1,721,230 research outputs found
Exploring multi-methodology approaches for policy support: Case studies and lessons learned
No full textFrom stakeholders’ analysis to cognitive mapping and Multi Attribute Value Theory: an integrated approach for policy support
Full text linkOne of the fundamental features of policy processes in contemporary societies is complexity. It follows from the plurality of points of view actors adopt in their interventions, and from the plurality of criteria upon which they base their decisions. In this context, collaborative multicriteria decision processes seem to be appropriate to address part of the complexity challenge. This study discusses a decision support framework that guides policy makers in their strategic decisions by using a multi-method approach based on the integration of three tools, i.e., (i) stakeholders analysis, to identify the multiple interests involved in the process, (ii) cognitive mapping, to define the shared set of objectives for the analysis, and (iii) Multi Attribute Value Theory, to measure the level of achievement of the previously defined objectives by the policy options under investigation. The integrated decision support framework has been tested on a real world project concerning the location of new parking areas in a UNESCO site in Southern Italy. The purpose of this study was to test the operability of an integrated analytical approach to support policy decisions by investigating the combined and synergistic effect of the three aforementioned tools. The ultimate objective was to propose policy recommendations for a sustainable parking area development strategy in the region under consideration. The obtained results illustrate the importance of integrated approaches for the development of accountable public decision processes and consensus policy alternatives. The proposed integrated methodological framework will, hopefully, stimulate the application of other collaborative decision processes in public policy making
Co-designing the solution space for rural regeneration in a new World Heritage site: a Choice Experiments approach
Full text linkThis study develops a participatory multi-methodology intervention designed and deployed to support planning and management of a new World Heritage site, the vineyard landscape of Langhe, Roero and Monferrato, in Northern Italy. The purpose of the study was to support community involvement in the design phase of urban regeneration alternatives. The ultimate objective was to propose practical recommendations for a sustainable regeneration strategy to the Municipal Authority of La Morra, one of the villages located within the core area of the World Heritage site. The analysis context represents a complex territorial system and a challenging decision-making environment due to the presence of: (i) conflicting needs co-existing in the same geographical area, i.e. preservation needs of the World Heritage on one side, and new development needs on the other, (ii) many stakeholders (i.e. residents, tourists, territorial authorities, tourism associations and environmental advocates), and (iii) presence of marginalized communities that are at risk due to the strong trend towards the abandonment of rural areas for big cities. Within this context, the authors propose the use of Stakeholders’ Analysis and Choice Experiments to co-design, together with stakeholders and the local community, feasible strategies for the regeneration of the abandoned rural buildings scattered across the core World Heritage Site. Indeed, the community issue of abandoned rural heritage emerged as both an important weakness of the territorial system under analysis and as an interesting opportunity for rural regeneration
How to support the design and evaluation of redevelopment projects for disused railways? A methodological proposal and key lessons learned
No full textFinding a new use for neglected infrastructures, such as disused railways, provides an opportunity for low carbon travel experiences as reconversion policies promote new uses, arrest decay processes and re-establish continuity in the environmental system, using existing linear infrastructures. Nevertheless, the decision of what to do in order to reuse abandoned railways represents a complex decision making problem, involving heterogeneous impacts and stakeholders. Within this context, Multi Criteria Analysis techniques can be used to synthesize stakeholders’ preferences by accommodating conflicting and incommensurable impacts. The present study thus uses Multi Criteria Analysis to answer a real demand for transportation systems’ planning coming from the Piedmont Region Authority in Italy, where 12 passenger railway lines have recently been abandoned and replaced by bus services. The main objective of the study is to develop a methodological framework able to support collaborative planning and decision-making processes related to the requalification of disused railways in mixed urban and rural contexts. The ultimate objective is to provide a robust recommendation to the Regional Authority with reference to the best requalification option for the abandoned railway line under analysis. The contribution brought by the study is twofold and refers to: (i) improved operability of the proposed tools obtained by combining visualization analytics with consolidated preference elicitation protocols for assessing multiple impacts and (ii) the provision of a replicable working tool for policy makers. The study has thus an innovative value and may increase the use of Decision Analytics to support the evaluation of environmental impacts of different transportation systems
La forza del mito.La facciata della basilica di san lorenzo a Firenze. I progetti da michelangelo al concorso del 1900
No full text
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
La valutazione della sostenibilità di un'infrastruttura stradale attraverso l'Analytic Network Process
No full textCeSET = Centro di estimo e di economia territorial
Acute administration of Urb597 fatty acid amide hydrolase inhibitor prevents attentional impairments by distractors in adolescent mice
Full text linkThe maturation of attentional control during adolescence might influence later functional outcome or predisposition to psychiatric disorders. During adolescence, the cannabinoid system is particularly sensitive to pharmacological challenges, with potential impact on cognitive functions. Here, we used a recently validated five-choice serial reaction time task protocol to test adolescent C57BL/6J mice. We showed that the pharmacological inhibition (by URB597) of the fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), the major enzyme implicated in anandamide degradation, prevented cognitive disruptions induced by distracting cues in adolescent mice. In particular, these protective effects were indicated by increased accuracy and correct responses and decreased premature responses selectively in the distractor trials. Notably, at the relatively low dose used, we detected no effects in other cognitive, motor, or incentive measures nor long-lasting or rebound effects of FAAH inhibition in cognitive functions. Overall, these data provide initial evidence of selective procognitive effects of FAAH inhibition in measures of attentional control in adolescent mice
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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