Search results for "DSC"
showing 10 items of 1747 documents
Simple soil water balance model (R function)
2022
This R function models the soil water balance (SWB) for two soil layers based on relatively simple assumptions. It is a simple method to calculate actual evapotranspiration, downward water flux (leaching), and upward water flux (or capillary rise) from two soil layers and the net flux between the two soil layers. The necessary input data comprises the change in soil water storage between two time steps per soil layer (e.g. from repeated volumetric soil water content measurements), potential evapotranspiration, precipitation, and the percentage of roots in the top soil layer. The soil water balance model is described in detail in Leimer et al. (2014). It is based on a soil water balance mode…
Hillslope degradation in representative Italian areas. Just soil erosion risk or opportunity for development?
2018
In recent years, much research have dealt with the impact of human and climate change on the morpho-evolution of Mediterranean catchments characterized by high ecological and cultural value. In this paper, we speculated how humans can influence hillslope degradation by reviewing the relationships between denudation processes and land use changes in some representative areas located in different Italian regions (i.e., Liguria, Tuscany, Basilicata, and Sicily). The selected study cases are characterized by different climatic and geological features, land use, and land management and can be considered indicative of the hillslope degradation issues that affected the Apennines during the last ce…
Hybrid Learning Situation as a Challenge for Design
2016
In the paper, we address the physical learning space and focus on designing enabling settings for learning. New practices emerge from an accelerating context change and a rapid adoption of novel ICT solutions. Educational institutions and professionals strive to implement effective settings and instructional methods in order to facilitate an acquisition of the 21st century skills. Little attention is paid to changes that take place at the level of interpersonal communication, let alone their possible impacts in the long run. As the methods and the settings diversify, and the whole learning landscape turns hybrid, a good fit between the setting and the instructional method is a daily design …
Energy and speleogenesis: Key determinants of terrestrial species richness in caves
2017
Abstract The aim of this study was to unravel the relative role played by speleogenesis (i.e., the process in which a cave is formed), landscape‐scale variables, and geophysical factors in the determination of species richness in caves. Biological inventories from 21 caves located in the southeastern Iberian Peninsula along with partial least square (PLS) regression analysis were used to assess the relative importance of the different explanatory variables. The caves were grouped according to the similarity in their species composition; the effect that spatial distance could have on similarity was also studied using correlation between matrices. The energy and speleogenesis of caves account…
LATENT CONFLICTS AND PLANNING ETHICAL CHALLENGES IN THE SOUTH-EASTERN SICILY “LANDSCAPE OF EXCEPTION”
2015
In the last 30 years Southern Italy has changed from being a region of emigration to one of immigration, in main cities as well as in rural areas. Accordingly, South-Eastern Sicily is recently experiencing remarkable physical, social and economic changes, with significant transformation of its agricultural landscape. Statistics of the last 20 years show high levels of development of the agricultural sector, with remarkable innovation and internationalization of production. At the same time non-official statistics show a higher concentration of - often illegal - immigrants in rural areas. On the other hand, landscape planning and management ensure more “sustainable” local development. The di…
Exploring individual preferences for periurban landscapes
2015
International audience; Landscape aesthetic quality has recently become an important dimension of land use policies since it is likely to play a role in human well-being. Several scientific studies have shown that landscape is a significant component of residential satisfaction of inhabitants in urban and suburban areas (Hur & Nasar, 2010; Kweon et al., 2010). Although neglected by land-use planning for decades (Gallent et al., 2004), urban fringes are particularly interesting for analyzing landscape changes. These spaces where town meets countryside (Scott et al., 2013) are indeed particularly concerned with urban sprawl that occurs in all European cities from 1960s (EEA, 2006). Such chang…
Droplet digital PCR as a tool for investigating dynamics of cryptic symbionts
2021
Abstract Interactions among symbiotic organisms and their hosts are major drivers of ecological and evolutionary processes. Monitoring the infection patterns among natural populations and identifying factors affecting these interactions are critical for understanding symbiont–host relationships. However, many of these interactions remain understudied since the knowledge about the symbiont species is lacking, which hinders the development of appropriate tools. In this study, we developed a digital droplet PCR (ddPCR) assay based on apicomplexan COX1 gene to detect an undescribed agamococcidian symbiont. We show that the method gives precise and reproducible results and enables detecting cryp…
ARCHITETTURA/INFRASTRUTTURA. Tessuti urbani e nuovi paesaggi
2013
Attraverso il materiale raccolto in questo volume, si vuole contribuire all’ordinamento e alla sistematizzazione degli apporti critici e degli apparati documentali intorno alla tematica che indaga il rapporto tra architettura e opera infrastrutturale. La sempre maggiore necessità di una verifica e messa a punto di strategie capaci di creare le basi migliori per determinare una sintesi operativa sulle questioni che derivano dalle trasformazioni che l’opera infrastrutturale determina all’interno dei nostri territori, urbani e naturali, si ritiene debba anche passare da un esame che proviene dal dibattito disciplinare e dall’esperienze sul campo, quest’ultima attraverso lo studio di opere e pr…
Analysis of Prey Composition in Eurasian Reed Warblers' Acrocephalus scirpaceus Droppings at Four Breeding Sites in Italy
2022
Our aim was to investigate the among-populations diversity of prey composition in Eurasian Reed Warblers’ diets via their droppings, both to assess the ecological validity of this sampling method and to test whether the prey species most abundant in fecal samples were also the most present in the Italian study site. We collected fecal samples at four sites throughout Italy, for a total of 144 samples. Within reedbeds, the breeding habitat of the Eurasian Reed Warbler, we also collected arthropods by carrying out entomological sweepings at one of the study sites. Within the fecal samples, we identified dozens of prey species, belonging mainly to Araneae, Coleoptera, Diptera, Hymenoptera and …