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This paper sets out to explore how hybrid organizations managed their established institutional complexity in the past, and what place was there for accounting in this endeavor. The paper draws on a historical case study of how a social entity operated in 14th–16th‐century Venice. Ca' di Dio, a hospice providing hospitality and care to poor women, is what today we would call a "hybrid organization," in that it was born at the crossroads of ecclesiastic and public jurisdictions, it was autonomously administered, self‐financed through commercial activities, but operated within the public control of the State. It will be found that Ca' di Dio worked within a complex arrangement of multiple logics, that these logics coexisted without particular tension or conflict, and that accounting was a central practice to manage Ca' di Dio activities, despite its noncommercial nature. The paper thus, while contributing to documenting the presence of hybrid organizations in the past, also questions the presupposed tension and conflict in logics that these organizations are thought to come with. Finally, it also documents the trivial, but overlooked, role of accounting as primarily a calculative tool for everyday management in hybrid organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increases in the magnitudes and frequencies of climate‐related extreme events are redistributing risk across coastal systems, including their environmental, economic, and social components. Consequently, stakeholders (SHs) are faced with long‐term challenges and complex information when managing assets, services, and uses of the coast. In this context, SH engagement is a key step for risk management and in the preparation of resilience plans to respond and adapt to climate change. This paper develops a participatory method to identify and prioritize a set of risk measures, combining multi‐criteria analysis with sensitivity analysis. The process involved local and regional authorities of the Veneto region testing the method, including national, regional, and local government, catchment officers, research organizations, natural parks managers and Non‐Governmental Organizations (NGOs). SHs identified and ranked a range of adaptation measures to increase climate resilience, with a focus on coastal risk in the Venice lagoon. Results demonstrate that the sensitivity analysis provides useful information on how different sectors of expertise can influence the ranking of the identified risk management measures, highlighting the value of investigating the preferences or priorities of different SH groups within the definition of adaptation plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the evolution of consumption practices in Venice in the long eighteenth century through the combined use of post‐mortem inventories and household budgets. Although Italy experienced a period of relative decline between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, our findings suggest that Venetian households enjoyed a rich and vibrant material culture that was fully comparable with those of the most advanced European urban economies. However, although new products, practices, and fashions were adopted by Venetian society, the architecture of consumption did not undergo sudden and extreme changes; rather, consumption was gradually refined, following the path that it had begun during the Renaissance. We therefore argue that the Venetian economy did not experience a consumer revolution but, instead, consumer evolution. Moreover, this study shows that sophisticated consumption practices were not exclusive to the more dynamic economies of the continent but were widespread even in those regions that were victims of the Little Divergence. We thus suggest that the relationship between consumption development and economic development was not necessarily causal and that the diffusion of new consumption practices throughout society was a necessary, but insufficient, prerequisite for economic take‐off. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimating the hydraulic properties of the vadose zone is essential to understand soil‐water dynamics and achieving appropriate water management in agricultural lands. Inverse modelling methods are commonly used to estimate hydraulic properties from field observations. Unlike the extensively applied local search methodologies, data assimilation techniques can fully account for multiple uncertainties and are becoming a widely used tool for estimating hydraulic parameters. However, only few applications on real field tests are available. The main objective of this study was to estimate the van Genuchten‐Mualem (VGM) parameters and the saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks$$ {K}_s $$) of a heterogeneous low‐lying farmland at the margin of the Venice Lagoon, Italy, characterized by high peat content, sandy drifts, and a very shallow water table. To this end, two methods were tested, that is, the Ensemble Smoother (ES) and the Levenberg–Marquardt (LM) algorithm associated with hydrological modelling performed with Hydrus‐1D. Volumetric water content (VWC) observations were collected at three monitoring sites from May to September 2011. Results on parameters highlighted that the ES technique effectively reduced the uncertainty of α$$ \alpha $$ and n$$ n $$, but it was less effective on θr$$ {\theta}_r $$ and Ks$$ {K}_s $$. The results on VWC showed that the ES efficiency decreased with the increasing non‐linearity of the system (e.g., higher sand content) and when the variability of the experimental data was lower (e.g., deepest soil layers where saturation remained permanently close to 1). Both LM and ES allowed to reproduce the VWC observations in the calibration and validation phases, with the former and the latter performing better in the case of sandy and peat soils, respectively. As concerns the method applicability, the ES was less time‐demanding as it efficiently updated all the parameters at once and was less dependent on the user choices. Finally, the paper points out the importance of previous knowledge of the VGM parameters (e.g., from lab hydraulic analyses) in defining the constraints for the optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Title‐pages represent an interesting and under‐researched type of paratextual material in the context of the Italian early modern book market. Drawing on pragma‐linguistic approaches not yet applied in the Italian context, this paper offers an analysis of title‐pages of vernacular grammars and lexicographic works that were printed in Venice in the sixteenth and early seventeenth century (31 works).In Venice, which was the hub of vernacular codification, this new genre saw increasing attempts at popularization as more and more readers demanded straightforward tools that would help them learn literary Tuscan. My analysis focuses on the marketing strategies employed by publishers, printers, and authors – viewed together as a community of practice – on the title‐pages of these works. Focus is placed on the genre labels employed in primary titles, the presentation of the author's credentials, intended readership, printer and publisher, and dedication, as well as on the modifications applied by Venetian publishers when it came to re‐print and popularize non‐Venetian works. By exploring strategies used to guide and attract target audiences, this article aims to show that linguistic approaches are useful in the study of Italian paratexts and confirms the importance of including paratextual features in studies of historical sociolinguistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers are increasingly turning to relational approaches to island geography, with special emphasis being placed on archipelagos and land–sea interactions. Islands nevertheless continue to be associated with isolation, peripherality and/or disconnectedness, and fixed links such as bridges and causeways continue to be regarded as factors that decrease the quality of islandness. This does not, however, take into account the diversity of island spatialities and islands' various positions within centre–periphery relationships. This paper sheds light on the complexity of island and archipelago connectivities by considering the transport infrastructure (bridges, boats, channels, harbours, canals, roadways) and relationships between, within and among the numerous islands of Venice Lagoon, Italy. The paper argues that island communities face diverse sets of challenges, and there is no single connectivity‐enhancing solution that is applicable to all islands. It furthermore argues that instead of seeing fixed links and intense connectivity as reducing a place's islandness, we should see them as altering the way in which a place's islandness is practised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a text on the Ottoman Empire left by Marcantonio Donini – a career secretary with the Venetian diplomatic service, sent three times to Constantinople/Istanbul. After the death of his superior during his second stay in the Ottoman Empire, Donini was entrusted with temporarily heading the mission and with presenting the final mission report (relazione) after his return to Venice (1562). Most probably, he also wrote a much less formal text, composed of three dialogues on the Ottoman reality (signed 1591). Donini's writings attest to well‐developed rhetorical skills, manifested by the clear division of topics between the dialogues and relazione and by the ways used to present alleged Ottoman otherness. Some of the original traits in his writings are also attributable to Marcantonio's individual views and his social position as a secretary. By focusing on Donini and his dialogues, this paper aims to enrich discussion on the scope and content of texts on the Ottoman Empire produced by Venetian diplomats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objectives of this study were to reconstruct the design process of the Japanese pavilion in Venice Biennale, Italy (1956) designed by Takamasa Yoshizaka and to reveal the architect's formal manipulations and underlying strategic design thinking. The study materials are the original design sketches held in the National Archives of Modern Architecture, Tokyo, Japan. Initially, the chronological order of the design sketches was established by inspecting their dates and analyzing their formal similarities. The transformability (variations or changes of architectural form presented in a certain state of design) was analyzed and interpreted through a series of "studies" (partial problem‐solving processes). Finally, the architect's formal manipulations were reconstructed and presented and his relevant design intentions were revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tight interplays between physical and biotic processes in tidal salt marshes lead to self‐organization of halophytic vegetation into recurrent zonation patterns developed across elevation gradients. Despite its importance for marsh ecomorphodynamics, however, the response of vegetation zonation to changing environmental forcings remains difficult to predict, mostly because of lacking long‐term field observations of vegetation evolution in the face of changing rates of sea level rise and marsh vertical accretion. Here we present novel data of coupled marsh elevation‐vegetation distribution collected in the microtidal Venice Lagoon (Italy) over nearly two decades. Our results suggest that: (a) despite increasing absolute marsh elevations (i.e., above a fixed datum), vertical accretion rates across most of the studied marsh were not high enough to compensate for relative sea‐level rise (RSLR), thus leading to a progressive marsh drowning; (b) accretion rates ranging 1.7–4.3 mm/year are overall lower than the measured RSLR rate (4.4 mm/year) and strongly site‐specific. Accretion rates vary largely at sites within distances of a few tens of meters, being controlled by local elevation and sediment availability from eroding marsh edges; (c) vegetation responds species‐specifically to changes in environmental forcings by modifying species‐preferential elevation ranges. For the first time, we observe the consistency of a sequential vegetation‐species zonation with increasing marsh elevations over 20 years. We suggest this is the signature of vegetation resilience to changes in external forcings. Our results highlight a strong coupling between geomorphological and ecological dynamics and call for spatially distributed marsh monitoring and spatially explicit biomorphodynamic models of marsh evolution. Plain Language Summary: Salt marshes are important ecosystems currently threatened by changes in environmental forcings. We analyzed the coupled elevation‐vegetation response to relative sea‐level rise in a marsh located within the Venice lagoon (Italy) by using accurate on‐site measurements collected between 2000 and 2019. We found that the marsh elevations above a fixed datum increased over the study period. However, marsh sites were found to be gradually drowning, because sediment deposition on the marsh surface did not balance the increase in relative mean sea level. We also found that the response of halophytic vegetation to relative sea‐level rise is species‐specific. In addition, we showed that vegetation species are distributed according to a specific sequence with increasing elevations and that such sequence remained stable for nearly two decades. This suggests that vegetation species can endure rising relative sea levels, at least temporally, without significantly modifying their distribution despite marsh gradual drowning. Key Points: The imbalance between rates of marsh vertical accretion and relative sea‐level rise leads to marsh drowningDespite marsh drowning, a consistent sequence in vegetation zonation as a function of marsh elevation is maintainedThe resilience of marsh vegetation over decades is suggested for rates of sea‐level rise lower than a critical threshold [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tidal salt marshes are widespread along the World's coasts, and are ecologically and economically important as they provide several valuable ecosystem services. In particular, their significant primary production, coupled with sustained vertical accretion rates, enables marshes to sequester and store large amounts of organic carbon and makes them one of the most carbon‐rich ecosystems on Earth. Organic carbon accumulation results from the balance between inputs, that is, organic matter produced by local plants or imported, and outputs through decomposition and erosion. Additionally, organic matter deposition actively contributes to marsh vertical accretion, thus critically affecting the resilience of marsh ecosystems to rising relative sea levels. A better understanding of organic‐matter dynamics in salt marshes is key to address salt‐marsh conservation issues and to elucidate marsh importance within the global carbon cycle. Toward this goal, we empirically derived rates of organic matter decomposition by burying 712 commercially available tea bags at different marshes in the microtidal Venice Lagoon (Italy), and by analyzing them following the Tea Bag Index protocol. We find values of the decomposition rate (k) and stabilization factor (S) equal to 0.012 ± 0.003 days−1 and 0.15 ± 0.063, respectively. Water temperature critically affects organic matter decomposition, enhancing decomposition rates by 8% per °C on average. We argue that, at least in the short term, the amount of undecomposed organic matter that actively contributes to carbon sequestration and marsh vertical accretion strongly depends on the initial organic matter quality, which is a function of marsh and vegetation characteristics. Plain Language Summary: Salt marshes are important coastal environments regularly flooded by the tide and dominated by herbaceous plants, providing several valuable ecosystem services. They are, however, threatened by the effects of climate changes and human interferences. As organic matter accumulated in salt‐marsh soil importantly contribute to surface elevation necessary for marshes to keep up with sea level rise and to store atmospheric carbon, this project aims to improve our understanding of decomposition processes affecting organic matter preservation and their controls in salt‐marsh environment. Toward this goal, following the so‐called Tea Bag Index protocol, we buried 712 commercially available tea bags in salt‐marsh soils of the Venice Lagoon (Italy) measuring the reduction of their organic content due to decomposition processes after 3 months. Our results confirm that salt marshes are among biomes with the slowest decomposition rates. However, we observed a loss of about two‐thirds of the initial labile organic mass after 90 days and that initial litter quality, depending on litter and vegetation characteristics, exerts a primary control on the amount of preserved organic matter contributing to carbon sequestration and marsh accretion. Key Points: Decomposition rates in Venice marshes display a mean value of 0.012 ± 0.003 days−1, confirming them among biomes with the slowest decomposition ratesWe find that a one degree increase in temperature leads to a 8% increase in decomposition ratesLitter quality exerts a primary control on the amount of preserved organic matter contributing to carbon sequestration and marsh accretion [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensive loss of salt marshes in back‐barrier tidal embayments is ongoing worldwide as a consequence of land‐use changes, wave‐driven lateral marsh erosion, and relative sea‐level rise compounded by mineral sediment starvation. However, how salt‐marsh loss affects the hydrodynamics of back‐barrier systems and feeds back into their morphodynamic evolution is still poorly understood. Here we use a depth‐averaged numerical hydrodynamic model to investigate the feedback between salt‐marsh erosion and hydrodynamic changes in the Venice Lagoon, a large microtidal back‐barrier system in northeastern Italy. Numerical simulations are carried out for past morphological configurations of the lagoon dating back up to 1887, as well as for hypothetical scenarios involving additional marsh erosion relative to the present‐day conditions. The progressive loss of salt marshes significantly impacted the lagoon hydrodynamics, both directly and indirectly, by amplifying high‐tide water levels, reducing wind‐wave energy dissipation, and critically affecting tidal asymmetries across the lagoon. Restoration projects and manmade protection of marsh margins, which have been implemented over the past few decades, limited the detrimental effects of marsh loss on the lagoon hydrodynamics, while not substantially changing the risk of flooding in urban lagoon settlements. Compared to previous studies, our analyses suggest that the hydrodynamic response of back‐barrier systems to salt‐marsh erosion is extremely site‐specific, depending closely on the morphological characteristics of the embayment as well as on the external tidal and wind forcings. Key Points: Effects of salt‐marsh lateral erosion on the characteristics of tides and waves are investigated for the microtidal Venice LagoonSalt‐marsh loss primarily enhances mean high water levels and wave heights due to reduced friction and longer wind fetchesHydrodynamic changes depend on salt‐marsh spatial distribution and elevation, as well as on the characteristics of tidal and wind forcings [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exhibition's curator, Francesco Caglioti, whose scholarship and ideas shaped at every turn the attributions and arguments of this beautiful show and its catalogue, writes in the latter's preface of the Donatello "earthquake [ I terremoto i ]", an event so "violent [ I violento i ]" that it caused "continual tremors [ I ripetute scosse i ]". This exhibition amply and vividly demonstrated how Donatello's followers and artistic descendants, especially in the geographic regions where he was most active, engaged with stylistic elements of his sculptures (expressions, bodies, poses, drapery, compositions, and spatial settings), the types he renewed (e.g., the I spiritello i , the freestanding nude), the carving techniques he devised, and his focus on emotion. Before 2022, comprehensive museum exhibitions featured Donatello's art twice: in 1887, on the fifth centenary of his birth, and in 1985-6, when an exhibition staged in three cities marked the sixth centenary. The exhibition expanded, potentially, even beyond these sites, as signage encouraged visitors to explore other cultural institutions in Florence and outside the city in Tuscany where additional examples of Donatello's art can be found - or where sculptures included in the exhibition usually reside. [Extracted from the article]

On the evening of November 12, 2019, an exceptional high tide – the second‐highest in the ranking since sea‐level data have been recorded – hit the city of Venice in northern Italy and its entire lagoon, damaging a large part of its historical center. A small warm‐core mesoscale cyclone, which formed in the central Adriatic Sea and intensified during its northwestward movement toward the Venice lagoon, was responsible for the event. The cyclone was preceded by intense northeasterlies (Bora) in the northern Adriatic, which turned to southeasterlies (Sirocco) and then southwesterlies after its passage. Simulations with different initialization times were carried out with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. Simulation results show a strong sensitivity to the initial conditions, since the track (and strength) of the cyclone was determined by the exact position of an upper‐level potential vorticity (PV) streamer. The factors responsible for the cyclone development and its characteristics are also investigated. The pre‐existence of positive low‐level cyclonic vorticity, associated with the convergence of the Sirocco and Bora winds in the central Adriatic, made the environment favorable for cyclone development. Also, the interaction between the upper‐level PV anomaly and the low‐level baroclinicity, created by the advection of warm, humid air associated with the Sirocco, was responsible for the cyclone's intensification, in a manner similar to a transitory (stable) baroclinic interaction at small horizontal scales. Sensitivity experiments reveal that convection, latent heat release and sea‐surface fluxes did not play a significant role, indicating that this cyclone did not show tropical‐like characteristics, notwithstanding its low‐level warm core. Thus, the warm‐core feature appears mainly as a characteristic of the environment in which the cyclone developed rather than a consequence of diabatic processes. Lastly, the cyclone does not fall into any of the existing categories for Adriatic cyclones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sea‐level rise is one of the most critical consequences of global warming, with potentially vast impacts on coastal environments and societies. Sea‐level changes are spatially and temporally heterogeneous on multiannual‐to‐multidecadal timescales. Here, we demonstrate that the observed rate of winter sea‐level rise in the Italian city of Venice contains significant multidecadal fluctuations, including interdecadal periods of near‐zero trend. Previous literature established a connection between the local sea‐level trend in Venice and over the broad subpolar and eastern North Atlantic. We demonstrate that for multidecadal variations in sea‐level trend such connection holds only since the mid‐20th Century. Such multidecadal sea‐level fluctuations relate to North Atlantic sea‐surface temperature changes described by the Atlantic multidecadal variability, or AMV. The link is explained by combined effect of AMV‐linked steric variations in the North Atlantic propagating in the Mediterranean Sea, and large‐scale atmospheric circulation anomalies over the North Atlantic with a local effect on sea level in Venice. We discuss the implications of such variability for near‐term predictability of winter sea‐level changes in Venice. Combining available sea‐level projections for Venice with a scenario of imminent AMV cooling yields a slowdown in the rate of sea‐level rise in Venice, with the possibility of mean values remaining even roughly constant in the next two decades as AMV effects contrast the expected long‐term sea‐level rise. Acknowledging, understanding, and communicating this multidecadal variability in local sea‐level rise is crucial for management and protection of this world‐class historical site. Plain Language Summary: Environmental and socioeconomic impacts of sea‐level rise are one of the major concerns of global warming. Here, we consider the case of the Italian city of Venice, one of the iconic locations for the potentially dramatic effects of sea‐level rise. We show that the sea‐level evolution in Venice during the past ∼150 years contains strong multidecadal fluctuations, so that periods of more than two decades when there is little or no trend occurred even in the recent past. We link these fluctuations with sea‐level and climatic variations in the North Atlantic. In particular, we focus on the phenomenon known as Atlantic multidecadal variability, or AMV, which describes the alternation over multidecadal periods of warm and cold phases of the North Atlantic surface. Our results indicate that warm AMV phases are linked to faster sea‐level rise in Venice and vice versa. Accordingly, we build sea‐level rise scenarios for Venice until 2035 by considering an imminent AMV cooling as suggested by recent studies. The scenarios yield a temporary slowdown of sea‐level rise as the AMV contrasts the effects of global warming. This sea‐level variability can strongly impact on the management of protective measures against flooding currently operative in Venice. Key Points: The historical rate of sea‐level rise in Venice contains large multidecadal fluctuations and interdecadal periods of near‐zero trendMultidecadal sea‐level trend variations in Venice follow those in the subpolar North Atlantic since the mid‐20th CenturyAtlantic multidecadal variability paves the way for the exploration of decadal predictability of sea‐level rise in Venice [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tidal channels form the pathways for tidal currents to propagate and distribute clastic sediments and nutrients, thus providing a primary control on tidal‐landscape ecomorphodynamics. Most tidal channels in both estuarine and lagoonal environments have a tendency to meander, yet very few studies exist that investigate the full spectrum of processes controlling tidal meander morpho‐sedimentary evolution. The Venice Lagoon (Italy) offers a unique opportunity to shed light on this topic, because a long record of morphological and sedimentary data is available, which allows one to relate tidal channel evolution to the hydrodynamic and morphological changes undergone by the lagoon. In particular, during the last 130 years, feedback between rising relative sea levels and anthropogenic interventions has caused severe modifications of the Lagoon hydro‐ and morphodynamics. Here we investigate how these modifications fed back into the morpho‐sedimentary evolution of a meandering tidal channel located in the northern lagoon. Combining extensive datasets of aerial photographs, topographic and bathymetric surveys, geophysical investigations, sedimentary core analysis, and numerical modelling, we show that enhanced local tidal ranges and water discharges determined adjustments of channel cross‐sectional geometries proportional to increasing tidal prisms, while changes in local tidal asymmetries caused modifications of the local sediment transport regime, resulting in the development of bar–pool patterns according to the dominant tidal phase. Such bar–pool patterns eventually determined channel migration through a bar‐push mechanism controlled by a fluvial‐like, quasi‐linear relationship between local channel curvature and lateral migration rates. Critical differences in sediment transport regime are, however, highlighted between fluvial and tidal meanders the latter being potentially characterized by high concentrations of suspended sediment during periods of slack waters when wind‐driven sediment transport processes are not negligible. This could hamper the formation of high‐relief bedforms, with profound implications for the sedimentology of tidal point‐bar deposits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lateral edge erosion is one of the main mechanisms leading to loss volume of salt marshes. Given the relatively large number of field measurements of eroding salt marshes reported in the literature, and the different ways they were performed, some natural questions arise. (i) What is the relationship between wave climate and erosion rate at different time scales? (ii) How can the surveys based on a single meteorological event support large‐scale monitoring campaigns? (iii) What are the main meteorological and morphological parameters correlated to the erosion process? (iv) Why do only some marshes show cantilever profiles? (v) What are the most common issues to deal with in monitoring campaigns? Most of the previous studies considered large spatial and temporal scales only, providing an estimation of the overall behaviour of the system without identifying the specific role of each event. In this study, we attempted to answer these questions by investigating the lateral evolution of salt marsh margins located in the Venice Lagoon at different time scales, combining marsh retreat measurements, remote sensing data and numerical modelling. Field data were collected monthly for 5 years (2014–2018), covering 26 storms. A linear relation linking erosion rate to wave power is confirmed at different time scales, with a decreasing slope at higher elevation of the marsh bank that explains the occurrence of cantilever profiles. Mass failures can occur over long‐period cycles, related to the geomorphic characteristics of the area. Finally, the major issues affecting the in‐situ monitoring campaigns have been highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sedimentological and architectural features of meandering subtidal channels are relatively unexplored, and their deposits are commonly investigated based on facies models set up for intertidal meandering channels. The Venice Lagoon (northern Adriatic Sea, Italy) is affected by a micro‐tidal regime and hosts a dense network of active and buried tidal channels. It represents an excellent natural laboratory to improve the current knowledge on subtidal meander morphodynamics and related deposits. In this study, the integration of high‐resolution geophysical images and core data allows reconstruction of the architectural three‐dimensional model of a meandering subtidal palaeochannel, which is buried below a modern subtidal flat. The study palaeochannel was 35 m wide and 3 m deep, and formed three adjacent meander bends and related point bars. A detailed three‐dimensional architectural reconstruction was carried out for deposits associated with one of these meander bends, that was crossed by a minor, low‐sinuosity channel with two minor bank‐attached bars. This reconstruction highlights that the study point bar has a horseshoe shape, which arose from the onset of bar accretion from an already‐sinuous channel. Reconstructed growth stages of the studied bends show that point‐bar accretion can follow different styles of planform transformation, also experiencing simultaneously landward (or seaward) deposition according to the dominant flow direction (i.e. local tidal asymmetry). The analyses show that planform transformations occurred in parallel with elevation changes of the related channel thalweg, which shaped pools with geometry varying with the radius of curvature of the bend. The present study highlights the relevance of high‐resolution three‐dimensional reconstructions to link palaeomorphodynamic processes with related sedimentary products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last two decades Pinna nobilis, the largest bivalve mollusk endemic to the Mediterranean Sea, has recolonized the tidal flats of some coastal lagoons along the Italian Adriatic coast. In this study, we investigate the influence of tides on the spatial distribution and density of a P. nobilis population developing on a tidal flat of the Venice lagoon (NE Italy) by exploiting remote sensing technologies. Our results show that there is a threshold topographic elevation (about 0.5 m below mean sea level for the studied tidal flat) above which the number and duration of emersions become limiting factors of P. nobilis abundance. Above this elevation, the population density decreases sharply. Densely populated areas tend to occur in tidal flat depressions, where the duration and frequency of emersions are low. We find, however, that the population density has large spatial variability in response to other factors, such as the seagrass percentage cover. The density of the shells increases with increasing seagrass percentage cover, and the dense P. nobilis population (0.8–2.68 N/m2) grows within the Cymodocea nodosa meadow that has a high seagrass percentage cover (>85%). However, within the seagrass meadow with the highest percentage cover, the bivalve preferentially colonizes the portion closest to the main channel, a possible source of nutrients. The shift to C. nodosa—dominated meadows in the Venice lagoon occurred during the last two decades has probably facilitated the observed colonization by P. nobilis. Our findings provide management information for protection and/or restoration of P. nobilis in coastal lagoons. Plain Language Summary: Pinna nobilis is the largest mollusk of the Mediterranean Sea and strictly protected by European laws. Recently this species has been attacked by pathogens which are causing mass mortality events. In early 2021, the P. nobilis population of the Venice lagoon (Italy) was attacked and is in risk of disappearing. Thanks to a survey performed using a drone in the summer of 2020, we studied the pre‐epidemic distribution of the P. nobilis population colonizing a tidal flat. We found that exposure to limited emersions is a key factor for the bivalve survival as emersions can cause desiccation. Another key factor is the seagrass percentage cover: P. nobilis tends to colonize dense portions of the seagrass meadows, often close to the channels, which are a potential source of food. Until early 2021, when the pathogens attacked, the population growth has been likely facilitated by a constant expansion of Cymodocea nodosa, a subtropical seagrass species. The expansion of C. nodosa has probably been promoted by a small but constant increase of the water temperature during the last two decades. Our findings provide management information for the protection and/or restoration of P. nobilis in coastal lagoons. Key Points: In tidal systems, Pinna nobilis distribution is strongly affected by the bottom topography and the duration and frequency of emersionThere is a significant positive correlation between the density of P. nobilis and seagrass coverSummer time monitoring of P. nobilis using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is not effective when the tidal flats are emerged and seagrass leaves obscure the shells [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human impacts on marine ecosystems are increasing and the number of fish species listed in the Red List is constantly growing. In the Mediterranean Sea, seven of the 10 bony fishes defined as Threatened by the IUCN are known to be vocal, including the target species of this study: the shi drum (Umbrina cirrosa Linnaeus, 1758) and the brown meagre (Sciaena umbra Linnaeus, 1758). As a result, non‐invasive passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) can be used to pinpoint their distribution at sea. However, for PAM to be effective, reliable acoustic discrimination is required because the sounds they emit during reproduction are remarkably similar (i.e. short broadband pulsed sounds).The shi drum and the brown meagre are closely related, elusive, vocal sciaenids, partially overlapping in their ecological niche. During summer 2019, three PAM surveys were conducted along the tidal inlets of the Venice lagoon (Italy). Here, the calls of both species have been recognized according to their temporal features: shi drum sounds were made up of a lower number of longer pulses with a different envelope, repeated at a lower rate than those of the brown meagre. Further, shi drum and brown meagre sounds of different origins (aquaculture and semi‐natural conditions) were analysed and compared with those collected during the survey of the study area in order to validate the field collected data.Call discrimination allowed for a fine‐scale species mapping, showing a partially overlapping distribution of the two species along the inlets. This is the first case in which two sciaenids have been documented to share their reproductive habitat in the Mediterranean Sea.This study demonstrates that it is feasible to acoustically monitor the target species even in those parts of the Mediterranean Sea where they co‐exist. This, in its turn, could provide managers with the required data for effective conservation measures to be implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The X‐Ray Fluorescence (XRF) scanning spectrometer developed in the framework of Cultural Heritage Network ‐ National Institute of Nuclear Physics, is specifically customised for cultural heritage applications, designed with a focus on having a lightweight scanner (weighing approximately 10 kg), easy to handle and thus easily transportable in two medium‐sized boxes. The research presented here deals with the study of a set of choir books preserved in the Abbey of San Giorgio Maggiore on the homonymous island in Venice. Produced for the Abbey itself from the mid‐15th century onwards, the manuscripts have never left the island, making the study of the materials of particular interest as they have undergone little or no modification over time. During their history in the Abbey, however, the volumes have been disassembled and reassembled in various ways, bringing complexity to the current cataloguing work. Thus, analytical investigations of the pigments and painting techniques might help identify the original arrangement of displaced leaves and provide evidence for the attribution of individual illuminations to certain artists. Thanks to its easy transportability, it was possible to take the scanner to the small island by means of the water‐based Venetian public transport. Selected results are presented, derived from the high‐quality MA‐XRF maps obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low rates of lateral migration (centimetres to decimetres per year) combined with relatively high rates of vertical accretion (millimetres to centimetres per year) recorded in microtidal channels of the Venice Lagoon (Italy) give rise to point‐bar geometries and internal facies arrangements that differ substantially from widely accepted models of point‐bar sedimentary architecture. In this study, field data from the Venice Lagoon are combined with a three‐dimensional forward stratigraphic model, the 'Point‐Bar Sedimentary Architecture Numerical Deduction' (PB‐SAND), to predict the stratal geometries of point bars formed in aggradational settings. The PB‐SAND uses a combined geometric and stochastic modelling approach that can be constrained by field evidence. The model applied determines the geometry of four point bars generated by 9 to 11 m wide channels cutting through salt marshes. An iterative best‐fit modelling approach has been used to obtain multiple simulations for each case study, each of which fits the observations derived from the analysis of time‐series historical aerial photographs and 44 sedimentary cores. Results demonstrate how the geometry of the bars is determined by the development of two key stratal surfaces: the point‐bar brink and channel‐thalweg surfaces. These surfaces are defined by the progressive translation and vertical shift of the point‐bar brink (i.e. break of slope between bar top and bar slope) and the channel thalweg (i.e. deepest part of the channel) during bar evolution. The approach is used to: (i) reconstruct three‐dimensional point‐bar geometries; (ii) propose alternative reconstructions; (iii) provide insight to drive the acquisition of additional data to better constrain the proposed models; and (iv) provide insight into the mechanism of bar growth for slowly migrating channels in settings subject to relatively high rates of aggradation. This study highlights how interaction between styles of planform transformation and latero‐vertical shifts of meandering channels can determine the geometry of related sedimentary bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Urban environments can have high‐risk spaces that can provide excess personal sun exposure, such as urban or street canyons, and the spaces between buildings, among others. In these urban spaces, sun exposure can be high or low depending on several factors. Polysulphone film (PSF) was used to assess possible daily solar ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure in urban canyons in Venice, Italy and, for the first time in Africa, in Johannesburg, South Africa. The photodegradation of PSF upon solar exposure was monitored at a wavelength of 330 nm by ultraviolet‐visible spectrophotometry, and the resultant change was converted to standard erythemal dose (SED) units (1 SED = 100 J m−2). Mean daily ambient solar UVR exposure measured for Venice and Johannesburg ranged between 20–28 SED and 33–43 SED, respectively. Canyon‐located PSF exposures were lower in Venice (1–9 SED) than those in Johannesburg (9–39 SED), depending mainly on the sky view factor and orientation to the sun. There was large variation in solar UVR exposure levels in different urban canyons. These preliminary results should be bolstered with additional studies for a better understanding of excess personal exposure risk in urban areas, especially in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work proposed a novel method to elucidate the controls of As mobility in complex aquifers based on an unsupervised machine learning algorithm, Self‐Organizing Map (SOM), and process‐based geochemical modeling. The approach is tested in the shallow aquifers of the Venetian Alluvial Plain (VAP) near Venice, Italy, where As concentrations seasonally and locally exceed recommended drinking water limits. SOM was fed using information from two geochemical surveys on eight VAP boreholes, and continuous reading of hourly groundwater head levels and weekly geochemical analyses from three VAP boreholes between mid‐October 2017 and end of January 2018. The SOM analysis is consistent with redox‐controlled dissolution‐precipitation hydrous ferric oxides (HFOs) as a key control of As mobility in the aquifer. Dissolved As is positively correlated to Fe and NHþ 4 and negatively to the oxidizing‐reducing potential (ORP). Negative correlation between As and groundwater head levels suggests a redox control by rainfall‐driven recharge, which adds oxidants to the aquifer while progressively attenuating As. This mechanism is tested using process‐based geochemical modeling, which simulates different transport modalities of oxidants entering the aquifer. Starting from reducing aquifer conditions, the model reproduces correctly the observed ORP and the trends in As and Fe, when the function describing the occurrence of oxidizing events scales according to the temporal occurrence of rainfall events. Heterogeneity can strongly control the local‐scale effectiveness of recharge as a natural As attenuating factor, requiring a different model analysis to be properly assessed and to be developed in a follow‐up study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1.The brown meagre (Sciaena umbra) is a demersal sciaenid fish recognized as indicative of good environmental quality and is defined as an umbrella species for the ecological community of rocky coastal habitats. Sciaena umbra is classified as a Vulnerable fish species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and knowledge on the distribution of its spawning habitats is essential for its conservation.2.Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is a suitable tool to monitor S. umbra distribution because of the high consistency, over space and time, of the communication sounds that this species emits during the reproductive period, with irregular or regular rhythms, or with calls merging into a chorus.3.During the summer of 2019, the presence of this species was investigated acoustically at 40 listening points distributed along the tidal inlets that connect the Venice lagoon with the open sea.4.Longer sounds, comprising a higher number of faster repeated pulses, were found during the chorus and were used as a proxy of spawning activity; similar sound features have been recorded in different captive Sciaenids during spawning.5.The three inlets were classified as more or less suitable for spawning on the basis of the vocal rhythms identified, demonstrating a clear preference along a north–south gradient and indicating higher spawning activity in the internal‐facing areas of the inlets, compared with the seaward‐facing areas. The chorus occurred in localized areas consistently throughout the breeding season, suggesting that spawning is concentrated in preferred areas.6.For the first time a relationship between the sound features and vocal rhythms of fish has been highlighted by an in situ study. This validates the use of the chorus as a reliable natural indicator of S. umbra breeding sites, and in turn suggests a potential non‐invasive approach based on PAM for mapping the key reproductive areas of this vulnerable species in the Mediterranean Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The planform evolution of tidal meanders is driven by interactions between channel morphology and periodically reversing tidal flows, which feed back into the development of erosional and depositional patterns. However, the paucity of quantitative data has so far undermined detailed analyses about the geomorphic effects of tidal flows within tidal meanders. Here we aim to bond the morphodynamic evolution of tidal meanders with the structure of three‐dimensional flow that shapes them. By means of an acoustic Doppler current profiler, we have surveyed the flow fields over three different tidal meandering channels in the salt marshes at San Felice (Venice lagoon, Italy), each characterized by distinct planform morphology and evolutionary dynamics. Mutually evasive paths followed by the maximum ebb and flood streamwise velocities determine periodic changes in both the position and the orientation of curvature‐induced cross‐stream flows. These secondary flows can be locally disrupted by patches of submerged vegetation, especially in meanders of small size, with direct implications for the morphodynamic evolution of meander bends. The latter is further affected by flow separation in sharp bends. Flow separation effectively reduces channel width, enhancing bank erosion due to increasing flow velocities. Moreover, it creates low‐velocity zones of recirculating flows at both the inner and outer banks, thereby promoting the formation of point bars and concave‐bank benches, respectively. By relating three‐dimensional flow structure to patterns of channel change, our results provide a first step to unravel the relation between flows and forms within tidal meanders, whose planform characteristics may differ greatly from their fluvial counterparts. Key Points: Acoustic measurements of 3D flow structures in tidal meanders highlight pronounced asymmetries in the ebb and flood velocitiesFlow separation in sharp bends, controlled by the radius‐width ratio, can lead to unidirectional flow in some parts of the bar depositsAquatic vegetation can influence the evolution of tidal meanders by disrupting and limiting the transfer of curvature‐induced helical flow [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reliquary bust of Saint Lambert, hosted in the Treasure of the Liège Cathedral, was produced in the early 15th century. This exceptional goldsmithery piece is covered with gold‐coated silver, and decorated by approximately 400 stones, analysed by Raman and pXRF techniques to determine their mineralogical and chemical composition. The results confirm the identification of one hundred pearls, twenty‐six rock crystals, ten amethysts, two diamonds, and numerous glass beads with a green, blue, colourless, turquoise, orange or red colour. The glass beads show a soda‐lime composition, confirming that they are contemporary of the bust and imported from Venice, as reported by historical sources. Orange beads show a lead composition and the red stone a triplet with quartz, indicating that they were added to the bust later. The cutting of gems and beads shows also a significant evolution. The metal contains approximately 60% of Au and 40% of Ag. The origin of gemstones was difficult to establish, due to the absence of characteristic trace elements, but the chemical elements used for the manufacture and colouring of the beads were determined. This study confirms the trade of stones between Liège and Venice during medieval times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aims to improve current understanding of the sedimentation of subtidal point bars, analyzing interaction between tidal currents and waves in shaping a submerged meander bend of the microtidal Venice Lagoon (Italy), and it is based on coupling of sedimentological studies, geophysical analyses and numerical modelling. The Venice Lagoon is characterized by an average depth of about 1·5 m over subtidal platforms and a mean tidal range of about 1·0 m. The morphodynamic evolution of the lagoon is strongly affected by intense seasonal windstorms, which promote the formation of wind waves triggering sediment resuspension and bottom erosion. The study channel is 70 to 100 m wide, it has a radius of curvature of about 260 m and cuts through a permanently submerged subtidal platform. Water depth ranges from 1·0 to 5·0 m below mean sea level on the subtidal platform and channel thalweg, respectively. Different from classical architectural models, the study point‐bar beds do not show sigmoidal geometries, but consist of horizontally‐bedded deposits abruptly overlying clinostratified beds. Sedimentation in the study bar is hypothesized to stem from the interaction between the in‐channel secondary helical flow, as for most meander bends, and wave winnowing of the subaqueous overbank areas. Laterally accreting point‐bar deposits point out that the curvature‐induced helical flow redistributed sediment from the channel thalweg to the bar top and contributed to the development of the 'classical' fining‐upward grain size trend. The marked truncation surface, separating clinostratified bar deposits from overlying horizontally‐bedded platform sediments is interpreted here as due to bar top wave‐winnowing, which also possibly promoted bank collapses. In the proposed model, sediments remobilized from bar top and subaqueous overbank areas were transported into the channel, forming peculiar 'apron‐like' accumulations, where sand accumulated through avalanching processes and mud settled down from suspension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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One of the major challenges to ensure effective restoration of estuarine habitats is to establish success criteria to determine whether the goals of restoration are met.The aim of this work is to propose and test an approach to identify reference conditions and assess the recovery of nekton (fish, decapods and cephalopods) assemblages at seagrass restoration sites.Nekton sampling took place from 2014 to 2017 in the northern Venice lagoon (northern Adriatic Sea, Italy) during spring at eight sites subjected to seagrass (Zostera marina and Zostera noltei) transplantation. In spring 2016, five natural seagrass sites in the same area were additionally sampled, and physico‐chemical water parameters and habitat structure were also recorded.A multivariate generalized linear model approach was adopted in order to disentangle the relative effect of water quality and seagrass habitat structure on nekton assemblages of natural habitats. Models were subsequently employed to predict species composition of nekton fauna at each transplantation site, to identify the reference assemblage expected under site‐specific abiotic and habitat characteristics.The average distance of the observed assemblage from reference conditions was used to track temporal trajectories of nekton colonization at transplantation sites, and to ultimately evaluate the recovery rate towards restoration goals.This study highlights how a predictive approach could serve management purposes in ecological restoration, providing a concise tool to assess the functionality of restored habitats for associated fauna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The building designed by Sansovino in 1532 as the new Mint of Venice underwent a change in its intended use, becoming in 1900 the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana. A spectroscopic study concerning the surface stone materials of the current reading room (previously a courtyard) was attempted since the transformation lead to heavy micro‐ and macroclimatic variations. Many alterations were observed, such as blackening, cracking, incrustations, and mortars powdering. The employed techniques, such as Raman and Fourier Transform InfraRed‐Attenuated Total Reflectance spectroscopy, allowed identifying the substrate main components and their alteration phases, mainly sulfates and nitrates. These data represent important information when approaching such a famous building because every further intervention must be based on accurate scientific results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]