Labile, recalcitrant and stable soil organic carbon: comparison of agronomic management in a vineyard of Trentino (Italy)

The intensive exploitation of agricultural land has caused a depletion of soil organic carbon (SOC) and a decline in soil fertility, with a consequent decrease in the productivity of agroecosystems, also contributing to atmospheric GHG emissions. The ability of soil to storage organic carbon (OC) depends on its persistence and susceptibility to decomposition. SOC is generally partitioned into fractions differing in protection mechanisms and in turn decomposability. This study aimed to compare the OC pool repartition in soils managed with three different fertilization practices (mineral – CONV, manure – ORGM and green manure – ORG-GM) during a medium-term trial in vineyard, in order to understand the best solution in increasing C sequestration. The OC fractionation by acid hydrolysis allowed separating three fractions of OC: a labile, quickly mineralizable pool, a recalcitrant pool with a slower turnover and a stable pool protected by microbial attack. The results showed that the periodic application of organic matrices (manure and green manure), although did not increase total OC, enriched the soil along time with readily available OC, thus promoting the release of nutrients. Green manure has also been shown to promote the accumulation of stabilized OC, able to improve the structure of the soil and, therefore, its fertility

Evaluation of cervical posture improvement of children with cerebral palsy after physical therapy based on head movements and serious games

Background: This paper presents the preliminary results of a novel rehabilitation therapy for cervical and trunk control of children with cerebral palsy (CP) based on serious videogames and physical exercise. Materials: The therapy is based on the use of the ENLAZA Interface, a head mouse based on inertial technology that will be used to control a set of serious videogames with movements of the head. Methods: Ten users with CP participated in the study. Whereas the control group (n=5) followed traditional therapies, the experimental group (n=5) complemented these therapies with a series of ten sessions of gaming with ENLAZA to exercise cervical flexion-extensions, rotations and inclinations in a controlled, engaging environment. Results: The ten work sessions yielded improvements in head and trunk control that were higher in the experimental group for Visual Analogue Scale, Goal Attainment Scaling and Trunk Control Measurement Scale (TCMS). Significant differences (27% vs. 2% of percentage improvement) were found between the experimental and control groups for TCMS (p<0.05). The kinematic assessment shows that there were some improvements in the active and the passive range of motion. However, no significant differences were found pre- and post-intervention. Conclusions:Physical therapy that combines serious games with traditional rehabilitation could allow children with CP to achieve larger function improvements in the trunk and cervical regions. However, given the limited scope of this trial (n=10) additional studies are needed to corroborate this hypothesis

To be or not to be, that is the question: The Marsala meteorite (Italy, 1834) and the role of the doubtful meteorites in the history of meteoritics

AbstractThis work focuses on the historical and scientific investigation of a presumed meteorite fall that occurred in the Sicilian township of Marsala in 1834. Preliminary studies have classified this phenomenon as a "doubtful meteorite." This term describes, according to the Nomenclature Committee of the Meteoritical Society, an object for which there was significant uncertainty over whether it was a real meteorite or, in some cases, whether it ever existed. Thanks to the analysis of untapped sources, the first objective of this work is to clarify the nature of the event. Subsequently, the results of the minero‐chemical analyses that were performed, in 1835, on two fragments recovered after the event are discussed for the first time. This work then shows the collecting history of one of the presumed meteorite specimens. Based on the results presented here, this work highlights the role of doubtful meteorites as a fundamental resource for the history of meteoritics and meteorite collecting as well as for studying the processes that have led to the scientific study of meteorites

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Textbasierte Chatbots finden vermehrt Anwendung im Kundenservice der Mobilitätsbranche. Der vorliegende Beitrag gibt einen Überblick über die Anwendung von Chatbots im Kundenservice. Das Ziel der Forschung ist es, zu bestimmen, wie textbasierte Chatbots im Kundenservice von der deutschen und französischen Bevölkerung in der Mobilitätsbranche wahrgenommen werden. Hierbei werden in der Untersuchung die zwei größten Bahngesellschaften Deutschlands und Frankreichs als Beispiel herangezogen. Die Ergebnisse der quantitativen und qualitativen Forschung ergeben einige Zusammenhänge wie auch Unterschiede in der Wahrnehmung zwischen Deutschland und Frankreich. Die Kundenzufriedenheit sowie die Perzeption des Unternehmensimages beeinflusst die Wahrnehmung von textbasierten Chatbots im Kundenservice. Des Weiteren hängt die Empfindung gegenüber Chatbots mit der digitalen Affinität des Kunden zusammen. Zum aktuellen Zeitpunkt eignen sich Chatbots lediglich für die Beratung simpler Anliegen in den Augen deutscher und französischer Kunden. Der Funktionsumfang sowie das Design stellen weitere Einflussfaktoren für eine positive Wahrnehmung des Unternehmens-Chatbots dar

Long-term health-related quality of life and mental health in patients with immune thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura

Immune thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) is a rare and potentially life-threatening disorder. Treatment advances have lowered morbidity rates, but past acute events can still cause long-term consequences, reducing health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and determining cognitive impairment, anxiety, and depression. We aimed to investigate these aspects and the role of caplacizumab and rituximab: 39 patients were evaluated using the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), the FACIT-Fatigue, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and the Functional Assessment in Cancer Therapy-Cognitive Function questionnaires. The median age at study inclusion was 50 years (IQR 38-60), and the median follow-up from diagnosis was 97 months (IQR 14-182); 82% of patients were female, and 36% had one or more recurrences. Caplacizumab was administered in 16 patients (41%), as well as rituximab. ITTP patients reported lower physical and mental HRQoL scores than the general population. No differences in physical or mental domains were observed between patients treated or not with caplacizumab, while those who received rituximab reported lower scores in mental health. Neurological impairment at diagnosis correlated with worse fatigue. The majority of patients (72%) reported anxiety or depression (82%). ITTP had a significant impact on the long-term cognitive function, fatigue, depression, and anxiety levels of patients, with a negative effect on their HRQoL. Our findings underscore the need to pay special attention to patients' long-term physical and mental health, regardless of the medical treatments received

Clinical Relevance of State-of-the-Art Analysis of Surface Electromyography in Cerebral Palsy

Surface electromyography (sEMG) can be used to assess the integrity of the neuromuscular system and its impairment in neurological disorders. Here we will consider several issues related to the current clinical applications, difficulties and limited usage of sEMG for the assessment and rehabilitation of children with cerebral palsy. The uniqueness of this methodology is that it can determine hyperactivity or inactivity of selected muscles, which cannot be assessed by other methods. In addition, it can assist for intervention or muscle/tendon surgery acts, and it can evaluate integrated functioning of the nervous system based on multi-muscle sEMG recordings and assess motor pool activation. The latter aspect is especially important for understanding impairments of the mechanisms of neural controllers rather than malfunction of individual muscles. Although sEMG study is an important tool in both clinical research and neurorehabilitation, the results of a survey on the clinical relevance of sEMG in a typical department of pediatric rehabilitation highlighted its limited clinical usage. We believe that this is due to limited knowledge of the sEMG and its neuromuscular underpinnings by many physiotherapists, as a result of lack of emphasis on this important methodology in the courses taught in physical therapy schools. The lack of reference databases or benchmarking software for sEMG analysis may also contribute to the limited clinical usage. Despite the existence of educational and technical barriers to a widespread use of, sEMG does provide important tools for planning and assessment of rehabilitation treatments for children with cerebral palsy

Natural radioactivity content in groundwater of Mt. Etna's eastern flank and gamma background of surrounding rocks

Waters of Mt. Etna are the main source of drinking water for the local population and are also distributed in municipal supply systems to neighbouring areas. Radioactivity in underground waters and surrounding rocks from the eastern flank of Mt. Etna was investigated on the basis of 9 water and 8 rock samples from 12 localities altogether. Three samples were from water drainage galleries and six from water wells. All water intakes are used for consumption. Activity concentration of uranium isotopes234,238U, radium isotopes226,228Ra and radon222Rn were determined with the use different nuclear spectrometry techniques. The determination of uranium isotopes was carried out with the use of alpha spectrometry. The measurements of radium and radon activity concentration in water were performed with the use of a liquid scintillation technique. Additionally, rocks surrounding the intakes were examined with gamma spectrometry. All water samples showed uranium concentration above Minimum Detectable Activity (MDA), with the highest total uranium (234U +238U) activity concentration equal to 149.2±6 mBq/L. Conversely, all samples showed radium isotopes activity concentrations below MDA. Radon activity concentration was within the range from 2.91±0.36 to 21.21±1.10 Bq/L, hence these waters can be classified as low-radon waters. Gamma natural background of the rocks surrounding the water sampling sites was found on the same levels as other volcanic rocks of Italy

Dating the formation of the counter-rotating stellar disc in the spiral galaxy NGC 5719 by disentangling its stellar populations

We present the results of the VLT/VIMOS integral-field spectroscopic observations of the inner 28"x28" (3.1 kpc x 3.1 kpc) of the interacting spiral NGC 5719, which is known to host two co-spatial counter-rotating stellar discs. At each position in the field of view, the observed galaxy spectrum is decomposed into the contributions of the spectra of two stellar and one ionised-gas components. We measure the kinematics and the line strengths of the Lick indices of the two stellar counter-rotating components. We model the data of each stellar component with single stellar population models that account for the alpha/Fe overabundance. We also derive the distribution and kinematics of the ionised-gas disc, that is associated with the younger, less rich in metals, more alpha-enhanced, and less luminous stellar component. They are both counter-rotating with respect the main stellar body of the galaxy. These findings prove the scenario where gas was accreted first by NGC 5719 onto a retrograde orbit from the large reservoir available in its neighbourhoods as the result of the interaction with its companion NGC 5713, and subsequently fuelled the in situ formation of the counter-rotating stellar disc.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRAS letters. Reference list update

Role of the Metal Center in the Modulation of the Aggregation Process of Amyloid Model Systems by Square Planar Complexes Bearing 2-(2'-pyridyl)benzimidazole Ligands

The effect of analogue Pd(II)-, Pt(II)-, and Au(III) compounds featuring 2-(2'-pyridyl)benzimidazole on the aggregation propensity of amyloid-like peptides derived from Aβ and from the C-terminal domain of nucleophosmin 1 was investigated. Kinetic profiles of aggregation were evaluated using thioflavin binding assays, whereas the interactions of the compounds with the peptides were studied by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. The results indicate that the compounds modulate the aggregation of the investigated peptides using different mechanisms, suggesting that the reactivity of the metal center and the physicochemical properties of the metals (rather than those of the ligands and the geometry of the metal compounds) play a crucial role in determining the anti-aggregation properties