Use of Kriging Technique to Study Roundabout Performance

Road intersections are dangerous places because of the many conflicting points between motorized and nonmotorized vehicles. In the case of defined traffic volume, several research groups have proved that roundabouts reduced the number of injuries and fatal accident cases. In recent years, many countries have adopted roundabouts as a standard design solution for both urban and rural roads. Several recent studies have investigated the performance of roundabouts, including some with models that calculated the entering flow (Q sub e) as a function of the circulating flow (Q sub c). Most existing models have been constructed with the use of linear or exponential statistical regression. The interpolative techniques in classical statistics are based on the use of canonical forms (linear or polynomial) that completely ignore the correlation law between collected data. As such, the determined interpolation stems from the assumption that the data represent a random sample. In the research reported in this paper, a geostatistical approach was considered: the relationship Q sub e versus Q sub c is supposed to be a regionalized phenomenon. According to that supposition, collected data do not represent a random sample of values but are supposed to be related to each other with a defined law. This recognition allows the realization of interpolation on the basis of the real law of the phenomenon. This paper discusses the fundamental theories, the applied operating procedures, and the first results obtained in modeling the Q sub e versus Q sub c relationship with the application of geostatistics

Contributo allo studio e valorizzazione del pane di ghiande

La presente ricerca nasce dalla consapevolezza del valore delle tradizioni locali, la cui conservazione rappresenta motivo fondamentale di arricchimento conoscitivo, culturale, storico e sociale. Il lavoro mira al recupero dell'antico legame uomo-natura con l'intento di tutelare, valorizzare e riscoprire un'antica tradizione culinaria ormai caduta in disuso: quella della panificazione delle ghiande

Road signs: walking among shapes and colors

Road signs provide information through the combination of three elements: shape, color and pictogram. The current road signs are projected to ensure safety but are designed for adults and not for children. Kids are not small adults and they have a different perception of reality. While planning of home-school pedestrian routes, it is necessary to create road signs that are comprehensible for children aged 6-14. Therefore the elements of road signs were studied individually. The study revealed that both the knowledge of geometric shapes and colors perception are closely related to age and culture and to the teachings which children are submitted to. In fact, some geometric shapes, like the circle, are perfectly recognized from childhood and others less so, such as the rectangle. Moreover children are attracted to basic colors but they are aware of the existence of pastel colors only with teaching. Finally, pictogram must represent a simple symbol that is easily recognized especially from far away. The message generated by the three elements is understandable by children. In fact, children overcome the phase of syncretism after the age of 6, which corresponds to the phase in which children are unable to analyses and syntheses. The result of the research has allowed to design road signs, both vertical and horizontal, that are able to ensure the safety of home-school routes. A road signs study was conducted for Cagliari’s project on road safety. This project involves the use of questionnaires to verify if the road signs are properly designed

Geostatistical Approach for Operating Speed Modelling on Italian Roads

Injuries are one of the main causes of death according to W.H.O. For this reason the attention of road safety researchers especially regards the study of the relationship between driver and road environment. Several research works show that operating speed is an excellent driver behavior parameter. This article describes a different approach to the classical definition of prediction models for operating speed on horizontal curves. In this paper, the fundamental theories, the applied operating procedures and the first results obtained with the application of Geostatistics are discussed. The mathematical models expressing operating speed in function of horizontal curves characteristics found in International scientific literature, have mainly been built on the basis of Classical Statistics. For this reason, it needs to be pointed out that the interpolative techniques found in Classical Statistics are based upon the use of canonical forms (linear or polynomial regressions) that completely ignore the correlation law between collected data. As such, the determined interpolation stems from the assumption that the data represent a random sample. The models described in this article have instead been created with the geostatistical interpolation technique (i.e. Kriging). This technique allows to obtain the "best" estimates possible because it considers the true correlation law between the measured data. The applied methods are then described along with the results obtained in the field of road safety by applying Geostatistics which, for several years, have been used, with positive results, in all scientific and engineering fields dealing with empirical data analysis and processing

Visual Perception and Understanding of Variable Message Signs: The Influence of the Drivers’ Age and Message Layout

Variable message signs (VMS) are used to display messages providing up‐to‐date traffic‐ relevant information so that drivers can safely adapt their behavior in real time. The information reported in a VMS should be brief but comprehensive to minimize perception time. The latter can be influenced by the way the message is displayed. This study investigates how the different ways of displaying the same message can influence reading time and the information perception process at different driving speeds. Specifically, the following message characteristics are investigated: (i) use of uppercase and lowercase letters; (ii) use of familiar pictograms; and (iii) use of less familiar pictograms. Furthermore, as perception time typically changes with ageing, drivers belonging to three different age classes are tested. The experimentation was performed by simulating a vehicle passing along a straight road upon which a VMS displaying different messages was placed. Exper‐ imentation results are analyzed using the Kruskal–Wallis test, Friedman rank‐sum test and Welch one‐way ANOVA, showing that: (i) the use of uppercase or lowercase does not seem to significantly affect reading times; (ii) the use of pictograms that are not very familiar to habitual road‐users can be counterproductive for the perception process; (iii) elderly drivers always have greater difficulty in perceiving the message than young or middle‐aged drivers. The findings of this study can be of help for traffic authorities to design the most suitable structure for a VMS so that its information can be unequivocally and immediately conveyed to drivers

Studio dell'aggregazione cellulare in ceppi vinari di <i>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</i>

Among the different genes that regulate biofilm formation in strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, FLO11 plays a fundamental role. In a previous work we showed that FLO11 is required for air-liquid interfacial biofilm and we proposed a model for biofilm formation based on the ability of cells to entrap carbon dioxide, providing buoyancy. FLO11 belongs to the adhesin gene family, including FLO1, FLO5, FLO9 and FLO10 and the protein encoded by each gene has considerable sequence identity with other family members. Other authors showed that the gene size of FLO1 and the number of intragenic repeat sequences creates quantitative alteration in adhesion, flocculation and biofilm formation phenotypes. In this work, in order to observe correlations between FLO11 gene size and cell adhesion, we analysed several Sardinian biofilm forming strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (flor strains) with different genetic backgrounds. We amplified FLO11 and its intragenic repeat sequences in all the analysed strains and we correlated the lengths with the following phenotypes: biofilm formation, adhesion to plastic, mat formation and idrophobicity. Interestingly, we observed a variable correlation between FLO11 gene size and the described phenotypes. In particular, different strains showed differences in adhesion to plastic and biofilm formation or idrophobicity and biofilm formation independently of the expansion and contraction in FLO11 lenght

Distribuzione e variabilità del genere <i>Arbutus</i> L.: analisi sistematica e morfologia integrata di <i>Arbutus unedo</i> L. in Sardegna

In this study, systematic of Arbutus was examined in literature, by investigating the number, distribution and diagnostic characters of its species. Then, the place names in Sardinian language meaning “Strawberry Tree” were identified, to make a distribution map of these localities in Sardinia. Finally, morphological variability of four populations of Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo L.) growing in four areas of Sardinia, with different geolithological conditions, was assessed. Morphometric analysis, based on eleven morphological traits, was performed on three leaves and three fruits per plant, sampled from thirty plants per population. Standard biometric methods were used for leaf and fruit physiognomy, and a geometric morphometric approach used for leaf conformation. Statistical multivariate analysis showed significant differences between populations (p&lt;0.05) and high discrimination percentages. The most important discriminating traits were: petiole length, leaf width, ratio between distal part and total lamina length, fruit length, fruit width, and ratio between fruit length/fruit width. Climatic differences among the four areas and significant correlations between morphological traits and ecological parameters were found. In conclusion, environment plays an important role in the observed variations, so populations can be considered different. Based on the literature and fieldwork carried out, new forms and a variety of Arbutus unedo were found for the first time in Italy

Il Pane di ghiande

In Sardegna, il pane di ghiande, chiamato in sardo Pan’ispeli, ha rappresentato per lungo tempo un prezioso alimento, commercializzato ad un prezzo superiore rispetto a quello di farina scelta. Diffuso soprattutto in Ogliastra (Sardegna centro-orientale) si confezionava con ingredienti insoliti quali ghiande dolci, cenere ed argilla, tanto che venne citato da numerosi studiosi quale alimento singolare. Dal punto di vista nutrizionale, questo curioso alimento, è stato definito talvolta nocivo per la salute, altre volte nutriente e salubre. Ai primi del 1900, era ritenuto cibo fortificante ma difficilmente digeribile. Dalla seconda metà degli anni quaranta del secolo scorso, l’antica tradizione della panificazione delle ghiande è caduta in disuso e, oggi, il pane di ghiande non rientra più nel regime alimentare quotidiano ma viene riproposto in occasione di alcune sagre da quelle poche donne dell’Ogliastra che conservano, gelosamente e con orgoglio, il ricordo di una remota tradizione destinata presto a scomparire. In altre parti dell’isola la preparazione di questo cibo desueto non è invece più conosciuta

Epithelial-stromal interaction in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is not a homogenous disease. Recent molecular classification of established tumours based on gene expression and (epi)genetic mutation burden, has revealed considerable disease heterogeneity. The relative importance of the epithelial and stromal tissue compartments varies between different tumour subtypes and this contributes to the observed clinical and molecular heterogeneity of CRC. The AIM of this study was to explore the role of the stroma in different precancerous pathologies (polyps) and in CRC. Stromal gene expression varies considerably between the different polyp subtypes (SSA and TVA) with a comparatively greater number of differentially expressed genes in serrated lesion stroma, suggesting the hypothesis that SSA lesions, usually initiated by BRAF mutations and methylation, require the recruitment of pro-tumorigenic stroma to enable lesion progression. In contrast, TVA are initiated by epithelial mutations that disrupt Wnt signaling (such as APC) and this is sufficient to drive tumourigenesis, irrespective of stromal influences. Moreover, transwell tissue culture 3D techniques and animal models revealed that fibroblasts support the cross species growth of mouse epithelial organoids and abrogate the normal media requirement for Noggin and EGF. Interestingly, mouse epithelium grown in this co culture system develop as spheroids rather than the branching organoids seen with media morphogen supplementation, indicating a phenotype modulating effect of the fibroblasts. Preliminary results revealed that fibroblasts have effects on cell proliferation and cell cycle regulation by upregulation of genes involved with cell cycle progression, DNA synthesis/repair, protein translation, vesicles mediated transport and lipid metabolism. Primary stromal cell cultures isolated from adenoma and colon cancer (CMS2 and CMS4) might in part represent the corresponding cancer microenvironment, thus providing a useful complement to the current cellular biochemistry and therapeutic research in CRC

Pharmacokinetic Markers of Clinical Outcomes in Severe Mental Illness: A Systematic Review

The term severe mental illness (SMI) encompasses those psychiatric disorders exerting the highest clinical burden and socio-economic impact on the affected individuals and their communities. Pharmacogenomic (PGx) approaches hold great promise in personalizing treatment selection and clinical outcomes, possibly reducing the burden of SMI. Here, we sought to review the literature in the field, focusing on PGx testing and particularly on pharmacokinetic markers. We performed a systematic review on PUBMED/Medline, Web of Science, and Scopus. The last search was performed on the 17 September 2022, and further augmented with a comprehensive pearl-growing strategy. In total, 1979 records were screened, and after duplicate removal, 587 unique records were screened by at least 2 independent reviewers. Ultimately, forty-two articles were included in the qualitative analysis, eleven randomized controlled trials and thirty-one nonrandomized studies. The observed lack of standardization in PGx tests, population selection, and tested outcomes limit the overall interpretation of the available evidence. A growing body of evidence suggests that PGx testing might be cost-effective in specific settings and may modestly improve clinical outcomes. More efforts need to be directed toward improving PGx standardization, knowledge for all stakeholders, and clinical practice guidelines for screening recommendations