Archaeology and natural sciences. Giovanni Antonio Antolini’s unpublished texts and drawings

In the years prior to 1818, Giovanni Antonio Antolini (1753-1841) devoted himself to studying the ruins of the ancient Roman settlement of Velleia, which at the time was part of the Duchy of Parma. With regard to the studies he conducted at the site, Antolini left a rare illustrated, handwritten notebook and a collection of original drawings, both of which have been preserved in the Piancastelli Collection at the Forlì municipal library and, to the best of our knowledge, are unpublished. The notebook relates to the third and last journey Antolini made to Velleia in the spring of 1818. This paper discusses the documents in the context of the architectural culture and the natural scientific culture at the turn of the nineteenth century. Prior to becoming an architect and an academy professor, Antolini was an engineer, an expert in hydraulics and the use of geodetic instruments. His scientific education took place in Bologna and he later worked in a context modelled on the political and cultural influences of a French culture shaped by the Enlightenment, typical of the Duchy of Parma at that time. In the field of archaeology and that of the observation of nature, Antolini displayed a curiosity for all aspects of the real world and an aptitude for understanding its rationale and finding thorough explanations. He observed and meticulously annotated each phenomenon, drew and measured every detail, making many observations before later reorganising them into a single rational system

Art du trait. Considerations on double orthogonal projection in medieval stereotomy

The ancient art of stereotomy lies at the origins of the long process of formalizing the method of double orthogonal projection, which found its conclusion at the end of the nineteenth century with Gaspard Monge (1746-1818). Beginning from some statements contained in the famous Dictionnaire raisonné of Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814- 1879), and in particular under the entry ‘Trait (art du)’ the current essay discusses the hypothesis of the use of rigorous projection techniques in the Gothic building site and the ante litteram knowledge of descriptive geometry on the part of medieval artisans. On this theme, the essay offers some considerations regarding the restoration architect’s hypotheses, by considering them in view of more recent studies by Italian and French authors in the field of the history of architectural drawing and the history of the codification of forms of representation

DISCOVERING THE EVERYDAY LANDSCAPE A cultural heritage education project in the urban periphery

Heritage and landscape education is crucial to training young people in active and responsible citizenship, protection of the public assets, appreciation of the cultural diversity and intergenerational dialogue. Therefore, it cannot be limited to sporadic experiences and on outstanding heritage and contexts but must be transdisciplinary, inclusive and practicable everywhere. This book relates the research and action project “Scuola Attiva Risorse” (ScAR), winner of the Polisocial Award that recognizes research for social purposes at the Politecnico di Milano. The text describes an experimental and innovative action delivered within the fragile context of the urban peripheries. This participatory process involved schools, universities, cultural institutions, administrations and private actors in interpreting and enhancing the “hidden” cultural heritage in Milan’s fringe neighbourhoods

A model‐based protocol for the diagnosis of von Willebrand disease

Von Willebrand disease (VWD) is one of the main inherited coagulation disorders. It is caused by a deficiency and/or a dysfunction of the von Willebrand factor (VWF), a fundamental multimeric glycoprotein involved in the hemostasis process. Correct detection of the disease is not an easy task because the disease manifests itself in many variants and a high intra-subject variability is observed. For these reasons, the diagnostic clinical trials typically rely on a 24-h sampling protocol, which makes the overall test long, stressful, and costly. Using a new pharmacokinetic model derived from Galvanin et al.'s 2014 study, this study aims at i) assessing the theoretical possibility to perform a shorter clinical test and ii) proposing a set of model-based diagnostic methods as a support for the clinical team. A preliminary information analysis is performed in order to understand which sampling instants are more informative for model identification. This allowed us to propose a novel, 8-h diagnostic protocol, which is still able to ensure model identifiability. Three alternative diagnostic methods are then proposed based on this short-length clinical protocol. One of them directly uses the pharmacokinetic model, whereas the other two are based on the use of three indices (two pharmacokinetic indices, namely clearance, total VWF released, and as third index the basal multimer ratio) to formulate the diagnosis problem as a classification one. The classification problem is then solved using K-nearest neighbours and linear discriminant analysis. Results show the theoretical feasibility of a VWD diagnosis based on a shorter protocol

REVEALING THE EVERYDAY LANDSCAPE: INNOVATIVE SYSTEMS FOR HERITAGE EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS. THE SCAR (SCHOOL ACTIVATES RESOURCES) PROJECT

The Italian Plan for Cultural Heritage Education identifies in the training related to cultural heritage the possibility of contributing to the cultural and social improvement of the life of every person, also developing, through a conscious use, the sense of belonging to one or more cultures and territory.Given these potentialities, the document reveals a lack of responses to training needs and underlines how the launch of educational courses that put school and university in synergy in the places of culture are among the priorities to be achieved in the period 2016-2018. The Italian Digital School Plan also stresses the importance of a renewed educational approach and effort to promote heritage and provides that all students are offered courses on the digital management of Cultural Heritage. The interest in the heritage, after all, is identified by European policies as part of the right of every citizen to freely participate in cultural life.The ScAR (School Activates Resources) project, aims to respond to these requests with an experimental and methodologically innovative action, set in a context rich in critical issues and on a fragile and ScARcely recognized heritage such as that of a part of the Milanese urban periphery. The aim of the project is to promote the shared knowledge of the latent urban patrimony and increase, especially in young people, the sense of belonging to the neighbourhoods, the sense of active citizenship and the responsibility in the common good’s care. Another priority is to provide schools with tools for educational innovation, inclusion, and technological update, to limit early school leaving.</p

Leucine Supplementation Does Not Improve Muscle Recovery from Resistance Exercise in Young Adults: A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Crossover Study

International Journal of Exercise Science 14(2): 486-497, 2021. This study aimed to investigate the effects of free leucine supplementation on muscle recovery from resistance exercise (RE) in young adults. Fourteen untrained subjects (23.9 ± 3.6 years old) underwent RE sessions (leg press and hack squat: three sets of 8-12 reps at 70% 1RM) supplemented with leucine (LEU: two daily doses of 3g) or a placebo (PLA), separated by a seven-day washout period. Following each occasion, participants were evaluated in three subsequent days (24h, 48h, and 72h) for muscle recovery via a repetition-to-failure test. The following markers were assessed: repetition performance, perceived exertion, lactate, creatine kinase, muscle soreness (DOMS), testosterone, and cortisol. No significant difference was observed between LEU and PLA conditions (p \u3e 0.05). Number of repetitions performed in the repetition-to-failure tests, perceived exertion, cortisol, and testosterone:cortisol ratio did not change over time (p \u3e 0.05). Creatine kinase increased immediately after exercise, at 24h, and 48h, and was attenuated at 72h post-exercise, while testosterone, lactate, and DOMS increased at 24h post-exercise (p \u3c 0.05) and remained elevated up to 72h. All outcomes were similar between LEU and PLA. Results indicate that a 6g daily dose of free leucine supplementation does not improve muscle recovery following lower-limb RE in untrained young adults

The development of parental monitoring during adolescence : A meta-analysis

As adolescents grow up, one of the important developmental tasks is to individuate themselves and to become more autonomous from parents. This requires a realignment of the parent-adolescent communication. The current meta-analytic study aims at identifying developmental changes in parent-adolescent communication, conceptualized within the parental monitoring framework, as entailing parental solicitation, control and knowledge, and adolescent’s disclosure and secrecy. Thirty-one longitudinal studies published between 2000 and 2015 were identified and included in the current meta-analysis. Informants, age at assessment and study duration were tested as moderators. Results showed a low to medium normative decline in parental control (Cohen’s d = −.395, 95% CI [−.541, −.249]), knowledge (d = −.245,95% CI [−.331, −.160] and adolescence disclosure (d = −.147, 95% CI [−.204, −.090]), and an increase in adolescent’s secrecy (d = .194, CI [031, .356]). Parental solicitation decreased based on parents’ (d = −.242, 95% CI[−.376, −.109]) but not on adolescents’ reports (d = .038, 95% CI[−.099, .175]). Another significant moderator was the duration of the study, with studies longer than 2 years being able to detect a more pronounced change in parental control than studies lasting less than 2 years (≤2 years, d = −.139 vs. duration > 2 years, d = −.581). Limitations of the current knowledge and new directions of studies are discussed.Peer reviewe

The effects of poetry-writing SANTEL on erotic body image in remission of cancer in women: a pilot study

International audienceAbstract Aim: Our pilot study aims to describe the effects ofa new specific and structured protocol focused on poetic/erotic writing (named SANTEL) on the (re)sexualization ofbody image in women, who have experienced cancer.Procedure: The protocol consists of four steps: to choose alist of erotic verses focused on the body parts, to fill a semistructuredpoetic text, to write sentences after target phraseson the body; and in the end, to write a free poem. Mrs V.suffered from breast cancer, and one breast was removed.She and her husband participated in this poetic writing protocol,separately. We analyzed the linguistic metaphors ofthe body by QSR Nvivo10 software.Results: Using this protocol, we showed discourse variationsof metaphors before and after the experience of writing.Patient V used “I feel like an alien” as a starting metaphorto describe her cancer experience and after poetic writingsessions, she used other bodily metaphors like “My body isa flower” and “My sensual and white flesh”.Conclusion: This poetic perspective promises a type of“perceptive-literary surgery”, characterized by a sensualinvestment process after remission: a poetic reconstructionof erotic body image.Les effets d'un protocole d'écriture poétique SANTEL sur l'image érotique du corps dans le traitement du cancer féminin : étude pilote The effects of poetry-writing SANTEL on erotic body image in remission of cancer in women: a pilot study A. Santarpia · J. Tellène · M. Carrier Résumé Objectif : Cette étude pilote de type qualitative et exploratoire vise à décrire les effets d'un nouveau protocole d'écriture poético-érotique (nommée SANTEL) sur la rééro-tisation de l'image du corps chez une femme, ayant vécu un cancer. Matériel et méthodes : Il s'agit d'un protocole composé de quatre étapes : une liste des phrases à caractères poétiques et érotiques à choisir, un texte à trous à remplir, des amorces de phrases ciblées sur le corps et en fin un poème libre. Madame V. a subi un cancer du sein nécessitant une ablation complète. Madame V. et son conjoint exécutent le protocole d'écriture séparément. Nous montrons les variations discursives des métaphores utilisées avant et après l'expérience de l'écriture, à travers le logiciel d'analyse qualitative QSR NVivo10. Résultats : Madame V. passera de la métaphore initiale « je me sens une extraterrestre » vers la plus atténuée « Non. Je me dis qu'extraterrestre c'était peut-être un peu énorme ». En plus, elle utilisera de nouvelles métaphores linguistiques du corps pour raconter son image du corps telles que « ce corps de chair blanche » et « une fleur qui s'ouvre délicatement ». Conclusion : Cet exercice spécifique d'écriture promet un type de « chirurgie perceptive-littéraire » dans le processus d'investissement sensuel et affectif après la rémission, une reconstruction perceptive et poétique de l'image érotique du corps. Mots clés Métaphores perceptives · Image du corps · Cancer féminin · Corps érotique · Écriture poétique · Chirurgie perceptive-littéraire · Logiciel QSR NVivo10. Abstract Aim: Our pilot study aims to describe the effects of a new specific and structured protocol focused on poetic/ erotic writing (named SANTEL) on the (re)sexualization of body image in women, who have experienced cancer. Procedure: The protocol consists of four steps: to choose a list of erotic verses focused on the body parts, to fill a semi-structured poetic text, to write sentences after target phrases on the body; and in the end, to write a free poem. Mrs V. suffered from breast cancer, and one breast was removed. She and her husband participated in this poetic writing protocol , separately. We analyzed the linguistic metaphors of the body by QSR Nvivo10 software. Results: Using this protocol, we showed discourse variations of metaphors before and after the experience of writing. Patient V used " I feel like an alien " as a starting metaphor to describe her cancer experience and after poetic writing sessions, she used other bodily metaphors like " My body is a flower " and " My sensual and white flesh ". Conclusion: This poetic perspective promises a type of " perceptive-literary surgery " , characterized by a sensual investment process after remission: a poetic reconstruction of erotic body image. Keywords Bodily metaphors · Body image · Feminine cancer · Erotic body · Poetry writing · Perceptive-literary surgery · QSR Nvivo10 software

Candidate biomarkers from the integration of methylation and gene expression in discordant autistic sibling pairs

While the genetics of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) has been intensively studied, resulting in the identification of over 100 putative risk genes, the epigenetics of ASD has received less attention, and results have been inconsistent across studies. We aimed to investigate the contribution of DNA methylation (DNAm) to the risk of ASD and identify candidate biomarkers arising from the interaction of epigenetic mechanisms with genotype, gene expression, and cellular proportions. We performed DNAm differential analysis using whole blood samples from 75 discordant sibling pairs of the Italian Autism Network collection and estimated their cellular composition. We studied the correlation between DNAm and gene expression accounting for the potential effects of different genotypes on DNAm. We showed that the proportion of NK cells was significantly reduced in ASD siblings suggesting an imbalance in their immune system. We identified differentially methylated regions (DMRs) involved in neurogenesis and synaptic organization. Among candidate loci for ASD, we detected a DMR mapping to CLEC11A (neighboring SHANK1) where DNAm and gene expression were significantly and negatively correlated, independently from genotype effects. As reported in previous studies, we confirmed the involvement of immune functions in the pathophysiology of ASD. Notwithstanding the complexity of the disorder, suitable biomarkers such as CLEC11A and its neighbor SHANK1 can be discovered using integrative analyses even with peripheral tissues