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The balanced Budget in the Italian Constitution: The evolution of Article 81 and the sustainability of public finances
No full textThis paper examines the constitutional principle of budgetary balance in the Italian legal system, focusing on the evolution of Article 81 of the Constitution and its implications for the sustainability of public finances. The original constitutional framework, as adopted in 1948, is analysed as a model centred on procedural budgetary constraints and parliamentary responsibility, which allowed for a broad margin of political discretion in fiscal policy and did not constitutionalise budget balance as a binding objective.
Against this background, the paper reconstructs the progressive transformation of the constitutional discipline of public finance, culminating in the 2012 constitutional reform that introduced the balanced budget principle into Article 81. Particular attention is devoted to the interaction between domestic constitutional law and European fiscal governance, highlighting how supranational constraints have influenced national constitutional choices and reshaped the relationship between democratic decision-making and fiscal discipline.
The analysis adopts a legal-institutional perspective informed by public finance theory, examining the effects of constitutional budgetary rules on fiscal sustainability, public expenditure, and the allocation of budgetary responsibilities. The paper also considers the role of constitutional adjudication in mediating the tension between fiscal constraints and the protection of fundamental rights. Overall, the study aims to contribute to the debate on constitutional budgeting by assessing the impact of the balanced budget principle on the structure and functioning of public finance in Italy
A Thermodynamics-Based Constitutive Model for Clays Accounting for Double Porosity
No full textClays are natural materials characterised by a complex internal microstructure consisting of particles often arranged to form aggregates. Recent advances in experimental techniques, such as mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) combined with digital image correlation analysis from scanning electron microscopy (SEM), make it possible to identify at least two levels of porosity, one related to the intra-aggregate pores and another one related to the inter-aggregate voids, and to track their evolution upon loading. In continuum mechanics, constitutive modelling of clays can benefit from the aforementioned experimental evidence to identify measurable micro-inspired internal variables to back-predict the observed macroscopic response. In this perspective, in this study we propose a constitutive model for clays developed within the framework of thermodynamics with internal variables, in which we have selected two scalar internal variables, intra-aggregate and inter-aggregate porosities to track the clay response. The formulation takes advantage of a new strategy of initialisation of the inter-aggregate and intra-aggregate porosities based on the results of the MIP and the analysis of SEM images to reproduce the whole mechanical response of clays, from the early irreversible response to failure
Exploring population heterogeneities in health dynamics
No full textHow does individuals' health status evolve over time? Is this evolution characterized by any socio‐economic gradient? To answer these questions, this paper proposes a new intuitive and normatively grounded criterion to assess and compare health dynamics over time accounting for population heterogeneities. Implementing this criterion to European data, this paper provides the first pan‐European evidence on health dynamics and related heterogeneities from 2005 to 2019. It shows that socio‐economic gradients have played an important role in shaping the health dynamics experienced by the European population. These dynamics
appear progressive with respect to the pure economic status of individuals determined by their level of income. This feature is reverted when the economic conditions of individuals are widened to include non‐pure monetary aspects such as professional condition and parental background
A Green Binary Solvent System for the PLA Nanofiber Electrospinning Process: Optimization of Parameters
No full textElectrospinning of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) commonly relies on toxic organic solvents, which limit its sustainability and biomedical applicability. In this work, a green electrospinning process was developed using dimethyl carbonate (DMC), a biodegradable and low-toxicity solvent, combined with acetone as a volatile co-solvent to promote efficient jet solidification. Three commercial PLA grades were evaluated for solubility and spinnability, and PLA 4043D was identified as the most suitable for DMC and acetone systems. The electrospinning parameters, including solvent ratio, flow rate, and applied voltage, were systematically optimized to achieve stable jet formation and uniform fiber morphology. Under optimized conditions, the process produced continuous, bead-free nanofibers with a mean diameter of ~1 μm and uniform nanoscale surface porosity resulting from differential solvent evaporation. The resulting fibers were characterized in terms of morphology, structure, thermal behavior, and mechanical performance, confirming increased amorphous content, high porosity (about 78%), and tensile strength of ~3 MPa for the selected electrospinning condition. This study demonstrates that DMC-based solvent systems enable a sustainable and potentially biocompatible route, considering the lower toxicity of the solvents employed, offering a green alternative to conventional toxic processes for the fabrication of medical scaffolds
Unsupervised Discovery of Phase Transitions in 3D Swarmalators via LSTM Autoencoders
No full textSwarmalator systems, which couple oscillator synchronization with active particle motion, exhibit a rich tapestry of emergent behaviors—from static clusters to breathing Chimeras—that often elude classification via traditional, heuristic order parameters. In this work, we present a novel, fully unsupervised deep learning framework designed to discover and map these thermodynamic phases directly from raw 3D trajectories, eliminating human bias. Our approach leverages a physics-informed preprocessing step that transforms coordinates into pairwise invariants, ensuring robustness against rotational and permutational symmetries. These features drive an LSTM Autoencoder, which learns to compress complex temporal dynamics into a low-dimensional latent manifold. Through latent space clustering, we successfully reconstructed the system’s phase diagram ( vs ), demonstrating the model's ability to disentangle dynamic states that are geometrically similar but temporally distinct. Finally, we show how this self-learned knowledge can be distilled into a real-time classifier, offering a powerful, generalized tool for the automated analysis of active matter
Deep Learning in Satellite and Aerial-Based Image Processing
No full textThe improvement of Earth Observation (EO) satellite resolutions in recent years,
coupled with the increasing requests for higher performance, introduced the need
for more advanced detection techniques for satellite image analysis. Modern EO
platforms generate vast amounts of data, rich in potentially valuable information
but often underutilized, making the adoption of efficient image processing solutions
crucial. These information can be essential for accelerating processes such
as classification and geo-referencing, ensuring the timely availability of mission
products. In this context, the introduction of deep learning techniques, particularly
the You Only Look Once (YOLO) algorithm, represents a natural evolution.
YOLO is known for its speed, as it analyzes the entire image in a single pass, and
for its precision, due to the use of deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs).
When applied to satellite images, YOLO has shown promising results, especially
for automatic geo-referencing and rapid classification. A first attempt at a comparative
analysis between models trained with 60 and 100 epochs, applied to optical
Sentinel-2 images targeting Italian lakes under various weather conditions,
revealed significant improvements in detection precision and consistency. In particular,
the accuracy of boundaries improved as training epochs increased. As the
number of epochs grew, the results became more stable, regardless of environmental
or lighting conditions, reducing errors and improving overall performance.
These advancements suggest that with further development of algorithms
and integration of artificial intelligence, the use of satellites and drones in geospatial
applications will become increasingly precise and efficient. The use of
drone images could further expand datasets, allowing the model to respond with
an adaptive approach to specific details or defined elements, such as artificial
structures or small areas of interest that satellites may not be able to detect with
the same precision, especially due to unfavorable weather conditions. This integrated
approach combining satellite and aerial data could further enhance the
model’s ability to detect smaller objects or handle more complex environments,
increasing the versatility and reliability of automatic detection solutions in realworld
contexts
Down the rabbit hole. The social representations of being deaf in Italy and Canada
No full textQuesta tesi esplora le rappresentazioni sociali dell’essere sordi in Italia e in Canada, analizzando il modo in cui le persone sorde costruiscono, negoziano e contestano i significati della sordità all’interno di contesti istituzionali, culturali ed epistemici. Facendo riferimento ai Deaf Studies, alla Teoria delle Rappresentazioni Sociali e al quadro teorico dell’ingiustizia epistemica, lo studio analizza i disallineamenti tra le rappresentazioni istituzionali dominanti della sordità e le rappresentazioni vissute articolate dalle persone sorde stesse.
La ricerca si basa su uno studio etnografico comparativo condotto tra il 2023 e il 2025, che combina 35 interviste semi-strutturate, tre focus group, questionari, osservazione partecipante e analisi di materiali istituzionali e discorsivi. I partecipanti sono prevalentemente persone sorde impegnate in ruoli di leadership, advocacy e mediazione, consentendo alla ricerca di dare centralità a prospettive emiche spesso marginalizzate negli studi empirici, in particolare nel contesto italiano. L’inclusione del lavoro sul campo canadese permette inoltre un’analisi comparativa che tiene conto di dimensioni intersezionali quali la razza, l’indigeneità e l’appartenenza culturale nel plasmare le esperienze sorde e le rivendicazioni di conoscenza.
I risultati mettono in evidenza una persistente asimmetria tra le rappresentazioni istituzionali — in larga parte fondate su modelli medici e bio-psico-sociali — e le rappresentazioni vissute dell’essere sordi, che inquadrano la sordità come esperienza linguistica, culturale, sensoriale ed epistemica. Tale asimmetria genera forme ricorrenti di ingiustizia epistemica, tra cui l’ingiustizia testimoniale ed ermeneutica, che minano la credibilità delle conoscenze sorde e ne limitano l’intelligibilità all’interno dei discorsi normativi, professionali e orientati alle politiche pubbliche. Allo stesso tempo, lo studio documenta molteplici forme di resistenza epistemica attraverso le quali individui e organizzazioni sorde riappropriano l’autorità interpretativa, promuovono rappresentazioni sociali alternative e negoziano le condizioni di accessibilità, partecipazione e agency.
In conclusione, la tesi sostiene che l’ingiustizia epistemica costituisce una potente lente analitica per comprendere i meccanismi attraverso cui la marginalizzazione opera nelle vite delle persone sorde, andando oltre le barriere materiali o le politiche formali di inclusione. Riconoscere tali meccanismi epistemici e il ruolo delle rappresentazioni sociali nel sostenerli può contribuire allo sviluppo di politiche sociali più riflessive e inclusive, fondate sul riconoscimento della conoscenza epistemica sorda e sulla partecipazione attiva delle persone sorde nella definizione delle condizioni che riguardano le loro vite.This dissertation explores the social representations of being deaf in Italy and Canada, examining how deaf individuals construct, negotiate, and contest meanings of deafness within institutional, cultural, and epistemic contexts. Drawing on Deaf Studies, Social Representations Theory and the framework of epistemic injustice, the study analyses the misalignments between dominant institutional representations of deafness and the lived representations articulated by deaf people themselves.
The research is based on a comparative ethnographic study conducted between 2023 and 2025, combining 35 semi-structured interviews, three focus groups, questionnaires, participant observation, and the analysis of institutional and discursive materials. Participants are primarily deaf individuals involved in leadership, advocacy, and mediation roles, allowing the research to foreground emic perspectives that are often marginalised in empirical studies, particularly in the Italian context. The inclusion of Canadian fieldwork enables a comparative analysis that also accounts for intersectional dimensions such as race, indigeneity, and cultural belonging in shaping deaf experiences and claims to knowledge.
The findings highlight a persistent asymmetry between institutional representations—largely grounded in medical and bio-psycho-social models—and the lived representations of being deaf, which frame deafness as a linguistic, cultural, sensory, and epistemic experience. This asymmetry generates recurring forms of epistemic injustice, including testimonial and hermeneutical injustice, which undermine the credibility of deaf knowledge and limit its intelligibility within normative, professional, and policy-oriented discourses. At the same time, the study documents multiple forms of epistemic resistance through which deaf individuals and organisations reclaim interpretive authority, promote alternative social representations, and negotiate the conditions of accessibility, participation, and agency.
In conclusion, the dissertation argues that epistemic injustice provides a powerful analytical lens for understanding the mechanisms through which marginalization operates in the lives of deaf people, beyond material barriers or formal inclusion policies. Recognising these epistemic mechanisms and the role of social representations in sustaining them can contribute to the development of more reflexive and inclusive social policies, grounded in the acknowledgement of deaf epistemic knowledge and in the active participation of deaf people in defining the conditions that affect their lives
Proposte innovative per la protezione degli astronauti dalle radiazioni
No full textViene presentato il lavoro preliminare che ha portato allo studio di fattibilità per la costruzione di uno scudo per una sonda spaziale contro le radiazioni cosmiche basato sulla deviazione magnetica mediante magneti permanenti al neodimio. La scelta dei magneti permanenti è la principale novità del nostro progetto
From Trauma to PTSD: Dissecting Vulnerability and Resilience in a Rat Model
No full textBackground.
After a traumatic event, dysfunctional stress coping can lead to psychiatric disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, only a subset of trauma-exposed individual develops PTSD, and the factors driving vulnerability or resilience remain largely unknown.
Methods.
We have previously developed a rat model that allows early post-trauma behavioral differentiation between susceptible (SUS) and resilient (RES) PTSD-like phenotypes in both sexes [1,2], and through selective breeding, we have established two distinct SUS and RES PTSD-like rat lines. Here, we assessed the behavioral profiles of these SUS and RES rats, and performed bulk RNA sequencing in PTSD-related brain regions under basal condition to identify markers of susceptibility and resilience.
Results.
Our results showed a clear phenotypic distinction, with SUS rats exhibiting fear memory deficits (i.e., enhanced traumatic memory consolidation, recall, and impaired extinction) and socio-emotional alterations compared to RES rats. Transcriptomic profiling revealed marked baseline differences between the two phenotypes, with a greater number of differentially expressed genes in females. Gene ontology enrichment analysis highlighted sex- and brain region- specific alterations in pathways related to stress and memory.
Conclusions.
These findings provide novel insights into the molecular basis of PTSD vulnerability/resilience and support the use of these SUS/RES rat lines as a translational model for identifying preventive or therapeutic targets for trauma-related disorders.
References:
[1] Colucci et al., 2020. Transl Psychiatry. 10(1):243
[2] Chiacchierini et al., 2025. J Neurosci Methods. 416:11038
Mille volti, una storia: i primi mesi dell’Analisi collettiva attraverso le fonti orali (1975-1976)
No full textThe aim of this article is to present “A thousand faces, one story”, a project funded starting in 2022 by Massimo Fagioli Foundation, which aims to establish an oral archive dedicated to the therapeutic, formative, and research experience represented by Collective Analysis. Such a phenomenon, founded on Fagioli’s innovative theories and conducted between 1975 and 2016, represents an unprecedented form of clinical and research practice within the international psychiatric, cultural, and social landscape. The article provides a preliminary overview of the theoretical and methodological premises guiding the collection of audiovisual interviews, fostering a reflection on the epistemological and ethical issues associated with using oral sources in this specific context.
Through the testimonies of seven participants involved in the early seminars at Villa Massimo in Rome (1975-1976), an initial historical reconstruction is proposed. The narratives clearly reveal the foundational characteristics of the movement: a decisive break with Freudian psychoanalysis, the opening of sessions to free, voluntary, and collective participation, and the development of a therapeutic practice centered on dream interpretation. This work demonstrates how individual narratives, despite their inevitable subjectivity, gain historical value when woven into the broader fabric of collective memory and historiography, thereby contributing to future reconstructions of the history of Collective Analysis within contemporary psychiatric history