67 research outputs found
Behind the paper: Hyperphysiological compression of articular cartilage induces an osteoarthritic phenotype in a cartilage-on-a-chip model
No full textIn this Behind the Paper post, the author explains how the article came to be. The experimental issues that had to be addressed and the ideative process are described together with some trivia
Fractional Calculus in Wave Propagation Problems
No full textFractional calculus, in allowing integrals and derivatives of any positive order (the term "fractional " kept only for historical reasons), can be considered a branch of mathematical physics which mainly deals with integro-differential equations, where integrals are of convolution form with weakly singular kernels of power law type. In recent decades fractional calculus has won more and more interest in applications in several fields of applied sciences. In this lecture we devote our attention to wave propagation problems in linear viscoelastic media. Our purpose is to outline the role of fractional calculus in providing simplest evolution processes which are intermediate between diffusion and wave propagation. The present treatment mainly reflects the research activity and style of the author in the related scientific areas during the last decades
Valutazione e responsabilità della dirigenza pubblica. A proposito di un recente libro.
No full textL’Autore, partendo dalle suggestioni di un recente libro di Mario Cerbone sulla dirigenza pubblica degli enti locali, esamina i profili di maggiore problematicità nei sistemi di valutazione della dirigenza, sia con riguardo agli esiti premiali legati al raggiungimento degli obiettivi, sia in relazione ai profili di responsabilità dirigenziale. L’evoluzione normativa, solo in parte ricondotta a sistema per la mancata attuazione della delega di cui alla l. n. 124/2015 con riguardo alla disciplina della dirigenza, ha dato spazio al consolidamento di prassi valutative e di accertamento della responsabilità dirigenziale che appaiono ancora lontane dal garantire sistemi efficienti di gestione e di accountability pubblica, nella soddisfazione dell’utenza e nell’utilizzo adeguato delle risorse.The author, starting from the suggestions of a recent book by Mario Cerbone on the public management of local authorities, examines the most problematic profiles in the management evaluation systems, both with regard to the reward results linked to the achievement of objectives, and in relation to managerial responsibility profiles. The regulatory evolution, only partially traced back to the system due to the failure to implement the delegation referred to in l. n. 124/2015 with regard to the discipline of the management, has given space to the consolidation of evaluation practices and assessment of managerial responsibility that still appear far from guaranteeing efficient management systems and public accountability, in user satisfaction and in the adequate use of resources
Il referendum in Scozia: tra devolution e indipendenza
No full textIl 18 settembre i cittadini scozzesi saranno chiamati a decidere le sorti della propria nazione: l’indipendenza dal Regno Unito e l’acquisto della piena sovranità saranno oggetto del quesito referendario indetto dal Parlamento scozzese. Dalla volontà dell’Assemblea di Edimburgo di ottenere una “more devolution”, ovvero una maggiore autonomia fiscale, è nata una sfida dal profilo assai più elevato e dagli esiti incerti: un semplice ‘sì’ potrebbe metter fine a trecento anni di unione. Il presente articolo intende analizzare i possibili scenari di una Scozia effettivamente indipendente e sovrana: una campagna referendaria costruita essenzialmente su dati economici, che indicano una finanza pubblica più florida se slegata da quella inglese, sembra non aver posto la dovuta attenzione alle conseguenze giuridiche di una secessione ottenuta nel 2014. Il governo scozzese si mostra certo del mantenimento della stessa membership di cui gode attualmente sotto il Regno Unito sia nell’Unione europea che in organizzazioni internazionali quali l’ONU, la NATO e il Consiglio d’Europa. Nei paragrafi che seguono, si cercherà di riportare sia l’oggetto delle trattative successive ad un esito referendario positivo – sarà eventualmente l’articolo 48 o il disposto dell’articolo 49 del TUE a rendere la Scozia il 29° Stato membro? – sia la strada che verrà intrapresa nel caso di bocciatura del quesito – verso la “devolution max”? Essendo infatti escluso il mantenimento dello status quo, la consultazione referendaria di settembre ha comunque lo scopo indiretto di stimolare il Governo di Westminster a rimettere in gioco l’assetto ordinamentale di tutto il Regno Unito.This article analyses the Scottish referendum on independence from the United Kingdom. The author focuses on the juridical and economic consequences of the eventual secession, both on national, european and international level: which kind of relationship could be held in case of the independence? What kind of negotiations should be conducted with the United Kingdom, the European Union and with International Organizations
EL ORDENAMIENTO ITALIANO Y LA TUTELA CRECIENTE FRENTE A LOS DESPIDOS IMPROCEDENTES
No full textThis article analyzes the reform of the Italian discipline of dismissals, introduced by Legislative Decree no. 23/2015. This important change in employment law was decided by the Italian Government on the basis of Law no. 183/2014. This new Legislative Decree applies only to employees hired after its entry into force, so that the future dismissals from employment relationship began prior to the reform will be governed by the previous legislation including Article 18 of Law no. 300/1970 (the famous Statute of Workers' Rights). In particular, Legislative Decree no. 23/2015 changed the rules on sanctions applicable to employers in all kinds of unlawful dismissal: discriminatory dismissals or otherwise null; inadequately motivated disciplinary dismissals; dismissals unlawfully motivated by reasons related to the individual employee (e.g. for sickness absence that had not exceeded the legal limits); individual and collective dismissals in overstaffed businesses, crisis or receivership procedures. The most important innovations consist in a sharp reduction of the sanctions for unlawful dismissals of employees hired by employers with more than fifteen employees. Before this reform, in several cases of unlawful dismissal, employees were entitled to reinstatement in the workplace and in the remaining cases were entitled to a lump-sum compensation of an amount specified by the Court and still high (12 to 24 months' salary). According to the Legislative Decree no. 23/2015, instead, the reintegration into the workplace is no longer the general rule, but it is an exception applicable only in case of discrimination, in other cases of nullity of the dismissal and in few cases in which the disciplinary dismissal was motivated on the basis of an accusation based on non-existent facts. In all other cases of unlawful dismissal, including all cases of dismissal for economic reasons, the employee is entitled only to a lump-sum compensation for damages equal to two months' salary for each year of duration of the employment relationship, with a minimum of four months' salary for employment relationships of less than two years and a maximum of twenty-four months' salary for relationships lasted more than twelve years (actual average amounts will be probably lower, as was also introduced a partial tax incentive in order to encourage to reach a dispute settlement before the beginning of Labour Court trials). After offering an overview of Legislative Decree no. 23/2015, the Author analyzes the main difficulties in the interpretation of the new rules, and finally concludes that this very significant reform appears a continuation of employment law reforms of recent years, since it aims to protect employers more in the labour market rather than in the employment relationship, and because it reduced the discretionary power of Labour Courts. SUMARIO.
I. Crisis de empleo, certidumbre de cara a los operadores económicos, promoción del contrato indefinido: las razones de la reforma italiana. II. La reducción de la protección de los trabajadores de nueva contratación: características y técnicas de la regulación italiana. III. La reincorporación (convertida en excepción): despido discriminatorio o nulo; despido disciplinario en el que se demuestre la "inexistencia del hecho material". IV. La indemnización (regla general): todos los (otros) casos de despido individual improcedente, el despido colectivo, el despido en las pequeñas empresas. V. Conclusiones. El impacto del nuevo modelo de flexibilidad en la salida del mercado de trabajo y algunos problemas de constitucionalidad
Airplane headache: a neurologistâ€TMs personal experience.
No full textWe describe the airplane-related headache
of one of the authors (Fa.M.) and offer a joint
consideration of it.
When the author in question was 7 years old, he
had a first episode of acute frontal bilateral sinusitis
with fever, and two further episodes at 14 and
22 years. Since then he suffered no further symptom
of rhinitis or sinusitis. At the age of 29 years, he
flew for the first time; it was November, and the
flight was from Milan to Maldives Islands and
lasted 10 h; it was very pleasant and he experienced
no problems. Some months later, in June, during a
short air journey from Verona to Neaples lasting
about 1.5 h, while approaching the landing (the
plane was approximatively 500 m above the
airport), he experienced a sudden, sharp pain of
very high intensity located in the right periorbital
region, associated with profuse tearing, conjunctival
injection and ptosis. He did not check for the presence
of miosis in that instance. During the attack he
was irritable and found it difficult to stay in his
seat. He had to strongly press with his hand on the
right fronto-orbital region, but found only very
mild relief. After 5 min, the pain diminished and
disappeared in 15–20 min; a light dysaesthesia persisted
in the same area for 20 min. This was a very
unpleasant experience, as the pain was really
unbearable, and could be described as ‘thunderclap
like’. Three days later, returning home by airplane,
he took sodium naproxene 550 mg, one tablet,
during take off and suffered no disturbance.
Since then, every time he flies (about four times
per year), 1 h before landing he takes a tablet of
sodium naproxene 550 mg and has never experienced
‘airplane headache’ (1–3) again, until 2 years
ago when, returning from a holiday spent in
Greece, he forgot to take his naproxene: during
landing, he then experienced the same signs and
symptoms described above. Brain magnetic resonance
imaging (MR and angio-MRI were normal.
He has a personal and familial history negative for
headache.
The authors deem it worthwhile to share this
personal experience with the readers of Cephalalgia
for several reasons. It adds a new case (the second
Italian case) to the limited series published up until
now (1–4).
With reference to the paper by Mainardi et al. (3),
this experience confirms the fairly stereotyped presentation
of ‘airplane headache’ as far as sex, age of
onset, pain location, unilaterality, intensity, duration
and onset at landing are concerned; however, vegetative
symptoms of the trigeminal autonomic
cephalalgia series and transient dysaesthesia of the
area were also present, somewhat expanding the
spectrum of the clinical presentation of this kind of
headache (4).
An inconsistent action of ibuprofen has been
described (4). This is the first report of the apparent
good effectiveness of naproxene in this condition: a
very simple preventive therapy with this drug
proved successful in avoiding further attacks.
We expect this form of headache not being rare in
the general population: it is probably underreported
due to its short duration and spontaneous
remission. Therefore, this simple therapeutic
measure, if its efficacy is confirmed in other cases,
could be of help, avoiding an unpleasant and worrying
condition that could, as might have been in
the present case, limit the use of air travel for many
people
The Role of Salvatore Pincherle in the Development of Fractional Calculus
No full textWe revisit two contributions by Salvatore Pincherle (Professor of Mathematics at the University of Bologna from 1880 to 1928) published (in Italian) in 1888 and 1902 in order to point out his possible role in the development of Fractional Calculus.
Fractional Calculus is that branch of mathematical analysis
dealing with pseudo-differential operators interpreted as integrals and derivatives of non-integer order. Even if the former contribution (published in two notes on Accademia dei Lincei) on generalized hypergeomtric functions does not concern Fractional Calculus it contains the first example in the literature of the use of the so
called Mellin–Barnes integrals. These integrals will be proved to be a fundamental task to deal with all higher transcendental functions including the Meijer and Fox functions introduced much later. In particular, the solutions of differential equations of fractional order are suited to be expressed in terms of these integrals. In the second paper (published on Accademia delle Scienze di Bologna), the author is interested to insert in the framework of his operational theory the notion of derivative of non integer order that appeared in those times not yet well established. Unfortunately,
Pincherle’s foundation of Fractional Calculus seems still ignored
A Novel Regular Format for X.509 Digital Certificates
No full textDigital certificates are one of the key components to ensure secure network communications. The complexity of the certificate standard, ITU-R-X.509, has led to a number of breaches in the TLS protocol security due to certificate misinterpretation by TLS libraries. We argue that the root cause of such an issue is the complexity of the certificate structure, which can be gauged with the framework of formal language theory: the language describing digital certificates is context sensitive. Such a complexity led to handcrafted X.509 parsers, resulting in implementations which are not guaranteed to perform correct language recognition. We highlight the issues in X.509, and propose a new format for digital certificates, designed to be parsed effectively and efficiently, while retaining the same semantic expressiveness. The certificate format can be deployed gradually, is fully specified as a regular language, and is specified as a formal grammar from which a provably correct parser can be automatically derived. We validate the effectiveness of our proposal, and the linear running time provided by the approach, generating an instance of the parser with a production grade lexer/parser generation framework
Two-particle anomalous diffusion: Probability density functions and self-similar stochastic processes
No full textTwo-particle dispersion is investigated in the context of anomalous diffusion. Two different modeling approaches related to time subordination are considered and unified in the framework of self-similar stochastic processes. By assuming a single-particle fractional Brownian motion and that the two-particle correlation function decreases in time with a power law, the particle relative separation density is computed for the cases with time subordination directed by a unilateral M-Wright density and by an extremal Lévy stable density. Looking for advisable mathematical properties (for instance, the stationarity of the increments), the corresponding selfsimilar stochastic processes are represented in terms of fractional Brownian motions with stochastic variance, whose profile is modelled by using the M-Wright density or the Lévy stable density. © 2013 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved
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