HASFC: a MANO-compliant Framework for Availability Management of Service Chains

Most softwarized telco services are conveniently framed as Service Function Chains (SFCs). Indeed, being structured as a combination of interconnected nodes, service chains may suffer from the single point of failure problem, meaning that an individual node malfunctioning could compromise the whole chain operation. To guarantee "highly available" (HA) levels, service providers are required to introduce redundancy strategies to achieve specific availability demands, where cost constraints have to be taken into account as well. Along these lines we propose HASFC (standing for High Availability SFC), a framework designed to support, through a dedicated REST interface, the MANO infrastructure in deploying SFCs with an optimal availability-cost trade off. Our framework is equipped with: i) an availability model builder aimed to construct probabilistic models of the SFC nodes in terms of failure and repair actions; ii) a chaining and selection module to compose the possible redundant SFCs, and extract the best candidates thereof. Beyond providing architectural details, we demonstrate the functionalities of HASFC through a use case which considers the IP Multimedia Subsystem, an SFC-like structure adopted to manage multimedia contents within 4G and 5G networks

Extended screening for infectious diseases among newly-arrived asylum seekers from Africa and Asia, Verona province, Italy, April 2014 to June 2015

Background and aimManagement of health issues presented by newly-arrived migrants is often limited to communicable diseases even though other health issues may be more prevalent. We report the results of infectious disease screening proposed to 462 recently-arrived asylum seekers over 14 years of age in Verona province between April 2014 and June 2015. Methods: Screening for latent tuberculosis (TB) was performed via tuberculin skin test (TST) and/or QuantiFERON-TB Gold in-tube assay and/or chest X-ray. An ELISA was used to screen for syphilis. Stool microscopy was used to screen for helminthic infections, and serology was also used for strongyloidiasis and schistosomiasis. Screening for the latter also included urine filtration and microscopy. Results: Most individuals came from sub-Saharan Africa (77.5%), with others coming from Asia (21.0%) and North Africa (1.5%). The prevalence of viral diseases/markers of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection was 1.3%, HCV infection was 0.85% and hepatitis B virus surface antigen was 11.6%. Serological tests for syphilis were positive in 3.7% of individuals. Of 125 individuals screened for TB via the TST, 44.8% were positive and of 118 screened via the assay, 44.0% were positive. Of 458 individuals tested for strongyloidiasis, 91 (19.9%) were positive, and 76 of 358 (21.2%) individuals from sub-Saharan Africa were positive for schistosomiasis. Conclusions: The screening of viral diseases is questionable because of low prevalence and/or long-term, expensive treatments. For opposing reasons, helminthic infections are probably worth to be targeted by screening strategies in asylum seekers of selected countries of origin

Innovative approaches to active and healthy ageing: Campania experience to improve the adoption of innovative good practices

The demographic projections on the European population predict that people aged over 60 will increase by about two million/year in the next decades. Since 2012, the Campania Reference Site of the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing supports the innovation of the Regional Health System, to face up demographic changes and sustainability. Campania Reference Site provides the opportunity to connect loco-regional stakeholders in social and health care services (universities, healthcare providers, social services, local communities and municipalities), with international organizations, in order to adopt and scale up innovative solutions and approaches. This paper describes the building process of Campania Reference Site and the main results achieved, that have been allowing it to become a hub for open innovation in the field of active and healthy aging at regional, national and international level

Gestione e miglioramento di pascoli italiani

Experimental results of trials on pastures management and improvement, conducted by 10 University Institutes within the study team «Characterization of italian pastures» are reported. The trials carried out in different soil and climate conditions, ranging from the Alps to the southern Appennines and to the Islands, in different years, provide some conclusive and generaI considerations. With periodical cuts, the forage availability period becomes longer, while using one cut at flowering yield results are higher. As far as management techniques are concerned, fertilization with the three main nutrients affects positively quanti-qualitative yield, although in real situations the application of one or two elements may be sufficient and more economically convenient, and in relation to the botanical composition. Undersowing determines positive effects both on botanical composition and on pasture utilization. Positive results, furthermore, are obtained by mechanical scrub clearing. Vengono riferiti i risultati sperimentali delle prove sulla gestione e sul miglioramento dei pascoli condotte da dieci Istituti Universitari costituenti il gruppo di studio «Caratterizzazione di pascoli italiani», Dalle prove condotte in ambienti pedoclimatici diversi, dalle alpi all'appennino meridionale ed alle isole, e in annate differenti, sono emerse come generalizzabili alcune considerazioni conclusive. Con sfalci periodici si allunga il periodo di disponibilità di foraggio verde, mentre con quello unico alla fioritura la produzione risulta più elevata. Per gli interventi tecnici, la concimazione con i tre macroelementi influisce favorevolmente sull'entità e sulla qualità della produzione, anche se, nelle situazioni concrete, può essere sufficiente, e più vantaggioso dal lato economico, la somministrazione di uno o due elementi, anche in relazione alla facies floristica. La trasemina determina effetti favorevoli sia sulla composizione floristica sia nella migliore utilizzazione del pascolo. Risultati positivi, infine, si conseguono con il decespugliamento meccanico

Health tourism: an opportunity for sustainable development

In February 2017, the “Programma Mattone Internazionale Salute” (ProMis), that is the Italian Program for Internationalization of Regional Health Systems of the Ministry of Health (MoH), presented the first version of its Position Paper on Health Tourism, which embeds a first shared approach to the recommendations expressed by the European Committee of Regions (CoR) on "AgeFriendly" tourism. The CoR stresses the importance of local and regional authorities in the coordination of multi-sectoral policies such as healthcare, social assistance, transport, urban planning and rural development in relation to the promotion of mobility, security, accessibility of services, including health care and social services. "Age-friendly" tourism is an example of an innovative tourist offer that strives to meet the health needs of the entire "traveling" population, with an integrated and cross-sector approach that involves various organizations operating in sectors such as healthcare, accessibility and transport. The aim of the workshop was to explore the interest of the stakeholders to participate in a systemic action in the field of "health" tourism, and to identify priority implementation areas that offer opportunities to take advantage of validated, innovative experiences that strengthen the accessibility to health and social services in regional, national and international contexts. This effort provides the opportunity to take advantage of aligning the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) to the development of tourism, coherently with the needs and resources of local and regional health authorities

Caratterizzazione della dinamica produttiva di pascoli naturali italiani

This work studies herbage production and its seasonal distribution in indigenous pastures, and analyses the relationship between the environmental factors (soil, clima, vegetation) and the productivity of these resources. The investigations have been carried on during the period 1983-90 by the joint activity of 10 different University Istitutions in 23 different environments distributed along the Italian peninsula and the main islands. For each environment, pasture production has been measured with the Corrall and Fenlon method, analysing the more important vegetational and ecological conditions; altogether the total yearly production and the seasonal pattern of herbage production have been detected on 104 pastures. The total herbage yield is not significantly influenced by the latitudinal gradient, and the overall regional (alps, central Appenine, south Apennine and islands) production is about 2.3 t ha-1 year-1 The wide range (0.5-6.3 t ha-1 year-1) of herbage production, on small or medium scale, seems to be due to evident changeof environmental or management factors. Five types of seasonal distribution of herbage growth are evidenced with multivariate analysis methods, based on the growing season and the amplitude of the growth. With mean temperature above 12°C and total rainfall below 800 mm, herbage distribution shows a standstill during summer period and an evident regrowth in autumn. On the contrary, for the 4 other distribution types, the winter standstill become important, and the types are distinct by summer growth amplitude and by the growing season lenght. With cluster analysis method, for each type of herbage distribution, have been pointed out under-types characterized by interannual herbage production variation. Among the environmental factors, vegetation characheristics, expressed as Pasture Value following Daget and Poissonet seems to be strictly correlated with total production. The comparative poor role played by the soil and climatic factor, may be due to the strong past and present antropic influence, related with management and utilization techniques. Il presente lavoro ha come scopo l'approfondimento delle conoscenze sulla produzione e sulla distribuzione stagionale della crescita dell'erba dei pascoli naturali, nonché l'analisi delle interazioni tra i fattori ambientali, pedo-climatici e vegetazionali, e la risposta produttiva di queste risorse. La ricerca è stata condotta nel periodo 1983-90 da 10 diverse Istituzioni Universitarie, in 23 ambienti differenti, distribuiti lungo tutta la penisola e le isole maggiori. Per ogni ambiente, con il metodo di rilievo di Corrall e Fenlon, è stata saggiata la risposta produttiva di pascoli rappresentativi delle principali situazioni vegetazionali e di giacitura; complessivamente sono state rilevate la produzione totale annua e la curva di produttività media pluriennale di 104 pascoli. Riguardo la produzione annua complessiva si è osservato che essa non presenta variazioni significative lungo il gradiente latitudinale, collocandosi tra le diverse regioni (alpina, centro appenninica, suq, appenninica e insulare) attorno a 2.3 t ha-1 anno-1. La fitomassa raccolta è soggetta invece a variazioni sensibili (0.5-6.3 t ha-1 anno-1) riconducibili a fattori ambientali e gestionali che si esprimono su piccola e media scala. Con metodi di analisi multivariata si sono individuate 5 tipologie distributive della crescita dell'erba, in rapporto alla stagione vegetativa e alle variazioni dell'intensità di crescita nel corso della stagione stessa. Con temperature medie e precipitazioni annue rispettivamente maggiori di 12°C e minori di 800 mm, risulta evidente la stasi vegetativa nel trimestre estivo e la ripresa vegetativa autunnale. Nel caso opposto la stasi è invernale e le 4 tipologie afferenti a questo modello, sono distinguibili dall'entità della crescita nei mesi estivi e dalla durata della stagione vegetativa. Per ogni tipologia produttiva, sono state evidenziate, tramite l'analisi cluster, sotto-tipologie distinte per la variabilità produttiva interannuale. Tra i fattori ambientali, la vegetazione, espressa attraverso l'indice del valore pastorale di Daget e Poissonet, presenta una buona capacità predittiva nei confronti del livello produttivo dei pascoli. Il contributo comparativamente modesto offerto dai fattori pedoclimatici sembra attribuibile alla forte influenza antropica, pregressa e attuale, attraverso le cure colturali e l'utilizzazione

Apparecchiatura e metodo per la stampa tridimensionale di materiali compositi a fibra continua

L’invenzione è una stampante 3D per la realizzazione di oggetti tridimensionali in materiale composito a fibra continua. L’apparecchiatura è costituita da: - Un sistema di rulli che alimentano la fibra all’interno della stazione di impregnazione; - una testa di alimentazione, che comprende un dispositivo di polimerizzazione (per es. un LED a luce UV o laser o una fonte di emissione termica), posizionato in corrispondenza dell’ugello; - uno strumento di troncatura (per es. una coppia di lame mobili) del materiale composito configurato per interrompere l’alimentazione del materiale in uscita dall'ugello; - una macchina a controllo numerico su almeno 3 assi che ha il compito di movimentare la testa di alimentazione del materiale. La stazione di impregnazione consiste in uno o più bacini di contenimento della resina, all'interno della quale la fibra è annegata per un tempo di permanenza che dipende dalla viscosità della matrice e dalla struttura della fibra. Il bacino di contenimento può anche essere costituito da una tramoggia solidale alla testa di alimentazione. Può essere impiegata una qualsiasi tipologia di fibra (di vetro, di carbonio, kevlar, basalto ecc.…) e matrice (resina allo stato liquido, in particolare una resina termoindurente, ad es. epossidica, acrilica, poliestere ecc.…)

3D-printable CFR polymer composites with dual-cure sequential IPNs

In this work a sequential interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) obtained by co-formulation of a photocurable acrylic resin with a thermocurable epoxy resin is presented and proposed as matrix for the fabrication of carbon-fiber reinforced (CFR) composite structures by means of 3D-printing technology. This approach combines the advantages of the easy free-form fabrication typical of the 3D-printing technology with the purposely customized features of the newly developed IPN material. Photocalorimetric and dynamic-mechanical analyses were performed in order to investigate the photo- and thermal-crosslinking reactions and their effect on the development of the IPN system. The IPN resin was finally loaded with carbon fibers and successfully ultraviolet-assisted (UV)-3D printed, demonstrating the possibility of fabricating CFR composite materials in 3D with excellent mechanical properties. Being the first example of direct fabrication of IPN-based composites by 3D printing, this study clearly shows the great potential of this additive manufacturing technology for advanced industrial applications