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Purpose: Recent literature has focused attention on the presence of autistic-like symptoms in children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), who often exhibit social difficulties, posing challenges for a distinct clinical diagnosis. The current study aimed to identify the specific pattern of autistic symptoms in subjects with ADHD or Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), examining similarities or differences at both the domain and individual item levels. Patients and Methods: In this study, we enrolled 43 school-age children divided into the following: the ADHD group (n=25) consisted of children initially referred for ASD symptoms but subsequently clinically diagnosed with ADHD, and the ASD group consisted of 18 children with ASD. We used the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, 2nd edition (ADOS-2), to examine relative differences in the presence of symptoms such as deficits in communication and social interaction, and restricted and repetitive behaviors in these two groups. Comparison between groups was conducted to explore differences in IQ, age, ADOS-2 domains, and externalizing and internalizing problems among the groups. Results: We found significant differences between the groups when comparing summary scores of ADOS-2 domains (Social Affect, Restricted and Repetitive Behavior, and Total Score). Interestingly, at the individual item level, the ADHD group exhibited a similar level of atypical behaviors compared to the ASD group in two items related to the social-communication area: "Pointing" and "Gestures". Additionally, the frequencies of "Stereotyped/idiosyncratic words or phrases", "Mannerisms", and "Repetitive interests and behaviors" also showed similarities between groups. Conclusion: These findings indicate the importance of exploring and developing potential transdiagnostic domains that could be targeted for treatments specifically designed for children with ADHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is one of the most common neurodevelopment disorders, characterized by a multifactorial etiology based on the interaction of genetic and environmental factors. Recent evidence supports the neurobiological hypothesis based on neuroinflammation theory. To date, there are no sufficiently validated diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for ASD. Therefore, we decided to investigate the potential diagnostic role for ASD of two biomarkers well known for other neurological inflammatory conditions: the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and the neurofilament (Nfl). Nfl and GFAP serum levels were analyzed using SiMoA technology in a group of ASD patients and in a healthy control group (CTRS), age- and gender-matched. Then we investigated the distribution, frequency, and correlation between serum Nfl and GFAP levels and clinical data among the ASD group. The comparison of Nfl and GFAP serum levels between ASD children and the control group showed a mean value of these two markers significantly higher in the ASD group (sNfL mean value ASD pt 6.86 pg/mL median value ASD pt 5.7 pg/mL; mean value CTRS 3.55 pg/mL; median value CTRS 3.1 pg; GFAP mean value ASD pt 205.7 pg/mL median value ASD pt 155.4 pg/mL; mean value CTRS 77.12 pg/mL; median value CTRS 63.94 pg/mL). Interestingly, we also found a statistically significant positive correlation between GFAP levels and hyperactivity symptoms (p-value <0.001). Further investigations using larger groups are necessary to confirm our data and to verify in more depth the potential correlation between these biomarkers and ASD clinical features, such as the severity of the core symptoms, the presence of associated symptoms, and/or the evaluation of a therapeutic intervention. However, these data not only might shed a light on the neurobiology of ASD, supporting the neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration hypothesis, but they also might support the use of these biomarkers in the early diagnosis of ASD, to longitudinally monitor the disease activity, and even more as future prognostic biomarkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Boron nanoparticles produced in water by ns laser pulse. • Study of the oxide layer surrounds BNPs and boric acid and hydrogen as by-products. • Boron chemical reactions during laser ablation in water. • BNPs chemical and structural characterization. Boron nanoparticles (BNPs) are attractive nanomaterials for their employment in many applications, such as neutron detection, boron neutron capture therapy, proton boron capture therapy and nuclear fusion. Depending on the specific application, 10B or 11B isotopes can be used. Nevertheless, there are significant challenges in developing suitable BNPs using both conventional chemical synthesis routes and dry fabrication techniques. In this study we report BNPs directly synthetised in water by pulsed Laser Ablation in Liquid (PLAL). Nanoparticles of elemental boron have been generated by laser ablation of a sintered 10B target in MilliQ water by employing ns laser pulse. The ablation resulted in BNPs and boron target micro-fragments with hydrogen gas and boric acid as by-products. Simple washing steps were used to obtain clean BNPs in water. The BNPs showed a narrow size distribution between 3 and 4 nm and their stability in water was induced by a thin layer of boron oxide surrounds BNPs. The BNPs were fully characterized by the chemical and structural point of view employing several techniques. A discussion on boron chemical reactions during laser ablation in water and after the NPs were released in solution was done. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We introduce and study Regular Decision Processes (RDPs), a new, compact model for domains with non-Markovian dynamics and rewards, in which the dependence on the past is regular, in the language theoretic sense. RDPs are an intermediate model between MDPs and POMDPs. They generalize k -order MDPs and can be viewed as a POMDP in which the hidden state is a regular function of the entire history. In factored RDPs, transition and reward functions are specified using formulas in linear temporal logics over finite traces, or using regular expressions. This allows specifying complex dependence on the past using intuitive and compact formulas, and building models of partially observable domains without specifying an underlying state space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies support the notion that exploratory behaviour depends on the functionality of the cannabinoid type 1 (CB1) receptor in a cell type‐specific manner. Mice lacking the CB1 receptor in forebrain GABAergic or dorsal telencephalic glutamatergic neurons have served as essential tools revealing the necessary CB1 receptor functions in these two neuronal populations. However, whether these specific CB1 receptor populations are also sufficient within the endocannabinoid system for wild‐type‐like exploratory behaviour has remained unknown. To evaluate cell‐type‐specific sufficiency of CB1 receptor signalling exclusively in dorsal telencephalic glutamatergic neurons (Glu‐CB1‐RS) or in forebrain GABAergic neurons (GABA‐CB1‐RS), we utilised a mouse model in which CB1 receptor expression can be reactivated conditionally at endogenous levels from a complete CB1‐KO background. The two types of conditional CB1‐rescue mice were compared with CB1 receptor‐deficient [no reactivation (Stop‐CB1)] and wild‐type [ubiquitous reactivation of endogenous CB1 receptor (CB1‐RS)] controls to investigate the behavioural consequences. We evaluated social and object exploratory behaviour in four different paradigms. Remarkably, the reduced exploration observed in Stop‐CB1 animals was rescued in Glu‐CB1‐RS mice and sometimes even surpassed CB1‐RS (wild‐type) exploration. In contrast, GABA‐CB1‐RS animals showed the lowest exploratory drive in all paradigms, with an even stronger phenotype than Stop‐CB1 mice. Interestingly, these effects weakened with increasing familiarity with the environment, suggesting a causal role for altered neophobia in the observed phenotypes. Taken together, using our genetic approach, we were able to substantiate the opposing role of the CB1 receptor in dorsal telencephalic glutamatergic versus forebrain GABAergic neurons regarding exploratory behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies support the notion that exploratory behaviour depends on the functionality of the cannabinoid type 1 (CB1) receptor in a cell type‐specific manner. Mice lacking the CB1 receptor in forebrain GABAergic or dorsal telencephalic glutamatergic neurons have served as essential tools revealing the necessary CB1 receptor functions in these two neuronal populations. However, whether these specific CB1 receptor populations are also sufficient within the endocannabinoid system for wild‐type‐like exploratory behaviour has remained unknown. To evaluate cell‐type‐specific sufficiency of CB1 receptor signalling exclusively in dorsal telencephalic glutamatergic neurons (Glu‐CB1‐RS) or in forebrain GABAergic neurons (GABA‐CB1‐RS), we utilised a mouse model in which CB1 receptor expression can be reactivated conditionally at endogenous levels from a complete CB1‐KO background. The two types of conditional CB1‐rescue mice were compared with CB1 receptor‐deficient [no reactivation (Stop‐CB1)] and wild‐type [ubiquitous reactivation of endogenous CB1 receptor (CB1‐RS)] controls to investigate the behavioural consequences. We evaluated social and object exploratory behaviour in four different paradigms. Remarkably, the reduced exploration observed in Stop‐CB1 animals was rescued in Glu‐CB1‐RS mice and sometimes even surpassed CB1‐RS (wild‐type) exploration. In contrast, GABA‐CB1‐RS animals showed the lowest exploratory drive in all paradigms, with an even stronger phenotype than Stop‐CB1 mice. Interestingly, these effects weakened with increasing familiarity with the environment, suggesting a causal role for altered neophobia in the observed phenotypes. Taken together, using our genetic approach, we were able to substantiate the opposing role of the CB1 receptor in dorsal telencephalic glutamatergic versus forebrain GABAergic neurons regarding exploratory behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the case of a 63-year-old patient coming to our institution for a 6-months lasting and intensively itching dermatosis. In our experience, Dupilumab was a valid steroid-sparing treatment option in a patient failing multiple immune-modulating drugs for IgA BP with no side effects to be signaled. After 3 months, anti BP230 were normal (8.39 RU/ml), while anti BP180 were reduced but still elevated (175.35 RU/ml), eosinophils were 4.3% and IgE 198 UI/ml. [Extracted from the article]

Background: No study has specifically evaluated how ulnar neuritis and ulnar nerve transposition affect outcomes in baseball players undergoing ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstruction (UCLR). Purpose: To evaluate the effects of ulnar neuritis and ulnar nerve transposition in baseball pitchers undergoing UCLR in regard to return to sport, time to return to sport, and need for revision or additional surgery. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: At a single institution, all consecutive baseball pitchers undergoing UCLR between 2002 and 2015 were identified. Ulnar neuritis was diagnosed preoperatively by the following criteria: ulnar nerve symptoms, Tinel sign at the elbow, symptomatic subluxation, and numbness/paresthesia in an ulnar nerve distribution of the hand. The primary outcome of the study was return to sport. The secondary outcomes of the study were time to return to sport, length of playing career, and revision or additional surgery. Results: A total of 578 UCLRs were performed in baseball players; of these, 500 UCLRs were performed in pitchers. Ulnar neuritis was diagnosed in 97 (19.4%) baseball pitchers presenting with UCL injury. There were no significant differences in patient characteristics or surgical techniques performed for reconstruction between baseball pitchers with and without ulnar neuritis. In review of injury characteristics, ulnar neuritis was significantly more likely to be diagnosed in pitchers with an acute onset of UCL injury (P =.03). Transposition of the ulnar nerve was more commonly performed in players with ulnar neuritis (47%) versus those without ulnar neuritis (10%; P =.0001). The players who had ulnar neuritis and underwent UCLR had a significantly lower odds of returning to sport (odds ratio, 0.45; P =.04); however, no significant difference was found for time to return to sport and length of playing career for those with and without ulnar neuritis (P =.38 and.51, respectively). Conclusion: The study suggests that ulnar neuritis, when present preoperatively in baseball pitchers undergoing UCLR, may adversely affect their ability to return to sport, whereas ulnar nerve transposition at the time of UCLR does not alter the ability to return to sport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objects: This study aimed to evaluate the Executive Function (EF) domains in a group of profoundly deaf children treated with cochlear implant (CI) in comparison to normal hearing (NH) children. The secondary aim was to evaluate the influence exerted by the age at cochlear implant activation on EFs. Materials and Methods: 32 children were enrolled into two groups: group A of 17 CI users with a mean age of 8.78 years and group B of 15 NH subjects with a mean age of 7.99 years (SD + 2.3). All subjects were tested using the following tests: the subtests for working memory of the neuropsychological evaluation battery for the developmental age (Batteria di valutazione neuropsicologica per l'età evolutive), inhibition and control of the impulsive response--CAF, and the tower of London test. Results: No children with CIs scored within the normal range in the tests administered for the evaluation of EF domains. The same scores were significantly lower when compared with scores obtained by NH children. Children with younger age at CI activation showed better executive performances in planning, working memory (backward digit span), and cognitive flexibility (categorical fluency). Conclusion: The results of this study highlight that cochlear implantation plays a role in improving hearing and consequently influences the development of EFs in deaf children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) share some symptoms with children with other neurodevelopmental disorders (ie, intellectual disability or communication disorders or language disorders). These similarities can make difficult to obtain an accurate diagnosis, which is essential to give targeted treatments to the patients. We aim to verify in our study if children with autistic traits who undergo to Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule had specific clinical diagnosis. Patients and Methods: We selected 73 children tested with ADOS-G or ADOS-2, for the presence of autistic symptoms. The whole sample did not reach the cut-off of ADOS and did not receive the ASD diagnosis, according to DSM-5. Results: Results of this study showed that in order of frequency and early diagnosis, communication disorders (CD), mild intellectual disability (mID) and the attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) represent the most common final clinical diagnosis in children with autistic traits. Conclusion: Our results showed as the CD was the common diagnosis of these children and that often associated with younger age. Moreover, analyses of ADOS domains and the difference of individual items between groups did not show the capacity to differentiate between different neurodevelopmental disorders in terms of differential diagnosis, and this confirms the need for integrating multiple sources of information during the diagnostic process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By their very design, many robot control programs are non-terminating. This paper describes a situation calculus approach to expressing and proving properties of non-terminating programs expressed in Golog, a high level logic programming language for modeling and implementing dynamical systems. Because in this approach actions and programs are represented in classical (second-order) logic, it is natural to express and prove properties of Golog programs, including non-terminating ones, in the very same logic. This approach to program proofs has the advantage of logical uniformity and the availability of classical proof theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether empathizing and systemizing are part of the parental broad autism phenotype (BAP). Parents (N = 76) of preschool children with a diagnosis of ASD and parents (N = 48) of typically developing (TD) children completed the Empathy Quotient (EQ) and Systemizing Quotient-Revised (SQ-R) questionnaires. The E–S discrepancy (D score) was used to test for sex differences in five "brain types". Our results suggest that the E–S theory do not seem to be part of the BAP. However, a stronger drive to systemize than empathize (Type S brain) could be a highly inheritable cognitive endophenotype of mothers of children with ASD. This study should be repeated with a larger sample size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review explores the possibilities to determine livestock consumption of genetically modified (GM) feeds/ingredients including detection of genetically modified organism (GMO)-related DNA or proteins in animal samples, and the documentary system that is in place for GM feeds under EU legislation. The presence and level of GMO-related DNA and proteins can generally be readily measured in feeds, using established analytical methods such as polymerase chain reaction and immuno-assays, respectively. Various technical challenges remain, such as the simultaneous detection of multiple GMOs and the identification of unauthorized GMOs for which incomplete data on the inserted DNA may exist. Given that transfer of specific GMO-related DNA or protein from consumed feed to the animal had seldom been observed, this cannot serve as an indicator of the individual animal's prior exposure to GM feeds. To explore whether common practices, information exchange and the specific GM feed traceability system in the EU would allow to record GM feed consumption, the dairy chain in Catalonia, where GM maize is widely grown, was taken as an example. It was thus found that this system would neither enable determination of an animal's consumption of specific GM crops, nor would it allow for quantitation of the exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The assessment of the intelligence quotient ( IQ) in children with autism spectrum disorder ( ASD) is important to plan a detailed therapeutic-educative programme. The aim of the study was to evaluate the usefulness of the Psychoeducational Profile-third edition ( PEP-3) to estimate the general cognitive development of children with ASD. Method We recruited 30 children with ASD assessed with the Leiter International Performance Scale- Revised ( Leiter- R) and the PEP-3. We compared the IQ of the Leiter- R with the developmental level ( DL) of PEP-3. Results The findings showed a significant positive correlation between IQ with DL of the cognitive verbal/pre-verbal ( P = 0.0005), DL of the area of expressive language ( P = 0.0004), DL of the area of receptive language ( P = 0.0001), DL of fine motor ( P = 0.0066), DL of gross motor ( P = 0.0217), DL of visuo-motor imitation ( P = 0.02), DL of communication ( P = 0.0001) and DL of motor ( P = 0.0063). Conclusions These findings show that the DLs could be considered as indicators of cognitive functioning in ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhancement of molecular band emission in laser-induced plasmas is important for improving sensitivity and limits of detection in molecular sensing and molecular isotope analysis. In this work we introduce the use of Nanoparticle Enhanced Laser Induced Breakdown (NELIBS) for the enhancement of molecular band emission in laser-induced plasmas, and study the underlying mechanisms responsible for the observed enhancement. The use of Ag nanoparticles leads to an order of magnitude enhancement for AlO ( B 2 Σ + → Χ + Σ + ) system emission from an Al-based alloy. We demonstrate that the mechanism responsible for the enhancement of molecular bands differs from that of atomic emission, and can be traced down to the increased number of atomic species in NELIBS which lead to AlO molecular formation. These findings showcase the potential of NELIBS as a simple and viable technology for enhancing molecular band emission in laser-induced plasmas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Volcanic plumes are rich in fine juvenile ash, representing magma fragments expelled from the crater during explosive eruptions. The composition of fine ash is of primary importance for volcano monitoring and hazard assessment, but not much effort has been put until now to build portable instrumentation allowing real-time measurements. In this paper, a laboratory experiment is carried out to build and test an apparatus based on Calibration-Free Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (CF-LIBS). This methodology is extremely promising because it does not require any standard calibration strategies and the elemental composition is directly obtained by the laser-induced breakdown optical emission. In the experiment, volcanic ash samples are suspended in the air by a laser-induced shockwave in a dedicated chamber, as to mimic the conditions of a volcanic plume, and contemporaneously the laser-induced plasma (LIP) spectrum is analyzed. After spectrum acquisition, the quantitative analysis is performed using the so-called Calibration-Free (CF) analytical method, which is based on the assumption of plasma local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE). Results show that by such methodology it is possible to measure ash composition in real-time, during its dispersion, with good precision. Based on the result of this experiment, the construction of a portable instrument to be used in the field for the monitoring of active volcanoes could be possible in the future. [Display omitted] • We present a new approach for the measurement of flying volcanic ashes based on LIBS. • The method proposed does not require calibration standards and is flexible for real application in-situ. • Volcan ash samples: deposits of the Agnano Monte-Spina Plinian eruption of Campi Flegrei and the Pompeii eruption of Vesuvius • General discussion for in-situ application of CF-LIBS on flying ash is reported for the first time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Compass" sentences or mantras can increase under- standing of how cognitive processes apply in psychotherapy in general. The Elementary Pragmatic Model may lead to the interpretation of individual and relational processes particularly useful in family therapy. The model provides a procedure to choose sentences with a strong psychological impact (SISCI-Sentences) through three presentations. These sentences can widen participants' cognitive horizons and provide means of understanding cognitive functions according to the EPM. These sentences can be used to target structured or unstructured interventions, or can be used as means of developing creative thinking in various settings besides families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the new approach for Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) based on nanoparticle deposition on the sample surface is reviewed from both fundamental and application points of view. The case of Nanoparticle-Enhanced LIBS (NELIBS) of metal samples is used for describing and discussing the main causes of the emission signal enhancement. A set of test cases is presented, which shows enhancements up to 1–2 orders of magnitude obtained using NELIBS with respect to LIBS. The feasibility and potential of NELIBS are also discussed for several analytical applications, including analysis of metallic samples, transparent samples and aqueous solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, 1 we investigate bounded action theories in the situation calculus. A bounded action theory is one which entails that, in every situation, the number of object tuples in the extension of fluents is bounded by a given constant, although such extensions are in general different across the infinitely many situations. We argue that such theories are common in applications, either because facts do not persist indefinitely or because the agent eventually forgets some facts, as new ones are learned. We discuss various classes of bounded action theories. Then we show that verification of a powerful first-order variant of the μ -calculus is decidable for such theories. Notably, this variant supports a controlled form of quantification across situations. We also show that through verification, we can actually check whether an arbitrary action theory maintains boundedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The aim of this study was to report the physical and functional outcomes after open reduction internal fixation of the olecranon in a large series of patients with region specific plating across multiple centres.Patients/methods: Between January 2007 and January 2014, 182 consecutive patients with a displaced olecranon fracture treated with open reduction internal fixation were included in this study. Retrospective review across four trauma centres collected elbow range of motion, DASH scores, hardware complications, and hardware removal. Postoperative visits in the outpatient clinic were at two, six, and twenty-four weeks. After 24 weeks, patients were eligible for hardware removal if symptomatic. All patients were contacted, at least 1 year following surgery, to determine if hardware was removed.Results: 182 patients (75 women, 105 men) average age 50 (16-89) with 162 closed and 19 open displaced olecranon fractures were treated with one region specific plate. Nineteen were lost to followup leaving 163 for analysis with all patients united. The most common deficiency was a lack of full extension with 39% lacking at least 10° of extension. Hardware was asymptomatic in 67%, painful upon leaning in 20%, and restricted activities in 11% resulting in a 15% rate of hardware removal. Hardware complaints were more common if a screw was placed in the corner of the plate (P=0.004). When symptomatic, the area of the plate that was bothersome encompassed the whole plate in 39%, was at the edge of the plate in 33%, and was a screw head in 28%. The DASH scores, collected at final follow-up of 24 weeks, was 10.1±16, indicating moderate disability was still present. Patients who lacked 10° of extension had a DASH of 12.3 as compared with 10.5 for those with near full extension, but this was not significant (P=0.5).Conclusion: Plating of the olecranon leads to predictable union. The most common complication was lack of full extension with 39% lacking more than 10°, although this did not have any effect on DASH scores. Overall results indicate that disability still exists after 6 months with an average DASH score of 10.Level Of Evidence: Therapeutic level III. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, nanoparticle enhanced laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (NELIBS) was applied to the elemental chemical analysis of microdrops of solutions with analyte concentration at subppm level. The effect on laser ablation of the strong local enhancement of the electromagnetic field allows enhancing the optical emission signal up to more than 1 order of magnitude, enabling LIBS to quantify ppb concentration and notably decreasing the limit of detection (LOD) of the technique. At optimized conditions, it was demonstrated that NELIBS can reach an absolute LOD of few picograms for Pb and 0.2 pg for Ag. The effect of field enhancement in NELIBS was tested on biological solutions such as protein solutions and human serum, in order to improve the sensitivity of LIBS with samples where the formation and excitation of the plasma are not as efficient as with metals. Even in these difficult cases, a significant improvement with respect to conventional LIBS was observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work proposes a novel high-level paradigm, agent planning programs , for modeling agents behavior, which suitably mixes automated planning with agent-oriented programming. Agent planning programs are finite-state programs, possibly containing loops, whose atomic instructions consist of a guard, a maintenance goal, and an achievement goal, which act as precondition-invariance-postcondition assertions in program specification. Such programs are to be executed in possibly nondeterministic planning domains and their execution requires generating plans that meet the goals specified in the atomic instructions, while respecting the program control flow. In this paper, we define the problem of automatically synthesizing the required plans to execute an agent planning program, propose a solution technique based on model checking of two-player game structures, and use it to characterize the worst-case computational complexity of the problem as EXPTIME-complete. Then, we consider the case of deterministic domains and propose a different technique to solve agent planning programs, which is based on iteratively solving classical planning problems and on exploiting goal preferences and plan adaptation methods. Finally, we study the effectiveness of this approach for deterministic domains through an experimental analysis on well-known planning domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to evaluate three models of intimate relationships: attachment, elementary pragmatic, and selfhood. These models were evaluated with three instruments respectively constructed to evaluate the validity of each model. One convenience group of functioning individuals and three experimental groups of inpatients and outpatients were administered the three instruments. All three instruments showed relatively high internal consistency and discriminated among the four groups. Significant correlations were found among the measure of attachment with measures of the pragmatic elementary and selfhood models. These correlations indicate that all three instruments were measuring similar aspects of intimate relationships. Clinical and preventive implications and applications of these models are briefly discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The strategic management literature has recognized the role of social and environmental activities in supporting a firm's economic well-being. Although some research has explored the role of social and environmental practices during uncertain periods, studies are still scarce. This paper contributes to this issue by studying corporate social responsibility (CSR) representation during environmental jolts. Through a multi-level analysis, we investigate the conceptualization of CSR in the context of Brexit. From a macro-level perspective, we explore CSR representation in the public discourse by looking at the output of economic journalists. Additionally, based on a micro-level analysis, we examine the CSR disclosure policies of firms and evaluate them in the context of an uncertain environment. Based on a sample of more than 1500 press release data from major UK-based business publications and more than 1000 shareholder letters from companies listed on three major European indices, the DAX 30, CAC 40, and FTSE 100, the text analysis techniques of topic modeling and 'bags of words' are used. The findings show that an unprecedented exogenous shock such as Brexit increases CSR representation in the public discourse and corporate communication strategies, suggesting the greater importance of CSR disclosure during uncertain periods. In addition evidence is shown that organizations target and adapt shareholder communication on CSR in accordance with market uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an evaluation of Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) as a technique for gathering data relevant to Solar System geophysics. Two test cases were demonstrated: elemental analysis of chondrules in a chondrite meteorite, and space- resolved analysis of the interface between kamacite and taenite crystals in an octahedrite iron meteorite. In particular most major and minor elements (Fe, Mg, Si, Ti, Al, Cr, Mn, Ca, Fe, Ni, Co) in Sahara 98222 (chondrite) and its chondrules, as well as the profile of Ni content in Toluca (iron meteorite), were determined with the Calibration Free (CF) method. A special attention was devoted to exploring the possibilities offered by variants of the basic technique, such as the use of Fe I Boltzmann distribution as an intensity calibration method of the spectroscopic system, and the use of spatially resolved analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is the determination of a concentrating thermo-photovoltaic (CPV/T) system dynamic model by means of the finite element method (FEM). The system consist of triple-junction InGaP/InGaAs/Ge (indium-gallium phosphide/indium-gallium-arsenide/germanium) solar cells connected to a metal core printed circuit board (MCPCB) placed on a coil circuit used for the thermal energy recovery. In particular, the main aim is to determine the fluid outlet temperature. It is evaluated corresponding both to a constant cell temperature equal to 120 °C, generally representing the maximum operating temperature, and to cell temperature values instantly variable with the direct normal irradiation (DNI). Hence, an accurate DNI analysis is realized adopting the Gordon-Reddy statistical model. Using an accurate electric model, the cell temperature and efficiency are determined together with the CPV/T module electric and thermal powers. Generally, the CPV system size is realized according to the user electric load demand and, then, it is important to evaluate the necessary minimum concentration ratio (Cmin), the limit of CPV system applicability, in order to determine the energy convenience profile. The fluid outlet temperature can be then obtained by the FEM analysis to verify if a CPV/T system can be used in solar heating and cooling applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The assessment of behavioral rules with respect to a given dataset is key in several research areas, including declarative process mining, association rule mining, and specification mining. An assessment is required to check how well a set of discovered rules describes the input data, and to determine to what extent data complies with predefined rules. Particularly in declarative process mining, Support and Confidence are used most often, yet they are reportedly unable to provide a sufficiently rich feedback to users and cause rules representing coincidental behavior to be deemed as representative for the event logs. In addition, these measures are designed to work on a predefined set of rules, thus lacking generality and extensibility. In this paper, we address this research gap by developing a measurement framework for temporal rules based on (LTLp f). The framework is suitable for any temporal rules expressed in a reactive form and for custom measures based on the probabilistic interpretation of such rules. We show that our framework can seamlessly adapt well-known measures of the association rule mining field to declarative process mining. Also, we test our software prototype implementing the framework on synthetic and real-world data, and investigate the properties characterizing those measures in the context of process analysis. • Exploitation of declarative linear-temporal-logic rules shaped as if-A-then-B rules. • Association rule mining interestingness measures applied to temporal logic formulae. • Measures build upon a probabilistic interpretation of linear temporal logic formulae. • Computing the measures requires linear time and space in the size of the input data. • Measures have different reactions in presence of noise depending on the given rule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper emission spectra of the plasma produced by laser-matter interaction are discussed in terms of the correlation between the elementary plasma processes and the evolution of plasma parameters during the expansion. Three main stages have been identified and discussed in details: high density plasma, near equilibrium plasma and non-equilibrium plasma including molecular formation. In order to develop a comprehensive point of view on the correlation between plasma mechanisms and spectral emission features several concepts already discussed and elucidated in the plasma science have been adapted to the description of the laser induced plasma and to its ionizing and recombining character. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper the use of metallic nanoparticles (NPs) for improving Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) is discussed. In the case of conductors an emission signal enhancement up to 1-2 orders of magnitude was obtained depositing NPs on the sample surface by drying a micro-drop of colloidal solution. The basic mechanisms of Nanoparticle Enhanced LIBS (NELIBS) were studied and the main causes of this significantly large enhancement were found to be related to the effect of NPs on the laser ablation process, in terms of a faster and more efficient production of seed electrons with respect to conventional LIBS. The characteristics of NELIBS-produced plasma were investigated by emission spectroscopy and spectrally resolved images. In spite of similar plasma parameters, the NELIBS plasma was found to have larger emission volume and longer persistence than the LIBS one. A method to determine NP concentration and size was also proposed, which involved depositing NPs on non-interacting substrates, and proved the feasibility of LIBS as a fast detection tool for a preliminary characterization of NPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The capacity of clays to remove or attenuate the contamination of aflatoxin M1 in bovine milk was studied, while considering the effects of these clays on the nutritional properties of the milk (in terms of protein, fat and lactose). To make the experimental results transferable to practical use, only clays available from the market were tested, and a very simple clay–milk interaction procedure was used. A preliminary test was developed to compare the adsorption behaviour of two clays, a kaolin and a bentonite, at variable clay–milk ratios and to trace the variations in the protein, fat and lactose contents. Then, only bentonites were selected for additional study. The detoxification capacity of the bentonites used was variable but still very efficient: contaminated bovine milk (up to approximately 80ng/L) was purified to safe levels (50ng/L for adults and 25ng/L for lactants) with moderate alteration of the nutritional properties of the milk. Moreover, the amount of bentonite residue in the purified milk was very low (0.4%). The kaolin was less adsorptive than the bentonite but still able to decrease the aflatoxin M1 within legal limits and was better at maintaining the nutritional properties of the milk. The protein is more sensitive to clay adsorption than are fat and lactose, and there was a decrease in protein in the treated milk with increases in the ratio of clay to milk. Among the studied samples, a saponite-rich bentonite showed the highest adsorbent capacity, in agreement with theoretical considerations regarding higher cell surface areas (available for AFM1) and higher surface hydrophobicity of saponite. Analyses of isothermal adsorption in water using the two more effective bentonites were also performed. The data collected indicate an effective and safe use of clays in the detoxification of milk (and dairy products) contaminated with aflatoxin M1. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Objective: The aim of this study is to examine cognitive skills, adaptive behavior, social and emotional skills in deaf children with cochlear implant (CI) compared to normal hearing children. Methods: The study included twenty children affected by profound hearing loss implanted with a CI compared to 20 healthy children matched to chronological age and gender. Results: Results of this study indicated that 55% of children with CI showed a score in the normal range of nonverbal intelligence (IQ>84), 40% in the borderline range (71

In this article, an increase of 1-2 orders of magnitude in laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) signals was obtained by depositing silver nanoparticles on metal samples. Nanoparticle-enhanced LIBS (NELIBS) was found to be a robust and flexible tool for the chemical analysis of metals because the sample emission signal did not appear to be affected much by the size and concentration of deposited nanoparticles (NPs) within the ranges of 10 nm for diameter and 1 order of magnitude for concentration. On the other hand, preliminary NELIBS tests on insulators and semiconductors did not show any significant enhancement with respect to conventional LIBS. In this article, we present a detailed investigation of the fundamental features of NELIBS spectra, in addition to some examples of analytical applications to the quantitative analysis of metal alloys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A schema mapping is a formal specification of the relationship holding between the databases conforming to two given schemas, called source and target, respectively. While in the general case a schema mapping is specified in terms of assertions relating two queries in some given language, various simplified forms of mappings, in particular lav and gav, have been considered, based on desirable properties that these forms enjoy. Recent works propose methods for transforming schema mappings to logically equivalent ones of a simplified form. In many cases, this transformation is impossible, and one might be interested in finding simplifications based on a weaker notion, namely logical implication, rather than equivalence. More precisely, given a schema mapping M, find a simplified (lav, or gav) schema mapping such that logically implies M. In this paper we formally introduce this problem, and study it in a variety of cases, providing techniques and complexity bounds. The various cases we consider depend on three parameters: the simplified form to achieve (lav, or gav), the type of schema mapping considered (sound, or exact), and the query language used in the schema mapping specification (conjunctive queries and variants over relational databases, or regular path queries and variants over graph databases). Notably, this is the first work on comparing schema mappings for graph databases. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: We retrospectively reviewed our series of 76 patients who underwent esophagectomy, with curative intent, for esophageal carcinoma over the last 10 years. Method: The mean age was 60 years ranging between 46 to 76 years. Fifty-seven patients had a squamous cell carcinoma and 19 patients had an adenocarcinoma. In 15 cases induction therapy was accomplished prior to surgery. A narrow gastric tube was used to restore continuity in 74 patients (97.3%). Medical records were reviewed and data analysis was performed. Results: Peri-operative mortality was 2.6%. Overall survival at 1, 3 and 5 years was 85,5%, 67,7% and 52,7%, respectively, with no significant difference between the squamous cell disease group and the adenocarcinoma group. Although T factor and stage at the time of surgery influenced overall survival, the presence of nodal metastasis had the major impact on survival as confirmed by univariate and multivariate analysis with a 5 year survival rate of 32% regardless of the use or not of adjuvant chemo-radiotherapy and the pathologic stage. Conclusions: Esophagectomy still represents a valid treatment for esophageal carcinoma in well selected patients. Both pT stage and N stage appear to be the most important factors determining survival for patients with completely resected esophageal carcinoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The behavior composition problem amounts to realizing a virtual desired module (e.g., a surveillance agent system) by suitably coordinating (and re-purposing) the execution of a set of available modules (e.g., a video camera, vacuum cleaner, a robot, etc.). In particular, we investigate techniques to synthesize a controller implementing a fully controllable target behavior by suitably coordinating available partially controllable behaviors that are to execute within a shared, fully observable, but partially predictable (i.e., non-deterministic), environment. Both behaviors and environment are represented as arbitrary finite state transition systems. The technique we propose is directly based on the idea that the controller job is to coordinate the concurrent execution of the available behaviors so as to “mimic” the target behavior. To this end, we exploit a variant of the formal notion of simulation to formally capture the notion of “mimicking”, and we show that the technique proposed is sound and complete, optimal with respect to computational complexity, and robust for different kind of system failures. In addition, we demonstrate that the technique is well suited for highly efficient implementation based on synthesis by model checking technologies, by relating the problem to that of finding a winning strategy in a special safety game and explaining how to actually solve it using an existing verification tool. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper we study data complexity of answering conjunctive queries over description logic (DL) knowledge bases constituted by a TBox and an ABox. In particular, we are interested in characterizing the FOL-rewritability and the polynomial tractability boundaries of conjunctive query answering, depending on the expressive power of the DL used to express the knowledge base. FOL-rewritability means that query answering can be reduced to evaluating queries over the database corresponding to the ABox. Since first-order queries can be expressed in SQL, the importance of FOL-rewritability is that, when query answering enjoys this property, we can take advantage of Relational Data Base Management System (RDBMS) techniques for both representing data, i.e., ABox assertions, and answering queries via reformulation into SQL. What emerges from our complexity analysis is that the description logics of the DL-Lite family are essentially the maximal logics allowing for conjunctive query answering through standard database technology. In this sense, they are the first description logics specifically tailored for effective query answering over very large ABoxes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper the most important features of Laser Induced Plasma (LIP) evolution were analyzed from the fundamental point of view, in order to point out the effects of background environment on the plasma emission spectra. In particular, the main differences between air and vacuum Laser-Induced Breakdown (LIBS) are discussed, as well as those arising in high-pressure gases and in liquid environment. As can be expected, the dynamics of the plasma is strongly dependent on the environment where the plasma itself expands, which can be exploited for several different applications, ranging from chemical analysis and process diagnostics to materials science. The effect of other experimental conditions, such as the state of aggregation of the irradiated target, and the effect of laser pulse duration are also briefly reviewed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Nanoparticle-enhanced laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (NELIBS) is the optical emission spectroscopy of laser-induced plasma obtained by laser ablation after the deposition of plasmonic NPs on the surface of a sample. The effect of the coupling of NP plasmons with laser pulse leads to a notable improvement of the analytical signal. In this work, different kinds of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are employed: spherical gold nanoparticles (AuNSs) and gold nanorods (AuNRs). Two AuNRs with the same diameter (10 ± 2 nm) but different lengths (50 ± 2 and 70 ± 2 nm) have been investigated in order to explore the AuNR size effect on the coupling between the incoming laser beam and AuNPs. LIBS and NELIBS experiments were performed on a Ti target with the aim of comparing the effects of AuNRs and AuNSs, deposited on the target surface, on the emission spectra. The SEM (scanning electron microscopy) micrographs of the AuNPs on the Ti target before and after the NELIBS experiments were used to analyze the AuNP distribution on the sample surface. The results show that the NP concentration per surface unit (i.e. number of NPs per surface unit or mol of NPs per surface unit) is crucial for comparing NPs of different shapes or sizes used as enhancers. In this work, once the concentration is optimized for each NP shape, the results show that plasmon-enhanced ablation is moderately affected by the variation in NP shape, giving similar enhancement values for both types of employed AuNPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lead poisoning is amedical condition caused by increased levels of the heavymetal lead in the body, generally resulting from environmental exposure. Lead poisoning can cause a variety of symptoms which vary depending on the individual and the duration of lead exposure; lead poisoning is more noxious to children than adults, because it can damage the brain and nerve development of children. We report a case of lead poisoning in a 5-year-old girl caused by accidental ingestion of a metal ring. Simultaneously, the child showed anemia, encephalopathy, and peripheral neuropathy with albuminocytological dissociation mimicking Guillain-Barré syndrome. This case suggests that anemia with signs of peripheral and central nervous system damage could be considered as a possible manifestation of lead poisoning in children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) is an appealing technique to study laser-induced plasmas (LIPs), both from the basic diagnostics point of view and for analytical applications. LIPs are complex dynamic systems, expanding at supersonic velocities and undergoing a transition between different plasma regimes. If the Local Thermodynamic Equilibrium (LTE) condition is valid for such plasmas, several analytical methods can be employed and fast quantitative analyses can be performed on a variety of samples. In the present paper, a discussion about LTE is carried out and an innovative application to the analysis of the alexandrite gemstone is presented. In addition, a study about the influence of plasma parameters on the performance of LTE-based methods is reported for bronze and brass targets. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: View-based query answering is the problem of answering a query based only on the precomputed answers to a set of views. While this problem has been widely investigated in databases, it is largely unexplored in the context of Description Logic ontologies. Differently from traditional databases, Description Logics may express several forms of incomplete information, and this poses challenging problems in characterizing the semantics of views. In this paper, we first present a general framework for view-based query answering, where we address the above semantical problems by providing two notions of view-based query answering over ontologies, all based on the idea that the precomputed answers to views are the certain answers to the corresponding queries. We also relate such notions to privacy-aware access to ontologies. Then, we provide decidability results, algorithms, and data complexity characterizations for view-based query answering in several Description Logics, ranging from those with limited modeling capability to highly expressive ones. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In Laser Induced Plasma Spectroscopy (LIPS) or Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) the relation between recombining electrons and optical emission intensity has been studied in hydrogen and different metals targets. The role played by the electron impact excitation cross section on the temporal trend of emission lines has addressed and a methodology for the evaluation of the excitation cross sections by optical emission spectroscopy has been tested on several species including H I, Fe I, Ni I, Co I and Ti II. In connection with the theory drawn in this paper, the results show a good agreement with respect to theoretical ones. These results allow the direct linking of the emission intensity to the electronic excitation binary collision. The latter does not depend on experimental conditions and can be applied for elemental analysis. The use of estimated cross sections forms the basis for a different calibration free approach. LIBS elemental analysis on iron meteorites (to be considered as ternary alloys) and on a set of copper based alloys demonstrates the promising use of this analytical approach. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article describes the synthesis of protective hydrazide-linked uracil- and adenine-derived tetranucleoside analogues in solution by coupling dimeric hydrazines with carboxylic acids. The hydrazines and acids were acquired by partially deprotecting the hydrazines, and these were prepared by coupling the hydrazines with the carboxylic acids. The crystal structure analysis of the fully protective UU dimer reveals the development of an antiparallel cyclic duplex with the uracil units H-bonded through H-N(3) and O=C(2).

Abstract: A fast procedure for chemical analysis of different meteorites is presented, based on LIBS (Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy). The technique is applied to several test cases (Dhofar 019, Dhofar 461, Sahara 98222, Toluca, Sikhote Alin and Campo del Cielo) and can be useful for rapid meteorite identification providing geologists with specific chemical information for meteorite classification. Concentration profiles of Fe, Ni and Co are simultaneously detected across the Widmanstätten structure of the iron meteorite Toluca with a view to determining cooling rates. The LIBS analysis of meteorites is also used as a laboratory test for analogous studies on the respective parent bodies (Mars, asteroids) in space exploration missions where one clear advantage of the proposed technique is that no direct contact with the sample is required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]