243 research outputs found
Late summer temperature (and precipitation) reconstruction from a tree-ring network in the Italian Peninsula
No full textA reconstruction of late summer (August–September) temperatures was performed in the Italian Peninsula using
a tree-ring network of maximum latewood density series (MXD) from eight sites. The species composition of
this network initially comprised specimens of Abies alba (5 sites), Pinus nigra (2 sites) and Pinus leucodermis
(1 site) growing along a latitudinal gradient spanning from 37 ̊ 46’ N to 44 ̊ 07’ N. The model was calibrated
and validated using a site-specific dataset of climate data, and the annual-resolved reconstruction covers a period
back to the early 1700s: the reconstruction holds a clear signal of late summer temperature and a weaker signal
of late summer precipitation. The spatial validation of this reconstruction performed on a period starting in 1901
evidences positive correlations (r > 0.6) within the central-northern region of the Mediterranean basin and the
western Balkans and statistically significant correlations spacing from the northwestern Maghreb, the entire Alpine
arch, to the southeastern Europe and the western Anatolian Peninsula. The same spatial analysis evidences also
a dipole with precipitation over Europe: negative correlations with late summer precipitations of northwestern
Balkans up to the western Black Sea and southern Italy, and positive correlations in a region at approximately 55 ̊N,
centred over Ireland, the British Isles and eastward up to the Southern Fennoscandia. The performed reconstruction
underlines periods of climatic cooling and also of wetter conditions the Italian Peninsula, in 1699, 1740, 1814, 1914
and 1938.
Bibliographic reference
Leonelli G., Coppola A., Salvatore M.C., Baroni C., Battipaglia G., Gentilesca T., Ripullone F., Borghetti M.,
Conte E., Tognetti R., Marchetti M., Lombardi F., Brunetti M., Maugeri M., Pelfini M., Cherubini P., Provenzale A., Maggi V. (2017). Climate signals in a multispecies tree-ring network from central and southern Italy
and reconstruction of the late summer temperatures since the early 1700s. Climate of the Past 13, 1451–1471,
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-13-1451-201
The impact of personality traits and abilities on entrepreneurial orientation in SMEs
No full textEntrepreneurial orientation is especially important for economic growth, innovation, and employment. This paper investigates how entrepreneurs’ narcissism and resilience affect the entrepreneurial orientation of small and medium sized enterprises. We identify two sides of entrepreneur narcissism: exhibitionism and manipulation. Using survey data from 114 firms, our results show that the exhibitionistic sides of narcissism and entrepreneur resilience have a positive effect on entrepreneurial orientation, while the manipulative side of narcissism has a negative impact. Our findings show also that resilience moderates the relationship between narcissism and entrepreneurial orientation. This study contributes to the understanding of the antecedents of entrepreneurial orientation
Atrio-ventricular junction: Can precision electrocardiology bridge cell and electrocardiogram?
No full textThe Atrio Ventricular Junction (AVJ) is a well-defined anatomical region of the heart the physiology of which, despite extensive and numerous observations, it is not fully understood. The aim of this review is to present an up to date summary of old and more recent findings on histology, cellular electrophysiology and intracellular connectivity of this region. We have also attempted to relate our increasing understanding of nodal pathophysiology to the interpretation of the electrocardiographic (ECG) manifestations of AVN behavior. Bridging cellular observations with ECG analysis in a process we call “Precision Electrocardiology” renders this tool far more sensitive and clinically useful than the pattern analysis too often employed in the ECG interpretation
Risk or Opportunity? Exploring the Relationship Between Entrepreneurial Decision and the Use of Equity Crowdfunding Campaigns in Less- and Well-Developed Regions in Italy
No full textEntrepreneurial decision-making is a complex area that impacts the creation and development of new ventures and is one of the main subjects of entrepreneurial research. Our study focuses on the impact of regional disparities on the entrepreneurial decision-making process regarding the adoption of alternative funding sources such as crowdfunding. Crowdfunding has recently garnered considerable interest because of its ability to “democratize” access to capital. Using a least-squares method (OLS) and inferential t-test statistics, we analyze how the entrepreneurial decision-making process differs across Italian regions on the adoption of equity crowdfunding campaigns as fundraising tools. Our results show that regional disparities matter in the entrepreneur’s decision-making process, pushing it towards alternative tools such as crowdfunding. Overall, we provide evidence that crowdfunding has gained prominence in Italy in recent years and may be a viable option for entrepreneurs operating in less developed regions to bridge the traditional regional disparity gap
Framing doctor-managers’ resilience during Covid-19 pandemic: A descriptive analysis from the Italian NHS
No full textWith the aim of providing evidence about doctor-managers’ resilience during the Covid-19 pandemic, this study analyzes the characteristics of 114 doctor-managers operating within the Italian National Health Service (NHS). During the emergency, doctor-managers had to show adaptive capacities to deal with unexpected situations and develop new paradigms, procedures, and quick responses to patients’ needs. This is in line with resilience, and in this perspective, it is crucial to investigate resilience determinants. The paper, therefore, provides an identikit of the resilient doctor-manager. The research was conducted between November and December 2020. Primary data were collected through an online questionnaire consisting of six sections. Participation was voluntary and anonymous. Data were analyzed using quantitative techniques and employing Stata 16. Confirmatory Factor Analysis was employed to test construct validity and scale reliability. Results show that increasing levels of individual resilience are related to increasing levels of managerial identity. Moreover, physicians’ individual resilience has a positive association with commitment, knowledge diffusion, and Evidence-Based Medicine adoption. Finally, physicians’ individual resilience has a negative association with their role in the university, their specialty, and their gender. The study suggests some practical implications for healtcare organizations. In general, career paths are decided primarily on competency assessment, while an important role should be devoted to behavioral characteristics. Furthermore, organizations should take care of the levels of individual commitment and encourage professional networking because both help doctor-managers cope with uncertainty. The originality of the study relies on a fresh look at all previous work. There are currently few contributions in the literature to explore and investigate resilience elements in doctor-managers during the pandemic era
Investigation on the effect of inorganic acid attack on composite prepared with MK-based geopolymer and waste cork dust
No full textThe chemical, microstructural and mechanical characterization of novel lightweight composites produced by
adding waste cork dust to a metakaolin-based geopolymeric matrix prepared by alkaline activation is presented.
The alkaline activator solutions used for the reticulation of the 3D aluminosilicate network at room temperature
are composed of NaOH and sodium silicate to maintain a low cost of the final composite. In this line, the research
of the highest addition of waste, e.g. cork dust, is pursued starting from 1 and reaching a maximum content of 10
wt% over metakaolin. The chemical stability is evaluated in water as well as in HNO3 or in H2SO4 0.5 and 2.5 N
solutions. The addition of cork does not affect the reticulation of the geopolymeric binder used as matrix, as is
demonstrated by FT-IR and XRD analyses. The modification of the dense geopolymeric microstructure with the
introduction of cork dust weakens the hardened composites that become more permeable to water and acid
solutions increasing the weight loss after immersion and decreasing the mechanical resistance to compression.
The mechanical performance of the hardened composite with 10 wt% of cork dust still seems to be sufficient for
application as self-supporting thermal insulation panels
Challenges in Bradicardias Interpretation
No full textSinus node dysfunction or atrioventricular blocks are the causes of bradycardias. Diagnosis and management begin with evaluation of patient's hemodynamic status and diagnosis of bradycardia's cause. This is followed by an in depth evaluation of pathophysiology of the arrhythmia, its severity, and likelihood of progression. Implementing emergent measures depends on the presence of subsidiary pace makers maintaining cardiac output. Many of these decisions are greatly helped by 12 lead electrocardiogram, because its tracings are often diagnostic of the cause of the bradycardia and help to assess its persistence and progression and to evaluate the presence and reliability of subsidiary pacemakers
Evaluating inner variability and common patterns of tree rings and pollen records in northern Italy: potentials for an integrated multi-proxy climate reconstruction
No full textMulti-proxy approaches in past climate reconstructions need in the first steps a selection of appropriate climatesensitive records and a deep evaluation of their inner variability. Moreover, as regards tree ring and pollenstratigraphical records, they typically cover different time lengths and show different time resolutions. In order
to assess the relationships between the variability of these two proxy records it is therefore necessary to restrict
any comparison between the two proxies over a selected common period (usually the most recent) and to perform
an adaptation of the annually-resolved resolution of the tree rings to the generally lower and variable resolution of
the pollen records.
A first comparison between two summer temperature reconstructions derived from these two proxy records was
performed in the central sector of the Italian Alps by selecting an area of approximately 150 km of diameter, comprising tree-ring series of European larch (Larix decidua Mill.), Norway spruce (Picea abies Karst.) and Swiss
stone pine (Pinus cembra L.) from 42 sites located in five mountain groups - namely the Silvretta Group (Switzerland), the Ötztaler-Venoste Alps (Austria, Italy), the Bernina Group (Switzerland, Italy), the Ortles-Cevedale Group
(Italy) and the Adamello-Presanella Group (Italy) and a pollen-stratigraphical record from the Lavarone Lake
(Trento). Both the tree-ring (Leonelli et al., 2016) and the pollen-inferred reconstructions, were calibrated using
the modelled site specific temperatures from an improved version of the dataset of Brunetti et al. (2006). The independently obtained summer temperature reconstructions, after adapting the tree-ring series to the time resolution
of the pollen series, showed a good correlation over the common period 1803-2003, thus opening the possibility of
performing integrated multi-proxy climate reconstructions including more sites from the whole arch of the Italian
Alps.
Bibliographic references
Brunetti M., Maugeri M., Monti F., Nanni T. (2006), Temperature and precipitation variability in Italy in the last
two centuries from homogenised instrumental time series. Int. J. Climatol. 26, 345–381.
Leonelli G., Coppola A., Baroni C., Salvatore M.C., Maugeri M., Brunetti M., Pelfini M. (2016), Multispecies
dendroclimatic reconstructions of summer temperature in the European Alps enhanced by trees highly sensitive to
temperature. Climatic Change 137, 275–291, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-016-1658-
Precision Electrocardiology: A Rational Approach for Simple and Complex Arrhythmias
No full textElectrocardiography (ECG)in all its forms, from 12-lead ECG to long-term monitoring, is considered, an old and increasingly irrelevant test in this high technology era. This article reviews the clinical utility of this tool and argues that the obsolescence is due to an increasing inability to read electrocardiographic tracings. The usual interpretative pitfalls are discussed and a logical approach is proposed with illustrative examples. Finally, the concept of precision ECG is presented and its meaning reviewed
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