Post‐earthquake estimates of different ground motion intensity measures for the 2012 Emilia earthquake

Estimates of the earthquake ground motion intensity over a geographical area have multiple uses, that is, emergency management, civil protection and seismic fragility assessment. In particular, with reference to fragility assessment, it is of interest to have estimates of the values of different ground-motion intensity measures in order to correlate them with the observed damage. To this purpose, the present paper uses a procedure recently proposed in the literature to estimate the ground-motion intensity for the 2012 Emilia mainshocks, considering different groundmotion intensity measures and directionality effects. Groundmotion prediction equations based on different site effect models, and spatial correlation models are calibrated for the Emilia earthquakes. The paper discusses the accuracy of the shakemaps obtained using the different soil effect models considered and presents the obtained shakemaps as supplementary material. The procedure presented in the paper is aimed at providing ground motion intensity values for seismic fragility assessment and is not intended as a tool to estimate shakemaps for rapid emergency assessment

\u201cPlay the City. Geografi a della \u201ccitt\ue0 amatoriale\u201d: teorie, applicazioni, prospettive\u201d

Our article is divided into three connected sections. The first one discusses the image of the city in amateur movies, taking into account the cinematic urban archeology of home movies and operational practices of databases, Geographical Information Systems, maps, installations. We propose the notion of \u201camateur city\u201d as the synthesis of multiple, located views collected in a long period of time projected onto a map. The second section describes the Play the City app, a digital tool to map and navigate the urban space, between the past and the present, through 120 clips of amateur filmmakers. The third part deals with the idea of mapping the \u201cstoryworld\u201d of a city through the app and opens up some theoretical perspectives on film images and geo-located systems

“Famiglie in acqua”: un’esperienza “sportiva” orientata allo sviluppo globale di soggetti con disturbi dello spettro autistico

This paper describes an empirical research inspired by an ethnomethodological approach, through which an educational project, designed for families with autism spectrum disorders children, was investigated. Both the epistemic work, and the didactic path, focus on a particular type of action: the spontaneous one, defined as “play signs” because it is considered as playful communication.The latter is easily recognizable, because it is an expressions freely issued by a person, therefore stand out in contrast to a non-spontaneous action. By adopting the Motor Praxeology theoreticalframework, playful signs were analysed and classified as elements of a precise “praxeological code”. That operation seems extremely useful, in order to precisely evaluate some dimensions,such as: type of action, particularly in relation to the context; development of both individual child and the group; educational offer’s impact. Evidences show that the project it appears consistentwith the expected goals, confirming that the stimuli provided by games played in a swimming pool context, are effective for the improvement of participants’ communication development and autonomy. In other words, the study did not limit itself to the project’s efficacy approval, but to show elements and methods able to achieve the expected aims.This paper describes an empirical research inspired by an ethnomethodological approach, through which an educational project, designed for families with autism spectrum disorders children, was investigated. Both the epistemic work, and the didactic path, focus on a particular type of action: the spontaneous one, defined as “play signs” because it is considered as playful communication.The latter is easily recognizable, because it is an expressions freely issued by a person, therefore stand out in contrast to a non-spontaneous action. By adopting the Motor Praxeology theoreticalframework, playful signs were analysed and classified as elements of a precise “praxeological code”. That operation seems extremely useful, in order to precisely evaluate some dimensions,such as: type of action, particularly in relation to the context; development of both individual child and the group; educational offer’s impact. Evidences show that the project it appears consistentwith the expected goals, confirming that the stimuli provided by games played in a swimming pool context, are effective for the improvement of participants’ communication development and autonomy. In other words, the study did not limit itself to the project’s efficacy approval, but to show elements and methods able to achieve the expected aims

Play the City. Geografia della “città amatoriale”: teorie, applicazioni, prospettive

Our article is divided into three connected sections. The first one discusses the image of the city in amateur movies, taking into account the cinematic urban archeology of home movies and operational practices of databases, Geographical Information Systems, maps, installations. We propose the notion of “amateur city” as the synthesis of multiple, located views collected in a long period of time projected onto a map. The second section describes the Play the City app, a digital tool to map and navigate the urban space, between the past and the present, through 120 clips of amateur filmmakers. The third part deals with the idea of mapping the “storyworld” of a city through the app and opens up some theoretical perspectives on film images and geo-located systems

Acoustic Attenuation of COVID-19 Face Masks: Correlation to Fibrous Material Porosity, Mask Breathability and Bacterial Filtration Efficiency

none7openMartarelli, Milena; Montalto, Luigi; Chiariotti, Paolo; Simoni, Serena; Castellini, Paolo; Battista, Gianmarco; Paone, NicolaMartarelli, Milena; Montalto, Luigi; Chiariotti, Paolo; Simoni, Serena; Castellini, Paolo; Battista, Gianmarco; Paone, Nicol

Testosterone Serum Levels Are Related to Sperm DNA Fragmentation Index Reduction after FSH Administration in Males with Idiopathic Infertility

Purpose: Although a robust physiological rationale supports follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) use in male idiopathic infertility, useful biomarkers to evaluate its efficacy are not available. Thus, the primary aim of the study was to evaluate if testosterone serum levels are related to sperm DNA fragmentation (sDF) index change after FSH administration. The secondary aim was to confirm sDF index validity as a biomarker of FSH administration effectiveness in male idiopathic infertility. Methods: A retrospective, post-hoc re-analysis was performed on prospectively collected raw data of clinical trials in which idiopathic infertile men were treated with FSH and both testosterone serum levels and sDF were reported. Results: Three trials were included, accounting for 251 patients. The comprehensive analysis confirmed FSH's beneficial effect on spermatogenesis detected in each trial. Indeed, an overall significant sDF decrease (p < 0.001) of 20.2% of baseline value was detected. Although sDF resulted to be unrelated to testosterone serum levels at baseline, a significant correlation was highlighted after three months of FSH treatment (p = 0.002). Moreover, testosterone serum levels and patients' age significantly correlated with sDF (p = 0.006). Dividing the cohort into responders/not responders to FSH treatment according to sDF change, the FSH effectiveness in terms of sDF improvement was related to testosterone and male age (p = 0.003). Conclusion: Exogenous FSH administration in male idiopathic infertility is efficient in reducing sDF basal levels by about 20%. In terms of sDF reduction, 59.2% of the patients treated were FSH-responders. After three months of FSH administration, a significant inverse correlation between sDF and testosterone was detected, suggesting an association between the FSH-administration-related sDF improvement and testosterone serum levels increase. These observations lead to the hypothesis that FSH may promote communications or interactions between Sertoli cells and Leydig cells

On the use of a temperature based friction model for a virtual force sensor in industrial robot manipulators

In this paper we propose the use of a dynamic model in which the effects of temperature on friction are considered to develop a virtual force sensor for industrial robot manipulators. The estimation of the inertial parameters and of the friction model are explained. The effectiveness of the virtual force sensor has been proven in a polishing task. In fact, the interaction forces between the robot and the environment has been measured both with the virtual force sensor and a common load cell. Moreover, the advantages provided by considering the temperature dependency are highlighted

Clinical Aspects and Management of Levodopa-Induced Dyskinesia

In Parkinson's disease, one of the most troublesome dilemmas is the treatment of levodopa-induced dyskinesia. After a few years, chronic treatment with levodopa is associated with the development of dyskinesias. Strategies to delay or to reduce dyskinesias are based on the change of levodopa dosing or the early use of dopamine agonists. Dopamine agonists with different pharmacological profile are available. Our paper was aimed to analyse the clinical impact and the management of dyskinesias with dopamine agonists

Predictors of Local Control for Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy (SAbR) in Pulmonary Oligometastases from Gastrointestinal Malignancies

Background/aim: To assess predictors of local control (LC) for stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SAbR) in pulmonary oligometastatic disease (OMD) from gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies. Patients and methods: Patients with pulmonary OMD treated with SAbR from January 2016 to December 2018 were included in this observational analysis. Primary endpoint was LC. Uni- and multivariate analyses to assess variable correlations were conducted. Results: Thirty-seven patients and 59 lung metastases were evaluated. The delivered dose was 30-60 Gy in 3-8 fractions. After a median follow-up of 23.0 months (range=6.3-50.4 months), LC rate at 1/2 years was 89.7%/85.0%, and increased to 96.0%/91.0% for lesions treated with a biologically effective dose (BED10) ≥100 Gy (p=0.03). RECIST response at 6 months was predictive for LC (p=0.002). Conclusion: SAbR is an effective option for pulmonary OMD from GI malignancies. A BED10 ≥100 Gy and radiological response at 6 months can affect LC

Inhalation therapy in the next decade : Determinants of adherence to treatment in asthma and COPD

Peer reviewedPublisher PD