Organic farming in Italy

History and situation of OF in Italy: The recent growth of organic sector in Italy can be considered a success story that deserves to be properly known and analysed. It is the result of several circumstances: the numerous food scandals which have afflicted Europe, the search for technical and economic alternatives by farmers, who have not yet decided to give up, the abundant flow of subsidies (direct and indirect ) which have been channelled into the entire organic food chain. Nevertheless, it also represents the outcome of the first steps made by few pioneers who since the early ‘50s had started to criticize the path into which the so called technological progress and the agricultural policies were leading Italian and European farming. These pioneers were old and new farmers, medical doctors, shop owners and traders, food processors and consumers, veterinarians and agronomists, with some rare scientists, all of whom for more than 30 years have been struggling to convince the surrounding people and the Institutions that another food system is possible

Nakon EC8: novi talijanski propisi za protupotresnu gradnju

The 2002 Molise earthquake, which was defined by seismologists as a normal event in the geodynamics of the Italian peninsula but had an international resonance due to the collapse of a primary school, triggered a series of research initiatives in earthquake engineering and significant modifications to building codes in Italy. The modifications were completed at the beginning of 2008 with the release of a new comprehensive building code for Italy. This document was mainly inspired by Eurocode, but it contains some changes and improvements. In this paper, comments are made on three specific parts of the new code: definition of seismic action, analysis of liquefaction and analysis of slope stability. For the first part, seismic action is defined based on a recent careful study of the seismic hazard in Italy. For liquefaction analysis, some developments are given, keeping the same structure used in Eurocode. Finally, for slope stability, improvements are introduced to avoid overestimation of pseudostatic forces in conventional analyses.Iako su potres u pokrajini Molize, koji se dogodio 2002. godine, seizmolozi kategorizirali kao uobičajenu geodinamičku pojavu na talijanskom poluotoku, on je imao veliki odjek u javnosti jer je prouzročio rušenje jedne osnovne škole. Taj je događaj u Italiji inicirao mnoga istraživanja u području potresnog inženjerstva i značajne izmjene zakona o gradnji. Te su izmjene dovršene početkom 2008. godine, kada je obznanjen novi, detaljno razrađen, talijanski zakon o protupotresnoj gradnji. Taj je zakon izrađen po uzoru na Eurokod, ali donosi i neke novine i unaprje|enja. Iz tog se zakona u ovom članku komentiraju: definicija seizmičkog opterećenja, te analize potencijala likvefakcije i stabilnosti kosina. Seizmičko je opterećenje određeno na temelju nedavnih detaljnih studija seizmičkog hazarda na području Italije. Što se tiče likvefakcije, prikazane su neke novine u odnosu na Eurokod. Konačno, u vezi stabilnosti kosina unesene su izmjene u odnosu na Eurokod da se izbjegnu prevelike pseudostatičke sile u konvencionalnim analizama stabilnosti

Recognition of the Mechanical Properties for Soils in Complex Conditions: A Case Study

AbstractThe aim of this paper is to discuss the shear resistance angle φ’ of structurally complex formations in San Giuliano del Sannio (CB) for the construction of a strategic building. Large lithoid stones in a clayey-like matrix constitute the main soil formations. In this condition, it is doubtful how to evaluate φ’ for geotechnical design, being very small the values obtained by conventional laboratory tests on the fine-graded matrix. Two alternative approaches could be suggested to detect the geotechnical parameters for design, specifically the φ’ the angle: using the shear waves velocity and its empirical relationship with the soil resistance and through the back-analyses of an existing embedded retaining wall. It is shown that the two proposed pattern give more realistic values of the soil resistance for this kind of material, with respect to the ones obtained by conventional laboratory tests

A Step Into the Definition of the Seismic Risk for the City of Benevento (Italy)

This paper gives a contribution in the definition of the seismic hazard for the city of Benevento in Southern Italy, from a geotechnical engineering viewpoint. To pursue this goal, an extensive geotechnical characterization of the city subsoil was achieved collecting data available at the Department of Geotechnical Engineering, University of Napoli and Benevento municipal technical office. Attention was paid in defining strain dependent shear stiffness and damping ratio for the geomaterials present in the urban area. A new method to correct the Masing criteria was adopted. Numerical analyses were performed considering the subsoil as a continuous one-phase equivalent linear medium. The 1-D analyses were carried out using Shake-like codes. The seismic hazard in the city was evaluated on the basis of two seismic scenarios, respectively characterized by low and high acceleration levels. The final result of the work is a seismic zonation of the city of Benevento. It was found that zonation maps are largely dependent from the chosen seismic scenario

A Step Into the Definition of the Seismic Risk for the City of Benevento (Italy)

This paper gives a contribution in the definition of the seismic hazard for the city of Benevento in Southern Italy, from a geotechnical engineering viewpoint. To pursue this goal, an extensive geotechnical characterization of the city subsoil was achieved collecting data available at the Department of Geotechnical Engineering, University of Napoli and Benevento municipal technical office. Attention was paid in defining strain dependent shear stiffness and damping ratio for the geomaterials present in the urban area. A new method to correct the Masing criteria was adopted. Numerical analyses were performed considering the subsoil as a continuous one-phase equivalent linear medium. The 1-D analyses were carried out using Shake-like codes. The seismic hazard in the city was evaluated on the basis of two seismic scenarios, respectively characterized by low and high acceleration levels. The final result of the work is a seismic zonation of the city of Benevento. It was found that zonation maps are largely dependent from the chosen seismic scenario

Dysphagia as initial manifestation of Guillan-Barrè Syndrome in a child

The occurrence of dysphagia in a child may be a sign of various pathological conditions and mainly gastrointestinal disorders; neurological causes are not very frequent, but they should be taken in to considerations. Etiological diagnosis is important for minimizing related complications. Here we report the case of a 6-year-old girl who was admitted to our Clinic with sudden onset weakness of the limbs and dysphagia. Physical examination revealed hypo-areflexia of both legs and arms and multiple cranial nerve dysfunction. Based on typical clinical course, laboratory investigations and electrophysiological studies, a diagnosis of Guillain-Barrè Syndrome (GBS) was assessed. A treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) was immediately started with a progressive recovery of motility and cranial nerve function. An electrophysiological evaluation, performed one month after therapy start, showed slight improvement of neurological symptoms, in particular of the sensitive component. On the basis of our experience we suggest that a GBS should be suspected when dysphagia is associated with pain and ascending flaccid paralysis of the limbs, in order to prevent a severe complications such as respiratory failure