Environmental sustainability, nonlinear dynamics and chaos reloaded: 0 matters!

n this paper, we reconsider the overlapping generations (OLG) environmental model in- troduced in John and Pecchenino (1994) and Zhang (1999) by adopting the specification of the environmental dynamics proposed by Naimzada and Sodini (2010). The model is characterized by two different regimes that may alternate: one in which environmental evolution and economic growth co-evolve in the same direction; the other in which the environmental problem is not internalized by the agents, that is, the agents do not devolve any private resource to the environmental quality, leading to a possible trade-off between environment and economic growth. The analysis of the equilibrium dynamics, described by a two dimensional piecewise smooth map, shows that starting from a parametric configuration in which the dynamics are eventually driven by a unique regime, the increase of the negative effect of the agents’ consumption activity ends up in scenarios where the two regimes alternate, determining the rise of stable cycles or the occurrence of chaotic regimes. It is interesting to notice that because of the nonsmoothness of the map, the rise in environmental harm produced by economic activity may induce a sudden transition to chaotic regime

Bowling alone but tweeting together: the evolution of human interaction in the social networking era

The objective of this paper is to theoretically analyze how human interaction may evolve in a world characterized by the explosion of online networking and other Web-mediated ways of building and nurturing relationships. The analysis shows that online networking yields a storage mechanism through which any individual contribution—e.g. a blog post, a comment, or a photo—is stored within a particular network and ready for virtual access by each member who connects to the network. When someone provides feedback, for example by commenting on a note, or by replying to a message, the interaction is finalized. These interactions are asynchronous, i.e. they allow individuals to relate in different moments, whenever they have time to. When the social environment is poor of participation opportunities and/or the pressure on time increases (for example due to the need to increase the working time), the stock of information and ties stored in the Internet can help individuals to defend their sociability

Can vesicle size distributions assess eruption intensity during volcanic activity?

Abstract. We studied three-dimensional (3-D) vesicle size distributions by X-ray microtomography in scoria collected during the relatively quiescent Phase II of the April–May 2010 eruption at Eyjafjallajökull volcano, Iceland. Our goal was to compare cumulative vesicle size distributions (VSDs) measured in these samples with those found in Stromboli volcano, Italy. Stromboli was chosen because its VSDs are well-characterized and show a correlation with eruption intensity: typical Strombolian activity produces VSDs with power-law exponents near 1, whereas larger and more energetic vulcanian-type explosions and Plinian eruptions produce VSDs with power-law exponents near 1.5. The first hypothesis to be tested was whether or not the samples studied in this work would contain VSDs similar to normal Strombolian products, display higher power-law exponents, or be described by exponential functions. Before making this comparison, we tested a second hypothesis, which was that the magma–water interactions in the Eyjafjallajökull eruption might have a significant effect on the VSDs. We performed 1 bar bubble-growth experiments in which the samples were inundated with water and compared them to similar control experiments without water inundation. No significant differences between the VSDs of the two sets of experiments were found, and the second hypothesis is not supported by the experimental evidence. The Phase II Eyjafjallajökull VSDs are described by power-law exponents of ~0.8, typical of normal Strombolian eruptions, and support the first hypothesis. The comparable VSDs and behavior of Phase II of the Eyjafjallajökull 2010 eruption to Stromboli are interpreted to be a reflection of similar conduit systems in both volcanoes that are being constantly fed by the ascent of mingled/mixed magma from depth. Such behavior implies that continued activity during Phase II of the Eyjafjallajökull eruption could be expected and would have been predicted, had our VSDs been measured in real time during the eruption. However, the products studied show no peculiar feature that could herald the renewed eruption intensity observed in the following Phase III of the eruption

Synchrotron based planar imaging and digital tomosynthesis of breast and biopsy phantoms using a CMOS active pixel sensor

The SYRMEP (SYnchrotron Radiation for MEdical Physics) beamline at Elettra is performing the first mammography study on human patients using free-space propagation phase contrast imaging. The stricter spatial resolution requirements of this method currently force the use of conventional films or specialized computed radiography (CR) systems. This also prevents the implementation of three-dimensional (3D) approaches. This paper explores the use of an X-ray detector based on complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) active pixel sensor (APS) technology as a possible alternative, for acquisitions both in planar and tomosynthesis geometry.Results indicate higher quality of the images acquired with the synchrotron set-up in both geometries. This improvement can be partly ascribed to the use of parallel, collimated and monochromatic synchrotron radiation (resulting in scatter rejection, no penumbra-induced blurring and optimized X-ray energy), and partly to phase contrast effects. Even though the pixel size of the used detector is still too large - and thus suboptimal - for free-space propagation phase contrast imaging, a degree of phase-induced edge enhancement can clearly be observed in the images

Boosting cross-border regions through better cross-border transport services. The European case

Cross-border regions are the laboratories of European integration. Daily interactions across European borders let citizens experience the benefits of the European Union (EU) internal market. Still, many border barriers continue to prevent individuals and organisations from exploiting the full-potential of European border regions and the benefits of a more integrated European territory. Amongst these barriers are the absence or inappropriate supply of cross-border public transport services. In this context, this paper presents potential policy tools to increase border permeability related to cross-border public transport as well as practical results from a few case-studies implemented across Europe.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

XQR-30: The ultimate XSHOOTER quasar sample at the reionization epoch

The final phase of the reionization process can be probed by rest-frame UV absorption spectra of quasars at z ≳ 6, shedding light on the properties of the diffuse intergalactic medium within the first Gyr of the Universe. The ESO Large Programme 'XQR-30: the ultimate XSHOOTER legacy survey of quasars at z ≃ 5.8-6.6' dedicated ∼250 h of observations at the VLT to create a homogeneous and high-quality sample of spectra of 30 luminous quasars at z ∼6, covering the rest wavelength range from the Lyman limit to beyond the Mg ii emission. Twelve quasar spectra of similar quality from the XSHOOTER archive were added to form the enlarged XQR-30 sample, corresponding to a total of ∼350 h of on-source exposure time. The median effective resolving power of the 42 spectra is R ≃ 11 400 and 9800 in the VIS and NIR arm, respectively. The signal-to-noise ratio per 10 km s-1 pixel ranges from ∼11 to 114 at λ ≃ 1285 Å rest frame, with a median value of ∼29. We describe the observations, data reduction, and analysis of the spectra, together with some first results based on the E-XQR-30 sample. New photometry in the H and K bands are provided for the XQR-30 quasars, together with composite spectra whose characteristics reflect the large absolute magnitudes of the sample. The composite and the reduced spectra are released to the community through a public repository, and will enable a range of studies addressing outstanding questions regarding the first Gyr of the Universe

XQR-30: the ultimate XSHOOTER quasar sample at the reionization epoch

The final phase of the reionization process can be probed by rest-frame UV absorption spectra of quasars at z>6, shedding light on the properties of the diffuse intergalactic medium within the first Gyr of the Universe. The ESO Large Programme "XQR-30: the ultimate XSHOOTER legacy survey of quasars at z~5.8-6.6" dedicated ~250 hours of observations at the VLT to create a homogeneous and high-quality sample of spectra of 30 luminous quasars at z~6, covering the rest wavelength range from the Lyman limit to beyond the MgII emission. Twelve quasar spectra of similar quality from the XSHOOTER archive were added to form the enlarged XQR-30 sample, corresponding to a total of ~350 hours of on-source exposure time. The median effective resolving power of the 42 spectra is R~11400 and 9800 in the VIS and NIR arm, respectively. The signal-to-noise ratio per 10 km/s pixel ranges from ~11 to 114 at $\lambda \simeq 1285$ \AA rest frame, with a median value of ~29. We describe the observations, data reduction and analysis of the spectra, together with some first results based on the E-XQR-30 sample. New photometry in the H and K bands are provided for the XQR-30 quasars, together with composite spectra whose characteristics reflect the large absolute magnitudes of the sample. The composite and the reduced spectra are released to the community through a public repository, and will enable a range of studies addressing outstanding questions regarding the first Gyr of the Universe.Comment: 21 pages, 10 figures. Revised version resubmitted to MNRAS after minor referee repor