The litter bag technique for studying detritus decomposition in aquatic ecosystems. A case study in the South of Italy, (Lake Alimini)

EnLeaf litter decomposition rates in aquatic ecosystems are known to be related to many different abiotic and biotic factors.A comparative analysis of inter and intra-habitat variations of detritus decay rates across ecosystem types was carried out in the Alimini lake complex (Italy)to assess the relevance of major ecosystem features to detritus processing rates.Overall,the spatial variability of leaf decomposition rates was more pronounced than temporal variability,decomposition rates in the stream being 3.6 and 5.2 times faster than in the freshwater lake and saltmarsh,respectively.Overall,environmental features were relevant factors affecting intra-and inter-habitat variation of reed decay rates

Inter-ActiveHouse: users-driven building performances for Nearly Zero Energy Buildings in Mediterranean climates

Building simulations rely on fixed assumptions and mathematical models to describe a specific building scenario, overlooking the building occupants’ component. Almost 40% of in-home energy use is due occupants interacts with the building systems. The goal of this paper is to understand the magnitude of the performance gap when applied to two case studies in a Mediterranean climate. A set of scenarios are simulated assuming both a typical building usage and possible variations given by the users’ interactions with shading, ventilation and cooling systems. Results show that the magnitude of the effects with a negative impact is bigger if compared to actions that might have a positive influence, this means that simulated results with standard usage assumptions are not an average of the possible effects but they reflect an optimistic outcome given by the optimal equipment usage

Variation of leaf litter decomposition among rivers, lagoons and sea: an experiment from Corfu island (Greece)

In aquatic ecosystems, the decomposition of organic detritus represents one of the most important ecosystem functions, which support complex detritus-based food webs that determine the critical balance between carbon mineralization and sequestration. The performance of the decomposition process is usually expressed as rate of decomposition, being a synthetic measure that take into account both abiotic and biotic factors. Decomposition rates have been also applied to evaluate the ecological status in terms of ecological functionality. However, despite a growing number of studies have tested the rate of decomposition between leaves of different riparian tree species in different aquatic ecosystems including rivers, transitional waters and sea, no comparative study among ecosystems typology is available up to date. Here, we compare decomposition rates from rivers, lagoons and sea of Corfu island (Greece). Five sampling sites were fixed in each of the three of the most important rivers and lagoons; other five sampling sites were fixed in the sea around the island. Twelve leaf packs containing 3±0.005 g of oven-dried Phragmites australis leaves were submerged in April 2014 and retrieved in May 2014 (after 30 days). Abiotic parameters were recorded in both sampling times. The retrieved leaf packs were cleaned and the macroinvertebrates retained were removed, counted, identified at lower taxonomic level and weighted. Leaf pack decomposition rates were calculated, and their variability was compared within each aquatic ecosystem, within each ecosystem typology (river, lagoon, sea) and among ecosystem typology. The results are going to be presented on the poster

Incidence and Predictors of Infections and All-Cause Death in Patients with Cardiac Implantable Electronic Devices: The Italian Nationwide RI-AIAC Registry

The incidence of infections associated with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) and patient outcomes are not fully known. To provide a contemporary assessment of the risk of CIEDs infection and associated clinical outcomes. In Italy, 18 centres enrolled all consecutive patients undergoing a CIED procedure and entered a 12-months follow-up. CIED infections, as well as a composite clinical event of infection or all-cause death were recorded. A total of 2675 patients (64.3% male, age 78 (70-84)) were enrolled. During follow up 28 (1.1%) CIED infections and 132 (5%) deaths, with 152 (5.7%) composite clinical events were observed. At a multivariate analysis, the type of procedure (revision/upgrading/reimplantation) (OR: 4.08, 95% CI: 1.38-12.08) and diabetes (OR: 2.22, 95% CI: 1.02-4.84) were found as main clinical factors associated to CIED infection. Both the PADIT score and the RI-AIAC Infection score were significantly associated with CIED infections, with the RI-AIAC infection score showing the strongest association (OR: 2.38, 95% CI: 1.60-3.55 for each point), with a c-index = 0.64 (0.52-0.75), p = 0.015. Regarding the occurrence of composite clinical events, the Kolek score, the Shariff score and the RI-AIAC Event score all predicted the outcome, with an AUC for the RI-AIAC Event score equal to 0.67 (0.63-0.71) p < 0.001. In this Italian nationwide cohort of patients, while the incidence of CIED infections was substantially low, the rate of the composite clinical outcome of infection or all-cause death was quite high and associated with several clinical factors depicting a more impaired clinical status

The commissioning of the CUORE experiment: the mini-tower run

CUORE is a ton-scale experiment approaching the data taking phase in Gran Sasso National Laboratory. Its primary goal is to search for the neutrinoless double-beta decay in 130Te using 988 crystals of tellurim dioxide. The crystals are operated as bolometers at about 10 mK taking advantage of one of the largest dilution cryostat ever built. Concluded in March 2016, the cryostat commissioning consisted in a sequence of cool down runs each one integrating new parts of the apparatus. The last run was performed with the fully configured cryostat and the thermal load at 4 K reached the impressive mass of about 14 tons. During that run the base temperature of 6.3 mK was reached and maintained for more than 70 days. An array of 8 crystals, called mini-tower, was used to check bolometers operation, readout electronics and DAQ. Results will be presented in terms of cooling power, electronic noise, energy resolution and preliminary background measurements

Results from the Cuore Experiment

The Cryogenic Underground Observatory for Rare Events (CUORE) is the first bolometric experiment searching for neutrinoless double beta decay that has been able to reach the 1-ton scale. The detector consists of an array of 988 TeO2 crystals arranged in a cylindrical compact structure of 19 towers, each of them made of 52 crystals. The construction of the experiment was completed in August 2016 and the data taking started in spring 2017 after a period of commissioning and tests. In this work we present the neutrinoless double beta decay results of CUORE from examining a total TeO2 exposure of 86.3kg yr, characterized by an effective energy resolution of 7.7 keV FWHM and a background in the region of interest of 0.014 counts/ (keV kg yr). In this physics run, CUORE placed a lower limit on the decay half- life of neutrinoless double beta decay of 130Te > 1.3.1025 yr (90% C. L.). Moreover, an analysis of the background of the experiment is presented as well as the measurement of the 130Te 2vo3p decay with a resulting half- life of T2 2. [7.9 :- 0.1 (stat.) :- 0.2 (syst.)] x 10(20) yr which is the most precise measurement of the half- life and compatible with previous results

IL NUOVO ORDINE EUROPEO DURANTE IL SECONDO CONFLITTO MONDIALE DAI FASCISMI AL COLLABORAZIONISMO

Con la fine della Prima guerra mondiale si aprì un nuovo scenario in Europa. I paesi europei dovettero affrontare difficoltà economiche, sociali e politiche, dando spesso spazio a regimi autoritari o tendenzialmente tali. Il fascismo e i suoi ideali, quali l'antiparlamentarismo, l'antipartitismo, l'antibolscevismo, il militarismo, il corporativismo e altri, furono accolti benevolmente nei vari paesi europei dando vita ad una Nuova Europa, capace di supportare, durante il conflitto, gli ideali più radicali del nazionalsocialismo tedesco. Fino al 1942, ovvero fino a quando le sorti del conflitto sembravano essere favorevoli all'Asse, l'Europa appoggiò il Fuhrer e la sua politica. Quando, invece, la situazione bellica peggiorò, iniziò a crollare tutto il sistema di alleanze attorno alla Germania. Se ciò accadde fu per un mancato progetto politico tedesco, che troppo spesso sintetizzava solamente una politica di sfruttamento senza badare alle richieste alleate

The litter bag technique for studying detritus decomposition in aquatic ecosystems. A case study in the South of Italy, (Lake Alimini)

EnLeaf litter decomposition rates in aquatic ecosystems are known to be related to many different abiotic and biotic factors.A comparative analysis of inter and intra-habitat variations of detritus decay rates across ecosystem types was carried out in the Alimini lake complex (Italy)to assess the relevance of major ecosystem features to detritus processing rates.Overall,the spatial variability of leaf decomposition rates was more pronounced than temporal variability,decomposition rates in the stream being 3.6 and 5.2 times faster than in the freshwater lake and saltmarsh,respectively.Overall,environmental features were relevant factors affecting intra-and inter-habitat variation of reed decay rates

Inter- and intra-habitat variability of plant detritus decomposition in a transitional environment (Lake Alimini, Adriatic Sea)

A comparative analysis of inter- and intra-habitat variations of detritus decay rates across ecosystem types was carried out in the Lake Alimini complex (Italy) to assess the relevance of major structural ecosystem features on detritus processing rates. Reed (Phragmites australis) detritus decomposition was studied in a stream, a freshwater lake and a salt marsh on a seasonal basis at a total of 20 sampling stations using the leaf pack technique. Overall, the spatial variability of leaf decomposition rates was more pronounced than the temporal variability, decomposition rates in the stream being 3.6 and 5.2 times faster than in the freshwater lake and salt marsh, respectively. The intra-habitat spatial variability of leaf decay rates in the stream was also higher than in the other systems. Environmental features were relevant factors affecting intra- and inter-habitat variation of reed decay rates, and their relevance to leaf detritus decomposition showed a strong seasonal variation