102,992 research outputs found
Mario Bracci e il suo archivio
No full textIl fascicolo 2 dell'annata 127 (2015) di "Studi senesi" raccoglie gli atti del seminario "Mario Bracci e il suo archivio" (Siena, Aula magna storica, 16 aprile 2015). Comprende saggi di S. Fruzzetti, S. Moscadelli, G. Cianferotti, F. Colao, E. Bindi, L. Nuti e i testi degli interventi nella tavola rotonda finale di M. Barni, G. Grottanelli de' Santi, R. Bracci, G. Catoni
Co-production in the Public Sector. Experiences and Challenges
No full textThis book examines the various ways in which co-production can contribute to the
creation, design, and delivery of public services, namely by engaging the expertise of
users and their networks, by promoting public services that are better targeted and more
responsive to users, by cutting costs against the background of austerity in public finance,
by creating a synergy between government and civil society that will impact positively
on social capital, and by addressing the challenges resulting from growing democratic
and citizenship deficits. Particular attention is paid to local government and the health
and social care sector. After definition of the concept of co-production, the critical issues
which arise when public services are co-produced are discussed. Various experiences of
co-production are presented and analyzed with a view to highlighting why, how, and with
what effect public service co-production may be implemented. Individual chapters focus
on the impact of co-production in making cities smarter and the use of ICT in supporting
co-production of public services. The book will be of relevance to a wide readership,
from students to academics and professionals interested or engaged in public service
management
Monge-Ampere foliations with singularities at the boundary of strongly convex domains
No full textLet D subset of C-N be a bounded strongly convex domain with smooth boundary. We consider a Monge-Ampere type equation in D with a simple pole at the boundary. Using the Lempert foliation of D in extremal discs, we construct a solution u whose level sets are boundaries of horospheres. Among other things, we show that the biholomorphisms between strongly convex domains are exactly those maps which preserves our solution
Chorioamnionitis: a risk factor for fetal and neonatal morbidity
No full textDespite widespread use of drugs to arrest preterm labor, there has been no decrease in the numbers of low-birth-weight or preterm infants in the last 20 years. Evidence from many sources links preterm birth to symptomatic and subclinical infections. Recently, an increasing body of evidence has suggested that not only is subclinical infection responsible for preterm birth but also for many serious neonatal sequelae, including periventricular leukomalacia, cerebral palsy, respiratory distress and even bronchopulmonary dysplasia and necrotizing enterocolitis. Proxies of intrauterine infection include clinical chorioamnionitis, histological chorioamnionitis and intraamniotic increase in cytokines, which have been found to be associated with acute neonatal morbidity and mortality and, at least to some degree, with neurological impairment, chronic lung disease and thymus involution in the preterm infant. The infectious/inflammatory mechanisms involved are not fully understood, and the types of microbes and genetic features of host adaptive and innate immune responses need to be better characterized
Transcribing: between listening, memory, and invention
No full textGiuliano Bracci’s research investigates the process and implications of transcribing a musical work from the past and aims to expand knowledge and understanding of this creative practice. Bracci views the practice of transcribing as a form of listening, as a means of reflecting on the theme of otherness and the relationship between self and other. Following Jacques Derrida’s ideas, he argues that truly respecting a musical work means operating in “absolute ingratitude,” accepting the “always threatening risk of betrayal” and of contaminating the original while, at the same time, being contaminated by it. This approach opens up the invention of new possibilities, in contrast to the musealization and sacralization of works from the past. Integrating contemporary artistic expression with one’s cultural legacy holds the potential to transform one’s relationship with history into a dynamic and creative practice.The thesis narrates a journey in which Bracci progressively sought to create more openings, allowing the selected original musical works to influence, contaminate, and transform his language as a transcriber. Bracci also situates his research within a broader context by engaging with the work and ideas of other composers, performers, musicologists, philosophers, writers, and poets.Bracci’s research offers both theoretical and artistic contributions that may encourage new ways of thinking about transcribing, enriching the discourse on the presence of the past in contemporary music and revealing how transcriptions can enable musical works to be virtually present in contemporary music, reappearing from the past like ghosts.Research in and through artistic practic
Oxidant injury in neonatal erythrocytes during the perinatal period
No full textIt has been known for many decades that oxidative stress leads to oxidation of hemoglobin and damage to the erythrocyte membrane. More recently, the factors involved in denaturating of membrane proteins and lipid peroxidation have been investigated in detail, as well as the mechanism of reactive oxygen species formation in red cells. Oxidative stress depletes adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and adenine nucleotides, whereas adenosine monophosphate (AMP) deaminase seems to depress energy metabolism by blocking the salvage pathway of purine nucleotides. Depletion of ATP and activation of AMP deaminase are related to calcium ion concentrations. Denaturating of membrane proteins generally precedes lipid peroxidation and consequent phagocytosis due to caspase activation. Extensive investigations demonstrated the key role of oxidative stress and iron release in a reactive form causing membrane protein damage via the Fenton reaction and hydroxyl radical production. In the absence of efficient protection by antioxidant factors and other molecules such as flavonoids, oxidative stress is responsible for the release of iron in reactive form, predisposing red cells to hemolysis through the formation of senescence antigen. Other well-known sources of oxidative stress in red cells are free radical production outside the red cell by activated phagocytes, endothelial metabolism, hyperoxia, ischemia-reperfusion and the arachidonic acid cascade. CONCLUSION: The recent insight into the mechanism of oxidative injury of red cells and evidence of relationships between erythrocyte oxidative stress and hypoxia suggest that increased hemolysis is induced by severe hypoxia and acidosis in the fetus as well as the newborn
The pluricomplex Poisson kernel for strongly convex domains
No full textLet D be a bounded strongly convex domain in the complex space of dimension n. For a fixed point p epsilon partial derivative D, we consider the solution of a homogeneous complex Monge-Ampere equation with a simple pole at p. We prove that such a solution enjoys many properties of the classical Poisson kernel in the unit disc and thus deserves to be called the pluricomplex Poisson kernel of D with pole at p. In particular we discuss extremality properties (such as a generalization of the classical Phragmen-Lindelof theorem), relations with the pluricomplex Green function of D, uniqueness in terms of the associated foliation and boundary behaviors. Finally, using such a kernel we obtain explicit reproducing formulas for plurisubharmonic functions
The Timing of Neonatal Brain Damage
No full textAlthough neonatal morbidity and mortality are less than in the past, the risk of pre-natal and neonatal brain damage has not been eliminated. In order to optimize pre-natal, perinatal and neonatal care, it is necessary to detect factors responsible for brain damage and obtain information about their timing. Knowledge of the timing of asphyxia, infections and circulatory abnormalities would enable obstetricians and neonatologists to improve prevention in pre-term and full-term neonates. Cardiotocography has been criticized as being too indirect a sign of fetal condition and as having various technical pitfalls, though its reliability seems to be improved by association with pulse oximetry, fetal blood pH and electrocardiography. Neuroimaging is particularly useful to determine the timing of hypoxic-ischemic brain damage. Cranial ultrasound has been used to determine the type and evolution of brain damage. Magnetic resonance has also been used to detect antenatal, perinatal and neonatal abnormalities and timing on the basis of standardized assessment of brain maturation. Advances in the interpretation of neonatal electroencephalograms have also made this technique useful for determining the timing of brain lesions. Nucleated red blood cell count in cord blood has been recognized as an important indication of the timing of pre-natal hypoxia, and even abnormal lymphocyte and thrombocyte counts may be used to establish pre-natal asphyxia. Cord blood pH and base excess are well-known markers of fetal hypoxia, but are best combined with heart rate and blood pressure. Other markers of fetal and neonatal hypoxia useful for determining the timing of brain damage are assays of lactate and markers of oxidative stress in cord blood and neonatal blood. Cytokines in blood and amniotic fluid may indicate chorioamnionitis or post-natal infections. The determination of activin and protein S100 has also been proposed. Obstetricians and neonatologists can therefore now rely on various methods for monitoring the risk of brain damage in the antenatal and post-natal periods
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