University of Modena and Reggio Emilia
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Editorial preface to special issue: From rock to time: evolutionary lineages and the calibration of the Chronostratigraphic Scale
No full textThe International Chronostratigraphic Chart has been under consideration and construction for more than two hundred years. The integration of multidisciplinary, high-resolution studies, and the correlation of pervasive and recognizable markers, have helped develop and continuously update the chart providing a standardized and global language for stratigraphers. STRATI (International Congress on Stratigraphy) is the main scientific meeting of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) that takes place every four years and is dedicated to all topics associated with improving and updating chronostratigraphy and geochronology. We note that stratigraphical studies are undertaken by specialists who, primarily, focus on specific Phanerozoic systems, rarely venturing beyond the confines of their adopted time slice. Acknowledging this potential weakness, STRATI attempts to remove the intellectual and geological boundaries (disciplinary, taxonomic and temporal), and engage the wider community to define, discuss, combine and compare the potential and role of stratigraphy today in fine tuning the International Chronostratigraphic Chart, especially its correlation and geochronometry. In this Virtual Special Issue (VSI), we present some of the findings of STRATI2023 held in Lille, France (July 11st-13rd 2023) and attended by 285 participants from over 40 countries. Our intention is to collect the most significant contributions arising from this meeting, complemented by specific research articles in order to guarantee a full coverage of the fields of stratigraphy. We demonstrate that refined applied stratigraphy is now approached through a multiproxy perspective, as highlighted in most studies captured here. The VSI goes further by reexamining fundamental concepts in stratigraphy together with the definition of marine bioevents and the role of vertebrates in biostratigraphy. More broadly, the VSI addresses a range of current topics within stratigraphy to highlight the essential role of modern stratigraphical practice as a prerequisite for all future research in palaeogeography, palaeoclimatology and palaeoecology
An Overview of Genetic Algorithms in Educational Research from 2020 to 2024
No full textGenetic Algorithms (GAs) applications can handle the complexity of educational phenomena and learning/teaching processes in searching for optimal solutions, managing numerous variables, and dealing with uncertainty and nonlinear problems frequently in the social sciences field.
This paper examines the use of GAs in educational research from 2020 to 2024, aiming to identify current applications and new opportunities. The overview includes 67 articles and proceeding papers retrieved from Scopus and WoS. During the investigation, we combined traditional and AI-based tools to identify relevant areas and categorize the selected documents. The analysis focused on research topics, disciplinary sectors, educational levels, and the contemporary use of other techniques in conjunction with GAs
Duality for some models of epidemic spreading
No full textWe examine the role of boundaries and the structure of nontrivial duality functions for three non-conservative interacting particle systems in one dimension that model epidemic spreading: (i) the diffusive contact process (DCP), (ii) a model that we introduce and call generalized diffusive contact process (GDCP), both in finite volume in contact with boundary reservoirs, i.e., with open boundaries, and (iii) the susceptible-infectious-recovered (SIR) model on Z. We establish duality relations for each system through an analytical approach. It turns out that with open boundaries self-duality breaks down and qualitatively different properties compared to closed boundaries (i.e., finite volume without reservoirs) arise: Both the DCP and GDCP are ergodic but no longer absorbing, while the respective dual processes are absorbing but not ergodic. We provide expressions for the stationary correlation functions in terms of the dual absorption probabilities. We perform explicit computations for a small sized DCP, and for arbitrary size in a particular setting of the GDCP. The duality function is factorized for the DCP and GDCP, contrary to the SIR model for which the duality relation is nonlocal and yields an explicit expression of the time evolution of some specific correlation functions, describing the time decay of the sizes of clusters of susceptible individuals
Long-term reliability of naturally aged hafnium oxide ferroelectric transistors for energy-efficient embedded memory
No full textFerroelectric field-effect transistors (FeFETs) based on hafnium oxide remain promising for embedded non-volatile memory, yet their long-term stability under realistic storage conditions is not well understood. Here, we examine silicon-doped hafnium oxide FeFETs that have undergone more than 5 years of natural aging in both ambient and cleanroom environments, without any electrical stress. The aged devices show a reduction in the memory window from 1.2 to 0.45 V after 104 program/erase cycles, consistent with the buildup of interface and oxide traps. Even so, they retain endurance above 104 cycles at 85°C and exhibit extrapolated retention exceeding 10 years at 55°C. Temperature-dependent charge-pumping measurements point to trap-assisted mechanisms as the dominant source of degradation, while waveform engineering with slower rise and fall times suppresses trap activation and stabilizes cycling behavior. These findings show that naturally aged FeFETs can meet key embedded-memory reliability targets and offer a practical route toward long-lived, energy-efficient memory technology
From mapping to action: Social network analysis as a strategic tool in cross-national community interventions
No full textCommunity interventions increasingly leverage Social Network Analysis (SNA) both to understand relational patterns and to facilitate structural changes within networks. Indeed, SNA serves not only as an analytical tool but also as a catalyst for reflection and change. Although SNA has been widely used as an intervention tool, its application in cross-national contexts remains underexplored. This study aims to address this research gap by investigating how SNA can contribute to cross-national community interventions. We use a case study approach based on a longitudinal analysis of the Assistance and Legal Program for Emigrant Support (ALPES) network, a cross-national project established at the Italian-French border. In this project, SNA has been used both as a diagnostic tool to map the information exchange network of third-sector organizations and as a strategic intervention strategy that produced behavioral changes in these organizations. Our results show that SNA functioned as both a translational monitoring tool and a catalytic intervention: network visualization prompted organizations to strategically alter their collaborative patterns and address structural gaps in migrant support services across borders. This demonstrates how network feedback processes can enhance inter-organizational collaboration in complex cross-national contexts
Characterization of ferroportin disease and SLC40A1-related hemochromatosis – Results from the EASL non-HFE registry
No full textBackground & Aims Pathogenic variants in the cellular iron exporter ferroportin (SLC40A1) cause hepatic and splenic iron overload. Low to normal transferrin saturation (TSAT) and iron accumulation in Kupffer cells with high splenic iron distinguish ferroportin disease (FD) from SLC40A1 -related hemochromatosis (SLC40A1-HC), which are both caused by variants in SLC40A1 . The aim of our study was to describe pathogenic mutations in SLC40A1 , phenotypic variability in affected patients and compare outcomes with HFE -related hemochromatosis (HFE-HC). Methods The international EASL non- HFE hemochromatosis patient registry prospectively collected clinical, radiological, biochemical, and genetic data for 95 patients with SLC40A1 variants from six centers. Additionally, 363 patients were identified by a systematic literature review. As a comparator, 603 patients diagnosed with HFE-HC were included. Results The FD phenotype presented in 65.5% affected individuals. Patients with FD were younger at diagnosis and more often female than those with SLC40A1-HC. SLC40A1 variants were associated with higher hepatic and splenic iron concentrations compared to the HFE-HC group. Variability in phenotypic presentation was high among patients with SLC40A1 variants, and a genotype-to-phenotype correlation could only explain a small proportion of this variation. Variants that directly affect the metal binding site in ferroportin more likely presented with high TSAT. Patients with the SLC40A1-HC phenotype (TSAT '45%) had a higher risk of fibrosis. Life expectancy was similar between patients with SLC40A1 variants and matched patients with HFE-HC. Most individuals with SLC40A1 variants (73.2%) received regular phlebotomies, which were not associated with differences in life expectancy. Conclusions Mutations in SLC40A1 cause a highly variable disease spectrum with hepatic and splenic iron overload. Fibrosis risk is higher in patients with elevated TSAT. Impact and implications Clinical management of individuals with SLC40A1 variants has largely been extrapolated from HFE-related hemochromatosis despite fundamental pathophysiological differences. Our study provides detailed phenotypic characterization that supports diagnosis and distinction of these rare iron overload disorders. Long-term follow-up shows preserved life expectancy, unaffected by phlebotomy, underscoring the need to critically assess phlebotomy on an individualized basis. Patients with SLC40A1-related hemochromatosis (transferrin saturation '45%) had a higher prevalence of chronic liver disease than those with ferroportin disease, suggesting that elevated transferrin saturation and hepatic iron drive disease progression, which can guide risk stratification and clinical decision making. Clinical Trial number Not applicable
The Resistible Crisis of Italian Thought. Between Politics and Metaphysics
No full textThe present volume intends to offer new insight into Roberto Esposito's seminal notion of "Italian Thought." In Esposito's understanding, Italian Thought would offer an innovative bridge between French and German philosophy. As distinguished from French postmodernism and German transcendentalism in communication ethics, Italian Thought would allow for a better negotiation between power, history, and life. The essays within The Resistible Crisis of Italian Thought do not share Esposito's optimism but rather argue that the fascinating notion of Italian Thought unfortunately only provides a selective representation and neglects several portions of it, such as Italian metaphysicians, political scientists, feminists, and art theorists. Motivated by the ambition to address this neglect and to offer a more complex insight that does not necessarily end with the reassuring representation offered by Esposito, this volume points us toward an examination of the persisting crisis of contemporary Italian philosophy
