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IntroductionThe formation and functioning of neural networks hinge critically on the balance between structurally homologous areas in the hemispheres. This balance, reflecting their physiological relationship, is fundamental for learning processes. In our study, we explore this functional homology in the resting state, employing a complexity measure that accounts for the temporal patterns in neurodynamics.MethodsWe used Normalized Compression Distance (NCD) to assess the similarity over time, neurodynamics, of the somatosensory areas associated with hand perception (S1). This assessment was conducted using magnetoencephalography (MEG) in conjunction with Functional Source Separation (FSS). Our primary hypothesis posited that neurodynamic similarity would be more pronounced within individual subjects than across different individuals. Additionally, we investigated whether this similarity is influenced by hemisphere or age at a population level.ResultsOur findings validate the hypothesis, indicating that NCD is a robust tool for capturing balanced functional homology between hemispheric regions. Notably, we observed a higher degree of neurodynamic similarity in the population within the left hemisphere compared to the right. Also, we found that intra-subject functional homology displayed greater variability in older individuals than in younger ones.DiscussionOur approach could be instrumental in investigating chronic neurological conditions marked by imbalances in brain activity, such as depression, addiction, fatigue, and epilepsy. It holds potential for aiding in the development of new therapeutic strategies tailored to these complex conditions, though further research is needed to fully realize this potential.

The neuronal functional connectivity is a complex and non-stationary phenomenon creating dynamic networks synchronization determining the brain states and needed to produce tasks. Here, as a measure that quantifies the synchronization between the neuronal electrical activity of two brain regions, we used the normalized compression distance (NCD), which is the length of the compressed file constituted by the concatenated two signals, normalized by the length of the two compressed files including each single signal. To test the NCD sensitivity to physiological properties, we used NCD to measure the cortico-muscular synchronization, a well-known mechanism to control movements, in 15 healthy volunteers during a weak handgrip. Independently of NCD compressor (Huffman or Lempel Ziv), we found out that the resulting measure is sensitive to the dominant-non dominant asymmetry when novelty management is required (p = 0.011; p = 0.007, respectively) and depends on the level of novelty when moving the non-dominant hand (p = 0.012; p = 0.024). Showing lower synchronization levels for less dexterous networks, NCD seems to be a measure able to enrich the estimate of functional two-node connectivity within the neuronal networks that control the body.

We aim at giving a short review of the seismo-associated phenomena detected on ground that in recent years have been investigated as possible earthquake precursors. The paper comes together with a companion article–published on this same volume by Picozza et al., 2021–devoted to summarize the space-based observation of earthquake–precursors by satellites missions. In the present work, we give an overview of the observations carried out on ground in order to identify earthquake precursors by distinguishing them from the large background constituted by both natural non-seismic and artificial sources. We start discussing the measurements of mechanical parameters and variations of geochemical fluids detected before earthquakes; then we review thermal and atmospheric oscillations; finally, observations of electromagnetic and ionospheric parameters possibly related to the occurrence of impeding earthquakes are discussed. In order to introduce a so large field of research, we focus only on some main case studies and statistical analyses together with the main hypotheses and models proposed in literature in order to explain the observed phenomenology.

Starting from late seventies, many observations have been reported about observations in space of signals reconciled with earthquakes and claimed as possible preseismic measurements. The detected parameters range from electromagnetic field components (in a large band of frequencies) to plasmas parameters; from particles detection to thermal anomalies; etc. Up to the DEMETER mission, the analyses have been carried out on datasets gathered by not devoted satellites. Even beyond the results obtained, the DEMETER mission has constituted a milestone for space-based investigations of seismo-associated phenomena drawing a baseline for next missions with respect instruments, observational strategy and measurements uncertainty. Nowadays, the CSES-01 satellite – developed within a sino-italian collaboration with the participation also of Austrian Institutes – represents the most advanced mission for investigating near-Earth electromagnetic environment aimed at extending the observation of earthquake precursors to a long time series. The benefit of the mission is even higher by considering that CSES-01 is the first of a program of several LEO small satellites, the second of which will be launched on 2023 with the same instruments and orbit of CSES-01, but with a shift of half of an orbit in order to monitor each trace twice per orbit. The article gives a short survey of space-based observations of preseismic phenomena from the early studies up to the more recent ones, critically reviewing results, hypotheses and trends in this research field. The supposed physical processes proposed to explain the observations are still unable to explain the large variety of the phenomenology, the statistical significance of the results are highly debated, and more in general a common consensus is still missing. Anyway, the investigation of the seismo-associated phenomena from space is a challenge for near future Earth observation.