Le strutture a molte iperstatiche: una applicazione al caso dei telai piani

L’obiettivo principale della tesi è stato l’approfondimento del Metodo delle Forze e la sua applicazione per lo studio delle strutture a molte iperstatiche. La tesi è suddivisa in tre capitoli. Nel primo capitolo vengono richiamati alcuni argomenti di Scienza delle Costruzioni necessari per comprendere i concetti fondamentali relativi alla iperstaticità delle strutture. Nel secondo capitolo viene introdotto il caso delle strutture a molte iperstatiche ed in particolare si descrive concettualmente uno dei possibili metodi di risoluzione, cioè il Metodo delle Forze. Nel terzo capitolo, infine, viene descritta l’applicazione del metodo per la risoluzione con il Metodo delle Forze di un telaio piano nove volte iperstatico e vengono riportati con opportuni commenti i risultati ottenuti in termini di incognite iperstatiche e caratteristiche della sollecitazione. Dalla risoluzione del problema applicativo, si è potuto constatare che il Metodo delle Forze risulta effettivamente laborioso se usato per risolvere sistemi con grado di iperstaticità elevato (in realtà, risulta già impegnativo se il grado di iperstaticità è superiore a 2 o 3) ed, inoltre, non si presta agevolmente ad essere automatizzato mediante l’ausilio di un calcolatore elettronico

Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Title VII - Affirmative Action in Hiring - Persons Protected

The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey has held that a white male is not a member of any class protected by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and may not invoke the protection of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission\u27s guidelines which require that any standardized test which serves as a basis for hiring by an employer must be job-related. Mele v. United States Department of Justice, 395 F. Supp. 592 (D.N.J. 1975)

Section 1983 and the New Supreme Court: Cutting the Civil Rights Act Down to Size

Section 1983 of the Civil Rights Act has evolved into a major provision safeguarding the rights of persons aggrieved by official conduct. In an effort to assess whether § 1983 will retain its expanded viability, this comment examines several cases recently decided by the Supreme Court. The author argues that there is a discernible trend by the Court to restrict the application and use of § 1983

\u3cem\u3eTerry v. Ohio\u3c/em\u3e and Power of Police to Accost Citizens Absent Probable Cause to Arrest: A Critical Look at the Pennsylvania Experience

In Terry v. Ohio, the Supreme Court held constitutionally permissible the stopping and frisking of individuals on less than probable cause. The Supreme Court, however, has given few specific guidelines, encouraging development of the concept in state and lower federal courts. The author criticizes Pennsylvania\u27s approach, suggesting that Pennsylvania courts have failed to appreciate that a stop-and-frisk is still within the purview of the fourth amendment

First data on microflora of loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) nests from the coastlines of Sicily

Caretta caretta is threatened by many dangers in the Mediterranean basin, but most are human-related. The purposes of this research were: (i) to investigate microflora in samples from six loggerhead sea turtle nests located on the Sicilian coast and (ii) to understand microbial diversity associated with nests, with particular attention to bacteria and fungi involved in failed hatchings. During the 2016 and 2018 summers, 456 eggs and seven dead hatchling from six nests were collected. We performed bacteriological and mycological analyses on 88 egg samples and seven dead hatchlings, allowing us to isolate: Fusarium spp. (80.6%), Aeromonas hydrophila (55.6%), Aspergillus spp. (27.2%) and Citrobacter freundii (9%). Two Fusarium species were identified by microscopy and were confirmed by PCR and internal transcribed spacer sequencing. Statistical analyses showed significant differences between nests and the presence/absence of microflora, whereas no significant differences were observed between eggs and nests. This is the first report that catalogues microflora from C. caretta nests/eggs in the Mediterranean Sea and provides key information on potential pathogens that may affect hatching success. Moreover, our results suggest the need for wider investigations over extensive areas to identify other microflora, and to better understand hatching failures and mortality related to microbial contamination in this important turtle species

Infection and exposure to vector-borne pathogens in rural dogs and their ticks, Uganda

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.-- et al.[Background]: In rural parts of Africa, dogs live in close association with humans and livestock, roam freely, and usually do not receive prophylactic measures. Thus, they are a source of infectious disease for humans and for wildlife such as protected carnivores. In 2011, an epidemiological study was carried out around three conservation areas in Uganda to detect the presence and determine the prevalence of vector-borne pathogens in rural dogs and associated ticks to evaluate the risk that these pathogens pose to humans and wildlife. [Methods]: Serum samples (n=105), blood smears (n=43) and blood preserved on FTA cards (n=38) and ticks (58 monospecific pools of Haemaphysalis leachi and Rhipicephalus praetextatus including 312 ticks from 52 dogs) were collected from dogs. Dog sera were tested by indirect immunofluorescence to detect the presence of antibodies against Rickettsia conorii and Ehrlichia canis. Antibodies against R. conorii were also examined by indirect enzyme immunoassay. Real time PCR for the detection of Rickettsia spp., Anaplasmataceae, Bartonella spp. and Babesia spp. was performed in DNA extracted from FTA cards and ticks. [Results]: 99 % of the dogs were seropositive to Rickettsia spp. and 29.5 % to Ehrlichia spp. Molecular analyses revealed that 7.8 % of the blood samples were infected with Babesia rossi, and all were negative for Rickettsia spp. and Ehrlichia spp. Ticks were infected with Rickettsia sp. (18.9 %), including R. conorii and R. massiliae; Ehrlichia sp. (18.9 %), including E. chaffeensis and Anaplasma platys; and B. rossi (1.7 %). Bartonella spp. was not detected in any of the blood or tick samples. [Conclusions]: This study confirms the presence of previously undetected vector-borne pathogens of humans and animals in East Africa. We recommend that dog owners in rural Uganda be advised to protect their animals against ectoparasites to prevent the transmission of pathogens to humans and wildlife.This study received partial support from the project CGL2010-17931.Peer Reviewe

Evidenza di un caso di epatite infettiva del cane in Sicilia

L’Adenovirus Canino di tipo 1 (CAV-1), appartenente al genere Mastadenovirus, famiglia Adenoviridae, è l’agente causale dell’epatite infettiva del cane (ICH). Il virus replica negli endoteli vascolari e negli epatociti, causando epatite necrotico emorragica acuta. I sintomi neurologici sono rari e sono causati da una vasculite del SNC. Negli ultimi anni, la diffusa vaccinazione ha ridotto la circolazione di CAV-1 ed i casi clinici segnalati sono diventati rari ed isolati. In questo lavoro, gli Autori descrivono un caso clinico in un cucciolo di 2 mesi, non vaccinato, con febbre, prostrazione, convulsioni, vomito, diarrea ed esito infausto in una settimana. A seguito dell’esame autoptico, sono stati prelevati campioni di vari organi (cuore, milza, polmone, rene, encefalo, fegato, intestino). Questi sono stati analizzati mediante PCR ed isolamento su colture cellulari sensibili, per la ricerca dei principali agenti virali causa di malattia nel cane: parvovirus, cimurro, CAV-1 e CAV-2, coronavirus, rotavirus. Tutti gli organi esaminati sono risultati positivi sia in PCR che all’isolamento su MDCK solo per CAV-1. Il genoma estratto è stato amplificato secondo la metodica descritta da Hu et al. (2001), in grado di discriminare CAV-1 da CAV-2. L’isolamento su MDCK ha prodotto effetto citopatico al secondo passaggio ed il virus isolato è stato identificato mediante immunofluorescenza diretta e PCR. Il presente lavoro costituisce un contributo alla esigua disponibilità bibliografica sulle infezioni da CAV-1. La vaccinazione sistematica condotta nell’ultimo decennio ha sensibilmente ridotto i casi di malattia. Infatti, gli ultimi casi risalgono al 2001 in Basilicata e Puglia dove sono stati descritti rispettivamente un caso di CAV-1 con sintomatologia classica ed un altro caratterizzato anche da sintomi neurologici. La presente indagine dimostra l’attuale circolazione di CAV-1 e la sporadica comparsa di casi clinici. La vaccinazione sistematica con CAV-2 rimane il mezzo più efficace di protezione della popolazione canina e costituisce l’unico metodo di controllo della malattia

Codominance of Lactobacillus plantarum and obligate heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria during sourdough fermentation

Fifteen sourdoughs produced in western Sicily (southern Italy) were analysed by classical methods for their chemico-physical characteristics and the levels of lactic acid bacteria (LAB). pH and total titratable acidity (TTA) were mostly in the range commonly reported for similar products produced in Italy, but the fermentation quotient (FQ) of the majority of samples was above 4.0, due to the low concentration of acetic acid estimated by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Specific counts of LAB showed levels higher than 108CFUg-1 for many samples. The colonies representing various morphologies were isolated and, after the differentiation based on phenotypic characteristics, divided into 10 groups. The most numerous group was composed of facultative heterofermentative isolates, indicating a relevance of this bacterial group during fermentation. The genetic analysis by randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)-PCR, 16S rRNA gene sequencing and species-specific PCRs identified 33 strains as Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus curvatus and Lactobacillus graminis. Due to the consistent presence of L.plantarum, it was concluded that this species codominates with obligate heterofermentative LAB in sourdough production in this geographical area. In order to evaluate the performances at the basis of their fitness, the 29 L.plantarum strains were investigated for several technological traits. Twelve cultures showed good acidifying abilities invitro and L.plantarum PON100148 produced the highest concentrations of organic acids. Eleven strains were positive for extracellular protease activity. Bacteriocin-like inhibitory substances (BLIS) production and antifungal activity was scored positive for several strains, included L.plantarum PON100148 which was selected as starter for experimental sourdough production. The characteristics of the sourdoughs and the resulting breads indicated that the best productions were obtained in presence of L.plantarum PON100148