Il sistema di gestione degli archivi nello scavo di Poggio Imperiale a Poggibonsi. Una soluzione all'interno della "soluzione GIS"

Designing a database to fit the needs of an archaeological excavation meant creating an open architecture capable of adapting to the evolving aspects of our research project (in range of data as well as in level of detail); this, together with the complete integration within the global system developed at our Laboratory, were the first aims we pursued in building our solution. The DBMS, based on an open ID system, can be considered a large data container which is continuously updated in its structure; it allows us to easily build relational indexes, increase the level of data detail and create new table and forms in order to manage new types of data. Essential aspects of this solution are total control over data consistency and data vocabularies, a self-made and user-friendly interface, and the possibility of managing multiple projects together. The automation of many repetitive tasks through programming also helps archaeologists in elaborating their data in order to produce information (the elaborated finds quantification and frequency routines are a good example)

Medieval Tuscan glasses from Miranduolo, Italy: A multi-disciplinary study

Twenty transparent glass fragments from Miranduolo were analysed by Variable Pressure - Scanning Electron Microscopy - Energy Dispersive System (VP-SEM-EDS), Particle Induced X-Ray Emission and Particle Induced Gamma-Ray Emission (PIXE/PIGE) and Laser Ablation - Inductively Coupled Plasma - Mass Spectrometry (LAICP- MS). The fragments are dated from mid-13th to mid-14th century CE, when the first Tuscan glass-making workshops emerged. Miranduolo did not have an in situ glass-making workshop. Hence, the aim was to determine the glass production technology and raw material provenance. All the glasses are of plant ash (PA) sodalime- silica (Na-Ca-Si) composition, with eighteen being made with Levantine plant ash (LPA), one with Barilla plant ash (BPA), and one Na-Ca-Si glass with high magnesium and low potassium (HMg-LK). The production of LPA glasses can be distinguished according to the use of different sand typologies as former. It seems probable that glasses were produced regionally from multiple Tuscan glass factories

COVID-19 Severity in Multiple Sclerosis: Putting Data Into Context

Background and objectives: It is unclear how multiple sclerosis (MS) affects the severity of COVID-19. The aim of this study is to compare COVID-19-related outcomes collected in an Italian cohort of patients with MS with the outcomes expected in the age- and sex-matched Italian population. Methods: Hospitalization, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and death after COVID-19 diagnosis of 1,362 patients with MS were compared with the age- and sex-matched Italian population in a retrospective observational case-cohort study with population-based control. The observed vs the expected events were compared in the whole MS cohort and in different subgroups (higher risk: Expanded Disability Status Scale [EDSS] score > 3 or at least 1 comorbidity, lower risk: EDSS score ≤ 3 and no comorbidities) by the χ2 test, and the risk excess was quantified by risk ratios (RRs). Results: The risk of severe events was about twice the risk in the age- and sex-matched Italian population: RR = 2.12 for hospitalization (p < 0.001), RR = 2.19 for ICU admission (p < 0.001), and RR = 2.43 for death (p < 0.001). The excess of risk was confined to the higher-risk group (n = 553). In lower-risk patients (n = 809), the rate of events was close to that of the Italian age- and sex-matched population (RR = 1.12 for hospitalization, RR = 1.52 for ICU admission, and RR = 1.19 for death). In the lower-risk group, an increased hospitalization risk was detected in patients on anti-CD20 (RR = 3.03, p = 0.005), whereas a decrease was detected in patients on interferon (0 observed vs 4 expected events, p = 0.04). Discussion: Overall, the MS cohort had a risk of severe events that is twice the risk than the age- and sex-matched Italian population. This excess of risk is mainly explained by the EDSS score and comorbidities, whereas a residual increase of hospitalization risk was observed in patients on anti-CD20 therapies and a decrease in people on interferon

DMTs and Covid-19 severity in MS: a pooled analysis from Italy and France

We evaluated the effect of DMTs on Covid-19 severity in patients with MS, with a pooled-analysis of two large cohorts from Italy and France. The association of baseline characteristics and DMTs with Covid-19 severity was assessed by multivariate ordinal-logistic models and pooled by a fixed-effect meta-analysis. 1066 patients with MS from Italy and 721 from France were included. In the multivariate model, anti-CD20 therapies were significantly associated (OR = 2.05, 95%CI = 1.39–3.02, p < 0.001) with Covid-19 severity, whereas interferon indicated a decreased risk (OR = 0.42, 95%CI = 0.18–0.99, p = 0.047). This pooled-analysis confirms an increased risk of severe Covid-19 in patients on anti-CD20 therapies and supports the protective role of interferon

Sistemi digitali di documentazione e analisi archeologica. Verso quale direzione?

This paper explores some issues related to recording and analyzing archaeological datasets. After making our (neo-)processualist approach clear, some key digital technologies (relational databases) and methodologies (conceptual modelling) are discussed as examples to assess the actual state of archaeological information systems and reflect upon possible future directions. This brings us also to define the limits of quantitative (and especially predictive) analyses. Variability of parameters and, above all, the extensive lack of reality tests are heavy hindering factors. Precisely defining the variables and attractors based on specific questions can help us to relativize complex systems, bending the analyses to our needs