From historical documents to digital resources for the territorial interpretation: the French Cadastre of Valdieri and Andonno

Lo studio sui catasti ottocenteschi per masse di coltura di Valdieri e Andonno si inserisce all’interno del progetto “Conoscenza del patrimonio culturale: identità nella diversità”, e mira a delineare strumenti a supporto di una corretta tutela e valorizzazione territoriale in un’ottica, anche, di comparabilità transfrontaliera. L’analisi si inserisce nel contesto del Piano Integrato Transfrontaliero (PIT) “Marittime Mercantour” che è costituito da sei progetti di cooperazione transfrontalieri singoli capofilati dal Parco Naturale delle Alpi Marittime e dal Parco Nazionale del Mercantour. SiTI sviluppa, come partner di progetto, alcune azioni relative a diverse tematiche principali. La trasposizione dei documenti storici in metafonte, ovvero in fonti storiche digitalizzate associate ad apparati strutturati, li trasforma in risorse in grado di sviluppare analisi diacroniche per lo studio e la valorizzazione del territorio. In assenza di registri o matrici, il lavoro è stato focalizzato direttamente sulle due mappe catastali, opportunamente trasposte in fonti digitali, i cui dati sono stati raccolti in una base di dati multi tabellare realizzata tenendo conto dei lessici storici e attuali. Parallelamente è stato condotto un lavoro critico e interpretativo di riconoscimento degli elementi vettoriali rappresentativi del territorio e geograficamente definiti all’interno di un GIS (Geographical Information System); in particolare: il reticolo di riferimento, le sezioni, le acque, le strade e i sentieri, gli insediamenti, gli edifici e gli spazi di pertinenza ed, infine, le particelle. A partire dalle fonti storiche e dalla loro elaborazione all’interno di un GIS, la presente ricerca ha permesso di definire un ottimo strumento di lettura territoriale a supporto di future azioni di tutela e valorizzazione del territorio e delle persistenze storiche ben attestate dai documenti.The research about the nineteenth century cadastre, of Valdieri and Andonno, done for type of cultivation, is part of the project “Knowledge of the cultural heritage: identity in the diversity”, and aims to define instruments to support a correct conservation and enhancement of the territory in the perspective of a cross-border comparison. This study is part of the project called PIT, (Projets Intégrés Transfrontaliers), “Marittime Mercantour” that consists of six individual cross-border cooperation projects lead by two Parks, the Alpi Marittime Natural Park and the Mercantour National Park. SiTI (Higher Institute for Territorial Systems and Innovation) develops, as project partner, several actions concerning different and significant subjects. The transformation of the historical documents in a digital source, or in digitized historical sources associated with structured devices, becomes a resource that allows us to develop diachronic analysis for the study and the valorization of the territory. Without registers, the study of the source is focalized exclusively on the two Maps, transposed into a digital source, in which data were collected in a multi-table database realized with particular care for the historical and current words; meanwhile, the vector elements which characterize the territory were identified with a critical operation and geographically localized into a GIS (Geographical Information System); in particular: reference grid, sections, water, roots, settlements, buildings and courtyards and particles. At the end, thanks to the historical resources associated with a GIS, the present research has allowed to define an effective tool for the analysis of the territory to support actions of protection and enhancement of historical buildings, well attested by the documents

Assessment of myocardial sympathetic innervation by PET in patients with heart failure: a review of the most recent advances and future perspectives

Life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias (VA) are a major cause of death in patients with congestive heart failure (HF). Among various factors, the sympathetic nervous system may give rise to VA in several pathophysiological pathways due to an impaired function of presynaptic sympathetic nerve terminals. Positron emission tomography (PET) with labeled catecholamine analogues represents a reliable tool to assess the sympathetic innervation activity. This review aims at summarising the most relevant and recent literature findings on the current role of PET in the evaluation of cardiac sympathetic activity in patients with heart failure. A comprehensive literature search strategy using PubMed databases was carried out looking for articles on the role of Positron emission tomography/Computed Tomography (PET/CT) in the assessment of myocardial sympathetic innervation in patients with heart failure. The literature search limited to the last 5 years retrieved 40 papers. Most of the papers dealt with PET studies with 11C-HED. 19 pre-clinical, first-in-human and clinical studies highlighting the current role of PET and future perspectives resulted eligible for inclusion in the present review. The assessment of myocardial sympathetic activity in patients with heart failure with PET will play a pivotal role in clinical practice. Its capability to predict the occurrence of life-threatening VA and the effectiveness of resynchronization therapy makes this technique ideal in the era of personalized medicine

Moderately Escalated Hypofractionated (Chemo) Radiotherapy Delivered with Helical Intensity-Modulated Technique in Stage III Unresectable Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Purpose: To assess clinical outcomes and toxicities in patients with stage III unresectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with a moderately escalated hypofractionated radiotherapy delivered with Helical Intensity-Modulated Technique in combination with sequential or concurrent chemotherapy. Materials and Methods: Sixty-one consecutive patients considered non-progressive after two cycles of induction chemotherapy were treated with a moderately escalated hypofractionated radiation course of 30 daily fractions of 2.25–2.28 Gy each administered in 6 weeks up to a total dose of 67.5–68.4 Gy (range, 64.5–71.3 Gy). Thirty-two received sequential RT after two more cycles (total = 4 cycles) of chemotherapy, while 29 were treated with concurrent chemo-radiation. The target was considered the gross tumor volume and the clinically proven nodal regions, without elective nodal irradiation. Results: With a median follow up of 27 months (range 6–40), 1-year and 2-year OS rate for all patients was 77 and 53%, respectively, with a median survival duration of 18.6 months in the sequential group and 24.1 months in the concomitant group. No Grade ≥4 acute and late toxicity was reported. Acute Grade 3 treatment-related pneumonitis was detected in 10% of patients. Two patients, both receiving the concurrent schedule, developed a Grade 3 acute esophagitis. The overall incidence of late Grade 3 lung toxicity was 5%. No patients experienced a Grade 3 late esophageal toxicity. Conclusion: A moderately hypofractionated radiation course delivered with a Helical Intensity-Modulated Technique is a feasible treatment option for patients with unresectable locally advanced NSCLC receiving chemotherapy (sequentially or concurrently). Hypofractionated radiotherapy with a dedicated technique allows safely dose escalation, minimizing the effect of tumor repopulation that may occur with prolonged treatment time

Challenges and controversies in the proposal of a mandatory policy of Open Access (OA) in Brazil

Orientador: Léa Maria Leme Strini VelhoDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de GeociênciasResumo: Esta pesquisa insere-se nos estudos sociais da construção social da tecnologia e, em especial, naqueles dedicados à análise das controvérsias que envolvem questões ligadas à ciência e à tecnologia. No caso em questão, as controvérsias referem-se à tentativa de estabelecer no Brasil uma política nacional (PL 1.120/2007 e PLS 387/2011) que estabelece a criação de repositórios digitais, bem como a disponibilização em Acesso Aberto (AA) dos resultados de pesquisa contidos na produção científica realizada com recursos públicos. Os Projetos de Lei se enquadram no que ficou conhecido como política mandatária, por se tratar de um tipo de proposição que estabelece obrigatoriedades, ao invés de apenas sugerir ou orientar ações. E, por esta razão, tem sido considerada mais eficiente em fazer avançar mudanças na infraestrutura da comunicação científica em direção ao AA, que, do contrário, poderiam levar muito mais tempo ou nunca virem a ocorrer em virtude da diversidade de atores e interesses que compõem esse campo. A coleta de dados se deu através do (a) levantamento bibliográfico e documental relativo à tramitação legislativa de ambos os Projetos de Lei, tais como: pareceres dos relatores das comissões, propostas de emendas, atas de reuniões, publicações do Diário oficial da Câmara dos Deputados e do Senado etc. e (b) entrevistas. Observou-se que durante a tramitação legislativa as proposições mobilizaram atores relevantes tanto a favor quanto contrários à política mandatória, revelando uma disputa de interesses entre instituições governamentais e modelos de difusão científica, já, estabilizados no país e, trazendo à tona um antigo dilema no campo da comunicação científica, qual seja o da apropriação privada versus disponibilização pública do conhecimento. Neste sentido, o estudo possibilitou desvelar considerações políticas que não estavam imediatamente aparentes e, aferir que, assim como as formas de produção científica, o modelo de sua difusão não é histórica nem socialmente neutroAbstract: This research subscribes to the social studies of the social construction of technology (SCOT), and especially those dedicateds to the analysis of controversies involving issues related to science and technology. The research address the controversies surrounding the attempt to establish in Brazil a national policy (PL 1.120 / 2007 and PLS 387/2011) for the creation of digital repositories of scientific publications, as well as the availability in Open Access (OA). The bills falls within what is known as mandatory policy because it is proposition that establishes compulsory rather than merely recommended or guiding actions. The former has been considered more efficient to advance changes in the infrastructure of scientific communication toward OA, which could otherwise take longer or never occur due to the diversity of actors and interests involved in the decision. Data collection consisted of bibliographical and documentary survey on the legislative process of both bills, such as: opinions of committee rapporteurs, proposed amendments, minutes of meetings, publications of the Official Gazette of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate etc. And (b) interviews. It was observed that during the legislative process the proposals mobilized relevant actors both in favor and against the mandatory policy, revealing a dispute of interests between governmental institutions and models of scientific diffusion. Such confronting positions had already been visible and well know in the country and can be summed up into an old dilemma in the field of scientific communication: private appropriation versus public availability of knowledge. The study made it possible to uncover political considerations that were not immediately apparent and to provide further evidence to the SCOT assumption that, like the forms of scientific production, the model of its diffusion is neither historically nor socially neutralMestradoPolitica Cientifica e TecnologicaMestra em Política Científica e TecnológicaCAPE

A Comparative Evaluation of Deep Learning Techniques for Photovoltaic Panel Detection From Aerial Images

Solar energy production has significantly increased in recent years in the European Union (EU), accounting for 12% of the total in 2022. The growth in solar energy production can be attributed to the increasing adoption of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, which have become cost-effective and efficient means of energy production, supported by government policies and incentives. The maturity of solar technologies has also led to a decrease in the cost of solar energy, making it more competitive with other energy sources. As a result, there is a growing need for efficient methods for detecting and mapping the locations of PV panels. Automated detection can in fact save time and resources compared to manual inspection. Moreover, the resulting information can also be used by governments, environmental agencies and other companies to track the adoption of renewable sources or to optimize energy distribution across the grid. However, building effective models to support the automated detection and mapping of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels presents several challenges, including the availability of high-resolution aerial imagery and high-quality, manually-verified labels and annotations. In this study, we address these challenges by first constructing a dataset of PV panels using very-high-resolution (VHR) aerial imagery, specifically focusing on the region of Piedmont in Italy. The dataset comprises 105 large-scale images, providing more than 9,000 accurate and detailed manual annotations, including additional attributes such as the PV panel category. We first conduct a comprehensive evaluation benchmark on the newly constructed dataset, adopting various well-established deep-learning techniques. Specifically, we experiment with instance and semantic segmentation approaches, such as Rotated Faster RCNN and Unet, comparing strengths and weaknesses on the task at hand. Second, we apply ad-hoc modifications to address the specific issues of this task, such as the wide range of scales of the installations and the sparsity of the annotations, considerably improving upon the baseline results. Last, we introduce a robust and efficient post-processing polygonization algorithm that is tailored to PV panels. This algorithm converts the rough raster predictions into cleaner and more precise polygons for practical use. Our benchmark evaluation shows that both semantic and instance segmentation techniques can be effective for detecting and mapping PV panels. Instance segmentation techniques are well-suited for estimating the localization of panels, while semantic solutions excel at surface delineation. We also demonstrate the effectiveness of our ad-hoc solutions and post-processing algorithm, which can provide an improvement up to +10% on the final scores, and can accurately convert coarse raster predictions into usable polygons

Neurobehavioral and neurochemical effects in rats offspring co-exposed to arsenic and fluoride during development

Arsenic (iAs) and fluoride (F) are ubiquitous in the environment. All over the world, in many countries, thousands of people are suffering from the toxic effects of arsenicals ad fluorides. These two elements are recognized worldwide as the most serious inorganic contaminants in drinking water. When two different types of toxicants are simultaneously going inside the human body they may function independently or can act as synergistic or antagonistic to one another. Although there have been reports in literature of individual toxicity of iAs and F, however, not much is known about the effects following the combined exposure to the toxicants above mentioned. In this work, we investigated the effect of the co-exposure to low levels of iAs/F through drinking water during pregnancy and lactation on central nervous system functionality in the exposed rats offspring. Wistar rats were exposed to one of these solutions: 0.05 mg/L iAs and 5 mg/L F (Concentration A) or 0.10 mg/L iAs and 10 mg/L F (Concentration B) from gestational day 0 up to post-gestational day 21. Sensory-motor reflexes a Functional Observational Battery and the locomotor activity in an open field were assessed in offspring. Additionally, the transaminases, acethylcholinesterase and catalase levels in the striatum were determined to elucidate the possible molecular mechanisms involved in locomotor and neurobehavioral disorders. The results showed that iAs/F exposition during development produces a delay reach the maturity of sensorimotor reflexes. A decrease in the nociceptive reflex response, and increase in the locomotor activity in adult rats offspring were observed. The increase in oxidative stress, the inhibition of transaminases enzymes and the inhibition of AChE in the striatum may partially regulate all the neurobehavioral disorders observed.Fil: Dominguez, Sergio Ariel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Lencinas, Ileana Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Bartos, Mariana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Gallegos, Cristina Eugenia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Bras, Cristina Liliana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Monaco, Nina María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Minetti, Silvia Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Gumilar, Fernanda Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; Argentin

Coinoculation of soybean plants with Bradyrhizobium japonicum and Trichoderma harzianum: Coexistence of both microbes and relief of nitrate inhibition of nodulation

Coinoculation of plants with mixtures of beneficial microbes sometimes produces synergistic effects. In this study, the effect of soybean coinoculation with the N2-fixing Bradyrhizobium japonicum E109 and the biocontrol fungus Trichoderma harzianum Th5cc was analyzed. Nodulation by E109 was not hampered by Th5cc, which antagonized five out of seven soybean pathogens tested. Furthermore, Th5cc relieved nitrate-inhibition of nodulation, enabling the formation of nodules containing infected cells with bacteroids in the presence of the otherwise inhibitory 10 mM KNO3. Th5cc released micromolar amounts of auxin, and addition of 11 mM indoleacetic acid to soybean plants inoculated with E109 in the absence of Th5cc also induced nodulation in the presence of 10 mM KNO3. Thus, Th5cc may release auxins into the soybean rhizosphere, which hormones might participate in overcoming the nitrate-inhibition of nodulation. Our results suggest that soybean plants coinoculated with these microorganisms might benefit from biocontrol while contributing to soil-nitrogen preservation.Fil: Iturralde, Esteban Tomás. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Stocco, Marina Celeste. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestales. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas. Centro de Investigaciones de Fitopatología. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones de Fitopatología; ArgentinaFil: Faura, Andrés. Rizobacter Argentina S.A.; ArgentinaFil: Monaco, Cecilia Ines. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestales. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas. Centro de Investigaciones de Fitopatología. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones de Fitopatología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Cordo, Cristina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestales. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas; Argentina. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas; ArgentinaFil: Pérez Giménez, Julieta. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Lodeiro, Anibal. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestales. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas. Laboratorio de Genética; Argentin

Statin-associated necrotizing autoimmune myopathy with concurrent myasthenia gravis

Statin treatment has been associated with necrotizing autoimmune myopathy and has been linked to myasthenia gravis. We present an unprecedented clinical challenge with both disorders occurring in a patient treated with statins few months earlier