A development cooperation Erasmus Mundus partnership for capacity building in earthquake mitigation science and higher education

Successful practices have shown that a community’s capacity to manage and reduce its seismic risk relies on capitalization on policies, on technology and research results. An important role is played by education, than contribute to strengthening technical curricula of future practitioners and researchers through university and higher education programs. EUNICE is a European Commission funded higher education partnership for international development cooperation with the objective to build capacity of individuals who will operate at institutions located in seismic prone Asian Countries. The project involves five European Universities, eight Asian universities and four associations and NGOs active in advanced research on seismic mitigation, disaster risk management and international development. The project consists of a comprehensive mobility scheme open to nationals from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, North Korea, Philippines, and Sri Lanka who plan to enroll in school or conduct research at one of five European partner universities in Italy, Greece and Portugal. During the 2010-14 time span a total number of 104 mobilities are being involved in scientific activities at the undergraduate, masters, PhD, postdoctoral and academic-staff exchange levels. Researchers, future policymakers and practitioners build up their curricula over a range of disciplines in the fields of earthquake engineering, seismology, disaster risk management and urban planning

EU-NICE, Eurasian University Network for International Cooperation in Earthquakes

Despite the remarkable scientific advancements of earthquake engineering and seismology in many countries, seismic risk is still growing at a high rate in the world’s most vulnerable communities. Successful practices have shown that a community’s capacity to manage and reduce its seismic risk relies on capitalization on policies, on technology and research results. An important role is played by education, than contribute to strengthening technical curricula of future practitioners and researchers through university and higher education programmes. In recent years an increasing number of initiatives have been launched in this field at the international and global cooperation level. Cooperative international academic research and training is key to reducing the gap between advanced and more vulnerable regions. EU-NICE is a European Commission funded higher education partnership for international development cooperation with the objective to build capacity of individuals who will operate at institutions located in seismic prone Asian Countries. The project involves five European Universities, eight Asian universities and four associations and NGOs active in advanced research on seismic mitigation, disaster risk management and international development. The project consists of a comprehensive mobility scheme open to nationals from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, North Korea, Philippines, and Sri Lanka who plan to enrol in school or conduct research at one of five European partner universities in Italy, Greece and Portugal. During the 2010-14 time span a total number of 104 mobilities are being involved in scientific activities at the undergraduate, masters, PhD, postdoctoral and academic-staff exchange levels. This high number of mobilities and activities is selected and designed so as to produce an overall increase of knowledge that can result in an impact on earthquake mitigation. Researchers, future policymakers and practitioners build up their curricula over a range of disciplines in the fields of engineering, seismology, disaster risk management and urban planning. Specific educational and research activities focus on earthquake risk mitigation related topics such as: anti-seismic structural design, structural engineering, advanced computer structural collapse analysis, seismology, experimental laboratory studies, international and development issues in disaster risk management, social-economical impact studies, international relations and conflict resolution

Seismic assessment of a heavy-timber frame structure with ring-doweled moment-resisting connections

The performance of heavy-timber structures in earthquakes depends strongly on the inelastic behavior of the mechanical connections. Nevertheless, the nonlinear behavior of timber structures is only considered in the design phase indirectly through the use of an R-factor or a q-factor, which reduces the seismic elastic response spectrum. To improve the estimation of this, the seismic performance of a three-story building designed with ring-doweled moment resisting connections is analyzed here. Connections and members were designed to fulfill the seismic detailing requirements present in Eurocode 5 and Eurocode 8 for high ductility class structures. The performance of the structure is evaluated through a probabilistic approach, which accounts for uncertainties in mechanical properties of members and connections. Nonlinear static analyses and multi-record incremental dynamic analyses were performed to characterize the q-factor and develop fragility curves for different damage levels. The results indicate that the detailing requirements of Eurocode 5 and Eurocode 8 are sufficient to achieve the required performance, even though they also indicate that these requirements may be optimized to achieve more cost-effective connections and members. From the obtained fragility curves, it was verified that neglecting modeling uncertainties may lead to overestimation of the collapse capacity

Il paziente con ipotiroidismo

Il capitolo rivolge l'attenzione alle patologie del distretto oro-cefalico del paziente pediatrico affetto da ipotiroidismo, offrendo indicazioni di diagnosi e terapia sulla base dell'esperienza clinica e delle evidenze presenti in letteratura

Rapid palatal expansion in patients with craniosynostosis: a case report.

The craniosynostoses represent a group of pathologies characterised by the premature fusion (during prenatal or perinatal stages or early infancy) of one or more of the cranial sutures. Its genetic origins are not completely clear although mutations in the genes that code for fibroblast growth factor receptors have been described; depending upon the gene involved, the type of mutation and the embryological period in which the mutation itself occurs, a type of craniosynostosis arises that may involve one or more cranial sutures. The premature fusion results in a lack of growth in the regions corresponding to the cranial vaults, with compensatory growth occurring in other regions and the consequent deformation of the skull. Here, a case report is presented of a Caucasian male child affected by craniostenosis of the sagittal suture with a orthodontic-orthopedic diagnosed ogival palate and insufficient space for the eruption of the superior canines. The patient was treated by fitting a rapid palatal protractor, an orthopedic device that acts upon the median palatine suture of the palate increasing the transverse diameter of the upper jaw and causes the widening and lowering of the floor of the nasal cavity. The results obtained were equivalent to those obtained in subjects with no past medical history of craniosynostosis. This clinical study demonstrated that the premature fusion of the mid-sagittal suture of the skull, that characterises sagittal craniosynostoses, can occur without the involvement of the median suture of the palate, rendering expansion possible by means of orthopedic treatment

Aicardi syndrome: a case report

Aicardi Syndrome is an X-linked autosomal recessive neurodegenerative encephalopathy. The diagnostic triad is composed by infantile spasms, agenesis of corpus callosum and chorioretinal lacunae. Additional common findings are: microencephaly, spasticity and severe mental delay. It affects only females because of early embryonic lethality in males. A significant number of females with Aicardi syndrome are of normal birth and develop normally until three months of age when infantile seizures begin. Psychomotor retardation is usually severe, neuromotor retardation is commonly present with lack of motor and language skills. Literature reports only few information about the dentofacial features of the syndrome. CASE REPORT: We present the case of a patient, by describing the dental and facial characteristics with focus on dental prevention in order to avoid dental pain and the risks connected to general anaesthesia, and ultimately for improving the quality of life

Lesioni dentali di origine traumatica in soggetti disabili in et\ue0 evolutiva.

I soggetti disabili rappresentano una categoria di pazienti ad elevato rischio di lesioni dentali di origine traumatica. Queste lesioni sono di frequente riscontro all\u2019anamnesi, sono potenziali responsabili di danno di tipo estetico e funzionale, comportano problematiche terapeutiche, in molti casi sono sottostimate, in altri hanno importanti ripercussioni psicologiche sulla famiglia. Fattori predisponenti locali di frequente riscontro sono patologie ortopedico-ortodontiche (in particolare aumento dell\u2019overjet), lesioni cariose, parodontopatie profonde. Fattori predisponenti sistemici sono handicap motori, ritardi mentali, epilessie, difetti visivi. Obiettivo di questa indagine epidemiologica \ue8 descrivere la gestione delle lesioni dentali di origine traumatica in pazienti disabili in et\ue0 pediatrica afferiti al Servizio di assistenza odontoiatrica per disabili dell\u2019Universit\ue0 di Bologna. Sono state esaminati i dati relativi a 283 pazienti disabili giunti ad osservazione in un periodo di due anni. L\u2018analisi dei dati evidenzia come le lesioni dentali presentino alcune specificit\ue0 rispetto alla restante popolazione.Per quanto concerne le terapie, sulla base di motivazioni etiche, le linee guida sono le stesse da utilizzare nella restante popolazione, con particolare attenzione agli elementi del settore frontale, in considerazione dell\u2019importanza dell\u2019estetica nel favorire l\u2019integrazione sociale di questi soggetti

il paziente con deficit di ormone della crescita

Il capitolo rivolge l'attenzione alle patologie del distretto oro-cefalico del paziente pediatrico affetto da deficit di GH, offrendo indicazioni di diagnosi e terapia sulla base dell'esperienza clinica e delle evidenze presenti in letteratura

Probabilistic seismic response sensitivity of nonlinear frame bending-shear and infill model parameters for an existing infilled reinforced concrete structure

The seismic performance of older infilled frame reinforced concrete structures is influenced by the interaction of different components and mechanisms and is highly sensitive to several modelling parameters. A probabilistic response sensitivity analysis is performed on a case study consisting of an infilled frame structure incorporating state-of the art models of most significant sources of nonlinear behaviour: 1) axial-moment interaction in the frame components, 2) cracking and crushing of infill panels, and 3) infill-frame interaction induced shear failure of columns. Nonlinear fiber section beam column elements are assembled with eccentric ASCE41/FEMA356 infill strut models, hysteretic shear models of captive columns based on EC8 shear strength, and are processed through pushover-based tornado analyses. Probabilistic sensitivity to material parameters at operation, damage, life safety and collapse limit states indicates that modelling parameters of infill and mass source have a key impact on the system response