Modello dei dati e trattamento del dato sul GIS di scavo

The paper focuses on the problems related to archaeological excavation data management through the use of a GIS solution; it considers aspects ranging from the planning of an open and functional data model, fitting the complexity of stratigraphy, to the possibilities of data processing such as the production of thematic maps or the elaboration of interpretative and predictive models using statistical and mathematical tools. It also discusses the difficulty of 3D data recording, as well as the recent technological development of Internet mapping servers and web-based dynamic GIS systems

Report on the Verification of the Performance of MS8, RF3 and GT73 Event-specific PCR-based Methods Applied to DNA Extracted from GM Stack MS8xRF3xGT73 Oilseed Rape

A joint application was submitted by Bayer CropScience AG and Monsanto Company to request the authorisation of genetically modified stack (GM stack) MS8xRF3xGT73 oilseed rape (tolerant to glufosinate ammonium and glyphosate) and all sub-combinations of the individual events as present in the segregating progeny, for food and feed uses, and import and processing, in accordance with articles 5 and 17 of Regulation (EC) NoN° 1829/2003 on GM Food and GM Feed. The unique identifier assigned to GM stack MS8xRF3xGT73 oilseed rape is ACS-BNØØ5-8xACS-BNØØ3-6xMON-ØØØ73-7. The GM stack MS8xRF3xGT73 oilseed rape has been obtained by conventional crossing between three genetically modified oilseed rape events: MS8, RF3 and GT73, without any new genetic modification. The EU-RL GMFF has previously validated individually, and declared fit for purpose, the detection methods for the single events MS8, RF3 and GT73 (see http://gmo-crl.jrc.ec.europa.eu/StatusOfDossiers.aspx). In line with the approach defined by the ENGL (http://gmo-crl.jrc.ec.europa.eu/doc/Min_Perf_Requirements_Analytical_methods.pdf) the EU-RL GMFF has carried out only an in-house verification of the performance of each validated method when applied to genomic DNA extracted from GM stack MS8xRF3xGT73 oilseed rape. The results of the in-house verification led to the conclusion that the individual methods meet the ENGL performance criteria also when applied to genomic DNA extracted from the GM stack MS8xRF3xGT73 oilseed rape.JRC.I.3-Molecular Biology and Genomic

Event-specific Method for the Quantification of Soybean FG72 Using Real-time PCR: Validation Report and Validated Method

In line with its mandate the European Union Reference Laboratory for GM food and Feed (EU-RL GMFF), in collaboration with the European Network of GMO Laboratories (ENGL), has validated an event-specific PCR method for detecting and quantifying soybean event FG72 (unique identifier MST-FGØ72-2). The validation study was conducted according to the EU-RL GMFF validation procedure [http://gmo-crl.jrc.ec.europa.eu/guidancedocs.htm] and internationally accepted guidelines, involving 12 laboratories. In accordance with current EU legislation1, Bayer CropScience has provided the detection method and the samples (genomic DNA from soybean seeds harbouring the FG72 event as positive control DNA, genomic DNA from conventional soybean seeds as negative control DNA). The EU-RL GMFF prepared the validation samples (calibration samples and blind samples at test GM percentage [DNA/DNA]), organised an international collaborative study and analysed the results. The study confirms that the method meets the method performance requirements as established by the EU-RL and the ENGL detailing the provisions of Annex I-2.C.2 to Regulation (EC) No 641/2004 and it fulfils the analytical requirements of Regulation (EU) No 619/2011. This report is published at http://gmo-crl.jrc.ec.europa.eu/statusofdoss.htm.JRC.I.3-Molecular Biology and Genomic

Report on the Verification of the Performance of Bt11, MIR162, 1507 and GA21 Event-specific Methods on the Bt11 x MIR162 x 1507 x GA21 Maize Using Real-time PCR

An application was submitted by Syngenta Crop Protection AG to request the authorisation of genetically modified Bt11 x MIR162 x 1507 x GA21 maize (tolerant to herbicides containing glufosinate ammonium and glyphosate and resistant to important lepidoptera maize pests) and all sub-combinations of the individual events as present in the segregating progeny, for food and feed uses, and import and processing, in accordance with articles 5 and 17 of Regulation (EC) N° 1829/2003 GM Food and GM Feed (1). The unique identifier assigned to Bt11 x MIR162 x 1507 x GA21 maize is SYN-BTØ11-1 x SYN-IR162-4 x DAS-Ø15Ø7-1 x MON-ØØØ21-9. Bt11 x MIR162 x 1507 x GA21 maize has been obtained by conventional crossing between four genetically modified maize events: Bt11, MIR162, 1507 and GA21. No new genetic modification was used for the development of Bt11 x MIR162 x 1507 x GA21 maize. The EU-RL GMFF has previously validated individually, and declared fit for purpose, the detection methods for the single events Bt11, MIR162, 1507, GA21 and has published the corresponding reports http://gmo-crl.jrc.ec.europa.eu/StatusOfDossiers.aspx; therefore, in line with the approach defined by the ENGL (Annex 1, http://gmo-crl.jrc.ec.europa.eu/doc/Min_Perf_Requirements_Analytical_methods.pdf) the EU-RL GMFF has carried out only an in-house verification of the performance of each validated method when applied to DNA extracted from Bt11 x MIR162 x 1507 x GA21. The results of the in-house verification study were evaluated with reference to ENGL requirements and to the validation results on the individual events; as a result, the EU-RL GMFF concludes that the individual methods meet the ENGL criteria and can also be applied to Bt11 x MIR162 x 1507 x GA21 maize. This report is published at http://gmo-crl.jrc.ec.europa.eu/StatusOfDossiers.aspx.JRC.I.3-Molecular Biology and Genomic

Optical versus X\u2013ray afterglows of GRBs: towards understanding the emission processes

Gamma\u2013Ray Bursts (GRBs) are the most distant objects ever detected after the recombination epoch. They consist of a short intense emission episode of gammarays (10 keV\u20132 MeV) with typical duration between 10 122 and 103 seconds. This is called the \u201cprompt\u201d emission phase. GRBs are classified, according to their observed duration, into short GRBs (lasting less than 2s) and long GRBs (lasting more than 2 s). During the prompt phase GRBs are the brightest objects in the gamma\u2013ray sky. The gamma\u2013ray prompt emission is accompanied by a long lasting emission, called \u201cafterglow\u201d, covering the whole spectral range from the radio to the X\u2013 rays. The afterglow emission can be observed up to months after the prompt phase ceased. After the discovery of the GRB afterglow made possible by the Dutch-Italian satellite BeppoSAX, and the confirmation of their cosmological origin, the GRB community reached a general consensus about the nature of these sources which led to the formulation of the so called \u201cstandard fireball model\u201d. This model was able, until recently, to account for most of the observational properties of the both the prompt and the afterglow emission. In this scenario, long GRBs are thought to be produced by the core collapse of massive stars. The gamma\u2013ray prompt emission is produced by the \u201cinternal shocks\u201d developed by the collisions of different plasma shells ejected by the central engine with different Lorentz factors. The afterglow emission is due to the \u201cexternal shock\u201d produced by the deceleration of a relativistically expanding fireball by the external medium. The leading radiative mechanism responsible for the prompt and the afterglow emission is synchrotron radiation by electrons accelerated at the internal/external shocks. An important assumption of the standard model is that both the optical and the X\u2013ray afterglows are produced by the same mechanism, taking place in the same region. The launch of the Swift satellite (in November 2004), in synergy with the available network of automatic ground based optical telescopes, signed a remarkable improvement (a kind of \u201crevolution\u201d) of our \u201dview\u201d of GRB afterglows. Thanks to the fast repointing capabilities of Swift, now X\u2013ray and optical afterglows can be observed starting only few minutes after the prompt GRB emission. Before the launch of Swift, instead, afterglow observations started typically several hours after the burst detection. This new observational window, opened on the early times afterglow emission, unveiled a picture that is much more complex than what had been seen before Swift when the optical and X\u2013ray light curves were usually well described by simple power law decays. The early time light curves observed in the X\u2013rays (and sometimes in the optical), show different phases characterised by different decay indices, chromatic breaks and sudden rebrightenings. Another important finding of Swift is the fact that often the GRB optical light curve does not track the X\u2013 ray one. This cannot be explained in the framework of the standard model which assumes that both the X\u2013ray and the optical emission have the same origin and, therefore, should behave similarly. For this reason, in the last few years, several alternative models have been proposed in order to account for the new \u201cafterglow picture\u201d depicted by the Swift observations. Most of these models, however, try to reconcile the observed X\u2013ray and optical light curve complexity through some modifications of the standard afterglow model. Usually, these alternative scenarios assume, as in the standard model, that the optical and X\u2013ray emission are due to the same emission mechanism operating in the same emitting region and therefore suffer of the same main problem of the standard model i.e. they can hardly reproduce the diverse light curves of the optical and X\u2013ray emission of individual GRBs. My thesis is devoted to the study of this issue, i.e. the study of the GRB afterglows to understand the physical mechanisms that produce the observed optical and X\u2013ray emission. The aim of my thesis is to study and to test with the available observations a possible alternative scenario to the standard model that fails to explain the complex behaviour of the X-ray and optical afterglow emission of GRBs. To this aim I studied the intrinsic (i.e. rest frame) afterglow properties simultaneously taking into account the optical and X\u2013ray light curves. This is possible exploiting the rich broad band follow up that is now available for a large number of events. I analysed the optical luminosities of long GRBs finding an unexpected clustering and bimodality of the optical luminosity distributions. I proved that these results are not due to observational selection effects and that the X\u2013ray luminosity are not in agreement with what found in the optical. These results can hardly be explained in the framework of the standard afterglow model. Together with the group I am working with, I analysed the light curve of the optical and X\u2013rays rest frame luminosity of a sample of 33 long GRBs. We modelled the broad band light curve evolution as due to the sum of two separate components, contrary to the usual assumption of a common origin of the optical and X\u2013ray emission. We obtain a good agreement with the observations, accounting for the light curves complexity and diversity. This two component model makes predictions about the broad band spectral energy distribution (SEDs), that I tested analysing the observed SEDs. Through this analysis I confirm that our two component model is consistent with the observed data also form the spectral point of view. This led us to propose a new view of the afterglow emission mechanism following the so called late prompt scenario proposed by Ghisellini et al. 2007. According to our view, the central engine activity lasts for long time (up to months after the trigger) keeping on producing slower shells that are responsible for the emission of optical and X\u2013ray radiation that competes with the standard forward shock emission. This generates the complexity of the observed broad band light curves and explains the diversity between the optical and X\u2013ray temporal evolution. We suggest that the late time activity of the central engine is sustained by the accretion of the material that failed to reach the escape velocity from the exploding progenitor star, and falls back. The presence of this mechanism is strengthened by the similarity between the temporal evolution of the late prompt component, and the expected time profile of the accretion rate of the fall back material

GRB 091127: The cooling break race on magnetic fuel

Using high-quality, broad-band afterglow data for GRB 091127, we investigate the validity of the synchrotron fireball model for gamma-ray bursts, and infer physical parameters of the ultra-relativistic outflow. We used multi-wavelength follow-up observations obtained with GROND and the XRT onboard the Swift satellite. The resulting afterglow light curve is of excellent accuracy, and the spectral energy distribution is well-sampled over 5 decades in energy. These data present one of the most comprehensive observing campaigns for a single GRB afterglow and allow us to test several proposed emission models and outflow characteristics in unprecedented detail. Both the multi-color light curve and the broad-band SED of the afterglow of GRB 091127 show evidence of a cooling break moving from high to lower energies. The early light curve is well described by a broken power-law, where the initial decay in the optical/NIR wavelength range is considerably flatter than at X-rays. Detailed fitting of the time-resolved SED shows that the break is very smooth with a sharpness index of 2.2 +- 0.2, and evolves towards lower frequencies as a power-law with index -1.23 +- 0.06. These are the first accurate and contemporaneous measurements of both the sharpness of the spectral break and its time evolution. The measured evolution of the cooling break (nu_c propto t^-1.2) is not consistent with the predictions of the standard model, wherein nu_c propto t^-0.5 is expected. A possible explanation for the observed behavior is a time dependence of the microphysical parameters, in particular the fraction of the total energy in the magnetic field epsilon_B. This conclusion provides further evidence that the standard fireball model is too simplistic, and time-dependent micro-physical parameters may be required to model the growing number of well-sampled afterglow light curves.Comment: accepted to A&A, 13 pages, 5 figure

Report on the Verification of the Performance of a Testing Strategy for the Detection of Wheat MON71800 Event Using Real-Time PCR

In response to a request of DG SANCO to provide National Reference Laboratories (NRLs) as soon as possible with a method to test soft white wheat consignments for the presence of unauthorised GM glyphosate-resistant wheat harbouring the event MON71800, the European Union Reference Laboratory for Genetically Modified Food and Feed (EU-RL GMFF) developed, in collaboration with the European Network of GMO Laboratories (ENGL), a testing strategy intended to be immediately implementable by EU NRLs. The testing strategy is based on a combination of three validated screening methods that allow excluding (detectable) presence of Monsanto’s GM glyphosate-resistant wheat (MON71800) in wheat grain or food/feed products and confirming its presence whenever other GMOs can be excluded. The present report describes the results of the tests carried out by the EU-RL GMFF to verify the testing strategy proposed; the tests were conducted using the positive control sample represented by a crude DNA lysate of MON71800 provided by Monsanto and genomic DNA samples of genetically modified organisms harbouring the CTP2-CP4epsps element for which a validated event-specific method is available. The sensitivity of the three methods was assessed by verifying the relative limit of detection (LODrel) on MON71800 wheat DNA. The LODrel is approximately 0.03% for the P-35S and for T-nos methods and 0.06% for the CTP2-CP4epsps method in 300 nanograms of wheat genomic DNA. Further experimental evidence confirmed that the three methods react against genomic DNA extracted from GM events containing the CTP2-CP4epsps element for which a validated event-specific method is available. The experimental verification hereby reported confirmed the validity of the EU-RL GMFF guidance on testing for GM glyphosate-resistant wheat (MON71800) in wheat grain or in food/feed products containing wheat flour originating or consigned from the US, provided that DNA of acceptable quality can be obtained.JRC.I.3-Molecular Biology and Genomic