Per un’ecologia estetica. Le dimensioni non razionali della coesione sociale

Ecology should be understood as a new kind of knowledge that goes beyond the structural limitations of scientific discourse. Its emphasis on transdisciplinarity as the only way to cope with the new complexity of its object of study should be taken even further, to make room for other ways of understanding that Cartesian reductionism has more or less done away with. This essay advocates the necessity of an aesthetic ecology up to the task of mending Western culture’s separation between reason and emotional sphere, discourse and imaginal dimension. Such an integrated thought could try and understand with some success crucial issues such as environment, trust and social cohesion, which sink their roots in a terrain made of qualitative relations, ideals of sharing and interpersonal understanding and coexistence that the economic accent on competition and individualism has banned from social discourse and awareness

Riconoscersi. Cosa dicono le migrazioni delle comunità occidentali

In recent years, in the wake of the coincidence of economic, social and environmental crises, the unceasing inflow of the Other has catalyzed distress and fears. It is a meeting from which arise questions and doubts about crucial issues: personal and collective identity, the balance of society and the capacity of a culture of generating a shared sense. Taking these into account, a new perspective on the matter becomes possible, that does not interpret it as the fault of marauders who come “inexplicably” to plunder the already scarce resources, but rather as the shared responsibility of those who fail to properly receive migrants or to foster better conditions in the countries of origin. Migrations thus reveal themselves as indicators of a deeper problem. To treat such processes as a permanent emergency to be managed in bureaucratic and procedural terms highlights the loss of ethical and moral bearings and the disintegration of the social bond. This essay addresses two dimensions of this issue: first of all the tight connection between recognition and generation of a shared sense and the consequences of the failed perception of this link; secondly the paradigmatic and imaginal root of the Western tendency to discrimination and more and more emphasized opposition. The “hidden king “ of the age turns out to be the tension toward a qualitative relationality, put back together in spite of modern separations and elisions, that can sustain a complex dynamic balance from which spring forth the answers to the great questions of the XXI century

Essere umani nel XXI secolo

This essay is about the image of the Human in the XXI century. A Human that aims, in the dreams/projects of contemporary elites, at transcending itself, thus becoming purer and being absolved from some flaws/sins with which it could never come to terms. It would then be free of any limit, thanks only to its mechanical-mathematical intelligence. If this should come to pass, however, something must be left behind. Until a few years ago, it seemed that renouncing the flesh and its tangle of passions, weaknesses and emotions would be enough. Now, just as Baudrillard had foreseen, it seems that there will be no need even of the limpid intellectual talents that have been carefully selected throughout recent centuries. They abandoned their carriers to move to more fitting environments: the long chain of separations and reductions led to the predominance of only one component of the human intelligence, which got objectified in the information technologies and needs now neither parents nor servants

Triggering Deep Convection with a Probabilistic Plume Model

A model unifying the representation of the planetary boundary layer and dry, shallow and deep convection, the Probabilistic Plume Model (PPM), is presented. Its capacity to reproduce the triggering of deep convection over land is analysed in detail. The model accurately reproduces the timing of shallow convection and of deep convection onset over land, which is a major issue in many current general climate models. The PPM is based on a distribution of plumes with varying thermodynamic states (potential temperature and specific humidity) induced by surface layer turbulence. Precipitation is computed by a simple ice microphysics, and with the onset of precipitation, downdrafts are initiated and lateral entrainment of environmental air into updrafts is reduced. The most buoyant updrafts are responsible for the triggering of moist convection, causing the rapid growth of clouds and precipitation. Organization of turbulence in the subcloud layer is induced by unsaturated downdrafts, and the effect of density currents is modeled through a reduction of the lateral entrainment. The reduction of entrainment induces further development from the precipitating congestus phase to full deep cumulonimbus. Model validation is performed by comparing cloud base, cloud top heights, timing of precipitation and environmental profiles against cloud resolving models and large-eddy simulations for two test cases. These comparisons demonstrate that PPM triggers deep convection at the proper time in the diurnal cycle, and produces reasonable precipitation. On the other hand, PPM underestimates cloud top height

Tub gurnard Chelidonichthys lucerna L.: a new fish species suitable for farming? First answers evaluating the growth of juveniles reared at different stocking densities, welfare and fillet quality

A trial was conducted to evaluate the growth performance and survival of Chelidonichthys lucerna. A total of 13 352 180-days old juveniles (5.5 ± 2 g; 5 ± 1 cm) were reared at two different densities (A-EXP = 68 fish m−3; B-FFA = 15 fish m−3) in eight tanks (four tanks per group) for 360 days. The welfare status and meat quality of fish were evaluated for the A-EXP and B-FFA groups in comparison with wild-caught fishery gurnard (C-WID). The survival rate was high for both A-EXP (79%) and B-FFA (93.5%). B-FFA fish had the highest specific growth rate (1.16 vs. 1.07; P < 0.05), and were heavier than A-EXP fish (321 ± 40 g vs .239 ± 44 g; P < 0.01). Rearing conditions did not affect blood metabolites, except for glucose concentrations, which were higher in C-WID (P < 0.05). The meat quality traits showed that reared groups were fatter (2.8–3.2%) than C-WID (0.94%); total n-3 fatty acids (19.02–19.26%) were lower in reared groups than C-WID (29.99%); and EPA + DHA were similar in all groups (15.1–16.61% vs. 27.99%). Despite the good growth and survival, the final mean weight was below that requested by the market (400–500 g). Future research efforts should focus on reducing the feed conversion rate (3:1)

Path Clustering Based on a Novel Dissimilarity Function for Ride-Sharing Recommenders

Ride-sharing practice represents one of the possible answers to the traffic congestion problem in today's cities. In this scenario, recommenders aim to determine similarity among different paths with the aim of suggesting possible ride shares. In this paper, we propose a novel dissimilarity function between pairs of paths based on the construction of a shared path, which visits all points of the two paths by respecting the order of sequences within each of them. The shared path is computed as the shortest path on a directed acyclic graph with precedence constraints between the points of interest defined in the single paths. The dissimilarity function evaluates how much a user has to extend his/her path for covering the overall shared path. After computing the dissimilarity between any pair of paths, we execute a fuzzy relational clustering algorithm for determining groups of similar paths. Within these groups, the recommenders will choose users who can be invited to share rides. We show and discuss the results obtained by our approach on 45 paths

Dynamic analysis of a Drum Charger: Large amplitude vibrations of clamped circular thin plate on a linear foundation

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Lack of kinase-independent activity of PI3Kγ in locus coeruleus induces ADHD symptoms through increased CREB signaling.

Although PI3Kγ has been extensively investigated in inflammatory and cardiovascular diseases, the exploration of its functions in the brain is just at dawning. It is known that PI3Kγ is present in neurons and that the lack of PI3Kγ in mice leads to impaired synaptic plasticity, suggestive of a role in behavioral flexibility. Several neuropsychiatric disorders, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), involve an impairment of behavioral flexibility. Here, we found a previously unreported expression of PI3Kγ throughout the noradrenergic neurons of the locus coeruleus (LC) in the brainstem, serving as a mechanism that regulates its activity of control on attention, locomotion and sociality. In particular, we show an unprecedented phenotype of PI3Kγ KO mice resembling ADHD symptoms. PI3Kγ KO mice exhibit deficits in the attentive and mnemonic domains, typical hyperactivity, as well as social dysfunctions. Moreover, we demonstrate that the ADHD phenotype depends on a dysregulation of CREB signaling exerted by a kinase-independent PI3Kγ-PDE4D interaction in the noradrenergic neurons of the locus coeruleus, thus uncovering new tools for mechanistic and therapeutic research in ADHD

Artificial Neural Network Prediction of the Optimal Setup Parameters of a Seven Degrees of Freedom Mathematical Model of a Race Car: IndyCar Case Study

The aim of this paper is the development of a 7-DOF (Degrees Of Freedom) mathematical model of an IndyCar and the implementation of an Artificial Neural Network in order to predict the optimal setup parameters of the car, reducing time and costs for race teams. The mathematical model is created by using MATLAB(TM) and Simulink software starting from a telemetry acquisition at the Houston circuit and is based on Vertical Vehicle Dynamic equations. The optimal setup parameters have been predicted through an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) by using the NFTOOL Toolbox of MATLAB(TM) software. ANN is implemented in a Quarter Car model, firstly, in order to train the network and predict the parameters able to reduce tire deflection and suspension travel in the time domain and the resonance peaks amplitude in the frequency domain. Then, it is implemented in the 7-DOF model in order to predict the best setup parameters able to reduce body movements and the weight transfers of the car