On entanglement in neutrino mixing and oscillations

We report on recent results about entanglement in the context of particle mixing and oscillations. We study in detail single-particle entanglement arising in two-flavor neutrino mixing. The analysis is performed first in the context of Quantum Mechanics, and then for the case of Quantum Field Theory.Comment: 14 pages, 2 figures. Presented at "Symmetries in Science Symposium - Bregenz 2009"

Ecological assessment of anthropogenic impact in marine ecosystems: The case of Bagnoli Bay

none13noPollutants alter marine systems, interfering with provisioning of ecosystem services; understanding their interaction with ecological communities is therefore critical to inform environmental management. Here we propose a joint compositional- and interaction-based analysis for ecological status assessment and apply it on the benthic communities of the Bagnoli Bay. We found that contamination differentially affects the communities’ composition in the bay, with prokaryotes influenced only by depth, and benthos not following the environmental gradient at all. This result is confirmed by analyses of the community structure, whose network structure suggest fast carbon flow and cycling, especially promoted by nematodes and polychaetes; the benthic prey/predator biomass ratio, adjusted for competition, successfully synthesise the status of predator taxa. We found demersal fish communities to separate into a deep, pelagic-like community, and two shallow communities where a shift from exclusive predators to omnivores occurs, moving from the most polluted to the least polluted sampling units. Finally, our study indicate that indices based on interspecific interactions are better indicators of environmental gradients than those defined based on species composition exclusively.embargoed_20220311Hay Mele B.; Russo L.; Crocetta F.; Gambi C.; Dell'Anno A.; Danovaro R.; Guglielmo R.; Musco L.; Patti F.P.; Riginella E.; Tangherlini M.; Ribera d'Alcala M.; D'Alelio D.Hay Mele, B.; Russo, L.; Crocetta, F.; Gambi, C.; Dell'Anno, A.; Danovaro, R.; Guglielmo, R.; Musco, L.; Patti, F. P.; Riginella, E.; Tangherlini, M.; Ribera d'Alcala, M.; D'Alelio, D

Eukaryotic richness in the abyss: insights from pyrotag sequencing

Background: The deep sea floor is considered one of the most diverse ecosystems on Earth. Recent environmental DNA surveys based on clone libraries of rRNA genes confirm this observation and reveal a high diversity of eukaryotes present in deep-sea sediment samples. However, environmental clone-library surveys yield only a modest number of sequences with which to evaluate the diversity of abyssal eukaryotes. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here, we examined the richness of eukaryotic DNA in deep Arctic and Southern Ocean samples using massively parallel sequencing of the 18S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) V9 hypervariable region. In very small volumes of sediments, ranging from 0.35 to 0.7 g, we recovered up to 7,499 unique sequences per sample. By clustering sequences having up to 3 differences, we observed from 942 to 1756 Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) per sample. Taxonomic analyses of these OTUs showed that DNA of all major groups of eukaryotes is represented at the deep-sea floor. The dinoflagellates, cercozoans, ciliates, and euglenozoans predominate, contributing to 17%, 16%, 10%, and 8% of all assigned OTUs, respectively. Interestingly, many sequences represent photosynthetic taxa or are similar to those reported from the environmental surveys of surface waters. Moreover, each sample contained from 31 to 71 different metazoan OTUs despite the small sample volume collected. This indicates that a significant faction of the eukaryotic DNA sequences likely do not belong to living organisms, but represent either free, extracellular DNA or remains and resting stages of planktonic species. Conclusions/Significance: In view of our study, the deep-sea floor appears as a global DNA repository, which preserves genetic information about organisms living in the sediment, as well as in the water column above it. This information can be used for future monitoring of past and present environmental changes.French ANR Aquaparadox; ANR DeepOases; Swiss National Science Foundation [31003A-125372]; WM Keck foundationinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Biogeochemistry, grain size and mineralogy of the Central and Southern Adriatic Sea sediments: a review.

Volume 26 Supplement 1, January 2010

Where less may be more: how the rare biosphere pulls ecosystems strings

Rare species are increasingly recognized as crucial, yet vulnerable components of Earth’s ecosystems. This is also true for microbial communities, which are typically composed of a high number of relatively rare species. Recent studies have demonstrated that rare species can have an over-proportional role in biogeochemical cycles and may be a hidden driver of microbiome function. In this review, we provide an ecological overview of the rare microbial biosphere, including causes of rarity and the impacts of rare species on ecosystem functioning. We discuss how rare species can have a preponderant role for local biodiversity and species turnover with rarity potentially bound to phylogenetically conserved features. Rare microbes may therefore be overlooked keystone species regulating the functioning of host-associated, terrestrial and aquatic environments. We conclude this review with recommendations to guide scientists interested in investigating this rapidly emerging research area

Comparative fiscal illusion: a fiscal illusion index for the European Union

This paper provides an empirical analysis of fiscal illusion by estimating an index of fiscal illusion for 28 European countries over the period 1995–2008 employing a structural equation approach. Using Multiple Indicators Multiple Causes models, the paper investigates the main indicators of fiscal illusion and develops an index of fiscal illusion. It concludes that the chief determinants for the deployment of fiscal illusion strategies are the share of self-employment on total employment, the educational level of citizens, and the size of tax burden. At the same time, policy makers attempt to ‘conceal’ the real tax burden by means of debt illusion, fiscal drag, wage withholding taxes, as well as taxes on labour

Comparison of Two Fingerprinting Techniques, Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism and Automated Ribosomal Intergenic Spacer Analysis, for Determination of Bacterial Diversity in Aquatic Environments

We investigated bacterial diversity in different aquatic environments (including marine and lagoon sediments, coastal seawater, and groundwater), and we compared two fingerprinting techniques (terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism [T-RFLP] and automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis [ARISA]) which are currently utilized for estimating richness and community composition. Bacterial diversity ranged from 27 to 99 phylotypes (on average, 56) using the T-RFLP approach and from 62 to 101 genotypes (on average, 81) when the same samples were analyzed using ARISA. The total diversity encountered in all matrices analyzed was 144 phylotypes for T-RFLP and 200 genotypes for ARISA. Although the two techniques provided similar results in the analysis of community structure, bacterial richness and diversity estimates were significantly higher using ARISA. These findings suggest that ARISA is more effective than T-RFLP in detecting the presence of bacterial taxa accounting for <5% of total amplified product. ARISA enabled also distinction among aquatic bacterial isolates of Pseudomonas spp. which were indistinguishable using T-RFLP analysis. Overall, the results of this study show that ARISA is more accurate than T-RFLP analysis on the 16S rRNA gene for estimating the biodiversity of aquatic bacterial assemblages

CROWD-FOODING. THE ROLE OF CROWDFUNDING PLATFORMS IN THE FOOD INDUSTRIES OPEN INNOVATION

The goal of this paper to analyze the effects of crowdfunding on the open innovation capabilities of the agri-food businness. The research is based on a survey methodology, which is useful to enhance the generalization of results (Dooley, 2001).The paper builds on the theoretical framework and the consequent conceptual model to conduct the empirical research, which follows two main steps. First, the literature review led us to develop the questionnaire and therefore the variables of our model. Second, we have tested the model and the hypotheses through hierarchical regression model, which was considered a suitable method in innovation management studies