Effects of forcing in three dimensional turbulent flows

We present the results of a numerical investigation of three-dimensional homogeneous and isotropic turbulence, stirred by a random forcing with a power law spectrum, $E_f(k)\sim k^{3-y}$. Numerical simulations are performed at different resolutions up to $512^3$. We show that at varying the spectrum slope $y$, small-scale turbulent fluctuations change from a {\it forcing independent} to a {\it forcing dominated} statistics. We argue that the critical value separating the two behaviours, in three dimensions, is $y_c=4$. When the statistics is forcing dominated, for $y<y_c$, we find dimensional scaling, i.e. intermittency is vanishingly small. On the other hand, for $y>y_c$, we find the same anomalous scaling measured in flows forced only at large scales. We connect these results with the issue of {\it universality} in turbulent flows.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Is accounting enforcement related to risk-taking in the banking industry?

Using a sample of banks from 36 countries, we document that accounting enforcement is negatively related to bank risk-taking. We also provide evidence that accounting enforcement enhances bank stability during the crisis. In addition, we show that banks assume less risk through more conservative lending decisions and a reduction in complexity in jurisdictions with higher accounting enforcement. Our results show that formal institutions such as accounting enforcement are associated with bank financial decisions and risk-taking behavior

Rubin LSST observing strategies to maximize volume and uniformity coverage of Star Forming Regions in the Galactic Plane

A complete map of the youngest stellar populations of the Milky Way in the era of all-sky surveys, is one of the most challenging goals in modern astrophysics. The characterisation of the youngest stellar component is crucial not only for a global overview of the Milky Way structure, of the Galactic thin disk, and its spiral arms, but also for local studies. In fact, the identification of the star forming regions (SFRs) and the comparison with the environment in which they form are also fundamental to put them in the context of the surrounding giant molecular clouds and to understand still unknown physical mechanisms related to the star and planet formation processes. In 10 yrs of observations, Vera C. Rubin Legacy Survey of Space and Time (Rubin-LSST) will achieve an exquisite photometric depth that will allow us to significantly extend the volume within which we will be able to discover new SFRs and to enlarge the domain of a detailed knowledge of our own Galaxy. We describe here a metrics that estimates the total number of young stars with ages t < 10 Myr and masses >0.3M$_\odot$ that will be detected with the Rubin LSST observations in the gri bands at a 5 {\sigma} magnitude significance. We examine the results of our metrics adopting the most recent simulated Rubin-LSST survey strategies in order to evaluate the impact that different observing strategies might have on our science case.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, 1 table; accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Serie

Reachability computation for hybrid systems with Ariadne

Ariadne is an in-progress open environment to design algorithms for computing with hybrid automata, that relies on a rigorous computable analysis theory to represent geometric objects, in order to achieve provable approximation bounds along the computations. In this paper we discuss the problem of reachability analysis of hybrid automata to decide safety properties. We describe in details the algorithm used in Ariadne to compute over-approximations of reachable sets. Then we show how it works on a simple example. Finally, we discuss the lower-approximation approach to the reachability problem and how to extend Ariadne to support it

LH peak and ovulation in buffalo cows treated for oestrus synchronisation using two different hormonal schedule

Since oestrus behaviour in buffalo is frequently scarcely clear and the oestrus signs, even when showed, are not reliable, ovulation can not be predicted. Furthermore high individual variability of the oestrus signs – LH peak interval was observed both in spontaneous and hormonal induced oestrus (Moioli et al., 1998; Barile et al, 1998)

Influence of land use on the hydrobiogeochemistry of the Camanducaia and Jaguari watersheds, Brazil.

Two medium-sized watersheds of the Piracicaba river basin, the Camanducaia and Jaguari subbasins,are being studied to evaluate the effects of land use change on the basin?s hydrobiogeochemistry. The Jaguari basin is an important provider the Cantareira reservoir system that supplies around six million inhabitants of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo, Brazil. A one-year hydrological study began on January 2015 to monitor some water quality parameters such as pH, electric conductivity (EC), dissolved oxygen (DO), dissolved organic and inorganic carbon (DOC and DIC), nitrate (NO ), ammonium (NH ) and total nitrogen (TN). For that purpose we established 19 sampling stations along the Camanducaia (8 stations) and Jaguari (11 stations) river channels; two stations at their main tributaries Mosquito and Camanducaia Mineiro, respectively; and another two stations at small streams in headwater areas of the Jaguari and Camanducaia watersheds. Preliminary results show that DOC concentrations are correlated DIC (r=0.81 at Jaguari; r=0.70 at Camanducaia; p <0.05). We observe that DOC tends to increase by multiples of 2.5 and 3.5 times from forested headwater areas to the most downstream stations of Jaguari and Camanducaia, respectively. Regarding DIC these multiples are 4.4 and 1.9 times greater. The four most downstream stations at Jaguari show urban area effects with higher DIC monthly values ranging from 28.7 to 33 mg L . Also DIC correlated with EC values (means around 160 ?S) at two of these stations. We expect that at the end of this monitoring year results will show stronger relations between hydrobiogeochemical parameters and land use change

Effectiveness and acceptability of psycho-education group intervention for people hospitalized in psychiatric wards and nurses

Objective: To assess effectiveness and acceptability of a Psycho-education Group Intervention (PGI) on a sample of patients admitted to a Psychiatric Inpatient Unit (PIU) and on ward nurses. Methods: Case-control study. PGI was delivered according to the model of Vendittelli and colleagues (2008). Male and female patients aged 18-70 were eligible. Cases attended the PGI, while controls did not. A 5-item ad hoc Likert-scale was used to record ward atmosphere. The Italian version of the Simple Feedback Question Form for people attending Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Group (SFQF-CBTG) was administered to each patient before discharge. The primary outcome was readmission rate after 6 months from discharge, secondary outcomes were ratings of ward atmosphere by nurses and feed-back from people hospitalized. All Statistics were performed with STATA 13.1. Results: Fifty-two patients were enrolled, 17 cases and 35 controls. No significant differences emerged in the primary outcome, though compulsory readmissions were noticeable only among controls. Ratings of ward atmosphere in relation to group activities did not differ. Seventeen SFQF-CBTG were filled in. Most cases reported at discharge to have found the group "helpful", stating that "they would attend it in the future again", and "group topics were not difficult". Conclusions: No evidence emerged in favour or against effectiveness of the PGI for patients and ward nurses, though the intervention was rated as acceptable and feasible

Il costo di una neutropenia febbrile

Febrile neutropenia (FN) is one of the most common and severe complications of chemotherapy, particularly when used for the treatment of hematological malignancies and bone marrow transplantation. Estimating its cost for the National Health service (NHS) is difficult, in that the cost of FN is included in the overall reimbursement, which is based on the main DRG declared at discharge. Aim of the present survey, conducted on the patient population treated in two oncology centers in Milan in the years 2001- 2002, was to evaluate the most frequent DRGs associated with neutropenia, with the objective to estimate the mean cost per patient hospitalized with FN. As expected, oncology patients with NF are spread through a wide range of DRGs, but the mean cost per patient resulted comparable in the two considered hospitals ( ~ 9500 euro), as well as the overall distribution among DRGs. The single most frequent DRG was 398 (diseases of reticuloendothelial and immune systems, with complications) which appears to be appropriate, being the closest to the clinical definition of FN available

New Therapeutic Options for the Treatment of Sickle Cell Disease.

Sickle cell disease (SCD; ORPHA232; OMIM # 603903) is a chronic and invalidating disorder distributed worldwide, with high morbidity and mortality. Given the disease complexity and the multiplicity of pathophysiological targets, development of new therapeutic options is critical, despite the positive effects of hydroxyurea (HU), for many years the only approved drug for SCD. New therapeutic strategies might be divided into (1) pathophysiology-related novel therapies and (2) innovations in curative therapeutic options such as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and gene therapy. The pathophysiology related novel therapies are: a) Agents which reduce sickling or prevent sickle red cell dehydration; b) Agents targeting SCD vasculopathy and sickle cell-endothelial adhesive events; c) Anti-oxidant agents. This review highlights new therapeutic strategies in SCD and discusses future developments, research implications, and possible innovative clinical trials