A more rigorous description of the multiplierless MPPT principle.

This note refers to the article “Achieve MPPT control without power calculation “(Electronic Design, November 05 2009, p. 53, http://electronicdesign.com/article/power/achieve_mppt_control_without_power_calculation.aspx) giving some mathematical justification about the multiplier disuse and the use of a synchronous modulation-demodulation to implement a MPPT

Genetic Predisposition to Familial Nonmedullary Thyroid Cancer: An Update of Molecular Findings and State-of-the-Art Studies

Familial thyroid cancer has become a well-recognized entity in patients with thyroid cancer originating from follicular cells, that is, nonmedullary thyroid carcinoma. The diagnosis of familial thyroid cancer provides an opportunity for early detection and possible prevention in family members. Understanding the syndromes associated with familial thyroid cancer allows clinicians to evaluate and treat patients for coexisting pathologic conditions. About five percents of patients with well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma have a familial disease. Patients with familial non-medullalry thyroid cancer have more aggressive tumors with increased rates of extrathyroid extension, lymph node metastases, and frequently show the phenomenon of “anticipation” (earlier age at disease onset and increased severity in successive generations). So far, four predisposition loci have been identified in relatively rare extended pedigrees, and association studies have identified multiple predisposing variants for differentiated thyroid cancer. This suggests that there is a high degree of genetic heterogeneity and that the development of this type of tumor is a multifactorial and complex process in which predisposing genetic variants interact with a number of incompletely understood environmental risk factors. Thus, the search for the causative variants is still open and will surely benefit from the new technological approaches that have been developed in recent years

Clero criminale: L’onore della Chiesa e i delitti degli ecclesiastici nell’Italia della Controriforma. Volume 1. I documenti: il Cinquecento

[English]:With this rich anthology of sources, most of which are made available here for the first time, Michele Mancino and Giovanni Romeo add another element to the research project that began with their recent book (Clero criminale. L’onore della Chiesa e i delitti degli ecclesiastici nell’Italia della Controriforma, Laterza, Roma-Bari, 2013, 4th ed.). The two parts document from a range of perspectives the way in which the Tridentine project of combating the common crimes of the clergy was undone before the end of the sixteenth century. Instead, the Roman curia was mainly concerned with enforcing the right of delinquent priests to be judged only by ecclesiastical tribunals, a strategy intended to defend the honor of the clergy that was followed persistently over the long term. The material presented here describes a previously unknown historical precedent for the recent revelations about the treatment of pedophile priests. / [Italiano]: Con questa ricca antologia di fonti, in larga misura inedite, Michele Mancino e Giovanni Romeo aggiungono un nuovo tassello al progetto di ricerca che ha trovato la prima espressione in un libro recente (Clero criminale. L’onore della Chiesa e i delitti degli ecclesiastici nell’Italia della Controriforma, Laterza, Roma-Bari, 2013, IV ed.). I due volumi documentano con ampiezza di orizzonti come il progetto tridentino di una lotta incisiva ai crimini comuni del clero fu affossato subito, già nel corso del Cinquecento. La Curia romana badò soprattutto a riaffermare il diritto degli ecclesiastici delinquenti di essere giudicati solo da tribunali della Chiesa, a tutela dell’onore del clero: una strategia perseguita con lucidità e costanza, che conferisce un’inattesa profondità storica anche alle recenti vicende delle vittime dei preti pedofili

Cloning of the genes for non-medullary thyroid cancer: Methods and advances

In last ten years, significant advances have occurred in thyroid endocrinology, as a consequence of the generalized use of molecular biology techniques. New genes involved in the development of thyroid cancer have been identified, which had a great impact on our understanding of thyroid cancer predisposition. All cancers are genetic in origin because they arise from mutations in a single somatic cell, but the genetic changes in sporadic cancers are confined to a particular tissue. In inherited cancers, a predisposing mutation is present in all somatic cells and in the germ line, which enables the transmission of risk to the next generation. Cancer genetics offers a model of how information on the genetics of inherited cancers could affect identification of individuals at increased genetic risk

Current therapeutic approaches for plantar fasciitis

Nicolò Martinelli, Carlo Bonifacini, Giovanni RomeoDepartment of Ankle and Foot Surgery, IRCCS Galeazzi Orthopaedic Institute, Milan, ItalyAbstract: Almost 1 million Americans are affected by plantar fasciitis (PF), which is the commonest cause of chronic heel pain. This condition is often managed conservatively, and many rehabilitation protocols, some with the aid of orthoses, have been adopted, with good-to-excellent clinical results. Although most cases of chronic PF can be successfully managed with a conservative approach, alternative treatments, including high-energy shock wave therapy and corticosteroid injections, are commonly accepted as second-line treatment when traditional conservative therapy fails. However, surgery is still an important mode of treatment. Recently, new minimally invasive surgical techniques that offer numerous advantages (faster recovery time, early weight-bearing, lower postoperative pain) over standard surgical approaches have been proposed, with good results and low complication rates. The purpose of this review is to report new conservative and surgical techniques for the treatment of PF. A literature search for articles about plantar fasciitis was conducted on the PubMed database in order to identify publications addressing the treatments of PF. The literature suggests that, initially, traditional conservative treatments consisting of rest, oral nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, foot orthotics, and stretching exercises can be tried for several weeks. In patients with chronic recalcitrant PF, extracorporeal shock wave therapy or corticosteroid injection can be considered. Surgery (minimally invasive techniques) should be considered only after failure of the conservative treatments.Keywords: heel pain, surgery, plantar fasciosi

Esophageal Electrical Cardioversion of Atrial Fibrillation: When Esophagus Gives a Help to Cardiologists

Atrial fibrillation is a common clinical disease especially in the elderly and in patients with organic heart disease. Electrical cardioversion is the first choice therapeutic approach for patients in which sinus rhythm could improve the quality of life and where the maintenance of sinus rhythm is considered likely. There are different techniques to perform an electrical cardioversion, each with specific indications, advantages, and limitations. The method most frequently used to restore sinus rhythm is external direct current cardioversion; however, this technique has some disadvantages, since it requires a high energy and usually general anesthesia. Esophageal cardioversion is an alternative method to obtain restoration of sinus rhythm, warranting acute and long-term results absolutely comparable with those obtained by the conventional transthoracic technique, especially in obese and COPD patients with high thoracic impedance for whom the standard technique may be less effective

Reseña de Fiume, Giovanna (2021). Del Santo Uffizio in Sicilia e delle sue carceri. Roma: Viella

Reseña del libro de Giovanna Fiume Del Santo Uffizio in Sicilia e delle sue carcer

Novel Silicon Photomultipliers suitable for Dual-Mirror Small-Sized Telescopes of the Cherenkov Telescope Array

Many of the characteristics of Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPMs), such as high Photon Detection Efficiency (PDE), are well matched to the requirements of the cameras of the Small-Sized Telescopes (SSTs) proposed for the Cherenkov Telescope Array. In fact, compared to a single mirror, the double mirror Schwarzschild Couder configuration provides a much better Point Spread Function over a large field of view. It allows better correction of aberrations at large off axis angles and facilitates the construction of compact telescopes. Moreover, the small plate scale of the dual-mirror SSTs allows the use of SiPM detectors despite their small pixel sizes. These sensors have two further advantages compared to the Photo Multipliers Tubes: the low cost and the possibility to observe in very high Night Sky Background (NSB) light level without any damage. However, one area in which SiPM performance has required improvement is Optical CrossTalk (OCT), where multiple avalanches are induced by a single impinging photon. OCT, coupled with the typical NSB rate of 25 MCnts/s per pixel during Cherenkov observations, can place severe constraints on the triggering capability of the cameras. This paper describes the performance of novel Low Voltage Reverse (LVR) 2nd and 3rd generation Multi Pixel Photon Counters manufactured by Hamamatsu Photonics. These are designed to have both enhanced PDE and reduced OCT. Two 7 x 7 mm2 S14520 LVR2 MPPCs with 75 um microcells are tested and compared with detectors of the same pixel size with 50 um microcells. A comparative analysis of a 3 x 3 mm2 S14520 LVR2 device and an S14520 LVR3 device is also carried out, demonstrating that the LVR3 gives better photon detection in the 240 380 nm wavelength range. Finally, the effect of an infrared filter on the OCT is analysed.Comment: 17 pages, 17 figures, 2 tables. Submit to NIM-A Jurna

Phytosociological features of Adonis distorta and Trifolium noricum subsp. praetutianum, two endemics of the Apennines (peninsular Italy)

We present plant communities in which two endemic taxa of the Apennine mountain chain, Adonis distorta Ten. and Trifolium noricum Wulfen subsp. praetutianum (Savi) Arcang are distributed. Although these taxa occur sporadically in some other Apennine massifs, it is only in the Majella mountain range where these species are physiognomically dominant. Trifolium noricum subsp praetutianum behaves as a differential element in Helianthemo-Festucetum italicae, where it characterizes a new edapho-mesophilous subassociation named Helianthemo alpestris-Festucetum italicae trifolietosum praetutiani. Adonis distorta is linked to specific geo-morphotypes characterised by an alternation of strips of detritus and fine soil particles as well as to distinguishable communities described in this paper as a new association named Ranunculo seguierii-Adonidetum distortae