Optimal slice thickness for object detection with longitudinal partial volume effects in computed tomography.

Longitudinal partial volume effects (z-axial PVE), which occur when an object partly occupies a slice, degrade image resolution and contrast in computed tomography (CT). Z-axial PVE is unavoidable for subslice objects and reduces their contrast according to their fraction contained within the slice. This effect can be countered using a smaller slice thickness, but at the cost of an increased image noise or radiation dose. The aim of this study is to offer a tool for optimizing the reconstruction parameters (slice thickness and slice spacing) in CT protocols in the case of partial volume effects. This optimization is based on the tradeoff between axial resolution and noise. For that purpose, we developed a simplified analytical model investigating the average statistical effect of z-axial PVE on contrast and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR). A Catphan 500 phantom was scanned with various pitches and CTDI and reconstructed with different slice thicknesses to assess the visibility of subslice targets that simulate low contrast anatomical features present in CT exams. The detectability score of human observers was used to rank the perceptual image quality against the CNR. Contrast and CNR reduction due to z-axial PVE measured on experimental data were first compared to numerical calculations and then to the analytical model. Compared to numerical calculations, the simplified algebraic model slightly overestimated the contrast but the differences remained below 5%. It could determine the optimal reconstruction parameters that maximize the objects visibility for a given dose in the case of z-axial PVE. An optimal slice thickness equal to three-fourth of the object width was correctly proposed by the model for nonoverlapping slices. The tradeoff between detectability and dose is maximized for a slice spacing of half the slice thickness associated with a slice width equal to the characteristic object width

Behaviour of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during the manufacture and ripening of an Italian traditional raw goat milk cheese

Formagelle di capra is a raw goat cheese produced from whole chilled goat milk; traditional technology involving unpasteurised milk and indigenous lactic starter cultures is employed for its production in Italy. The purpose of this study was to assess the behavior of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during the manufacturing and ripening of this raw goat milk cheese. Raw milk was experimentally inoculated with E. coli O157:H7 in a laboratory scale plant and the count was monitored during production and 30 days of ripening required for this cheese. Results showed that E. coli O157:H7 count increased to more than 1.5 Log cfu g-1 during cheese production and remained constant until the end of ripening. The evidence that E. coli O157:H7 is able to survive during the manufacturing and ripening process suggests that the 30-day ripening period alone is insufficient to eliminate levels of viable E. coli O157:H7 in Formaggelle di capra cheese and that the presence of low numbers of E. coli O157:H7 in milk destined for the production of raw goat milk cheeses could represent a potential source of infection for humans and a threat for consumer

Appunti di diritto degli intermediari finanziari

Il volume fornisce un inquadramento delle principali tipologie di intermediari operanti sui mercati finanziari, i prodotti da essi trattati e le principali trading venues su cui operan

Diritto degli intermediari e dei mercati finanziari

manuale avente ad oggetto la disciplina delle diverse categorie di intermediari finanziari e dei mercati sui quali operano. Ampio spazio è altresì dedicato agli strumenti e ai prodotti finanziari scambiati sui mercati

Apocalittica e gnosticismo. Atti del Colloquio Internazionale (Roma, 18-19 giugno 1993)

I diversi contributi ospitati nell'opera intendono analizzare, sulla base di approcci metodologici diversi, le continuit\ue0 e le discontinuit\ue0 tra concezioni sulla natura e origine del male come espresse in testi gnostici e in testi dell'apocalittica giudaica

Reduction of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during manufacture and ripening of Italian semi-dry salami

In order to simulate a contamination at the processing plant, one batch of freshlyprocessed salami batter (20 kg) was inoculated (1% v:w) with 5 log colony forming unit (CFU)/g of a multi-strain cocktail of two strains of Escherichia coli O157:H7 (registered and wild strain). Another batch was inoculated (1% v:w) with sterile physiological saline solution and used to check the lactic acid bacteria (Lab) behaviour and the changes of physicochemical parameters (pH and aw). Both batches were then processed to obtain a semi-dry salami (Hungarian-style): microbiological and physico-chemical properties were monitored during 94 days of ripening. During the manufacturing process, the levels of pathogen decreased of about 2.18 log CFU/g with respect to the initial inoculated levels. The behavior of the indigenous bacteria such as Lab and the physico-chemical properties can help to determine the fate of pathogens throughout processing

Religione e Storia. Omaggio a Ugo Bianchi nel centenario della nascita

ll volume trae origine dal Convegno scientifico internazionale tenutosi in Università Cattolica (Milano, 13.10.2022) per onorare la memoria dello storico delle religioni Ugo Bianchi (13.10.1922-14.4.1995) nel centenario della nascita. I contributi degli studiosi italiani e stranieri, ivi raccolti , ricostruiscono e percorrono – anche sulla scorta di testi e documenti inediti emersi dall’archivio scientifico domestico del Maestro romano - momenti e aspetti della sua lunga e feconda militanza accademica (Messina, Bologna, Milano, Roma) ed insieme della sua intensa esperienza intellettuale e scientifica. Allievo di Raffaele Pettazzoni, ne sviluppò in maniera originale la lezione metodologica, di tipo storico-comparativo, da Bianchi ritenuta come la sola capace di superare quei riduzionismi cui non di rado conducevano approcci altri e diversi al fatto religioso e ai fatti religiosi dell’umanità, e di rispettarne così la complessità ed irriducibilità a fronte di facili comparazioni o assimilazioni. SOMMARIO. Introduzione (Maria Vittoria Cerutti); Ugo Bianchi: la coerenza di un itinerario scientifico (Giulia Sfameni Gasparro); Ugo Bianchi and the History of Religions (Peter Antes); Ugo Bianchi: il profilo di uomo e studioso dalle carte del suo archivio (Lorenzo Bianchi); Ugo Bianchi e il mondo cattolico: un filo rosso dalla FUCI all’Università Cattolica (Giuliano Chiapparini); Storia e comparazione; epistemologia relazionale (Giulio Maspero); L’eredità di Ugo Bianchi nella storiografia recente (Chiara Tommasi); Album fotografico, Testi inediti o poco conosciuti di Ugo Bianchi; Documenti e corrispondenza provenienti dall’Archivio di Ugo Bianchi; Pubblicazioni a stampa di Ugo Bianchi (a cura di Lorenzo Bianchi).The volume originates from the international scientific conference held at the Catholic University (Milan, 13.10.2022) to honor the memory of the historian of religions Ugo Bianchi (13.10.1922-14.4.1995) on the centenary of his birth. The contributions of Italian and foreign scholars, collected there, reconstruct and cover - also on the basis of unpublished texts and documents emerging from the domestic scientific archive of the Roman Master - moments and aspects of his long and fruitful academic militancy (Messina, Bologna, Milan, Rome) and together with his intense intellectual and scientific experience. A pupil of Raffaele Pettazzoni, he developed in an original way the methodological lesson, of a historical-comparative nature, considered by Bianchi as the only one capable of overcoming those reductionisms which often led to other and different approaches to the religious fact and the religious facts of humanity , and thus to respect its complexity and irreducibility in the face of easy comparisons or assimilations. SUMMARY. Introduzione (Maria Vittoria Cerutti); Ugo Bianchi: la coerenza di un itinerario scientifico (Giulia Sfameni Gasparro); Ugo Bianchi and the History of Religions (Peter Antes); Ugo Bianchi: il profilo di uomo e studioso dalle carte del suo archivio (Lorenzo Bianchi); Ugo Bianchi e il mondo cattolico: un filo rosso dalla FUCI all’Università Cattolica (Giuliano Chiapparini); Storia e comparazione; epistemologia relazionale (Giulio Maspero); L’eredità di Ugo Bianchi nella storiografia recente (Chiara Tommasi); Album fotografico, Testi inediti o poco conosciuti di Ugo Bianchi; Documenti e corrispondenza provenienti dall’Archivio di Ugo Bianchi; Pubblicazioni a stampa di Ugo Bianchi (ed. Lorenzo Bianchi)