Coastline evolution of the Po River Delta (Italy) by archival multi-temporal digital photogrammetry

Ground deformation areas can be monitored with geomatic methodologies which provide high-precision and high-resolution data. One example is digital aerial photogrammetry, which can be used to reconstruct ground deformations over long periods (80–90 years) with multi-temporal surveys. This technique was used to survey the planimetric deformations of the Po River Delta (PRD), characterized in the past by considerable land subsidence due to intensive pumping of methane water from 1938 to 1961. In the last few decades, land subsidence has been greatly reduced, but is still high compared with natural values, and has influenced the coastline of areas not protected by embankments. In this work, multi-temporal digital photogrammetry was used to study the evolution of the PRD coastline from 1944 to 2014 in the course of seven photogrammetric surveys (1944, 1955, 1962, 1977, 1999, 2008 and 2014). Results of the multi-temporal analysis were correlated with available subsidence rates (from levelling, for the past, and from synthetic aperture radar, for the period 1992–2017): this study show agreement between land subsidence and areas submerged by the sea, although they are also greatly influenced by human activities and sea level rise which increasingly exposing the area to the risk of widespread flooding

Automated DEM extraction in digital aerial photogrammetry: precisions and validation for mass movement monitoring

Automated procedures for photogrammetric image processing and Digital Elevation Models (DEM) extraction yield high precision terrain models in a short time, reducing manual editing; their accuracy is strictly related to image quality and terrain features. After an analysis of the performance of the Digital Photogrammetric Workstation (DPW) 770 Helava, the paper compares DEMs derived from different surveys and registered in the same reference system. In the case of stable area, the distribution of height residuals, their mean and standard deviation values, indicate that the theoretical accuracy is achievable automatically when terrain is characterized by regular morphology. Steep slopes, corrugated surfaces, vegetation and shadows can degrade results even if manual editing procedures are applied. The comparison of multi-temporal DEMs on unstable areas allows the monitoring of surface deformation and morphological changes

An archival geomatics approach in the study of a landslide

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Costruire una startup IP oriented

L'evento è stato organizzato dallo Sportello Proprietà Intellettuale e dallo Sportello Startup di Sardegna Ricerche nell'ambito del progetto INNOVA.RE.Perché una Startup deve attuare una corretta gestione del proprio patrimonio immateriale? E cosa si deve intendere per strategia aziendale orientata alla valorizzazione degli asset immateriali? Il seminario ha inteso rispondere a queste domande tramite gli interventi di autorevoli professionisti che hanno affiancato una trattazione teorica ad efficaci analisi di casi reali e offerto strumenti di pronto uso per chi ha intrapreso o vuole intraprendere un percorso d’impresa. Tra i vari temi ha avuto una particolare rilevanza la presentazione delle linee guida relative al nuovo regime fiscale che consente la parziale esenzione dei redditi derivanti dallo sfruttamento di attività immateriali (Patent Box - Legge di Stabilità). Il programma della giornata in ordine di intervento: Startup e beni immateriali, E. Fabris; Quando il software è brevettabile e perché, L. Turini; Il software non brevettabile o non brevettato, M. Travostino; La valutazione economica dei beni di p.i., F. Ghiraldo; Accordi di sviluppo e di confidenzialità, G. B. Gallus.2015-03-31Sardegna Ricerche, Edificio 2, Località Piscinamanna 09010 Pula (CA) - ItaliaCostruire una startup IP oriente

Role of angiotensin-converting enzyme and vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms in cancer anorexia-cachexia syndrome

The ubiquitin-proteasome pathway is a crucial connection between aberrant immune system activation, systemic inflammation and Cancer Anorexia-Cachexia Syndrome (CACS), a syndrome that culminates in hyper-activation of the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. Angiotensin directly up-regulates this pathway, while vitamin D down-regulates it indirectly through the insulin-like growth factor-1 pathway. We investigated the genetic predisposition towards CACS in a cancer population, examining Insertion/Deletion (I/D) polymorphism of angiotensin-converting enzyme gene and FokI and BsmI polymorphisms of vitamin D receptor gene. Sixty-two cancer patients were recruited and divided into three groups: primary cachectic (C1, n = 14; dysmetabolic body weight loss ≥5% in 6 months); secondary cachectic (C2, n = 34; similar weight loss, mechanic or iatrogenic origin); and non-cachectic (NC, n = 16). C2+NC were merged in the control group. The three groups showed significant differences in average prognostic inflammatory nutritional index (C1: 26.4±23.4; C2: 5.4±5.6; NC: 0.37±0.5), C-reactive protein serum levels (C1: 6.6±2.1; C2: 2.4±2.2; NC: 1.0±2.0 mg/dL), albumin serum levels (C1: 3.1±0.6; C2: 3.5±0.4; NC 3.7±0.6 g/dL), weight loss (C1: 22±8; C2: 15±6.7; NC 5±6%) and life expectancy (C1: 6.4±3.3; C2: 25±28; NC: 45±25 months). However, none of the chosen polymorphisms showed any statistically significant correlation with CACS. The complexity of the changes of the immune system in the chronic inflammation state associated with CACS is far greater than expected and further studies are required to identify genetic independent markers of progression toward CACS.

Exploring the plasmatic platelet-activating factor acetylhydrolase activity in patients with anti-phospholipid antibodies

Purpose: To explore the role of plasmatic platelet-activating factor acetylhydrolase (PAF-AH), a marker of cardiovascular risk, in patients with anti-phospholipid antibodies (aPL). Methods: PAF-AH activity was assessed in a series of 167 unselected patients screened for aPL in a context of thrombotic events, risk of thrombosis or obstetric complications and in 77 blood donors. Results: 116/167 patients showed positive results for at least one aPL among IgG/IgM anti-prothrombin/phosphatidylserine (aPS/PT), anti-cardiolipin (aCL), anti-beta2-glycoprotein I (a\u3b22GPI) or lupus anticoagulant (LAC), while 51/167 patients resulted aPL-negative. LAC+ patients disclosed higher PAF-AH than LAC-negative (22.1 \ub1 6.4 nmol/min/ml vs. 19.5 \ub1 4.1 nmol/min/ml; p = 0.0032), and aPL-negative patients (p = 0.03). Patients presenting positive IgG a\u3b22GPI disclosed higher PAF-AH than patients with only IgM a\u3b22GPI-positive antibodies (23.1 \ub1 7.2 nmol/min/ml vs. 20.1 \ub1 5.3 nmol/min/ml; p = 0.035), as well as than patients showing only isolated LAC, aCL or aPS/PT (16.9 \ub1 3.8 nmol/min/ml; p = 0.003). Conclusions: PAF-AH plasmatic activity is particularly up-regulated in LAC+ and in a\u3b22GPI IgG+ patients, possibly representing an alternative prognostic biomarker for the therapeutic management of APS patient

PixFEL: development of an X-ray diffraction imager for future FEL applications

A readout chip for diffraction imaging applications at new generation X-ray FELs (Free Electron Lasers) has been designed in a 65 nm CMOS technology. It consists of a 32 × 32 matrix, with square pixels and a pixel pitch of 110 µm. Each cell includes a low-noise charge sensitive amplifier (CSA) with dynamic signal compression, covering an input dynamic range from 1 to 104 photons and featuring single photon resolution at small signals at energies from 1 to 10 keV. The CSA output is processed by a time-variant shaper performing gated integration and correlated double sampling. Each pixel includes also a small area, low power 10-bit time-interleaved Successive Approximation Register (SAR) ADC for in-pixel digitization of the amplitude measurement. The channel can be operated at rates up to 4.5 MHz, to be compliant with the rates foreseen for future X-ray FEL machines. The ASIC has been designed in order to be bump bonded to a slim/active edge pixel sensor, in order to build the first demonstrator for the PixFEL (advanced X-ray PIXel cameras at FELs) imager