Lmit and shakedown analysis based on solid shell models

The paper treats the formulation of the shakedown problem and, as special case, of the limit analysis problem, using solid shell models and ES-FEM discratization technology. In this proposal the Discrete shear gap method is applied to alleviate the shear locking phenomenon

"PwC Experience": Progetto di consolidamento gestionale con la soluzione software "Tagetik"

Il presente elaborato di tesi, svolto a seguito di uno stage presso la società di consulenza PricewaterhouseCoopers SpA, è applicativo ad un progetto reale di consolidamento gestionale implementato con l’innovativa soluzione software “Tagetik” all’interno della holding finanziaria Marinvest Srl. L’obiettivo principale è quello di mostrare come l’utilizzo della piattaforma “Tagetik” abbia semplificato e razionalizzato le complessità riscontrate da Marinvest Srl nella gestione del processo di consolidamento, garantendo massima efficienza nei tempi di elaborazione dei dati all’interno di un ambiente tracciabile, strutturato e unificato. Per riuscire a realizzare tutto ciò è stato necessario definire in fase di ‘Assess & Design’ le esigenze specifiche del cliente; quindi si è passati alla fase di ‘Construct & Implement’ legata alla configurazione del ‘modello dati’, al caricamento dei bilanci di ogni singola società e all’implementazione del processo di consolidamento gestionale attraverso la definizione delle logiche di elisione. Al fine di apportare soluzioni per la gestione e il controllo delle performance economico-finanziarie del gruppo, il software Tagetik dispone di un sistema unificato di reportistica che permette di interagire direttamente con il database applicativo ed estrarre le informazioni necessarie per la creazione di report ‘ad hoc’ in grado di fornire una chiara rappresentazione dei dati ed i risultati di cui il CFO (Chief Financial Officer) ha bisogno

Vascular flora of Monte Sparviere (southern Italy, Pollino Massif)

Vascular Flora of Monte Sparviere (Southern Italy, Pollino Massif). A floristic survey of Monte Sparviere was carried out from 2012 to 2015, allowing us to record 377 specific and subspecific taxa, belonging to 229 genera and 64 families. The most represented families are Asteraceae (55 taxa), Poaceae (30), Fabaceae (28), Rosaceae (23) and Lamiaceae (19). Italian endemic species reach the 8.5% and no exotic species are recorded except three conifers used for reforestation. Biological spectrum shows a dominance of Hemicryptophytes, with a moderate percentage of Therophytes. The chorological analysis shows a dominance of species belonging to the Eurosibiric region, albeit Mediterranean region is also well represented. The ecological spectra are in agreement with climatic and geo-pedologic features, with variations mainly related to woody coverage and altitude. Finally, Potentilla pedata Willd. ex Hornem was confirmed for the flora of Basilicata; Dianthus sternbergii Capelli was excluded from the flora of Basilicata and Calabria whereas Dianthus hyssopifolius L. resulted new for both regions

A hybrid-Trefftz finite element for the postbuckling analysis of composite shell structures

A corotational mixed flat shell element for the geometrically nonlinear analysis of laminated composite structures is presented. The stress interpolation is derived from the linear elastic solution for symmetric composite materials.Displacement and rotation fields are only assumed along the contour of the element. As such, all the operators are efficiently obtained through analytical contour integration. The geometrical nonlinearity is introduced by means of a corotational formulation. The proposed finite element, named MISS-4c, proves to be locking free and shows no rank defectiveness. A multimodal Koiter's algorithm is used to obtain the initial postbuckling response. Results show good accuracy and high convergence rate in the geometrically nonlinear analysis of composite shell structures

Ground instability in the old town of Agrigento (Italy) depicted by on-site investigations and Persistent Scatterers data

We combine on-site investigations with the interpretation of satellite Persistent Scatterers (PS) to analyse ground instability in the historic town of Agrigento, Italy. Geological and geomorphologic surveys, together with geostructural and kinematic analyses, depict the deformational patterns of the northwestern sector of the town, previously documented by extensive literature available for the neighbouring Valley of the Temples. The geological and geomorphologic maps are reconstructed by combining bibliographic studies, field surveys and aerial stereo-interpretation. ERS-1/2 PS data reveal deformation velocities up to 18–20 mm yr<sup>−1</sup> in 1992–2000 over the Addolorata landslide, and a sudden motion of 1.6 cm over the Bishop's Seminary in 1999. RADARSAT-1 PS data highlight velocities of 3.0 mm yr<sup>−1</sup> for St. Gerlando's Cathedral and reveals worsening of its structural instability since 2006. Ground instability of the town is controlled by low quality and high fracturing of the Agrigento formation rock masses, and the remarkable contrast between different mechanical behaviours of its calcarenite (brittle), silt and clay (plastic) facies. Slow landslides and widespread erosion are also recognised in the clays of the underlying Monte Narbone formation. Coexistence of these factors induces progressive retrogression of the edge of the Girgenti hill and damages the overlying historic buildings, whose stability and safe accessibility are nowadays almost compromised

Breast Milk Hormones and Regulation of Glucose Homeostasis

Growing evidence suggests that a complex relationship exists between the central nervous system and peripheral organs involved in energy homeostasis. It consists in the balance between food intake and energy expenditure and includes the regulation of nutrient levels in storage organs, as well as in blood, in particular blood glucose. Therefore, food intake, energy expenditure, and glucose homeostasis are strictly connected to each other. Several hormones, such as leptin, adiponectin, resistin, and ghrelin, are involved in this complex regulation. These hormones play a role in the regulation of glucose metabolism and are involved in the development of obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. Recently, their presence in breast milk has been detected, suggesting that they may be involved in the regulation of growth in early infancy and could influence the programming of energy balance later in life. This paper focuses on hormones present in breast milk and their role in glucose homeostasis

A Novel null homozygous mutation confirms <i>CACNA2D2</i> as a gene mutated in epileptic encephalopathy

Contribution to epileptic encephalopathy (EE) of mutations in CACNA2D2, encoding α2δ-2 subunit of Voltage Dependent Calcium Channels, is unclear. To date only one CACNA2D2 mutation altering channel functionality has been identified in a single family. In the same family, a rare CELSR3 polymorphism also segregated with disease. Involvement of CACNA2D2 in EE is therefore not confirmed, while that of CELSR3 is questionable. In a patient with epilepsy, dyskinesia, cerebellar atrophy, psychomotor delay and dysmorphic features, offspring to consanguineous parents, we performed whole exome sequencing (WES) for homozygosity mapping and mutation detection. WES identified extended autozygosity on chromosome 3, containing two novel homozygous candidate mutations: c.1295delA (p.Asn432fs) in CACNA2D2 and c.G6407A (p.Gly2136Asp) in CELSR3. Gene prioritization pointed to CACNA2D2 as the most prominent candidate gene. The WES finding in CACNA2D2 resulted to be statistically significant (p = 0.032), unlike that in CELSR3. CACNA2D2 homozygous c.1295delA essentially abolished α2δ-2 expression. In summary, we identified a novel null CACNA2D2 mutation associated to a clinical phenotype strikingly similar to the Cacna2d2 null mouse model. Molecular and statistical analyses together argued in favor of a causal contribution of CACNA2D2 mutations to EE, while suggested that finding in CELSR3, although potentially damaging, is likely incidental

A gap-filling method for room temperature data based on autoencoder neural networks

This study explores the applicability of a deep learning-based approach for reconstructing missing room temperature data from different domains where relatively few training samples are available. For that purpose, the existing convolutional, long short-term memory (LSTM) and feed-forward autoencoders were combined with a suitable domain adaptation procedure. Eventually, the developed models were evaluated on data collected in four buildings with significant differences in thermal mass, design and location. The findings pointed out that the domain adaptation can be conducted effciently by using a small data sample from the target domain. Additionally, the results showed that the proposed model can reconstruct up to 80 % of the missing daily room temperature inputs with RMSE accuracy of 0.6 °C