Dynamics of the illicit drug market in Italy

Thesis: S.M. in Management Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, 2016.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (pages 42-44).Alongside street crime, a high prevalence of illicit drug consumption in the population represents a great source of funding for organized crime, and this is especially true in Italy, where the main criminal organizations control almost all the imports of cocaine and heroin: as a consequence, it is of the utmost importance that the policymakers take decisive and effective actions against the prevalence of illicit drugs in the country. However, the fact that the data about the prevalence of consumption is self-reported by substance users might represent an obstacle to an objective planning and evaluation of repressive policies: it is well documented how the reporting rate is lower than the actual prevalence in the population. This research attempt to address this issue by modeling a structure of the Italian market for the two main heavy drugs in the country (cocaine and heroin), using the tools provided by System Dynamics, specifically to analyze the effects of the introduction of the law n.49/2006. The results presented by the model - and consistent with the real data - show that the actual prevalence in the population is increasingly different from the reported one following the implementation of the law. This result implies the necessity for policy makers to adopt more accurate tools for the evaluation of past and proposed policies, in order to be able to estimate the dynamics involved in the complex and little known market of illicit substances.by Gabriele Martegiani.S.M. in Management Studie

The rabbit as an animal model for post-natal vitreous matrix differentiation and degeneration

Purpose This study evaluates whether rabbits are a suitable animal model to study post-natal vitreous differentiation and degeneration. Methods Human and rabbit eyes of various ages were studied by complementary anatomical techniques, light microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. Results The global vitreous matrix organization is similar in human and rabbit eyes, lamellae are an important aspect thereof and show striking morphological changes with increasing age. In humans, liquefaction is more conspicuous than in rabbits but changes in matrix histology consistent with liquefaction can also be observed in the latter. Conclusions Lamellar development is consistent with vitreous differentiation, while increasing liquefaction is consistent with matrix degeneration. At the anatomical and histological levels, human and rabbit vitreous matrices are sufficiently similar to make the rabbit a promising animal model for the study of the pathogenesis of vitreous matrix differentiation and degeneration in more detail