Acrocyanosis, digital ischemia and acronecrosis as first manifestations of endometrial adenocarcinoma: case presentation and literature review

The association between digital ischemia and cancer is rarely reported in literature and the exact mechanism of this occurrence has not been completely understood. We report here a case of a 73 yearold woman who presented digital ischemia as first manifestation of endometrial adenocarcinoma. Reporting this rare clinical case and with a brief literature review, we recommend to consider an intensive search for primary and metastatic cancer in all patients who experience a digital ischemia, with the aim to early detect and treat the disease

Sistemi di tipo pendolare ad attrito per l'isolamento alla base degli edifici

Nell’articolo viene presentata una sintesi dei risultati di una ricerca sperimentale e numerica svolta, in collaborazione fra le Università di Firenze e di Buffalo (New York), sul tema dell’isolamento alla base mediante sistemi pendolari ad attrito, di tipo “Single” (SFP), “Double” (DFP) e “Triple Friction Pendulum” (TFP). In particolare, lo studio ha avuto come obiettivo la stima delle caratteristiche meccaniche e delle effettive potenzialità della più recente fra tali tecnologie, rappresentata dalla soluzione TFP, verificate su base sperimentale e convalidate da un’ampia indagine numerica di confronto, condotta in riferimento a differenti modalità di combinazione dei sistemi SFP, DFP e TFP e dissipatori viscosi lineari e non

Cronache tecniche di ingegneria dalla Toscana: "Adeguamento sismico di un edificio a due piani a Firenze: taglio di due pilastri centrali con messa in forza di rinforzo in acciaio" Progettista delle strutture: Prof. Ing. Paolo SPINELLI Collaborazione progetto strutturale: Dott. Ing. Alessio MARGIOTTA Direzione lavori: Dott. Ing. Massimiliano CECCONI

All’interno dei locali di un edificio esistente, situato a Firenze e costituito da due piani fuori terra, vi è stata l’esigenza di realizzare uno spazio atto ad ospitare conferenze, congressi e summit dei vertici dirigenziali dell’azienda: si doveva quindi realizzare un nuovo Auditorium a piano terra e i relativi locali dovevano essere riorganizzati in modo tale da rispondere alle nuove esigenze funzionali. Il maggior ostacolo da superare era rappresentato dalla presenza di due pilastri dell’edificio che risultavano incompatibili con le esigenze di visibilità e fruibilità della sala. D’altro canto la loro rimozione non era facile in quanto senza di essi si sarebbe avuta una luce libera di quasi 15 metri e per l’appunto essi appartenevano ad una campata che, oltre a portare il solaio di piano primo di luce 9.90 metri, si faceva carico anche delle travi di copertura aventi luce 20 m; Si è deciso di seguire la strada dell’eliminazione dei due pilastri e del conseguente rinforzo della campata con un’opportuna struttura in acciaio affiancata a quella in C.A. esistente

Top-down cracking in Italian motorway pavements: A case study

Abstract Top-down cracking (TDC) is a distress affecting asphalt pavements and consists of longitudinal cracks that initiate on the pavement surface and propagate downwards. In general, TDC is more critical in the case of thick pavements with open-graded friction course (OGFC), which are the typical characteristics of Italian motorway pavements. Recent surveys showed the presence of many longitudinal cracks potentially ascribable to TDC on Italian motorways. Within this context, this study has two main objectives: 1) to define reliable identification criteria allowing to distinguish between TDC and the other types of longitudinal cracks observed and 2) based on the developed criteria, to quantify TDC in Italian motorway pavements. In this regard, a 200 km long trial network (400 km considering both directions) was studied, taking into account the effect of several variables (e.g. geometric characteristics, traffic level, wearing layer type and climate). For this purpose, images of the trial network acquired during pavement monitoring were visually analysed and some control cores were taken. Specific criteria (which can be used in a pavement management system, PMS) were developed to distinguish between the main types of longitudinal cracks observed on the trial network, i.e. TDC, cracks due to heavy vehicles tire blowout and construction joints, based on their geometric features on the pavement surface. It was found that TDC can affect up to 20–30 % of the slow traffic lane. Specifically, the highest TDC concentrations were observed for high traffic levels and OGFC, whereas TDC was absent in the case of a dense-graded wearing layer. Finally, surprisingly the concentration of tire blowout cracks was even higher than TDC. This study provides evidence on the fact that, for thick pavements with OGFC, TDC has to be considered a priority problem to be addressed in both pavement design and maintenance

Conservazione e sicurezza strutturale di colonne in ghisa prodotte e montate in opera nel XIX secolo

riassunto esteso e presentazione orale al convegno Workshop IGF - Problematiche di Frattura nei Materiali per l'Ingegneria, Forni di Sopra (UD), 7/1/2010 - 9/1/201

Low-cost electrochemical impedance spectroscopy system for corrosion monitoring of metallic antiquities and works of art

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is recognized to be a powerful and noninvasive technique to test the integrity of protective coatings on memorials, but commercial EIS systems are rather costly though versatile devices. This paper describes a low cost and portable EIS system that is based on a compact digital signal processor (DSP) board and embeds the potentiostatic function so that it can be used without requiring an external potentiostat. The software that runs on the DSP is designed to analyze the electrochemical impedance only in a reduced frequency range in order to produce a simple corrosion alert result. The device is equipped with a digital interface and can be connected to a personal computer to carry out a complete frequency analysis and perform a more complex data processing

Distributed Training of Graph Convolutional Networks

The aim of this work is to develop a fully-distributed algorithmic framework for training graph convolutional networks (GCNs). The proposed method is able to exploit the meaningful relational structure of the input data, which are collected by a set of agents that communicate over a sparse network topology. After formulating the centralized GCN training problem, we first show how to make inference in a distributed scenario where the underlying data graph is split among different agents. Then, we propose a distributed gradient descent procedure to solve the GCN training problem. The resulting model distributes computation along three lines: during inference, during back-propagation, and during optimization. Convergence to stationary solutions of the GCN training problem is also established under mild conditions. Finally, we propose an optimization criterion to design the communication topology between agents in order to match with the graph describing data relationships. A wide set of numerical results validate our proposal. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work combining graph convolutional neural networks with distributed optimization.Comment: Published on IEEE Transactions on Signal and Information Processing over Network

Contribution of L-Arginine supplementation during gestation on sow productive performance and on sow microbial faecal profile

Arginine plays an important role during reproduction, however, the amount of supplementation in sow diet is still uncertain. The aim of the study was to verify the efficacy of a gestating diet enriched or not with a low dose of L-arginine (Arg) on sow productive performance in terms of numbers and weight of piglets at birth and at weaning, frequency of intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) and piglets' mortality, sow placenta weight and salivary humoral immunity and intestinal microbial balance of the sows. 205 sows (Landrace x Large White) were divided into two experimental groups: a control group (CON) (102 sows) and a group supplemented with 0.25% of Arg (ARG) for the whole pregnancy period. Saliva and faecal samples were collected two days before farrowing and used for immunoglobulins and microbial analysis, respectively. Arg improved the number of total born piglets (p = .043) and tended to improve the number of total born alive (p = .086) and to reduce IUGR % (p = .090) and dead piglets at d0–d3 (p = .088). The weight of placenta and humoral immunity were not influenced by Arg. Arg did not modify the faecal microbial structure (alpha and beta indices) but increased the relative abundance of Bacteroidaceae family and Bacteroides genera (p = .0001). The results support the knowledge that Arg plays a key role in nutrition and physiology of pregnant sows without compromising gut eubiosis.HighlightArg supplementation of sows' gestation diet increased the number of total bornsArg supplementation of sows' gestation diet did not negatively affect the sows' gut eubiosisArg plays a significant role in the nutrition of pregnant sows. Arg supplementation of sows' gestation diet increased the number of total borns Arg supplementation of sows' gestation diet did not negatively affect the sows' gut eubiosis Arg plays a significant role in the nutrition of pregnant sows

Advanced Seismic Retrofit of a Mixed R/C-Steel Structure

A study concerning the performance assessment and enhanced retrofit of public buildings originally designed without any anti-seismic provisions is presented herein. A representative structure belonging to this class was demonstratively examined, i.e., a school built in Italy in the early 1970s, before a coordinate national Seismic Standard was issued. The building is characterized by a mixed reinforced concrete (ground storey)-steel (first and second storey) frame skeleton. An extensive on-site experimental investigation was developed in the first step of the study, which helped identify the mechanical characteristics of the constituting materials, and re-draw the main structural details. Based on these data, and relevant updates of the finite element model of the structure, the seismic assessment analyses carried out in current conditions highlighted several performance deficiencies, in both the reinforced concrete and steel members. An advanced seismic retrofit hypothesis of the building was then designed, consisting of the installation of a set of dissipative braces incorporating fluid viscous dampers as protective devices. This solution makes it possible to attain an elastic structural response up to the maximum considered normative earthquake level, while at the same time causing more limited architectural intrusion and lower costs as compared to conventional rehabilitation strategies

Seismic Assessment and Retrofit Design of a School Building in Florence

The recent earthquakes occurred in Italy highlighted again the high vulnerability of structures built before the release of national Seismic Standards. This induced several local authorities to undertake extensive performance assessment campaigns of public buildings, among which mainly schools. A study carried out within one of these campaigns, concerning the evaluation of seismic vulnerability and the design of retrofit interventions in a school building in Florence, is presented herein. The structure was built at the beginning of 1970s, and is characterized by a ground storey with reinforced concrete frame skeleton, and a first and second storey with steel structure. An extensive on-site experimental investigation was developed at a first step of the study, which allowed identifying the mechanical characteristics of the constituting materials, and re-drawing the main structural details. Based on these data, a check of the seismic performance in current conditions was carried out, which highlighted several drawbacks, especially concerning the steel members. This prompted to propose a seismic retrofit hypothesis of the building, consisting in the installation of a set of dissipative braces incorporating fluid viscous dampers as protective devices. A synthesis of the assessment analyses in current conditions and the retrofit design, which allows attaining an elastic structural response up to the maximum considered earthquake level, is reported in the paper