Search

Corporations can create blogging guidelines, implement Web log monitoring-and-analysis programs, and launch blogs to capitalize upon this new medium of communication. During the next five years, blogging will not render the traditional tools of communication obsolete nor will it usher in a new era of corporate communications; however, it will become a permanent, fully integrated, and vital part of the media landscape. Students, academics, and practitioners interested in corporate communications and new media may find this article useful.

We present a photometric and spectroscopic study of four G-K dwarfs, namely HD 166, epsilon Eri, chi1 Ori and kappa1 Cet. In three cases, we find a clear spatial association between photospheric and chromospheric active regions. For chi1 Ori we do not find appreciable variations of photospheric temperature, and chromospheric Halpha emission. We applied a spot/plage model to the observed rotational modulation of temperature and flux to derive spot/plage parameters and to reconstruct a rough three-dimensional map of the outer atmosphere of kappa1 Cet, HD 166 and epsilon Eri.

A planar circular slot antenna, integrated with a band-stop photonic bandgap filter is presented here. The complete realized prototype is suitable to cover the bandwidth requirements of many wireless communication standards in one solution. The work describes the detailed study of both the antenna and the PBG filter properties. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 49: 551–555, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.22191

Context: The evolution of the angular momentum in young low-mass stars is still a debated issue. The stars presented here were discovered as X-ray sources in the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS) of the Orion complex and subsequently optically identified thanks to both low and high resolution spectroscopy. Aims: The determination of the rotational periods in young low-mass stars of different age is fundamental for the understanding of the angular momentum evolution. Methods: We performed a photometric monitoring program on a sample of 40 solar-mass young stars in the Orion star-forming region, almost all previously identified as weak T Tauri stars (WTTS) candidates. Photometric B and V data were collected from 1999 to 2006 at Catania Astrophysical Observatory (OAC). Data were also acquired in December 1998 at Calar Alto Observatory (CA) and in 1999, 2000, and 2003 at San Pedro Martir (SPM). From the observed rotational modulation, induced by starspots, we derived the rotation periods, using both the Lomb-Scargle periodogram and the CLEAN deconvolution algorithms. Results: In total, we were able to determine the rotation periods for 39 stars, spanning from about 0.5 to 13 days, showing a rather flat distribution with a peak around 1-2 days. Though some of these stars were found to be spectroscopic binaries, only the systems with shorter orbital periods and circular orbits turned out to be synchronized. In the other cases, the rotational period is shorter than the period of pseudo-synchronization at periastron. Conclusions: .The new data provide further evidence for the spin up of solar-mass stars predicted by models of angular momentum evolution of pre-main sequence (PMS) stars. Based on observations collected at the Catania Astrophysical Observatory (Italy), at the Estación de Observación de Calar Alto (Spain), and San Pedro Martir Observatory (México). Appendix A is only available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

Agli inizi del 2015, su iniziativa del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche - Dipartimento Scienze del Sistema Terra e Tecnologie per l'Ambiente (CNR DTA), è stato costituito il Centro per la Microzonazione Sismica e le sue applicazioni, CentroMS, che coinvolge Istituti CNR, Enti di Ricerca e Dipartimenti universitari. Il CentroMS nasce con l'obiettivo principale di fornire supporto scientifico e tecnico ai soggetti istituzionalmente interessati alla microzonazione sismica e alle sue applicazioni, con particolare riferimento alla pianificazione urbanistica e alle problematiche geologiche, geotecniche e geofisiche connesse all'emergenza sismica. Il CentroMS si propone di realizzare i suoi obiettivi attraverso: 1) lo sviluppo di metodologie e aggiornamenti sugli studi di microzonazione sismica e sulle sue applicazioni; 2) la promozione di formazione teorica e operativa; 3) la fornitura di supporto tecnico scientifico per la realizzazione e il coordinamento degli studi; 4) la promozione dell'informazione ai soggetti interessati e ai cittadini. Oltre alle attività di prevenzione, il CentroMS offre le proprie competenze per il coordinamento e la gestione delle attività di misura e studio nella fase di prima emergenza, al DPC e alle altre Istituzioni che ne richiedessero l'intervento. A tale scopo, il CentroMS è in grado di rendere rapidamente disponibili mezzi di trasporto, un numero ragguardevole di strumenti per misure e registrazioni, nonché una rete di laboratori geofisici distribuiti su tutto il territorio nazionale.

A monitoring of three active RS CVn binaries has been performed with medium resolution spectroscopy with the aim of investigating the behavior of chromospheric and photospheric inhomogeneities. Surface temperature, as recovered from line-depth ratios (LDRs), allowed us to map the photospheric spots, while the H α emission has been used as an indicator of chromospheric inhomogeneities. We have found that the rotational modulation of the H α emission is always in anti-phase with the temperature wave, i.e. at the time of our observations active regions at chromospheric and photospheric levels are closely spatially associated in these active stars. The residual H α profiles, obtained as the difference between the observed spectra and non-active templates, are well reproduced by a two Gaussian fitting. The broad emission component, responsible for the wide emission wings in near all the spectra, is often blue-shifted with respect to the center of the stellar disk. The narrow H α emission displays a phase-dependent variation in all stars and is anti-correlated with the photospheric diagnostics, while the broad one displays no or little rotational modulation. We suggest that the broad emission component is mainly related to physical phenomena, like micro-flaring or strong chromospheric velocity fields, occurring all over the star disk, while the central narrow emission is more affected by chromospheric plages. We have also detected a modulation of the intensity of the $\ion{He}{i}$ D 3 line with the star rotation, suggesting surface features also in the upper chromosphere of these stars.

We present and apply to VY Ari, IM Peg and HK Lac a new method to determine spot temperatures (T sp ) and areas (A rel ) from the analysis of simultaneous light curves and temperature modulations deduced from line-depth ratios. A spot model, developed by us, has been applied to light and temperature curves. Grids of solutions with comparable χ -square have been found for a wide range of spot temperatures. The behavior of the solution grids for temperature and light curves in the T sp –A rel plane is very different and a rather small and unique intersection area can be found. In our spot-model we used spectral energy distributions (SEDs) based on the Planck law and on model atmospheres to evaluate the flux ratio between spots and unspotted photosphere and we found higher spot temperatures with SEDs based on model atmospheres than on the Planck law.

We present spectroscopic and photometric observations of the young F5–6 V field star HD 111456 which exhibits emission cores in the $\ion{Ca}{ii}$ H and K lines and a filling in the H α line. Absorption lines of $\ion{He}{i}$ D 3 and $\ion{Li}{i}$ are clearly detected and we give a new value of $v\sin i=41.5$ km s -1 . Although the limit of magnetic activity detectability at optical wavelengths occurs around F5–6 spectral types, HD 111456 shows unusual chromospheric activity. High UV fluxes in the $\ion{C}{ii}$, $\ion{C}{iv}$, $\ion{Si}{ii}$ and $\ion{Si}{iv}$ lines and a strong X-ray emission confirm that HD 111456 is one of the most active F5–6 V star. The $\ion{Ca}{ii}$ and H α chromospheric emission fluxes do not show any detectable variation on time scales of few days, as well as uvby photometry. A possible explanation in terms of a very high level of magnetic activity and a homogeneous distribution of active regions, both at chromospheric and photospheric level, or a very low inclination of the rotation axis with respect to the line of sight is proposed. From 1998 to 2001 the radial velocity varies indicating a possible binary system, but the spectral distribution of HD 111456 is better reproduced by a single normal F5 V star, and composite spectra simulations ($\ion{Ca}{ii}$, H α ) with a normal inactive F star and a very active low-mass K-M star are not able to reproduce the observed emissions.

We present the results of spectroscopic observations of the active eclipsing binary ER Vul in the 5860-6700 A spec- tral range carried out at the Catania Astrophysical Observatory. Accurate measurements of radial velocities by using the cross- correlation technique have been made and a new orbital solution is given. All spectra display chromospheric emission which fills in the Hα absorption lines of both components. The equivalent width (EW )o f the Hα emission has been measured by subtraction of a synthetic spectrum built up with spectra of inactive standard stars. The EW of total Hα emission, arisen from both components, shows a phase-dependent variation. It reaches its maximum value just before the primary eclipse. We were able to separate the contributions to the Hα emission from the individual components at phases far from the eclipses. We have found that the secondary, cooler component is the most active and its Hα residual emission shows the same trend as the total Hα emission, along orbital phase. This Hα equivalent width variation can be due to plage-like structures on the chromosphere of secondary star. In addition, a decrease of the Hα EW around the ingress phase of the primary eclipse is apparent.

It has been recently proved that line-depth ratios (LDR) are a powerful tool for temperature discrimination, able to resolve differences K. With the help of such diagnostics it has been possible to detect long-term variations with time scales of several years, ascribed to activity cycles (e.g. Gray et al. 1996a, 1996b). In very few cases, rotational modulation due to surface inhomogeneities has been observed (Toner & Gray 1988). In this work, we have made a test of this method on three slowly-rotating active binaries of RS CVn type by means of observations accomplished at Catania Astrophysical Observatory at a resolution R = 14 000 with the aim to search for and analyze rotational modulation of photospheric temperature. We suppose that in these stars the passage of dark spots produces modulation of the center-line depth of different amount in lines of different sensitivity to temperature, that cannot be analyzed by means of the Doppler-imaging technique. It is instead useful for fast-rotating active stars where cool spots of a few tenths of the stellar surface give rise to bumps in the line profiles. In order to determine spot temperatures of active binary systems, we have converted single LDRs to temperature through calibration relations. A sharp rotational modulation of the average surface temperature with amplitudes of 177 K, 119 K, and 127 K for VY Ari, IM Peg and HK Lac, respectively, has been detected with errors of about 10 K. Such variations are almost perfectly correlated to the simultaneous light curves, lower temperature corresponding to lower luminosity. We show that, on the basis of the amplitudes and maximum observed values of temperature and brightness, it is possible to define, in an univocal way, the temperature and the fractional spotted area by means of an analytical approach.

Contemporaneous spectroscopic and photometric BV observations of the RS CVn type eclipsing binary RT Lacertae were performed in summer 2000. The photometric observations were obtained at the Ege University Observatory, while the spectroscopic ones were carried out at Catania Astrophysical Observatory in the spectral range 5860-6700 Å. We obtained a high quality radial velocity curve of the system that allowed us to give more accurate values of the orbital parameters. A steady decrease of the barycentric velocity from 1920 to 2000 has been pointed out and has been discussed in the context of a third body hypothesis. Through the subtraction of a "synthetic" spectrum, built up with spectra of inactive standard stars, we detected H? excess emission which fills in the photospheric absorption profiles of both components. With the exception of a few spectra, taken close to the eclipses, in which some extra absorption or a faint double-peaked broad emission appears, there is no further evidence of circumstellar matter in this system, as suggested in previous works. The hotter and more massive star appears also as the more active at a chromospheric level, since it has a H? flux about ten times greater than the companion, on average. Rotational modulation of the H? emission has been detected in both stars. The hemisphere of the more massive star facing the observer at phase 0p.75 appears brighter (in H?) than that seen at phase 0p.25, while for the less massive G9 IV star the maximum H? emission is seen around phase 0p.0-0p.1. the analysis of the contemporaneous light curve (Lanza et al. 2002), the more massive G5 IV star results to be more active than the companion at a photospheric level, in agreement with the chromospheric behaviour observed in H?. In addition, the starspots of the G5 IV star are mainly located in the H? brighter hemisphere, suggesting a close spatial association of spots and plages in this star. The G9 IV star displays instead the maximum H? emission at the phase of maximum visibility of the smaller spotted area found from the light-curve analysis. The minimum H? emission occurs when the more heavily spotted region is visible.

Infectious diseases are more prevalent in older people than in younger adults, and represent a major healthcare issue in older populations. Indeed, infections in the elderly are often associated with higher morbidity and mortality, and may present atypically. Additionally, older patients are generally treated with polypharmacy regimens, which increase the likelihood of drug–drug interactions when the prescription of an antimicrobial agent is needed. A progressive impairment in the functional reserve of multiple organs may affect either pharmacokinetics or pharmacodynamics during aging. Changes in body composition occurring with advancing age, reduced liver mass and perfusion, and reduced renal excretion may affect either pharmacokinetics or pharmacodynamics. These issues need to be taken into account when prescribing antimicrobial agents to older complex patients taking multiple drugs. Interventions aimed at improving the appropriateness and safety of antimicrobial prescriptions have been proposed. Educational interventions targeting physicians may improve antimicrobial prescriptions. Antimicrobial stewardship programmes have been found to reduce the length of hospital stay and improve safety in hospitalized patients, and their use in long-term care facilities is worth testing. Computerized prescription and decision support systems, as well as interventions aimed at improving antimicrobial agents dosage in relation to kidney function, may also help to reduce the burden of interactions and inherent costs.

Graphene oxide was prepared and applied to dye adsorption

WOS: 000171087200026, The RS CVn type eclipsing binary MM Herculis was observed photo-electrically using B, V and R filters in 1998 and 1999 and the light and colour curves were obtained. Spectroscopic observations were carried out in 1999. The new light and colour curves are anti-correlated with the observations of 1997, i.e. the system is bluer when it is faintest. The variations of the brightnesses at each special phase (0.0, 0.25, 0.5, and 0.75) show an almost cyclic change with a period of about 6 years. This value is in good agreement with the migration periods of the spots suggested by us previously. The outside-of-eclipse wave in the light curve shows a minimum at phase approximate to0.50, and the mean colour of the system is the bluest at the same phase. When the spots located on the cooler component are seen around phase 0.50, the amplitude of the light variation outside eclipse is larger than the others. Such variation may be caused by the effect of the hotter component. Spectroscopic observations of the system were carried out in the spectral range 5860-6700 Angstrom. The subtraction of a "synthetic" spectrum, built up with spectra of inactive standard stars, allows us to detect an H alpha emission excess only from the cool component. New radial velocity measurements of the system were obtained and analyzed for the orbital parameters.

HR 7428 is a spectroscopic binary composed of a K2 II-III and a main-sequence A2 star. Thanks to a new set of radial velocity measurements from our and IUE spectroscopy we have improved the orbital period determination and the spectroscopic elements of both components. Combining optical photometry and UV low dispersion IUE spectra we have determined new stellar parameters through photospheric synthetic spectra using the NextGen models by Hauschildt et al. (1999a, 1999b). The hot secondary component parameters agree with those of a typical A2 V star while the radius of the primary cool star turns out to be 40 R, i.e. signicantly smaller than a previous estimate of 62 R. The position of the hot and cool component on the H{R diagram is consistent with a normal evolution, without any mass exchange, of this binary system, whose age is in the range 100{200 Myrs. The system displays a lled-in H prole with signicant variations both in depth and width along the orbital phase. In addition to the H chromospheric emission component, we have detected, at some phases, a broad extra-absorption and emission that we relate to an inter-system cloud.

Dietary Ca and osteocalcin (OC), parathyroid hormone (PTH), 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH-D), insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) were assessed simultaneously to bone mineral density (BMD) in 200 adolescent girls (aged 11-15 years) and 100 young women (aged 20-23 years), selected from the lowest and highest end of the Ca intake distribution of a larger population sample. Ca intake was evaluated by food frequency questionnaires, BMD was measured by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry at ultradistal and proximal radius of non-dominant arm, bone age was estimated from x-rays of left hand and wrist according to Tanner et al. (1983). Surprisingly, mean Ca intakes were below the dietary reference intakes in the subgroups of girls and women with the highest measured Ca consumption. Postmenarcheal, but not premenarcheal girls showed radial densities as high as the women and in no group was BMD associated with Ca intake. In all adolescents serum PTH was negatively related to dietary Ca. In girls before menarche IGF-I was positively associated with bone age, while in the same subjects the negative relationship between SHBG and BMD pointed to the crucial role of bioavailable sex steroids on bone mass apposition in early puberty. OC levels decreased progressively with age, while serum 25-OH-D significantly increased after menarche. In conclusion, although in adolescents low Ca intake has not been shown to induce any immediate deleterious effect on radial density, the compensatory hypersecretion of PTH supports the need for an adequate Ca intake to achieve peak bone mass.

The onset of chromospheric activity in late-A and early-F stars is here discussed. The detection of Ly-α emission core in several A and F atars with the IUE satellite, gives evidence for the presence of chromospheric layers in these stars up to B—V = 0m.19 (Marilli et al., 1996). Semiempirical chromospheric models for Altair allowed us (Freire Ferrero et al., 1995) to explain the observed emission profiles taking into account normal H I interstellar (IS) absorption. However, due to the very high rotational velocity, we analysed alternative hypotheses to explain the observed emissions: (1) circumstellar or shell matter; (2) co-rotating expanding optically thin wind. We ruled out these hypotheses because their effects are negligible and as a consequence, this result reinforces the chromospheric origin of the observed Ly-α core in Altair. The stars of our sample, having observed Ly-α profilies similar to Altair's and similar stellar and IS properties, should reproduce similar chromospheric behaviour...

Systematic photometric monitoring of active RS CVn binaries carried out at Catania with the automatic telescope APT-80, is being complemented with Hα low- and high-resolution spectroscopy. The relationship between photospheric and chromospheric activity is investigated in order to shed light into the complex three-dimensional structure of surface activity. Preliminary results on the photometric and Hα monitoring of the active binaries, UX Ari, RS CVn, BM CVn, HK Lac, IM Peg, V 711 Tau, and EI Eri, are here reported.

L'A. critique la theorie husserlienne de la constitution de l'ego transcendantal. Pour ce, il s'appuie sur Sartre ainsi que sur les analyses de Caws concernant l'ego chez Husserl, en particulier dans son rapport au monde-vivre

Reoperative parathyroidectomy (PTx) is challenging for the surgeon. Before reintervention it is essential to evaluate the operative notes and pathology reports from the previous operation, the localization exams (sestaMIBI scintigraphy and ultrasound) and IOPTH assay are also essential. The surgeon is supposed to perfectly know the anatomy and embryology of parathyroid glands and experience with parathyroid surgery is still the most important predictor of success in reoperative PTx. Reinterventions in HPT have good results with a resolution of hyperparathyroidism in 85-90% for primary HPT and in 70% for secondary and tertiary HPT. Authors present their experience of 76 reinterventions after HPT I and 85 reinterventions after HPT II and III over a total of 2072 parathyroidectomies, carried out between January 1975 and October 2009.

The almost three thousand pages of The Family Idiot defies adequate summary or paraphrase. I suspect that any such attempt would leave out more of what is important than what it contained. Thus, Hazel Barnes in her comprehensive study, Sartre and Flaubert , has not attempted that task, although she has accomplished a great deal. Still, each book should be a separate enterprise, and I must here attempt to fulfill my own promise of providing a study of the entire work. What shall this be like? The most that I plan to offer my reader is a “taste,” as it were, of the overall structure of Sartre's massive work, whose aim is simply to understand the man Gustave Flaubert and his writings. THE PHYSICAL APPEARANCE Let us begin simply with the physical appearance of work. It was published by the French publisher Gallimard as L' Idiot de la Famille: Gustave Flaubert de 1821 a 1857 , appearing in three large volumes, the first two in 1971 and the third in 1972 – revised editions followed in 1988). A projected fourth volume was never completed, and Sartre's notes on this volume – which were to discuss Madame Bovary – appear to be mere suggestions and not at all as complete as Critique 2. In her excellent translation into English, Carol Cosman divided the three volumes into five – volume 1 is the same as the first Gallimard volume; volumes 2, 3, and 4 give her translation of the original second Galllimard volume, and volume 5 is her translation of the third Gallimard volume.

In this volume, Joseph Catalano offers an in-depth exploration of Jean-Paul Sartre's four major philosophical writings: Being and Nothingness, Saint Genet: Actor and Martyr, The Critique of Dialectical Reason, and The Family Idiot. These works have been immensely influential, but they are long and difficult and thus challenging for both students and scholars. Catalano here demonstrates the interrelation of these four works, their internal logic, and how they provide insights into important but overlooked aspects of Sartre's thought, such as the body, childhood, and evil. The book begins with Sartre's final work, The Family Idiot, and systematically works backward to Being and Nothingness. Catalano then repeats the study by advancing chronologically, beginning with Being and Nothingness and ending with The Family Idiot and an afterword on Flaubert's Madame Bovary. Readers will appreciate Catalano's subtle readings as well as the new insights that he brings to Sartre's oeuvre.

In Phenomenology of Perception, Merleau-Ponty reminds us of the words of Edmund Husserl’s assistant, Eugen Fink, that phenomenology is wonder in the face of the world and a corresponding return to things (PP xiii). Still, Husserl, Sartre and Merleau-Ponty wrote about phenomenology, and certainly we come across their thoughts only in books. On one level I do not want to make very much of this; that is, I do not claim that the philosophical enterprise can be reduced to the act of writing. There is no need for me to take such a heavy burden upon myself since my point is a simple hermeneuical one, namely, that certain books have a unity that is more than the sum of their chapters.

In order to characterize and quantify the superficial deformation occurred during Middle-Late Quaternary in the Southern Aegean, we have systematicaly analyzed the major tectonic structures affecting Crete Island. They typically consist of 10 to 30 km-long dip-slip normal faults, separating carbonate and/or metamorphic massifs, in the footwall block, from loose to poorly consolidated alluvial and colluvial materials within the hanging-wall. All these faults show clear evidence of recent re-activation and trend parallel to two principal directions: WNW-ESE and NNE-SSW. Based on all available data for both onland and offshore structures (morphological and structural mapping, satellite imagery and airphotographs remote sensing as well as the analysis of seismic profiles and the investigation of marine terraces and Holocene raised notches along the island coasts), for each fault we estimate and constrain some of the principal seismotectonic parameters and particularly the fault kinematics, the cumulative amount of slip and the slip-rate. Summing up the contribution to crustal extension provided by the two major fault sets (ca. E-W and ca. N-S) we calculate both radial and tangential (i.e. perpendicular and parallel to the Hellenic Arc, respectively) long-term strain-rates. A comparison of these geologically-based values with those obtained from GPS measurements show a good agreement, therefore suggesting that the present-day crustal deformation is probably active since Middle Quaternary and mainly associated with the seismic activity of upper crustal normal faults characterized by frequent shallow moderate-to strong (Mmax = 7.0) seismic events seldom alternating with stronger (Mmax = 7.5) earthquakes occurring along blind low-angle thrust planes affecting deeper and more external sectors of the Hellenic Arc.

The measurement of frequencies, amplitudes and lifetimes of solar oscillations has proven to be a very powerful tool to sound the properties of the solar internal structure. Combined with observations of emerging solar magnetic field parameters of the solar internal structure and dynamo can be inferred. The same techniques may be used to sound stellar interiors: asteroseismology and observation of magnetic activity (emerging magnetic fields). The observation of photometric fluctuations down to micromagnitudes on stars along or near the main sequence when complemented with measurements of activity levels will provide a wealth of information on the internal structure and rotation rates, and its evolutions with age. The PRISMA mission is an ESA Assessment Study currently underway. We present here the scientific objectives of the mission, the measurements to be made, the techniques to be used, and the main characteristics of a model payload.

Here we present preliminary results on the study of the chromosphere of Altair from Lα high dispersion profiles. We report also the detection of Lα chromospheric emission from α Cep (A7V) and β TrA (F0 V) with the IUE. We show that chromosphere may exist up to B – V = 0.22. The possible heating mechanism, magnetic or nonmagnetic, for the chromosphere of these stars is also discussed.

The aim of this study is to provide, to develop and validate, a new instrument for measuring alexithymia in the workplace. To develop and validate the MAQ in the Italian population, verifying its psychometric properties, we involved 585 participants, ranged from 16 to 33 of age, divided by gender and level of schooling. All participants completed MAQ which contained 108 items, and then Principal Components Analysis with Oblimin rotation was elaborated to understand latent structure of alexithymia. The study showed Alexithymia is composed by five dimensions: (1) difficulty to communicate, (2) to identify emotions, (3) and to manage time such as a coping style, (4) diffident attachment, (5) and pragmatic way to think. The psychometric properties of MAQ and internal consistency were demonstrated to be robust. Reliability analysis by Alpha was significant. Hence, MAQ could be useful in evaluating of the main traits involved in Alexithymia.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) has been demonstrated to be anti-neoplastic against various human tumors. The aim of this study was to delineate the molecular mechanism underlying PPARgamma ligand rosiglitazone (BRL) antiproliferative effects in follicular WRO and anaplastic FRO human thyroid carcinoma cells. BRL upregulated the p21Cip1/WAF1 levels in the two thyroid cancer cells, while did not modify the p53 protein content. Different evidences indicate that the p21Cip1/WAF1 upregulation by BRL requires a functional PPARgamma, since it was reversed by silencing PPARgamma and pretreatment with GW9662, an irreversible PPARgamma antagonist. Transient transfection assays showed that BRL triggered the transcriptional activity of p21Cip1/WAF1 promoter gene in a p53-independent way, being a p21Cip1/WAF1 promoter construct deleted in the p53 sites still activated by BRL. The Sp1 inhibitor mithramycin silenced the p21Cip1/WAF1 promoter activity suggesting an important role of Sp1 in mediating BRL activation. The electrophoretic mobility shift and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays evidenced a functional interaction between PPARgamma and Sp1 in regulating p21Cip1/WAF1. Intriguingly, ChIP analysis revealed in the p21Cip1/WAF1 gene promoter an increased recruitment of the RNA Pol II associated with an increased histone H3 acetylation and a reduced H3 methylation. The biological event, consistent with PPARgamma-induced WRO and FRO cell growth inhibition, was reversed by p21Cip1/WAF1 antisense oligonucleotides and was confirmed by increasing the PPARgamma expression, suggesting a crucial role exerted by p21Cip1/WAF1 in PPARgamma action. Our results further candidate BRL as a potential agent able to inhibit tumor progression of follicular and anaplastic thyroid carcinoma.

To explain the relevant changes in the electron cyclotron resonance ion source behaviour for small variations of the exciting radiation frequency, we determine the spatial distribution of the field within the cavity for every resonant mode.

A set of measurements with the CAPRICE ion source at the GSI test bench has been carried out to investigate its behavior in terms of intensity and shape of the extracted beam when the microwaves generating the plasma sweep in a narrow range of frequency (+/-40 MHz) around the klystron center frequency (14.5 GHz). Remarkable variations have been observed depending on the source and the beamline operating parameters, confirming that a frequency dependent electromagnetic distribution is preserved even in the presence of plasma inside the source. Moreover, these observations confirm that the frequency tuning is a powerful method to optimize the electron cyclotron resonance ion source performances. A description of the experimental setup and of the obtained results is given in the following.

We present a high-resolution spectroscopic analysis of two samples of evolved stars selected in the field and in the intermediate-age open cluster IC 4651, for which detailed measurements of chemical composition were made in the last few years. Applying the Gray's method based on ratios of line depths, we determine the effective temperature and compare our results with previous ones obtained by means of the curves of growth of iron lines. The knowledge of the temperature enables us to estimate other fundamental stellar parameters, such as color excess, age, and mass.