Prospect on intergalactic magnetic field measurements with gamma-ray instruments

Observing high-energy gamma-rays from Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) offers a unique potential to probe extremely tiny values of the intergalactic magnetic field (IGMF), a long standing question of astrophysics, astropa rticle physics and cosmology. Very high energy (VHE) photons from blazars propagating along the line of sight interact with the extragalactic background light (EBL) and produce e + e − pairs. Through inverse-Compton interaction, mainly on the cosmic microwave background (CMB), these pairs generate secondary GeV-TeV compo- nents accompanying the primary VHE signal. Such secondary components would be detected in the gamma-ray range as delayed “pair echos” for very weak IGMF ( B< 10 − 16 G ), while they should result in a spatially extended ga mma-ray emission around the source for higher IGMF values ( B> 10 − 16 G ). Coordinated observations with space (i.e. Fermi) and ground- based gamma-ray instruments, such as the pre sent Cherenkov experiments H.E.S.S., MAGIC and VERITAS, the future Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) Observatory, and the wide-field detectors such as HAWC and LHAASO, should allow to analyze and finally detect such echos, extended emission or pair halos, and to further characterize the IGMF.

A molecular perspective on generic concepts in the Hypotrachyna clade (Parmeliaceae, Ascomycota)

Departamento de Biología Vegetal II, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad Complutense de Madrid

Scienza, Tecnica, Politica: Il Problema del Metodo nel Pensiero di Jacopo Aconcio

The aim of this PhD thesis is to study accurately and in depth the figure and the literary production of the intellectual Jacopo Aconcio. This minor author of the 16th century has long been considered a sort of “enigmatic character”, a profile which results from the work of those who, for many centuries, have left his writing to its fate: a story of constant re-readings and equally incessant oversights. This is why it is necessary to re-read Aconcio’s production in its entirety and to devote to it a monographic study. Previous scholars’ interpretations will obviously be considered, but at the same time an effort will be made to go beyond them through the analysis of both published and manuscript sources, in the attempt to attain a deeper understanding of the figure of this man, who was a Christian, a military and hydraulic engineer and a political philosopher,. The title of the thesis was chosen to emphasise how, throughout the three years of the doctorate, my research concentrated in equal measure and with the same degree of importance on all the reflections and activities of Jacopo Aconcio. My object, in fact, was to establish how and to what extent the methodological thinking of the intellectual found application in, and at the same time guided, his theoretical and practical production. I did not mention in the title the author’s religious thinking, which has always been considered by everyone the most original and interesting element of his production, because religion, from the Reformation onwards, was primarily a political question and thus it was treated by almost all the authors involved in the Protestant movement - Aconcio in the first place. Even the remarks concerning the private, intimate sphere of faith have therefore been analysed in this light: only by acknowledging the centrality of the “problem of politics” in Aconcio’s theories, in fact, is it possible to interpret them correctly. This approach proves the truth of the theoretical premise to my research, that is to say the unity and orderliness of the author’s thought: in every field of knowledge, Aconcio applies the rules of the methodus resolutiva, as a means to achieve knowledge and elaborate models of pacific cohabitation in society. Aconcio’s continuous references to method can make his writing pedant and rather complex, but at the same time they allow for a consistent and valid analysis of different disciplines. I have not considered the fact that most of his reflections appear to our eyes as strongly conditioned by the time in which he lived as a limit. To see in him, as some have done, the forerunner of Descartes’ methodological discourse or, conversely, to judge his religious theories as not very modern, is to force the thought of an author who was first and foremost a Christian man of his own time. Aconcio repeats this himself several times in his writings: he wants to provide individuals with the necessary tools to reach a full-fledged scientific knowledge in the various fields, and also to enable them to seek truth incessantly in the religious domain, which is the duty of every human being. The will to find rules, instruments, effective solutions characterizes the whole of the author’s corpus: Aconcio feels he must look for truth in all the arts, aware as he is that anything can become science as long as it is analysed with method. Nevertheless, he remains a man of his own time, a Christian convinced of the existence of God, creator and governor of the world, to whom people must account for their own actions. To neglect this fact in order to construct a “character”, a generic forerunner, but not participant, of whatever philosophical current, is a dangerous and sidetracking operation. In this study, I have highlighted how Aconcio’s arguments only reveal their full meaning when read in the context in which they were born, without depriving them of their originality but also without charging them with meanings they do not possess. Through a historical-doctrinal approach, I have tried to analyse the complex web of theories and events which constitute the substratum of Aconcio’s reflection, in order to trace the correct relations between texts and contexts. The thesis is therefore organised in six chapters, dedicated respectively to Aconcio’s biography, to the methodological question, to the author’s engineering activity, to his historical knowledge and to his religious thinking, followed by a last section concerning his fortune throughout the centuries. The above-mentioned complexity is determined by the special historical moment in which the author lived. On the one hand, thanks to the new union between science and technique, the 16th century produces discoveries and inventions which make available a previously unthinkable number of notions and lead to a “revolution” in the way of studying and teaching the different subjects, which, by producing a new form of intellectual, involved in politics but also aware of scientific-technological issues, will contribute to the subsequent birth of modern science. On the other, the 16th century is ravaged by religious conflicts, which shatter the unity of the Christian world and generate theological-political disputes which will inform the history of European states for many decades. My aim is to show how Aconcio’s multifarious activity is the conscious fruit of this historical and religious situation, as well as the attempt of an answer to the request of a new kind of engagement on the intellectual’s behalf. Plunged in the discussions around methodus, employed in the most important European courts, involved in the abrupt acceleration of technical-scientific activities, and especially concerned by the radical religious reformation brought on by the Protestant movement, Jacopo Aconcio reflects this complex conjunction in his writings, without lacking in order and consistency, differently from what many scholars assume. The object of this work, therefore, is to highlight the unity of the author’s thought, in which science, technique, faith and politics are woven into a combination which, although it may appear illogical and confused, is actually tidy and methodical, and therefore in agreement with Aconcio’s own intentions and with the specific characters of European culture in the Renaissance. This theory is confirmed by the reading of the Ars muniendorum oppidorum, Aconcio’s only work which had been up till now unavailable. I am persuaded that only a methodical reading of Aconcio’s works, without forgetting nor glorifying any single one, respects the author’s will. From De methodo (1558) onwards, all his writings are summae, guides for the reader who wishes to approach the study of the various disciplines. Undoubtedly, Satan’s Stratagems (1565) is something more, not only because of its length, but because it deals with the author’s main interest: the celebration of doubt and debate as bases on which to build religious tolerance, which is the best method for pacific cohabitation in society. This, however, does not justify the total centrality which the Stratagems have enjoyed for centuries, at the expense of a proper understanding of the author’s will to offer examples of methodological rigour in all sciences. Maybe it is precisely because of the reforming power of Aconcio’s thought that, albeit often forgotten throughout the centuries, he has never ceased to reappear and continues to draw attention, both as a man and as an author. His ideas never stop stimulating the reader’s curiosity and this may ultimately be the best demonstration of their worth, independently from the historical moment in which they come back to the surface.

Substructuring approache in state space models for dynamic system parameters identification

In the recent decade, the request for structural health monitoring expertise increased exponentially in the United States. The aging issues that most of the transportation structures are experiencing can put in serious jeopardy the economic system of a region as well as of a country. At the same time, the monitoring of structures is a central topic of discussion in Europe, where the preservation of historical buildings has been addressed over the last four centuries. More recently, various concerns arose about security performance of civil structures after tragic events such the 9/11 or the 2011 Japan earthquake: engineers looks for a design able to resist exceptional loadings due to earthquakes, hurricanes and terrorist attacks. After events of such a kind, the assessment of the remaining life of the structure is at least as important as the initial performance design. Consequently, it appears very clear that the introduction of reliable and accessible damage assessment techniques is crucial for the localization of issues and for a correct and immediate rehabilitation. The System Identification is a branch of the more general Control Theory. In Civil Engineering, this field addresses the techniques needed to find mechanical characteristics as the stiffness or the mass starting from the signals captured by sensors. The objective of the Dynamic Structural Identification (DSI) is to define, starting from experimental measurements, the modal fundamental parameters of a generic structure in order to characterize, via a mathematical model, the dynamic behavior. The knowledge of these parameters is helpful in the Model Updating procedure, that permits to define corrected theoretical models through experimental validation. The main aim of this technique is to minimize the differences between the theoretical model results and in situ measurements of dynamic data. Therefore, the new model becomes a very effective control practice when it comes to rehabilitation of structures or damage assessment. The instrumentation of a whole structure is an unfeasible procedure sometimes because of the high cost involved or, sometimes, because it’s not possible to physically reach each point of the structure. Therefore, numerous scholars have been trying to address this problem. In general two are the main involved methods. Since the limited number of sensors, in a first case, it’s possible to gather time histories only for some locations, then to move the instruments to another location and replay the procedure. Otherwise, if the number of sensors is enough and the structure does not present a complicate geometry, it’s usually sufficient to detect only the principal first modes. This two problems are well presented in the works of Balsamo [1] for the application to a simple system and Jun [2] for the analysis of system with a limited number of sensors. Once the system identification has been carried, it is possible to access the actual system characteristics. A frequent practice is to create an updated FEM model and assess whether the structure fulfills or not the requested functions. Once again the objective of this work is to present a general methodology to analyze big structure using a limited number of instrumentation and at the same time, obtaining the most information about an identified structure without recalling methodologies of difficult interpretation. A general framework of the state space identification procedure via OKID/ERA algorithm is developed and implemented in Matlab. Then, some simple examples are proposed to highlight the principal characteristics and advantage of this methodology. A new algebraic manipulation for a prolific use of substructuring results is developed and implemented.

Lifecycle analysis for surgery instruments at a hospital

Gli strumenti chirurgici sono importanti “devices” utilizzati come supporto indi-spensabile nella cura di pazienti negli ospedali. Essi sono caratterizzati da un intero ciclo di vita che inizia convenzionalmente nello “Store”, dove gli strumenti sterilizzati sono prelevati per essere utilizzati all’interno delle sale operatorie, e termina nuovamente nello “Store”, dove gli strumenti vengono immagazzinati per essere riutilizzati in un nuovo ciclo. Può accadere che le singole fasi del ciclo subiscano ritardi rispetto ai tempi previ-sti, non assicurando, pertanto, nelle sale operatorie, il corretto numero degli stru-menti secondo i tempi programmati. Il progetto che vado ad illustrare ha come obiettivo l’ottimizzazione del ciclo degli strumenti chirurgici all’interno di un nuovo ospedale, applicando i principi della Lean philosophy ed in particolare i metodi: “Poke Yoke, 5S e tracciabilità”. Per raggiungere tale scopo, il progetto è stato articolato come segue. In un primo momento si è osservato l’intero ciclo di vita degli strumenti nei due principali ospedali di Copenhagen (Hervel e Gentofte hospital). Ciò ha permesso di rilevare gli steps del ciclo, nonché di riscontrare sul campo i principali problemi relativi al ciclo stesso quali: bassa flessiblità, decentramento dei differenti reparti di cleaning e di store rispetto alle operation theatres ed un problema nel solleva-mento degli strumenti pesanti. Raccolte le dovute informazioni, si è passati alla fase sperimentale, in cui sono stati mappati due cicli di vita differenti, utilizzando tre strumenti di analisi: • Idef0 che consente di avere una visione gerarchica del ciclo; • Value stream Mapping che permette di evidenziare i principali sprechi del ciclo; • Simulator Tecnomatix che favorisce un punto di vista dinamico dell’analisi. Il primo ciclo mappato è stato creato con il solo scopo di mettere in risalto gli steps del ciclo e alcuni problemi rincontrati all’interno degli ospedali visitati. Il secondo ciclo, invece, è stato creato in ottica Lean al fine di risolvere alcuni tra i principali problemi riscontrati nei due ospedali e ottimizzare il primo ciclo. Si ricordi, infatti, che nel secondo ciclo le principali innovazioni introdotte sono state: l’utilizzo del Barcode e Rfid Tag per identificare e tracciare la posizione degli items, l’uso di un “Automatic and Retrievial Store” per minimizzare i tempi di inserimento e prelievo degli items e infine l’utilizzo di tre tipologie di carrello, per consentire un flessibile servizio di cura. Inoltre sono state proposte delle solu-zioni “Poke-Yoke” per risolvere alcuni problemi manuali degli ospedali. Per evidenziare il vantaggio del secondo ciclo di strumenti, è stato preso in consi-derazione il parametro “Lead time”e le due simulazioni, precedentemente create, sono state confrontate. Tale confronto ha evidenziato una radicale riduzione dei tempi (nonché dei costi associati) della nuova soluzione rispetto alla prima. Alla presente segue la trattazione in lingua inglese degli argomenti oggetto di ri-cerca. Buona lettura.

Requirements definition and testing of the new version of multi-mission generic monitoring system (GEMS) v 4.4 for operations at Eumetsat

EUMETSAT (www.eumetsat.int) e’ l’agenzia europea per operazioni su satelliti per monitorare clima, meteo e ambiente terrestre. Dal centro operativo situato a Darmstadt (Germania), si controllano satelliti meteorologici su orbite geostazionarie e polari che raccolgono dati per l’osservazione dell’atmosfera, degli oceani e della superficie terrestre per un servizio continuo di 24/7. Un sistema di monitoraggio centralizzato per programmi diversi all’interno dell’ambiente operazionale di EUMETSAT, e’ dato da GEMS (Generic Event Monitoring System). Il software garantisce il controllo di diverse piattaforme, cross-monitoring di diverse sezioni operative, ed ha le caratteristiche per potere essere esteso a future missioni. L’attuale versione della GEMS MMI (Multi Media Interface), v. 3.6, utilizza standard Java Server Pages (JSP) e fa uso pesante di codici Java; utilizza inoltre files ASCII per filtri e display dei dati. Conseguenza diretta e’ ad esempio, il fatto che le informazioni non sono automaticamente aggiornate, ma hanno bisogno di ricaricare la pagina. Ulteriori inputs per una nuova versione della GEMS MMI vengono da diversi comportamenti anomali riportati durante l’uso quotidiano del software. La tesi si concentra sulla definizione di nuovi requisiti per una nuova versione della GEMS MMI (v. 4.4) da parte della divisione ingegneristica e di manutenzione di operazioni di EUMETSAT. Per le attivita’ di supporto, i test sono stati condotti presso Solenix. Il nuovo software permettera’ una migliore applicazione web, con tempi di risposta piu’ rapidi, aggiornamento delle informazioni automatico, utilizzo totale del database di GEMS e le capacita’ di filtri, insieme ad applicazioni per telefoni cellulari per il supporto delle attivita’ di reperibilita’. La nuova versione di GEMS avra’ una nuova Graphical User Interface (GUI) che utilizza tecnologie moderne. Per un ambiente di operazioni come e’ quello di EUMETSAT, dove l’affidabilita’ delle tecnologie e la longevita’ dell’approccio scelto sono di vitale importanza, non tutti gli attuali strumenti a disposizione sono adatti e hanno bisogno di essere migliorati. Allo stesso tempo, un’ interfaccia moderna, in termini di visual design, interattivita’ e funzionalita’, e’ importante per la nuova GEMS MMI.

Reliability, construct and criterion validity of the KIDSCREEN-10 score: a short measure for children and adolescents' well-being and health-related quality of life

Background To assess the criterion and construct validity of the KIDSCREEN-10 well-being and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) score, a short version of the KIDSCREEN-52 and KIDSCREEN-27 instruments. Methods The child self-report and parent report versions of the KIDSCREEN-10 were tested in a sample of 22,830 European children and adolescents aged 8–18 and their parents (n = 16,237). Correlation with the KIDSCREEN-52 and associations with other generic HRQoL measures, physical and mental health, and socioeconomic status were examined. Score differences by age, gender, and country were investigated. Results Correlations between the 10-item KIDSCREEN score and KIDSCREEN-52 scales ranged from r = 0.24 to 0.72 (r = 0.27–0.72) for the self-report version (proxy-report version). Coefficients below r = 0.5 were observed for the KIDSCREEN-52 dimensions Financial Resources and Being Bullied only. Cronbach alpha was 0.82 (0.78), test–retest reliability was ICC = 0.70 (0.67) for the self- (proxy-)report version. Correlations between other children self-completed HRQoL questionnaires and KIDSCREEN-10 ranged from r = 0.43 to r = 0.63 for the KIDSCREEN children self-report and r = 0.22–0.40 for the KIDSCREEN parent proxy report. Known group differences in HRQoL between physically/mentally healthy and ill children were observed in the KIDSCREEN-10 self and proxy scores. Associations with self-reported psychosomatic complaints were r = −0.52 (−0.36) for the KIDSCREEN-10 self-report (proxy-report). Statistically significant differences in KIDSCREEN-10 self and proxy scores were found by socioeconomic status, age, and gender. Conclusions Our results indicate that the KIDSCREEN-10 provides a valid measure of a general HRQoL factor in children and adolescents, but the instrument does not represent well most of the single dimensions of the original KIDSCREEN-52. Test–retest reliability was slightly below a priori defined thresholds.

On The Choice and Impacts of Innovative International Food Assistance Instruments

The rise of new food assistance instruments, including local and regional procurement, cash, and vouchers, has surpassed increase in understanding of the tradeoffs among and impacts of these options relative to traditional food aid. Response choices rarely appear to result from systematic response analyses. Further, impacts along multiple dimensions-timeliness, cost-effectiveness, local market effects, recipient satisfaction, food quality, impact on smallholder suppliers, etc.-may be competing or synergistic. No single food assistance tool is always and everywhere preferable. A growing body of evidence, including the papers in this special section, nonetheless demonstrates the clear value-added of new food assistance instruments. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Back related outcome assessment instruments

A literature review of the most widely used condition specific, self administered assessment questionnaires for low back pain had been undertaken. General and historic aspects, reliability, responsiveness and minimum clinically important difference, external validity, floor and ceiling effects, and available languages were analysed. These criteria, however, are only part of the consideration. Of similar importance are the content, wording of questions and answers in each of the six questionnaires and an analysis of the different score results. The issue of score bias is discussed and suggestions are given in order to increase the construct validity in the practical use of the individual questionnaires.