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Ab initio investigation of layered and low-symmetry oxides and interfaces: multiferroic junctions, TCO’s, and a ferroelectric metal.
Get PDFThis essay is intended to be a review of the entire resear h work developed during my PhD s hool, highly based on published papers and enri hed by ba kground introdu tions of the debated topi s. My resear h fo used on several distin t topi s sharing the use of ab-initio density fun tional theory al ulations for studying di erent types of materials aimed to te h- nologi al appli ations. First, it deals with the study of the tunneling magneto-resistan e and interfa e magneto- ele tri e e ts of the SrRuO3/PbTiO3/SrRuO3 multi-ferroi tunnel jun tion (MFTJ) with asymmetri interfa es, by using standard DFT approa hes. A work about V doping of PbTiO3, a proper multiferroi ompound, is also presented. Se ond, an on-going work about a layered perovskite Bi5Ti5O17 is presented. We predi t it as the rst ferroele tri metal: it has a non-zero density of states at the Fermi level, metal- like ondu tivity along with spontaneous polarization in zero eld and a depolarizing eld in a nite system. Third, it reports the investigation of the orrelated material CaCu2Ti4O12 by using dif- ferent density fun tional methods, where the pSIC method, developed by my resear h group, manages to give a orre t interpretation of the four opti al transitions assessed experimen- tally. Fouth, a study about the wide-gap semi ondu tor Ga2O3 is presented. By means of beyond-DFT approa hes su h as Hybrid fun tionals, the famous GW method and the pSIC method, we assess the anisotropy of opti al absorption in
phase of Ga2O3, supporting the experimental spe tra. In addition, it presents a further DFT-GGA investigation of the doping of
−Ga2O3 with In. We assess its ele troni and strutural properties, maximum In solubility, and the band alignment of interfa e between
-Ga2O3 and (Ga1−xInx)2O3. Finally, it reports my ontribution to enhan e the development of the pSIC ode, providing it with two new tools, namely two routines for al ulating the diele tri fun tion and the X-ray absorption ross se tion, whi h aims to obtain a more dire t omparison between theoreti al band stru ture and experimental measure of opti al properties. The ode to al ulate the diele tri fun tion has been used in the gap hara terization of
−Ga2O3. Some test appli ations are shown, where XAS routine, implemented to exploit pSIC method, allows us to a urately reprodu e experimental spetra of di erent types of materials
Studio di componenti del lattice di Euphorbia characias
Get PDFThe aim of the present study was to contribute to the knowledge of the
components of the latex, a milky fluid exudated from the Mediterranean
shrub Euphorbia characias.
The antioxidant and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activities were explored
in E. characias. The latex was extracted using several conventional methods
and a new procedure involving the use of the trichloroacetic acid. The
results of this research indicate that E. characias latex exhibits antioxidant
activities, is rich in total polyphenolic and flavonoids content and exhibited
substantial inhibition of acetylcholinesterase activity.
A natural rubber was identified and characterized for the first time in the
latex of E. characias. Four different methods, i.e. acetone, acetic acid,
trichloroacetic acid and Triton® X-100, followed by successive treatments
with cyclohexane/ethanol, were employed to extract the natural rubber. The
higher yield (14%) was achieved after extraction with acetic acid. E.
characias rubber showed a molecular weight of 93000 with a Mw/Mn of 2.9.
1HNMR, 13C NMR and FTIR analysis revealed the characteristic of the cis-
1,4-polyisoprene typical of natural rubber.
The enzyme catalyzing the rubber molecule elongation is cisprenyltransferase
called “rubber transferase”. We cloned the cDNA
encoding for the E. characias rubber transferase by RT-PCR. The cDNA
contains an open reading frame of 810 bp encoding a protein of 270 amino
acids (GenBank JX564541). The cDNA nucleotide sequence and the
deduced amino acid sequence appear to be highly homologous to the
sequence of several plant cis-prenyltransferases.
The results provided novel insight into latex components and will ultimately
benefit the broader understanding of E. characias latex composition
Risorse intangibili e imprese familiari: principali contributi sul tema e nuove prospettive di ricerca
Get PDFIntangible resources are the distinctive factors for the success of businesses (Barney, 1991) and for this reason the literature has paid particular attention to this issue (Barney, 1991; Hall, 1992,1993; Carmeli, 2004; Galbreath, 2005; Hayton, 2005; Norman, Butler, Ranft, 2013). With this thesis I will analyze existing studies on the subject with particular reference to family businesses - ideal forum for the spread of specific intangibles (Ward, 1988; Habbershon, Williams, 1999; Sirmon & Hitt, 2003; Huybrechts et al., 2011; Rose, Howorth & Discua Cruz, 2014), in order to identify the main areas of research and new research perspectives. Through a narrative review on the general theme of intangible resources, bibliometric analysis of the contributions that jointly address the intangibles and family businesses and co-citation analysis for the definition of the intellectual structure of the studies on the intangible resources in family firms is reached an in-depth study of the issue with relevant academic and practical implications
L’economia italiana post-coloniale in Etiopia ed Eritrea. 1941-1974
Get PDFHow did bilateral relations between Italy and Ethiopia-Eritrea evolved after the colonial period? What was the impact of the Italian economic presence on the economy of Ethiopia and Eritrea in the post-colonial period? Why since the end of the World War II has been existing in Ethiopia a widespread pro-Italian judgment despite the colonial past? The purpose of this research is to answer to such questions.
Description of the research
Chapter 1 is dedicated to the evolution of the bilateral relations between Italy and Ethiopia between 1947 and 1955. The Treaty of Peace, signed in Paris on February 10, 1947, imposed to Italy, among the other provisions, the recognition of the independence of Ethiopia, the renouncement of claims to colonies including Eritrea and the payment of war reparations to Ethiopia. These issues took time to be actually solved. Especially with regard to the future of Eritrea the tensions between Italy and Ethiopia flared up despite the fact that diplomatic relations were resumed at the beginning of 1952. In addition there were complex negotiations on the amount of the war reparations to be paid. Finally, the artworks carried away from Ethiopia during the occupation period were returned with delay and in several tranches between 1954 and 2005. As a general consideration, the whole picture of the bilateral relations between 1947 and the beginning of the ‘70s shows the alternation of long periods of strong tension with shorter ones of détente.
Chapter 2 and 3 outline the main characteristics and the evolution of the Italian economic presence in Ethiopia and in Eritrea between 1941 and 1974. The first years after 1941 were extremely troubled. Many Italians were expelled from the two countries, many were confined to concentration camps, and in Ethiopia many became clandestines in order not to be forced to leave the country. In the late ‘40s, Italians in Eritrea became the target of terrorist actions by the shifta. Many Italians were killed and several companies managed by them were destroyed or seriously damaged. Italians went through other serious difficulties in the early ‘70s when the growing guerrilla made Eritrea highly insecure. Despite these difficulties Italians kept on carrying out their activities that flourished in the ‘50s and the ‘60s but were decimated by the nationalizations of the Derg during the first half of the ‘70s.
Main Results
With regard to the bilateral relations Italian diplomatic documents show the will of both parties to reach an agreement on the post war issues. However it was a very tough negotiation, as expected. In contrast to the belief expressed in some relevant and well-known works, i.e. Del Boca’s one, the complexity of such a negotiation seems to be due more to the Ethiopian tactics than to the alleged Italian purpose to delay the final settlement. Furthermore it is crystal clear that one of the top priority of the Italian Government in negotiating was to protect the Italian communities in Ethiopia and Eritrea. This result is in contrast with what affirmed by Del Boca in particular, who stressed a sort of lack of interest of Italy in the co-nationals resident in the two countries.
Chapter 2 and 3 shows that the efforts of Italians workers and entrepreneurs in Ethiopia and Eritrea after the end of the occupation are worthy of note and memory. Such efforts testify to an extraordinary commitment. Italians arrived in Ethiopia and Eritrea with dreams and hopes that many were finally able to see come true. Some of their stories are uniquely interesting.
Emperor Haile Selassie undoubtedly played a significant role in fostering the rapid development of Italian economic activities and in shaping fruitful and cooperative relations between Italians and Ethiopians. He protected the Italians because he was deeply convinced of the important economic role that Italians would still have been able to play in Ethiopia, not only in the early post-occupation period, but also for the future of the country.
Italian economic presence was strong in quantity and quality both in Ethiopia and Eritrea. However it is quite clear that throughout the period between 1941 and 1974 the incidence of Italian economic activities was significantly higher in Eritrea than Ethiopia. Italian firms were modern and efficient, and they were the backbone of the economy of Eritrea. The higher impact of our entrepreneurs in Eritrea was due to the longer stay of Eritrea itself under the Italian Government, which resulted in a much larger Italian community in Eritrea than in Ethiopia, both in absolute and relative terms.
Almost the entire industrial and advanced agricultural sectors in Eritrea was in hands of the Italians. Provided that at the beginning of the ‘50s, the 80% of manufacturing plants of the Ethio-Eritrean Federation was based in Eritrea, it must concluded that the incidence of the Italian companies in the whole industrial sector was huge. In addition, except for the Italian activities, there were only a few other companies, especially in the agricultural and commercial sectors, managed by Eritreans or expatriates of other communities. In agriculture, where traditional ways and means of cultivation and a subsistence production still prevailed, the big agricultural and agro-processing companies run by the Italians were extraordinarily efficient. The Italians used modern techniques and machinery. They diversified their production. They also built dams, irrigation systems and major infrastructure projects for the reclamation of land to production. Even before the 50's and increasingly in the following decades, the Italian agricultural firms were able to export to neighboring markets, after meeting domestic demand. For the rest, the Eritrean economy was based on subsistence and largely unproductive agriculture.
Italian activities strongly contributed to the national economy. In the economy of the Empire, characterized by a very low incidence of industrial development and the export of a few agricultural products (coffee, hides, oilseeds), the production for export made by Italian companies represented a unique economic opportunity for the entire country. The contribution of Italian economic activities was more evident in Eritrea than in Ethiopia. According to many sources, if Eritrean exports and imports would have been precisely accounted for - that is without considering the value of the goods that passed through Eritrea, but whose final destination was Ethiopia - Eritrea’s trade deficit would have been significantly reduced or even zeroed out. Furthermore, the presence of flourishing Italian companies had positive repercussions also on the Eritrean state budget thanks to the tax
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income they produced. By the way, the rates applied to Italian companies were much higher than those applied to local ones.
The Italian business elite was also able to translate in images the social renewal processes of the 50’s and the 60’s. The buildings designed by Arturo Mezzedimi were perhaps the most evident symbols of such ability. Such buildings represented the avant-garde architecture of those years. Another building contractor, Mario Buschi, very active throughout the Empire, highly contributed to shape the modern image of Addis Ababa.
The statistics shows that from 1957 to 1974 Italy was, together with USA, the main commercial partner of the Ethiopian Empire. Even in the period 1941-1951, during which official diplomatic relations between Italy and Ethiopia were absent, the bilateral trade was relevant and in particular Italy was in those years the first importer from Ethiopia. These exceptional results were due indeed to Italian resident community that with its economic activities highly contributed to nurture commercial flows from and to Italy.
The good relations between the Italians who remained after 1941 and the Ethiopians played a decisive role in rapidly archiving the memory of the Italians as colonizers. Indeed such relationship was generally dominated by a constructive spirit of cooperation and probably fueled by some deep affinity of character between our two peoples. They were the Italians that contributed to maintain a good image of Italy in Ethiopia even during the absence of official diplomatic relations or at times of misunderstandings and difficulties in the dialogue between the two governments. In decades of coexistence the Italians and Ethiopians have been able to establish a fruitful dialogue, marked by mutual understanding, esteem and respect. Workplaces were the main venue where such a dialogue has taken its shape.
The author spent 4 years in Ethiopia, from 2008 to 2012, as head of the commercial section of the Italian Embassy. This experience allowed her to learn parts of the history of the Italian community in Ethiopia and in Eritrea between 1941 and 1974 directly from the present generations of Italian businessmen resident in Ethiopia. The author also had the opportunity to consult Italians’ personal archives in which she could find documents and books that are not anymore on the market and difficult to find in libraries. Her personal experience and knowledge of the country and the people added depth to this work that is however based almost exclusively on written sources
Il sivil toplum negli anni del kemalismo: uno studio del Kadın Gazetesi
Get PDFThis thesis analyzes the modern Turkish state and Turkish civil society through a
perspective influenced by the approaches of Marx and Gramsci. First of all, the work
focuses on Turkish debate around the concept of civil society which has been
dominated by liberal views. However, recently, critical investigations following Marx
and Gramsci’s outlook, have started challenging the dominant perspective of the
debate. Starting from this view, the research analyzes the relations between state and
civil society adherents to Kemalist ideology during the 40s through the reading of a
Turkish periodical, Kadın Gazetesi.
According to the above mentioned approach, Turkey can be studied as a political
entity built to create a citizenry able to accept the authority as natural. The alliance
between native bourgeoisie and bureaucratic class led the country towards a
definition of the Republic. However, during wartime, capital accumulation became
an important element in breaking the historical coalition. As bureaucracy was not
able to save the old alliance, the bourgeoisie, aware of its increasingly role, no longer
wished to compromise
L'anatocismo
Get PDFThe anatocism is a mechanism that consists in taking compound interest for the creditor (from greek words “Ana” that means again and “tokos” that means interest).
The thesis, in its first part, is oriented to showing the basis of the anatocism in the italian system and in other European country. Other aspects in the first chapter are: connection with money and interests.
The second chapter is dedicated to the evolution of anatocism in Italy specifically in banking regulation: in effect a lot of questions have arisen around the application of anatocism by Italian banks. One of this problem was connected to the meaning of customary law. For twenty years Italian Courts had considered lawful the anatocism in banking system , but in 1999 the Supreme Court said that it was illegal because it wasn’t allowed by civil code (art. 1283).
The job wants to retrace the story of anatocism and to examine in depth questions that are still open concerning the evolution of precedents (about the restitution of illegal compound interests, burden of proof and prescription period). Moreover wants to analyze the new law that probably decided that anatocism in banking system isn’t allowed anymore.
The aim of the job is to meditate on basis of anatocism especially on its basic reasons and its connection with other type of interest
Comunità e quartiere come laboratori applicativi di rigenerazione urbana e territoriale
Get PDFSeveral plans based on the concept of "community", clearly defined by Erwin Anton Gutkind in his essay The expanding environment (1953) as "an entity whose location and extension ensure maximum possibility of realization of the social program", were largely applied and urban and territorial sciences developed a plenty of examples of community based strategies throughout all the Twentieth Century.
The first part of the work explores precisely what were the first models of cities or regions organized by the principles of cohesion of the community and what were the transpositions at the architectural and urban scale of this philosophy.
Since the first attempts proposed by utopian planners of the Nineteenth Century up to Clarence Perry’s Neighborhood Unit conceived in 1929 for the Regional Plan of New York.
This concept of the city and territory generated huge expectations being especially suitable for the functionalism instances proposed, for example, by the Athens Charter.
Same principles animated the post-war reconstruction and expansion plans all over Europe with different issues.
Italy implemented the “community” principles in the INA-Casa programme as well in the rural reform programmes, with some advanced experiments as those conducted under the patronage of Adriano Olivetti in different parts of the country and especially in Sardinia.
Today all this theoretical and built heritage are posed as starting point of strategies potentially successful for solving the most of urban and territorial criticisms and are suitable to implement sustainability practices developing new instruments and appreciable policies for metropolitan regions, setting a new approach of shared responsibility on planning process, on resources availability and use, on social issues leading to the definition of a paradigm for supporting resilience policies in urban and regional planning
Digital strategies for market dominance: empirical evidence from the insurance industry
Get PDFInternet, Web 2.0 and digital and mobile technologies have fundamentally changed the way firms perform, conceive, develop and deliver services, leading to the development of personalized relationships with customers, increasing quality, improving lead time, and enabling more customization at a lower cost.
These channel proliferation has increased the complexity of firms’ operations because it opens up new customer contact points. In today's rapidly changing environment, firms need to diversify, adapt, and even reinvent themselves to match evolving market and technological conditions and to turn themselves into multichannel organizations.
The multichannel model may generate more sales and profit when channel benefits are well identified and integrated to provide service transactions across channels. Thus, the success of multichannel service bases on how companies capitalize optimizes digital touch points to interact with consumers.
The goal of this dissertation is to further develop our understanding of the impact of digital channels on multichannel attribution and devise effective multichannel strategies that increase synergy effects to reach consumers across channels.
In the first paper, I examined how managing seamless service transactions across channels impact competitive advantage. A great amount of literature has focused on multichannel distribution strategies but there is a little theory or systematic research on the relationship between multichannel strategy and competitive advantage. In this vein, scholars have called for specific research efforts to better understand how the use of digital, online and offline distribution channels could lead to sustainable competitive advantage. Based on the dynamic capability and IT capability literature, this essay aims to contribute to this body of knowledge by first conceptualizing a new IT capability
named multichannel capability that is “the ability of an organization to effectively integrate and manage multiple distribution channels through data integration and coordination enabled by IT”. I used a quali-quantitative research design to 1) to investigate what are the main dimensions that comprise multichannel capability and 2) to understand how the relationship between multichannel capability and competitive advantage emerges. This study allows understanding how the firm's multichannel capabilities influence the creation and sustenance of competitive advantage in turbulent environments.
In the second paper, I examined the ways in which companies manage their reputation in social media, focusing on the role of communication strategies. Previous literature has demonstrated that corporate communication has a direct impact on corporate reputation, although little is known about the link between firms’ social media communication strategies and the formation of firms’ reputations in an online environment. This essay aims to contribute to this body of knowledge by studying the impact of social media communication strategies on firms’ reputations. To explore how firms manage corporate reputation in online environments, I employed a longitudinal explorative multiple-case study (Eisenhardt, 1989). The setting for our study is the insurance industry. The analysis led to the recognition that, among the various types of companies (high, medium, and low reputation), the differences in reputation are attributable to four basic dimensions: categories of communication strategies, the evolution of communication strategies across three years (2011-2013), the timing of interaction, and the number of interactions. These results offer insights into the challenges of developing online communication strategies that affect corporate reputation.
In the third paper, I examined the main difference between business models exploited by European insurance companies. A business model describes a formula of unique value creation. It consists of a unique value proposition and profit-making formula as well as key resources and process coupled together as a system to operationalize value creation. Research on business model in global competition has not yet prominent in academic discourse.
In particular, how some firms operating in multiple international markets adopt "one for all" business models while others opt for heterogeneous business models that work for multiple international market settlements is not fully understood. This paper attempts to fill this gap by proposing a maturity model that enables observations of how the same company creates value distinctively in the global marketplace. I employed a multiple case study in the European insurance market. This research makes several contributions to insurance companies. First, the components of e-business models identify in my framework of industry leaders serve as benchmarks for e-business models of competitors. Secondly, we offer some practical guidance to managers to develop a successful business model in different markets
Le strategie di gestione del personale nel caso "dell'espatrio" dei dirigenti
Get PDFThe objective of this study is to investigate the problems faced by “expatriates”. More precisely, the aim is to understand these problems from the point of view of expatriate Brazilians, as well as from that of expatriates living in Brazil. In order to achieve the aforementioned objectives, a preliminary analysis of the literature was conducted to understand if, and how, the problem is suitable for academic study. Moreover, empirical analysis was collected in order to provide a complete perception of the phenomenon, resulting in the creation of multiple case studies and semi structured interviews. Through analysis of the firms Embraco, Bosch and Odebrecht, and interviews with “expatriate” executives, their cultural and social difficulties are addressed, as well as issues related to the adaptation to the new reality is the manager, both in the case of family members being transferred with his family. Another local point os this study is the analysis of company policies with regard to the return or the manager after a period of working abroad. The survey results revealed the numerous advantages and disadvantages of expatriation, all of wich were almost always due to the attention that Human Resources teams usually reserves to this problem. In addition to very positive experiences, this study also recorded experiences that were so bad that the manager was left to resign upon his return
Sistemi di appropriazione e approcci alla riqualificazione delle megastrutture per l'edilizia residenziale pubblica negli anni 60-70. Il caso del quartiere Sant’Elia a Cagliari
Get PDFThis research investigates the issue of megastructures for public housing built in Italy in the 1960s and 1970s,
after the enactment of the law n. 167/1962 “Disposizioni per favorire l’acquisizione di aree fabbricabili per
l’edilizia economica e popolare”. Based on urban theories elaborated in that period and based on the
proposition that large-scale housing schemes can create new parts of the city, these estates have attracted
strongly negative criticism. In reality they created mono-functional places where urban and social degradation
became quite evident. The question of demolition/reconstruction has been discussed several times but today is
an option considered not sustainable. The megastructures for public housing are urban utopias not completed
because they were built without public services that would have created a high quality of life. As a consequence
of the "unfinished", and because of the large scale of the space and the architectural language, they went
through a gradual transformation from “conceived space” to “living space” thanks to the inhabitants that tried
to satisfy their needs and desires.
The study starts from the assumption that the relation between the original design proposal and the “practices
of appropriation” can generate inputs for a redevelopment that considers what is already in place. The main
objective is to propose a methodology for the analysis of the current condition that considers the relationship
between space and inhabitant.
After having analysed similar approaches and having investigated the concept of appropriation and the
contemporary strategies for the redevelopment of two case studies (the city-building Corviale in Rome and the
neighborhood-city Toulouse-Le Mirail), the research proposes a methodology applied to the Sant'Elia housing
estate in Cagliari (Sardinia).
The Sant’Elia housing estate, result of the urban experiments of the 1960s and 1970s, has always lived a state
of urban blight, social decay, and a condition of "otherness" than the rest of the city. In response to this
condition many redevelopment projects have been proposed. Several proposals remained on paper, so they
have caused a sense of abandonment in the inhabitants. Nevertheless they show a sense of belonging to the
place. The buildings were designed for a generic inhabitant and people who are now living there adapted them
to their needs. These modifications, carried out to varying degrees of alteration, express their needs and wants,
which the original project and the following transformations have not considered. Through analysing the space
of living proposed by the original project, the “controlled transformations” and the “signs of appropriation”
(transformations not controlled), the work comes to a critique of the recent master plan for the redevelopment
of the Sant'Elia neighbourhood. Finally, the research offers some thoughts for a redevelopment that take into
account the transformations initiated by “the action of living”