112 research outputs found
Hepatotoxicity of fast food?
No full textIn the dictionary, fast food is defined as any food which may be cooked easily, and is sold by restaurants to be eaten quickly or taken away. Changes in the dietary pattern of the last decades have made fast food a relevant component of western diet, but a diet largely based on fast food has detrimental effects on health, which have been a matter of discussion for 20 years.1 Two potential mechanisms have been suggested: a) fast feeding does not suppress appetite, leading to increased calorie consumption; b) fast food is usually richer in fats and saturated fats (and thus richer in calories), as well as in other components which may cause harm to several organs, namely widespread cardiovascular disease. Both mechanisms are likely to promote obesity, but is there evidence for a direct hepatotoxicity?
The issue came to public attention in the movie “Super Size Me”. After consuming three meals a day in a fast food restaurant for one month, Morgan Spurlock increased by nearly 10 kg, and liver enzymes peaked at 290 U/L (alanine aminotransferase - ALT) from baseline values of 20 U/L, accompanied by increased total cholesterol, uric acid and the onset of clinical features of the metabolic syndrome. No doubt that elevated aminotransferase levels are a marker of hepatic dysfunction, but are they related to any specific dietary component of fast food-based diet, or simply to weight gain and obesity-associated non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)
Comparison between chemical and electrical profiles in Al/sup +/ or N/sup +/ implanted and annealed 6H-SiC
No full textInvestigating Mesa Structure Impact on C-V Measurements
No full textCapacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements play a crucial role in evaluating semiconductor device performance by revealing vital parameters such as doping levels and charge carrier behavior. This study specifically investigates the impact of mesa structures on C-V measurements in 4H-SiC PiN vertical diodes. Our analysis uncovers distinct capacitance values per unit area among diodes with varying diameters within the same diode family. These findings underscore the limitations of conventional capacitance equations formulated for planar devices when extended to mesa-structured devices. To separate the capacitance portion dependent solely on the PN junction's area from the overall depletion capacitance, which is influenced by the device's geometry, we applied a methodology involving multiple C-V measurements across diodes with differing diameters and validated the experimental outcomes through rigorous calculations. This enables the utilization of standard capacitance equations. Neglecting the impact of device geometry has the potential to introduce significant inaccuracies in critical device parameters. The proposed methodology addresses these limitations, offering valuable insights to enhance the accuracy of extracted quantities from C-V measurements. Furthermore, it provides guidance for interpreting experimental data obtained from devices incorporating mesa structures
N-MODY: a code for collisionless N-body simulations in modified Newtonian dynamics
No full textWe describe the numerical code N-MODY, a parallel particle-mesh code for collisionless N-body simulations in modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND). N-MODY is based on a numerical potential solver in spherical coordinates that solves the non-linear MOND field equation, and is ideally suited to simulate isolated stellar systems. N-MODY can be used also to compute the MOND potential of arbitrary static density distributions. A few applications of N-MODY indicate that some astrophysically relevant dynamical processes are profoundly different in MOND and in Newtonian gravity with dark matter
Diritto dei nonni a mantenere rapporti significativi con i nipoti nell'esclusivo interesse del minore
No full textIl lavoro espone alcune riflessioni sul particolare rapporto che intercorre tra nonni e nipoti all'interno della famiglia, ripercorrendo le tappe evolutive del concetto stesso di famiglia, in quanto la rilevanza ed il significato di questo rapporto sono mutati con essa. La disamina socio culturale della relazione è prodromica all'indagine relativa ai profili strettamente giuridici. Si tratta di una relazione complessa che va letta alla luce dei parametri normativi comunitari ed internazionali, ma soprattutto di quelli costituzionali posti a tutela della persona e che poi nella legislazione ordinaria trova un punto di emersione nell'art. 317 bis del codice civile. All'analisi del contenuto di tale norma, che dispone tra l'altro il diritto degli ascendenti di mantenere rapporti significativi con i nipoti minorenni, è dedicato il lavoro, al fine di far luce sul reale significato, natura giuridica e contenuto della situazione giuridica soggettiva dei due termini della relazione (nonni e nipoti). Ne deriva un quadro dal quale emerge la evidente, quanto necessaria rivalutazione anche giuridica del ruolo dei nonni nel pieno rispetto e perseguimento del superiore interesse del minore in ogni decisione che lo riguardi nella consapevolezza che ogni valutazione in merito deve essere sempre adottata nel rispetto delle peculiarità e delle specificità della situazione concreta in cui il minore si trova e del relativo contesto familiare, al fine di poter operare sempre e comunque il miglior bilanciamento possibile tra gli interessi coinvolti
Nuovi contributi sul palazzo Apostolico Vaticano al tempo di Clemente XI Albani: una galleria di cartoni per l’appartamento dei principi nipoti.
No full textSi descrive l'allestimento dell'appartamento dei principi nipoti nel palazzo di Sisto V, in particolare delle due sale contigue alla Sala del Bologna
Il mio nonno preferito. Relazioni, stili e valore educativo. Uno studio comparativo internazionale.
No full textIl contributo intende esaminare il tema della relazione tra nonni e nipoti, avvalendosi di un approccio multidisciplinare. Si esplora il vissuto esperenziale di due gruppi diversi, uno composto da famiglie italiane e l’altro da famiglie nigeriane. Al campione rappresentativo di nipoti africani e italiani è stato somministrato un questionario che approfondisce tre aree tematiche: il tipo di attività svolte in compagnia del nonno/a preferito,la frequenza delle attività, la funzione educativa in relazione al ruolo. I risultati hanno rivelato che i nipoti hanno un nonno preferito, e che i nipoti italiani dichiarano di avere relazioni più intense con le nonne rispetto ai nonni, confermando così la letteratura empirica internazionale. Sono emerse, inoltre, ulteriori differenze nella partecipazione alle attività che scandiscono il tempo con i nonni. Naturalmente, l’elaborazione dei dati ottenuti deve tener conto dei fattori culturali che possono aver influenzato le percezioni e le interazioni dei nipoti con i nonni. Tuttavia, sono necessarie ulteriori ricerche per accertare la coerenza e la generalizzabilità dei risultati
The first all-sky view of the Milky Way stellar halo with Gaia+2MASS RR Lyrae
No full textWe exploit the first Gaia data release to study the properties of the Galactic stellar halo as traced by RR Lyrae. We demonstrate that it is possible to select a pure sample of RR Lyrae using only photometric information available in the Gaia+2MASS catalogue. The final sample contains about 21 600 RR Lyrae covering an unprecedented fraction (similar to 60 per cent) of the volume of the Galactic inner halo (R <28 kpc). We study the morphology of the stellar halo by analysing the RR Lyrae distribution with parametric and non-parametric techniques. Taking advantage of the uniform all-sky coverage, we test halo models more sophisticated than usually considered in the literature, such as those with varying flattening, tilts and/or offset of the halo with respect to the Galactic disc. A consistent picture emerges: the inner halo is well reproduced by a smooth distribution of stars settled on triaxial density ellipsoids. The shortest axis is perpendicular to the Milky Way's disc, while the longest axis forms an angle of similar to 70 degrees with the axis connecting the Sun and the Galactic Centre. The elongation along the major axis is mild (p = 1.27), and the vertical flattening is shown to evolve from a squashed state with q approximate to 0.57 in the centre to a more spherical q approximate to 0.75 at the outer edge of our data set. Within the radial range probed, the density profile of the stellar halo is well approximated by a single power law with exponent alpha = -2.96. We do not find evidence of tilt or offset of the halo with respect to the Galaxy's disc
Wood decay in poplar trees for biomass production.
No full textA rapid decay of Poplars AF2 clone, Populus x canadiensis, selected for biomass production addressed to produce energy and with an elevated tolerance to several harshnesses, has been observed in year 2013 in three fields (41.5ha) in Bologna Province. These fields were set in March 2010, pruning in two of the three fields was not done at the due time, since plants showed a scarce growth, with an incidence over 80%. Observations and samplings were done on plants of plots (10x10m) of each field. Trunk cross sections of all tested plants showed a central area, at 8cm from the soil, completely necrotic surrounded by a typical reddish ring extended up to 60%. Fungal colonies with fluffy grey mycelium were isolated from woody fragments, plated on agar medium.
Their identification through sequencing of partial rDNA ITS region was performed comparing sequences in the NCBI database by BLASTn search algorithm. The nucleotide search comparison showed 98% identity with Cryptosphaeria lignyota (Fr.) Auersw. This fungus has been reported in literature as responsible of wood decay of some plant species, i.e. genus Populus and especially those with rapid growth. It can kill young trees within a year from infection and contributes to natural thinning of trunk formations. It seems that the host death might be due to massive invasion of the sapwood, that prevents it from transporting water and nutrients, and not to annular extension of the canker.
The fungus is responsible of a great economic loss being all the infected plants highly compromised
The Contemporary Problems Connected to the Use of Outer Space
No full textCílem této práce je identifikovat hlavní problémy mezi aktéry mezinárodních vztahů v oblasti bezpečnosti v kosmickém prostoru a následně navrhnout teoretická řešení těchto problémů. Kromě toho úvod práce se věnuje i vesmírnému odpadu jako jednomu z problémů spojeným s využitím kosmu. Práce je rozdělena na 4 kapitoly. První kapitola se věnuje vnímání vesmírné politiky z pohledu realismu a liberalismu. Následná část práce uvádí několik mezinárodních režimů důležitých pro kosmický prostor a charakterizuje hlavní aktéry ve vesmíru -- USA, Rusko a Čínu. Třetí kapitola identifikuje hlavní problémy ve vztazích mezi aktéry a uvádí důvody, proč by se mělo vyhnout závodům ve zbrojení ve vesmíru. V poslední kapitole jsou navržena řešení, jak by se mohlo dosáhnout kontroly zbrojení a bezpečnosti ve vesmíru s ohledem na moc a společné poznání.The aim of this thesis is to identify the principle problems within the actors of international relations in the area of space security and consequently suggest theoretical solutions to these problems. Apart from it, the introduction of the thesis deals with space debris as a problem connected to the use of outer space. The thesis is divided into 4 chapters. The first part engages in the perception of politics of space by realism and liberalism. The following chapter introduces several international regimes which are important for outer space and characterizes the main actors in outer space -- USA, Russia and China. The third chapter identifies the principal problems within the actors and presents the reasons why an arms race in space should be avoided. In the last part, several solutions how an arms control and security in space with regard to power and knowledge can be reached are offered
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