Regio VIII, insula 104: fasi e cultura materiale

L’intervento illustra lo spazio teorico e concettuale nel quale si muove la ricerca relativa alle ceramiche rinvenute nel corso degli interventi di scavo stratigrafico nell’insula 104. Accanto alle metodologie utilizzate, vengono discusse le principali chiavi di lettura dei dati ottenuti ovvero l’approccio morfologico, l’analisi delle produzioni e lo studio contestuale dei reperti. Dal lavoro di ricerca, tuttora in corso, emergono importanti apporti non solo per lo studio delle fasi cronologiche dell’insula in questione, ma anche per una maggiore caratterizzazione delle dinamiche socio-culturali e del paesaggio economico fra tardo antico (V-VII secolo d.C) ed età medio bizantina (IX - inizi XI secolo d.C). Vengono inoltre presentati alcuni dei più significativi contributi originali ed in particolare l’individuazione e caratterizzazione archeometrica di produzioni regionali di sigillate e sigillate tardo antiche e la presenza di una classe ceramica con alto contenuto diagnostico, denominata “Micaceous White Painted Ware”

La lavorazione della lana nella Venetia

This paper presents the results of a project of the University of Padua, coordinated by Maria Stella Busana, focused on the census of the archaeological artefacts related to the processing of wool in Roman times, in order to clarify diachronically the technological, organizational and social aspects. The study has been completed, until now, recording data in a database linked to a GIS, in the provinces of Brescia, Verona, Vicenza and Padua, where have been classified more than 1000 records, belonging to major classes of tools used in different stages of the woollen industry (shears, bobbins, spindles, hooks, spindle whorls and loom weights, are the most numerous). The analysis pays particular attention to those aspects that could have a close relationship with the use of the artefacts, such as their weight and morphometric characteristics, their wear, and their decorations. Despite this systematic approach, there remains some doubt regarding the recognition and interpretation of some classes of materials: the shears can sometimes be confused with scissors used for other purposes, and it is equally difficult to recognize the spindles and bobbins, if found in a fragmentary state. Other problems concern loom weights that might have had other functions. In any case a complete analysis of the artefacts, along with their site contexts and geographical distribution, permits the fomulation of hypotheses about the economic vocations of different territories, the organization of economic activities, the comparison with earlier cultural traditions and the symbolic value of particular objects

The changing landscape of Constanciacus: a lost settlement in the Lagoon of Venice

« Costanziaco Project » is an interdisciplinary, multi-period archaeological project focused on the study of an ancient settlement in the Northern Lagoon of Venice, known in Medieval and later documentary sources as Costanciacus (Cottica et al., 2008). The project has been promoted by the Department of Antiquity and the Near East of the University of Venice and by the Superintendence for the Archaeological Heritage in the Veneto region. In Antiquity Costanciacus comprised two islands, S. Aria..

The changing landscape of Constanciacus: a lost settlement in the Lagoon of Venice

« Costanziaco Project » is an interdisciplinary, multi-period archaeological project focused on the study of an ancient settlement in the Northern Lagoon of Venice, known in Medieval and later documentary sources as Costanciacus (Cottica et al., 2008). The project has been promoted by the Department of Antiquity and the Near East of the University of Venice and by the Superintendence for the Archaeological Heritage in the Veneto region. In Antiquity Costanciacus comprised two islands, S. Aria..

Biomarkers of low-level environmental exposure to benzene and oxidative dna damage in primary school children in Sardinia, Italy

Background: The main anthropic sources of exposure to airborne benzene include vehicular traffic, cigarette smoke, and industrial emissions. Methods: To detect early genotoxic effects of environmental exposure to benzene, we monitored environmental, personal, and indoor airborne benzene in children living in an urban area and an area near a petrochemical plant. We also used urinary benzene and S-phenylmercapturic acid (S-PMA) as biomarkers of benzene exposure and urinary 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) as a biomarker of early genotoxic effects. Results: Although always below the European Union limit of 5 µg/m3, airborne benzene levels were more elevated in the indoor, outdoor, and personal samples from the industrial surroundings compared to the urban area (p = 0.026, p = 0.005, and p = 0.001, respectively). Children living in the surroundings of the petrochemical plant had urinary benzene values significantly higher than those from the urban area in both the morning and evening samples (p = 0.01 and p = 0.02, respectively). Results of multiple regression modelling showed that age was a significant predictor of 8-OHdG excretion, independent of the sampling hour. Moreover, at the low exposure level experienced by the children participating in this study, neither personal or indoor airborne benzene level, nor personal monitoring data, affected 8-OHdG excretion. Conclusions: Our results suggest the importance of biological monitoring of low-level environmental exposure and its relation to risk of genotoxic effects among children

Environmental and biological monitoring for the identification of main exposure determinants in vineyard mancozeb applicators

Grapevine is a vulnerable crop to several fungal diseases often requiring the use of ethylenebisdithiocarbamate (EBDC) fungicides, such as mancozeb. This fungicide has been reported to have goitrogenic, endocrine disrupting, and possibly immunotoxic effects. The aim of this study was to assess workers' exposure in two scenarios of mancozeb application and analyse the main determinants of exposure in order to better understand their mechanism of influence. Environmental monitoring was performed using a modified Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) "patch" methodology and by hand-wash collection, while mancozeb's metabolite, ethylenethiourea (ETU), was measured in 24-h preexposure and postexposure urine samples. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was used for determination of mancozeb and ETU in different kinds of samples. Closed tractor use resulted in 40 times lower potential exposure compared with open tractor. Coveralls reduced skin exposure 4 and 10 times in case of open and closed tractors, respectively. Gloves used during application resulted in 10 times lower hand exposure in open but increased exposure in closed tractors. This study has demonstrated that exposure to mancozeb is low if safe occupational hygiene procedures are adopted. ETU is confirmed as suitable biological marker of occupational exposure to mancozeb, but the absence of biological exposure limits significantly reduces the possibility to interpret biological monitoring results in occupationally exposed workers

Youth transitions as ‘wiki-transitions’ in youth policies platforms

The version of a journal article that has been accepted for publication in a journal. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in European Societies on 22/11/2019 available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/14616696.2019.1690158.In recent years, a number of youth-focused online platforms have emerged which, in different ways, seek to support young people across Europe in building pathways to independent adulthood. In this article, we draw on data from Edgeryders, a recent youth policy research project, to reflect on the extent to which online discussion platforms are useful instruments for understanding the challenges youth face in their transitions to independent adulthood across Europe. Noting the collaborative emphasis articulated by both the project designers and participants, we ask how we might make sense of the data – and the meanings conveyed by that data – produced by online projects. We propose the notion of ‘wiki-transitions’ as a means of theorising young people’s use of online space to support their transitions to adulthood