Lingue minoritarie e geografia. Una lettura territoriale dell'applicazione della Legge 482/99

Di seguito viene descritto il lavoro di sviluppo di un Sistema Informativo Territoriale a supporto del progetto di monitoraggio dei finanziamenti erogati utilizzando la legge 482/99 per la salvaguardia e valorizzazione delle Lingue Minoritarie. Sin dall’anno 2001 le pubbliche amministrazioni, in riferimento agli articoli 9 e 15 della Legge, possono presentare richieste di finanziamento per progetti collegati alla salvaguardia e valorizzazione delle lingue minoritarie al Dipartimento per gli Affari Regionali (d’ora in poi Dipartimento), Servizio Regioni a statuto speciale e Province Autonome per le politiche connesse alle autonomie speciali e delle minoranze della Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri. Per l’attuazione degli interventi previsti dall’art. 4 della Legge le Scuole presentano domanda di finanziamento direttamente al Ministero della Pubblica Istruzione. Tali progetti non sono ricompresi nel sistema di monitoraggio Questi progetti vengono analizzati da una apposita commissione che, in base alla coerenza con gli obiettivi della legge, delibera l’ammissibilità degli stessi ed i relativi finanziamenti. Per ogni progetto viene redatta in sede istruttoria una scheda cartacea sintetica che contiene, oltre alle indicazioni anagrafiche dell’ente presentante, gli obiettivi del progetto, la classificazione dello stesso, l’importo richiesto, l’importo ammissibile ed eventuali note. Nell’ambito di una azione attuata in accordo tra il Dipartimento, l’Associazione Nazionale Consorzi universitari (ANCUN) e l’ISAL (Istituto Studi Amministrazione Locale di Udine) si è deciso di informatizzare le schede progettuali sintetiche. Oltre al semplice caricamento delle schede cartacee su una base dati relazionale, si è ritenuto fosse utile, per le successive analisi, poter rappresentare le informazioni sulla cartografia per poter predisporre delle cartografie tematiche utilizzando anche dati socioeconomici, ed è quindi stato implementato un Sistema Informativo Territoriale. Un Sistema informativo Territoriale (SIT) o Geografic Information System (GIS) è un sistema in grado di rappresentare sulla cartografia banche dati alfanumeriche e di effettuare delle analisi predisponendo mappe tematiche

Acute liver injury and anorexia nervosa: A case report

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by restriction of energy intake leading to a significant decrease in body weight. While it is primarily a psychiatric disorder, numerous medical complications can occur. In this article we describe a case of a 25-year-old woman with a 12-year history of severe restrictive anorexia nervosa that was referred to the Emergency Service of our Hospital, transferred from a psychiatric institute, for severe weight loss, dehydration, and progressive increase in transaminases. During the hospital stay she developed an acute liver injury with an increase in transaminase level up to 40× the ULN. Infective and immunological causes of acute hepatitis were excluded. In the suspect of severe starvation acute liver injury, we performed a nutritional assessment and started parenteral nutrition. After 15 days of parenteral nutrition, she gained 2.5 kg of body weight and liver tests were drastically reduced and nearly normal

Il paesaggio che cambia

Convegno: Paesaggio Rurale \u2013 Paesaggio Cultural

Decompensated cirrhosis as presentation of LKM1/LC1 positive type 2 autoimmune hepatitis in adulthood. A rare clinical entity of difficult management

Background: Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a chronic and aggressive liver disease that rapidly evolves into cirrhosis and end-stage liver disease if not timely diagnosed and treated with immunosuppressive therapy. AIH is classified into type 1 and type 2 according to the autoantibody pattern, with smooth muscle antibodies and/or antinuclear antibodies as serological markers of AIH-1, while antiliver cytosol antibody type 1 and/or antiliver/kidney microsomal antibody type 1 characterize type 2 AIH, which mainly affects children, including infants, and adolescents. Case Summary: We describe a case of type 2 AIH, clinically onset in a 34-year-old woman with decompensated cirrhosis. Only a thorough analysis of the autoantibody profile allowed for a diagnosis of an AIH-2 evolved into cirrhosis. The patient received a moderate corticosteroid therapy without achieving optimal disease control. We discuss the controversial decision of whether or not to treat the patient with immunosuppressive therapy, which should be balanced with the potential risk of infectious and other complications. A review of the literature on the management of patients with autoimmune cirrhosis is also presented. Conclusions: AIH-2 can be clinically onset in adult patients with cirrhosis and its complications, without being preceded by major clinical signs. Due to the difficult management of cirrhosis with immunosuppressive treatments, a patient-tailored strategy with a case-by-case approach is needed to prevent major complications such as infections, potentially precluding liver transplantation the only curative therapy

Cosmological zoo -- accelerating models with dark energy

ecent observations of type Ia supernovae indicate that the Universe is in an accelerating phase of expansion. The fundamental quest in theoretical cosmology is to identify the origin of this phenomenon. In principle there are two possibilities: 1) the presence of matter which violates the strong energy condition (a substantial form of dark energy), 2) modified Friedmann equations (Cardassian models -- a non-substantial form of dark matter). We classify all these models in terms of 2-dimensional dynamical systems of the Newtonian type. We search for generic properties of the models. It is achieved with the help of Peixoto's theorem for dynamical system on the Poincar{\'e} sphere. We find that the notion of structural stability can be useful to distinguish the generic cases of evolutional paths with acceleration. We find that, while the $\Lambda$CDM models and phantom models are typical accelerating models, the cosmological models with bouncing phase are non-generic in the space of all planar dynamical systems. We derive the universal shape of potential function which gives rise to presently accelerating models. Our results show explicitly the advantages of using a potential function (instead of the equation of state) to probe the origin of the present acceleration. We argue that simplicity and genericity are the best guide in understanding our Universe and its acceleration.Comment: RevTeX4, 23 pages, 10 figure

A Rapid Assessment of Avoidable Blindness in Southern Zambia

INTRODUCTION: A rapid assessment of avoidable blindness (RAAB) was conducted in Southern Zambia to establish the prevalence and causes of blindness in order to plan effective services and advocate for support for eye care to achieve the goals of VISION 2020: the right to sight. METHODS: Cluster randomisation was used to select villages in the survey area. These were further subdivided into segments. One segment was selected randomly and a survey team moved from house to house examining everyone over the age of 50 years. Each individual received a visual acuity assessment and simple ocular examination. Data was recorded on a standard proforma and entered into an established software programme for analysis. RESULTS: 2.29% of people over the age of 50 were found to be blind (VA <3/60 in the better eye with available correction). The major cause of blindness was cataract (47.2%) with posterior segment disease being the next main cause (18.8%). 113 eyes had received cataract surgery with 30.1% having a poor outcome (VA <6/60) following surgery. Cataract surgical coverage showed that men (72%) received more surgery than women (65%). DISCUSSION: The results from the RAAB survey in Zambia were very similar to the results from a similar survey in Malawi, where the main cause of blindness was cataract but posterior segment disease was also a significant contributor. Blindness in this part of Zambia is mainly avoidable and there is a need for comprehensive eye care services that can address both cataract and posterior segment disease in the population if the aim of VISION 2020 is to be achieved. Services should focus on quality and gender equity of cataract surgery

Inflammatory cytokines and biofilm production sustain Staphylococcus aureus outgrowth and persistence: A pivotal interplay in the pathogenesis of Atopic Dermatitis

Individuals with Atopic dermatitis (AD) are highly susceptible to Staphylococcus aureus colonization. However, the mechanisms driving this process as well as the impact of S. aureus in AD pathogenesis are still incompletely understood. In this study, we analysed the role of biofilm in sustaining S. aureus chronic persistence and its impact on AD severity. Further we explored whether key inflammatory cytokines overexpressed in AD might provide a selective advantage to S. aureus. Results show that the strength of biofilm production by S. aureus correlated with the severity of the skin lesion, being significantly higher (P < 0.01) in patients with a more severe form of the disease as compared to those individuals with mild AD. Additionally, interleukin (IL)-β and interferon γ (IFN-γ), but not interleukin (IL)-6, induced a concentration-dependent increase of S. aureus growth. This effect was not observed with coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from the skin of AD patients. These findings indicate that inflammatory cytokines such as IL1-β and IFN-γ, can selectively promote S. aureus outgrowth, thus subverting the composition of the healthy skin microbiome. Moreover, biofilm production by S. aureus plays a relevant role in further supporting chronic colonization and disease severity, while providing an increased tolerance to antimicrobials

The Search for Gravitational Waves

Experiments aimed at searching for gravitational waves from astrophysical sources have been under development for the last 40 years, but only now are sensitivities reaching the level where there is a real possibility of detections being made within the next five years. In this article a history of detector development will be followed by a description of current detectors such as LIGO, VIRGO, GEO 600, TAMA 300, Nautilus and Auriga. Preliminary results from these detectors will be discussed and related to predicted detection rates for some types of sources. Experimental challenges for detector design are introduced and discussed in the context of detector developments for the future.Comment: 21 pages, 7 figures, accepted J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phy

Prevalence of visual impairment, cataract surgery and awareness of cataract and glaucoma in Bhaktapur district of Nepal: The Bhaktapur Glaucoma Study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cataract and glaucoma are the major causes of blindness in Nepal. Bhaktapur is one of the three districts of Kathmandu valley which represents a metropolitan city with a predominantly agrarian rural periphery. This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of visual impairment, cataract surgery and awareness of cataract and glaucoma among subjects residing in this district of Nepal.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Subjects aged 40 years and above was selected using a cluster sampling methodology and a door to door enumeration was conducted for a population based cross sectional study. During the community field work, 11499 subjects underwent a structured interview regarding awareness (heard of) and knowledge (understanding of the disease) of cataract and glaucoma. At the base hospital 4003 out of 4800 (83.39%) subjects underwent a detailed ocular examination including log MAR visual acuity, refraction, applanation tonometry, cataract grading (LOCSΙΙ), retinal examination and SITA standard perimetry when indicated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The age-sex adjusted prevalence of blindness (best corrected <3/60) and low vision (best corrected <6/18 ≥3/60) was 0.43% (95%C.I. 0.25 - 0.68) and 3.97% (95% C.I. 3.40 - 4.60) respectively. Cataract (53.3%) was the principal cause of blindness. The leading causes of low vision were cataract (60.8%) followed by refractive error (12%). The cataract surgical coverage was 90.36% and was higher in the younger age group, females and illiterate subjects. Pseudophakia was seen in 94%. Awareness of cataract (6.7%) and glaucoma (2.4%) was very low. Among subjects who were aware, 70.4% had knowledge of cataract and 45.5% of glaucoma. Cataract was commonly known to be a 'pearl like dot' white opacity in the eye while glaucoma was known to cause blindness. Awareness remained unchanged in different age groups for cataract while for glaucoma there was an increase in awareness with age. Women were significantly less aware (odds ratio (OR): 0.63; 95%, confidence interval (CI): 0.54 - 0.74) for cataract and (OR: 0.64; 95% CI: 0.50 - 0.81) for glaucoma. Literacy was also correlated with awareness.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The low prevalence of visual impairment and the high cataract surgical coverage suggests that cataract intervention programs have been successful in Bhaktapur. Awareness and knowledge of cataract and glaucoma was very poor among this population. Eye care programs needs to be directed towards preventing visual impairment from refractive errors, screening for incurable chronic eye diseases and promoting health education in order to raise awareness on cataract and glaucoma among this population.</p