The Energy Improvement of School Buildings: Analysis and Proposals for Action

The objective of this research is to identify a tool of analysis applicable to school buildings that, through simple input information, can make immediate assessment reduction of energy consumption for heating and associated reduction of CO2emission, as a result of improvements.The definition of a methodology of analysis allows to evaluate preliminarily the energy performance of the whole school building identifying the most problematic buildings and dividing into groups based on the construction and geometry. In the first phase all buildings have been filed through information obtained from survey and documentation of archives, then two analyses were performed to compare the energy performance of the whole sample.For the initial analysis it was applied a methodology proposed by ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic development) and designed specifically for school buildings; in the second analysis it was calculated the energy performance index for winter heating and compared with the appropriate limit value.Subsequently a sample of buildings was well selectedafter splitting the school building into homogeneous groups. The buildings have been translated into a mathematical model of the building system calibrated on actual energy consumption and dynamic conditions were simulated in order to accurately quantify the impact of the various proposed actions.The results of all combinations of intervention, obtained from the latter analysis, have been used to develop a tool that identified the type of building and construction technology in order to estimate the immediate reduction of consumption and the CO2emitted.The methodology was applied to the school building of the municipality of Castelfranco Veneto, simulating two scenarios: the first plan to interventions under the PAES (Action Plan for Sustainable Energy) for public buildings while the second considers the possibility of performing all the improvements recommended by the instrument in relation to the entire academic heritage of the city

Reduction of concentrated feed in dairy cows in the Parmigiano Reggiano area: effects on milk production and quality.

A project of technological research, funded by Emilia Romagna Region and aimed to a higher sustainability of dairy chain, involved an experimental trial testing the effect of a reduction of concentrate feed in Frisona cows producing milk for Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese making. Two groups of 15 cows each, with milk production at 9 days in milk (DIM) of 31.7 and 32.1 kg/d, were fed mixed meadow hay ad libitum and a growing amount of concentrate feed up to 15 kg (C group) or 12 kg (T group) at the peak of lactation (about 60 days). Milk production, milk fat and protein were recorded from each cow at 9, 47, 96, 131, 166, and 207 DIM; fatty acid composition of milk was analysed on 5 pooled samples/group at 47, 131, and 207 DIM. Milk collected from the two groups of cows at day 161 and 168 was used for micro cheese making. Milk production and milk fat were unaffected by diet, whereas milk protein was lower in T cows at 166 (3.18 vs 3.39%; p<.01) and 207 (3.17 vs 3.31%; p<.05) DIM. Fatty acid composition of T milk showed at 47 DIM significantly lower % of MUFA and PUFA, and higher % of SFA, resulting in higher SFA/UFA ratio (1.70 vs 1.38; p<.01). Both n-3 and n-6 fatty acids were significantly lower in T milk at 47 DIM (n-3: 1.21 vs 1.44%; n-6: 4.05 vs 4.57%) and at 131 DIM (n-3: 1.18 vs 1.37%: n-6: 3.89 vs 4.83%). CLA levels were similar in the milk of the two groups. The milk collected for cheese making (60 l/group) had similar chemical and bacteriological composition, with the exception of a higher content of thermophilic Lactobacilli in T milk. Rennet coagulation characteristics showed lower curd firmness at 30’ in T milk (a30: 24.80 vs 29.48 mm; p<.05), whereas the other cheese making traits were not significantly different between the two groups. Bacteriological traits of the ripened cheese (60 days) from the two groups were also similar. The results of this field trial indicate that a reduction of 20% of concentrate feed in the diet of high producing cows did not affect milk amount, milk fat and cheese making traits, but caused a partial deterioration in milk protein, fatty acid composition and rennet coagulation. Further research might evaluate the whole lactation, reproductive performances, nutritional and health status. A part of the results of the research was presented at 6th AITeL Congress (Trento, September 20th 2018)

Cancer in pregnancy: Proposal of an italian multicenter study. gynecologic oncology group of the italian society of gynecology and obstetrics (sigo)

A pregnancy related cancer is defined as a neoplasm diagnosed in a woman during gestation or within 12 months following childbirth or abortion. Breast, thyroidal, melanoma, cervical and hematological malignancies are those most commonly diagnosed during pregnancy, with a reported incidence considered lower than those estimated of 1 case on 1000 pregnancies. The clinical complexity is generated by the co-presence of mother and fetus, and the consequent conflict represented by the need to identify a therapeutic strategy that is effective for the maternal prognosis and, at the same time, safeguards the fetal well-being. Moreover, the counseling, diagnosis, staging and management of these cases are further complicated because most of the scientific literature consists in case reports or small retrospective studies and lacks in guidelines and prospective clinical trials. On that basis, the Study Group on Cancer in Pregnancy (members of S.I.G.O.-Italian Society of Gynecology and Obstetrics) presents the TIGRE Trial, an Italian multicenter observational study aimed at establishing a shared database for the collection of epidemiological and clinical data of the patients affected by pregnancy related cancer in Italy, with the final objective to improve the outcome of a mother and a child involved in a such pathology

Sinergie Italian Journal of Management

Lo Scientific Advisory Committee è composto da esponenti della comunità scientifica nazionale ed internazionale in servizio presso atenei italiani e stranieri. Il ruolo dei componenti di tale comitato è di consulto scientifico e di supervisione. In particolare, lo Scientific Advisory Committee contribuisce alla programmazione editoriale, valutando e proponendo temi di interesse e linee di sviluppo della rivista e dialoga costruttivamente con Editor in Chief, Co-Editor ed Associate Editors sulla qualità, sulla relevance e sulla diffusione della rivista