Pietro della Valle's research and documentation in the Levant, Part I: Della Valle's exploration of the ruins of Persepolis in 1621 excerpts from: Pietro della Valle: Viaggi di Pietro della Valle il Pellegrino. Con minuto ragguaglio di tutte le cose notabili osservate in essi (Roma 1650-1663), including: Giovan Pietro Bellori: Vita di Pietro Della Valle il Pellegrino, in: Viaggi di Pietro della Valle il Pellegrino, seconda edizione, vol. I, (Roma 1662) (FONTES 66)

FONTES 66 presents the exploration of the ruins of Persepolis in 1621 by the Roman traveller Pietro Della Valle (1586-1652). During his years of travel (1614-1626) Della Valle recorded his experiences in fifty-four letters, published in three parts – La Turchia, La Persia and L’India – between 1650 and 1663 under the title Viaggi di Pietro della Valle il Pellegrino. Recently studied by archaeologists and literary historians, Della Valle’s travels have received little if any attention by historians of art. While Della Valle’s letters follow in a tradition of earlier Italian travellers, his methods of recording ancient monuments, art and artefacts were guided by up-to-date archaeological and antiquarian methods, first established in Italy in the first half of the sixteenth century. It was his intention from the beginning not only to describe the monuments and works of art, inscriptions, landscapes and people but to record these also graphically. This documentation was planned for the last volume which never appeared: "le figure di molte cose memorabili, sparse per tutta l’opera, la loro esplicatione". His exact observation and verbal documentation together with an extensive graphic record served his hermeneutic intentions

Pietro della Valle's research and documentation in the Levant, Part II: Della Valle's descriptions, explications and documentation of "Troia", Babylon ("Babèl"), Sultaniyya ("Sultania"), Ikkeri and the tombs of the poets in Shiraz excerpts from: Pietro della Valle: Viaggi di Pietro Della Valle il Pellegrino. Con minuto ragguaglio di tutte le cose notabili osservate in essi (Roma 1650-1663), including: Giovan Pietro Bellori: Vita di Pietro Della Valle il Pellegrino, in: Viaggi di Pietro Della Valle il Pellegrino, seconda edizione, vol. I, (Roma 1662) (FONTES 67)

FONTES 67 is a continuation of and a supplement to FONTES 66: Pietro Della Valle’s Research and Documentation in the Levant, Part I: Della Valle’s exploration of the ruins of Persepolis in 1621, excerpts from: Pietro Della Valle, Viaggi di Pietro della Valle il Pellegrino. Con minuto ragguaglio di tutte le cose notabili osservate in essi Roma 1650-1663), including: Giovan Pietro Bellori, Vita di Pietro Della Valle il Pellegrino, in: Viaggi di Pietro della Valle il Pellegrino,seconda edizione, vol. I, (Roma 1662), edited with an introductory study by Margaret Daly Davis. The following texts from Della Valle’s "Viaggi" are published in full text transcriptions and discussed: "Troia", Babylon ("Babèl"), Sultaniyya ("Sultania"), the Hindu Temple of Aghoresvara in Ikkeri and the tombs of the Poets Chogià and Sceich Saadì in Shiraz

Patellar luxation in dogs

Patellar luxation is a common orthopedic problem in dogs. Medial luxation is more common than lateral luxation and is usually diagnosed in dogs of small breed. Diagnosis is based on clinical evidence of patellar instability; however, diagnostic imaging is required to assess the amount of skeletal deformity and then the most appropriate method of treatment. Surgical options include both soft tissue and osseous techniques, however, in most of the cases, a combination of more procedures is used to achieve the correction of the luxation. Complication rate is generally low and the most common complications include reluxation and implant-associated complications. Prognosis is generally favorable, with most of the dogs returning to normal limb function. This article describes patellar luxation features in dogs, including clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment options available

Tibial Tuberosity Advancement Techniques (TTAT): A Systematic Review

Background: Several surgical techniques were described for the treatment of cranial cruciate ligament rupture in dogs. This report aims to critically review the available literature focused on preoperative planning, surgical procedure, follow-up, and complications of cranial cruciate liga- ment rupture treated by tibial tuberosity advancement techniques; (2) Methods: three bibliographic databases: PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus were used for a board search of TTAT (canine OR dog). Five GRADE recommendations according to Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation and Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklists were applied to the studies included. Data regarding preoperative planning (a measure of advancement), meniscal disease (meniscectomy, meniscal release, and late meniscal tears), and postoperative patellar tendon angle were recorded. Time frame, outcome, and complications were classified according to Cook’s guidelines; (3) Results: from 471 reports yielded, only 30 met the inclusion criteria. The common tangent method was the most commonly reported measurement technique for preoperative planning. The 40.21% of stifles presented meniscal tears at surgery, while 4.28% suffered late meniscal tears. In short-, mid-and long-term follow-ups examined showed a full/acceptable function was shown in >90% of cases. Among all new generation techniques, minor complications were reported in 33.5% of cases and major complications in 10.67%; (4) Conclusions: Compared to traditional TTA, new generation TTAT resulted effective in the treatment of cranial cruciate ligament failure, showing a lower rate of late meniscal injury but a higher rate of minor complications

Variations in avoidable hospital admissions and emergency visits by primary care characteristics: an ecological study in Italy

BACKGROUND: Primary healthcare plays a central role in providing preventive care, managing chronic conditions and reducing inappropriate emergency presentations. The study aimed at providing population-level evidence on the correlation between the characteristics of primary healthcare across Italian regions and health outcomes included in the National Programs Outcomes of the National Agency for Regional Healthcare Services. STUDY DESIGN: Ecological study. METHODS: We analysed healthcare data from the National Agency for Regional Healthcare Services, the public lists of primary care doctors and the National Federation of Surgeons and Dentists and the National Institutes of Statistics referring to the 20 Italian regions. Pearson's correlation and Spearman's correlation were used to assess the relationships between primary healthcare characteristics and health outcomes. RESULTS: Overall, across all Italian regions each general practitioner had on average 1447 patients and was 57.5 years old. The study found positive correlations between the number of patients per general practitioner and non-urgent Emergency Department visits among adult patients (Pearson's r = 0.58, p = 0.008), the number of residents aged 65+ per general practitioner and the rate of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease admissions (Pearson's r = 0.49, p = 0.029), and the age of general practitioners and lower-extremity amputations in diabetes patients (Pearson's r = 0.56, p = 0.011). A negative correlation was observed between the age of general practitioners and urinary tract infection admissions (Pearson's r = -0.76; p < 0.001). A non-linear negative correlation was found between the age of general practitioners and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease admissions (Spearman's ρ = -0.46, p = 0.041). CONCLUSIONS: The findings emphasise the importance of guaranteeing sufficient numbers of primary healthcare physicians to meet patients' needs, and for limiting avoidable hospitalisations and emergency presentations. General practitioners' age might also influence the provision of care, but more research is needed on possible mechanisms

Flattening mountains: Micro-fabrication of planar replicas for bullet lateral striae analysis

The application of replica molding has proven to be a valuable tool in the analysis of different forensic evidences in particular for its ability to extract the toolmarks from complex sample surfaces. A well known problem in the analysis of ballistic evidences is the accurate characterization of the lateral striae of real bullets seized on crime scenes after shots, due primarily to impact deformations and to unpredictable issues related to laboratory illumination setup. To overcome these problems a possible way is to confine over a flat surface all the features still preserving their three dimensionality. This can be achieved by a novel application of replica molding performed onto the relevant lateral portion of the bullet surface. A quasi-two-dimensional negative copy of the original tridimensional indented surface has been thus fabricated. It combines the real tridimensional topography of class characteristics (land and groove impressions) and of individual caracteristics (striae) impressed by rifled barrels on projectiles, moreover with the possibility of quantitative characterization of these features in a planar configuration, that will allow one-shot comparison of the "whole striae landscape" without the typical artifacts arising from the bullet shape and the illumination issue. A detailed analysis has been carried on at the morphological level by standard optical and scanning electron microscopy, while the 3D topography has been characterized by white light optical profilometry. A quantitative characterization of toolmarks of bullets derived from ammunitions shot by guns of large diffusion, as the Beretta 98 FS cal. 9×21mm, has been performed and will be presented ranging between the whole landscape and the sub-μm resolution. To investigate the real potentiality of this technique, the experiment has been extended to highly impact-deformed projectiles

Investigação do desempenho do transporte ferroviário de cargas: um modelo de regressão com dados em painel

The objective of this paper is to investigate the factors that affect the performance of rail freight and to ascertain the magnitude of the resulting effects. A multiple linear regression model was developed with panel data analysis, considering the fixed effects over time. The data collected correspond to the period from 2011 to 2018 and come from the National Land Transportation Agency (ANTT). The explanatory variables used are: speed, maintenance, accidents and cargo volume (production). After formulating and executing the model, the obtained indices were tested for statistical significance. We attempted to attenuate heteroscedastic errors by calculating robust standard errors and performed a model specification test. It was detected that the volume of cargo transported and speed of the train have a statistically relevant impact on performance. The model developed showed no evidence of poor specification and can assist in the planning of the activities of the observed companies.El objetivo de este trabajo es investigar los factores que afectan el rendimiento del transporte ferroviario y determinar la magnitud de los efectos resultantes. Se desarrolló un modelo de regresión lineal múltiple con análisis de datos de panel, considerando los efectos fijos a lo largo del tiempo. Los datos recolectados corresponden al período de 2011 a 2018 y provienen de la Agencia Nacional de Transporte Terrestre (ANTT). Las variables explicativas utilizadas son: velocidad, mantenimiento, accidentes y volumen de carga (producción). Después de formular y ejecutar el modelo, los índices obtenidos se probaron para determinar su significación estadística. Tratamos de atenuar los errores heteroscedásticos calculando errores estándar robustos y realizamos una prueba de especificación del modelo. Se encontró que el volumen de carga transportada y la velocidad del tren tenían un impacto estadísticamente significativo en el rendimiento. El modelo desarrollado no presentó pruebas de una especificación deficiente y puede ayudar a planificar las actividades de las empresas observadas.O objetivo deste trabalho é investigar os fatores que afetam o desempenho do transporte ferroviário de cargas e averiguar a magnitude dos efeitos decorrentes. Para isso, elaborou-se um modelo de regressão linear múltipla com análise de dados em painel, considerando os efeitos fixos ao longo do tempo. Os dados coletados correspondem ao período de 2011 a 2018 e advêm da Agência Nacional de Transporte Terrestres (ANTT). As variáveis explicativas utilizadas são: velocidade, manutenções, acidentes e volume de carga (produção). Após formulação e execução do modelo, os índices obtidos foram testados quanto à significância estatística. Buscou-se atenuar erros heterocedásticos por meio do cálculo dos erros-padrão robustos e realizou-se um teste de especificação do modelo. Detectou-se que o volume de carga transportada e velocidade do trem possuem um impacto estatisticamente relevante sobre o desempenho. O modelo desenvolvido não apresentou evidência de má especificação e pode auxiliar no planejamento das atividades das empresas observadas

Osservatorio Neologico della Lingua Italiana. Lessico e parole nuove dell’italiano

L’ONLI (Osservatorio Neologico della Lingua Italiana), costituito nel 1998, si è proposto di studiare il lessico italiano e la sua evoluzione nei decenni tra il XX e il XXI secolo, analizzando la neologia attraverso metodi d’indagine e regole dei meccanismi formativi delle parole nuove applicati ai contesti giornalistici raccolti nella sua banca dati tra il 1998 e il 2019. La proposta di classificazione dei neologismi adottata dall’ONLI ha permesso di evidenziare le linee di tendenza del lessico italiano, anche mediante il confronto di opinioni tra studiosi dei settori affini