1,721,008 research outputs found
Preface to the special issue on «innovative approaches for evaluating landslide hazard and risk»
No full textIn Italy, landslides kill people almost every year, as a combined effect of high susceptibility to slope movements of the territory, and large proportion of population exposed to the risk. In the last decades, analyses of individual landslides, as well as monitoring of instrumented phenomena, undoubtedly reached great results, as scientific knowledge on landslides notably progressed. However, a number of issues still need to be properly addressed, including
(but not limited to) landslide forecasting (both in spatial and temporal terms), risk quantification and mapping, risk reduction and mitigation, and the assessment of suitable thresholds of acceptable risk levels either imposed on society or individuals
Instability phenomena in the evaporite karst of Calabria, Southern Italy
No full textInstability phenomena in the Upper Miocene to Pleistocene deposits of the evaporite karst in the Crotone Basin (Calabria, southern Italy), are described in this article. Calabria is worldwide known as one of the most landslide-prone areas in the Mediterranean basin. Different types of slope movements affect the outcropping rocks in the region, due to the combined action of a number of causal factors, either predisposing (abundance of weathered materials, rugged topography, high relief energy, and active tectonic uplift), or triggering (heavy rainfall, moderate to strong seismic shocks, and anthropogenic action). In a karst area, such as that dealt with here, further instability is related to development of sinkholes, subsidence phenomena, and the presence of karst caves: the area includes several renowned caves as the system Grave Grubbo - Vallone Cùfalo (the second longest Italian gypsum cave, with a length over 2,800 m). Observed slope movements belong to different typologies, with the greater impact on the anthropogenic environment deriving from rockfalls above the main communication routes. A less dramatic but very subtle type of instability is represented by sinkholes, a very common karst landform in evaporite rocks. Many caves have their entrance at the base of large sinkholes or in their proximity. The effects from gravitational and erosional processes are described in the article also through direct observations within the underground system, which pattern is controlled by a combination of tectonics and breakdown mechanisms. The low resisrance of evaporites, locally increased by prevailing clays in the stratigraphy, determines high frequency of fallen blocks. The comparison between the landforms and deposits observed at the surface and underground pointed out to the difficulty in directly linking what is observed at the ground with the processes acting within the karst system. This has obvious consequences in terms of civil protection, due to the lack of premonitory signs at the ground surface, or to difficulties in observing, and correctly evaluating, such signals. © 2010 Gebrüder Borntraeger Verlagsbuchhandlung, Stuttgart, Germany
A proposal for surveying and classifying landslide damage to buildings in urban areas
No full textA methodology for surveying and ranking damage to buildings caused by slope movements in urban areas is presented. The proposal, mainly addressed to surveyors, is aimed at providing useful information in order to effectively reduce landslide costs. Finally, an application of the methodology to a village in Southern Italy is presented
Orogin and distribuition of different types of sinkholes in the plain areas of southern Italy
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Origin and distribution of different types of sinkholes in the plain areas of Southern Italy
No full textSinkholes constitute a significant risk in many karst areas, and may even, threat human safety, Collapse sinkholes that occur catastrophically without showing premonitory signs may result in severe economic losses and casualties. In the last years, research on sinkholes and related detrimental effects has significantly increased in Italy, in the aftermath of remarkable events. Aimed at analysing the peculiar conditions which lead to sinkhole occurrence in Southern Italy, a set of cases in the plain areas of Campania, Apulia and Calabria is discussed, The considered regions show a wide variety of environmental conditions. In Campania, the plains are underlain by alluvial deposits with, intercalations of volcaniclastic sediments. Sinkholes are generally located along the Tyrrhenian margin, of the carbonate massifs or within intramontane Apennine basins. In Apulia, a flat and elongated, peninsula, most of the cases occur on calcarenites overlying limestone bedrock along the coast. In Calabria, one of the most seismogenic Italian regions, the surveyed cases seem to be attributable mainly to earthquake-induced liquefaction. The article provides a first glance on the variety of sinkholes in the plain areas of Southern Italy, to highlight the possibility of further subsidence events in the considered regions, as well as in other comparable areas of the country. © 2010 Lavoisier SAS. All rights reserved
Reflections on metaverse: A new technology in the super smart society
No full textNowadays there is a lot of talk about the Metaverse. Really, the term was coined in Neal Stephenson’s 1992 science fiction novel Snow Crash. It is not yet clear what the real practical implications of the metaverse will be in social and working life. It seems that the metaverse will connect people to a whole new range of experiences – from immersive sessions in education and training to incredible possibilities for healthcare and workplaces. The positive effects that the metaverse can trigger look promising. However, there is much confusion about the potential, the possible fields of application and the social implications. Thus, the aim of the present chapter is to provide an overview on the state of the art, technologies, applications, and challenges of metaverse. The result is a first overview analysis on the Metavers
Earthquake-induced sinkholes in Calabria
No full textThe attention on sinkholes phenomena has greatly increased in
the last years, in the aftermath of the many events that have
affected built-up areas in Italy and abroad. This has brought to a
wider use of the term sinkholes, that is nowadays used also for
events related to anthropogenic cavities, and/or to phenomena
linked to occurrence of earthquakes. At this latter regard, the
investigation of the surface effects triggered by seismic activity
often poses some problems in discriminating between
liquefaction phenomena and occurrence of sinkholes in alluvial
plains. Especially when historical sources are examined, the
descriptions and reports are typically similar, and when field
evidence of the phenomena are no more recognizable,
distinguishing one phenomenon from the other may be actually
impossible. Starting from the above assumption, the contribution
presents an analysis of the events induced by earthquakes in
Calabria, for which historical documentation has been found.
Among the case studies, worth to be mentioned is the 1783
seismic sequence, that struck central-southern Calabria and
produced remarkable effects at the surface. A critical scrutiny of
the available historical documentation is presented, integrated
with description of the main geological and morphological
features of the affected areas, in the attempt to identify
seismically-triggered sinkholes, and to perform a preliminary
analysis of the relationships between seismic parameters
(magnitude, intensity, epicentral distance) and sinkholes
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