Il risparmio delle risorse alla scala abitativa e di insediamento. Tecnologie non convenzionali e valutazione ambientale attraverso metodologia LCA.

Nel corso del mio lavoro di ricerca mi sono occupata di identificare strategie che permettano il risparmio delle risorse a livello edilizio e di approfondire un metodo per la valutazione ambientale di tali strategie. La convinzione di fondo è che bisogna uscire da una visione antropocentrica in cui tutto ciò che ci circonda è merce e materiale a disposizione dell’uomo, per entrare in una nuova era di equilibrio tra le risorse della terra e le attività che l’uomo esercita sul pianeta. Ho quindi affrontato il tema dell’edilizia responsabile approfondendo l’ambito delle costruzioni in balle di paglia e terra. Sono convinta che l’edilizia industriale abbia un futuro molto breve davanti a sé e lascerà inevitabilmente spazio a tecniche non convenzionali che coinvolgono materiali di semplice reperimento e posa in opera. Sono altresì convinta che il solo utilizzo di materiali naturali non sia garanzia di danni ridotti sull’ecosistema. Allo stesso tempo ritengo che una mera certificazione energetica non sia sinonimo di sostenibilità. Per questo motivo ho valutato le tecnologie non convenzionali con approccio LCA (Life Cycle Assessment), approfondendo gli impatti legati alla produzione, ai trasporti degli stessi, alla tipologia di messa in opera, e ai loro possibili scenari di fine vita. Inoltre ho approfondito il metodo di calcolo dei danni IMPACT, identificando una carenza nel sistema, che non prevede una categoria di danno legata alle modifiche delle condizioni idrogeologiche del terreno. La ricerca si è svolta attraverso attività pratiche e sperimentali in cantieri di edilizia non convenzionale e attività di ricerca e studio sull’LCA presso l’Enea di Bologna (Ing. Paolo Neri).

La valutazione della ricerca scientifica: Uno studio empirico nelle Scienze umane

Nel corso degli ultimi anni si è assistito ad un ampio dibattito sull’uso della valutazione della ricerca nelle università e nelle strutture di ricerca. Nell’ambito di tale dibattito, nella presente tesi, vengono analizzate le più importanti metodologie per la valutazione della ricerca presenti a livello internazionale, i principali strumenti qualitativi di valutazione della ricerca (in particolare la peer review), gli strumenti quantitativi, quali la bibliometria, e le caratteristiche dei più importanti archivi bibliografici citazionali (es. Scopus, Web of Science), approfondendo i principali indicatori citazionali utilizzati nelle scienze umane e sociali (es. Indice H). Inoltre la tesi affronta il tema dell’impatto socio-economico della ricerca e le principali criticità di questo innovativo strumento, attraverso uno studio di caso realizzato nel Regno Unito. Una successiva analisi empirica riguarda le principali liste di riviste realizzate a livello internazionale e nazionale, nel settore scientifico di Storia e Filosofia della scienza. I risultati degli studi mostrano che le liste internazionali di riviste possono rappresentare, un punto di partenza a cui devono necessariamente essere affiancati altri strumenti di valutazione (peer review, analisi citazionali, etc); mentre le liste nazionali rischiano, invece, di essere uno strumento poco utile ed in alcuni casi inadeguato al fine di una corretta valutazione della ricerca, a causa della scarsa internazionalizzazione dei repertori e dei giudizi generalmente troppo elevati attribuiti alle riviste. Un ulteriore risultato raggiunto nella presente tesi riguarda la valutazione della ricerca nelle diverse discipline scientifiche: nelle Scienze umane e sociali risulta esserci uno scarso grado di presenza di pubblicazioni scientifiche nei principali archivi bibliografici e citazionali internazionali. Questa situazione limita fortemente l’attendibilità delle analisi statistiche basate su indici e indicatori quantitativi, per valutare la produttività scientifica di un ricercatore, oppure di una istituzione di ricerca.

Sensory and instrumental profiling of apples: a new tool for quality assessment

Food suppliers currently measure apple quality considering basic pomological descriptors. Sensory analysis is expensive, does not permit to analyse many samples, and cannot be implemented for measuring quality properties in real time. However, sensory analysis is the best way to precisely describe food eating quality, since it is able to define, measure, and explain what is really perceivable by human senses and using a language that closely reflects the consumers’ perception. On the basis of such observations, we developed a detailed protocol for apple sensory profiling by descriptive sensory analysis and instrumental measurements. The collected sensory data were validated by applying rigorous scientific criteria for sensory analysis. The method was then applied for studying sensory properties of apples and their changes in relation to different pre- and post-harvest factors affecting fruit quality, and demonstrated to be able to discriminate fruit varieties and to highlight differences in terms of sensory properties. The instrumental measurements confirmed such results. Moreover, the correlation between sensory and instrumental data was studied, and a new effective approach was defined for the reliable prediction of sensory properties by instrumental characterisation. It is therefore possible to propose the application of this sensory-instrumental tool to all the stakeholders involved in apple production and marketing, to have a reliable description of apple fruit quality.

Rainfall spatial predictions: a two-part model and its assessment

Spatial prediction of hourly rainfall via radar calibration is addressed. The change of support problem (COSP), arising when the spatial supports of different data sources do not coincide, is faced in a non-Gaussian setting; in fact, hourly rainfall in Emilia-Romagna region, in Italy, is characterized by abundance of zero values and right-skeweness of the distribution of positive amounts. Rain gauge direct measurements on sparsely distributed locations and hourly cumulated radar grids are provided by the ARPA-SIMC Emilia-Romagna. We propose a three-stage Bayesian hierarchical model for radar calibration, exploiting rain gauges as reference measure. Rain probability and amounts are modeled via linear relationships with radar in the log scale; spatial correlated Gaussian effects capture the residual information. We employ a probit link for rainfall probability and Gamma distribution for rainfall positive amounts; the two steps are joined via a two-part semicontinuous model. Three model specifications differently addressing COSP are presented; in particular, a stochastic weighting of all radar pixels, driven by a latent Gaussian process defined on the grid, is employed. Estimation is performed via MCMC procedures implemented in C, linked to R software. Communication and evaluation of probabilistic, point and interval predictions is investigated. A non-randomized PIT histogram is proposed for correctly assessing calibration and coverage of two-part semicontinuous models. Predictions obtained with the different model specifications are evaluated via graphical tools (Reliability Plot, Sharpness Histogram, PIT Histogram, Brier Score Plot and Quantile Decomposition Plot), proper scoring rules (Brier Score, Continuous Rank Probability Score) and consistent scoring functions (Root Mean Square Error and Mean Absolute Error addressing the predictive mean and median, respectively). Calibration is reached and the inclusion of neighbouring information slightly improves predictions. All specifications outperform a benchmark model with incorrelated effects, confirming the relevance of spatial correlation for modeling rainfall probability and accumulation.

Volunteer-based coral reef monitoring: reliability of data, environmental education and implications for conservation

Coral reefs are the most biodiverse ecosystems of the ocean and they provide notable ecosystem services. Nowadays, they are facing a number of local anthropogenic threats and environmental change is threatening their survivorship on a global scale. Large-scale monitoring is necessary to understand environmental changes and to perform useful conservation measurements. Governmental agencies are often underfunded and are not able of sustain the necessary spatial and temporal large-scale monitoring. To overcome the economic constrains, in some cases scientists can engage volunteers in environmental monitoring. Citizen Science enables the collection and analysis of scientific data at larger spatial and temporal scales than otherwise possible, addressing issues that are otherwise logistically or financially unfeasible. “STE: Scuba Tourism for the Environment” was a volunteer-based Red Sea coral reef biodiversity monitoring program. SCUBA divers and snorkelers were involved in the collection of data for 72 taxa, by completing survey questionnaires after their dives. In my thesis, I evaluated the reliability of the data collected by volunteers, comparing their questionnaires with those completed by professional scientists. Validation trials showed a sufficient level of reliability, indicating that non-specialists performed similarly to conservation volunteer divers on accurate transects. Using the data collected by volunteers, I developed a biodiversity index that revealed spatial trends across surveyed areas. The project results provided important feedbacks to the local authorities on the current health status of Red Sea coral reefs and on the effectiveness of the environmental management. I also analysed the spatial and temporal distribution of each surveyed taxa, identifying abundance trends related with anthropogenic impacts. Finally, I evaluated the effectiveness of the project to increase the environmental education of volunteers and showed that the participation in STEproject significantly increased both the knowledge on coral reef biology and ecology and the awareness of human behavioural impacts on the environment.

Methodological approaches to estimate human population exposure to chemical substances

The public awareness that chemical substances are present ubiquitously in the environment, can be assumed through the diet and can exhibit various health effects, is very high in Europe and Italy. National and international institutions are called to provide figures on the magnitude, frequency, and duration of the population exposure to chemicals, including both natural or anthropogenic substances, voluntarily added to consumers’ good or accidentally entering the production chains. This thesis focuses broadly on how human population exposure to chemicals can be estimated, with particular attention to the methodological approaches and specific focus on dietary exposure assessment and biomonitoring. From the results obtained in the different studies collected in this thesis, it has been pointed out that when selecting the approach to use for the estimate of the exposure to chemicals, several different aspects must be taken into account: the nature of the chemical substance, the population of interest, clarify if the objective is to assess chronic or acute exposure, and finally, take into account the quality and quantity of data available in order to specify and quantify the uncertainty of the estimate.

Assessment of gait spatio-temporal parameters in neurological disorders using wearable inertial sensors

Movement analysis carried out in laboratory settings is a powerful, but costly solution since it requires dedicated instrumentation, space and personnel. Recently, new technologies such as the magnetic and inertial measurement units (MIMU) are becoming widely accepted as tools for the assessment of human motion in clinical and research settings. They are relatively easy-to-use and potentially suitable for estimating gait kinematic features, including spatio-temporal parameters. The objective of this thesis regards the development and testing in clinical contexts of robust MIMUs based methods for assessing gait spatio-temporal parameters applicable across a number of different pathological gait patterns. First, considering the need of a solution the least obtrusive as possible, the validity of the single unit based approach was explored. A comparative evaluation of the performance of various methods reported in the literature for estimating gait temporal parameters using a single unit attached to the trunk first in normal gait and then in different pathological gait conditions was performed. Then, the second part of the research headed towards the development of new methods for estimating gait spatio-temporal parameters using shank worn MIMUs on different pathological subjects groups. In addition to the conventional gait parameters, new methods for estimating the changes of the direction of progression were explored. Finally, a new hardware solution and relevant methodology for estimating inter-feet distance during walking was proposed. Results of the technical validation of the proposed methods at different walking speeds and along different paths against a gold standard were reported and showed that the use of two MIMUs attached to the lower limbs associated with a robust method guarantee a much higher accuracy in determining gait spatio-temporal parameters. In conclusion, the proposed methods could be reliably applied to various abnormal gaits obtaining in some cases a comparable level of accuracy with respect to normal gait.