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Plotinus on the Homonymy of Life
No full textThis article examines Plotinus’ conception of life (zōē) as a fundamentally homonymous item that structures his metaphysics. The analysis shows how life constitutes a distinct mode of being proper to incorporeal substances (Intellect and soul), in contrast to its merely derivative occurrence in bodies. Building on Kalligas’ application of Owen’s A/B predicate distinction, the study shows how life functions as an A-predicate—a categorial property of intelligible reality as such—rather than as a B-predicate tied to the content of specific Forms. While eternal life (Intellect) and temporal life (soul) exist in a hierarchical relationship, Plotinus rigorously maintains their homonymous character, rejecting any notion of generic unity. This insistence preserves the fundamental discontinuity between ontological levels and distinguishes Plotinus’ position from later Neoplatonists who sought to mediate between synonymy and homonymy. The article also explores how bodily life is merely an imitation of authentic life, highlighting Plotinus’ doctrine of vertical causation and his critical engagement with Aristotle’s theory of synonymy and predication. Close readings of key passages from Enneads III.7 and VI.7 elucidate these conceptual distinctions
Competition and cooperation evaluation for multi-modal railway network: A multi-leader–follower approach
No full textThe multi-modal railway network, comprising high-speed rail (HSR), intercity rail (ICR), suburban rail (SUR), and urban rail transit (URT), has been gaining increasing attention due to its reliability and social benefits. These different rail transit modes often cooperate to provide seamless multi-modal travel services for long-distance passengers, while simultaneously facing competition due to overlapping passenger demand. However, most existing studies on ticket pricing and train scheduling do not fully account for the competition–cooperation relationships among these four rail transit modes. To address this gap, this study presents a multi-leader–follower game model that integrates ticket pricing and train scheduling (including line planning and timetabling) while considering the competitive and cooperative interactions within the multi-modal railway network. The model incorporates a simulation-based passenger assignment approach at the lower level and a decision-making framework at the upper level, aiming to approximate a Nash equilibrium solution among the various railway operators. The bus system is introduced only to provide a realistic competitive background, preventing a purely railway-monopolized setting and allowing us to better analyze the cooperative–competitive strategies among the four railway systems. An improved Nash Q-learning algorithm is developed to iteratively determine the approximated Nash equilibrium solution for the proposed multi-leader–follower game model. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated in a case study based on the multi-modal railway network in Jiangsu Province and Shanghai, China. Our results show that the proposed method can effectively optimize both ticket pricing and train scheduling in the multi-modal railway network under various competition–cooperation scenarios. A viable cooperation strategy involves encouraging passengers with short-distance trips to use urban transport modes (such as SUR and URT) while reserving more available seats on intercity transport modes (like HSR and ICR) for long-distance passengers. This strategy helps optimize the overall efficiency of the multi-modal transportation system
Despre lumină și sol: traducerea lui Lorand Gaspar în italiană
No full textTraduire Lorand Gaspar en italien signifie se confronter à la dimension spatiale et matérielle de sa poésie. L’attention du poète aux lieux désertiques et lumineux, vécus à travers une expérience directe et itinérante, se reflète dans une écriture où la parole naît du contact avec la réalité tangible (la lumière, les pierres, les formations géologiques). Dans la version italienne, cette adhésion à la matière et à l’espace apparaît comme un élément central: la pierre devient espace et pensée, et le désert se configure comme un point de rencontre entre le monde intérieur et le monde sensible. Les traductions contribuent ainsi à restituer une poésie affranchie des conventions culturelles, enracinée dans l’expérience concrète et capable d’offrir au lecteur une méditation essentielle sur l’existence
I TRIBUTI STATALI. L'IMPOSTA SUL REDDITO DELLE SOCIETÀ. LE OPERAZIONI ESTINTIVE DELL'IMPRESA. CAPITOLO II, SEZ. V.
No full textANALISI DELLE OPERAZIONI DI DISSOLUZIONE DELL'IMPRESA
(con Paolo Tomei) Il PRIN LEXICONOMY. Ricerche in corso e prospettive future
No full textIl saggio illustra le iniziative e alcuni dei risultati del progetto PRIN 2022 PNRR "Lexiconomy. Writing The Structures Of Landholding In A Changing Italy (5th–8th Century)", portato avanti da Dario Internullo e Paolo Tomei. Il progetto indaga il lessico fondiario italiano come spia per cogliere i mutamenti delle strutture economiche, sociali, politiche e documentarie dei secoli V-VIII
The Art Market and Auction Houses. A Study Throughout the Gender Lens
No full textIn the context of growing attention to sustainable and ethical investment, an increasing number of entities and individuals are choosing to allocate resources to artworks. As a result, major international auction houses acting as intermediaries between artists and investors—are expanding their business operations. Within this evolving scenario, the present study investigates the gender composition of employees in selected top-tier auction houses worldwide, with a focus on understanding how corporate diversity and inclusion policies influence female representation and affect market dynamics in the art sector. The research adopts a mixed-method approach, combining a comprehensive review of academic literature and professional reports related to the art market, sustainability, ethical investment and gender studies, with a descriptive statistical analysis of gender distribution within the organizations examined. The findings contribute to academic and professional debates by highlighting the impact of gender representation on market efficiency, inclusivity and corporate governance in the art industry. This study also provides a conceptual framework for future research on the role of diversity and inclusion in shaping the evolution of the art market in alignment with broader sustainable and ethical investment practices. Additionally, it offers practical insights into the relevance of gender perspectives in financial decision-making processes, thereby supporting the development of more inclusive investment strategies
More than just transition: Uncovering heterogeneous socio-economic outcomes of climate policies
No full textAchieving sustainability in sociotechnical systems requires transition processes supported by far-reaching policy action. By their very nature, these processes generate diverse and uneven consequences across territories, affecting key socio-economic dimensions such as unemployment, GDP, average disposable income, and the gender employment gap. Moreover, the web of linkages on which policy actions work eludes traditional analytical frameworks. Taking the European Union as a case study of a just transition process, we propose an empirical setting based on a machine learning technique with three main objectives. First, we develop a model that better captures the complexity of a sustainable and just transition process. Second, we compare results with standard quantitative assessment models, and we test whether the resulting insights derived from the implementation of ML-based approach align with economic theory. Third, we explore the potential of a controlled ML framework in supporting context-specific policymaking for a case study of a just and sustainable transition process
Functionalized silver nanoparticles enable efficient mercury removal and toxicity reduction toward microalgae
No full textWater pollution, caused by human activities, is a major environmental and health concern. Among heavy metal pollutants, mercury (Hg) is recognized as one of the most persistent and bioaccumulative, while being also highly toxic for human health. Heavy metal removal from water presents significant challenges, and nanotechnology provides a promising solution through cost-effective, efficient, and reusable adsorption or immobilization. Silver nanoparticles functionalized with citrate and L-cysteine (AgNPcitLcys) have been specifically designed to remove Hg ions from water along with a negligible ecotoxicological impact to aquatic life. The present study aims to assess the efficacy of Hg removal from water by AgNPcitLcys through and ecotoxicity approach using the freshwater microalga Raphidocelis subcapitata and the marine water microalga Dunaliella tertiolecta. AgNPcitLcys showed low ecotoxicity to both microalgae, even though at high concentrations (10 mg/L) D. tertiolecta suffered a 40% inhibition of growth. Hg removal was highly efficient in marine water medium (99.26%) compared to freshwater (63.07%), regardless of the concentration of Hg. Despite removal in both media, Hg toxicity was successfully reduced by AgNPcitLcys only for D. tertiolecta. AgNPcitLcys showed to successfully work in a complex aquatic medium such as seawater, confirming their potentiality to be applied in real scenarios of water pollution by Hg