showing 36 of ~574560 from 574555 documents
Seismic stratigraphy of the north-westernmost area of the Malta Plateau (Sicily Channel): The Middle Pleistocene-Holocene sedimentation in a tidally …
2022
In this study we present the results of a seismic-stratigraphic analysis of sub-bottom profiles in the north-westernmost area of the Malta Plateau in order to define the depositional mechanisms for the upper Quaternary sequences. During this interval the morphology of the Malta Plateau was characterized by a ramp and bathymetries not exceeding 200 m. Two major unconformities, related to MIS 6 and MIS 2 (the latter corresponding to the Last Glacial Maximum, LGM), characterize the upper Quaternary sequences. The geometries of the recognized seismic units indicate as depositional mechanisms were controlled by subsidence and sea-level fluctuations. In detail, deposits related to the last glacia…
Introduction: The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Agri-food Supply Chain
2022
The origin of the COVID-19 pandemic is still unclear, but the link with the presence in the food chain of wild animals for human consumption has been claimed as one of the possible sources of the so-called “spillover” of the virus. Food safety throughout the food chain, from field to fork, is one of the most critical issues of the food industry, and significant differences still exist from country to country concerning food production systems, postharvest management, trading, and retail organization. The effect of the pandemic has touched all steps of the food chain.
Evolutionary transition to the ectomycorrhizal habit in the genomes of a hyperdiverse lineage of mushroom‐forming fungi
2022
International audience; Summary The ectomycorrhizal (ECM) symbiosis has independently evolved from diverse types of saprotrophic ancestors. In this study, we seek to identify genomic signatures of the transition to the ECM habit within the hyper-diverse Russulaceae. We present comparative analyses of the genomic architecture and the total and secreted gene repertoires of 18 species across the order Russulales of which 13 are newly sequenced, including a representative of a saprotrophic member of Russulaceae, Gloeopeniophorella convolvens. The genomes of ECM Russulaceae are characterized by a loss of genes for plant cell-wall degrading enzymes (PCWDEs), an expansion of genome size through in…
Proton Direct Ionization in Sub-Micron Technologies: Numerical Method for RPP Parameter Extraction
2022
This work introduces a numerical method to iteratively extract parameters of a rectangular parallelepiped (RPP) sensitive volume (SV) from experimental proton direct ionization SEU data. The method combines two separate numerical models. The first model estimates the average LET values for energetic ions, including protons and also heavy ions, in elemental solid targets. The second model describes the statistical variance in the energy deposition events of projectile-induced primary ionization within a RPP shaped target volume. To benchmark the method, simulated cross-section values based on RPP parameters derived with this method are compared with literature data from four SRAM devices. Th…
COVID-19 Profit Warnings: Delivering Bad News in a Time of Crisis
2022
Abstract Profit warnings (large negative earnings surprises) are important corporate reporting documents for delivering bad news and a distinctive corporate communication genre. The 2020 COVID-19 exogenous shock provides a unique worldwide crisis context for company disclosure of bad news. The research develops a genre-based typology/analytical framework for assessing COVID-19 profit warnings’ quality comprising: (1) Four profit warning/forecast quality characteristics and (2) Eight profit warning/forecast disclosures. For a sample of 160 profit-warning documents, the research manually analyses their content, culminating in a disclosure quality score/index. The research tests a model of the…
Poor nutritional quality of primary producers and zooplankton driven by eutrophication is mitigated at upper trophic levels
2022
Eutrophication and rising water temperature in freshwaters may increase the total production of a lake while simultaneously reducing the nutritional quality of food web components. We evaluated how cyanobacteria blooms, driven by agricultural eutrophication (in eutrophic Lake Köyliöjärvi) or global warming (in mesotrophic Lake Pyhäjärvi), influence the biomass and structure of phytoplankton, zooplankton, and fish communities. In terms of the nutritional value of food web components, we evaluated changes in the ω-3 and ω-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) of phytoplankton and consumers at different trophic levels. Meanwhile, the lakes did not differ in their biomasses of phytoplankton, zoo…
Considerazioni sul problema della riqualificazione del paesaggio contemporaneo italiano
2022
Nel corso dell'ultimo secolo il paesaggio urbano ed extraurbano italiano ha subito una profonda trasformazione. Attraverso questo breve saggio si provano a rintracciare le ragioni di tale cambiamento, con lo scopo di indicare alcune possibili strategie di riqualificazione. Emerge in sostanza la necessità di riflettere sul perduto equilibrio tra città e campagna, a partire dal riconoscimento del “carattere essenziale” dei luoghi: condizione necessaria, quest’ultima, per la corretta pianificazione di nuove misure di intervento sempre più necessarie, oggi, anche per far fronte alle drammatiche mutazioni climatiche in corso.
How can I signal my quality to emerge from the crowd? A study in the crowdsourcing context
2022
Crowdsourcing contests are characterized by an intensive level of competition because of the extensive number of solvers that voluntarily self-select to participate in such contests. This study aims at understanding how solvers can signal their quality attributes through the community functionalities, i.e. the online profile and the discussion blog of the crowdsourcing platform, to improve their chances of winning crowdsourcing contests. Drawing on signaling theory, we hypothesize that signaling their skills and capabilities by crafting profiles rich in personal and professional information and by participating actively within the discussion blog by posting and commenting, solvers can influ…
Fast whole-brain imaging of seizures in zebrafish larvae by two-photon light-sheet microscopy
2022
Light-sheet fluorescence microscopy (LSFM) enables real-time whole-brain functional imaging in zebrafish larvae. Conventional one photon LSFM can however induce undesirable visual stimulation due to the use of visible excitation light. The use of two-photon (2P) excitation, employing near-infrared invisible light, provides unbiased investigation of neuronal circuit dynamics. However, due to the low efficiency of the 2P absorption process, the imaging speed of this technique is typically limited by the signal-to-noise-ratio. Here, we describe a 2P LSFM setup designed for non-invasive imaging that enables quintuplicating state-of-the-art volumetric acquisition rate of the larval zebrafish bra…
Toward hyper-realistic and interactive social VR experiences in live TV scenarios
2022
© 2022 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes,creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works. Social Virtual Reality (VR) allows multiple distributed users getting together in shared virtual environments to socially interact and/or collaborate. This article explores the applicability and potential of Social VR in the broadcast sector, focusing on a live TV show use case. For such a purpose, a novel and ligh…
Negative and positive feedback from a supernova remnant with SHREC
2022
Supernova remnants (SNRs) contribute to regulate the star formation efficiency and evolution of galaxies. As they expand into the interstellar medium (ISM), they transfer vast amounts of energy and momentum that displace, compress and heat the surrounding material. Despite the extensive work in galaxy evolution models, it remains to be observationally validated to what extent the molecular ISM is affected by the interaction with SNRs. We use the first results of the ESO-ARO Public Spectroscopic Survey SHREC, to investigate the shock interaction between the SNR IC443 and the nearby molecular clump G. We use high sensitivity SiO(2-1) and H$^{13}$CO$^+$(1-0) maps obtained by SHREC together wit…
Fibred-categorical obstruction theory
2022
Abstract We set up a fibred categorical theory of obstruction and classification of morphisms that specialises to the one of monoidal functors between categorical groups and also to the Schreier-Mac Lane theory of group extensions. Further applications are provided to crossed extensions and crossed bimodule butterflies, with in particular a classification of non-abelian extensions of unital associative algebras in terms of Hochschild cohomology.
DESIGN, SYNTHESIS AND ATOMIC/ELECTRONIC STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS OF HYBRID HALIDE PSEUDO-PEROVSKITES: PERSPECTIVES AND OPEN ISSUES FOR NOVEL THERMOELECTRI…
2022
Poly-l-Lactic Acid (PLLA)-Based Biomaterials for Regenerative Medicine: A Review on Processing and Applications
2022
Synthetic biopolymers are effective cues to replace damaged tissue in the tissue engineering (TE) field, both for in vitro and in vivo application. Among them, poly-l-lactic acid (PLLA) has been highlighted as a biomaterial with tunable mechanical properties and biodegradability that allows for the fabrication of porous scaffolds with different micro/nanostructures via various approaches. In this review, we discuss the structure of PLLA, its main properties, and the most recent advances in overcoming its hydrophobic, synthetic nature, which limits biological signaling and protein absorption. With this aim, PLLA-based scaffolds can be exposed to surface modification or combined with other bi…
The process of female borrower discouragement
2022
Recent entrepreneurial finance literature identifies ‘borrower discouragement’ as an important phenomenon explaining why female entrepreneurs hold less capital to grow their venture. But how do you become a discouraged borrower? We apply grounded theory to interviews with Tanzanian female entrepreneurs and model the process via which these entrepreneurs become discouraged. Our model suggests that entrepreneurs hold negative perceptions regarding loan application, allocation and payback procedures shaped by both internal and external information sources. We demonstrate that negative perceptions cause an unfavorable attitude towards formal loans which together with entrepreneurs' perceptions …
Crossmodal correspondences between typefaces and food preferences drive congruent choices but not among young consumers
2022
Abstract Several studies suggest that consumers match stimuli across sensory modalities, with angular (vs. round) typefaces typically associated with sourness (vs. sweetness). Drawing on findings from the field of crossmodal correspondences, this study (N = 220) examined potential typeface effects in naturalistic settings and found that exposure to angular (vs. round) typeface increased (decreased) consumers’ preferences for sour (sweet) food but had no impact on their expectations or perceptions of these tastes. Moreover, while typeface did not have a direct effect on food choices, consumers exposed to angular (vs. round) typeface reported a greater relative preference for sour over sweet …
Mediterranean Coastal Lagoons Review: Sites to Visit before Disappearance
2022
Coastal lagoons are an established priority habitat in the European environment because of the biological communities that inhabit them. Their origin is related to the transport of sediments from a nearby river or the movement of sands by the marine currents that produce the closure of a gulf. Therefore, they are recent geological formations, which also disappear quickly if environmental conditions change. The 37 coastal lagoons with a surface area greater than 10 km2 located in the Mediterranean basin have been identified. Fishing has been the traditional use of these lagoons, in addition to their use as a navigation harbor when they are open to the sea. Pollution, quality problems and the…
Coupling of electromembrane processes with reverse osmosis for seawater desalination: Pilot plant demonstration and testing
2022
Reverse osmosis (RO) is the most widespread technology to produce drinking water from seawater (SW). However, the integration of different membrane processes offers interesting alternatives. In this work, electromembrane processes were integrated with RO to desalinate real seawater in a pilot plant with 25 m3/day capacity. Electrodialysis (ED, either two-stage or single stage), shortcut reverse electrodialysis (scRED) and assisted reverse electrodialysis (ARED) pre-desalinated seawater before RO with the ED-ED-RO, ED-RO, and scRED-ARED-RO process schemes. Treated wastewater was used as salt sink in the scRED-ARED tests. The performance of the pilot plant can be summarized as follows: water …
Lead(II) ions adsorption onto amyloid particulates: An in depth study
2022
The production of new cost-effective biocompatible sorbent sustainable materials, with natural origins, able to remove heavy metals from water resources is nowadays highly desirable in order to reduce pollution and increase clean water availability. In this context, self-assembled protein materials with amyloid structures seem to have a great potential as natural platform for a broader development of highly-tunable structures. In this work we show how protein particulates, a generic form of protein aggregates, with spherical micro sized shape can be used as adsorbents of Pb2+ ions from aqueous solution. The effect of pH, ionic medium, ionic strength and temperature of the metal ion solution…
Undetectable viral RNA from SARS-CoV-2 in endometrial biopsies from women with COVID-19: a preliminary study.
2022
European Association of Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship Curriculum: First Edition.
2022
International audience; Pediatric cardiac anesthesia is a subspecialty of cardiac and pediatric anesthesiology dedicated to the perioperative care of patients with congenital heart disease. Members of the Congenital and Education Subcommittees of the European Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care (EACTAIC) agreed on the necessity to develop an EACTAIC pediatric cardiac anesthesia fellowship curriculum. This manuscript represents a consensus on the composition and the design of the EACTAIC Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship program. This curriculum provides a basis for the training of future pediatric cardiac anesthesiologists by clearly defining the theoretic…
Increased photocatalytic activity and selectivity towards methane of trimetallic NiTiAl-LDH
2022
Layered double hydroxides is a rising family of materials with interesting photocatalytic properties that are starting to be employed on the CO photoreduction to useful chemicals. However, the selectivity control towards high energy value products, such as methane or methanol, is one of the main issues of this process due to the easier formation of CO, which requires fewer electrons to be transferred, and the competition of hydrogen evolution reaction. In this work, a new LDH material containing Ni, Ti and Al within the structure was synthesised with the purpose of increasing the selectivity towards methane production. The material was tested under solar simulator conditions, yielding a met…
Cabozantinib in Patients with Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma Primary Refractory to First-line Immunocombinations or Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors.
2022
Background: A subset of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC), deemed as primary refractory, shows progressive disease as the best response to first-line therapy even when treated with novel immune-based combos. Objective: We aimed to assess the outcome of patients treated with second-line cabozantinib for mRCC primary refractory to first-line therapy defined as Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) progression in the computed tomography scan as the best response to the upfront treatment. Design, setting, and participants: We retrospectively collected data from 11 worldwide centers. Outcome measurements and statistical analysis: Overall survival (OS) and progr…
Hybrid Solar-RF Energy Harvesting Mechanisms for Remote Sensing Devices
2022
Recently, sensor networks effectively provide many applications in different fields. The deployment of mobile sensors, unmanned aerial vehicles is to reduce the burden of energy consumption for sensor nodes. However, saving energy in such networks is still a critical issue. This paper investigates the performance of a hybrid RF-Solar harvesting circuit for remote sensing devices. The harvesting circuit can simultaneously harvest power from solar and radio frequency (RF) sources readily available in the surrounding environment. The proposed work builds RF and solar harvester circuits to create hybrid harvesting circuits for all elements in the combined sensing networks. The stand-alone RF ha…
Introduzione
2022
Il volume raccoglie alcuni contributi scaturiti da attività di ricerca e didattica di due laboratori dei Corsi di studio in Servizio sociale del Dipartimento Culture e società dell’Università degli Studi di Palermo: il Laboratorio Interdisciplinare di ricerca su Corpi, Diritti, Conflitti e il Laboratorio di Servizio sociale. Marginale è chi vive una condizione di estraneità e non-appartenenza al contesto sociale, chi viene a trovarsi ai margini, ai confini del sistema sociale, a distanza dai processi centrali di distribuzione delle risorse sociali, non solo materiali, a indicare che le disuguaglianze sociali sono strettamente riconducibili a gradi diversi di integrazione sociale, e che la q…
Photocycle of point defects in highly- and weakly-germanium doped silica revealed by transient absorption measurements with femtosecond tunable pump.
2022
AbstractWe report pump-probe transient absorption measurements addressing the photocycle of the Germanium lone pair center (GLPC) point defect with an unprecedented time resolution. The GLPC is a model point defect with a simple and well-understood electronic structure, highly relevant for several applications. Therefore, a full explanation of its photocycle is fundamental to understand the relaxation mechanisms of such molecular-like systems in solid state. The experiment, carried out exciting the sample resonantly with the ultraviolet (UV) GLPC absorption band peaked at 5.1 eV, gave us the possibility to follow the defect excitation-relaxation dynamics from the femto-picosecond to the nan…
Earnings management of target firms and deal premiums: The role of industry relatedness
2022
This paper contributes to the merger and acquisitions (M&A) literature by providing evidence for the role of industry relatedness in the association between target firms' earnings management (EM) before the deal and the premium offered by the acquirer. We argue that familiarity with the industry's policies and practices is a crucial factor that helps acquirers to see through targets' EM. Our evidence supports this prediction in relation to accounting manipulation as we observe that the income increasing accrual manipulation of the target results in significantly higher premiums offered by acquirers in interindustry deals, which is not the case when targets and acquirers belong to the same i…
Liraglutide reduces plasma PCSK9 in patients with type 2 diabetes not treated with statins
2022
Dyslipidaemia in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), which increases cardiovascular risk, includes abnormal metabolism of low-density lipoproteins (LDL). Our group has recently shown that liraglutide increases LDL catabolism in patients with T2DM and that it reduces the expression of PCSK9 (a major inhibitor of LDL-receptor expression) in vitro and in mice. This prompted us to study the effect of liraglutide on plasma PCSK9 level in patients with T2DM.We studied prospectively 82 patients with T2DM (51 without statins, 31 with statins). Plasma PCSK9 and plasma lipids were measured before and six months after the initiation of a treatment with liraglutide at a dose of 1.2 mg/day.Plasma PCSK9 was…
La rappresentanza apparente: verso un nuovo modello di rappresentanza
2022
ABSTRACT RAPPRESENTATNZA APPARENTE L’autore propone una ricostruzione della rappresentanza apparente, in grado di avallare il consolidamento di un modello uniforme di rappresentanza e di imputazione dei rapporti giuridici, fondato sull’agire per conto altrui e sul principio di affidamento. Seguendo autorevoli insegnamenti, che attribuivano all’agire nell’interesse altrui la base sostanziale dell’istituto rappresentativo, l’autore individua diverse forme di agire rappresentativo, il cui dato comune sarebbe dato dall’agire per conto altrui e dal principio di affidamento. Nonostante lo schema disegnato dall’art. 1388 c.c. descriva una fattispecie caratterizzata dalla presenza dei requisiti del…
Pianificazione regionale al bivio: un piano territoriale regionale strategico a valenza sociale economica o un piano comprensivo
2022
With the approval of the regional law n.2 / 2021 the Sicilian regional urban reform has taken the start that has been completed with the last of the implementing decrees provided for in the regional law n.19 / 2020 relating to the sizing of general urban plans (PUG) that take the place of the PRG of the lr n.71 / 1978. This last law was part of the triptych of laws (urban planning, cultural heritage and tourism) that between 1976 and 1980 were alternately desired by Piersanti Mattarella before his murder at the hands of the mafia. The regional council has approved the act of address that constitutes the document of the guidelines for the new regional territorial plan of social and economic …
A theoretically-based overland flow resistance law for upland grassland habitats
2022
Abstract Sediments conveyed from interrill areas to rills are transported by a thin flow (overland flow) and the knowledge of overland flow resistance is useful to evaluate overland flow velocity and sediment transport capacity. The aim of this paper was to verify the applicability of a theoretical overland flow resistance law, based on a power-velocity distribution, using field measurements for four upland grassland types used in different management strategies (Hay Meadows, Low-density Grazing, Rushes and Rank Grassland). Particular attention was deserved to the effects of vegetation growth cycles on the surface roughness and the corresponding reduction of overland flow velocity. The rela…
A new solver for incompressible non-isothermal flows in natural and mixed convection over unstructured grids
2022
Abstract In the present paper we propose a new numerical methodology for the solution of 2D non-isothermal incompressible flows for natural and mixed convection in irregular geometries. The governing equations are the Incompressible Navier-Stokes Equations and the Energy Conservation Equation. Fluid velocity and temperature are coupled in the buoyancy term of the momentum equations according to the Oberbeck–Boussinesq approximation. The governing equations are discretized over unstructured triangular meshes satisfying the Delaunay property. Thanks to the Oberbeck–Boussinesq hypothesis, the flow and energy problems are solved in an uncoupled way, and two fractional time step procedures are s…
BCLC strategy for prognosis prediction and treatment recommendation: The 2022 update.
2022
Treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has experienced major advancements since the last update of the official Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) prognosis and treatment strategy published in 2018. Advancements in the field have emerged in all areas, but in this manuscript, we present those that have primed a change in the strategy and comment why some encouraging data in select interventions are still considered immature and in need of further research to gain their incorporation into an evidence-based model for clinicians and researchers. Finally, we describe the critical insight and expert knowledge that is needed to take clinical decisions in individual patients so that the rec…
The manipulation of Euribor: An analysis with machine learning classification techniques
2022
The manipulation of the Euro Interbank Offered Rate (Euribor) was an affair which had a great impact on in ternational financial markets. This study tests whether advanced data processing techniques are capable of classifying Euribor panel banks as either manipulating or non-manipulating on the basis of patterns found in quotes submissions. For this purpose, panel banks’ daily contributions have been studied and monthly variables obtained that denote different contribution patterns for Euribor panel banks. Thus, in accordance with the court verdict, banks are categorized as manipulating and non-manipulating and Machine Learning classification techniques such as Supervised Learning, Anomaly …
Nomi predicativi. Articoli, verbi supporto, finiture sintattiche
2022
The idea that the verb is always the sentence core (verbocentrism) has a long history. In the last century a number of researchers started doubting it. This book shows some of the reasons why verbs should not some times be considered the kernel of a sentence. The investigated constructions come from Italian and English and have properties which clearly derive from the post-verbal noun. Some new arguments are presented, in relation to copulative constructions, support verb constructions, and serial verbs. The overall picture which these investigations produce show first how weak verbocentrism is and, second, how verbocentrism can be easily overcome.
Describing the voice of online bullying: An analysis of stance and voice type in YouTube comments
2022
Abstract In this article, I analyze the expression of stance in YouTube comments responding to a speech by Greta Thunberg addressing the 2019 United Nations Climate Action Summit. I use quantitative and qualitative analysis of explicit stance features (including attitude markers, boosters, hedges, self-mentions, and reader addresses) in order to characterize the voice type that commenters construe and examine how this voice type potentially functions as a tool for social influence. The analysis shows that the comments include continual emphatic and emotive attitude marking, almost exclusively evaluating Thunberg herself (e.g., her authenticity, cognitive ability, gender and youth), rather t…