La giustizia ambientale in Italia. Una riflessione introduttiva

La giustizia ambientale è un concetto non ancora del tutto condiviso in letteratura, nonostante una storia non proprio recente. L’indeterminatezza si deve probabilmente al fatto che esso si compone di altri concetti già complessi, come giustizia (sociale) e ambiente, per cui la possibilità di farne un principio ispiratore dell’agenda e della pratica politica dipende da come si sceglie di definirlo. Il contributo ha l’obiettivo di introdurre la discussione sulla utilità dello studio della giustizia ambientale in Italia nella convinzione che, pur con modalità diverse rispetto agli Stati Uniti, esso possa essere estremamente fruttuoso. Una sua migliore comprensione ed una verifica di contesto nel caso italiano potrebbero infatti contribuire sia allo sforzo complessivo di ridefinire il quadro teorico nel quale iscrivere il rapporto società/ambiente, di cui si sente il bisogno, in particolare in geografia, sia nel determinare l’evoluzione degli orientamenti politici e operativi

The Wonder of Colors and the Principle of Ariadne

The Principle of Ariadne, formulated in 1988 ago by Walter Carnielli and Carlos Di Prisco and later published in 1993, is an infinitary principle that is independent of the Axiom of Choice in ZF, although it can be consistently added to the remaining ZF axioms. The present paper surveys, and motivates, the foundational importance of the Principle of Ariadne and proposes the Ariadne Game, showing that the Principle of Ariadne, corresponds precisely to a winning strategy for the Ariadne Game. Some relations to other alternative. set-theoretical principles are also briefly discussed

THE ROLE OF THE STRUCTURAL CHARACTERISTIC LENGTH IN FRC STRUCTURES

In the framework of the CEN Committee involved in the writing of the fiber reinforced concrete structure standards, a strong debate has been focused on the possibility to use a stress-strain rather than a stress- crack opening constitutive relationship, even if only the second one is physically meaningful after the cracking of the matrix. The use of a stress-strain model, even if it can be regarded as an effective simplification in many cases as it is in R/C structures, can be justified by the rough choice of a unique crack spacing in the range of 125 mm. In the paper, the modeling of different FRC cross sections and in particular of a thin-walled open cross-section profile longitudinally reinforced with steel bars like a FRC box-culvert (U-channel) highlights as only the use of a correct structural characteristic length when a simplified Navier-Bernoulli plane section model is adopted prevents the overestimation of the bearing capacity in bending. A comparison with F.E. model and previous experimental tests on full-scale structures are also proposed

Dynamics of Non-adiabatic Charged Cylindrical Gravitational Collapse

This paper is devoted to study the dynamics of gravitational collapse in the Misner and Sharp formalism. We take non-viscous heat conducting charged anisotropic fluid as a collapsing matter with cylindrical symmetry. The dynamical equations are derived and coupled with the transport equation for heat flux obtained from the M$\ddot{u}$ller-Israel-Stewart causal thermodynamic theory. We discuss the role of anisotropy, electric charge and radial heat flux over the dynamics of the collapse with the help of coupled equation.Comment: 15 pages, accepted for publication in Astrophys. Space Sc

Experimental tests on shallow foundations of onshore wind turbine towers

The current effort towards the progressive switch from carbon-based to renewable energy production is leading to a relevant spreading of both on- and off-shore wind turbine towers. Regarding reinforced concrete shallow foundations of onshore wind turbine steel towers, possible reductions of reinforcement may increase their sustainability, speed of erection, and competitiveness. The article presents the results of an experimental program carried out at Politecnico di Milano concerning both cyclic and monotonic loading, simulating extreme wind conditions on 1:15 scaled models of wind turbine steel towers connected by stud bolt adapters to reinforced concrete shallow foundations embedded in a sandy soil. Three couples of foundation specimens were tested with different reinforcement layouts: (a) similar to current praxis, (b) without shear reinforcement, and (c) without shear reinforcement and with 50% of ordinary steel rebars replaced by steel fibers. Additional vertical loads were added to the small-scale models in order to ensure similarity in terms of stresses. The test results allowed to (i) characterize the mechanical behavior of the foundation element considering soil-structure interaction under both service and ultimate load conditions, (ii) assess the foundation failure mode, (iii) highlight the role of each typology of reinforcing bars forming the cage, and (iv) provide hints for the optimization of these latter

Flow of supersonic jets across flat plates: Implications for ground-level flow from volcanic blasts

We report on laboratory experiments examining the interaction of a jet from an overpressurized reservoir with a canonical ground surface to simulate lateral blasts at volcanoes such as the 1980 blast at Mount St. Helens. These benchmark experiments test the application of supersonic jet models to simulate the flow of volcanic jets over a lateral topography. The internal shock structure of the free jet is modified such that the Mach disk shock is elevated above the surface. In elevation view, the width of the shock is reduced in comparison with a free jet, while in map view the dimensions are comparable. The distance of the Mach disk shock from the vent is in good agreement with free jet data and can be predicted with existing theory. The internal shock structures can interact with and penetrate the boundary layer. In the shock-boundary layer interaction, an oblique shock foot is present in the schlieren images and a distinctive ground signature is evident in surface measurements. The location of the oblique shock foot and the surface demarcation are closely correlated with the Mach disk shock location during reservoir depletion, and therefore, estimates of a ground signature in a zone devastated by a blast can be based on the calculated shock location from free jet theory. These experiments, combined with scaling arguments, suggest that the imprint of the Mach disk shock on the ground should be within the range of 4–9 km at Mount St. Helens depending on assumed reservoir pressure and vent dimensions

Connected Rhythm: A Scoping Review of Therapeutic Drumming as an Intervention for Autistic Individuals

Background: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurologically-based developmental disorder representing a subdomain of neurodivergence. Occupational therapy intervention for ASD typically incorporates sensory modalities, addressing a multitude of challenges, including mental health outcomes. This scoping review analyzes available evidence of the sensory-based intervention of therapeutic drumming (TD) to improve mental health in autistic clients. Method: Following the Johanna Briggs methodological framework, Proquest, Ebsco, Scopus and OTseeker databases were searched with the key and related words of “autism,” “therapeutic drumming,” and “mental health,” yielding 448 articles. After removal of duplicates and application of inclusion criteria, seventeen articles were included in the final analysis. Results: Analysis revealed strong consistency in delivery and implementation of TD intervention. Instrumentation of outcome measures, in contrast, was not well-synchronized; therefore, efficacy of the intervention was difficult to assess. Conclusion: Limitations included a general lack of research, limited research of TD with autistic people in occupational therapy literature, and a dearth of strongly instrumented research. This review revealed valuable contributions of TD interventions as a neurodiversity-affirming practice to support mental health and inform future studies of implementation of TD for people with ASD across the lifespan within the scope of occupational therapy