COGNITIVE MAPS TO ANALYZE THE CREATION AND DIFFUSION PROCESSES OF KNOWLEDGE IN THE RESEARCH INSTITUTES

The internal communication represents a final aim of the organizations in order to be productive in the long run, and a means for the spreading of the organizational culture. The present work, deepening the thought of Nonaka, Argyris and Schön, has the purpose of analysing the ways of conversion of knowledge and the dynamics of learning inside a Scientific Research Institute. The aim is to look for and detect elements that can be referred to the single or double loop learning processes, as well as to underline the passage from the individual to the organizational learning. The research uses the methodology of the Cognitive Mapping with the Self Q-Self technique, developed in four rounds on a sample of fifteen researchers. The results emerged from the individual cognitive maps and from the congregate map show the need to improve the intra-organizational communicative dynamics that have turned out to be rather slow and complex. The research has further caused immediate improvements both for the exteriorization of the individual implicit knowledge and for the combination of interdisciplinary learning. The work is brought to a close by some management implications.Internal Communication, Knowledge, Cognitive Mapping, Single and double loop learning

A Free Trade Agreement of the America\u27s: A Case Study of Brazil

This paper will examine the likely impacts of the proposed Free Trade Agreement of the Americas (FTAA) that was initiated by President Bush in 1994 and is anticipated to include 34 countries in the Western Hemisphere excluding Cuba and to come into force during 2005. The paper will focus on the likely trade effects for Brazil, the largest potential member of the FTAA. In the first part, I will review the current trade relations between countries in the Western Hemisphere and the US, including the various bilateral and multilateral agreements such as NAFTA, MERCOSUR, CBI, The Andean Trade Preference Act, etc. Next, the paper will present the special complexities introduced by rules of origin which are inherent in any free trade area. The methodology used to estimate the trade impacts is presented in section 3. Briefly, the elimination of US tariffs on imports from Brazil will stimulate US imports to the benefit of US consumers and at the expense of US producers and imports from other countries. Standard comparative static analysis will be used for the base estimates. These estimates will be qualified for special situations, namely the US quotas on sugar imports, the extremely high US tariffs on orange juice imports, and the forthcoming change in the world trading environment for textiles and apparel. The expected results will be that the FTAA will provide significant benefits for Brazil, and by implication, for the other Latin American countries which will also benefit from the FTAA

Influence of a Sulphur Dioxide Active Storage System on the Quality of Ribes rubrum L. Berries

The aim of this study was to evaluate the post-harvest changes in the quality of red currants ( Ribes rubrum L.) cv. ‘Rovada’ after 60 days of storage under modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) conditions. The storage unit was a pallet, and two treatments were performed. The CO 2 -MAP treatment was used as a control, while the SO 2 -MAP treatment was CO 2 -MAP plus SO 2 . The initial gas composition was 15.0 kPa O 2 and 10.0 kPa CO 2 inside all MAPs, while SO 2 -generating active sheets were added to pellets in SO 2 -MAP treatment. Weight loss, total soluble solid content, titratable acidity, total phenolic and anthocyanin contents, antioxidant activity, microbial count, and visual and sensorial appearance were monitored after 30 and 60 days. The results showed that berries stored with SO 2 maintained the quality parameters for up to 60 days. Exposure to SO 2 was effective in controlling yeast evolution, reducing the population both at 30 and 60 days at one and two orders of magnitude, respectively. Red currants stored under SO 2 MAP obtained better visual quality score compared to CO 2 MAP-treated berries throughout storage. Active emitters of SO 2 , such as those proposed in this study, can be promising solutions to improve the post-harvest storage of red currants and the berries marketability

Gli spazi pubblici di rappresentazione tra memoria civica e celebrazione imperiale a Luni e in Cisalpina

L’article propose une réflexion sur les espaces de représentation en Italie du Nord à partir de la ville de Luni. À Luni, il est possible d’obtenir une vue d’ensemble de la présence des statues impériales et des statues des élites locales dans une ville romaine de taille moyenne. Après la présentation des statues et des dédicaces découvertes dans les loca publica (area Capitolina, Basilique, Forum, Curie, Area con fontane, théâtre, « Grande Tempio »), le celeberrimus locus de Luni a été reconnu sur le côté nord du forum. Il était dédié à la construction de la mémoire civique à travers la conservation des anciens monuments honorifiques. Il été également possible de reconnaître l’espace choisi pour l’auto-représentation des élites municipales dans la porticus qui entoure le Capitolium. La répartition des portraits impériaux a finalement permis de suivre l’évolution de la hiérarchie des espaces de représentation dans la ville : la zone nord du forum était la seule à recevoir des honneurs pendant toute l’histoire de Luni. Vers le milieu du Ier s. ap. J.-C., il y avait une prolifération de lieux de représentation que conduirait à attribuer à la famille impériale au moins trois espaces privilégiés : l’odéon, la basilique et « l’Area con fontane ». L’image impériale était devenue omniprésente dans la ville. Au troisième siècle les espaces de représentation étaient réduits et les dédicaces étaient concentrées de nouveau dans l’area Capitolina.L’articolo propone una riflessione sugli spazi di rappresentazione in Italia settentrionale a partire dalla città di Luni. Luni consente infatti di ricostruire il quadro di insieme della presenza delle statue imperiali e di quelle delle élites locali in una città romana di medie dimensioni. Dopo aver presentato i loca publica (area Capitolina, basilica, foro, curia, Area con fontane, teatro, “Grande Tempio”) e i relativi rinvenimenti di statue e dediche onorarie, nell’area a nord del foro è stato riconosciuto il celeberrimus locus cittadino, dedicato anche alla costruzione della memoria civica mediante la conservazione dei più antichi monumenti onorari cittadini. È stato inoltre possibile riconoscere nel porticato lo spazio scelto dall’élite locale per la propria autorappresentazione La distribuzione dei ritratti imperiali ha permesso infine di seguire l’evoluzione della gerarchia degli spazi di rappresentazione nella città: l’area a nord del foro fu l’unica ad accogliere onori per tutto il corso della storia lunense. Intorno alla metà del I sec. d.C. vi fu però una moltiplicazione dei luoghi di rappresentazione che comportò l’assegnazione alla famiglia imperiale di almeno tre spazi privilegiati: odeum, basilica e l’Area con fontane. L’immagine imperiale era diventata veramente onnipresente nella città. Nel III sec. d.C., comunque ricco di dediche, gli spazi di rappresentazione si contrassero di nuovo, limitandosi all’area Capitolina

Unveiling Damnatio Memoriae. The use of 3D digital technologies for the virtual reconstruction of archaeological finds and artefacts

[EN] In ancient Rome, damnatio memoriae was a practice of erasing the memory of condemned persons from historical records after their death. This practice was usually addressed by the Senate to Roman elites and emperors who were declared enemies of the State, in order to preserve the honour of Rome. This condemnation usually included practices such as, for example, the erasure of names sculpted on inscriptions and the destruction or reworking of statues and of any other image of the person. Emperor Nero, for example, was condemned to this practice immediately after his death and a wide iconographic repertoire on him was therefore destroyed or deeply damaged. This lack of information can actually be improved thanks to the possibilities of virtual restoration and reconstruction offered by 3D digital technologies.The aim of this paper is to show how the possibility to acquire 3D reality-based data from archaeological finds allows to build 3D digital models that can be analysed and managed in a virtual environment and can be relocated, assembled or restored in order to suggest or graphically support archaeologists’ interpretations and reconstructions. The paper shows the methodology developed for the virtual restoration of the statue of Nero starting from the 3D digitization of the torso that was found 500 years ago by the Roman theatre of Bologna, Italy, the ancient Bononia.Manferdini, AM.; Gasperoni, S.; Guidi, F.; Marchesi, M. (2016). Unveiling Damnatio Memoriae. The use of 3D digital technologies for the virtual reconstruction of archaeological finds and artefacts. Virtual Archaeology Review. 7(15):9-17. doi:10.4995/var.2016.5871.SWORD91771

Concept to analyze the displacement time series of individual persistent scatterers

Persistent Scatterer Interferometry (PSInSAR) exploits a time series of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images to estimate the mean velocity with which the surface of the earth is deforming. However, most PSInSAR algorithms estimate the mean velocities using a linear regression model. Since some deformation phenomena can exhibit a more complex behavior over time, using a linear regression model leads to potentially wrong estimations for the mean velocity. For example, the velocity of a landslide moving down a steep slope can change depending on the water content of the material of the landslide, or an inactive landslide can reactivate due to an earthquake. Both scenarios would not result in a time series with a constant linear slope but in a piecewise linear time series. This paper presents a Matlab-based tool to analyze an individual Persistent Scatterer (PS) time series. The Persistent Scatterer Deformation Pattern Analysis Tool (PSDefoPAT) aims to build a mathematical model that sufficiently describes the time series trend and seasonal and noise components. The trend component is estimated using polynomial regression and piecewise linear models, while a sine function approximates the seasonal component. The goal is to identify the best fitting model for the displacement time series of a PS. PSDefoPAT is introduced by examine the time series of three different PS located in the region surrounding Patras, Greece. Based on the derived models, we discuss the nature of their deformation patterns

The College News, 1941-05-14, Vol. 27, No. 24

Bryn Mawr College student newspaper. Merged with The Haverford News in 1968 to form the Bi-college News (with various titles from 1968 on). Published weekly (except holidays) during the academic year

La trata de personas con fines de explotación sexual en el contexto de pandemia: un análisis institucional desde el Mercosur y la Argentina

En el presente trabajo nos proponemos: en primer lugar, describir brevemente los posibles impactos de la pandemia sobre la TPCFES. En segundo lugar, revisar la trascendencia institucional que tomó dicha temática durante los primeros meses de la pandemia, tanto a nivel regional -puntualmente en el Mercosur- como a nivel nacional. Por último, esbozar algunas reflexiones al respecto. A tal fin, recurrimos principalmente a documentos y declaraciones de distintos organismos internacionales y nacionales, y publicaciones de medios de comunicación que hicieron alusión a nuestro objeto de estudio. Vale aclarar que la búsqueda se basó en los primeros meses de la pandemia, es decir, desde marzo a julio respectivamente.Instituto de Relaciones Internacionale

Specific immunotherapy for allergic rhinitis in Italy: The patients' points of view

Specific immunotherapy (SIT) is the unique causal treatment for allergy, but its use is quite limited. A perspective, cross-sectional telephone interview survey was carried out in Italy to evaluate the characteristics of 500 patients with allergic rhinitis (250 of whom treated with SIT). Relevant differences were found concerning therapeutic management of allergic rhinitis, mainly regarding the use of drugs and co-morbidities. The allergist is the most important consultant who prescribes SIT. This study therefore provides evidence that the course of allergic rhinitis may depend on the therapy prescribed by and the level of allergy awareness of the physician