Normal fault earthquakes or graviquakes

Earthquakes are dissipation of energy throughout elastic waves. Canonically is the elastic energy accumulated during the interseismic period. However, in crustal extensional settings, gravity is the main energy source for hangingwall fault collapsing. Gravitational potential is about 100 times larger than the observed magnitude, far more than enough to explain the earthquake. Therefore, normal faults have a different mechanism of energy accumulation and dissipation (graviquakes) with respect to other tectonic settings (strike-slip and contractional), where elastic energy allows motion even against gravity. The bigger the involved volume, the larger is their magnitude. The steeper the normal fault, the larger is the vertical displacement and the larger is the seismic energy released. Normal faults activate preferentially at about 60° but they can be shallower in low friction rocks. In low static friction rocks, the fault may partly creep dissipating gravitational energy without releasing great amount of seismic energy. The maximum volume involved by graviquakes is smaller than the other tectonic settings, being the activated fault at most about three times the hypocentre depth, explaining their higher b-value and the lower magnitude of the largest recorded events. Having different phenomenology, graviquakes show peculiar precursor

Monge-Ampere foliations with singularities at the boundary of strongly convex domains

Let D subset of C-N be a bounded strongly convex domain with smooth boundary. We consider a Monge-Ampere type equation in D with a simple pole at the boundary. Using the Lempert foliation of D in extremal discs, we construct a solution u whose level sets are boundaries of horospheres. Among other things, we show that the biholomorphisms between strongly convex domains are exactly those maps which preserves our solution

The pluricomplex Poisson kernel for strongly convex domains

Let D be a bounded strongly convex domain in the complex space of dimension n. For a fixed point p epsilon partial derivative D, we consider the solution of a homogeneous complex Monge-Ampere equation with a simple pole at p. We prove that such a solution enjoys many properties of the classical Poisson kernel in the unit disc and thus deserves to be called the pluricomplex Poisson kernel of D with pole at p. In particular we discuss extremality properties (such as a generalization of the classical Phragmen-Lindelof theorem), relations with the pluricomplex Green function of D, uniqueness in terms of the associated foliation and boundary behaviors. Finally, using such a kernel we obtain explicit reproducing formulas for plurisubharmonic functions

Risk of cancer after assisted reproduction: a review of the available evidences and guidance to fertility counselors

Infertile women requiring ovarian stimulation and assisted reproduction techniques (ART) are faced with difficult issues. The fear that using hormones could increase their risk of cancer is the most significant. One of the main challenges for assessing cancer risk after ART is the difficulty to separate it from the underlying condition of infertility per se. The delay or the inability to achieve a pregnancy is an important risk factor for breast, endometrial and ovarian cancer. We analyzed the current literature on the topic

Internalizing the external costs of biogas supply chains in the Italian energy sector

In Italy biogas support schemes are being revised to include subsidies for the production of biomethane. Energy policies should foster environmentally optimal solutions, especially because social acceptance issues often arise in the case of biogas. In this paper we use the external cost methodology to quantify the environmental impact of airborne emissions associated with biogas-based energy vectors and their corresponding fossil substitutes These are evaluated at supply chain level and incorporated in a spatially explicit optimization model. The method is applied to northern Italy to compare the potential impact of alternative policy options. It is found that, while the external costs of biogas-based pathways are always lower than corresponding fossil fuel based pathways, the differences are generally so small that policies based on internalization of external costs alone would not lead to further development of biogas-based technologies. For all utilization pathways, consideration of local externalities leads to a less favourable evaluation of biogas-based technologies, which results in external costs even higher than the substituted fossil fuel if biogas is allocated to local heating

An optimal renewable energy mix for Indonesia

Indonesia has experienced a constant increase of the use of petroleum and coal in the power sector, while the share of renewable sources has remained stable at 6% of the total energy production during the last decade. As its domestic energy demand undeniably continues to grow, Indonesia is committed to increase the production of renewable energy. Mainly to decrease its dependency on fossil fuel-based resources, and to decrease the anthropogenic emissions, the government of Indonesia has established a 23 percent target for renewable energy by 2025, along with a 100 percent electrification target by 2020 (the current rate is 80.4 percent). In that respect, Indonesia has abundant resources to meet these targets, but there is - inter alia - a lack of proper integrated planning, regulatory support, investment, distribution in remote areas of the Archipelago, and missing data to back the planning. To support the government of Indonesia in its sustainable energy system planning, a geographic explicit energy modeling approach is applied. This approach is based on the energy systems optimization model BeWhere, which identifies the optimal location of energy conversion sites based on the minimization of the costs of the supply chain. The model will incorporate the existing fossil fuel-based infrastructures, and evaluate the optimal costs, potentials and locations for the development of renewable energy technologies (i.e. wind, solar, hydro, biomass and geothermal based technologies), as well as the development of biomass co-firing in existing coal plants. With the help of the model, an optimally adapted renewable energy mix – vis-à-vis the competing fossil fuel based resources and applicable policies in order to promote the development of those renewable energy technologies – will be identified. The development of the optimal renewable energy technologies is carried out with special focus on nature protection and cultural heritage areas, where feedstock (e.g., biomass harvesting) and green-field power plant sites will be limited – depending on the protection type and renewable energy technology. The results of the study provide indications to the policy makers on where, how and which technologies should be implemented, and what kind of policy support would be needed in order to increase and meet the Indonesian renewable energy target and to increase the energy access for all

Long-term effects of automated mechanical peripheral stimulation on gait patterns of patients with Parkinson's disease

New treatments based on peripheral stimulation of the sensory–motor system have been inspiring new rehabilitation approaches in Parkinson’s disease (PD), especially to reduce gait impairment, levodopa washout effects, and the incidence of falls. The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in gait and the clinical status of PD patients after six sessions of a treatment based on automated mechanical peripheral stimulation (AMPS). Eighteen patients with PD and 15 age-matched healthy individuals (control group) participated in this study. A dedicated medical device delivered the AMPS. PD patients were treated with AMPS six times once every 4 days. All PD patients were treated in the off-levodopa phase and were evaluated with gait analysis before and after the first intervention (acute phase), after the sixth intervention, 48 h after the sixth intervention, and 10 days after the end of the treatment. To compare the differences among the AMPS interventions (pre, 6 AMPS, and 10 days) in terms of clinical scales, a t-test was used (α≤0.05). In addition, to compare the differences among the AMPS interventions (pre, post, 6 AMPS, 48 h and 10 days), the gait spatiotemporal parameters were analyzed using the Friedman test and the Bonferroni post-hoc test (α≤0.05). Also, for comparisons between the PD group and the control group, the gait spatiotemporal parameters were analyzed using the Mann–Whitney test and the Bonferroni post-hoc test (α≤0.05). The results of the study indicate that the AMPS treatment has a positive effect on bradykinesia because it improves walking velocity, has a positive effect on the step and stride length, and has a positive effect on walking stability, measured by the increase in stride length. These results are consistent with the improvements measured with clinical scales. These findings indicate that AMPS treatment seems to generate a more stable walking pattern in PD patients, reducing the well-known gait impairment that is typical of PD; regular repetition every 4 days of AMPS treatment appears to be able to improve gait parameters, to restore rhythmicity, and to reduce the risk of falls, with benefits maintained up to 10 days after the last treatment. The trial was registered online at ClinicalTrials.gov (number identifier: NCT0181528)

Trust’s meno problem: can the doxastic view account for the value of trust?

The doxastic view (DV) of trust maintains that trust essentially involves belief. In a recent paper, Arnon Keren (Citation2020) gestures toward a new objection to the view, labeled Trust’s Meno Problem (TMP), which calls into question the DV’s ability to explain the widely held intuition that trust has distinct and indispensable value. As of yet, there has been no attempt to take up TMP on behalf of DV. This paper aims to fill precisely this lacuna. I do so in three main stages. In §1 I contextualize and elucidate the problem, to which Keren gestures but does not address in detail. In §2 I disambiguate multiple possible interpretations of TMP, seeking to identify the most philosophically challenging. Finally, in §3, I argue that DV can solve even this interpretation. In order to do so, I make use ofthe highly plausible claim we find in the work of Katherine Hawley (Citation2012, 2019): that trust pays a compliment to the trustee. The payoffs of exploring the doxastic view in the context of Trust’s Meno Problem are twofold: we better understand the nature of the problem itself, and we see that the doxastic view can give a satisfying answer