Bounding normalization time through intersection types

Non-idempotent intersection types are used in order to give a bound of the length of the normalization beta-reduction sequence of a lambda term: namely, the bound is expressed as a function of the size of the term.Comment: In Proceedings ITRS 2012, arXiv:1307.784

Inhabitation for Non-idempotent Intersection Types

The inhabitation problem for intersection types in the lambda-calculus is known to be undecidable. We study the problem in the case of non-idempotent intersection, considering several type assignment systems, which characterize the solvable or the strongly normalizing lambda-terms. We prove the decidability of the inhabitation problem for all the systems considered, by providing sound and complete inhabitation algorithms for them

The “Other” Localization: XIX Century French Neurophysiological Models for the Seat of Musical Faculty in the Brain

Abstract: At the beginning of the second half of the XIX century, Paul Broca’s discoveries on the localization of the seat of the articulated language faculty laid the foundations for modern neuropsychology, confirming the localizationistic hypothesis to the detriment of previous theories of mind-body interaction. This epoch also recorded the first scientific observations on the relationships between music and the nervous system: in the present essay, we trace the genesis and the history of the models debated by the French scientific community of the XIX century, analyzing them through the works of the most famous authors of that period, and reflecting on their implications for subsequent developments in the psychology and neuroscience of music.Keywords: Music; Faculty; Brain; Localization; History of Neuropsychology.L’“altra” localizzazione: modelli di localizzazione cerebrali delle facoltà musicali nella neurofisiologia francese del XIX secoloRiassunto: All’inizio della seconda metà del 1800, le scoperte di Paul Broca sulla localizzazione della facoltà del linguaggio articolato gettarono le basi per la nascita della moderna neuropsicologia, confermando l’ipotesi localizzazionistica delle funzioni mentali a discapito delle precedenti teorie sull’interazione tra mente e corpo. A questo periodo risalgono le prime osservazioni scientifiche sul rapporto tra musica e sistema nervoso: nel presente contributo, tracceremo la genesi e le vicende dei modelli discussi nella comunità scientifica francese del XIX secolo, analizzandoli a partire dai testi dei più importanti autori del periodo e riflettendo sulle loro implicazioni per i successivi sviluppi della psicologia e delle neuroscienze della musica.Parole chiave: Musica; Facoltà; Cervello; Localizzazione; Storia della neuropsicologia

Investigative leads in forensic genetics: Biogeographical Ancestry (BGA) and Kinship Analyses

The fundamental goal of forensic genetics is personal identification but it is common to obtain inconclusive results from both direct and indirect STR-profile comparisons. In such cases, it is necessary looking for alternative approaches to generate crucial forensic leads and identify unknown perpetrators. In this thesis, we propose alternative tools to predict BioGeographical Ancestry (BGA) and to identify males sharing the same Y-haplotype by utilizing multivariate techniques and Rapidly Mutating Y-chromosome short tandem repeats(RM Y-STRs), respectively. Concerning ethnic inference, we proposed novel statistical approaches (consisting in SLPCA, PLSDA and SVM methods) to group samples into BGA-classes, by testing both autosomal STRs (in African populations) and microhaplotypes (in U.S. populations). The predictive power of such statistics resulted extremely high; in fact, they enhance cluster separation providing misleading classifications for genetically mixed populations only. As to Y haplotype discrimination improvement, we proved the efficiency in individualization power of RM Y-STRs – reaching a total of 48 markers genotyped – in African populations characterized by high levels of endogamy, patrilinearity and population structuring. Together, these two innovative approaches converge in demonstrating they represent powerful tools to maximize the information inferable from biological evidence collected at the crime scene

Adventures in Rationalism

Rationalism is the thesis that the world and all the things in the world are intelligible, through and through. Nothing happens for no reason. On the contrary, whatever takes place, whatever exists, takes place or exists for a reason. Everything. On this view there are no brute facts. Each thing that exists has a reason that is sufficient for explaining the existence of the thing. According to perhaps the most extreme implication of this view, even the world itself, the totality of all that exists, exists for a reason, has an explanation. Many philosophers today think that rationalism is a crazy view. However, this paper argues in support of rationalism, and explores its implications

Ezrin-related phosphoinositide pathway modifies RhoA and Rac1 in human osteosarcoma cell lines

Selected Phosphoinositide-specific Phospholipase C (PI-PLC) enzymes occupy the convergence point of the broad range of pathways that promote Rho and Ras GTPase mediated signalling, which also regulate the activation of ezrin, a member of the ezrin-radixin-moesin (ERM) proteins family involved in the metastatic osteosarcoma spread. Previous studies described that in distinct human osteosarcoma cell lines ezrin networks the PI-PLC with complex interplay controlling the expression of the PLC genes, which codify for PI-PLC enzymes. In the present study, we analyzed the expression and the sub-cellular distribution of RhoA and Rac1 respectively after ezrin silencing and after PI-PLC ε silencing, in order to investigate whether ezrin-RhoGTPAses signalling might involve one or more specific PI-PLC isoforms in cultured 143B and Hs888 human osteosarcoma cell lines. In the present experiments, both ezrin and PLCE gene silencing had different effects upon RhoA and Rac1 expression and sub-cellular localization. Displacements of Ezrin and of RhoA localization were observed, probably playing functional roles