SIMPLIFIED 3-D MODEL FOR THE CALCULATION OF BODY SEGMENT KINEMATIC ASYMMETRIES IN CYCLING

INTRODUCTION The analysis of lower limb kinematics in cycling has generally been confined in the sagittal plane by using data obtained with a 2-D analysis Furthermore, when asymmetries were evaluated this was done by detecting data from one leg at time and subsequently comparing the scores obtained from the two sides in different trials. The present work provides a three-dimensional model for the calculation of body segment kinematics, by measuring the 3-D coordinates of a reduced number of external markers. METHODS Subjects of this study were 8 professional road cyclists, (age 25.1 ± 40 yr., body mass: 68.6 ± 6.4 kg), usually covering more than 25.000 km/year The subjects used their own bicycle mounted on rollers fitted with an air-operated variable-load device. Data were recorded at three levels of external load (Iow, medium and high) The ELITE system motion analyzer was used with 4 TV cameras paired on the two sides of the cyclist. Sampling frequency was 100 Hz Size of the passive retroreflective markers was 10 mm in diameter. The 3-D body coordinates (iliac crest, great trochanter, femoral condile, malleolus, fifth metatarsal head) and some anthropometric measures of the subject were the input of a mathematical model designed to describe the spatial kinematics of seven rigid segments belonging to the lower limbs (feet, shanks, thighs and pelvis). RESULTS Tables 1 and 2 show the mean and the standard deviation of some of the variables used for the analysis They have been computed by grouping right and left patterns of the whole group As it can be seen, when the load changes there is an evident trend of some variables. For example, the range of motion decreases at the hip joint, when the load Increases, conversely it increases at the knee and at the ankle joint. The individual examination revealed as the majority of athletes were characterized by significant left-right differences in the selected lower leg angles and in some linear kinematic parameters. These asymmetries appear to be subject, joint and pedalling modality dependent. CONCLUSION The method presented here seems to be an useful tool to assess and to evaluate biomechanical data during cycling. The proposed kinematic model gives indeed a good representation of the cyclist during his action. In particular the possibility to collect simultaneously data from both sides of the body appears to be very informative about asymmetries characterizing cyclists

Dialectical Argument Game Proof Theories for Classical Logic

Argument game-based proof theories provide procedural structures capable of determining the status of an argument. Given an argumentation framework, argument games identify the membership of an argument in a specific extension simulating a dispute between two opposing contenders. The semantics intended to be captured dictate the rules of the played game, which serve to describe how the players can achieve victory. Dialectical Classical logic Argumentation (Dialectical Cl-Arg) is a recent approach that provides real-world dialectical characterisations of Cl-Arg arguments by resource-bounded agents while preserving the rational criteria established by the rationality postulates and practical desiderata. This paper combines both subjects and introduces argument games for Dialectical Cl-Arg, highlighting the properties and benefits enjoyed by these games in comparison with the standard ones. The result will be a proof theory better equipped to approximate real-world non-monotonic single-agent reasoning processes

The flat entropy profile at the outskirts of the Abell 2244 galaxy cluster

Entropy is an advantageous diagnostics to study the thermodynamic history of the intracluster plasma of galaxy clusters. We present the entropy profile of the Abell 2244 galaxy cluster derived both exclusively using X-ray data from the low-background Swift XRT telescope and also using Planck y data. The entropy profile derivation using X-rays only is robust at least to the virial radius because the cluster brightness is large compared to the X-ray background at low energies, temperature is strongly bounded by the lack of cluster X-ray photons at energies kT>3 keV, and the XRT background is low, stable and understood. In the observed solid angle, about one quadrant, the entropy radial profile deviates from a power-law at the virial radius, mainly because of a sharp drop of the cluster temperature. This bending of the entropy profile is confirmed when X-ray spectral information is replaced by the Compton map. Clumping and non-thermal pressure support are insufficient to restore a power law entropy profile because they are bound to be small by: a) the agreement between mass estimates from different tracers (gas and galaxies), b) the agreement between entropy profile determinations based on combinations of observables with different sensitivities and systematics, and c) the low value of clumping as estimated using the azimuthal scatter and the gas fraction. Based on numerical simulations, ion-electron equilibration is also insufficient to restore a linear entropy profile. Therefore, the bending of the entropy profiles seems to be robustly derived and witnesses the teoretically-predicted decrease in the inflow through the virial boundary.Comment: MNRAS, in pres

Capillary breakup and electrospinning of PA6 solutions containing FeCl3: experimental findings and correlations

In several applications, ranging from electronic to chemical sensing, great interest has grown for the exploitation of conducting polymer nanofibers, whose processing is, however, not straightforward, due to polymer low solubility and presence of rigid backbones. An interesting method to overcome this issue consists in the electrospinning of a spinnable polymer to obtain a template for the successive in situ polymerization of the conducting polymer monomers. Considering PANI nanofibers, a suitable template can be electrospun from PA6 solutions in formic acid containing FeCl3. In this system, the ionic salt may perturb or prevent H-bonds formation between amide groups of PA6 backbones: this could modify solution viscoelasticity, and thus affect fibres morphology. The aim of the present work is to identify the effect of FeCl3 on the solution rheological behaviour and to correlate it to electrospun fibres morphology. To this aim, solutions at several salt content underwent electrospinning and were characterized both in shear, by rotational rheometry, and extension, by capillary breakup rheometry, while fibres morphology and crystallinity were evaluated through SEM and DSC. The rheological analysis enlightens that a critical FeCl3 content exists above which the viscous component of the viscoelastic response becomes predominant. At the same concentration, the SEM observations of the electrospun fibres show the formation of severely inhomogeneous structures. A correlation between these results is proposed through the adimensional analysis of competing viscoelastic stabilization and surface tension-driven instability phenomena. Besides the aforementioned effects, the FeCl3 content affects also fibre crystallinity, as above a critical concentration fibres turn out to be completely amorphous. Interestingly, this concentration coincides with the one at which a transition is observed in the rheological behaviour

AR AND VR FOR ENHANCING MUSEUMS’ HERITAGE THROUGH 3D RECONSTRUCTION OF FRAGMENTED STATUE AND ARCHITECTURAL CONTEXT

This paper presents the results of multidisciplinary research in which reconstructive digital modelling operates on different areas of heritage and at different scales to realize an analysis, interpretation, and communication experience in the field of museum valorization. It is, in fact, a work that includes both the philological reconstruction of the lost parts of a Buddha statue of Gandhāra, dating back to the second century b.C. and kept at the Museum of Oriental Art (MAO) in Turin, and its contextualization within a coeval architectural complex, recognized as philologically compatible, located in Balo-Kale, in the region of Gandhāra. The reconstructive models are finally used with communicative purposes for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) applications inside the museum

Activity profile of top-class association football referees in relation to fitness test performance and match standard

The aim of this study was to examine the kinematic activity profiles, cardiovascular responses and physical fitness of top-class football referees (n=11) during the FIFA Confederations Cup 2005. Computerised match-analyses (n=9) were performed with a two-dimensional photogrammetric video system, and the cardiovascular demand imposed on the referees (n=12) was measured using heart rate recordings. Total distance covered was 10,218, s=643 m of which 3531, s=510 m was covered at high intensities (>3.6 m.s(-1)). Both total distance covered (r2=0.59; P=0.02) and high-intensity activities (r2=0.44; P=0.05) were related to the distance covered by the ball in the same match. The referees ran at high speed 37% further (P=0.01) in the actual tournament than during under-17 top-level officiating. After the 5-min interval during which high-speed running peaked, in the following 5 min the performance was reduced by 19% (P=0.01) in relation to the mean of the game. Mean heart rate was 161, s=9 b.min(-1) (86, s=3% of maximal heart rate (HRmax)). Mean heart rate (expressed as percentage of HRmax) was related in part (r2=0.36; P5 m.s(-1)) best describes the physical performance of referees; (3) heart rate recording can be a useful tool to determine the most intense periods of a match and (4) the new fitness tests adopted by FIFA were poor predictors of match activities

Search for Neutron Flux Generation in a Plasma Discharge Electrolytic Cell

Following some recent unexpected hints of neutron production in setups like high-voltage atmospheric discharges and plasma discharges in electrolytic cells, we present a measurement of the neutron flux in a configuration similar to the latter. We use two different types of neutron detectors, poly-allyl-diglicol-carbonate (PADC, aka CR-39) tracers and Indium disks. At 95% C.L. we provide an upper limit of 1.5 neutrons cm^-2 s^-1 for the thermal neutron flux at ~5 cm from the center of the cell. Allowing for a higher energy neutron component the largest allowed flux is 64 neutrons cm^-2 s^-1. This upper limit is two orders of magnitude smaller than what previously claimed in an electrolytic cell plasma discharge experiment. Furthermore the behavior of the CR-39 is discussed to point our possible sources of spurious signals.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

EQRbot: A chatbot delivering EQR argument-based explanations

Data availability statement: The provided link: https://github.com/FCast07/EQRbot refers to the GitHub repository that stores the chatbot programming code.Recent years have witnessed the rise of several new argumentation-based support systems, especially in the healthcare industry. In the medical sector, it is imperative that the exchange of information occurs in a clear and accurate way, and this has to be reflected in any employed virtual systems. Argument Schemes and their critical questions represent well-suited formal tools for modeling such information and exchanges since they provide detailed templates for explanations to be delivered. This paper details the EQR argument scheme and deploys it to generate explanations for patients' treatment advice using a chatbot (EQRbot). The EQR scheme (devised as a pattern of Explanation-Question-Response interactions between agents) comprises multiple premises that can be interrogated to disclose additional data. The resulting explanations, obtained as instances of the employed argumentation reasoning engine and the EQR template, will then feed the conversational agent that will exhaustively convey the requested information and answers to follow-on users' queries as personalized Telegram messages. Comparisons with a previous baseline and existing argumentation-based chatbots illustrate the improvements yielded by EQRbot against similar conversational agents.This research was partially funded by the UK Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) under Grant #EP/P010105/1

Electrocatalytic properties of Pd-based nano-structured material for application in fuel cells

Fuel cells, especially low temperature fuel cells, are clean-energy devices that have high potentiality for use in electric power production and non-polluting vehicles. Platinum is commonly used as electrocatalysts in fuel cell electrodes, because of its excellent electrocatalytic activity and chemical stability. But, because of its high cost and limited resources, its use represents a bottleneck for large-scale application and commercialization of fuel cells. Palladium could be a good substitute for Pt, because of its similar chemical and physical properties, lower cost and higher abundance. Main challenges concern the development of Pd-based materials with high catalytic activity and durability at a reduced cost (i.e. metal content). Crucial technological issue is the optimization of the active surface of the catalysts, by the control of the morphology, shape and dispersion of the metal particles. The talk will describe the main results of the research activity carried out during the second year of the Italia-USA Bilateral Project in ENEA, concerning the fabrication and characterization of different kinds of nanostructured Pd-based electrocatalysts, by using both electrochemical and vacuum thin film deposition techniques

Deriving Bisimulation Congruences: 2-categories vs precategories

G-relative pushouts (GRPOs) have recently been proposed by the authors as a new foundation for Leifer and Milner’s approach to deriving labelled bisimulation congruences from reduction systems. This paper develops the theory of GRPOs further, arguing that they provide a simple and powerful basis towards a comprehensive solution. As an example, we construct GRPOs in a category of ‘bunches and wirings.’ We then examine the approach based on Milner’s precategories and Leifer’s functorial reactive systems, and show that it can be recast in a much simpler way into the 2-categorical theory of GRPOs