is associated with a higher probability of changing food purchase but a lower probability to keep the changes in the long run than the latter. Our results suggest that COVID-19 psychological pressure was associated with impulsive approach to buy food. Consequently, food-purchasing behavior is expected to revert to pre-COVID 19 habits when the emergency is over

Zootecnia e biogas : incentivi 2013 : 100 pagine per capire

Il ruolo della produzione di energia rinnovabile attraverso la digestione anaerobica può essere decisivo per aumentare la redditività degli allevamenti e coadiuvare alla ricerca di soluzioni al problema della gestione degli effluenti. Il nuovo periodo di incentivazione finanziaria per la produzione di energia prodotta e ceduta al gestore di rete è partito dal 1° gennaio 2013. Le indicazioni del DM 6 luglio 2012 rappresentano un fondamentale fattore di cambiamento per il futuro dei diversi sistemi di trasformazione di risorse rinnovabili in energia, con significative differenze rispetto al passato. Infatti, i riferimenti per le tariffe incentivanti di durata ventennale propongono una nuovo approccio classificatorio distinguendo sia la tipologia di substrato utilizzato, sia la potenza installata nell’impianto. Per quanto riguarda la biomassa utilizzata, le classi degli incentivi evidenziano la volontà di premiare i progetti che utilizzano, soprattutto, sottoprodotti agro-zootecnici e agro-alimentari. Un altro elemento di differenziazione è la taglia dell’impianto, intesa come potenza elettrica installata; le classi di maggiore rilevanza per il settore agricolo riguardano impianti di potenza inclusi nella categoria 1 < 300 kW, quelli compresi nella forbice 300 < 600 kW e 600 < 1.000, con tariffe incentivanti decrescenti all’aumentare della potenza installata per i singoli scaglioni. Il presente studio vuole proporre un percorso di analisi che, partendo dalla formulazione di un conto economico e seguendo l’intero processo di gestione del refluo zootecnico dalla stalla ai terreni, possa arrivare a presentare soluzioni alternative al solo costo di adeguamento alla normativa per una migliore effi cienza nel contenimento dell’azoto in esubero. La valutazione economica si sviluppa definendo l’utile conseguibile dalla gestione del processo, parametrizzato secondo una scala monetaria comune: euro/capo, euro/kg carne, euro/kg latte ed euro/m3 di refluo