La qualità negli interventi di ammodernamento e sistemazione della viabilità ordinaria extraurbana

This paper turns its attention to the problems concerning the works which, usually, are not considered impacting on the crossing territory. For this reason they escape to a correct control of their environmental compatibility, control that results to depend on designer sensibility and capacity. This is the major part of the ordinary one way viability, that, very often, move itself in places with their own sensibility. Currently the need to improve existing viability give occasion to think about an environmental compatibility of the whole road constructions, not only the wudge ones, allouding that the improvment became also “environmental”. In this contest, in the environmental qualifications of the interested area, plays a central rule the project of the green arrangement

Distribution of Caulerpa taxifolia var. distichophylla (Sonder) Verlaque, Huisman & Procaccini in the Mediterranean Sea

The Non-Indigenous Species (NIS) Caulerpa taxifolia var. distichophylla (Sonder) Verlaque, Huisman & Procaccini has been reported for the first time in the Mediterranean Sea along the coast of South Turkey. This NIS is actively expanding into the Eastern and Western Mediterranean Sea. In this paper, we present an overview of the current distribution of this alga in the Mediterranean Sea, based on relevant scientific publications, grey literature and personal observations. New records from the Sicilian coast (Italy) are also reported. Caulerpa taxifolia var. distichophylla was found over a wide range of environmental conditions (depth, light and substratum), suggesting a broad ecological plasticity of this alga which makes it a poten- tial threat for the Mediterranean benthic communities. In this respect, artificial structures, often linked to harbours and maritime traffic, seem to provide suitable habitats for this NIS. Since maritime traffic is intense in the Mediterranean Sea, further expansion of C. taxifolia var. distichophylla in this region is to be expected. For this reason, it is very important to build up an overview on the current distribution of the species and its possible pattern of colonisation in relation to environmental conditions, as well as in view of future climate change scenarios

Road signs: walking among shapes and colors

Road signs provide information through the combination of three elements: shape, color and pictogram. The current road signs are projected to ensure safety but are designed for adults and not for children. Kids are not small adults and they have a different perception of reality. While planning of home-school pedestrian routes, it is necessary to create road signs that are comprehensible for children aged 6-14. Therefore the elements of road signs were studied individually. The study revealed that both the knowledge of geometric shapes and colors perception are closely related to age and culture and to the teachings which children are submitted to. In fact, some geometric shapes, like the circle, are perfectly recognized from childhood and others less so, such as the rectangle. Moreover children are attracted to basic colors but they are aware of the existence of pastel colors only with teaching. Finally, pictogram must represent a simple symbol that is easily recognized especially from far away. The message generated by the three elements is understandable by children. In fact, children overcome the phase of syncretism after the age of 6, which corresponds to the phase in which children are unable to analyses and syntheses. The result of the research has allowed to design road signs, both vertical and horizontal, that are able to ensure the safety of home-school routes. A road signs study was conducted for Cagliari’s project on road safety. This project involves the use of questionnaires to verify if the road signs are properly designed

La Meccanizzazione della raccolta del mirto

The plant of the myrtle in past has been always considered one marginal cultivation and of insufficient interest. Only in the last five years it has been knowledge the economic importance for the demanded crescent of liquor of myrtle, product up to now nearly exclusively in Sardinia. Therefore, new sensibility has been developed one and a greater knowledge of the importance of a deepened study more of the cultivation from the biological point of view and the point of view of one rations mechanized harvester of the berries. The aim of the work was that one to characterize an harvester of the berries from the plant, avoiding the damaging of the plant and above all of the fruits that influenced on the quality of the finished product. In this present study they are evidences the comparison between some tests of harvest in turn to obtained and carried out with two different types of harvesters some in relation to the ransom of the plants

The Effect of Cranial Cruciate Ligament Rupture on Range of Motion in Dogs

open3noRange of motion (ROM) is a measure often reported as an indicator of joint functionality. Both the angle of extension and that of flexion were measured in 234 stifle joints of dogs with cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) rupture. The aims of this study were to investigate the correlation between CCL rupture and alterations in the range of stifle joint motion and to determine whether there was a prevalence modification of one of the two angles. All the extension and flexion angles were obtained from clinical records and were analysed in various combinations. A significant relationship was found between normal angles and abnormal angles; concerning the reduction in the ROM, a significant prevalence in the alteration extension angle was found. Of the 234 stifles, 33 (13.7%) were normal in both angles. These results could offer important insights regarding the influence of CCL rupture on compromising the ROM. This awareness could be a baseline for understanding the ability of surgical treatment to restore one angle rather than another angle, to address the choice of treatment and to help physiotherapists in their rehabilitation program.openPinna, Stefania; Lanzi, Francesco; Tassani, ChiaraPinna, Stefania; Lanzi, Francesco; Tassani, Chiar

Role of Aromatic Herbs and Spices in Salty Perception of Patients with Hyposmia

Herbs and spices represent a possibility for the improvement of anosmia and ageusia. In this work we evaluated the role of Mediterranean aromatic herbs and spices in the salty taste perception of patients with hyposmia compared to healthy controls. To this goal, the salty taste perception in response to pure salt and different types of commercial flavored sea salt was assessed in patients with hyposmia, with or without a post-acute coronavirus syndrome, and healthy controls. Myrtle berries and leaves, a mixture of Mediterranean herbs and plants such as helichrysum, rosemary, liquorice, fennel seeds and myrtle leaves, oranges and saffron were used as salt flavoring ingredients. Differences in gustatory perception between 57 patients with hyposmia and 91 controls were evaluated considering the rate of the gustatory dimensions of pleasantness, intensity, and familiarity, using a 7-point hedonic Likert-type scale. At a dose of 0.04 g/mL, saline solutions of flavored salts, with an average 15% less NaCl, were perceived by patients with hyposmia as equally intense but less familiar than pure salt solution, with similar scores in the pleasantness dimension. Our study highlighted the central role of Mediterranean aromatic plants in the enhancement of salty perception in patients with hyposmia

An Overview of {DNA}-Based Applications for the Assessment of Benthic Macroinvertebrates Biodiversity in Mediterranean Aquatic Ecosystems

none4Abstract: The loss of aquatic biodiversity is increasing at a rapid rate globally. There is a worldwide effort to protect, preserve and restore aquatic ecosystems. For efficient biodiversity monitoring and reliable management tools, comprehensive biodiversity data are required. The abundance and species diversity of benthic macroinvertebrates are commonly used as indicators of the aquatic ecosystem condition. Currently, macroinvertebrate species biodiversity assessment is based on morpho-taxonomy, which could be enhanced by recent advances in DNA-based tools for species identification. In particular, DNA metabarcoding has the potential to identify simultaneously many different taxa in a pool of species and to improve aquatic biomonitoring significantly, especially for indicator species. This review is focused on the current state of DNA-based aquatic biomonitoring using benthic macroinvertebrates in the Mediterranean region.openEftychia Tzafesta; Francesco Zangaro; Valeria Specchia; Maurizio PinnaTzafesta, Eftychia; Zangaro, Francesco; Specchia, Valeria; Pinna, Maurizi

Numerical Investigation on the PM Emission Potential of Metal Sulphides Open Storage

Numerical simulations of the wind flow around isolated stockpiles of bulk material are performed to assess the emission potential (P) of particulate matter (PM) from the pile surfaces exposed to wind erosion (i.e., industrial wind erosion). The analysis is focused on two metal sulphides (lead and zinc sulphides), which are typically stored in the open yards of industrial plants that operate in the commodity sector for the production of non-ferrous metals. The EPA methodology is applied to the numerical simulated flow fields to quantify the effect of the wind stress over the erodible surfaces of the two ores. Two alternative open bay geometries and different volumes of material stocked within the enclosing walls are considered. Moreover, the protective effect of the walls is assessed by comparing the same pile configurations without walls. This is found to be highly dependent on the wind direction, as well as to the pile configuration. A methodology that can be easily customized to specific industrial sites is proposed to define the best storage configuration for PM emission prevention and control. View Full-Tex