The Early Miocene “Bisciaro volcaniclastic event” (northern Apennines, Italy): a key study for the geodynamic evolution of the central-western Mediterranean

The Early Miocene Bisciaro Fm., a marly limestone succession cropping out widely in the Umbria–Romagna–Marche Apennines, is characterized by a high amount of volcaniclastic content, characterizing this unit as a peculiar event of the Adria Plate margin. Because of this volcaniclastic event, also recognizable in different sectors of the central-western Mediterranean chains, this formation is proposed as a “marker” for the geodynamic evolution of the area. In the Bisciaro Fm., the volcaniclastic supply starts with the “Raffaello” bed (Earliest Aquitanian) that marks the base of the formation and ends in the lower portion of the Schlier Fm. (Late Burdigalian–Langhian p.p.). Forty-one studied successions allowed the recognition of three main petrofacies: (1) Pyroclastic Deposits (volcanic materials more than 90 %) including the sub-petrofacies 1A, Vitroclastic/crystallo-vitroclastic tuffs; 1B, Bentonitic deposits; and 1C, Ocraceous and blackish layers; (2) Resedimented Syn-Eruptive Volcanogenic Deposits (volcanic material 30–90 %) including the sub-petrofacies 2A, High-density volcanogenic turbidites; 2B, Low-density volcanogenic turbidites; 2C, Crystal-rich volcanogenic deposits; and 2D, Glauconitic-rich volcaniclastites; (3) Mixing of Volcaniclastic Sediments with Marine Deposits (volcanic material 5–30 %, mixed with marine sediments: marls, calcareous marls, and marly limestones). Coeval volcaniclastic deposits recognizable in different tectonic units of the Apennines, Maghrebian, and Betic Chains show petrofacies and chemical–geochemical features related to a similar calc-alkaline magmatism. The characterization of this event led to the hypothesis of a co-genetic relationship between volcanic activity centres (primary volcanic systems) and depositional basins (depositional processes) in the Early Miocene palaeogeographic and palaeotectonic evolution of the central-western Mediterranean region. The results support the proposal of a geodynamic model of this area that considers previously proposed interpretations.

Restrictions on Aliens in the United Kingdom, 1914-1919 : a Study of the Origins and Political Background of the Aliens Restrictions Acts of 1914 and 1919.

At first glance the Aliens Restriction Act of 1914, which was introduced and passed on the first day of World War One, seems a hasty and ill-prepared piece of legislation. Actually, when examined in the light of Arthur Marwick's thesis that war is a forcing house for pre-existent social and governmental ideas, it becomes clear that the act was not after all the product of hastily formed notions. In point of fact it followed the precedent of detailed draft clauses produced in 1911 by a sub-committee of the Committee of Imperial Defence established to consider the treatment of aliens in the event of war. Indeed the draft clauses and the restrictions embodied in the 1914 act were strikingly similar to restrictions on aliens legislated in 1793. Hostility to aliens had been growing from 1905 to 1914 and this hostility blossomed into xeno-phobia on the outbreak of war, a crucial precondition for the specifically anti-enemy fears of the time. In 1919 the Aliens Restriction (Amendment) Bill was introduced into parliament to extend temporarily the provisions of the 1914 act thus permitting the Home Secretary to plan permanent, detailed legislation. Two minority groups of MPs with extreme views on the treatment of aliens were prominent in the debates on this bill. The extreme Liberal group which advocated leniency in the treatment of aliens had little effect on the final form of the bill, but the extreme Conservative group, which demanded severe restrictions on aliens, succeeded in persuading the government to include detailed restrictions. Despite its allegedly temporary nature, the Aliens Restriction (Amendment) Act of 1919 was renewed annually until 1971.

Modelling a biomass supply chain through discrete-event simulation

The organizational structure of the companies in the biomass energy sector, regarding the supply chain management services, can be greatly improved through the use of software decision support tools. These tools should be able to provide real-time alternative scenarios when deviations from the initial production plans are observed. To make this possible it is necessary to have representative production chain process models where several scenarios and solutions can be evaluated accurately. Due to its nature, this type of process is more adequately represented by means of event-based models. In particular, this work presents the modelling of a typical biomass production chain using the computing platform SIMEVENTS. Throughout the article details about the conceptual model, as well as simulation results, are provided

The Eastern Partnership Riga Summit should not be a non-event. EPC Commentary, 20 May 2015

The upcoming 21-22 May Eastern Partnership (EaP) Riga Summit will take place against the backdrop of the new geopolitical reality in the EU’s Eastern neighbourhood, in the aftermath of Russia’s annexation of Crimea and ongoing war in Eastern Ukraine. Given the extremely complex geopolitical context, the importance of the Summit and the message it delivers to the partner countries – particularly to Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, which have made European integration their foreign policy goal – cannot be underestimated. The Summit needs to send a strong, unambiguous signal reconfirming the EU’s commitment to the EaP, and offer a clear roadmap for the future. If the Summit turns out to be a non-event, with an empty declaration, it risks being perceived as rewarding the bullying policies of Russia.

Event monitoring in a small and business enterprise

This paper presents an overview of the role and responsibilities of the system administrator, focusing on the need to monitor its technological infrastructure. The informatics infrastructure monitoring is, nowadays without a doubt, one of the main key points in business support. Large enterprises are no longer the only ones to feel the need to use these monitoring tools, but small and medium-sized enterprises, which also have IT environments of an increasing complexity, feel such a need. This results directly from the operation of how the business is supported on IT platforms as support for people and processes. When a system, which is vital to the organization, fails either at the hardware or software level, compromises the operating capacity and consequently the business continuity. Having this always in mind, it is extremely important to adopt monitoring systems that proactively or reactively, reduce the overall time of breaks caused by failures. A monitoring system is the way to ensure confidence in all components and the operational readiness of IT infrastructure.