GLI ANTICHI MAIS DEL PIEMONTE

Il libro descrive le caratteristiche agronomiche ma anche culturali della coltivazione del mais effettuata in Piemonte nel secolo scorso, nonchè le possibilità di valorizzazione e di miglioramento delle cultivar tradizionali destinate all'alimentazione umana ed il loro ruolo nella tutela della biodiversità rurale. Nel libro si descrive inoltre il lavoro attuato dal CRAB (Centro di riferimento per l'Agricoltura Biologica, Provincia di Torino) per il recupero e la caratterizzazione delle cultivar locali di mais, che ha portato alla costituzione di un associazione di produttori e alla formazione di un gruppo di "agricoltori custodi" per la coltivazione in purezza delle sementi di queste antiche varietà maidicole

‘My heart is black, your belly is white’: Encoding Emotions in a West African Culture

Hausa (Afroasiatic, West Chadic, A) is the most wide spoken language in West Africa and has got an enormous advantage from Internet. Going through the Web we can see so many sites dealing with all the aspect of Hausa life and culture. This language is widely employed in social networking, where groups of thousands of users discuss political, social and religious issues on regular basis and (almost) without censorship

CLASH-X: A Comparison of Lensing and X-ray Techniques for Measuring the Mass Profiles of Galaxy Clusters

We present profiles of temperature (Tx), gas mass, and hydrostatic mass estimated from new and archival X-ray observations of CLASH clusters. We compare measurements derived from XMM and Chandra observations with one another and compare both to gravitational lensing mass profiles derived with CLASH HST and ground-based lensing data. Radial profiles of Chandra and XMM electron density and enclosed gas mass are nearly identical, indicating that differences in hydrostatic masses inferred from X-ray observations arise from differences in Tx measurements. Encouragingly, cluster Txs are consistent with one another at ~100-200 kpc radii but XMM Tx systematically decline relative to Chandra Tx at larger radii. The angular dependence of the discrepancy suggests additional investigation on systematics such as the XMM point spread function correction, vignetting and off-axis responses. We present the CLASH-X mass-profile comparisons in the form of cosmology-independent and redshift-independent circular-velocity profiles. Ratios of Chandra HSE mass profiles to CLASH lensing profiles show no obvious radial dependence in the 0.3-0.8 Mpc range. However, the mean mass biases inferred from the WL and SaWLens data are different. e.g., the weighted-mean value at 0.5 Mpc is = 0.12 for the WL comparison and = -0.11 for the SaWLens comparison. The ratios of XMM HSE mass profiles to CLASH lensing profiles show a pronounced radial dependence in the 0.3-1.0 Mpc range, with a weighted mean mass bias of value rising to ~0.3 at ~1 Mpc for the WL comparison and of 0.25 for SaWLens comparison. The enclosed gas mass profiles from both Chandra and XMM rise to a value 1/8 times the total-mass profiles inferred from lensing at 0.5 Mpc and remain constant outside of that radius, suggesting that [8xMgas] profiles may be an excellent proxy for total-mass profiles at >0.5 Mpc in massive galaxy clusters.Comment: Accepted to ApJ; 24 pages; scheduled to appear in the Oct 10, 2014 issue. This version corrects the typographical error in the superscripts for Equation (2) to include the square of (r/r_core). The correct version of this equation was used in the analysi

Compost improves plant and soil macronutrient content in a 14-years orchard

Adequate plant nutritional status and soil fertility preservation can be achieved through sustainable agricultural management techniques. The challenge of intensive orchard cultivation, besides the risk of nutrient decline, is to prevent the loss of soil fertility that could lead to soil degradation with a consequent negative impact on yield and fruit quality. The use of organic amendments could be a sustainable strategy to combine high plant performance with soil fertility improvement. This work aims at shedding light on the effects of compost addition with respect to an unfertilized control and a mineral fertilization treatment on macronutrient (K, Ca, Mg, and S) dynamics in plants and soil of a commercial nectarine orchard planted in 2001. In the first 0.15 m of soil, compost addition resulted in higher values (26–42%) of all the parameters. Both fertilization treatments induced a 28% increase in roots’ S content compared to the control but did not induce macronutrient content variation in plant skeleton, pruned wood, and thinned fruits. In autumn leaves, all the macronutrients resulted in higher values (24–45%) with both mineral and compost fertilization, and the same was observed in fruit at harvest (increases of 15–31%). In our study, the treatment with compost satisfied plants' nutrient demands as much as the mineral fertilizer. In addition, compost treatment also improved soil nutrient content while preserving yield. Our results show that it is possible to reconcile plant nutrient needs with the preservation of soil fertility with the aim of improving sustainability of agriculture

Technical note: Estimation of real rabbit meat consumption in Italy

[EN] As in other livestock species, the annual per capita consumption of rabbit meat is currently estimated as the ratio of the total weight of carcasses available for consumption to the number of inhabitants of a certain region. The aim of this work was to establish conversion coefficients from carcass to dible lean meat and estimate real rabbit meat consumption in Italy. Accordingly, a total of 24 rabbits were slaughtered at 2 different ages to obtain carcasses representative of the main market categories in Northern Italy: medium-size (carcass weight of about 1.4 kg) and heavy-size (carcass weight of about 1.8 kg). Chilled carcasses were used to determine offal, dissectible fat, bone and meat weights and yields. Experimentally obtained conversion factors from carcass to edible lean meat and estimated meat waste percentage at retail and consumption levels were subsequently used to estimate the real per capita amount of rabbit meat consumed in Italy. The finding of this study revealed that, if compared to the medium-size group, heavy-size carcasses had higher lean meat yield for both intermediate (92.9 vs. 92.4%; P<0.05) and hind parts (84.3 vs. 79.1%; P<0.001). On the contrary, the meat yield of fore part was higher in the medium-size group (66.2 vs. 65.5%; P<0.001) compared to heavy-size carcasses. Eventually, overall meat yield was higher in heavy-size carcasses compared to medium-size ones (64.4 vs. 63.2%; P<0.001). By using these conversion factors and estimated overall losses at retailing and home-consumption (15%), we estimated that real per capita annual rabbit meat consumption is 0.50 kg in Italy, which is only 54% compared to the estimated apparent consumption (0.90 kg).Petracci, M.; Soglia, F.; Baldi, G.; Balzani, L.; Mudalal, S.; Cavani, C. (2018). Technical note: Estimation of real rabbit meat consumption in Italy. World Rabbit Science. 26(1):91-96. doi:10.4995/wrs.2018.7802SWORD919626

Reducing Cognitive Load in Teleoperating Swarms of Robots through a Data-Driven Shared Control Approach

Multi-robot systems have gained increasing interest across various fields such as medicine, environmental monitoring, and more. Despite the evident advantages, the coordination of the swarm arises significant challenges for human operators, particularly concerning the cognitive burden needed for efficiently controlling the robots. In this study, we present a novel approach for enabling a human operator to effectively control the motion of multiple robots. Leveraging a shared control data-driven approach, we enable a single user to control the 9 degrees of freedom related to the pose and shape of a swarm. Our methodology was evaluated through an experimental campaign conducted in simulated 3D environments featuring a narrow cylindrical path, which could represent, e.g., blood vessels, industrial pipes. Subjective measures of cognitive load were assessed using a post-experiment questionnaire, comparing different levels of autonomy of the system. Results show substantial reductions in operator cognitive load when compared to conventional teleoperation techniques, accompanied by enhancements in task performance, including reduced completion times and fewer instances of contact with obstacles. This research underscores the efficacy of our approach in enhancing human-robot interaction and improving operational efficiency in multi-robot systems

Parotid Gland Edema After Chlorhexidine Mouthrinse: Case Report and Literature Review

Introduction: Parotid gland swelling, caused by many pathological conditions, has also been reported to be a possible side effect of the use of chlorhexidine mouthwash. This adverse reaction to chlorhexidine mouthwash is, however, extremely rare and very few cases of parotid gland swelling due to chlorhexidine mouthwash have been reported in the literature. Case Description: This report describes the clinical management of unilateral parotid swelling caused by chlorhexidine mouthwash. Methods: A patient presented with left parotid gland swelling after using chlorhexidine mouthwash for three days following sinus augmentation on the contralateral side of the maxilla. Diagnosis of parotid gland swelling due to rinsing with chlorhexidine was formulated after anamnesis, clinical examination, radiographs and ultrasound of the gland excluded other pathological conditions. The patient was subsequently advised to stop rinsing. However, on the evening of the same day, swelling increased and the patient presented to an emergency department where a single intravenous dose of methylprednisolone was administered. Results: After seven days, parotid swelling decreased significantly and after three weeks had completely disappeared. Conclusion: Although unilateral or bilateral parotid gland swelling related to the use of chlorhexidine mouthwash is an uncommon adverse event, it must be suspected after other organic or infective conditions have been excluded. The precise pathogenic mechanism has not yet been determined and further studies should be carried out to better understand the pathophysiology of this uncommon phenomenon

A Plackett-Burman Design to Optimize Wood Chipper Settings

The wood-chipping process is affected by several factors, notably chipper settings and wood characteristics. It is often difficult to test all of these factors in a full factorial experimental plan, due to the large number of trials required. On the other hand, a screening design of the experiment makes it possible to manage a large number of variables in a small number of trials. Hence, this approach is used to test six factors, in order to optimize the productivity and chip quality of a drum wood-chipper. These factors are: feeding speed, screen size, PTO-speed, wood species, wood moisture content, and wood diameter. Productivity was significantly affected by screen size, while chip quality was related to feeding speed, screen size, PTO-speed, and wood species. The results suggest that the optimal configuration can be achieved by adjusting feeding speed, the PTO-speed, and the wood species, as these settings maximize chip quality. Screen size requires further analysis, as larger sizes increase productivity but reduce quality, while the opposite is true for smaller sizes. Thus, the optimal screen size requires a consideration of costs and benefits that may change according to the retail price of premium and regular wood chips, and production costs