A model for the analysis of security policies in service function chains

Two emerging architectural paradigms, i.e., Software Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Function Virtualization (NFV), enable the deployment and management of Service Function Chains (SFCs). A SFC is an ordered sequence of abstract Service Functions (SFs), e.g., firewalls, VPN-gateways,traffic monitors, that packets have to traverse in the route from source to destination. While this appealing solution offers significant advantages in terms of flexibility, it also introduces new challenges such as the correct configuration and ordering of SFs in the chain to satisfy overall security requirements. This paper presents a formal model conceived to enable the verification of correct policy enforcements in SFCs. Software tools based on the model can then be designed to cope with unwanted network behaviors (e.g., security flaws) deriving from incorrect interactions of SFs in the same SFC

La responsabilità dell’ente da reato nel sistema russo

Il saggio dà conto del sistema russo dell’illecito dell’ente da reato nella sola area amministrativo-punitiva e del relativo dibattito sulla ‘colpevolezza’. L’oggettiva severità di talune sanzioni, formalmente ‘amministrative’ ma sostanzialmente ‘penali’, lascia profilare una rilevante lesione delle essenziali garanzie sostanziali e processuali. Il saggio approfondisce anche il significato dei meccanismi di autoregolamentazione dell’ente diretti a prevenire la corruzione

Cell cycle dynamics during diapause entry and exit in an annual killifish revealed by FUCCI technology

Background: Annual killifishes are adapted to surviving and reproducing over alternating dry and wet seasons. During the dry season, all adults die and desiccation-resistant embryos remain encased in dry mud for months or years in a state of diapause where their development is halted in anticipation of the months that have to elapse before their habitats are flooded again. Embryonic development of annual killifishes deviates from canonical teleost development. Epiblast cells disperse during epiboly, and a "dispersed phase" precedes gastrulation. In addition, annual fish have the ability to enter diapause and block embryonic development at the dispersed phase (diapause I), mid-somitogenesis (diapause II) and the final phase of development (diapause III). Developmental transitions associated with diapause entry and exit can be linked with cell cycle events. Here we set to image this transition in living embryos. Results: To visibly explore cell cycle dynamics during killifish development in depth, we created a stable transgenic line in Nothobranchius furzeri that expresses two fluorescent reporters, one for the G1 phase and one for the S/G2 phases of the cell cycle, respectively (Fluorescent Ubiquitination-based Cell Cycle Indicator, FUCCI). Using this tool, we observed that, during epiboly, epiblast cells progressively become quiescent and exit the cell cycle. All embryos transit through a phase where dispersed cells migrate, without showing any mitotic activity, possibly blocked in the G1 phase (diapause I). Thereafter, exit from diapause I is synchronous and cells enter directly into the S phase without transiting through G1. The developmental trajectories of embryos entering diapause and of those that continue to develop are different. In particular, embryos entering diapause have reduced growth along the medio-lateral axis. Finally, exit from diapause II is synchronous for all cells and is characterized by a burst of mitotic activity and growth along the medio-lateral axis such that, by the end of this phase, the morphology of the embryos is identical to that of direct-developing embryos. Conclusions: Our study reveals surprising levels of coordination of cellular dynamics during diapause and provides a reference framework for further developmental analyses of this remarkable developmental quiescent state

Communication Pathways

Description from the publisher\u27s website: From the authors of The Speaker and The Speaker’s Primer comes an innovative new textbook that covers communication curriculum in an approachable way. Communication Pathways introduces a modern approach to the survey course, with concise chapters that emphasize communication theory. The authors organize content around a communication-centric theme: dialogue. A full chapter devoted to dialogic communication unpacks the concept for students; the authors further incorporate and explicate dialogic communication as it applies to subsequent chapter concepts. This theme is unique to the text and is a central element of what the authors aim to accomplish: to create competent communicators who can advocate ideas civilly, explain complicated subjects, and disagree without being disagreeable in a variety of interactive settings. Dialogic communication theme unifies survey communication course content to foster student engagement and concept application Concise presentation offers theory-based learning that leaves room for instructor innovation “Mediated Moments” feature illustrates key concepts from chapters through contemporary, relatable examples “Dialing Diversity” boxes engage age, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, and ethnicit

The Speaker\u27s Primer

This book addresses the nuts and bolts of crafting and delivering different types of presentations, but unlike other public speaking handbooks, it builds on those principles and offers guidance on speaking in particular professional arenas. Throughout the book, the authors provide sidebars about the importance and application of public speaking principles specific to business, healthcare, education, politics, and the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. — Description from publisher\u27s websit

A LOTOS Extension for the Performance Analysis of Distributed Systems

Performance analysis and formal correctness verification of computer communication protocols and distributed systems have traditionally been considered as two separate fields. However, their integration can be achieved by using formal description techniques as paradigms for the development of performance models. This paper presents a novel extension of LOTOS, one of the two formal specification languages that were standardized by ISO. The extension is specifically conceived to integrate performance analysis and formal verification. The extended language syntax and semantics are formally defined, along with a mapping from extended specifications to performance models, The mapping preserves the specified observable behavior. Two simple examples, a stop-and-wait protocol and a time-sharing system, are used to concretely demonstrate the new approach and to validate i

Heart rate variability reduction is related to a high amount of visceral adiposity in healthy young women

Several heart rate variability (HRV) studies show abnormalities in autonomic nervous control in obese and overweight subjects. However, some of the results appear to be controversial. Here we investigate the HRV profile in seventy adult normotensive women and its association with general and visceral adiposity. Specifically, we recorded the electrocardiographic (ECG) activity in subjects during a supine resting state for five minutes in a quiet room late in the morning. Total fat mass (TFM) and visceral adipose tissue (VAT) were instead estimated using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Finally, we used simple a linear regression analysis of frequency and time-domain parameters to study the relationship between HRV and adiposity. Our data showed an overall reduction of the HRV related to an increase of TFM although this regression appeared significant only for high frequencies (HF). When the linear regression was applied between HRV variables and VAT, the slope of the line increases, thus unveiling a statistically significant relation (i.e. the more VAT, the lower HRV). Finally, a control analysis showed that age does not alter the relation between HRV and VAT when used as a confounding factor in multiple regression. To conclude, these findings point to abnormal activity of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) in subjects with an excess of VAT and represent a starting point to determine a non-invasive index of cardiac wellness for clinical and nutritional application

Methylammonium-formamidinium reactivity in aged organometal halide perovskite inks

Over the past 10 years, organometal halide perovskites have revolutionized the field of optoelectronics, particularly of emerging photovoltaic technologies. Today's best perovskite solar cells use triple-cation compositions containing a mixture of formamidinium, methylammonium, and cesium to enable more reproducible and stable device performance. The common procedure uses as-prepared precursor ink to avoid an undesirable decrease in device performance, attributed recently to a chemical reaction between methylammonium and formamidinium in solution. Here we employ nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to explore different experimental conditions that can significantly modify these reaction kinetics; in particular, we find that the presence of cesium as the third cation can substantially slow down methylammonium-formamidinium reactivity. Our findings allow us to draw up a protocol for extended overtime perovskite ink stabilization

Effects of mixed of a ketogenic diet in overweight and obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a commonly occurring endocrine disorder characterized by hirsutism, anovulation, and polycystic ovaries. Often comorbid with insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and obesity, it also carries significant risk for the development of cardiovascular and metabolic sequelae, including diabetes and metabolic syndrome. The relationship between central obesity and the development of insulin resistance is widely verified. Adipose tissue excess and the coexistent dysregulation of adipocyte functions directly contribute to the pathogenesis of the metabolic complications observed in women with PCOS. In the light of these evidence, the most therapeutic option prescribed to obese women with PCOS, regardless of the phenotype e from the severity of clinical expression, is lifestyle correction by diet and physical activity. The aim of this study is to evaluate the beneficial effects of ketogenic diet in 17 obese women with PCOS. Our results showed that the ketogenic diet inducing therapeutic ketosis, improves the anthropometric and many biochemical parameters such as LH, FSH, SHBG, insulin sensitivity and HOMA index. In addition, it induces a reduction in androgenic production, whereas the contextual reduction of fat mass reduced the acyclic production of estrogens deriving from the aromatization in the adipose tissue of the androgenic excess, with an improvement of the LH/FSH ratio. This is the first study on the effects of the ketogenic diet on PCOS, however, further studies are needed to elucidate the mechanism underlying ketogenic diet effects