Anatomopathological aspects of avian aspergillosis

Aspergillosis is a fungal disease caused by fungi of the genus Aspergillus, in particular A. fumigatus and A. flavus. This paper focuses on anatomopathological aspects resulting from a chronic infection from Aspergillus spp in the chicken (Gallus domesticus), in the herring gull (Larus cachinnans micaelli) and in the red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa rufa). Microscopically, we observed some histological lesions that are related to the two typical forms of Aspergillosis: a deep nodular form, typical of organs with a non-aerated parenchyma, and a non-encapsulated superficial diffuse form typical of the serosae and the lung. The observed forms of aspergillosis have been found in animals raised in poor hygienic environmental conditions or malnourished animals (chicken); in wild birds from wildlife recovery centres (herring gull), which underwent some forms of stress, such as traumas, detention, starvation, extended antibiotic treatments; in game birds (red-legged partridge) used for restocking natural areas that had been negatively affected by such stressors as captivity in aviaries, containment and transport in cages, release in unsuitable environments and malnutrition. The observed anatomopathological and istopathological aspects can therefore be regarded as the outcome of a number of factors that have reduced the typical resistance of the species and impaired the efficiency of their immune systems

A review of executive function deficits in autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Executive dysfunction has been shown to be a promising endophenotype in neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This article reviewed 26 studies that examined executive function comparing ASD and/or ADHD children. In light of findings from this review, the ASD + ADHD group appears to share impairment in both flexibility and planning with the ASD group, while it shares the response inhibition deficit with the ADHD group. Conversely, deficit in attention, working memory, preparatory processes, fluency, and concept formation does not appear to be distinctive in discriminating from ASD, ADHD, or ASD + ADHD group. On the basis of neurocognitive endophenotype, the common co-occurrence of executive function deficits seems to reflect an additive comorbidity, rather than a separate condition with distinct impairments

Subjective and Electroencephalographic Sleep Parameters in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review

Background: Sleep problems have commonly manifested in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with a complex and multifactorial interaction between clinical and etiological components. These disorders are associated with functional impairment, and provoke significant physical and mental affliction. The purpose of this study is to update the existing literature about objective and subjective sleep parameters in children and adolescents with ASD, extrapolating information from polysomnography or sleep electroencephalography, and sleep related questionnaires. Methods: We have conducted a systematic review of case-control studies on this topic, performing a web-based search on PubMed, Scopus and the Web of Science databases according to the Preferred Reporting items for Systematic Review and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Results: Data collected from 20 survey result reports showed that children and adolescents with ASD experienced a higher rate of sleep abnormalities than in typically developing children. The macrostructural sleep parameters that were consistent with subjective parent reported measures unveil a greater percentage of nighttime signs of insomnia. Sleep microstructure patterns, in addition, pointed towards the bidirectional relationship between brain dysfunctions and sleep problems in children with ASD. Conclusions: Today’s literature acknowledges that objective and subjective sleep difficulties are more often recognized in individuals with ASD, so clinicians should assess sleep quality in the ASD clinical population, taking into consideration the potential implications on treatment strategies. It would be worthwhile in future studies to examine how factors, such as age, cognitive level or ASD severity could be related to ASD sleep abnormalities. Future research should directly assess whether sleep alterations could represent a specific marker for atypical brain development in ASD

Cálculo y análisis del pitch en señales sonoras de voz humana

El análisis del pitch involucra diferentes tópicos dentro del estudio de señales sonoras aún no explorados completamente. En virtud de la imprecisión en su propia definición se pueden implementar una gran variedad de algoritmos para su adquisición. Históricamente se ha definido al pitch como la frecuencia fundamental de espectro de frecuencias del habla [Casacuberta87] y se lo ha asociado al movimiento que realiza la glotis en la generación del sonido [Husson62]. Desafortunadamente cualquiera sea la forma en la que se lo defina no se ajustará a la realidad, porque la oscilación glotal es una función cuasi-periódica [Klatt87]. Además, esta frecuencia no es fácilmente identificable debido a que en algunas situaciones prácticamente desaparece de la onda sonora. Esto ocurre cuando las articulaciones del tracto vocal hacen que la energía del sonido se concentre en algunos de sus armónicos. No obstante no se lo pierde completamente y se puede utilizar dichos armónicos para su rastreo. Se ha observado que esta vibración no es constante a lo largo del discurso, detectándose variaciones a lo largo de la frase y también dentro mismo de una palabra. Estas variaciones se deben tanto a la entonación de la frase, como a la acentuación de los fonemas así como al estado emocional del orador [Rocha87] [Klatt87].Eje: Procesamiento de SeñalesRed de Universidades con Carreras en Informática (RedUNCI

Cálculo y análisis del pitch en señales sonoras de voz humana

El análisis del pitch involucra diferentes tópicos dentro del estudio de señales sonoras aún no explorados completamente. En virtud de la imprecisión en su propia definición se pueden implementar una gran variedad de algoritmos para su adquisición. Históricamente se ha definido al pitch como la frecuencia fundamental de espectro de frecuencias del habla [Casacuberta87] y se lo ha asociado al movimiento que realiza la glotis en la generación del sonido [Husson62]. Desafortunadamente cualquiera sea la forma en la que se lo defina no se ajustará a la realidad, porque la oscilación glotal es una función cuasi-periódica [Klatt87]. Además, esta frecuencia no es fácilmente identificable debido a que en algunas situaciones prácticamente desaparece de la onda sonora. Esto ocurre cuando las articulaciones del tracto vocal hacen que la energía del sonido se concentre en algunos de sus armónicos. No obstante no se lo pierde completamente y se puede utilizar dichos armónicos para su rastreo. Se ha observado que esta vibración no es constante a lo largo del discurso, detectándose variaciones a lo largo de la frase y también dentro mismo de una palabra. Estas variaciones se deben tanto a la entonación de la frase, como a la acentuación de los fonemas así como al estado emocional del orador [Rocha87] [Klatt87].Eje: Procesamiento de SeñalesRed de Universidades con Carreras en Informática (RedUNCI

DETECTION OF SOFTWARE VULNERABILITIES IN THIRD-PARTY LIBRARIES

openSviluppo di un plugin Gradle per l'analisi statica delle dipendenze software di un progetto Gradle o Npm, sviluppo di servizi REST per il salvataggio dei risultati del plugin e per effettuare la ricerca delle vulnerabilità software note e sviluppo di una web application per la visualizzazione dei risultati

SISTEMI DI PROPULSIONE E DI GENERAZIONE DELL'ENERGIA AD ELEVATA EFFICIENZA E RISPETTOSI DELL'AMBIENTE

Il clima e l’ambiente stanno subendo notevoli cambiamenti verso condizioni estreme a causa del calore non riflesso oltre l’atmosfera terrestre, con conseguenze ambientali oramai evidenti a tutti. Le politica dell’Unione Europea include tra gli obiettivi del futuro piani energetici ed ambientali per contenere queste anomalie nel più breve tempo possibile. I motori a combustione interna a ciclo Diesel hanno ottima efficienza generale ed affidabilità, ma se alimentati in modo tradizionale con il gasolio emettono inquinanti e gas ad effetto serra. E’ possibile sostituire questo combustibile di origine fossile con biodiesel, o parzialmente mediante la combustione in modalità dual-fuel con miscele gassose per una decisa riduzione dell’impatto sull’atmosfera. L’obiettivo è continuare a sfruttare la robustezza e la flessibilità raggiunta con i motori ad accensione per compressione in vari settori del trasporto pesante o marittimo, piuttosto che per la generazione combinata di energia. In questa tesi è stata studiata la combustione DF ed RCCI (Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition) nella quale una parte di gasolio, combustibile di origine fossile e ad alta reattività, viene sostituito da un combustibile a bassa reattività da origine non necessariamente fossile, iniettato in maniera indiretta nel collettore di aspirazione e che forma una carica premiscelata omogenea e magra; una piccola quantità di combustibile ad alta reattività è iniettata direttamente nel cilindro per l’accensione del combustibile. Le analisi sono state svolte mediante simulazioni CFD 3D del processo di combustione che sono state preliminarmente validate sulla base di dati sperimentali ricavati da un motore Diesel modificato per funzionare in modalità Dual Fuel, testato presso la sala prova motori del Dipartimento. Sono stati studiati diversi combustibili a bassa reattività tra cui benzina, gas naturale, biogas e miscele di gas naturale e idrogeno. Il gas naturale ed il biogas permettono costi di gestione inferiori ed opportunità sul contenimento delle emissioni allo scarico. Inoltre, il biogas è una fonte di energia rinnovabile e può essere prodotto localmente, aspetti che nell’attuale momento storico hanno una importanza fondamentale. Sia le prove sperimentali che le simulazioni hanno evidenziato la possibilità di sostituire elevate quantità di gasolio (oltre l’80%) con gas naturale o biogas, mantenendo o aumentando l’efficienza del motore. Solamente ai bassi carichi, l’elevato rapporto aria combustibile della carica premiscelata rende critica la combustione Dual Fuel. E’ stata quindi investigata la possibilità di miscelare idrogeno al gas naturale (fino al 50% in volume) al fine di migliorare la qualità della combustione. Questo ha permesso di migliorare la combustione ai bassi carichi, estendendone la zona di funzionamento in modalità Dual Fuel e di riducendo le emissioni ai carichi medio/alti. Sul biogas è stato fatto, inoltre, un approfondimento specifico per un’applicazione cogenerativa. Il biogas di origine vegetale, ed autoprodotto in loco mediante fermentazione anaerobica, è stato simulato in combustione DF in diverse quote parti di anidride carbonica, fino ad un 50%, ossia frazioni corrispondenti a reali composizioni di questo gas. Per questa variabilità non sono garantite sempre le medesime prestazioni ed occorrono opportune calibrazioni di anticipo di iniezione. E’ stato studiando il caso reale di soddisfacimento del fabbisogno energetico di un’azienda agricola, mediante autoproduzione di energia combinata elettrica e termica da motore endotermico a ciclo diesel in modalità DF. Per questa applicazione sono stati considerati aspetti prestazionali, di emissioni allo scarico, oltre che aspetti economici di fattibilità e rientro dell’investimento.Climate and environment are undergoing significant changes to extreme conditions due to the heat not reflected beyond the Earth’s atmosphere, with environmental consequences now obvious to everyone. European Union policies include energy and environmental plans to contain these anomalies as soon as possible. Diesel internal combustion engines have excellent general efficiency and reliability, but if they are powered in a traditional way with diesel oil they emit pollutants and greenhouse gases. It’s possible to replace this fossil fuel with biodiesel, or partially by burning it in dual-fuel mode with gaseous mixtures to significantly reduce pollutant emissions. The aim is to continue to exploit the robustness and flexibility achieved with compression ignition engines in various sectors of heavy transport or maritime sector, rather than for combined energy generation. In this thesis combustion DF (dual fuel) and RCCI (Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition) have been investigated in which a part of diesel oil, fuel of fossil origin and high reactivity, is replaced by a fuel with low reactivity from origin not necessarily fossil (for example: biogas, hydrogen ), indirectly injected into the intake manifold and forming a homogeneous and lean premixed charge; a small amount of high reactivity fuel is injected directly into cylinder ignite the charge. The analyses were carried out using 3D CFD simulations of the combustion process which were validated preliminarily on the basis of experimental data obtained from a modified Diesel engine operating In dual fuel mode. The experimental campaign has been carried out at the test bed of Unimore Departement. Various low reactivity fuels including gasoline, natural gas, biogas and mixtures of natural gas and hydrogen have been investigated. Natural gas and biogas ensure lower operating costs and can leads to reduce exhaust emissions. Furthermore, biogas is a renewable source of energy and can be produced locally, aspects that are of fundamental importance in this historical moment. Both experimental tests and simulations have shown the possibility of replacing high quantities of diesel oil (over 80%) with natural gas or biogas, maintaining or increasing the engine efficiency. Only at low load conditions, the high fuel air ratio of the premixed charge makes dual fuel combustion critical. The possibility of mixing hydrogen with natural gas (up to 50% by volume) was then investigated in order to improve the quality of combustion. This has allowed to improve combustion at low loads, extending the operating zone in dual fuel mode and reducing emissions at medium/high loads. On biogas, moreover, a specific deepening has been done for a cogenerative application. The biogas of plant origin, and self-produced on site by anaerobic fermentation, has been simulated in dual fuel combustion in different parts of carbon dioxide, up to a 50%, fractions corresponding to real compositions of this gas. For this variability, the same performances are not always guaranteed and appropriate injection timing tunings are required. The real case of meeting the energy needs of an agricultural holding has been studied, by means of self-handling of combined electric and thermal energy from diesel cycle endothermic engine in dual fuel mode. For this application were considered performance aspects, exhaust emissions, as well as economic aspects of feasibility and return of the investment