Društvene mreže omogućuju rano otkrivanje nezavičajnih vrsta: prvi nalaz crvene hame Sciaenops ocellatus (Actinopterygii: Perciformes: Sciaenidae) u talijanskim vodama

The red drum Sciaenops ocellatus is a large demersal fish that represents one of the top predators in estuarine environments of its native range. This species is commonly reared in aquaculture facilities, and it has already been reported as non indigenous from several countries. Here we report its first sighting in Italian waters, as well as the second documented occurrence for the Mediterranean Sea. The individual was landed in southern Sicily by artisanal fishery and this unusual observation was immediately shared on Facebook. The importance of considering social networks as tools for NIS detection is briefly discussed in light of the recognized difficulties to properly track biological introductions in the marine environment.Crvena hama, Sciaenops ocellatus, je velika demersalna riba, koja je jedna od najvećih grabežljivaca u estuarijskim okruženjima njezinog prirodnog areala rasprostranjenja. Ova vrsta se obično uzgaja u akvakulturi, a već je zabilježena kao nezavičajna u nekoliko zemalja. U ovom radu utvrđeno je prvo viđenje ove vrste u talijanskim vodama, koje je ujedno druga dokumentirana pojava u Sredozemnom moru. Primjerak je ulovljen tijekom priobalnog ribolova u južnoj Siciliji. Ova neuobičajena pojava je odmah podijeljena na društvenoj mreži (Facebook). Važnost razmatranja društvenih mreža kao alata za otkrivanje nezavičajnih vrsta kratko je raspravljan u svjetlu prepoznatih poteškoća kako bi se pravilno pratili biološki unosi u morski okoliš

Primary Drying Optimization in Pharmaceutical Freeze-Drying: A Multivial Stochastic Modeling Framework

Primary drying is the most time-consuming and energy-intensive step in pharmaceutical freeze-drying. Minimizing the duration of this stage is of paramount importance to speed up process development..

EFFECTS OF SIX MONTHS TRAINING ON PHYSICAL CAPACITY AND METABOREFLEX ACTIVITY IN PATIENTS WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS.

Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) have an increased systemic vascular resistance (SVR) response during the metaboreflex. It has been hypothesized that this is the consequence of a sedentary lifestyle secondary to MS. The purpose of this study was to discover whether a 6-month training program could reverse this hemodynamic dysregulation. Patients were randomly assigned to one of the following two groups: the intervention group (MSIT, n = 11), who followed an adapted training program: and the control group (MSCTL, n = 10), who continued with their sedentary lifestyle. Cardiovascular response during the metaboreflex was evaluated using the post-exercise muscle ischemia (PEMI) method and during a control exercise recovery (CER) test. The difference in hemodynamic variables such as stroke volume (SV), cardiac output (CO), and SVR between the PEMI and the CER tests was calculated to assess the metaboreflex response. Moreover, physical capacity was measured during a cardiopulmonary test till exhaustion. All tests were repeated after 3 and 6 months (T3 and T6, respectively) from the beginning of the study. The main result was that the MSIT group substantially improved parameters related to physical capacity (+5.31 +/- 5.12 ml-min(-1)/kg in maximal oxygen uptake at T6) in comparison with the MSCTL group (-0.97 +/- 4.89 ml.min(-1)/kg at T6; group effect: p = 0.0004). However, none of the hemodynamic variables changed in response to the metaboreflex activation. It was concluded that a 6-month period of adapted physical training was unable to reverse the hemodynamic dys-regulation in response to metaboreflex activation in these patients

Neural Network Based Approach to Recognition of Meteor Tracks in the Mini-EUSO Telescope Data

Mini-EUSO is a wide-angle fluorescence telescope that registers ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the nocturnal atmosphere of Earth from the International Space Station. Meteors are among multiple phenomena that manifest themselves not only in the visible range but also in the UV. We present two simple artificial neural networks that allow for recognizing meteor signals in the Mini-EUSO data with high accuracy in terms of a binary classification problem. We expect that similar architectures can be effectively used for signal recognition in other fluorescence telescopes, regardless of the nature of the signal. Due to their simplicity, the networks can be implemented in onboard electronics of future orbital or balloon experiments.Comment: 15 page

Discussion and Demonstration of RF-MEMS Attenuators Design Concepts and Modules for Advanced Beamforming in the Beyond-5G and 6G Scenario—Part 1

This paper describes different variants of broadband and simple attenuator modules for beamforming applications, based on radio frequency micro electro-mechanical systems (RF-MEMS), framed within coplanar waveguide (CPW) structures. The modules proposed in the first part of this work differ in their actuation voltage, topology, and desired attenuation level. Fabricated samples of basic 1-bit attenuation modules, characterized by a moderate footprint of 690 × 1350 μm2 and aiming at attenuation levels of −2, −3, and −5 dB in the 24.25–27.5 GHz range, are presented in their variants featuring both low actuation voltages (5–9 V) as well as higher values (~45 V), the latter ones ensuring larger mechanical restoring force (and robustness against stiction). Beyond the fabrication non-idealities that affected the described samples, the substantial agreement between simulations and measurement outcomes proved that the proposed designs could provide precise attenuation levels up to 40 GHz, ranging up to nearly −3 dB and −5 dB for the series and shunt variants, respectively. Moreover, they could be effective building blocks for future wideband and reconfigurable RF-MEMS attenuators. In fact, in the second part of this work, combinations of the discussed cells and other configurations meant for larger attenuation levels are investigated

Finding Dory: first record of Paracanthurus hepatus (Perciformes: Acanthuridae) in the Mediterranean Sea

A single individual of the palette surgeonfish, Paracanthurus hepatus, is reported for Bat Yam, Israel. This is the first report of this species for the Mediterranean Sea. Since this Indo-Pacific species does not occur in the Red Sea, and is one of the most popular marine aquarium fish, its introduction is referred to as aquarium release. The impact of aquarium trade on biological invasions in the Mediterranean Sea is briefly revised and discussed