Le Coliti Microscopiche nei soggetti con diarrea non ematica: uno studio prospettico

Introduzione: le Coliti Microscopiche, altrimenti note come Colite Collagena e Colite Linfocitica, sono disordini infiammatori cronici del colon che causano diarrea e colpiscono più frequentemente donne in età avanzata e soggetti in terapia farmacologica. Negli ultimi anni la loro incidenza sembra aumentata in diversi paesi occidentali ma la prevalenza in Italia è ancora incerta. Scopo: il presente studio prospettico e multicentrico è stato disegnato per valutare la prevalenza delle CM in pazienti sottoposti a colonscopia per diarrea cronica non ematica. Pazienti e metodi: dal Maggio 2010 al Settembre 2010 sono stati arruolati consecutivamente tutti i soggetti adulti afferenti in due strutture dell’area metropolitana milanese per eseguire una pancolonscopia. Nei soggetti con diarrea cronica non ematica sono state eseguite biopsie multiple nel colon ascendente, sigma e retto nonché in presenza di lesioni macroscopiche. Risultati: delle 8008 colonscopie esaminate 265 sono state eseguite per diarrea cronica; tra queste, 8 presentavano informazioni incomplete, 52 riscontri endoscopici consistenti con altri disordini intestinali (i.e. IBD, tumori, diverticoliti). 205 colonscopie sono risultate sostanzialmente negative, 175 dotate di adeguato campionamento microscopico (M:F=70:105; età mediana 61 anni). L’analisi istologica ha permesso di documentare 38 nuovi casi di CM (M:F=14:24; età mediana 67.5 anni): 27 CC (M:F=10:17; età mediana 69 anni) e 11 CL (M:F=4:7; età mediana 66 anni). In altri 25 casi sono state osservate alterazioni microscopiche prive dei sufficienti requisiti per la diagnosi di CM. Conclusioni: nel presente studio l’analisi microscopica del colon ha identificato la presenza di CM nel 21,7% dei soggetti con diarrea cronica non ematica ed indagine pancolonscopica negativa. Lo studio microscopico del colon è pertanto un passo diagnostico fondamentale per il corretto inquadramento diagnostico delle diarree croniche, specialmente dopo i 60 anni di età. Ampi studi prospettici e multicentrici dovranno chiarire ruolo e peso dei fattori di rischio associati a questi disordini.

Strategie per la pianificazione metropolitana

La finalità della ricerca è l'individuazione di uno strumento urbanistico per governare il territorio metropolitano che garantisca la successione efficace ed efficiente delle azioni nelle quali si articola il processo di pianificazione strategica. All'interno della ricerca, da un lato si indaga lo sviluppo storico-culturale che ha caratterizzato in Italia il concetto di area metropolitana, individuandone i contenuti e le operazioni che portano alla perimetrazione del suo territorio. Dall'altro lato si approfondisce il tema della pianificazione strategica come strumento fondamentale per il governo delle città metropolitane intermedie. Si è proceduto all'approfondimento del dibattito culturale e scientifico sul tema delle aree metropolitane, nell'esperienza di pianificazione strategica sviluppata in ambito internazionale e successivamente il dibattito politico che si è sviluppato nella realtà italiana sul concetto di area metropolitana, evidenziandone gli aspetti condivisi e le diverse tipologie di approccio per ottenere una perimetrazione utile al piano di governo del territorio. Ovviamente, nel processo di analisi, un ruolo dominante è stato assunto dal quadro istituzionale e normativo che si è sviluppato ed è tuttora in corso sul tema delle aree metropolitane. Alla tematica relativa alla definizione delle aree, si è sviluppato un consistente approfondimento sui requisiti che devono essere posseduti da un piano strategico costruito sulle esigenze di un'area metropolitana. E' stata individuata l'area metropolitana di Bologna quale area oggetto di studio approfondito, ripercorrendo le vicende che hanno animato il dibattito sulla nascita della Città metropolitana delimitata dalla Provincia. A tal proposito, si è sviluppata una riflessione sui contenuti innovativi e promozionali del piano strategico, valutando gli effetti che il Piano Strategico Metropolitano in corso di elaborazione sarà in grado di produrre sulle dinamiche territoriali e socio-economiche dell'area bolognese.

Introduzione di un sistema di accesso wireless distribuito a gestione centralizzata in ambiente di tipo Enterprise o Campus

Nata dal progetto di migrazione, in un ambiente consolidato, di una infrastruttura Wireless distribuita su territorio all'interno di una MAN (Metropolitan Area Network), si cerca di illustrare quali sono i passi fondamentali da seguire e con cosa ci si deve misurare per progettare una soluzione funzionale ed elaborare una strategia avendo a che fare con architetture complesse, dove la messa in esercizio di un servizio offerto ad un numero elevato di utenti prevede uno studio ben preciso delle attività da svolgere. Un'attenta analisi, ci consentirà di seguire e riadattare le scelte implementative in funzione delle esigenze infrastrutturali, illustrandone le difficoltà, gli imprevisti e le modifiche intraprese passo passo. Gli argomenti trattati tendono a far comprendere con quali problematiche si ha a che fare nella fase implementativa passando dalla fase di analisi a quella decisionale, quella di migrazione architetturale e di installazione, oltre che alla scelta delle componenti e delle tecnologie specifiche che, prima di essere portate a regime, devono essere sottoposte agli opportuni test per la comprensione/risoluzione di problematiche complesse; come le operazioni necessarie per operare con una efficace metodologia.

Caregivers' Social Capital and Satisfaction with their Children's Service Providers

The authors examine children's access to and caregiver's satisfaction with organizations that provide leisure time activities for children on Saturdays. The authors argue that access and satisfaction are a function of familie's financial, cultural and social capital. Using data on 1,036 households in the Phoenix metropolitan area in 2003-04, the authors found that families' financial and cultural capital affected whether or not children participate din activities organized by organizations, but family ties to the organization directly (e.g., either worked there, volunteered, donated) resulted in caregivers being more satisfied with the services. The authors also found that the benefits of network closure (caregivers knowing the parents of other children on site) were greater the riskier the activities of the child (e.g., sports or cheerleading). Contrary to the authors expectations, having family or friends in the area did not affect caregiver's satisfaction with the child's provider.

Geochemical Modeling and Analysis of the Frac Water Used in the Hydraulic Fracturing of the Marcellus Formation, Pennsylvania

The hydraulic fracturing of the Marcellus Formation creates a byproduct known as frac water. Five frac water samples were collected in Bradford County, PA. Inorganic chemical analysis, field parameters analysis, alkalinity titrations, total dissolved solids(TDS), total suspended solids (TSS), biological oxygen demand (BOD), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) were conducted on each sample to characterize frac water. A database of frac water chemistry results from across the state of Pennsylvania from multiple sources was compiled in order to provide the public and research communitywith an accurate characterization of frac water. Four geochemical models were created to model the reactions between frac water and the Marcellus Formation, Purcell Limestone, and the oil field brines presumed present in the formations. The average concentrations of chloride and TDS in the five frac water samples were 1.1 �± 0.5 x 105 mg/L (5.5X average seawater) and 140,000 mg/L (4X average seawater). BOD values for frac water immediately upon flow back were over 10X greater than the BOD of typical wastewater, but decreased into the range of typical wastewater after a short period of time. The COD of frac water decreases dramatically with an increase in elapsed time from flow back, but remain considerably higher than typicalwastewater. Different alkalinity calculation methods produced a range of alkalinity values for frac water: this result is most likely due to high concentrations of aliphatic acid anions present in the samples. Laboratory analyses indicate that the frac watercomposition is quite variable depending on the companies from which the water was collected, the geology of the local area, and number of fracturing jobs in which the frac water was used, but will require more treatment than typical wastewater regardless of theprecise composition of each sample. The geochemical models created suggest that the presence of organic complexes in an oil field brine and Marcellus Formation aid in the dissolution of ions such as bariumand strontium into the solution. Although equilibration reactions between the Marcellus Formation and the slickwater account for some of the final frac water composition, the predominant control of frac water composition appears to be the ratio of the mixture between the oil field brine and slickwater. The high concentration of barium in the frac water is likely due to the abundance of barite nodules in the Purcell Limestone, and the lack of sulfate in the frac water samples is due to the reducing, anoxic conditions in the earth's subsurface that allow for the degassing of H2S(g).

TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT IN REMOTE SENSING AND INNOVATIVE APPLICATION TO VOLCANOLOGY

The integration of remote monitoring techniques at different scales is of crucial importance for monitoring of volcanoes and assessment of the associated hazard. In this optic, technological advancement and collaboration between research groups also play a key role. Vhub is a community cyberinfrastructure platform designed for collaboration in volcanology research. Within the Vhub framework, this dissertation focuses on two research themes, both representing novel applications of remotely sensed data in volcanology: advancement in the acquisition of topographic data via active techniques and application of passive multi-spectral satellite data to monitoring of vegetated volcanoes. Measuring surface deformation is a critical issue in analogue modelling of Earth science phenomena. I present a novel application of the Microsoft Kinect sensor to measurement of vertical and horizontal displacements in analogue models. Specifically, I quantified vertical displacement in a scaled analogue model of Nisyros volcano, Greece, simulating magmatic deflation and inflation and related surface deformation, and included the horizontal component to reconstruct 3D models of pit crater formation. The detection of active faults around volcanoes is of importance for seismic and volcanic hazard assessment, but not a simple task to be achieved using analogue models. I present new evidence of neotectonic deformation along a north-south trending fault from the Mt Shasta debris avalanche deposit (DAD), northern California. The fault was identified on an airborne LiDAR campaign of part of the region interested by the DAD and then confirmed in the field. High resolution LiDAR can be utilized also for geomorphological assessment of DADs, and I describe a size-distance analysis to document geomorphological aspects of hummock in the Shasta DAD. Relating the remote observations of volcanic passive degassing to conditions and impacts on the ground provides an increased understanding of volcanic degassing and how satellite-based monitoring can be used to inform hazard management strategies in nearreal time. Combining a variety of satellite-based spectral time series I aim to perform the first space-based assessment of the impacts of sulfur dioxide emissions from Turrialba volcano, Costa Rica, on vegetation in the surrounding environment, and establish whether vegetation indices could be used more broadly to detect volcanic unrest.

Preliminary Construction of a Photo-Electric Cell Concentrator

The separation of the valuable portion from the waste portion of an ore is an individual problem for every ore. However, the various methods for accomplishing this end, more or less classify themselves by the physical properties of the constituents of the ore. Most of the properties of minerals have been utilized in some way or other to affect the separation of the valuable from the invaluable parts. Practically nothing has been done so far with color and luster to attain this purpose. It is believed that the photo—electric cell could also be used in concentrating a certain class of ores which are not well suited to other methods.

The Electrolytic Deposition of Chromium Upon Aluminum

The purpose or this investigation is primarily to determine the best conditions for plating chromium on aluminum. The work was carried out with the hope of obtaining coherent deposits, and of determin­ing the conditions under which such deposits may be duplicated.

The Effect of Hydrogen Overvoltage on the Electrolytic Deposition of Zinc

In the deposition of metallic zinc by electro­lysis from neutral or acid solution, little difficulty is experienced provided certain impurities are absent from the electrolyte. The use of the process has long been considered as a potential source, patents on the process having been issued as early as 1880. However, the early experimenters failed to realize the importance of impurities in the electrolyte, and for this reason, the process suffered several severe setbacks when commercial plants were built.

A Bentonite Deposit near Warm Springs, Montana

This report deals with a bentonite deposit recently developed, approximately seven miles northeast of Warm Springs, Montana. A group of claims have been staked on the deposit and are owned by the Lincoln Mining Company of Anaconda, Montana. The company also has several claims prospected for silver one mile from its present site of operations, but the silver prospects have failed to produce. The bentonite deposit was discovered incidentally during the course of other development work, and at present two adits have been driven into the side of a mountain, each crosscutting a vein-like mass of bentonite varying from two to three feet in width.

The Recovery of Copper in Sulphide Ores by Roasting, Leaching, and Electrolysis

Sulphide ores of copper are insoluble in dilute sulphuric acid leaching solutions, but a very high extraction can be obtained if the copper ore is in the oxidized condition. The problem is to convert the sulphide into the oxide form. This can be done by giving the sulphide ore an oxidizing-sulphatizing roast. Copper sulphate is soluble in water, so acid will be saved in the leaching process if copper sulphate is present. The iron in the copper sulphide ores is present as pyrite, or in combinations as bornite, or chalcopyrite.

Some Notes on the Composition of "Copper Pitch"

A supply of so-called "copper pitch" ore was received by the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology in response to a request by them from a resident of Kalispell, who had previously sent a specimen to the Bureau for a mineralogical analysis. Since this material was little known and had apparently received but little study under a reflec­ting microscope, it was thought that such a study might throw some light on the mineralogical and chemical composition of the material.

Effect of Impurities upon Current Efficiency in the Electrolysis of Zinc Sulphate Solution

There are many elements which are detrimental to the current efficiency in the electrolysis of zinc sulphate solution. Fortunately the majority of these elements are easily removed in the purification process and cause no further trouble. The elements that are likely to cause trouble in ordinary plant operations are antimony, arsenic, cobalt, nickel, manganese and germanium. The following tests were made to determine the mutual effect on the current efficiency when several of the impurities were present in the electrolyte.

A Study of the Composition of Zinc Complex Cyanide Solutions by the Conductometric Method

As the method or analysis used up to the present time has failed to give quantitative results in determining the composition of zinc cyanide baths, conductometric methods were adopted in this study. Supplementary tests were also carried out in this investigation.