The new Italian climatic data and their effect in the calculation of the energy performance of buildings

Reference climatic data have been available since the early 90s in order to ensure uniformity of assessment and repeatability of energy performance calculations: they include monthly means of meteorological elements, as reported in national standards. Other climatic data were provided by ENEA for the period 1995-1999. More recently, new test reference years, representing the basis of UNI 10349 update, were made available by CTI. Some discrepancies between the old and the new sets of data appear. For some reference NZEBs, this paper presents the analysis of the effects of the climatic data on the calculation of energy performance of buildings

745-4 Sudden “Arrhythmic” Death in Young People with Apparently Normal Heart

The aim of the present study was to assess whether and how often the ultimate diagnosis of structural heart disease underlying sudden cardiac arrest depends on histologic examination of the myocardium and specialized conduction system. Among 186 cases of consecutive sudden cardiovascular death in young people (≤35 yrs) studied from 1979 to 1994, in 59 (32%) gross examination failed to show any cardiac cause of sudden death such as obstructive coronary atherosclerosis, congenital coronary anomaly, cardiomyopathy, valve disease and aortic dissection. The grossly normal heart group consisted of 40 males and 19 females, aged 4–35 yrs (mean 23.7); 27 patients experienced warning symptoms and signs consisting of syncope in 12, ECG abnormalities in 16, and arrhythmias in 11. None had been diagnosed while alive. Detailed histologic study, including examination of ordinary ventricular myocardium as well as serial sections of specialized conduction system, disclosed: 1)focal myocarditis in 17 patients; 2) conduction system abnormalities leading to heart block in 6 patients (sick sinus syndrome in 1, lipomatous discontinuity between the atrial myocardium and the atrioventricular node in 2, sclerotic interruption of His and bundle branches in 2, and longitudinal dissociation of the His bundle in 1). and to ventricular pre-excitation in 15 (atrioventricular by-pass fibers in 9, nodoventricular Mahaim fibers in 4, atriofascicular tract in 1, AV nodal hypoplasia in 1); 3) focal fibrousfatty replacement of the right anterior wall and infundibulum in 5 patients. Sudden death remained unexplained in 16 cases. In conclusion, gross heart features were normal in nearly one third of the young sudden cardiovascular death victims; in 73% of them, however, there was histopathologic evidence of concealed “arrhythmogenic” substrates mostly consisting of conduction system pathology and focal myocarditis

Verification of the new Ministerial Decree about minimum requirements for the energy performance of buildings

The Italian Ministerial Decree 26/06/2015 specifies the requirements of nearly zero-energy buildings (nZEBs) and demands that the energy performance of the new building is compared with that of a reference or target building, which has the same location, function, size, but reference insulation level and technical systems efficiencies. The research aims both to investigate the technical feasibility of design solutions complying with the legislative requirements and to verify the reference building approach. The analysis is applied to a residential building in three Italian climatic zones. The calculations are conducted by means of quasi-steady (UNI/TS 11300) and dynamic (Energy Plus) methods

What Is the Value of Extrinsic Olive Oil Cues in Emerging Markets? Empirical Evidence from the U.S. E-Commerce Retail Market

Olive oil consumption in the United States has more than tripled over the past two decades and imports have grown considerably, in particular from Mediterranean countries. This is due to the spread of the Mediterranean diet and increasing consumer awareness about the health benefits of olive oil. We investigated the role of the main extrinsic quality cues (size of container, product category, organic certification, geographical indications, country of origin, and brand) in affecting the price of olive oil sold in the U.S. e-commerce retail market. Using data from amazon.com, the leading e-retailer in the United States, a hedonic price model was estimated. Results show that all the considered extrinsic quality cues have a significant impact on the price of olive oil, with interesting implications for both practitioners and policy makers. [EconLit citations: Q110; Q130; Q170]

How to evaluate premature ventricular beats in the athlete: critical review and proposal of a diagnostic algorithm

Although premature ventricular beats (PVBs) in young people and athletes are usually benign, they may rarely mark underlying heart disease and risk of sudden cardiac death during sport. This review addresses the prevalence, clinical meaning and diagnostic/prognostic assessment of PVBs in the athlete. The article focuses on the characteristics of PVBs, such as the morphological pattern of the ectopic QRS and the response to exercise, which accurately stratify risk. We propose an algorithm to help the sport and exercise physician manage the athlete with PVBs. We also address (1) which athletes need more indepth investigation, including cardiac MRI to exclude an underlying pathological myocardial substrate, and (2) which athletes can remain eligible to competitive sports and who needs to be excluded

Reply

Section 1 of 1996 CGIAR Annual Report. Section contains "What is the CGIAR" and the table of contents

Incisal apical root resorption evaluation after low-friction orthodontic treatment using two-dimensional radiographic imaging and trigonometric correction

BACKGROUND: Root resorption shall be taken into consideration during every orthodontic treatment, and it can be effected by the use of different techniques, such as the application of low friction mechanics. However, its routinely assessment on orthopantomography has limitations related to distortions and changes in dental inclination. AIM: The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the severity of apical root resorption of maxillary and mandibular incisors after low-friction orthodontic treatment, using the combination of panoramic and lateral radiographs, and applying a trigonometric correction. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: A hospital based Retrospective study at the orthodontic Department (Dental School, University of Brescia, Spedali Civili di Brescia, Brescia, Italy). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ninety-three subjects (53 females and 40 males; mean age, 14 years) with mild teeth crowding were treated without extractions by the same operator using a low-friction fixed appliance following an integrated straight wire (ISW) protocol. The pre- and post-treatment tooth lengths of the maxillary and mandibular incisors were measured on panoramic radiographs. A trigonometric factor of correction for the pre-treatment length was calculated based on the difference between the pre and post-treatment incisal inclination on lateral cephalograms. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The changes in lengths were investigated using the Student's t-test for paired values (p<0.05). RESULTS: Maxillary central incisors showed no changes (0.3%, 0.6%), maxillary lateral incisors showed a small increase (1.4%, 1.8%) that was attributed to the completion of root development in younger patients, mandibular central and lateral incisors underwent slight resorption (-3.1%, -3.4%). A statistically significant difference was found for the mandibular incisors but not for the maxillary ones. CONCLUSION: In patients with mild crowding and consequent low amount of root movement, a low-friction orthodontic treatment can lead to slight apical root resorption, mainly involving lower incisors. The use of a trigonometric correction in the panoramic radiograph analysis may reduce the limitations of this 2D evaluation

Les sanctuaires urbains de Crotone dans la tradition littéraire et les sources antiquaires

La tradition antiquaire crotoniate connaît un tournant au milieu du XVIIe siècle avec l’œuvre de Giovan Battista di Nola Molisi, Cronica dell’Antichissima, e Nobilissima città di Crotone e della Magna Grecia, imprimée à Naples en 1649. L’origine des informations est inconnue lorsque l’auteur ne se réfère pas explicitement aux sources classiques, en dépit de son affirmation d’avoir tiré ses informations d’un texte en latin de 1523, œuvre de Camillo Lucifero, qu’il dit avoir perdu après l’avoir..

sudden cardiac death in young people and athletes

The sudden death of a young subject or athlete is a rare but tragic event. The most common mechanism of cardiac arrest leading to sudden death is abrupt ventricular fibrillation as a consequence of an underlying cardiovascular disease. The culprit diseases are often clinically silent and unlikely to be suspected or diagnosed on the basis of spontaneous symptoms. The longrunning Italian experience with medical evaluation of young individuals before their participation in sports has provided compelling evidence that screening the young populations for at-risk cardiac diseases offers the potential to identify asymptomatic athletes who have potentially lethal cardiovascular abnormalities and may protect them from the risk of sudden death. In this review we will discuss cardiovascular causes of sudden death in young people and athletes with particular emphasis on pathological findings and pathophysiology of sudden cardiac arrest. Occurrence of prodromal symptoms, possible early diagnosis at preparticipation screening and early defibrillation in the sports arenas will also be addressed