Sustainable mobility and beauty of public space

[EN] The quality of built environment is linked to the space in-between buildings and considers its formal, environmental and use values, due to specific needs for care and project re-appropriation. Sustainable mobility, a strategic objective of the European Union, cannot ignore the quality of the public space. The New European Bauhaus draw a new strategical attention to the critical role the quality of spaces plays in building a better world. The definition of space for active mobility as environmental islands, sidewalks, pedestrian areas, cycle paths or green ways, must follow morphological, functional and organizational needs. The beauty of the space starts from a new language of the street, through qualifying the places and avoiding a passive crossing for the transport logic, but satisfying a need that goes beyond our material dimension and is inspired by creativity and culture. This qualification is represented here in the case study of an Italian Biciplan as a sector plan able to build inclusive and accessible physical spaces for the community. The lack of attention of technicians in the execution of public works leads to reconsider the importance of these issues also in education and training. The fragmentation of technological knowledge must be recalibrated to provide useful tools without forgetting the quality and the overall beauty of the places when street language improve, also for cultural reason.Mastrolonardo, L. (2021). Sustainable mobility and beauty of public space. VITRUVIO - International Journal of Architectural Technology and Sustainability. 6(2):42-55. https://doi.org/10.4995/vitruvio-ijats.2021.16560OJS425562Asperges, T. 2008. Cycling, the European approach. Total quality management in cycling policy and lessons learned of the BYPAD-project. EACI-STEER programme.Bernhoft, I.M., & Carstensen, G. 2008. Preferences and behaviour of pedestrians and cyclists by age and gender. In: Transportation Research, Part F, Vol. 11, pp. 83-95. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trf.2007.08.004Giuliani F., Maternini G.2018. Mobilità ciclistica e sicurezza. Egaf edizioni Forlì.Krizek, K.J. & Johnson, P.J. 2006. Proximity to Trails and Retail: Effects on Urban Cycling and Walking. Journal of the American Planning Association, 72(1), pp. 33-42. Chicago, USA: American Planning Association. https://doi.org/10.1080/01944360608976722Mastrolonardo, L., & Romano, M. 2016. The environmental project of the enhancement of the fluvial area: L'Aquila and the Aterno River. TECHNE - Journal of Technology for Architecture and Environment, (11), 143-150. doi.org/10.13128/Techne-18414Mussinelli, E. 2018. Il progetto ambientale dello spazio pubblico, Eco-WebTown, Journal of Sustainable Design, Vol. 2, n. 18.Pucher, J., & Dijkstra. 2003. Promoting Safe Walking and Cycling to Improve Public Health: Lessons from The Netherlands and Germany. American Journal of Public Health, 93, pp. 1509-1516. American Public Health Association. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.93.9.1509Sacco, P.L., & Ferilli, G., Lavanga M. 2006. The cultural district organizational model: a theoretical and policy design approach. Mimeo, DADI, Università IUAV

The environmental project of the enhancement of the fluvial area: L’Aquila and the Aterno River

Il contributo si colloca in un programma interdisciplinare volto alla valorizzazione e la tutela del fiume, attraverso il controllo dei flussi e l’attivazione di simbiosi. Si integrano, con un approccio che parte dalla progettazione ambientale, le tematiche urbane, paesaggistiche, tecnologiche ed ecologiche, per orientare lo sviluppo del territorio in termini di tutela e valorizzazione delle risorse, e per recuperare le discontinuità rappresentata oggi dal fiume, in alcuni contesti urbani, conferendole maggiore riconoscibilità e potenzialità. Nello specifico si indaga il rapporto tra L’Aquila e il fiume Aterno per individuare, a livello locale, le strategie perseguibili per il recupero delle connessioni tra l’ambito fluviale e urbano, per la valorizzazione del territorio e il ripristino della funzionalità dell’acqua nel suo ciclo vitale.

Abundance and composition of free and aggregate-occluded carbohydrates and lignin in two forest soils as affected by wildfires of different severity

International audienceOrganic matter is the soil component most affected by wildfires, both in terms of abundance and composition. Fire-induced alteration of soil organic matter (SOM) depends on heating intensity and duration, oxygen availability and other factors related to topography, climate, soil and vegetation features. Particularly affected by fire is the litter layer, but SOM from the uppermost mineral soil can also experience some major changes. In this study, we investigated the direct impact of fire on molecular SOM parameters in density fractions isolated from the top 2.5 cm of mineral soil in two forests that recently experienced wildfires of different severity. One, located in Tuscany, Central Italy, is a mixed forest of Downy oak and Maritime pine, developed on Acrisols formed on sandy lacustrine deposits, affected by a moderately severe fire. The other, located in Victoria, South-East Australia, is a mixed-species eucalypt forest, developed on a Cambisol formed on sandy Devonian sediments, affected by an extremely severe fire (the infamous 'Black Saturday' fire). The purpose of this study was the assessment of fire-induced changes on amount and composition of the bulk SOM and SOM associated to soil fractions having different densities. We used 1.8 Mg m(-3) as density cut-off and distinguished between free and aggregate-occluded SOM. In particular, the analyses focused on abundance and composition of two major SOM components, proposed as molecular indicators of fire severity: the non-cellulosic neutral sugars, digested by trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), and the lignin-derived phenolic monomers, released by cupric oxide (CuO) oxidation. The chemical structure of both bulk SOM and SOM fractions were analysed by solid-state C-13 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. In contrast to the moderately severe fire affecting the Italian site, the extremely severe fire at the Australian site caused substantial loss of SOM from the top mineral soil. Both fires had major effects on SOM composition. In spite of the evident impact they experienced, neither hydrolysable sugars nor lignin phenols resulted to be reliable indicators of fire severity. Moreover, both fires apparently broke up soil aggregates, hence promoting the release of some occluded organic matter. The fire-induced changes of SOM observed have implications for the C cycle, so highlighting the critical role of wildfire occurrence and severity in climate change

Where there\u27s smoke, there\u27s fire: what current and future providers do and do not know about electronic cigarettes.

BACKGROUND: Health care providers play a pivotal role as educators on health-related matters ranging from vaccination to smoking cessation. With the rising popularity of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), providers face a new challenge. To date, studies have identified a general lack of knowledge among providers regarding e-cigarettes and discomfort with counseling patients on e-cigarette use. This study aims to systematically explore the perspectives of different health care providers on e-cigarettes and their health implications. With a growing availability of research on the health consequences of e-cigarette use, our study also aims to assess the familiarity of our participants with this literature. METHODS: From July to October 2018, a sample of attendings (n = 15), residents (n = 15), medical students (n = 33), and nursing students (n = 28) from Thomas Jefferson University participated in a freelisting interview and survey. RESULTS: Our study found that perceptions of e-cigarettes vary across different participant groups, as evidenced by the range of responses when asked to think about e-cigarettes and their health implications. We identified gaps in knowledge among students regarding FDA regulation of e-cigarettes and found that attending physicians are less aware than junior trainees of the prevalence of use. Familiarity with evidence-based health consequences was variable and low across all groups. Finally, participants most commonly reported learning about e-cigarettes from news outlets and social media rather than professional platforms. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the need for curricular development in nursing and medical schools, residency training, and continuing medical education regarding e-cigarette use and their impact on human health

Resilience and transformation strategies for a becoming housing quality

The resilience concept if referred to the built environment suggests ‘safety’ and recovery capacities that express adaptability and transformability characteristics. Recognising in the housing settlements many very significant aspects for inspecting the built systems adaptation and transformation needs, we present an extract of the research carried out on the housing topic, in agreement with the A.T.E.R. of Pescara and Abruzzo Confcooperatives. The work proposes indicators and criteria to allow the survey of the resilience capacities that can project the housing systems in a sustainable dimension, in which the aptitude to regeneration suggests the inhabitants know-how in the resources management, for a swell performance supply