Dating the humans by radiocarbon

Radiocarbon has become a very powerful tool used for dating. This paper deals with a specific application of 14C, i.e. dating of humans. Attention is focused on those aspects that, if neglected, might lead to a misinterpretation of the results or to an unsatisfying accuracy of the measurement. After a brief description of the main principles on which the radiocarbon method is based and of Accelerator Mass Spectrometry, examples taken from the research activity of INFN-LABEC (Laboratorio di Tecniche Nucleari per i Beni Culturali) in Florence are presented. The case of the relics of St. Francis represents an example of dating not directly human remains but other objects that can be associated to them. The case of two burials from the archaeological area of Baratti-Populonia, in Tuscany, gives the possibility to show the importance of estimating the human palaeodiet when dating bone samples

Aerobic growth of Rhodococcus aetherivorans BCP1 using selected naphthenic acids as the sole carbon and energy sources

Naphthenic acids (NAs) are an important group of toxic organic compounds naturally occurring in hydrocarbon deposits. This work shows that Rhodococcus aetherivorans BCP1 cells not only utilize a mixture of eight different NAs (8XNAs) for growth but they are also capable of marked degradation of two model NAs, cyclohexanecarboxylic acid (CHCA) and cyclopentanecarboxylic acid (CPCA) when supplied at concentrations from 50 to 500 mgL-1. The growth curves of BCP1 on 8XNAs, CHCA, and CPCA showed an initial lag phase not present in growth on glucose, which presumably was related to the toxic effects of NAs on the cell membrane permeability. BCP1 cell adaptation responses that allowed survival on NAs included changes in cell morphology, production of intracellular bodies and changes in fatty acid composition. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis of BCP1 cells grown on CHCA or CPCA showed a slight reduction in the cell size, the production of EPS-like material and intracellular electron-transparent and electron-dense inclusion bodies. The electron-transparent inclusions increased in the amount and size in NA-grown BCP1 cells under nitrogen limiting conditions and contained storage lipids as suggested by cell staining with the lipophilic Nile Blue A dye. Lipidomic analyses revealed significant changes with increases of methyl-branched (MBFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) examining the fatty acid composition of NAs-growing BCP1 cells. PUFA biosynthesis is not usual in bacteria and, together with MBFA, can influence structural and functional processes with resulting effects on cell vitality. Finally, through the use of RT (Reverse Transcription)-qPCR, a gene cluster (chcpca) was found to be transcriptionally induced during the growth on CHCA and CPCA. Based on the expression and bioinformatics results, the predicted products of the chcpca gene cluster are proposed to be involved in aerobic NA degradation in R. aetherivorans BCP1. This study provides first insights into the genetic and metabolic mechanisms allowing a Rhodococcus strain to aerobically degrade NAs

Insight into phenotypic and genotypic differences between vaginal lactobacillus crispatus bc5 and lactobacillus gasseri bc12 to unravel nutritional and stress factors influencing their metabolic activity

The vaginal microbiota, normally characterized by lactobacilli presence, is crucial for vaginal health. Members belonging to L. crispatus and L. gasseri species exert crucial protective functions against pathogens, although a total comprehension of factors that influence their dominance in healthy women is still lacking. Here we investigated the complete genome sequence and comprehensive phenotypic profile of L. crispatus strain BC5 and L. gasseri strain BC12, two vaginal strains featured by anti-bacterial and anti-viral activities. Phenotype microarray (PM) results revealed an improved capacity of BC5 to utilize different carbon sources as compared to BC12, although some specific carbon sources that can be associated to the human diet were only metabolized by BC12, i.e. uridine, amygdalin, tagatose. Additionally, the two strains were mostly distinct in the capacity to utilize the nitrogen sources under analysis. On the other hand, BC12 showed tolerance/resistance towards twice the number of stressors (i.e. antibiotics, toxic metals etc.) with respect to BC5. The divergent phenotypes observed in PM were supported by the identification in either BC5 or BC12 of specific genetic determinants that were found to be part of the core genome of each species. The PM results in combination with comparative genome data provide insights into the possible environmental factors and genetic traits supporting the predominance of either L. crispatus BC5 or L. gasseri BC12 in the vaginal niche, giving also indications for metabolic predictions at the species level

A flexible and low-cost open-source IPMC mezzanine for ATCA boards based on OpenIPMC

This work presents the development of an Intelligent Platform Management Controller mezzanine in a Mini DIMM form factor for use in electronic boards compliant to the PICMG Advanced Telecommunication Computing Architecture (ATCA) standard. The module is based on an STMicroelectronics STM32H745 microcontroller running the OpenIPMC open-source software. The mezzanine has been successfully tested on a variety of ATCA boards being proposed for the upgrade of the experiments at the HL-LHC, with its design and firmware being distributed under open-source hardware license

The Artemidorus Papyrus: Solving An Ancient Puzzle with Radiocarbon and Ion Beam Analysis Measurements

Ancient papyrus manuscripts are one of the most fascinating sources for reconstructing not only ancient life habits but also past literature. Recently, an amazing document has come to the fore due to the heated debates it raised: the so-called Artemidorus papyrus. It is a very long scroll (about 2.5 m) composed of several fragments of different sizes, with inscriptions and drawings on both sides. On the recto of the document, a text about geography and some drawings of heads, feet, and hands are present, while on the verso there are many sketches of animals, both real and fantastic. Its importance in classical studies comes from the fact that some scholars claim that it is the first known transcription of a relatively large fragment by the Greek geographer Artemidorus. However, other scholars think that the papyrus is a fake, drawn in the 19th century AD by a well-known forger. In order to overcome all possible ambiguities, the papyrus has been studied not only on the basis of historical and paleographic criteria but also by scientific techniques. We have contributed to the knowledge about the papyrus by radiocarbon dating the document and by analyzing the composition of the ink using ion beam analysis (IBA). Results are compatible with the scroll being an ancient manuscript: accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14C measurements have dated the papyrus to a period between the 1st century BC and 1st century AD, while IBA measurements have pointed out the use of an organic (carbon-based) ink, which was typical of ancient Roman and Greek times. Details of the measurements are presented to emphasize the importance of combining AMS and IBA results

Space-time gravity variations to look deep into the southern flank of Etna volcano

A microgravity 14-year-long data set (October 1994 - September 2007) recorded along a 24-kilometer East-West trending profile of 19 stations was analyzed to detect underground mass redistributions related to the volcanic activity involving the southern flank of Mt Etna volcano (Italy). A multiresolution wavelet analysis was applied to separate the volcano-related signal from the unwanted components due to mainly instrumental, human-made and seasonal effects. The residual space-time image evidenced two complete gravity increase/decrease cycles mainly affecting the central and eastern stations of the profile. The first gravity increase (early-1995 to end-1996) – decrease (end-1996 to late-1998) cycle reached a maximum amplitude of approximately 90 µGal. The second gravity increase (mid-1999 to mid-2000) – decrease (mid-2000 to early-2004) cycle attained an amplitude of about 80 µGal peak-to-peak. After about five years of a persistent negative gravity anomaly, a new semi-cycle started at the end of 2006 and continued during the last survey carried out in September 2007. We modeled the 1994-2007 gravity anomalies using a Quadratic Programming algorithm to infer the position and the evolution of the sources beneath the profile. The computed positive mass variations of about 1.05 x 1011 kg were interpreted as magma accumulation, while negative mass changes of about -1.20 x 1011 kg could reflect either magma migration or opening of new voids by tectonic tensile stresses within a source volume, where tensional earthquakes occurred

Contextual influences on italian university students during the covid-19 lockdown: Emotional responses, coping strategies and resilience

none17Based on an ecological perspective on the COVID-19 lockdown experience, this study describes psychological responses among Italian university students. Our study considers three zones of the country that have differed in the intensity of the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, this research explores whether differences in pandemic conditions can account for their divergent psychological outcomes. The participants were 792 university students from seven different Italian universities. Students were asked to express their emotions and describe meaningful events during the lockdown in writing. Based on the grounded theory approach, this study conducted qualitative data analysis using ATLAS.ti 8.0. The core emerged categories are emotions, emotional moods and state of mind, coping strategies, and resilience. The results describing these emergent factors in relation to environmental variables highlight differences in the feeling of anxiety among individuals: anxiety was more self-focused in zones that were more affected by the lockdown, while such anxiety was more related to family and friends in less-affected zones. In addition to identifying the negative repercussions that this emergency has had, this study describes some positive outcomes, such as the elaboration of new personal perspectives that help foster individual growth and allow individuals to gain new awareness of themselves and others. The confinement due to the COVID-19 emergency measures has been a very unique experience for people, and further research is needed to understand the long-term effects of the different coping responses activated by participants during and after the lockdown.mixedLaura Migliorini; Norma De Piccoli; Paola Cardinali; Chiara Rollero; Daniela Marzana; Caterina Arcidiacono; Elisa Guidi; Ciro Esposito; Cinzia Novara; Angela Fedi; Elena Marta; Andrea Guazzini; Patrizia Meringolo; Maria Grazia Monaci; Barbara Agueli; Fortuna Procentese; Immacolata Di NapoliMigliorini, Laura; De Piccoli, Norma; Cardinali, Paola; Rollero, Chiara; Marzana, Daniela; Arcidiacono, Caterina; Guidi, Elisa; Esposito, Ciro; Novara, Cinzia; Fedi, Angela; Marta, Elena; Guazzini, Andrea; Meringolo, Patrizia; Grazia Monaci, Maria; Agueli, Barbara; Procentese, Fortuna; Di Napoli, Immacolat

Estimación del precio social del carbono. Una aproximación para Argentina

Actualmente los países enfrentan diversos desafíos en materia de crecimiento y desarrollo económico. Uno de ellos corresponde a las políticas de preservación del medio ambiente como un factor de crecimiento sustentable. El Protocolo de Kioto, con el objetivo de mitigar el cambio climático, contempla las emisiones de seis gases de efecto invernadero (GEI). Si bien estas emisiones proceden fundamentalmente de la utilización de energía y de la producción de combustibles fósiles; las actividades como la agricultura, la ganadería y desforestación son las responsables de un porcentaje no despreciable de emisiones (gas metano, dióxido de Carbono, etc.)La emisión de GEI, generados a partir de los procesos productivos, se considera una externalidad negativa, que debe ser tenida en cuenta a la hora de adoptar decisiones más complejas y eficientes. Actualmente, para evaluar proyectos que impliquen reducción de emisiones, se utiliza como «precio sommitigationbra» de la tonelada de Carbono, el que surge del Mercado de Bonos de Carbono. Este precio recibe diversas críticas y surge la necesidad de buscar métodos alternativos de estimación. Por lo tanto, con el presente trabajo, se pretende estimar el precio social del carbono para Argentina y analizar las posibles diferencias con el precio establecido en el Mercado de Bonos de Carbono, para el año 2018. La metodologíaque se utilizará será cuanti-cualitativa y para ello se realizará relevamiento y análisis de datos sobre los componentes que determinan y afectan el precio social del carbono y su evolución en el tiempo. Para establecer el costo social, se estimaran las Curvas de Mitigación, que representan el sacrificio de recursos para la sociedad que implica financiar medidas de reducción de GEI. Se espera que este precio o valor estimado represente el verdadero valor del Carbono a diferencia del valor establecido en el Mercado de Bonos