bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
ASPETTI DECORATIVI AGLI INIZI DELLA FABBRICA DEL DUOMO
Authors: Rossi Marco
Published: October 2018

Riassunto. – Le prime fasi della costruzione del Duomo di Milano rivelano nell’ambito del tardogotico europeo una significativa integrazione fra architettura e decorazione rispetto a una prevalente concezione della scienza architettonica. Questa tensione verso l’unità delle arti è particolarmente promossa da Giovannino de Grassi, attraverso i procedimenti ideativi e creativi da lui adottati e soprattutto i rapporti tra la sua intensa attività progettuale e le infinite possibilità offerte dai suoi disegni. Le invenzioni di Giovannino, relative a guglie e capitelli, sculture e vetrate, dipinti e oreficerie, sviluppano le infinite possibilità offerte dal disegno tardogotico e l’illimitata applicabilità delle soluzioni figurative create, dall’architettura alla decorazione, dalla realtà all’immaginazione.***Abstract. – The first stages of the construction of the Cathedral of Milan in the Late Gothic reveal a significant European integration between architecture and decoration rather than a prevailing conception of architectural science. This tension for the unity of the arts is particularly promoted by Giovannino de Grassi, through the ideational and creative processes of the master, above all the relations between his intense designing activity in the field of architecture and the infinite possibilities offered by its drawings. The Giovannino’s inventions produce spires and capitals, sculptures and stained glass, paintings and goldsmithings. The infinite possibilities offered by Late Gothic drawing and the unlimited applicability of its figurative solutions develop a continuous symbiosis between architecture and decoration, reality and imagination.
TESTI EPIGRAFICI E SOCIOLINGUISTICA STORICA: LE ‘DEFIXIONES’ SANNITE
Authors: Mancini Marco
Published: October 2018

This paper aims at distinguishing what pertains to stylistic varieties and what to sociolects in historical linguistics. Several texts in Oscan language containing curses (defixiones), both in enchoric and Greek scripts, have been analyzed, in order to ascertain the efficacy of modern sociolinguistic categories within a traditional diachronic frame. On the grounds of thorough inspection of specific markers, such as the presence of right dislocation, the dropping of final /m/, of anteconsonantal /n/, of final /d/ and of semiconsonantal /j/ in the long diphthong /o:j/, all occurring in the so-called Vibia’s curse, the defixio Vetter 6 is interpreted as a typical product of a low variety of Oscan from the sole diastratic point of view.
SAKARAKLÚM E FÍÍSNÚ: VALORI DI TESTO E VALORI DI LINGUA
Authors: Marchese Maria Pia
Published: October 2018

In this paper we take into account two Oscan words, sakaraklúm and fíísnú; these words, strictly related between each other, belong to the sanctuary environment. We try to define the lexical value based on their context of use. We therefore consider the types of documents witnessing them (i.e. the public inscriptions of the samnitic sanctuary of Pietrabbondante, Isernia, and the Cippus Abellanus) and the distribution of the two terms within these texts (the complementary distribution in the texts from Pietrabbondante and the coexistence of these terms in the Cippus Abellanus). We can find further elements for a more accurate definition of their lexical value in the grammatical structure of the investigated texts.
THE LAPIS SATRICANUS AS EVIDENCE OF AN ITALIC WRITING CONTEXT IN THE LATIUM VETUS?
Authors: Rocca Giovanna , Sarullo Giulia
Published: October 2018

Sabine traditions in the Lapis Satricanus? We will propose a possible cultural “sabine” individualization of the Lapis Satricanus, that expresses itself on a level of language and handwriting. The Latin alphabet actually gives evidence of some peculiarities that recall possible extra-Latin parallels. But the “cultural” contents (including obviously the linguistic features) are even more meaningful: these seem to show a coexistence of traditions in Rome of “not Roman type”.
PROSPETTIVE E LIMITI DELL'ECONOMIA QUANTITATIVA
Authors: Pasinetti Luigi
Published: October 2018

Riassunto. –L’economia politica è, tra le scienze umane, quella che maggiormente sperimenta l’attrazione verso i metodi quantitativi e in particolare verso la matematica e la statistica. Recentemente questa attrazione si è fatta ancor più forte che in passato, al punto che non è raro trovare, tra gli economisti, dei teorici che amerebbero vedere l’economia considerata come un ramo della matematica applicata. Ma sarebbe davvero utile convogliare l’economia tra le scienze naturali o addirittura spingerla al ruolo di un ramo della matematica applicata? Una attenta riflessione porta ben presto alla constatazione che il rapporto tra economia e matematica è molto più complesso di quanto possa sembrare a prima vista. L’autore sottolinea che ci sono almeno quattro caratteristiche che differenziano l’economia politica dalle scienze naturali: l’oggetto di studio; la finalità della ricerca economica tesa ad influenzare l’oggetto di studio; la sua caratteristica di disciplina per certi aspetti positiva e per altri aspetti normativa; il coinvolgimento dei giudizi di valore. Per illustrare queste differenze e inquadrare la dimensione autonoma dell’economia politica, l’autore ricorre ad una rassegna critica delle opinioni di alcuni economisti di rilievo, che hanno dedicato contributi all’argomento qui in discussione. Specifici riferimenti vengono fatti a Marshall, Keynes, Hicks, Morishima e – tra gli economisti maggiormente presenti nelle nostre discussioni – a Sraffa e Sen, ai quali ultimi l’autore si sente più vicino.***Abstract. – Among the human sciences, economics is the one experimenting a high degree of attraction towards quantitative methods and, in particular, towards mathematics and statistics. In our times, this attraction is even stronger than in the past, so that it is customary to find, among economists, theoreticians aiming at presenting economics as a branch of applied mathematics. Is it really useful to include economics among the natural sciences, or even to consider it as a branch of applied mathematics? A careful reflection leads quickly to the awareness that the relations between economics and mathematics are much more complex than one can see at first sight. The Author underlines that there are at least four characteristics which differentiate political economy from natural sciences: the object of study; the purpose of economic research (which has an influence on the object of study); its characteristic of being a discipline which is both positive and normative; the dependence on value judgements. To illustrate such differences, and to focus on the autonomous dimension of political economy, the Author critically reviews the opinions of some famous economists, who contributed to the subject under discussion. Specific references are made to Marshall, Keynes, Hicks, Morishima and – among the economists more relevant to the present discussion – Sraffa and Sen, to whom the Author feels closer than to the others.
ECONOMIA MATEMATICA E MECCANICA RAZIONALE
Authors: Nicola PierCarlo
Published: October 2018

Riassunto. – Almeno a partire da Pareto le analogie meccaniche hanno giocato un ruolo rilevante nella teoria economica; ma sarebbe ingiusto passare sotto silenzio il fatto che Marshall, praticamente coetaneo di Pareto, propendeva piuttosto per l’impiego di analogie di natura biologica. Questo detto, l’equilibrio generale, attualmente il paradigma più diffuso fra i cultori di teoria economica, si presta mirabilmente a sottolineare le analogie meccaniche proponibili nella teoria economica. Partendo dalla formulazione canonica dell’equilibrio generale concorrenziale, come venne proposta da Arrow e Debreu nel 1954, l’intervento si propone di presentare succintamente alcune delle estensioni formulate nel corso degli ultimi 50 anni:– l’introduzione dei monopoli e della concorrenza monopolistica;– i prezzi rigidi e il razionamento;– le generazioni sovrapposte;– gli equilibri temporanei e le aspettative soggettive;– gli equilibri approssimati in presenza di non convessità; – l’infinità degli agenti e la concorrenza perfetta;– l’incertezza;– i mercati incompleti e le attività finanziarie.Vengono brevemente discussi anche i problemi che sorgono nell’applicazione di modelli di equilibrio generale allo studio di economie concrete, e si sottolinea il fatto che i dati economici sono sempre soggetti ad errori spesso rilevanti, mentre quasi mai é possibile condurre esperimenti controllabili, diversamente da quanto avviene nella fisica. Le applicazioni portano naturalmente a chiedersi quale utilità possono rivestire i modelli di equilibrio generale a fini previsionali.***Abstract. – Since Pareto times mechanical analogies played a relevant role in economic theory; but it is necessary to underline that Marshall, an economist contemporary to Pareto, preferred to employ biological analogies. General equilibrium, presently the mainstream paradigm in economic theory, lends itself very naturally to underline mechanical analogies permeating economic theory. Starting from the canonical formulation of general equilibrium, as proposed by Arrow and Debreu in 1954, our aim is to briefly recall some extensions made during the last 50 years:– the inclusion of monopolies and monopolistic competition;– sticky prices and rationing;– overlapping generations;– temporary equilibrium and subjective expectations;– approssimate equilibria under non convexities;– infinity of agents and perfect competition;– uncertainty;– incomplete markets and financial activities.We discuss also some problems which are present in applying general equilibrium models to our days economies, and we underline the fact that economic data are always affected by errors, while very rarely it is possible to do controlled experiments, contrary to what happens in physics. Therefore, it is natural to ask which is the utility of general equilibrium models as far as forecasting activities are of interest.
LA FORMALIZZAZIONE MATEMATICA NELLE TEORIE ECONOMICHE: PROBLEMI E PROSPETTIVE
Authors: Marseguerra Giovanni
Published: October 2018

Riassunto. – All’interno della comunità degli economisti sembra essere oggi presente un crescente disagio e un diffuso malcontento relativamente alle capacità della modellistica neoclassica di comprendere e spiegare i fenomeni economici. La relazione intende esaminare criticamente il contributo della formalizzazione matematica nelle teorie economiche, mettendo in evidenza sia punti di forza di un tale approccio sia le debolezze insite in un’analisi che rischia spesso di privilegiare la bellezza dello strumento rispetto all’oggetto di studio. Si considerano poi alcune delle moderne prospettive per l’indagine economica offerte dalla modellistica basata sulla simulazione a computer che consente di tener conto della complessità della realtà in misura maggiore di un approccio puramente analitico. Viene infine evidenziata l’importanza di garantire la coesistenza di una pluralità di scuole di pensiero in economia e si esaminano altresì le difficoltà per la valutazione della ricerca provocate dall’esistenza di un paradigma dominante. Nelle conclusioni viene enfatizzata la necessità di considerare l’economia come una vera scienza sociale.***Abstract. – There is today a widespread discontent within the international economists’ community as far as the capacity of the dominant neoclassical paradigm both to enhance our knowledge of economic phenomena and increase our capacity of governing the real economy. Somehow surprisingly, the lack of explicative relevance of the theory went almost hand in hand with the massive use of mathematics to formalize the theory. In order to investigate this peculiar feature of the evolution of economic science, this paper examines the contribution of mathematical formalization to the development of economic theory in the last sixty years pointing out both weaknesses as well as merits of a quantitative approach to economics. Finally, the need to consider economics as a truly social science si strongly emphasized.
ECONOMETRIA: ISTANZE DELL'ECONOMIA E PARALLELISMI CON LE SCIENZE NATURALI
Authors: Faliva Mario , Zoia Maria Grazia
Published: October 2018

Riassunto. – Il saggio, dopo aver operato un raffronto fra le linee guida dell’econometria classica e dell’econometria delle serie storiche, rivolge l’attenzione ai rapporti che collegano, mediante un ponte ideale, analisi econometrica e metodo scientifico. Lo studio della struttura causale dei modelli macroeconometrici con la teoria dei sistemi, da un lato, ed il problema della enucleazione delle componenti dalle serie storiche con la teoria dei filtri dall’altro, costituiscono due esempi emblematici della proficua interazione fra problemi e metodi propri dell’econometria e tecniche delle scienze naturali.***Abstract. – The paper, after casting a glance at the facing heads of classical and time-series econometrics, turns the spotlight on the ideal bridge linking econometric analysis to scientific method. The investigation into the causal structure of macroeconometric models within a system-theory framework, on one hand, and the detection of components from economic time series by filtering techniques on the other, provide two emblematic examples of the fruitful melting pot of econometric and natural-science methodologies.
PROCEDIMENTI DI MISURAZIONE, PREDICIBILITA' E DETERMINISMO NELLE LEGGI DELLA FISICA
Authors: Borgonovi Fausto
Published: October 2018

Riassunto. – I dati finanziari e la realtà fisica vengono descritti mediante modelli matematici. Mentre ciò sembra del tutto ovvio per i fenomeni naturali (alla luce dei molti e importanti progressi compiuti nella fisica dell’ultimo secolo), la questione della modellizzazione matematica dei dati economico-finanziari è ancora oggetto di dibattito. In particolare, il problema della prevedibilità di alcuni eventi viene qui discussa e si stabilisce la sua relazione con un processo presunto di misurazione oggettiva.***Abstract. – Financial data and physical reality are described in terms of mathematical models. While this seems quite obvious for the natural phenomena (in the light of the many and important progress done in the last century physics), the question of the mathematical modelization of the former is still under debate. In particular, the problem of the predictability of some event is discussed and its relationship with a presumed objective measurement process established.
CONCLUSIONI
Authors: Nicola PierCarlo , Zanella Angelo
Published: October 2018

Non disponibile.
PIETRO VERRI ET JEAN-BAPTISTE SAY: VALEUR, MONNAIE ET LOI DES DÉBOUCHÉS
Authors: Tiran André
Published: October 2018

Pietro Verri and Jean-Baptiste Say: value, money and the law of markets. The aim of this essay is to determine what influence Verri may have had on Jean- Baptiste Say. Should we limit Verri’s influence to what Say himself acknowledges in a footnote of the Traité concerning the value of goods, or should we recognize for Verri another and more fundamental role in the formation of Say’s general theoretical framework? If this question has not been raised so far, this may be due to the insufficient attention so far paid in France, but also elsewhere, to the Italian economists of the eighteenth century, except for authors such as Beccaria and Galiani. As we shall see in this essay, Jean-Baptiste Say takes up, against Adam Smith, Verri’s conception of utilityvalue, while against the Physiocrats (and also against what remains Physiocratic in Smith) Say maintains that production is a transformation, not a creation, of matter. At the same time, Say derives from Smith the central importance assigned to the production and exchange of values for values, and the opposition against system builders. In the eyes of Jean-Baptiste Say, Pietro Verri is the most important eighteenth century economist before Adam Smith. In the Discours préliminaire to the 5th edition of the Traité (1826), Say strongly emphasizes the importance of Italian economists. As he writes there: “Count Verri, compatriot and friend of Beccaria, and both a good writer and a great administrator, in his Meditazioni sull’economia politica, published in 1771, approached more than anyone else before Smith the real laws that govern the production and consumption of wealth”.
SALUTO DEL PRESIDENTE DELL’ISTITUTO LOMBARDO
Authors: Sironi Gianpiero
Published: October 2018

Non disponibile.
MYOTONIC DYSTROPHIES: GENETICALLY-BASED DISEASES DUE TO TOXIC RNA
Authors: Pellicciari Carlo
Published: October 2018

Myotonic dystrophies (DMs, the second most diffuse forms of muscular dystrophy, after Duchenne dystrophy) are genetically-based degenerative neuromuscular diseases exhibiting widely variable clinical features and characterized by myotonia (i.e., a prolonged contraction of skeletal muscles after short stimulation) and a delayed muscle relaxation after voluntary contraction. There are two form of DMs: the more severe DM1 (or Steinert’s disease), and the milder form DM2. The intranuclear accumulation of expanded RNAs is considered as the pathogenetic factor of DMs: the presence of these RNAs exerts a toxic action on cell function which essentially depends on the ectopic sequestration of nuclear protein factors involved in the processing of transcripts. The aim of this mini-symposium is to describe the genetic and cellular bases of DMs, showing how the results of basic research may provide important clues for both diagnosis and therapy.
CELL NUCLEAR ALTERATIONS IN MYOTONIC DYSTROPHY
Authors: Malatesta Manuela , Giagnacovo Marzia
Published: October 2018

In the cell nucleus, genes are transcribed, and the primary transcripts undergo molecular processing which generates mature RNAs to be exported to the cytoplasm. The events leading to the formation of mature RNAs are chronologically and spatially ordered, and they mostly occur on distinct ribonucleoprotein (RNP)-containing structures. Defects in the RNA maturation pathways have been related to diseases leading to muscle dystrophy: in myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) and type 2 (DM2), the characteristic multisystemic features (e.g., myotonia, muscular dystrophy, dilated cardiomyopathy, cardiac conduction defects, cataracts, insulin-resistance, and disease-specific serological abnormalities) are caused by the expansion of two distinct nucleotide sequences: (CTG)n in the 3’ untranslated region of the DMPK gene on chromosome 19q13 in DM1, and (CCTG)n in the first intron of the ZNF9 gene on chromosome 3q21 in DM2. Combining biomolecular and cytochemical techniques, it has been demonstrated that the basic mechanisms of both DMs reside in the nuclear sequestration of the expanded RNAs: CUG- and CCUG-containing transcripts accumulate in intranuclear foci in DM1 and DM2 cells respectively, and alter the regulation and intranuclear localization of the RNA-binding proteins CUGBP1 and MBLN, which are necessary for the physiological processing of pre-mRNA. Using immunocytochemical techniques at light and electron microscopy, we have demonstrated that MBNL1-containing foci in DM2 cells also sequester snRNPs and hnRNPs, splicing factors involved in the early phases of transcript processing; this strengthens the hypothesis that the multifactorial phenotype of dystrophic patients could be due to a general alteration of the pre-mRNA post-transcriptional pathway. Interestingly, we also demonstrated that, in skeletal muscles of DM1 and DM2 patients, splicing and cleavage factors accumulate in myonuclei, suggesting an impairment of pre-mRNA processing reminiscent of the nuclear alterations typical of sarcopenia (i.e. the loss of muscle mass and function physiologically occurring during ageing). Moreover, in an in vitro study, we observed that satellite-cell-derived DM2 myoblasts show cell senescence alterations and impairment of the pre-mRNA maturation pathways earlier than the myoblasts from healthy patient. These results suggest possible common cellular mechanisms responsible for skeletal muscle wasting in different pathologies.
VERDI E IL WAGNERISMO NEL MOVIMENTO GERMANICO ITALIANO
Authors: Rostagno Antonio
Published: October 2018

Deutsche bewegung (Prussian way) and “classical liberalism” are two opposite concepts; and in the gap between them Verdi’s concern about the “germanesimo” is to be placed. Verdi meets the German culture very early: in 1834 he conducts Haydn’s Die Schöpfung and in 1838 writes two songs on Goethe’s Faust Italian translations. But at that time Goethe and Haydn are considered as universal culture and not as particular “german” expressions. German culture will be seen as an foreign entity, as a potential colonizer, only with the rise of Prussian nationalism, after French débâcle at Sedan. Then everything changes, and Verdi raises his voice complaining that “now all is German”; but now in Haydn’s place there is Wagner; in the place of Goethe there is Heine. What worries Verdi is not only the artistic situation, but a more general, radical and deep danger. Actually under the government of Francesco Crispi Italy is starting on a new “Prussian way”, e Deutsche bewegung, a “movement” more political and economic, than artistical. The approaching to the Bismarck model is a consequence of the worsening of relationship between Italy and France (until the so-called Guerra doganale, “Tariff war”. The Triplice Alleanza is so one of the main origins of Italian Wagnerism; and Verdi’s dismay doesn’t follow from the artistic situation (or better, not only), but from the real wave which submerged the whole everyday life, endangering the process of national consciousness. Verdi is one of the first who understood to what extent the “Prussian way” was unsuitable to a nation grounded on classic liberalism ethical, before than political principles.
LINGUA E DRAMMATURGIA NEI LIBRETTI VERDIANI
Authors: Bonomi Ilaria
Published: October 2018

This report will outline the main linguistic nature of Verdi’s librettos, with special attention to the peculiarity of each Librettist and to the lines of Verdi’s intervention on the formal role of the librettos. The introductive remarks illustrate fundamental methodological notes and the slant of the linguistic analysis, that must necessarily consider the drama component and the connection words/music. In the first part, we consider the textual stories of the librettos. On the one hand we focus on the cooperation of Verdi with the Librettists and on the other hand on the lines and the parameters of his intervention on the librettos. In the second part we’ll analyze (in a chronological order) the linguistic features of every Librettist, their melodramatic code and their original adaptations concluding that the personality of Verdi always dominate on everything.
VERDI E IL SALOTTO MILANESE DI CLARA MAFFEI
Authors: Cella Franca
Published: October 2018

Among the 19th century literary salons an important role is played by that of the countess Clara Maffei, not only for its long duration (52 years) and its European reputation. It’s a private meeting point, the heart of Milan where aristocrats, intellectuals and burgeois gather together. The four personalities involved are: the two founders Andrea and Clara Maffei, Giuseppe Verdi and his wife Giuseppina Verdi Strepponi with their correspondence. This epistolar exchange consists of more than 600 documents, partly wellknown and published and partly unpublished (Clara’s letters conserved in Sant’Agata archives). Very important is the correspondence between Verdi and Clara. Andrea Maffei (Molina di Ledro 1798 – Milano 1885) stands out in the Italian culture of the mid nineteenth century: connoisseur of poets and theatre beyond the Alps, he spreads in Italy the International taste with many translations from german, his second language (from Klopstock to the theatre of Schiller) and English authors: he is friend of many artists and he represents actively the consonance among literature, art and music. He offers to Verdi, received in the salon in 1842, formative relationships with intellectuals and artists and personally a lively school of cultural and theatre taste, guiding him in the choice of subjects, he composes for Verdi the libretto of I Masnadieri and he makes the fantasy arrangements of the witches in Macbeth. Chiara Carrara Spinelli (Bergamo 1814 – Milano 1886) is a fascinating creature, cultured and quivering of emotions and ideals. She has a vocation in receiving and listening, she offered all kinds of spiritual, material and social assistance. The relationship between Clara and Verdi is based on a confidential, noble, without reserve friendship. A friendship that grows in the distance, as for 20 years Verdi stays away from Milan, and he will see Clara again in 1868 during the visit at Manzoni. But her letters marks a thread with old and new friends of the salon, and herself, who adores and spends time with Manzoni, stimulates the cult of Verdi for this personality with continuous news and pushes him to a meeting. During the two stays in Sant’Agata she captures intimate moments of Verdi’s life. He represents for Clara the maximum ambition of art and ethics, and she is proud of sharing his choices, reassured about her apprehensions and weakness. Verdi opens his heart to Clara and facilitates the correspondence between Clara and Peppina who will become close friends.
IL CIBO FRA NATURA E CULTURA: ALCUNI ASSAGGI DI POESIA GASTRONOMICA GRECA
Authors: Montanari Ornella
Published: October 2018

A little known Greek author, generally ignored by most handbooks of literary history, Archestratos of Gela, is regarded by the most qualified scholars as the â€œFather of Western Gastronomyâ€. He worked during the second half of the 4th century BC; his poem, Hedypatheia (Life of pleasure), is a peculiar Lehrgedicht, result of a refined art, very well controlled and never excessive, humourous, resulting from an unexpected contrast between the hexametric form and the original grastronomic topic. From this serio-comic and allusive work only 62 fragments survive, amounting around 330 lines. This ancient gastronome travelled all around the world for the sake of philedonia and had much fun translating his taste experiences into verse. He thought that only direct autopsy is a guarantee of success in cooking. This is a sort of â€œvademecum of the gourmetâ€ (Lesky), that generates the rule of WHERE/HOW/WHEN, which is still an excellent guide.
SIMBOLO, MIRACOLO, TENTAZIONE. IL CIBO NELLA LETTERATURA AGIOGRAFICA MEDIEVALE PRIMA E DOPO IL SECOLO XII
Authors: Maggioni Giovanni Paolo
Published: October 2018

The Christian religion is characterized by an ambivalent relationship with food. On the one hand, the liturgy is centered on the bread and wine, body and blood of Christ; on the other, the body, that you are forced to feed, has often been seen as an intolerable burden on the path of salvation. Despite this ambivalence, in the hagiographic literature of the early Middle Ages seems to be predominantly a negative conception of food, the trámite of every vice, to which man can not give up, while the twelfth century dominates a new idea of the body and, consequently, a different consideration of food and nutrition. Some hagiographic exempla regarding the primary foods, including bread, wine and milk, illustrate this evolution.
IL CONTRIBUTO DEL POLITECNICO ALLO SVILUPPO DELLâ€™INFORMATICA
Authors: Ghezzi Carlo
Published: October 2018

The history of Computer Science and Engineering (Informatics) began internationally after the Second World War. In the last decade of the twentieth century it bacame one of the disciplines with highest impact on economy, industry, and society. The development of Informatics at Politecnico started when the first computer was brought to Italy from the USA by Prof. Luigi Dadda and the first experiments and investigations were launched. Since then Informatics has been continuously growing until today it became the engine of modern society, often called the Information Society. This paper reports on the main developments of Informatics at Politecnico and the main contributions achieved nationally and internationally in education and research.
IL 50Â° ANNIVERSARIO DEL NOBEL A GIULIO NATTA
Authors: Pasquon Italo
Published: October 2018

On March 11, 1954 Giulio Natta synthetized isotactic polypropylene. It was the first synthesis, in laboratory, of a polymer having a sterically ordered structure, similar to those found in some natural polymers like, for instance, natural rubber and cellulose. This meaningful aspect was emphasized by Prof. Fredga of the Swedish Academy in his speech at the customary ceremony of Nobel Prize on December 10, 1963, when he stated â€œNatta has broken the monopoly of natureâ€. With the polypropylene synthesis Natta discovered the â€œstereospecific polymerizationâ€ defined by Toblosky (Princeton University) and by Flory, one of the most eminent scientist in the macromolecular chemistry and future Nobel laureate in Chemistry (1974), a â€œrevolutionâ€ in the macromolecular field. Natta was recognized as the â€œfatherâ€ of stereospecific polymerization. The Journal of Polymer Science, vol. 51 (1961), dedicated to Natta, reports â€œSeldom a scientific contribution aroused such a deep and fundamental interest and was followed by such a rapid technical development as the series of publications by Professor Natta and his coworkers on the stereospecific polymerization. Yet Professor Natta has succeeded in maintaining undisputed leadership in this field of polymer chemistry and continues to surprise his colleagues with new and unexpected resultsâ€. The revolution brought by Natta in the field of macromolecular chemistry involved the entire scientific and industrial world specialized in that area. Soon after 1954-55 a lot of universities and industrial laboratories around the world started to work on activities concerning the novel stereospecific polymerization. The results of these studies are reported in about a thousand scientific publications and some hundreds of patents issued from the Milan Polytechnic Institute of Industrial Chemistry between 1955 and 1977 (concentrated in 1955-57). The importance of polypropylene from the commercial point of view is evident from the fact that the world production of various types of polypropylene now stands at about 60 million tons/year. It is estimated that the related global economic value approaches the second place over all synthetic products, after polyethylene, together with ammonia, and before other products such as urea, polymers of styrene and vinyl chloride, nylons, etc. For their part 1,4-cis polybutadiene and copolymers based on ethylene and propylene occupy respectively the second and the third place in terms of worldwide production and market value among synthetic elastomers, after styrene-butadiene rubbers (SBR). More information concerning the personality and the scientific and didactic activities of Giulio Natta and his relations with the scientific and industrial world are reported on the internet site www.giulionatta.it containing the â€œGiulio Natta Archiveâ€ (more than 40.000 pages).
FARE GRANDE MILANO: IL COMUNE E LE ESPOSIZIONI
Authors: Punzo Maurizio
Published: October 2018

The prominent role of the public administration is a key aspect to understand why and how Milan became the â€œItalian city of expositionsâ€ since the national unification, in 1861. The municipality has indeed being taking a set of initiatives for promoting a strong and shared growth, along with various stakeholders in the local community. As a result of this policy Milan has become a benchmark in national and international markets, providing an ideal environment for successful events that highlighted both the industrial progress of the city and its leading role in strategic planning for innovative projects. Thus Milan has been considered as the â€˜moral capitalâ€™ of Italy, an inspiring example for the whole nation and, furthermore, as a world metropolis. The National Exposition of 1881, the International Expo of 1906, the Â«Fiera CampionariaÂ», the annual conventions and expositions for professionals, along with Expo 2015 are just a few examples of its reputation of excellence that lives on through the ages.
NOTE SULLâ€™ARCHITETTURA A MILANO NEL 1881
Authors: Bellini Amedeo
Published: October 2018

The 1881 exposition is presented by the press, both the popular and the specialized one, as the evidence of the progress made by Italy: the increase in the industrial production which reduces the dependence upon the foreigner, an opportunity for the rapprochement between the â€œdifferent Italian peoplesâ€. The leading function of Milan is extolled, as organizer of the great event, â€œmoral capitalâ€ as the centre of progress of the production world. The observations about architecture form part of this perspective: both its being a utilitarian structure, thus at the service of peopleâ€™s progress, for its function of fulfilling the needs more and more complex or more keenly felt by the social conscience, and as a formal structure, product of a history but also, as concerns this aspect, a direct consequence of the social and economic organization; however, generally speaking, with a distinction between â€œconstructionâ€ and â€œarchitectureâ€, between utility and art, between poetic expression and economic requirements, therefore denying the fundamental premise of the positivist culture according to which art is the expression of a beauty variable over time, since it is the result of social conditions. Exemplary in this respect is the failure of the great enterprise of the monument to the â€œCinque Giornateâ€ which should have been simultaneously a celebratory architecture, a gateway representative of the modern city, a functional structure for excise services. In this context a particular relevance has the conservation activity which positively satisfies the need to get to know the process which leads to today, which purifies the document from tampering and takes it back to formal unity, so that artâ€™s persuasive strength, highly influential upon everyoneâ€™s mind, may make people understand their belonging to a unitary civilization, may shape the Italiansâ€™ social conscience.
CULTURA POLITECNICA, ENERGIA, INDUSTRIALIZZAZIONE
Authors: Silvestri Andrea
Published: October 2018

The Milan National Exhibition in 1881, if compared with the previous one in Florence (1861) and with the intermediate international exhibitions, shows that also Italy had finally completed the First Industrial Revolution, characterized by the trinomial coal-iron-steam. Giuseppe Colombo of the Politecnico di Milano, who had presented Florence Exhibition in 1861 in the newspaper “La Perseveranza” and subsequently was one of the promoter of the Milan National Exhibition in 1881, knew very well that the second Industrial Revolution – in particular for electricity – was about starting. He was aware because he took part to the revolutionary international Exposition of Electricity in Paris (1881), where Edison showed his new continue corrent system for production, longdistance transmission and distribution of electricity for incandescent lighting. When he came back to Milan, Colombo founded the most important electric company in Italy, Edison, and in 1883 (after one journey to find Edison in America), he devised the first European electrical power plant - Santa Radegonda - for the enlightenment of the old town centre of Milan. In few years the hydroelectric production and the long way distance alternating current transmission were achieved with the power plant of Paderno d’Adda and the electrical transmission line from Paderno to Milan, not only for enlightenment use but also for motive power, industrial use and public transport. Hereinafter the electrification of the Country Italy accompanied its modernization: the foundation of the Istituzione Elettrotecnica Carlo Erba in the Politecnico di Milano strengthened the training of new technicians, such as high profile personalities like Giacinto Motta or Ettore Conti, while entrepreneurs like Giovanni Battista Pirelli or Alberto Riva had international successes with the production of cables or electrical machines.
LA SOCIETÀ TRA PRIVILEGIO E INCLUSIONE: MILANO NEL 1906
Authors: Bigatti Giorgio
Published: October 2018

The 1906 Exhibition attracts million visitors in Milan and show the world the progress of that Verga called the “actual city of Italy”, a progress certified by both its industries and the urban modernization policies promoted by the Milan ruling class, who find in the Town Hall a sensitive advocate.
MILANO CHE SI COSTRUISCE: I PIANI REGOLATORI
Authors: Rossari Augusto
Published: October 2018

The paper examines the urban development of Milan from 1859 to 1912. In the years between 1859 and 1884 the city developed in the wake of the first industrialization without a master plan and only partial plans were prepared for areas where building activities were already taking place. Planning therefore followed private initiative and even the 1876 plan by engineer Angelo Fasana was no more than a tool, without legal value, to guide and coordinate the involvement of the municipal administration. This led the Milan ruling classes to encourage the decentralization of large industries in order to avoid the onset of speculation and the resulting feared negative effects on housing areas. Following the scandal raised by the parcelling of the Lazzaretto, which began in 1880, and by the one proposed for the Piazza d’Armi, in 1883 engineer Cesare Beruto was given the task of studying an overall master plan. The gestation of the plan, long and often faced by opposition, ended with its adoption in 1889 following three earlier drafts (1884, 1885, 1888). The present paper illustrates the conceptual lines and the most important issues of the plan: the size of the blocks, the definition of the green areas and the design of the Piazza d’Armi, and outlines the results of its application over two decades at the turn of the nineteenth century. Finally, the paper discusses - taking also into account subsequent plans, such as the one of 1912 by Pavia and Masera and the one of 1934 by Albertini - the long persistence of the “radial” growth model, outlined by Beruto, and the crucial impact it has had on the image of Milan.
PET imaging of 18F-florbetapir in cognitively impaired individuals: Lack of activity within the cerebellar cortex
Authors: Meyer Michael A. , Caccia Allison , Martinez Danielle , Mingos Mark A.
Published: October 2018

Ten individuals suspected of having possible Alzheimer disease underwent PET imaging using 18F-Flubetapir. Only one of ten individuals had a pattern typical for normal elderly control subjects with 9 of the 10 showing a Alzheimer type pattern for the cerebral cortex yet all 10 subjects had uniformly low to absent tracer localization to the cerebellar cortex; significantly high tracer activity was noted within the subcortical white matter of the cerebellum in a symmetric manner in all cases. In consideration of studies that have shown amyloid deposits within the cerebellar cortex in 90% of pathologically proven cases of Alzheimer’s disease, these findings raise questions about the actual clinical value of florbetapir PET imaging in evaluating cerebellar involvement and raises questions whether PET imaging of this tracer accurately portrays patterns of amyloid deposition, as there is rapid hepatic metabolism of the parent compound after intravenous injection. Possible links to Alzheimer’s disease related alterations in blood-brain barrier permeability to the parent compound and subsequent radiolabelled metabolites are discussed as potential mechanisms that could explain the associated localization of the tracer to the brainstem and subcortical white matter within the cerebrum and cerebellum of Alzheimer’s disease patients.
Treatment of Levodopa-induced dyskinesia with Vitamin D: A Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial
Authors: Habibi Amir Hassan , Anamoradi Arezo , Shahidi Gholam Ali , Razmeh Saeed , Alizadeh Elham , Moradian Kokhedan Karim
Published: October 2018

Dyskinesia refers to any involuntary movement, such as chorea, dystonia, ballism that affect any part of the body. Levodopa-induced dyskinesia is a neurological disorder that afflicts many patients with Parkinson disease usually 5 years after the onset of levodopa therapy and can cause severe disability. The pathophysiology of this dyskinesia is complex and not fully understood. However, the association between vitamin D and Parkinson disease is interesting. The present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of vitamin D on levodopa induced dyskinesia in patients with Parkinson’s disease .In this Double blind clinical trial, 120 patients with PD divided into two groups randomly, vitamin D and placebo group. A dose of 1000 IU/d was selected, Demographic information is registered. In the first visit, three variables have been measured which were the duration, severity of dyskinesia and unified Parkinson’s disease rating scale (UPDRS). These variables were measured again after 3 months and the data was analyzed using SPSS 22. There are no differences between two groups after 3 months. This study revealed, vitamin D has no effects on improvement of levodopa induced dyskinesia.
A Bilateral Comparison of the Underlying Mechanics Contributing to the Seated Single-Arm Shot-Put Functional Performance Test
Authors: Riemann Bryan L. , Johnson Wayne , Murphy Thomas , Davies George J.
Published: October 2018

Context

Functional performance tests (FPTs) are tools used to assess dynamic muscle strength and power. In contrast to the lower extremity, fewer FPTs are available for the upper extremity. The seated single-arm shot put test has the potential to fill the void in upper extremity FPTs; however, the underlying mechanics have not been examined and, therefore, the validity of bilateral comparisons is unknown.

Objective

To examine the effects of upper extremity dominance and medicine-ball mass on the underlying mechanics of the seated single-arm shot put.

Design

Crossover study.

Setting

Biomechanics laboratory.

Patients or Other Participants

Fifteen women (age = 23.6 ± 2.1 years, height = 1.65 ± .07 m, mass = 68.1 ± 11.7 kg) and 15 men (age = 24.3 ± 4.0 years, height = 1.80 ± 0.06 m, mass = 88.1 ± 16.4 kg), all healthy and physically active.

Intervention(s)

Seated single-arm shot-put trials using the dominant and nondominant limbs were completed using three 0.114-m-diameter medicine-ball loads (1 kg, 2 kg, 3 kg).

Main Outcome Measure(s)

Customized touch-sensitive gloves, synchronized with kinematic data of the hands, signaled ball release, so that release height, release angle, and peak anterior and vertical velocity could be quantified for each trial. In addition, the horizontal range from release to first floor impact was recorded.

Results

The dominant-limb horizontal ranges were 7% to 11% greater (P < .001) than for the nondominant limb for each of the 3 ball masses. No bilateral release-height or -angle differences were revealed (P ≥ .063). Release velocities were 7.6% greater for the dominant limb than the nondominant limb (P = .001).

Conclusions

Our results support the use of the seated single-arm shot put test as a way to compare bilateral upper extremity functional performance. The near-identical release heights and angles between the dominant and nondominant limbs support the interpretation of measured bilateral horizontal-range differences as reflecting underlying strength and power differences.
The Silk Road and Sources of Chinese Medicine Expansion: Part 2 – Formularies
Authors: Bradley Sean
Published: October 2018

Medicines have been traded along the Silk Road from antiquity until modern times. These products and their associated knowledge have been transferred over the land and sea between Asia, Europe, and Africa. Numerous texts that contain formulas and treatments passed along the Silk Road. Collections of these formulas and treatment methods called formularies contain unique information that informs this transfer of medicine. The texts and information flowed in both directions along these routes and while Chinese medicine influenced foreign medical practices both in history, and today, the incorporation of non-Chinese medicine and information also continues to influence Chinese medicine.
Looking for Chinese Red: Materia Medica Trade along the Silk Road and Development of Chinese Red Dyestuff
Authors: Shao Min
Published: October 2018

In thousands of years from the Pre-Qin Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty, crimson represents sacredness and good fortune in several dynasties and is honored in the hierarchy of colors. Meanwhile, introduction to the exotic Materia Medica for dyeing from the Silk Road trade greatly expands the dyeing category of red color. The exotic red dyestuff is eventually integrated into the red culture of the Central Plains through the localization process. Therefore, it becomes the color symbol on behalf of Chinese nation.
Styrax, Emperor's Cream from the Western Regions
Authors: Yao Tianwen , Yang Baican
Published: October 2018

Styrax is also called “emperor's cream” and “consciousness-regaining spice.” The alias “emperor's cream” shows its rarity and preciousness with a strong aroma, and another name of “consciousness-regaining spice” implies its functions of active brain and regaining consciousness, dispelling filth with aroma, and relieving pain. The name of “Styrax” displays its complex productive progress and place of origin. With thick quality, heavyweight, and fragrant smesll, Styrax gets further application in beauty, skin care, clothes fumigating, and health keeping after introduced into the Central Plains (central China) from the Western Regions. The name of Styrax not only embodies the mellow appeal of spice culture in the Western Regions but also suggests the history of relationship between foreign culture and traditional Chinese medicine. Furthermore, it indicates the broad mind of “all rivers running into sea” and inclusiveness of Chinese culture.
Hepatitis B Infection among Parturient Women in Peri-Urban Ghana
Authors: Adjei Charles Ampong , Atibila Fidelis , Apiribu Felix , Ahordzor Frederick , Attafuah Priscilla Adumoah , Ansah-Nyarko Michael , Asamoah Richard , Menkah William
Published: October 2018

Global evidence suggests that hepatitis B viral (HBV) infection is endemic in Africa and perinatal transmission remains one of the most important modes of HBV transmission in this area. This cross-sectional survey examined the seroprevalence and knowledge of hepatitis B among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic (ANC) in a mission hospital in Ghana. Systematic sampling technique was used to recruit 196 pregnant women. The level of statistical significance was set at 0.05 alpha level. The hepatitis B prevalence estimate (hepatitis B surface antigen) was 10.2% (N = 20) and all of the participants were aware of HBV infection. Majority cited media (radio) as their main source of information. Approximately 86% of the participants (N = 168) associated HBV infection with a curse and 88.8% (N = 174) indicated witches and wizards as possible causes of the infection. Those with higher level of school education had high hepatitis B knowledge score (P < 0.01). Implementation of a health education program on the route of hepatitis B transmission is required in the study setting. Also, inclusion of hepatitis B education as part of ANC activities will enable HBV-positive pregnant women to appreciate the need for hepatitis B vaccination of their newborns at birth.