Magnification bias as a novel probe for primordial magnetic fields

In this paper we investigate magnetic fields generated in the early Universe. These fields are important candidates at explaining the origin of astrophysical magnetism observed in galaxies and galaxy clusters, whose genesis is still by and large unclear. Compared to the standard inflationary power spectrum, intermediate to small scales would experience further substantial matter clustering, were a cosmological magnetic field present prior to recombination. As a consequence, the bias and redshift distribution of galaxies would also be modified. Hitherto, primordial magnetic fields (PMFs) have been tested and constrained with a number of cosmological observables, e.g. the cosmic microwave background radiation, galaxy clustering and, more recently, weak gravitational lensing. Here, we explore the constraining potential of the density fluctuation bias induced by gravitational lensing magnification onto the galaxy-galaxy angular power spectrum. Such an effect is known as magnification bias. Compared to the usual galaxy clustering approach, magnification bias helps in lifting the pathological degeneracy present amongst power spectrum normalisation and galaxy bias. This is because magnification bias cross-correlates galaxy number density fluctuations of nearby objects with weak lensing distortions of high-redshift sources. Thus, it takes advantage of the gravitational deflection of light, which is insensitive to galaxy bias but powerful in constraining the density fluctuation amplitude. To scrutinise the potentiality of this method, we adopt a deep and wide-field spectroscopic galaxy survey. We show that magnification bias does contain important information on primordial magnetism, which will be useful in combination with galaxy clustering and shear. We find we shall be able to rule out at 95.4% CL amplitudes of PMFs larger than 0.0005 nG for values of the PMF power spectral index ~0.Comment: 21 pages, 9 figures; published on JCA

Laser-Driven Rayleigh-Taylor Instability: Plasmonics Effects and Three-Dimensional Structures

The acceleration of dense targets driven by the radiation pressure of high-intensity lasers leads to a Rayleigh-Taylor instability (RTI) with rippling of the interaction surface. Using a simple model it is shown that the self-consistent modulation of the radiation pressure caused by a sinusoidal rippling affects substantially the wavevector spectrum of the RTI depending on the laser polarization. The plasmonic enhancement of the local field when the rippling period is close to a laser wavelength sets the dominant RTI scale. The nonlinear evolution is investigated by three dimensional simulations, which show the formation of stable structures with "wallpaper" symmetry.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures. New version includes 2D and 3D simulations. More details in the analytical calculation are given in the previous versio

Il progetto rewetland: riqualificazione ambientale dell’Agro Pontino attraverso la valorizzazione ricostruzione del paesaggio storico

Il progetto “Rewetland” (programma LIFE+ 2008 – environment and governance. www.rewetland.eu) prevede la predisposizione di un Programma di Riqualificazione Ambientale (PRA) della Pianura Pontina attraverso la sperimentazione di tecniche di fitodepurazione diffusa. Il PRA si basa sull’analisi approfondita del paesaggio a partire da quello delle bonifiche dei Papi (XV–XVII sec.), fino ad arrivare ai giorni nostri. La finalità dell’analisi del paesaggio è stata quella di ricomporre gli elementi costituenti i diversi ambiti paesaggistici del territorio in quadri unitari, quanto più possibile coerenti al loro interno e confrontabili tra loro per valutarne le qualità paesaggistiche, le trasformazioni avvenute nel tempo o in atto, le necessità di processi di riqualificazione, le potenzialità di assorbire nuovi interventi progettuali. L’utilizzo di strumenti gis è stato indispensabile, sia per individuare le permanenze del paesaggio storico e rurale, sia per definire e valutare i possibili scenari di intervento. Le azioni, i progetti e gli interventi del PRA riguardano la rinaturalizzazione dei corsi d’acqua e la realizzazione di aree umide ed ecosistemi filtro e favoriscono l’attivazione di buone pratiche non solo per la gestione dei canali della bonifica ma anche per quella delle aziende agricole. La metodologia utilizzata ha permesso di interpretare le trasformazioni del paesaggio dell’Agro Pontino e nel contempo progettare interventi e azioni di riqualificazione ambientale che rispondano a molteplici esigenze/obiettivi: il miglioramento della qualità delle acque, il potenziamento della rete ecologica e della biodiversità, la rigenerazione dei paesaggi tipici delle zone umide (re-wetland) che rappresentano la memoria del territorio."Rewetland" project (LIFE+ 2008 - environment and governance. www.rewetland.eu) requires the preparation of an Programma di Riqualificazione Ambientale (PRA) of the Pontine Plain through experimentation with techniques of widespread phytoremediation. The PRA is based on a thorough analysis of the landscape from those of the reclamation of the Popes (XV -XVII cent.), up to the present day. The aim of the landscape analysis has been to reconstruct the elements making up the different areas of the local landscape into unified framework, as much as possible internally coherent and comparable to each other in order to assess the quality of the landscape, the changes through time or now being implemented, the necessity of regeneration processes, the potentialities to absorb new project interventions. GIS software tools have been essential, both to identify the permanence of the historic and rural landscape, and to define and evaluate the possible intervention scenarios. PRA actions, projects and interventions regard the renaturalization of waterways and the creation of wetlands and ecosystem filters and promote the activation of good practices not only for the management of the drainage channels but also for the farms. The methodology used allowed us to read the changes in the landscape of the Pontine Plain and at the same time to design interventions and actions that respond to multiple environmental restoration needs and objectives: improvement of water quality, enhancement of biodiversity and the ecological network, regeneration of the typical landscapes of wetlands (re-wetland) that represent the memory of territory.Peer Reviewe

Foliar Application of Wood Distillate Alleviates Ozone-Induced Damage in Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.)

This study examined whether foliar applications of wood distillate (WD) have a protective effect on photosynthesis and the antioxidant power of lettuce when exposed to an ecologically relevant O3 concentration. Seedlings of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) were fumigated daily with 60 ppb of O3 for 30 days, five hours per day. Once per week, 50% of the fumigated plants were treated with foliar applications of 0.2% WD, while control plants were treated with water. The results clearly showed the ability of WD to protect lettuce plants from ozone-induced damage. Specifically, WD-treated plants exhibited lower damage to the photosynthetic machinery, assessed through a series of chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, a higher chlorophyll content, higher antioxidant power, as well as antioxidant molecules, i.e., caffeic acid and quercetin, and higher biomass. Counteracting the overproduction of ozone-generated reactive oxygen species (ROS) is speculated to be the main mechanism by which WD protects the plant from ozone-induced damage

Neglecting Primordial non-Gaussianity Threatens Future Cosmological Experiment Accuracy

Future galaxy redshift surveys aim at probing the clustering of the cosmic large-scale structure with unprecedented accuracy, thus complementing cosmic microwave background experiments in the quest to deliver the most precise and accurate picture ever of our Universe. Analyses of such measurements are usually performed within the context of the so-called vanilla LCDM model - the six-parameter phenomenological model which, for instance, emerges from best fits against the recent data obtained by the Planck satellite. Here, we show that such an approach is prone to subtle systematics when the Gaussianity of primordial fluctuations is concerned. In particular, we demonstrate that, if we neglect even a tiny amount of primordial non-Gaussianity - fully consistent with current limits - we shall introduce spurious biases in the reconstruction of cosmological parameters. This is a serious issue that must be properly accounted for in view of accurate (as well as precise) cosmology.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, 2 table

Comparison of the Effect of Solid and Liquid Digestate on the Growth of Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) Plants

As a consequence of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Europe is facing a shortage of chemical fertilizers for agriculture. Therefore, the use of byproducts of biomass anaerobic digestion, e.g., solid (SD) and liquid (LD) digestate, could be a key solution to cope with this problem. In this framework, the present study aimed to evaluate the effect of both SD and LD, derived from the same feedstock, on the biometric, physiological, and biochemical parameters of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) plants. Compared to the controls, the plants treated with 3% (w/w) SD showed a reduction in leaf fresh biomass, chlorophyll content, performance index, fractal dimension, and antiradical activity, while vitamin C increased by 18.8%. An opposite response was observed for the lettuce plants treated with 3% (v/w) LD, which showed an increase in all the above-mentioned parameters, except for vitamin C, which decreased by 39.8%. Interestingly, the content of malondialdehyde, which is correlated with cell membrane lipid peroxidation, increased in the SD-treated plants (+39.7%) and decreased (−42.1%) in the LD-treated plants. These results strongly support the use of LD in agriculture as a valuable product to improve the productivity and nutritional quality of crop plants

Wood distillate (pyroligneous acid) boosts nutritional traits of potato tubers

Potato is the fourth most widely consumed staple food in the world. This study investigated the effectiveness of 0.2% wood distillate (WD), a biostimulant derived from the pyrolysis of waste plant biomass, in boosting the nutritional quality of potato tubers. The results showed that application of WD significantly increased the content of soluble sugars (sucrose +56.3%; glucose +44.9%; fructose +62.2%), starch (+35.1%) and total carbohydrates (+16.8%). Antioxidants (total antioxidant power, polyphenols, flavonoids) and most mineral elements (K, Mg, Ca, Na, Fe, Zn) were not affected. A lower content of Cu (−17.8%) and P (−24.5%) was found in WD-treated potato

Novel approaches for the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation: Time for a guideline revision?

Atrial fibrillation is a major health problem in Western countries, and is associated with considerable morbidity and resource consumption. Safe and reliable surgical techniques for the termination of this arrhythmia have been developed since the time of the original Cox “maze I” procedure. Novel equipment based on radiofrequency and microwave technologies can be employed to create transmural atrial lesions, even in the context of minimally invasive surgery to the atrioventricular valves via right minithoracotomy. The aim of this paper is to review the recent literature on this approach, and the clinical results in terms of arrhythmia termination and postoperative morbidity. With the aim to substantiate the practice of a simple, yet reliable, surgical ablation during minimally invasive heart valve surgery, we discuss the results of different patterns of atrial lesions having different degrees of surgical complexity. Finally, minimally invasive epicardial ablation for lone atrial fibrillation represents an emerging surgical indication. The results of state-of-the-art transcatheter ablation represent now its benchmark of comparison