A semantic linking framework to provide critical value-added services for E-journals on classics

In the field of Classical Studies the use of e-journals as effective means for scholarly research still needs to bootstrapped. This paper proposes a possible implementation of two value-added services to be provided by e-journals that is to reach this goal: reference linking and reference indexing. Both these services would contribute to make more machine-evident the hidden bond but of utmost importance which link together primary and secondary sources in this field of studies. On a technical level, this paper proposes the use of Microformats and of the Canonical Texts Service (CTS) protocol to build the semantic and nonproprietary linking framework necessary to provide scholars reading e-journals with some advanced and critical features

Health co-benefits of climate change action in Italy

The climate breakdown is increasingly affecting the health of people around the world. As weather extremes intensify, the global health burden of unhealthy diets, sedentary lifestyles, and air pollution increases too. Against this backdrop, overstretched health systems can take stock of the co-benefits that a low carbon transition could deliver if health is prioritised in climate policies.1 Yet, as pointed out in a recent commentary,2 the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, UK, put little focus on health-related goals. Similarly, health is often disregarded in countries’ nationally determined contributions and in national climate policies. The dissociation between public health policy and climate action translates into millions of avoidable adverse health outcomes and deaths each year. For example, reducing greenhouse gas emissions also reduces the effect of air pollution, which is the largest environmental cause of disease and mortality in Europe in terms of measurable effect

Modello di tenuta della flangia bullonata, senza guarnizione, mediante l'analogia della meccanica della frattura di una fessura parzialmente aperta

I compressori centrifughi di elevate dimensioni non permettono l'utilizzo di guarnizioni deformabili, per cui le due meta della flangia di connessione sono forzate mediante bullonatura e la tenuta e affidata al contatto completo delle due superfici. La previsione della pressione di perdita e un aspetto di progetto di notevole interesse per questa tecnologia. L'azione della pressione interna sollecita la separazione delle superfici della flangia, che invece e contrastata dall'azione di serraggio dei bulloni. Il presente lavoro propone un modello per prevedere la condizione di perdita, basato sulla meccanica della frattura. Dato che le due superfici della flangia sono semplicemente a contatto, esse costituiscono una vera e propria fessura parzialmente aperta. Come ben noto il fattore di intensificazione di una fessura parzialmente aperta e nullo. Imponendo che le due superfici siano parzialmente separate ad una distanza fino al bordo del foro del bullone (che offre un canale di fuoriuscita per il fluido in pressione), e imponendo la condizione di fattore di intensificazione nullo, e possibile determinare la pressione di perdita, analiticamente, mediante la tecnica delle "weight functions" (o "funzioni peso"). Il presente lavoro riporta una positiva validazione del modello proposto mediante sia simulazione numerica sia risultati sperimentali in piena scala e in scala ridotta. Il modello analitico proposto offre uno strumento di progetto di immediata implementazione per comparare diverse geometrie di flangia bullonata

Collaborative Care Best Practices Model (CCBPM) Development for Nursing and Occupational Therapy Assistant Interprofessional Simulation

The use of simulation as a teaching and learning stratagem is well supported in the professional literature. The development of a collaborative care best practices model (CCBPM) was undertaken to help the creation and implementation of an interprofessional education (IPE) learning strategy between occupational therapy assistant (OTA) and pre-licensure nursing students at a private liberal arts college. The project goals and outcomes involved faculty development, CCBPM development, and OTA and nursing novice student competency acquisition in their respective professions. Twenty-three students (10 OTA and 13 nursing) completed the IPE learning simulation exercise. A mixed-method approach to data analysis was used to evaluate aggregate data for simulation fidelity, student feelings of support, and identification of simulation experience themes. For both scenario and overall fidelity, the aggregate rating of strongly agree and agree equaled 90.9%. The aggregate rating of strongly agree and agree equaled 95.45% for equipment fidelity. The number of participants who rated their feeling of being supported by selecting strongly agree or agree was 72.72%. The participants worked in teams to complete the simulation and the debriefing process. Using grounded theory, safety, communication, and teamwork were the three primary themes identified from the transcribed team debriefing worksheets

The impact of intra-operative factors in otosclerosis outcomes: retrospective study in a tertiary centre

The aim of the study was to assess results from a large cohort of patients undergoing otosclerosis surgery with respect to the impact of intra-operative variables on post-operative hearing function and complications. We enrolled 384 patients affected by otosclerosis who were subjected to stapes surgery between 2004 and 2013 at a single institution. Surgery was performed in all cases under local anaesthesia, using a manual perforator and/or microdrill. Teflon-piston prosthesis was used in all patients. Audiological data obtained preoperatively and at last follow-up examination (minimum 12 months) were compared. Statistical analysis was performed using the multiple regression model. Peripheral rim otosclerosis and diffuse otosclerosis were associated with better functional results compared to the obliterative pattern (p < 0.05). Mean post-operative Air-Bone Gap was significantly higher in the 0.4 mm, compared to 0.6 mm piston group at 0.5 kHz (p < 0.001) and 1 kHz (p < 0.02); in the stapedotomy group a statistically significant difference was found between 0.4 and 0.6 mm piston groups, in favour of the latter (p < 0.05). No differences were encountered in terms of average hearing threshold and complications. Intra-operative variables cannot be fully predictable and our data could help in stratification of the results and as a landmark for the surgeon’s decisions

Barriers and Enablers for Industry 4.0 in SMEs: A Combined Integration Framework

Although Industry 4.0 was introduced a decade ago, many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) still have not adopted several technologies. Therefore, integrating SMEs along horizontal, vertical, and end-to-end engineering dimensions remains challenging. Due to the importance of SMEs for industrial value chains, understanding SMEs' barriers and respective enablers for Industry 4.0 integration is vital. Applying a multiple case study approach, this paper investigates their experience in Industry 4.0 through technological, organizational, and environmental factors. We aggregate the barriers and respective enablers to Industry 4.0 into an integration framework, which helps to understand Industry 4.0 in SMEs from a broader viewpoint inside these firms, upstream and downstream supply chains, and beyond manufacturing. The findings show that the success of Industry 4.0 integration is more oriented toward operational benefits than strategic advantages and depends upon how these technologies are integrated with various stakeholders across the supply chain, such as original equipment manufacturers, R&D agencies, or sub-suppliers

Monitoring climate change and child health: The case for putting children in all policies

Climate change is threatening the health of current and future generations of children. The most recent evidence from the Lancet Countdown: Tracking Progress on Health and Climate Change finds declining trends in yield potential of major crops, rising heatwave exposures, and increasing climate suitability for the transmission of infectious diseases, putting at risk the health and wellbeing of children around the world. However, if children are considered at the core of planning and implementation, the policy responses to climate change could yield enormous benefits for the health and wellbeing of children throughout their lives. Child health professionals have a role to play in ensuring this, with the beneficiaries of their involvement ranging from the individual child to the global community. The newly established Children in All Policies 2030 initiative will work with the Lancet Countdown to provide the evidence on the climate change responses necessary to protect and promote the health of children