447 research outputs found
Association between obstructive apnea syndrome during sleep and damages to anterior labyrinth: Our experience
The obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is a chronic condition characterized by frequent episodes of collapse of the upper airways during sleep. It can be considered a multisystem disease. Among the districts involved, even the auditory system was seen to be concerned. It was enrolled a population of 20 patients after polysomnographic diagnosis of OSAS (Apnea Hypopnea Index > 10) and a control group of 28 healthy persons (Apnea Hypopnea Index < 5). Each patient has been subjected to Pure Tone Audiometry, Tympanometry, study of Acoustic Reflex, Otoacoustic Emissions and Auditory Brainstem Response. Moreover they were submitted to endoscopy of upper airway with Muller Maneuver and Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). The values of ESS was 13.5 in OSAS group and 5.4 in control group. The tone audiometry is worse in all frequencies analyzed in OSAS patients, but within the normal range for both groups analyzed by 250 to 1000 Hertz. Otoacoustic emissions show a reduced reproducibility and a lower signal/ noise ratio in OSAS group (P <0.01)
Natura e architettura nel giardino di Villa Florio-Pignatelli (Palermo, Sicilia).
ABSTRACT.\u2013 Amongst the Sicilian historical gardens it is merited to remember the ornamental garden design of Villa Florio-
Pignatelli, situated in the western periphery of Palermo. The building, and probably the garden too, are from the second half
of the 18. century. This article contains the result of a cognitive study of its history, architecture and vegetal composition,
based on field studies in the garden itself, on bibliographical and archival work. In 1838 it was sold by the Duke of Cumia
to Vincenzo Florio, who in following conceded it to his son Ignazio. Already at this time, there was a garden with a "flora
all\u2019Italiana" behind the Villa, which had circular vials in radial order, demarcated with a box-hedge (Buxus sempervirens),
much like a small reproduction of the more famous and celebrated Villa Giulia (1777), the first public garden in the town.The
elegance of the garden's proportions is based on at least four geometric orders interacting with each other. They reveal evi-
dence of important fixed points or "topoi" of the garden; these affirm that the apparent simplicity contains complicated arith-
metic and geometric relations in an exceptional union of architectural and botanical significance
The Numerov process over a non-uniform grid
The Numerov process is a solution method applicable to some classes of differential equations, that provides an error term of the fifth order in the grid size with a computational cost comparable to that of the finite-difference scheme. In the original formulation of the method, a uniform grid size is required; the paper shows a procedure for extending its applicability to a non-uniform grid in one dimension. The effectiveness of the procedure is tested on a model problem, and comparisons with other methods are carried out. Finally, it is shown how to extend the applicability of the method to a larger class of equations; among these, the mathematical model of semiconductor devices is important in view of its applications to the integrated-circuit technology
Recommendation Systems in Libraries: an Application with Heterogeneous Data Sources
The Reading[&]Machine project exploits the support of digitalization to increase the attractiveness of libraries and improve
the users’ experience. The project implements an application that helps the users in their decision-making process, providing
recommendation system (RecSys)-generated lists of books the users might be interested in, and showing them through an
interactive Virtual Reality (VR)-based Graphical User Interface (GUI). In this paper, we focus on the design and testing of the
recommendation system, employing data about all users’ loans over the past 9 years from the network of libraries located in
Turin, Italy. In addition, we use data collected by the Anobii online social community of readers, who share their feedback
and additional information about books they read. Armed with this heterogeneous data, we build and evaluate Content Based
(CB) and Collaborative Filtering (CF) approaches. Our results show that the CF outperforms the CB approach, improving
by up to 47% the relevant recommendations provided to a reader. However, the performance of the CB approach is heavily
dependent on the number of books the reader has already read, and it can work even better than CF for users with a large
history. Finally, our evaluations highlight that the performances of both approaches are significantly improved if the system
integrates and leverages the information from the Anobii dataset, which allows us to include more user readings (for CF) and
richer book metadata (for CB)
Implant-Based Breast Reconstruction after Risk-Reducing Mastectomy in BRCA Mutation Carriers: A Single-Center Retrospective Study
Women with BRCA gene mutations have a higher lifetime risk of developing breast cancer. Furthermore, cancer is usually diagnosed at a younger age compared to the wild-type counterpart. Strategies for risk management include intensive surveillance or risk-reducing mastectomy. The latter provides a significant reduction of the risk of developing breast cancer, simultaneously ensuring a natural breast appearance due to the preservation of the skin envelope and the nipple-areola complex. Implant-based breast reconstruction is the most common technique after risk-reducing surgery and can be achieved with either a submuscular or a prepectoral approach, in one or multiple stages. This study analyzes the outcomes of the different reconstructive techniques through a retrospective review on 46 breasts of a consecutive, single-center case series. Data analysis was carried out with EpiInfo version 7.2. Results of this study show no significant differences in postoperative complications between two-stage tissue expander/implant reconstruction and direct-to-implant (DTI) reconstruction, with DTI having superior aesthetic outcomes, especially in the prepectoral subgroup. In our experience, the DTI prepectoral approach has proven to be a safe and less time-consuming alternative to the submuscular two-stage technique, providing a pleasant reconstructed breast and overcoming the drawbacks of subpectoral implant placement
The establishment of the agricultural landscape of central Sicily between the Middle Neolithic and the beginning of the Iron Age
The possible co-variation of human occupation and vegetation from the Middle Neolithic to the beginning of the Iron Age (7.5–2.8 ka BP) in Central Sicily in the context of the central Mediterranean between Middle and Late Holocene are analysed in this paper to provide new insights on Sicilian prehistoric demography. The demographic and economic trends during these millennia were reconstructed using archaeological, Accelerator Mass Spectrometry 14C dates, palynological, archaeobotanical, and zooarchaeological data from the northern, central, and southern sectors of Central Sicily through a diachronic comparison with variation in Arboreal Pollen, Anthropogenic Pollen Indicators, Olea-Juglans-Castanea pollen, microcharcoals, and Sporormiella from four pollen cores from sites in different ecosystems. A very significant spread of farming activities was found at the end of the Neolithic, together with an apparent demographic gap during the Middle Copper Age, and the emergence of agricultural landscapes at the end of the Copper Age associated with a striking increase in population. A combination of cultural and climatic changes during the late phase of the Bronze Age resulted in a subsequent overall decrease in population
Sialoendoscopy: state of the art, challenges and further perspectives. Round Table, 101st SIO National Congress, Catania 2014
This draft of the Official Round Table held during the 101st SIO National Congress is an updated review on sialoendoscopy, a technique used for diagnosis and treatment of obstructive pathologies of salivary glands in a minimally invasive fashion. This review treats many aspects of salivary gland endoscopy, starting from anatomy to deal with the more advanced surgical techniques and analyses the main decisional algorithms proposed in the literature. In addition, particular attention was directed to the current limitations of this technique and to the potential developments that sialoendoscopy could have in the near future
Uomini, libri e immagini. Per una storia del libro illustrato dal tardo antico al medioevo
L'opera propone una raccolta di studi dedicata alla storia del libro illustrato. La miscellanea, radunata dalla curatrice, propone in versione italiana rivista e aggiornata, testi di Kurt Weitzmann, Ernst Kitzinger, Sahoko Tsuji, Erwin Panofsky, Jonathan J. Alexander, Patricia Stirnemann e Marie -Thérèse Gousset. L'edizione italiana dei testi è arricchita da contributi personali di alcuni autori. E' questo il caso dei saggi di Ernst Kitzinger e Sahoko Tsuji, da considerarsi una riedizione degli studi originali. L'antologia è corredata da un’introduzione, un glossario e un breve compendio di orientamenti bibliografici redatti dalla curatrice
YihQ is a sulfoquinovosidase that cleaves sulfoquinovosyl diacylglyceride sulfolipids
Sulfoquinovose is produced by photosynthetic organisms at a rate of 1010 tons per annum and is degraded by bacteria as a source of carbon and sulfur. We have identified Escherichia coli YihQ as the first dedicated sulfoquinovosidase and the gateway enzyme to sulfoglycolytic pathways. Structural and mutagenesis studies unveiled the sequence signatures for binding the distinguishing sulfonate residue and revealed that sulfoquinovoside degradation is widespread across the tree of life
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