Hasil untuk "History of Italy"

Marcin Śniadecki, Maria Morawska, Patrycja Kijańska et al.

Breast ultrasound is a key diagnostic method for breast cancer and relies heavily on the interpretation of visual cues. At the same time, medical education is increasingly being driven by time constraints, which favors rapid pattern recognition, limiting the scope for reflective image analysis and the diagnostic process. Therefore, the aim of this study was to propose and evaluate an artistic and pedagogical teaching model, inspired by the interpretive practices of Italian High Renaissance painting, as a tool to support the development of diagnostic reasoning in breast ultrasound. This model focuses on careful observation, analysis of the relationship between detail and the overall image, and the conscious transformation of visual cues into clinical meaning. This study was conducted during the four-day ARSA Think Tank Meeting (ARSATTM). Medical students worked in four groups; two groups received methodological training based on visual cue analysis, and two did not. All groups performed identical tasks involving the interpretation of breast ultrasound images and ultrasound examinations on real patients. The results indicate that an artistic–pedagogical teaching model to promote more coherent and reflective diagnostic reasoning in breast ultrasound is feasible. Therefore, integrating this approach may be a valuable addition to medical students’ ultrasound education in the realities of limited clinical time.

Christian Battipaglia, Valeria Vescovi, Martina Foschi et al.

Objective To assess the effects of a 12-week combined treatment with myo-inositol (2 g) and Banaba extract (48 mg) standardized to 1% corosolic acid (MBN) on insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and hepatic insulin extraction index (HIEI) in overweight and obese postmenopausal women.Methods We conducted a retrospective observational study including 31 postmenopausal women (mean age 51 ± 1.2 years) attending the Gynecological Endocrinology Center of Modena, Italy. All patients received daily supplementation with MBN for 12 weeks. Hormonal and metabolic parameters—including fasting glucose, insulin, C-peptide, and HOMA-IR—were assessed before and after treatment. In addition, an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was performed at both time points, with glucose, insulin, and C-peptide curves measured and corresponding area under the curve (AUC) values at 240 minutes calculated. HIEI was calculated as the insulin/C-peptide ratio. Data were analyzed globally and then stratified by family history of diabetes.Results After treatment, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR, and HIEI were significantly reduced. The OGTT showed a 23.5% decrease in glucose AUC, with greater reductions in insulin AUC (−42%) compared to C-peptide AUC (−16.8%), suggesting enhanced hepatic insulin clearance. Patients with a family history of diabetes showed reductions in insulin and C-peptide, while those without showed only a decrease in insulin and HIE, with no changes in C-peptide.Conclusions Combined MBN supplementation improved insulin sensitivity and hepatic insulin clearance in overweight and obese postmenopausal women, with particularly pronounced effects in those with a family history of diabetes. These findings underscore the potential of targeted integrative strategies to mitigate insulin resistance in this population.

Lam J, Cazzaniga S, Seyed Jafari SM et al.

Joan Lam,1,* Simone Cazzaniga,1,2,* S Morteza Seyed Jafari,1 Julia-Tatjana Maul,3,4 Laurence Feldmeyer,1,5 Simon Bossart,1 Nikhil Yawalkar,1 Kristine Heidemeyer1,5 1Department of Dermatology, Inselspital,Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; 2Centro Studi GISED, Bergamo, Italy; 3Department of Dermatology, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; 4Faculty of Medicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; 5Department of Dermatology and Allergology, Cantonal Hospital Lucerne, Lucerne, Switzerland*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Joan Lam, Department of Dermatology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, 3010, Switzerland, Tel +41316322218, Fax +41316322233, Email kristine.heidemeyer@insel.chIntroduction: The emergence of IL-17A inhibitors, has led to improvements in psoriasis treatment. However, comparative studies addressing their long-term efficacy and drug survival with associated predictors are scarce. The study aimed to compare the characteristics of patients treated with secukinumab or ixekizumab and in addition to analyze associated factors and independent predictors of drug survival in a real-world setting.Methods: This study was designed as a single-center retrospective study. Kaplan–Meier analysis was used to assess drug survival. Log rank test and Cox regression analysis were performed to identify associated factors and possible independent predictors for drug discontinuation.Results: 81 patients have been included in the study. Ixekizumab showed a trend toward faster and higher Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) 75 and 90 response rates compared to secukinumab at weeks 52 (74.6% versus 55.4%) and 104 (41.5% versus 31.1%). Overall, drug survival rates for ixekizumab were always higher than secukinumab, although the differences were not statistically significant (P = 0.26). Four predictors were identified. For secukinumab, nail psoriasis (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.27, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.09– 0.83; P = 0.02) was assessed to be a protective factor favoring drug continuation, while five or more previous therapies (HR: 5.52, 95% CI: 1.98– 15.40, P = 0.007) were considered a risk factor for discontinuation. In the ixekizumab group, psoriasis inversa was identified as a protective factor (HR: 0.15, 95% CI: 0.03– 0.72; P = 0.02), and female sex (HR: 3.47, 95% CI: 1.09– 10.99, P = 0.03) was considered a risk factor.Conclusion: Ixekizumab exhibited a non-significant trend toward better long-term efficacy and drug survival compared to secukinumab with slightly lower tolerability. Patient characteristics, including nail psoriasis and treatment history, influenced drug survival differently for each treatment. These findings underscore the importance of personalized treatment strategies in managing psoriasis.Keywords: psoriasis, IL-17-blocker, ixekizumab, secukinumab, drug survival, real world, associated factors, predictors

Maurizio Cattani

The workshop, which took place on October 7, 2024, at the Department of History and Culture of the University of Bologna, examined the theme of so-called megalithic walls. This subject falls within the broader context of the monumental structures that characterized late prehistory in Europe, with Sardinia offering the best-known examples of Nuragic constructions, proto-Nuraghi and Nuraghi, dating back to the 2nd millennium BC. The day's program provided an update on the state of knowledge and at the same time addressed the epistemological and methodological aspects to be applied to research, starting with the terminology to be assigned to the little-known and complex protohistoric walls.

Chester J. Sands, Chester J. Sands, Timothy D. O’Hara et al.

To effectively manage biological assemblages, a sound knowledge of the biodiversity is essential. The Southern Ocean shelf benthic assemblages are typically comprised of species, the names of which are shared across the huge expanse of the region, indicating large population sizes and good connectivity, inferring resilience. This is despite two decades of studies identifying cryptic or unrecognised species in many benthic groups. In this study we examine the common and widespread species Ophioplinthus gelida (Koehler, 1900) and Ophioplinthus martensi (Studer, 1885), both regarded as occurring throughout the Southern Ocean on continental and island shelves. The two species show subtle differences in morphology, despite O. gelida having very plastic character states. Genetic analysis using mitochondrial sequences shows that the two species are part of a radiating clade with ten distinct elements, six of which group as O. gelida and four as O. martensi. Further investigation showed that one of these elements can be attributed to Ophioplinthus carinata (Studer, 1876), not previously identified on the Antarctic shelf, but shown here to be a dominant fraction of the O. “gelida” in our collections. Furthermore, O. “martensi” from its type locality of South Georgia is genetically similar to Ophioplinthus intorta (Lyman, 1878), from Marion Island, but distinct from those collected from the Antarctic shelf, which may then be considered Ophioplinthus inermis (Bell, 1902). A fifth clade of O. martensi collected from waters deeper than 2000 m was not part of this radiation but grouped together with more distantly related Ophioplinthus species. In general, the genus displays a wide range of morphological character states, varying greatly within O. gelida elements, and often shared between species. Several taxa outside of the O. gelida complex may also include unrecognised cryptic species, making reliable field identifications challenging, and greatly increasing the recognised species diversity and regional endemism.

Francesca Carnazzi

The paper analyses and returns in a critical edition the Donatio causa mortis of Margherita, daughter of the quondam Domenico de Turri, mother of the humanist Domenico Calderini, better known by his literary name of Domizio (1444/1445-1478). In the document, drawn up in Torri del Benaco on 17 April 1471 by the notary Domenico de Menegoli, the humanist is established by proxy as heir of the donor and is registered as notary. The information acquired from the study of this document is brought into line with the reconstruction of Calderini’s main biographical events in the 1470s, in the light of the wider historical and literary background to which the humanist himself can be traced, which is still elusive at times, especially as regards his relations within the context of his origins in the area of Benaco and his connections with the “civiltà delle lettere” of 15th century Verona.

Carmen Rodríguez-Cerdeira, Erick Martínez-Herrera, Paulina Nundehui Cortés-López et al.

Fungal melanonychia is an uncommon condition, most typically caused by opportunistic melanin-producing pigmented filamentous fungi in the nail plate. In the present study, the clinical characteristics of patients diagnosed with fungal melanonychia were analyzed through a systematic review of cases reported in the literature. The MESH terms used for the search were “melanonychia” AND “fungal” OR “fungi” through four databases: PubMed, SciELO, Google scholar and SCOPUS. After discarding inadequate articles using the exclusion criteria, 33 articles with 133 cases were analyzed, of which 44% were women, 56% were men and the age range was between 9 and 87 years. The majority of cases were reported in Turkey followed by Korea and Italy. Frequent causal agents detected were <i>Trichophyton rubrum</i> as non-dematiaceous in 55% <i>and Neoscytalidium dimidiatum</i> as dematiaceous in 8%. Predisposing factors included nail trauma, migration history, employment and/or outdoor activities. Involvement in a single nail was presented in 45% of the cases, while more than one affected nail was identified in 21%, with a range of 2 to 10 nails. Regarding the clinical classification, 41% evidenced more than one type of melanonychia, 21% corresponded to the longitudinal pattern and 13% was of total diffuse type. Likewise, the usual dermoscopic pattern was multicolor pigmentation. It is concluded that fungal melanonychia is an uncommon variant of onychomycosis and the differential diagnosis is broad, which highlights the complexity of this disease.

Thomas Cauvin

Proposed in the United States of America in the 1970s, the term “public history” is now used in various parts of the world. The internationalization of the field of public history raises various questions about its definition, its practices, and its theories. Based on sometimes long-established practices, public history reflects new approaches to audiences, collaboration and authority in history production. The article distinguishes and analyses the different phases of internationalization in the 1970s, 1990s, and 2010s and argues for a new international public history. Instead of a spread of public history, the new internationalization lies upon multicultural approaches and understandings of the field. Symbolized by the rise of public history in Italy, the glocal process of defining and practicing public history – where the local practices and theories relate and influence global definitions – provides more nuanced and richer understandings of the field. The new internationalization has concrete consequences on the public history structures, resources, languages, and projects.      

Marzia Lazzerini, Simone Benvenuto, Ilaria Mariani et al.

Data on the effective burden of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in the pediatric population are limited. We aimed at assessing the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies in children at three subsequent time-points. The study was conducted between January 2021 and July 2021 among children referring to the Research Institute for Maternal and Child Health “Burlo Garofolo” in Trieste, a referral regional hospital in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy. A multivariate analysis was conducted to assess factors independently associated with seroconversion. A total of 594 children were included. Anti-SARS-CoV-2 trimeric Spike protein IgG antibodies were found in 32 (15.4%) children tested in April-May and in 20 (11.8%) in June–July 2021, compared with 24 (11.1%) of those tested in January–February 2021 (<i>p</i> = 0.37, Armitage exact test for trend over time <i>p</i> = 0.76). A subgroup analysis and a multivariate logistic regression analysis were performed considering sociodemographic, clinical, and historical variables. Three categories of children showed statistically significant increased odds of positive anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies: children previously positive to a nasopharyngeal swab (AdjOR 15.41, 95%CI 3.44–69.04, <i>p</i> < 0.001), cohabitant with a person with an history of a previous positive nasopharyngeal swab (AdjOR 9.95, 95%CI 5.35–18.52, <i>p</i> < 0.001), and children with a foreign citizenship (AdjOR 2.4, 95%CI 1.05–5.70, <i>p</i> = 0.002). The study suggests that seroprevalence studies may be of limited help in estimating the prevalence of the COVID-19 pandemic in children. Further studies are needed to identify other markers of previous SARS-CoV-2 infection in children, such as CD4+ T cells or memory B-cells.

Davide Tiranti, Roberto Cremonini, Daniele Sanmartino

Rarely, a close correlation between wildfires and the occurrence of channelized debris flows has been observed in the Western Italian Alps. Only two cases in history have been reported, after brief and localized rainfall events of moderate intensity in Italy’s Piemonte region (NW Italy) caused debris flows, on 18 July 2005, in Verbania province (Pallanzeno municipality), and on June 2018 in Turin province (Bussoleno municipality). These phenomena occurred after a large portion of the catchments were affected by wide wildfires in the preceding months. Debris flow deposits showed an unusually large number of fine-grained particles, forming dark-brown mud-rich deposits associated with burnt wood deposits. Rainfall analysis related to the period between the wildfires’ occurrence and the debris flow events, using both raingauge and weather radar data, pointed out that the debris flows triggered in July 2005 and June 2018 were characterized by greater magnitude but associated with less precipitation intensity rates as compared with previous mud flows occurring just after wildfires. These behaviors can be explained by the presence of burned organic material and fine-grained sediment, generated from the soil’s thermal reworking, which formed a thick layer, centimeters deep, covering a large percentage of catchments and slopes. Most of this layer, generated by wildfires’ action were winnowed by rainfall events that had occurred in the months before the debris flow events, of significant magnitude, exhuming a discontinuous hydrophobic soil surface that changed the slopes’ permeability characteristics. In such conditions, runoff increased, corrivation time shortened, and, consequently, discharge along the two catchments’ channels-network increased as well. Consequently, the rainfall effects associated with rainfall events in July 2005 and June 2019 were more effective in mobilizing coarse sediments in channel beds than was typical for those catchments.

Anne Zimmerman

A.      Introduction Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the protection of consumer privacy had reached a milestone with the enactment of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).[i] Stores that screen customers for elevated temperatures challenge the basic ethical underpinnings of the new law: that personal private medical data is to be controlled by oneself. The pinnacle of privacy and control over personal data, the CCPA as it applies to data being collected new ways could impede COVID-19 public health goals.[ii] Yet there is precedent to release personal medical information in other public consumer arenas. “Government has a unique role in public health”[iii] which now calls for extraordinary means to control the spread of COVID-19. In the absence of clear governmental guidance, companies must navigate public health and implement fair policies to promote safety, acting in what is traditionally government’s realm. Customers, as opposed to employees, would arguably be subject to data collection but not storage.[iv] Customers will be subject to actions that violate traditional notions of the doctor patient relationship, data privacy, and freedom. The actions can be justified as noncoercive, a public health necessity, and as less restrictive than keeping businesses closed. The justification does not necessarily imply that companies should be managing the public health task themselves. Temperature screening, important now as some stores selling essential goods are implementing it, will become more crucial as more indoor public spaces, malls, retail stores, and service industries reopen. B.      Is temperature screening worth the sacrifice? “In a liberal, pluralistic democracy, the justification of coercive policies, as well as other policies, must rest on moral reasons that the public in whose name the policies are carried out could reasonably be expected to accept.”[v] Temperature screening is not coercive: staying home is an option for customers (not employees). Another option is to arrive at the store, deny the screening, and be denied entrance to the normally open-to-the-public space, also negating the coercive aspect. The customer, having made the decision, would be free to leave. In certain industries, businesses have rules that more severely restrict people’s freedom and include the collection of personal medical information. In most cases, there is a legal requirement for the action. Airport scans, recently adapted to reveal less and preserve more privacy, are TSA-driven and not imposed on customers by airlines themselves. Airlines do have a lot of power to ensure that flights are safe, on balance, giving them power over personal data. Amusement parks are governed by rules and regulations by state, local, and the federal government that include height and weight requirements; they ensure safety by following laws as well as internal and industry guidelines. Even bungee jumping and zip-lining are regulated to promote safety in ways that may require demonstrating an absence of certain medical conditions. Customers must divulge personal information and medical histories. The permitting process in many industries requires proof of safety measures and agreement to hold inspections. From the customer perspective, the laws and regulations matter less than the action. Customers benefit from safe airlines and amusement parks and willingly give medical information in exchange for participation in air travel or amusement park entertainment. Temperature screening is within accepted standards of requirements to participate, justified by the public health it would promote and its non-coercive nature. While many stores have nondiscrimination policies, the potentially contagious customer does not have any fundamental right to access that would override the public health concern. It is reasonable to accept and even embrace temperature screening knowing others inside the space will also have been screened. Temperatures often indicate the most contagious time in a viral stage and even non-COVID-19 temperatures can indicate contagious conditions. Temperature is usually protectable data: it is to be kept private if it is a product of a hospital or doctor’s appointment. COVID-19 disproportionately affects certain populations including, most notably, the elderly. Reopening stores and businesses is an opportunity for those without special vulnerabilities wanting to go back to public space. Immunocompromised individuals may choose to protect themselves by staying home, wearing additional personal protective gear, or avoiding crowds. My own immunocompromised post-chemotherapy daughter is incredibly cautious, going to great lengths to protect herself regardless of government directives. She benefits from those directives because other members of our household are less likely to bring the virus home if public spaces are closed or engaging in temperature screening and enforcing social distancing and mask recommendations. Stay-at-home orders combined with other nonpharmaceutical interventions like closing schools and wearing masks in crowded spaces should work for flattening the curve.[vi] The strain on the economy and on personal liberty makes them unsustainable in the long term. A solution like temperature screening makes public spaces safer but may work best in conjunction with particularly vulnerable people continuing to avoid crowded public spaces. There is an urgency to addressing the ethical basis for retail stores performing temperature screening as some stores have already begun. In Connecticut, LaBonne’s grocery stores began checking temperatures without recording data.[vii] Atlanta’s City Farmer’s Market chain is also screening its customers. Walmart has chosen to stay out of what it considers a public policy issue, refraining from testing customers’ temperatures.[viii] Greenburgh, New York, a municipality, is requiring grocery stores and pharmacies to check temperatures.[ix] Temperature screening is a valid and effective way of controlling the spread of COVID-19, and will become especially important when more businesses reopen.[x] It is reasonable to conclude that no one should be permitted entry into enclosed spaces with a fever. The efficacy of temperature checks has been debated with many public health experts in favor.[xi] Other countries that have successfully contained the virus have used temperature checks.[xii] This paper assumes enough efficacy to warrant some temperature screening policy -- some benefit or containment would derive from screening those entering public indoor spaces and barring those with a temperature of 100.4 or higher from entrance. Temperature screening of customers has two rationales: under OSHA, such precautions protect employees by limiting exposure to customers who may carry the virus; and, the precautions serve the public health goal of transmission prevention. If reporting requirements or tracking ensued, the public health benefits would grow at the expense of control over one’s own data. Websites usually offer data restriction choices by using a pop-up. An in-person temperature screening is a new data point that companies (especially small retail companies) are not prepared to deal with. If any data is collected, customers should be notified about how the temperature would be used, who can access it, and how the customer would remain deidentified. Failing to track the febrile customer who might transmit the virus seems more ethically problematic than the privacy violation. Without government directives, stores would have trouble justifying saving or sharing the data for the sake of public health. Public health initiatives required by law, permitted by law, and ones not addressed by law have different ethical implications. Efficacy alone would not allow stores to impede freedom and privacy more severely. Stores cannot detain those who display a symptom or refuse to wear a mask. Temperature screening must be within reason to be considered permissible. Stores like Walmart are using the absence of a governmental directive as an excuse to avoid an efficacious and sensible policy. Walmart is permitted to remain open as essential, a huge economic benefit. Customers may see Walmart’s stance as more ethical: valuing customer privacy and freedom. Stores like LaBonne’s are managing risk themselves to protect employees and the public. In Greenburgh, store employees can simply argue they are following a local government directive. Temperature screening should be accepted within a rights-driven, liberty-oriented society because it is a reasonable safety measure that creates the possibility of cautiously reopening many stores and public spaces. Some freedom is gained by a small loss of privacy and a different freedom. C.       Privacy in public temperature screening Privacy in the doctor patient relationship enhances value by promoting trust. Confidentiality promotes open communication with doctors and healthcare professionals. In COVID-19 customer temperature screening, the person taking the temperature is likely not trained in confidentiality and not HIPAA educated. Customers, traditionally not seen as patients, are operating outside of the traditional scope for the sake of the common good, allowing a non-invasive screening. Stores that screen customers should have a non-invasive thermometer that hovers and does not touch the customer. Evaluated by the principles of efficacy, necessity, and the least restrictive means, temperature screening may allow more freedom to move about and more businesses to open. Strict stay-at-home orders prevent the necessity for widespread screening, yet reopening stores creates a situation ripe for more pervasive temperature screening. Companies, stores, the local government, or police have little to no experience with personal medical data collection in the sphere of retail goods and services. In some cases, people might ask for a private space for the temperature screening. Stores should provide such a space but realistically they probably will not, making the screening a public event. LaBonne’s is not storing the data but arguably an elevated temperature would be witnessed by others outside the store who may know the identity of the febrile customer as many shop among their friends and neighbors. Yelling the temperature over to a different employee would be a serious breach of privacy; the employee taking customer temperatures should be trained to be discreet. D. An ethical lapse: the failure to record data that could improve public health and the economy   The results (a high or normal temperature) bring up the ethical conundrum: if the customers are asked to leave, the data and the customer are still in limbo. As COVID-19 testing becomes more readily available, the customers could be referred to a COVID-19 testing site. Failure to track them could allow them to try their luck at another store, spreading the virus if in fact they do have it. For privacy, it would be best not to store any temperature data creating no metadata for the event. For public health, tracking those with an elevated temperature is worthwhile and has been helpful in other countries. The right thing for a business to do probably lies in between: for an elevated temperature, recommend an online doctor’s appointment or send the customer home to consider seeking medical advice. A government directive to report elevated temperatures for legitimate public health purposes like tracking is reasonable and would be an appropriate directive for stores to follow. Absent government use of the data, companies and stores should not be operating vigilante public health schemes that track and ban certain customers for extended periods, behavior that risks producing scarlet-letter-style stigma. WHO goals to find, isolate, test, and treat every case would be furthered by tracking and testing those with elevated temperatures.[xiii] South Korea has in place a mechanism through apps and electronic bracelets to track those who test positive.[xiv] While their policies conflict with privacy and freedom, more businesses could reopen and more people could go more places while following social distancing and mask-wearing recommendations. The US population might be amenable to a model like South Korea’s when it is key to exercising freedom to move about in public, allowing workers to return to work, and consumers to enjoy stores and businesses. WHO seems not to envision its goals being handled by companies rather than public health authorities. The return to retail businesses and in-person services should be commensurate with a distinct protocol that fairly applies to all customers. The tradeoff for forgoing privacy is allowing stores to open, people to work, and consumers to consume. D.      Ethical baseline: notice and informed consent Notice of policies affecting customers is an ethical obligation. Companies should make a statement on a website and install signs announcing that temperature screening will begin on a certain date (official notice) and what the screening will entail. Businesses that require temperature taking could provide exceptions based on proof of antibodies or a current negative COVID-19 test, especially if the “immunity cards” considered by Anthony Fauci become widely circulated.[xv] Otherwise, there is no obvious expeditious way to request, accept, or deny an exception if the interaction is taking place outside on the curb instead of online.[xvi] Kinsa, the thermometer company now well known for gathering temperature data, sells the data to pharmacies who use it for commercial purposes, specifically, to boost sales of products people with an elevated temperature might want.[xvii] Through a built-in feature, Kinsa avoids any type of consent of the unwitting customer. While no personal data accompanies the temperature data, Kinsa is profiting from the data in unexpected ways and stores’ notice to customers should include that type of data collection as well. E.       Conclusion Government entities should weigh in on stores and businesses imposing temperature screening as a condition of entry. The stores are ensuring employee safety and contributing to public health by conducting temperature screening. Absent government directive, companies should agree not to store or use customer medical information, despite the data’s valuable role in public health. A government order requiring reporting for the sake of tracking and isolating those with COVID-19 would be a proper use of government authority ensuring ethical data protocols. The data is essentially wasted in the absence of any reporting requirements. Hopefully, companies and customers will participate freely in screening to make shopping safer. As stay-at-home orders expire, government should oversee the uniform application of tracking and testing those with elevated temperatures. For now, the government vacuum in retail temperature screening is handing power to retailers and grocers who do not know quite what to do with it. April 22, 2020 photo credit: Photo by Thomas Le on Unsplash [i] AB375, Title 1.81.5, The California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018. California Civil Code, Part 4, Division 3. [ii] Gavin Newson plans to enforce the CCPA beginning in July. “…in an email to Forbes, an “advisor” to the California Attorney General seemingly made it clear that the office intends to stick with the enforcement deadline of July 1, further issuing a stern warning to California businesses: “We’re all mindful of the new reality created by COVID-19 and the heightened value of protecting consumers’ privacy online that comes with it. We encourage businesses to be particularly mindful of data security in this time of emergency.”” Robert B. Milligan, John Tomaszewski, & Darren Dummit, “The Impact Of COVID-19 On The California Consumer Privacy Act,” Trading Secrets blog, April 6, 2020. https://www.tradesecretslaw.com/2020/04/articles/privacy-2/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-the-california-consumer-privacy-act/ [iii] Childress, James F., Faden, Ruth R., et al., “Public Health Ethics: Mapping the Terrain,” Journal of Law, Medicine, and Ethics, 30 (2002):170-178. [iv] Employees and customers call for different treatment: employees rightly subject to some tracking and stored data. There is some government input with respect to employee temperature screening. The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) governs and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), some states, and the CDC have given broad guidance urging temperature screening in certain cases but not giving procedural advice. Wilmer Hale (law firm website), “COVID-19: Screening Employee Temperatures: What Employers Need to Know,” April 3, 2020. https://www.wilmerhale.com/en/insights/client-alerts/20200403-screening-employee-temperatures-what-employers-need-to-know; and see Justine Phillips, Paul Cowie, and Kelly Hensley, “Employee Privacy Forecast: Temperature Checks,” Labor and Employment Law Blog, March 25, 2020. https://www.laboremploymentlawblog.com/2020/03/articles/coronavirus/employee-privacy-forecast-temperature-checks/ [v] Childress, p. 171. [vi] Markel, Howard, “What history revealed about cities that socially distanced during a pandemic,” PBS NewsHour online, April 20, 2020. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/what-history-can-teach-us-about-flattening-the-curve?fbclid=IwAR1CQzbfhiLm-1hmB586kt6RsCBPcI5Q8KwKaOmln_pyN9KKKpOSAsOJvGs [vii] “LaBonne’s Markets to Take Customers’ Temperatures,” NBCConnecticut.com , April 8, 2020. https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/coronavirus/labonnes-markets-to-take-customers-temperatures/2251765/ [viii] Nathaniel Meyersohn, “Why stores could start taking customers' temperatures,” CNN Business, April 9, 2020. “Dr. Luciana Borio, former director for medical and biodefense preparedness at the National Security Council under President Donald Trump and former acting chief scientist at the FDA. "Even a modest benefit can be of value when our public health options are so limited in the absence of diagnostic tests, capacity for large scale contact tracing or a vaccine." Matthew Freeman, associate professor of environmental health and epidemiology at Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health, said it "makes sense for businesses to take the temperatures of shoppers to protect employees and patrons, but what would be the response if someone did indeed have a fever? A plan of action is critical."” https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/09/business/walmart-amazon-home-depot-whole-foods-temperatures/index.html See also https://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2020/04/09/coronavirus-grocery-stores-taking-temperature-reading/ [ix] Propper, David, “Supermarkets and pharmacies in Greenburgh could start taking temperatures of workers, customers,” Rockland/Westchester Journal News, April 9, 2020. https://www.lohud.com/story/news/coronavirus/2020/04/09/greenburgh-supervisor-wants-customers-and-workers-get-temperature-taken-before-entering-store/2974662001/ “Next week, when I extend the order I intend (unless otherwise directed by the state) to also require the non invasive taking of temperature of employees and customers. I don’t believe that people with temperature should be allowed into the stores --we all worry about the risk of being infected or infecting others.  Many people in Westchester are dying from the COVID-19 -partially because people are careless or inconsiderate of others.  Although NYS law authorizes me to issue the order - the Town Board unanimously approved a resolution endorsing the contents.”  Greenburgh Supervisor, Paul Feiner. https://greenburghny.com/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=433 See also Kimmel, Robert, “Strict New Rules for Groceries and Pharmacies in Unincorporated Greenburgh to Combat COVID-19,” The Hudson Independent. https://thehudsonindependent.com/strict-new-rules-for-groceries-and-pharmacies-in-unincorporated-greenburgh-to-combat-covid-19/ [x] Meyersohn. [xi] Meyersohn. [xii] “Covid-19: Drones take Italians’ temperature and issue fines,” The Star, April 11, 2020. https://www.thestar.com.my/tech/tech-news/2020/04/11/covid-19-drones-take-italians-temperature-and-issue-fines Italy is using drones to enforce strict policies that ensure those with elevated temperatures are not out in public. [xiii] Boseley, Sarah, “WHO urges countries to 'track and trace' every Covid-19 case,” The Guardian, March 13, 2020. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/13/who-urges-countries-to-track-and-trace-every-covid-19-case ““You can’t fight a virus if you don’t know where it is,” the WHO’s director general, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said at a briefing on Friday. “Find, isolate, test and treat every case to break the chains of Covid transmission. Every case we find and treat limits the expansion of the disease.”” [xiv] Josh Smith, Hyonhee Shin, and Sangmi Cha, “Ahead of the curve: South Korea's evolving strategy to prevent a coronavirus resurgence,” Reuters, April 15, 2020. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-southkorea-respons/ahead-of-the-curve-south-koreas-evolving-strategy-to-prevent-a-coronavirus-resurgence-idUSKCN21X0MO [xv] Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID, part of the NIH), is considering an antibody test immunity card to be carried as proof one has developed antibodies. Forgey, Quint, “Fauci: Coronavirus immunity cards for Americans are ‘being discussed,’” Politico, April 10, 2020. https://www.politico.com/news/2020/04/10/fauci-coronavirus-immunity-cards-for-americans-are-being-discussed-178784 [xvi] Milligan. [xvii] “Taking people’s temperatures can help fight the coronavirus,” The Economist, March 26, 2020. https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2020/03/26/taking-peoples-temperatures-can-help-fight-the-coronavirus Users of Kinsa apps which offer medical advice based on temperature data are likely aware the company stores and sells the data. Thermometer users probably do not realize their temperatures are recorded or that the company can narrow down their location to the zip code.

Silvia Preziuso, Micaela Sgorbini, Paola Marmorini et al.

<i>Equid alphaherpesvirus 1</i> (EHV-1) is an important pathogen of horses. It is spread worldwide and causes significant economic losses. The <i>ORF33</i> gene has a conserved region that is often used as target in diagnostic PCR protocols. Single nucleotide point (SNP) mutations in <i>ORF30</i> are usually used to distinguish between neuropathogenic and non-neuropathogenic genotypes. An <i>ORF68</i> SNP-based scheme has been used for grouping different isolates. Recently, the highest number of variable sites in EHV-1 from the UK has been found in ORF34. In this study, EHV-1 positive samples from Italian horses with a history of abortion were investigated by amplifying and sequencing the <i>ORF30</i>, <i>ORF33</i>, <i>ORF34</i> and <i>ORF68</i> genes. Most animals were infected by the neuropathogenic type A2254G. A 118 bp deletion was found at nucleotide positions 701&#8722;818 of the <i>ORF68</i> gene, making impossible to assign the samples to a known group. Sequencing of the <i>ORF34</i> gene with a newly designed nested PCR showed new SNPs. Analysis of these sequences and of those obtained from genetic databases allowed the identification of at least 12 groups. These data add depth to the knowledge of EHV-1 genotypes circulating in Italy.

Vittorio Mironti, Francesco Saverio Pianelli, Dario Antonio Puddu et al.

The study of huts and other structures in "modern" agro-pastoral contexts is an important tool to retrieve valuable information to understand older contexts. The objective of this work is to highlight the potential for ethnoarchaeological studies of the context of the Lepini Mountains, which still today is marked in the landscape by the remains of these structures, through the crossing and synthesis of the information gathered in the various research carried out in the area.

Thomas Foiadelli, Alessandra Piccorossi, Lucia Sacchi et al.

Abstract Background The purpose of this study was to determine headache characteristics, impact on daily activities and medication attitudes among a large sample of adolescents in Italy. Methods Secondary school classes were randomly selected from a national stratified multistage sampling. Data regarding socio-familial factors, headache characteristics, impact on daily activities and medication use were recorded with an anonymous multiple-choice questionnaire. Results The survey involved 2064 adolescents. 1950 questionnaires were considered for analysis. Study population included 944 males (48.4%) and 1006 females (51.6%), aged between 11 and 16 years (mean 13.5 ± 1.87). Headache prevalence was 65.9%. Mean age at headache onset was 8.33 years. 9.8% suffered from headache > 1/week, 14.3% > 1/month, 24.2% monthly and 17.7% less than monthly. The mean duration of a headache episode was less than 30 min in 32.9%, 1 hour in 28.1%, 2 hours in 19.3% and several hours in 19.5%. Pain intensity was moderate in 52.2% and severe in 9.5%. School represented the main trigger factor (67%). Impact on daily activities was noted in 57.5%. 69.2% of adolescents reported the use of pain relievers. Up to 5.7% declared self-medication, while only 20.6% followed a physician’s prescription. Female adolescents experienced headache more frequently (70.2% vs 60%) and more intensely than male peers. Girls had a higher family history of headache, could more frequently identify a trigger factor, and were more affected into their daily activities than boys. Conclusions Population-based studies of headache disorders are important, as they inform needs assessment and underpin service policy for a disease that is a public-health priority. Headache has a high prevalence among adolescents and carries a significant burden in terms of impact on daily activities and use of medication. Furthermore, underdiagnose is common, while trigger factors are often detectable. Special consideration should be given to female adolescents and self-medication attitudes.

Batrićević Ana, Paunović Nikola

Having in mind the fact that waste represents a global problem of modern society that threatens human health and environment, the authors discuss normative and practical aspects of waste disposal in the EU. After brief introduction on the history of normative regulation of waste disposal in the EU, current normative frameworks of the EU pertinent to the disposal of waste and functioning of landfills are analysed, with focus on the latest amendments of acquis regulating this area that occurred in May 2018. In this part of the paper, normative method is applied. After that, the functioning of Court of Justice of the European Union and its role in the application of EU law is presented as well as the practice of the Court of Justice of the EU in the cases of its illegal disposal and inadequate treatment of waste waters (that may appear as the result of these activities). Several cases are analysed in which the Court made the decisions related to illegal activities of member states in the area of waste disposal, operation of landfills and inadequate treatment of waste waters (that may also appear as consequences of operations at landfills). Case analysis is applied in order to study the cases brought before the Court. Within concluding remarks, the authors highlight negative effects that waste disposal on landfills produces on human health and environment as well as the need to reduce them through the interventions on normative and practical level. As the result of the analysis of normative framework on the one hand and judicial practice on the other, it can be concluded that there are numerous differences among the EU member states when it comes to the application of the acquis in the area of waste disposal. The results of the research also suggest that there is a serious gap between the normative and the practical in the area of waste disposal in the EU which is still very large. This gap is particularly notable in Greece, Italy and Portugal, whose cases are therefore chosen to be presented in the paper.

Maria Forcellino

Recensione di: Marco Bussagli, I denti di Michelangelo, Viserba di Rimini, Edizioni Medusa, 2014, 175 p., ISBN: 9788876983122, € 19,00.

A. ROUX

The article analyses Italy’s long- and medium-term industrial credit system, comparing it with that found in France. After briefly summarising present practices in France, the author provides a survey of Italy’s history in this field. The score of special institutions in Italy are then categorised into four subsets and the administrative arrangements peculiar to each are highlighted. The statuary provisions whereby the State exercises control over the distribution of loans and over the employment of public funds are also considered.  Operating practices and loan procedures, including the structure, principals and methods of the credit institutions, are then reviewed. Finally, the author considers their place within the whole structure of the financial system. In the concluding remarks, the most original feature of the Italian system - its network of regional institutions, which could not have developed without the support of a central institute, the Mediocredito - is pointed out. Moreover, looking at the variety of Italian institutions it is apparent that, economically speaking, there are two Italies, that of the North and that of the South. JEL: G28, H81, N24, O25

Janez Mulec

The great cavern of Santo Tomás (La Gran Caverna de Santo Tomás) in Sierra de Qquemado (Los Órganos) in the province Pinar del Río in Cuba has a special place in Cuban speleology. For a very long period this was the longest cave system in the country. It extends in approximately 46 km of dry and flooded subterranean passages at seven levels, and represents a real paradise for karstologists and speleologists - not all cave branches are completely surveyed yet. The cave is partly tourist, but most of the interesting karst features are located in the wild part of the system. Besides the dimensions of the system and some huge cave formations, there are also recorded fossils from the Pleistocene period. The founder of Cuban speleology Antonio Núñez Jiménez in 1990 reported that when the River Santo Tomás drained during extreme dry periods, local people used captured water from the cave for their domestic use. Farmers used another interesting resource for their needs from this cave – nutrient-rich bat guano to fertilize tobacco fields in the foothills of the surrounding mogotes and in the bottom of dolinas. The cave was early in history populated by the early settlers of Cuba, but in recent years it became famous from the Cuban revolutionary period in the 1950s and 1960s. In the nearby village El Moncada in 1984 they founded a speleological school (Escuela National de Espeleología) which gave a boost to many generations of Cuban speleologists. The cave system generally receives high organic input, although there are some places in with evident lower input. Snakes, scorpions, frogs and crabs are frequent guests in the entrance part of the cave. There are some studies dealing with cave fauna from the great cavern of Santo Tomás in more detail, e.g. on crustaceans, but due to the cave size it is expected to add more species on the biodiversity list, and probably it is possible to discover new species in the cave. During the caving expedition we wanted to point out the potential of this and other caves in the area for microbiology and geomicrobiology research. Microbiology studies are not just important to assess the health status of underground habitat, but also to address more general questions related to nutrient cycling and energy fluxes in subtropical zones as, for example, cave air temperature is about 23°C. During the caving expedition (December 17-29, 2011) in the great cavern of Santo Tomás we demonstrated to Cuban speleologists a novel approach which is used in Slovenia for regular monitoring of human impact in the underground for dripping water, active underground rivers and quality of cave air, and examples of meiofauna sampling from cave pools. Participants for this international expedition in the great cavern of Santo Tomás came from Cuba, Italy and Slovenia. Expedition headquarters were located near the cave entrance in the village El Moncada at the speleological centre “Escuela National de Espeleológia Antonio Núñez Jiménez”. From Slovenia, Andreea Oarga and Janez Mulec joined the expedition. Field work in Cuba was coordinated by Galliano Bressan and Héctor Pérez Jiménez. Some activities during the expedition were accomplished in the frame of the project “Promotion of Slovenian Science” MU-PROM/2011-2-003 supported by the Slovenian Research Agency.

Т N Kleimenova

The activities of Dzhanni Puchcho, Italian journalist, polyglot and traveler, are considered in the article. He is famous for his investigation of cultural relations between Russia and Italy. He is the author of five books, concerning cultural relations between the two countries, the founder of the Association for Italian and Slavic cultural exchange. He esteems the Russian history and culture and selflessly works for the growth of bilateral relations as a manager and sponsor of various cultural programmes of his Foundation. The main aim of his initiatives is mutual spiritual and cultural exchange and fortifying of the two friendly nations.

Antonio DUPLÁ ANSUÁTEGUI

RESUMEN: En el artículo se estudia la denominada historiografía italiana neomarxista, que comienza sus trabajos como un grupo de investigación (Seminario di Antichistica) del Instituto Gramsci a mediados de los años 70 del siglo xx. A través de una serie de obras, desde Anàlisi marxista e società antiche de 1978 a La storia spezzata de A. Schiavone, de 1996, esta corriente ha ofrecido una nueva visión de la historia de Roma. El interés por los problemas teóricos y metodológicos, una nueva interpretación del modo de producción esclavista en Italia o una revisión crítica de la tradición clásica son algunas características propias de esta línea historiogràfica. El artículo concluye con unas reflexiones sobre la relación entre clasicismo y postmodernidad. Palabras clave. Historiografía, clasicismo, marxismo, esclavismo, postmodernidad.<br /><br />ABSTRACT: This paper deals with the so-called Italian neomarxist school, which began its activity as a research team (Seminario di Antichistica) of the Istituto Gramsci in the mid-seventies of the xxth century. Through some important works (from Anàlisi marxista e società antiche of 1978 to A. Schiavone's La storia spezzata, first published in 1996) they have outlined a new view of the history of Rome. The interest in theoretical and methodological problems, a new interpretation of the slave mode of production in Roman Italy and a critical approach to the classical tradition are also specific features of this school. The paper finishes with some remarks on the relationship between classicism and postmodernity.