Radio recombination lines from obscured quasars with the SKA

We explore the possibility of detecting hydrogen radio recombination lines from 0 < z < 10 quasars. We compute the expected Hnalpha flux densities as a function of absolute magnitude and redshift by considering (i) the range of observed AGN spectral indices from UV to X-ray bands, (ii) secondary ionizations from X-ray photons, and (iii) stimulated emission due to nonthermal radiation. All these effects are important to determine the line fluxes. We find that the combination of slopes: alpha_X,hard = -1.11, alpha_X,soft = -0.7, alpha_EUV = -1.3, alpha_UV = -1.7, maximizes the expected flux, f_Hnalpha = 10 microJy for z = 7 quasars with M_AB = -27 in the n = 50 lines; allowed SED variations produce variations by a factor of 3 around this value. Secondaries boost the line intensity by a factor of 2 to 4, while stimulated emission in high-z quasars with M_AB = -26 provides an extra boost to RRL flux observed at nu = 1 GHz if recombinations arise in HII regions with T_e = 10^3-5 K, n_e = 10^3-5 cm^-3. We compute the sensitivity required for a 5sigma detection of Hnalpha lines using the SKA, finding that the SKA-MID could detect sources with M_AB < -27 (M_AB < -26) at z < 8 (z < 3) in less than 100 hrs of observing time. These observations could open new paths to searches for obscured SMBH progenitors, complementing X-ray, optical/IR and sub-mm surveys.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figures; to be published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Main Journa

The role of ICTs and public-private cooperation for cultural heritage tourism. The case of Smart Marca / Il ruolo delle ICT e della cooperazione pubblico-privati per il turismo culturale. Il caso di Smart Marca

This paper analyzes the opportunities related to public-private cooperation for the implementation of information communication technologies (ICTs) to promote cultural heritage tourism. After a literature review on the role of cooperation between private and public sectors and the most relevant information communication technologies (ICTs) for the promotion of cultural heritage, the analysis moves to travel apps, by illustrating features, main trends and some applications of this technology to cultural heritage and tourism. In the second part, the connection between tourism, cultural heritage and digital technologies is analyzed through the description of Smart Marca app, which, starting from the cooperation between local public and private entities, exploited ICTs to promote cultural tourism in Fermo area (Marche Region, Italy).  Il contributo analizza le potenzialità della cooperazione pubblico-privata nella progettazione e realizzazione di nuove tecnologie dell’informazione (ICT) per la promozione del turismo del patrimonio culturale. Dopo una rassegna della letteratura dedicata al ruolo della collaborazione tra pubblico e privato e delle ICT per la promozione del patrimonio culturale e lo sviluppo turistico di un territorio, l’articolo focalizza l’attenzione sulle applicazioni mobili di viaggio, illustrandone trend e caratteristiche, nonché alcuni esempi di applicazione di questa tecnologia al patrimonio culturale e al turismo. Nella seconda parte, la connessione tra turismo, patrimonio culturale e ICT viene analizzata attraverso la descrizione dell’app Smart Marca, che, a partire dalla cooperazione tra enti pubblici e attori privati, ha utilizzato le nuove tecnologie per promuovere il turismo culturale nel territorio fermano (Regione Marche, Italia)

The Design-driven Material Innovation Methodology

[EN] A new materials research scenario emerges from design field, where scientists, enterprises, inventors, creative communities, and material industries are becoming deeply engaged in the creative challenge to achieve material functionality and meanings ideas for disruptive innovation. Considering and integrating design methods, technological approaches and studies on innovation, the Material Design Culture Research Center (MADEC) of Politecnico di Milano developed in the last years a specific methodology able to manage the whole design process from tailor-made material to product systems, integrating different actors of innovation, enhancing capabilities of open explorations, and reducing the time-to-market for materials and products. This paper presents the DdMIM (Designdriven Material Innovation Methodology) as a systematic approach and strategic tool for research centers, design schools, practitioners and SMEs. A specific material could be a starting point of the process, but not only. What the method really tries to do is to let understand how to use technologies (and advanced materials) contextualizing them within a wider socio-cultural and economic scenario. After a brief forward of the method theoretical premises, this paper will analyzes the seven steps suggested by the methodology: Data collection, Sensing, Sensemaking, Envisioning, Specifying, Setting up, Placing. These phases are associated with a selection of case studies to help its comprehension. Actually the DdMIM is part of the “Design for Enterprises” the European training program for SMEs, started this year and operating for the next two years in order to help SMEs to enhance the capabilities for Design-Driven. In the “Design for Enterprises” training program the DdMIM is part of the module “Design for Materials”, and help enterprises to manage a design process for product and services innovation where different actors like materials scientists, suppliers, creative communities and consumers are getting engaged.Lecce, C.; Ferrara, M. (2016). The Design-driven Material Innovation Methodology. En Systems&design:beyond processes and thinking. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 431-448. https://doi.org/10.4995/IFDP.2015.3243OCS43144

Research, education and co-creation: the university in place / Ricerca, formazione e co-creazione: l'università sul campo

In regional development strategies, universities are playing an increasingly decisive role as a knowledge generator and facilitator in the dialogue between local actors. This paper aims to understand the role that the University of Macerata can play in the process of interaction between business, public sector and research. Following a series of events organized by the University of Macerata with this objective, in this context will be analyzed the results of a focus group within an Entrepreneurial Discovery Process event. The participating stakeholders identified the university as the centre of a regional innovation ecosystem, where knowledge can be generated and transmitted.Nelle strategie di sviluppo regionale le università stanno assumendo un ruolo sempre più decisivo, quale generatore di conoscenza e facilitatore nel dialogo tra gli attori locali. Questo contributo ha l’obiettivo di capire il ruolo che può ricoprire l’Università di Macerata nel processo di interazione tra imprese, settore pubblico e mondo accademico. A seguito di una serie di eventi organizzati da parte dell’Università di Macerata con questo obiettivo, in questo contesto verranno analizzati i risultati emersi da un focus group all’interno di un evento Entrepreneurial Discovery Process. Gli stakeholders partecipanti hanno individuato l'università come il centro di un ecosistema regionale dell'innovazione, all’interno del quale poter generare e trasmettere una conoscenza diffusa.

The spatiotemporal pattern of the human electroencephalogram at sleep onset after a period of prolonged wakefulness

During the sleep onset (SO) process, the human electroencephalogram (EEG) is characterized by an orchestrated pattern of spatiotemporal changes. Sleep deprivation (SD) strongly affects both wake and sleep EEG, but a description of the topographical EEG power spectra and oscillatory activity during the wake-sleep transition after a period of prolonged wakefulness is still missing. The increased homeostatic sleep pressure should induce an earlier onset of sleep-related EEG oscillations. The aim of the present study was to assess the spatiotemporal EEG pattern at SO following SD. A dataset of a previous study was analyzed. We assessed the spatiotemporal EEG changes (19 cortical derivations) during the SO (5 min before vs. 5 min after the first epoch of Stage 2) of a recovery night after 40 h of SD in 39 healthy subjects, analyzing the EEG power spectra (fast Fourier transform) and the oscillatory activity [better oscillation (BOSC) detection method]. The spatiotemporal pattern of the EEG power spectra mostly confirmed the changes previously observed during the wake-sleep transition at baseline. The comparison between baseline and recovery showed a wide increase of the post- vs. pre-SO ratio during the recovery night in the frequency bins 10 Hz. We found a predominant alpha oscillatory rhythm in the pre-SO period, while after SO the theta oscillatory activity was prevalent. The oscillatory peaks showed a generalized increase in all frequency bands from delta to sigma with different predominance, while beta activity increased only in the fronto-central midline derivations. Overall, the analysis of the EEG power replicated the topographical pattern observed during a baseline night of sleep but with a stronger intensity of the SO-induced changes in the frequencies 10 Hz, and the detection of the rhythmic activity showed the rise of several oscillations at SO after SD that was not observed during the wake-sleep transition at baseline (e.g., alpha and frontal theta in correspondence of their frequency peaks). Beyond confirming the local nature of the EEG pattern at SO, our results show that SD has an impact on the spatiotemporal modulation of cortical activity during the falling-asleep process, inducing the earlier emergence of sleep-related EEG oscillations

Robot-assisted Heller myotomy for achalasia

Achalasia is a rare neuromuscular esophageal disorder in children. There are many surgical options to treatment including botulinum toxin (Botox) injections, oral pharmacologic therapies with nitrates and calcium channel blockers, pneumatic dilation (PD), and surgical myotomy (open surgery, endoscopy, laparoscopy and recently robotic approach). In pediatric age, usually, Heller's myotomy is the main choice. Laparoscopic approach is known and standardized. Few robotic have been published. We decided to report our first case to share our experience with scientific community

Verifiable Hierarchical Key Assignment Schemes

A hierarchical key assignment scheme (HKAS) is a method to assign some private information and encryption keys to a set of classes in a partially ordered hierarchy, so that the private information of a higher class together with some public information can be used to derive the keys of all classes lower down in the hierarchy. Historically, HKAS have been introduced to enforce multi-level access control, where it can be safely assumed that the public information is made available in some authenticated form. Subsequently, HKAS have found application in several other contexts where, instead, it would be convenient to certify the trustworthiness of public information. Such application contexts include key management for IoT and for emerging distributed data acquisition systems such as wireless sensor networks. In this paper, motivated by the need of accommodating this additional security requirement, we first introduce a new cryptographic primitive: Verifiable Hierarchical Key Assignment Scheme (VHKAS). A VHKAS is a key assignment scheme with a verification procedure that allows honest users to verify whether public information has been maliciously modified so as to induce an honest user to obtain an incorrect key. Then, we design and analyse verifiable hierarchical key assignment schemes which are provably secure. Our solutions support key update for compromised encryption keys by making a limited number of changes to public and private information

Exploring the Role of the University in the Creation of Knowledge Networks in the Aso Valley, a Rural Area in Marche Region (Italy)

Rural areas are often disadvantaged by their peripheral position, depopulation and the scarcity of primary services, but they also have specific characteristics, especially in terms of cultural capital, that can make them attractive as tourism destinations. Sustainable tourism paths can be developed through collaboration between various actors with complementary skills and areas of expertise, especially local cooperatives and associations. In this context, universities can have a crucial role in creating knowledge networks and enhancing “rural buzz” that is the flow of information and knowledge among the individuals, organizations, and businesses in a rural area through face-to-face interaction. This study focuses on an Italian case study from the Marche Region: the collaboration between the University of Macerata (UNIMC) and a local association, Agritur-Aso, has been chosen as an example of a network for the co-valorization of regional cultural capital

Advanced Label-Free Optical Methods for Spermatozoa Quality Assessment and Selection

Current in vitro fertilization (IVF) techniques require a severe selection of sperm, generally based on concentration, morphology, motility, and DNA integrity. Since routinely separation methods may damage the viability of the sperm cell, there is a growing interest in providing a method for noninvasively analyzing spermatozoa taking into account all those parameters. This chapter first reviews the state-of-the-art of label-free sperm cell imaging for IVF, highlighting the limitations of the used techniques. Then, our innovative approach combining Raman spectroscopy and digital holography will be described and its advantages detailed. These include the ability to perform a simultaneous and correlative morphological and biochemical analysis of sperm cells, without labeling, in a fast and reliable way. Finally, the difficulty in reaching clinical use will be discussed, as well as the possible solutions offered by new technological improvements

X-ray spectroscopy of the z=6.4 quasar J1148+5251

We present the 78-ks Chandra observations of the $z=6.4$ quasar SDSS J1148+5251. The source is clearly detected in the energy range 0.3-7 keV with 42 counts (with a significance $\gtrsim9\sigma$). The X-ray spectrum is best-fitted by a power-law with photon index $\Gamma=1.9$ absorbed by a gas column density of $\rm N_{\rm H}=2.0^{+2.0}_{-1.5}\times10^{23}\,\rm cm^{-2}$. We measure an intrinsic luminosity at 2-10 keV and 10-40 keV equal to $\sim 1.5\times 10^{45}~\rm erg~s^{-1}$, comparable with luminous local and intermediate-redshift quasar properties. Moreover, the X-ray to optical power-law slope value ($\alpha_{\rm OX}=-1.76\pm 0.14$) of J1148 is consistent with the one found in quasars with similar rest-frame 2500 \AA ~luminosity ($L_{\rm 2500}\sim 10^{32}~\rm erg~s^{-1}$\AA$^{-1}$). Then we use Chandra data to test a physically motivated model that computes the intrinsic X-ray flux emitted by a quasar starting from the properties of the powering black hole and assuming that X-ray emission is attenuated by intervening, metal-rich ($Z\geq \rm Z_{\odot}$) molecular clouds distributed on $\sim$kpc scales in the host galaxy. Our analysis favors a black hole mass $M_{\rm BH} \sim 3\times 10^9 \rm M_\odot$ and a molecular hydrogen mass $M_{\rm H_2}\sim 2\times 10^{10} \rm M_\odot$, in good agreement with estimates obtained from previous studies. We finally discuss strengths and limits of our analysis.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, 1 table, MNRAS in pres