PAPIRI

Con la parola papiro si indica sia la pianta, sia il materiale che ne deriva, utilizzato anticamente per la scrittura. Il volume ripercorre a grandi linee le caratteristiche botaniche ed ecologiche della pianta, con note sull'utilizzo tecnologico e la raffigurazione nell'arte; prosegue con accenni alla scrittura, alla storia del supporto scrittorio, alle piante papirifere, alle proto-carte e conclude con una riflessione sull'uso sostenibile dei materiali cartacei e sulla differenziazione dei rifiuti e il riciclaggio

Papiri

The word “papyrus” indicates both the plant and the resulting material used in ancient times for writing. The volume broadly traces the botanical and ecological characteristics of the plant, with notes on its technological use and its representation in art; it continues with references to writing, the history of the writing medium, papyrus plants and proto-papers, and ends with a reflection on the sustainable use of paper materials and on the differentiation of waste and recycling

Le rose in fila

The volume traces the fundamental stages of the transition from wild roses to cultivated roses, taking as a starting point the systematics of the genus Rosa and linking it to a thousand stories concerning plant hunters, breeders, geographic explorations, the work of scholars and gardeners, enthusiasts, collectors. This book also offers some information on the use of the rose in gardening, cooking and medicine, as well as a large iconography created mostly in the Florence Botanical Garden, a glossary of technical terms and identification elements for horticultural roses

Piante ed ebbrezze

Among his numerous interests, the scholar Paolo Mantegazza (1831-1910) also devoted himself to psychotropic plants, which he described in monographic contributions and in popular writings of a medical character, more specifically Quadri della natura umana: Feste ed ebbrezze and Elementi di igiene. Adopting the criteria of subdivision utilised by the scholar, the most widely used plants, foodstuffs and drinks are described, providing information about their botanical characteristics, their history, their chemical properties, their uses and the risks of abuse. They include, among others, sugar cane, coffee, tea, yerba mate, guarana, cocoa, tobacco, poppy, pepper, cinnamon, vanilla, cloves and absinthe

Screening and diagnostic breast MRI:how do they impact surgical treatment? Insights from the MIPA study

Objectives: To report mastectomy and reoperation rates in women who had breast MRI for screening (S-MRI subgroup) or diagnostic (D-MRI subgroup) purposes, using multivariable analysis for investigating the role of MRI referral/nonreferral and other covariates in driving surgical outcomes. Methods: The MIPA observational study enrolled women aged 18-80 years with newly diagnosed breast cancer destined to have surgery as the primary treatment, in 27 centres worldwide. Mastectomy and reoperation rates were compared using non-parametric tests and multivariable analysis. Results: A total of 5828 patients entered analysis, 2763 (47.4%) did not undergo MRI (noMRI subgroup) and 3065 underwent MRI (52.6%); of the latter, 2441/3065 (79.7%) underwent MRI with preoperative intent (P-MRI subgroup), 510/3065 (16.6%) D-MRI, and 114/3065 S-MRI (3.7%). The reoperation rate was 10.5% for S-MRI, 8.2% for D-MRI, and 8.5% for P-MRI, while it was 11.7% for noMRI (p ≤ 0.023 for comparisons with D-MRI and P-MRI). The overall mastectomy rate (first-line mastectomy plus conversions from conserving surgery to mastectomy) was 39.5% for S-MRI, 36.2% for P-MRI, 24.1% for D-MRI, and 18.0% for noMRI. At multivariable analysis, using noMRI as reference, the odds ratios for overall mastectomy were 2.4 (p < 0.001) for S-MRI, 1.0 (p = 0.957) for D-MRI, and 1.9 (p < 0.001) for P-MRI. Conclusions: Patients from the D-MRI subgroup had the lowest overall mastectomy rate (24.1%) among MRI subgroups and the lowest reoperation rate (8.2%) together with P-MRI (8.5%). This analysis offers an insight into how the initial indication for MRI affects the subsequent surgical treatment of breast cancer. Key points: • Of 3065 breast MRI examinations, 79.7% were performed with preoperative intent (P-MRI), 16.6% were diagnostic (D-MRI), and 3.7% were screening (S-MRI) examinations. • The D-MRI subgroup had the lowest mastectomy rate (24.1%) among MRI subgroups and the lowest reoperation rate (8.2%) together with P-MRI (8.5%). • The S-MRI subgroup had the highest mastectomy rate (39.5%) which aligns with higher-than-average risk in this subgroup, with a reoperation rate (10.5%) not significantly different to that of all other subgroups

Magnetic resonance imaging before breast cancer surgery: results of an observational multicenter international prospective analysis (MIPA).

Funder: Bayer AGFunder: Università degli Studi di MilanoOBJECTIVES: Preoperative breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can inform surgical planning but might cause overtreatment by increasing the mastectomy rate. The Multicenter International Prospective Analysis (MIPA) study investigated this controversial issue. METHODS: This observational study enrolled women aged 18-80 years with biopsy-proven breast cancer, who underwent MRI in addition to conventional imaging (mammography and/or breast ultrasonography) or conventional imaging alone before surgery as routine practice at 27 centers. Exclusion criteria included planned neoadjuvant therapy, pregnancy, personal history of any cancer, and distant metastases. RESULTS: Of 5896 analyzed patients, 2763 (46.9%) had conventional imaging only (noMRI group), and 3133 (53.1%) underwent MRI that was performed for diagnosis, screening, or unknown purposes in 692/3133 women (22.1%), with preoperative intent in 2441/3133 women (77.9%, MRI group). Patients in the MRI group were younger, had denser breasts, more cancers ≥ 20 mm, and a higher rate of invasive lobular histology than patients who underwent conventional imaging alone (p < 0.001 for all comparisons). Mastectomy was planned based on conventional imaging in 22.4% (MRI group) versus 14.4% (noMRI group) (p < 0.001). The additional planned mastectomy rate in the MRI group was 11.3%. The overall performed first- plus second-line mastectomy rate was 36.3% (MRI group) versus 18.0% (noMRI group) (p < 0.001). In women receiving conserving surgery, MRI group had a significantly lower reoperation rate (8.5% versus 11.7%, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Clinicians requested breast MRI for women with a higher a priori probability of receiving mastectomy. MRI was associated with 11.3% more mastectomies, and with 3.2% fewer reoperations in the breast conservation subgroup. KEY POINTS: • In 19% of patients of the MIPA study, breast MRI was performed for screening or diagnostic purposes. • The current patient selection to preoperative breast MRI implies an 11% increase in mastectomies, counterbalanced by a 3% reduction of the reoperation rate. • Data from the MIPA study can support discussion in tumor boards when preoperative MRI is under consideration and should be shared with patients to achieve informed decision-making

La democrazia in mutamento : Dallo Stato-nazione all\u27Europa

\uabEuropean democracy doesn\u27t need national heroes, ready to die for their homeland, but critical, active citizens who together develop and build the model of society we want to live in.\ubb European integration represents an extraordinary political experiment, which calls for a critical review of the tools and the lexicon traditionally used by sociology to analyse democracy. In this study the risks and opportunities of the passage from the nation-State to transnationality and original institutional structures, such as the system of multilevel governance, are discussed in the light of a wide-ranging analysis of the transformations of the social bond and of political cultures. With reference to the principles of deliberative and cosmopolitan democracy, focus is then placed in particular on the dynamics of democratic self-construction from the grassroots of European society, which develop from the construction of a transnational public sphere.\uabLa democrazia europea non ha bisogno di eroi nazionali, disposti a morire per la patria, ma di cittadini critici, attivi, che elaborano e costruiscono insieme il modello di societ\ue0 in cui vogliono vivere\ubb. L\u27integrazione europea rappresenta uno straordinario esperimento politico, che impone un ripensamento critico degli strumenti e del lessico tradizionalmente utilizzati dalla sociologia per analizzare la democrazia. In questo studio rischi e opportunit\ue0 del passaggio dallo Stato-nazione alla transnazionalit\ue0 e degli inediti assetti istituzionali, come il sistema di governance multilivello, sono discussi alla luce di un\u27ampia analisi delle trasformazioni del legame sociale e delle culture politiche. Con riferimento ai principi della democrazia deliberativa e cosmopolita, vengono cos\uec individuate, in particolare, le dinamiche di autocostituzione democratica dal basso della societ\ue0 europea, che si sviluppano a partire dalla costruzione di una sfera pubblica transnazionale

La nascita della meccanica quantistica

Quantum mechanics constituted a great scientific and cultural revolution that profoundly changed our approach to the study of the microscopic and subatomic world. The birth and evolution of the theories of quantum mechanics are revived through the personal and scientific history of the protagonists, their attempts and their working hypotheses, the discoveries, doubts and discussions. The substantially counterintuitive concepts of the new mechanics have redesigned the meaning of our knowledge of the world of atoms; particular attention is then paid to the impact that this new vision of the microscopic world has had on chemistry and our knowledge of the structure and reactivity of atoms and molecules.La meccanica quantistica ha costituito una grande rivoluzione scientifica e culturale che ha cambiato profondamente il nostro approccio allo studio del mondo microscopico e subatomico. La nascita e l’evoluzione delle teorie della meccanica quantistica sono rivissute attraverso la storia personale e scientifica dei protagonisti, i loro tentativi e le loro ipotesi di lavoro, le scoperte, i dubbi, le discussioni. I concetti sostanzialmente controintuitivi della nuova meccanica hanno ridisegnato il significato della nostra conoscenza del mondo degli atomi; una particolare attenzione \ue8 rivolta poi all’impatto che questa nuova visione del mondo microscopico ha avuto sulla chimica e sulle nostre conoscenze della struttura e reattivit\ue0 degli atomi e delle molecole