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Objective. To evaluate the validity, in terms of the patients’ acceptance, preference, feasibility and reliability of an innovative, interactive computerized system for collection of patient-reported outcome (PRO) data on axial SpA against the paper-and-pencil version.Methods. Fifty-five patients with axial SpA completed both the touch screen and the paper-and-pencil set of questionnaires. A computerized touch-screen system, SPEAMonitor, was developed to capture PRO data. Variables recorded included demographic data, patient’s assessment of general health status, BASDAI, BASFI, BASMI and acute-phase reactant levels. In order to assess the patient’s acceptance of, preference for and feasibility of computer-based questionnaires, the participants filled in an additional questionnaire. The time taken to complete both formats was measured. In a further test–retest study, 25 patients were re-evaluated.Results. The agreement between the paper-administered and computer touch-screen format of the BASFI, BASDAI questionnaires and the Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Scores was excellent. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) between data ranged from 0.90 to 0.96. Additionally the test–retest study showed a very good agreement between the scores for the two administrations (ICC ≥ 0.90). Age, computer experience and education level had no significant impact on the results. The computerized questionnaires were reported to be easier to use. The mean time spent completing the questionnaires on a touch screen was 5.1 min and on paper 7.9 min.Conclusion. Our newly developed computer-assisted touch-screen questionnaires for PRO in axial SpA were well accepted by patients, with good data quality, reliability and score agreement. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A call for papers and panels is presented in regards to the International Society for Public Law's Inaugural Conference which is scheduled to be held on June 26-28, 2014 in Florence, Italy, and it also provides an introduction to the journal and acknowledgments for contributors such as Asli Bali

The estimation of the slope (b -value) of the frequency–magnitude distribution of earthquakes is based on a formula derived by Aki decades ago, assuming a continuous exponential distribution. However, as the magnitude is usually provided with a limited resolution, its distribution is not continuous but discrete. In the literature, this problem was initially solved by an empirical correction (due to Utsu) to the minimum magnitude, and later by providing an exact formula such as that by Tinti and Mulargia, based on the geometric distribution theory. A recent paper by van der Elst showed that the b -value can be estimated also by considering the magnitude differences (which are proven to follow an exponential discrete Laplace distribution) and that in this case the estimator is more resilient to the incompleteness of the magnitude data set. In this work, we provide the complete theoretical formulation including (i) the derivation of the means and standard deviations of the discrete exponential and Laplace distributions; (ii) the estimators of the decay parameter of the discrete exponential and trimmed Laplace distributions and (iii) the corresponding formulas for the parameter b. We deduce (iv) the standard 1 σ intervals for the estimated b. Moreover, we are able (v) to quantify the error associated with the Utsu minimum-magnitude correction. Furthermore, we have discussed the formulas to produce statistically independent magnitude differences. We tested extensively the b -value estimators on simulated synthetic data sets including complete catalogues as well as catalogues affected by a strong incompleteness degree such as aftershock sequences where the incompleteness is made to vary from one event to the next. We have also analysed the real aftershock sequence of the 30/10/2016 Norcia (central Italy) to integrate the finding of the simulations. To judge the performance of the various estimators we have introduced an index p that can be seen as a non-parametric extension of the Student's t index. The main outcomes of this paper are that (1) the b -value estimators devised for continuous magnitude data are not adequate for binned magnitudes, (2) for complete data sets, estimators based on magnitudes and on magnitude differences provide substantially equivalent results, (3) for incomplete magnitude data sets, estimators based on magnitude differences provide better results and (4) for incomplete aftershock sequences there is no evidence that methods based on positive magnitude differences are superior than other methods using differences. This conclusion is further confirmed by our analysis of the above-mentioned Norcia seismic sequence. This last finding contrasts with the van der Elst's claim that the so called |${{b}_ + }$| method is the most adequate to treat real aftershock sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the restoration of paper money circulation in Italy. Efforts to eliminate budget deficit; Improvement of the foreign exchanges; Assessment on the damages of monetary inflation.

In this paper we deal with statistical features of earthquakes, seeking possible correlations between the Gutenberg–Richter magnitude distribution and the short-term clustering in an area of the Central Apennines, Italy, where significant seismicity with earthquakes exceeding magnitude 6.0 has been repeatedly observed from 1990 to the present. For this purpose, a recently developed version of the ETAS model, incorporating a 3-D spatial triggering kernel, has been adopted. Our analysis has been carried out representing the b -value and the probability of independence of events on six vertical cross-sections suitably related to the seismic structures that are considered responsible of the seismicity observed in the study area. The results of the statistical analysis of the seismicity in the study area have shown a clear distinction between the western normal low-angle fault system, characterized by eastward dip and the eastern normal fault systems, with westward dip. In the former (Etrurian Fault System ; EFS) we found seismicity with a high b -value and high probability of independence, that is a scarce capacity of producing clusters and strong aftershock sequences. The eastern fault systems of our study area are distinguishable in two main distinct systems, which generated two strong seismic sequences in 1997 and 2016–2017. In the former (Colfiorito) sequence the seismicity showed a very low b -value and a modest probability of independence, while in the latter (Central Italy) sequence the b -value was significantly higher and the probability of independence had extremely low values (manifesting a high level of clustering). The much higher b -value of the EFS than the other extensional sources could be caused by its peculiar seismotectonic role of discontinuity at the base of the normal active faulting, and its reduced capacity of accumulating stress. This circumstance may be interpreted by a difference in the rheological properties of these fault systems, possibly also in relation to their present status in the earthquake cycle and the presence of strong aftershock sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legal medical doctors (LMDs) expertise encompasses a wide range of responsibilities. Work-related stress amongst LMDs is an extremely relevant factor, which affects the quality of LMDs life and work. Whilst it is a better-known problem abroad, this issue is poorly debated in Italy, as demonstrated by this literature analysis. The aim of this paper is to better understand the main sources of stress in the practice of legal medicine in Italy, highlighting the need for systematic psychological support. The risks of work-related stress for the social and health professions are well known in literature. In Italy, however, due to a series of complex circumstances and cultural and research delays, forensic practitioners often seem to be excluded from these kinds of complex issues. The authors, after a series of considerations drawn from a review of the literature and from experience in the forensic and medical field, point out how work in this area entails risks for workers, on par with all others belonging to the helping and social-health professions. They conclude their contribution with a series of proposals for appropriate protocols to cope with such problems for workers in the forensic and medical field. Key points Work-related risks for the social and health professionals are widely recognized in the literature. Although legal medical doctors are often thought to be safe from these types of issues, significant risks exist for this category as well. It is important to create appropriate protocols to address outcomes for legal medical doctors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Etizolam is a benzodiazepine (BZD). Etizolam is structurally different from BZDs as a thiophene replaces the benzene ring and a triazole ring is fused to the diazepine ring, but etizolam's pharmacological profile is similar. Etizolam has been used to treat anxiety and panic disorders, to reduce depressive and somatization symptoms and to induce muscle relaxation. Etizolam is used recreationally due to its reinforcing and sedative effects. Etizolam is available in tablet or powder form or administered on blotter paper that can be placed on the tongue for oral absorption. Etizolam metabolizes into two major metabolites: α-hydroxyetizolam and 8-hydroxyetizolam, and all three compounds can be detected in different biological specimens using various common analytical techniques such as immunoassay, chromatography and mass spectrometry. Etizolam is a controlled drug in many countries around the globe but is approved for medical use in some countries, such as Japan, South Korea and Italy. This work is a collation and review of available literature on etizolam to help improve the fundamental understanding of its toxicology, outline best analytical practice, and aid interpretation of toxicology results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at analysing the causes and effects of increasing financial accumulation by Italian firms, within a radical Institutional theoretical framework. It will be argued that financialisation can be imputed to the fact that the biggest Italian companies aim to increase their profits through speculation after the cycle of class struggle of the 1970s. It will also be shown that financial accumulation has contributed to the reduction of economic growth and to the increase of income inequalities. Since very few research studies have dealt with the Italian case, this paper fills a gap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The dissemination of scientific data on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continually builds but, in April 2020, could not keep up with the spread of the disease. Through technology, surgeons in Italy and the UK, representing both peak and pre-peak infective time zones, were able to communicate so that the urgent lessons on the huge expected demands of care learned in Italy could be brought to the UK in advance. This paper specifically discusses the issues related to paediatric surgery, currently under-reported in the literature. Methods The aim of this paper is to conjoin experience from the field to provide a framework for a safe assessment and treatment of paediatric patients by adopting a systemic approach aimed at reducing the risk of contamination. We reviewed the processes and good practices that were undertaken in contexts of emergency such as in Italy and the UK and then adapted them within the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) framework to provide an assessment of how to reorganize the services in order to cope with an unexpected situation. The SEIPS model is the adopted theoretical framework, which allows to analyse the system in its main components with a human factors and ergonomics (HFE) perspective. Results The results introduce some of the good practices and recommendations developed during the emergency in the surgical scenario with a focus on the paediatric patients. They represent the lessons learned from the combination of the little existing evidence of literature and the experience from surgical teams who responded in an impromptu and unrehearsed way. Conclusions Lessons learned from the frontline 'on the fly' during COVID-19 emergency should be consolidated and taken into the future. In order to prepare proactively for the next phases and get ahead of the curve of these hospital accesses, there is a need for a risk assessment of the new clinical pathways with a multidisciplinary approach centred on HFE with the adoption of the SEIPS model and an involvement of all the surgical teams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the M w 3.9 earthquake that occurred in the Ischia island (Naples, southern Italy) on 21 August 2017, the local monitoring seismic network was significantly improved in terms of both number of stations and instrumentation performance. Due to the huge amount of collected seismic ambient noise data, in this paper we present a first 3-D shear wave velocity model of the island retrieved from the inversion of horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio curves by fixing the shear wave velocities (Vs) and modifying the thicknesses to get the corresponding 1-D Vs models. We are confident about the robustness of the attained models since the inversion process provided a good convergence towards the best-fitting solutions. Then, a first 3-D velocity model was obtained by contouring all the 1-D models obtained for the selected seismic stations to highlight possible lateral variations of the layer thicknesses and to reconstruct the morphology of the deeper interface characterized by a high-impedance contrast. A good correspondence between the 3-D Vs model and the geological features of the island was observed, especially in the northern sector where most of the stations are installed. In particular, the top of the high-impedance contrast interface appears deeper in the northern coastal areas and shallower in the central sector. This result agrees with the structural settings of the island likely due to the resurgence of Mount Epomeo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Companies' strategies of domestic and international location of production and of externalisation/outsourcing are linked to their effects on labour fragmentation and, in general, to strategies towards labour. The paper starts with a theoretical analysis on the strategies of transnational companies and their impact on labour. An application to the Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino (FIAT) company follows. After a brief history of the company and of the Italian industrial relations system, the paper concentrates on four post-World War II periods: 1950–68, 1969–80, 1981–2003 and 2004–16. In each period, the above key strategies are highlighted and considered in relation to industrial relations in the same period. Other strategies are mentioned as appropriate. The analysis of each period focuses on the linkages between the three sets of strategies in a multidisciplinary context. The methodology centres on a detailed analysis of a historical case and on the interplay of strategic behaviour by both the company and labour. In terms of empirical material, we use a variety of historical and multidisciplinary secondary sources, data from FIAT's historical archives and a series of informal interviews with FIAT experts. We conclude that there is historical evidence of a pattern of strategic moves and countermoves by both FIAT and its labour force and Trade Unions, with effects on labour fragmentation and labour relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, public private partnerships (PPP) can prove useful to close the healthcare investment gap and accelerate long-term recovery, by matching public and private money. Despite their extensive application in the delivery of major infrastructure projects globally, their performance remains contested. Drawing on a unique set of data of PPP contracts for healthcare investments in Italy, the paper explores the antecedents (namely, policies, institutions, and contracts), that have influenced the capacity of PPP contracts to deliver performance, measured in terms of value for money (VfM), and contract stability. Results show that although explicit policy goals have a clear contribution, VfM can benefit from competent central PPP institutions, which should play a hands-on role in the planning, design, and project management activities. At the same time, centralised PPP units, if not combined with local competent authorities and strong governance mechanisms, may increase the risk of contract renegotiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sustainability of the Italian government debt has been under close scrutiny since the launch of the Euro Area, and even more so after the Global Financial Crisis. The Covid-19 crisis in 2020 has depressed the Italian economy further and negatively affected the government budget. Despite the rebound in 2021, the state of the economy and government debt in Italy remain precarious. Building on Pasinetti's work, this paper examines the sustainability of the Italian government debt through a medium-scale, stock-flow consistent, structural macroeconometric model. The model has been coded and calibrated using the R package Bimets developed by the Bank of Italy. Our findings show that the Italian government debt is unlikely to enter a sustainable trajectory in the next few years. While the Next Generation EU and the other fiscal and monetary measures are helping the Italian economy to recover, in the coming years, a greater effort on the part of the European authorities—including an intervention of the ECB in controlling the yield curve—seems necessary to stabilize the debt to GDP ratio in Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Healthcare associated foodborne outbreaks (HA-FBO) can result from exposure to contaminated food in premises where highly vulnerable patients are cared, including hospitals and nursery homes. The probability of developing severe foodborne diseases such as invasive listeriosis is much higher for susceptible populations. There is limited knowledge on the data on food exposures that could be used to investigate HAFBOs. There is also lack of data relating to specific policies in the health facilities aimed to prevent the administration of potentially risky foods, possibly bringing them from home. Methods: This study was in the framework of One Health EJP Project NOVA. A semistructured questionnaire was administered to 4 general hospitals, 1 specialist clinic and 3 nursing homes located in the Abruzzo and Molise regions, Italy. The questionnaire included 25 questions in 3 sections (I. General organization of the catering service; II. Food menu data; III. Food from home). Results: In most facilities (75%) external catering companies used inhouse kitchens. Trace-back of food to individual patients was possible in 5 premises out of 8 (62.5%), but only in 1 nursery home out of 3 (33.3%). Data were collected in electronic format (hospitals) or paper (nursery homes) and stored 1-12 months. Food at risk of Listeria monocytogenes were not excluded from the menus, such as pre-sliced cooked meat products (served in 4 out of 8 premises, 50%), smoked fish (20%), soft cheese (20%). The consumption of food brought from home was possible in ‘‘special occasions’’, mostly in the nursery homes (66.6%). Conclusions: In case of HA-FBO it could be difficult to trace back the food particularly in the nursery homes where food data are not individually collected and usually on paper. More studies are needed in order to understand the effective exposure to foodborne pathogens, given that some types of foods considered by EFSA as at high risk of microbial contamination are commonly served. Key messages: · Served food could not be traced back to the patient mostly in nursery homes. · Foods at risk of Listeria monocytogenes contamination are commonly served to patients and residents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we gather and take stock of the results produced by the Operational Earthquake Forecasting (OEF) system in Italy, during its first 10 yr of operativity. The system is run in real-time: every midnight and after each M L 3.5+ event, it produces the weekly forecast of earthquakes expected by an ensemble model in each cell of a spatial grid covering the entire Italian territory. To evaluate the performance skill of the OEF-Italy forecasts, we consider here standard tests of the Collaboratory for the Study of Earthquake Predictability, which have been opportunely adapted to the case of the overlapped weekly OEF forecasts; then we also adopt new performance measures borrowed from other research fields, like meteorology, specific to validate alarm-based systems by a binary criterion (forecast: yes/no; occurrence: yes/no). Our final aim is to: (i) investigate possible weaknesses and room for improvements in the OEF-Italy stochastic modelling, (ii) provide performance measures that could be helpful for stakeholders who act through a boolean logic (making an action or not) and (iii) highlight possible features in the Italian tectonic seismic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimation of local seismic response plays a key role in assessing local seismic hazard and particularly in the design of shaking scenarios. Modelling local seismic response involves knowing of the shear wave velocity (VS) and quality factor (QS) profiles for the site in question. The many techniques that have been developed to assess VS in surface deposits produce reliable measurements of VS , but these rarely correspond to direct measurements of QS. The latter is often considered through damping measures from laboratory tests on small-scale soil samples, which can provide information primarily on intrinsic attenuation, neglecting the contribution of scattering effects. In this paper, using seismic recordings obtained at the surface and in boreholes at 100 m depth, we estimate an average value of QS of some characteristic alluvial deposits of the Po Plain (northern Italy). Data come from a microseismic network which sampled an almost uniform lithology in the central Po Plain and consisted of three surface and four borehole stations with an interstation distance of about 2 km. The average value of QS of the shallowest 100 m of the sedimentary strata, Q S ,100, is estimated by considering: (1) the high-frequency attenuation of seismic waves due to propagation through the corresponding stratigraphy and (2) the interference between incident and surface-reflected waves observed at borehole stations. We parametrize the first through |$\Delta k_{0_{ {100}}}$|⁠ , the difference between the values of the spectral decay parameter kappa (k) estimated at the surface and at the boreholes depth, respectively. We use the second in order to compute V S ,100, the time-averaged VS referred to the uppermost 100 m stratigraphy. We obtain: |$\Delta k_{0_{ {100}}} = (11 \pm 3)\,$|  ms, |${V_{S,100}} \, =\, (309\, \pm \, 11)\,$| m s−1 and |${Q_{S,100}} \, =\, 31 \pm 10$|⁠. At the surface, the estimated values of the site-specific kappa, k 0, are found to range from 75 to 79 ms. As expected, these results are in good agreement with studies performed in other sites characterized by sandy or clayey lithologies, and can be usefully used in site response analysis at sites where the rigidity is mainly controlled by lithostatic pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the face of the complexities of problem-solving, experts are gaining centrality in policymaking (Weiss, 1979). At the same time, they are increasingly challenged in their legitimacy, which is not only technical but also political. Challenges to the legitimacy of experts suggest that other types of legitimacy are important for policymaking. Issues of legitimacy are particularly important for sound policymaking when the authority of experts and the value of evidence are contested and when the debate over policy solutions is particularly conflictual and ideological. In this paper, I use three exploratory cases of the use of expertise in education policy in Italy to show how policymakers design different advisory committees to enhance different types of legitimacy (epistemic, bureaucratic, and political). The findings suggest that while policymakers design advisory committees primarily to meet their legitimacy needs, the legitimacy of a decision requires different types of sources to generate consent and to allow for the impact of expertise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY: We estimate the b-value parameter of the Gutenberg–Richter law for earthquake magnitudes in the early stage of the Costa Marchigiana (Italy) seismic sequence, starting on 2022 November 9, with an ML 5.7 event in the Adriatic sea. In particular, we estimate both the completeness magnitude Mc and the b-value within the first 4 and 7 d after the initial strong event in the sequence. Our work represents a practical example of b-value estimation in 'true' real time, that is, during the seismic sequence, and its possible interpretation in terms of short-term forecasting. We highlight some critical issues to consider both in estimating/intepreting the b-value, and in evaluating the real time estimation of Mc. These issues are mainly due to the fact that preliminary catalogues available in real time are quite different from the revised ones, which are usually delivered after a few months. The criticalities are linked to the raw data recorded at an early-stage, an unreliable evaluation of the Mc with statistical approaches, the Short Term Aftershock Incompleteness entailed after the initial strong event, and the magnitude binning. Our results show that real time estimation of the b-value can give insights into the evolution of an ongoing seismic sequence, when attention is paid to data quality and quantity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the financial and real effects of political risk shocks for Italy, Spain, Ireland, Portugal and Greece between 2008 and 2019. We build an instrument for these shocks using the changes of the sovereign yield spread around political and policy dates, and estimate their effects in the context of local projection. We show that adverse political risk shocks have negative effects on domestic financial markets and in some countries generate spillovers on the spreads of other eurozone economies. Moreover, in Italy populism-related political risk shocks have a larger effect on financial markets and they harm the real economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the Marshallian Industrial District as it was rediscovered and further developed by Italian economists before tracing the main changes in the market and institutional context in the wake of globalization. It then focuses on some of the main transformations that have taken place in the Italian districts since the 1990s. After highlighting the important role still played by the districts in the Italian economy, the paper develops a framework for the evolutionary processes of the Marshallian Industrial District that would allow reproduction of the district in a manner suited to the era of globalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents cross-national research on news readership diversification. We compare written news (print and free newspapers, online and mobile news services) audiences in the 5 most populous and industrialized European countries (Italy, France, Spain, the UK and Germany). Outlining a sociodemographic portrait of these different news users is important in order to understand the changes undergone inside the world of written news. We draw on a telephone survey carried out in 2009, using a representative population sample (N=7,255). The survey considers sociodemographic variables, including a range of social activities and attitudinal variables, television, computer, and mobile phone ownership, and Internet access and use. Findings show a rich, but volatile relationship between written news, audience behaviors, and community participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that workers involved in the management of solid waste are at risk of exposure to bioaerosol, which is generally studied in relation to bacteria, fungi, and endotoxins. However, to date, there have been no reports on the incidence of work-related infectious diseases. To determine if occupational exposure to viruses occurs upon exposure to waste-related activities, monitoring was carried out in a landfill, a waste recycling plant, an incineration plant, and a waste collection vehicles. Air and surfaces were sampled and analyzed for torque teno virus (TTV), human adenovirus (HAdV), norovirus, rotavirus, and enterovirus using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based techniques. Positivity was confirmed by sequencing and quantification with real-time PCR; infectivity was also tested for culturable viruses. Samples were analyzed in parallel for mean total bacterial and fungi counts in both the summer and winter. In total, 30% (12/40) of air and 13.5% (5/37) of surface samples collected in plants were positive for HAdV and TTV. Among the eight HAdV-positive samples, six (75%), revealed in landfill and recycling plant air and in incinerator and waste vehicles surfaces, were able to replicate in cell culture and were subsequently confirmed as infective. The frequency of detection of virus-positive samples was similar in both seasons, but with evident differences in the type of virus detected: TTV and HAdV were more frequently detected in the summer and winter, respectively. The area of highest viral contamination was the paper selection landfill. Fungi and bacterial contamination did not correlate with viral presence or concentration. In conclusion, we evidence that working with solid and liquid waste can lead to infectious viruses, included in Group 2 of the European Directive 90/679/CEE pathogens list; thus, further investigation on the sources and routes of contamination is needed in order to assess the occupational risk. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Information about the 34th Study Seminar organized by Fondazione Ugo e Olga Levi which was held at the Palazzo Giustinian Lolin in Venice, Italy from October 27-29, 2005. This event marked an innovatory approach to and an extension of the Mediterranean perspective dedicated to "The polychoral tradition in Italy, Iberian Peninsula and the New World." One of the papers presented during the seminar discussed the concept of the Baroque and the nature of the Baroque in Spanish culture.

The subtitle of Sraffa's most celebrated work, Production of Commodities by Means of Commodities, is prelude to a critique of economic theory. Given that no later work was ever published by Sraffa, we are left to wonder what would have come after the prelude. This paper suggests that the core of the critique might have been the marginal method itself. By carefully distinguishing between published and unpublished work, we shows that Sraffa's opposition to the marginal method follows several threads, some of which were developed over a period of nearly 35 years, such as the belief that economic theory should use only measurable and observable magnitudes, the critique of the ‘fundamental’ symmetry between production and consumption, and the disagreement with the Marshallian concept of equilibrium. Although none of the arguments reached a stage that Sraffa considered satisfactory enough to be worth publishing, our reconstruction sheds light on his research programme and on otherwise rather obscure passages in his works. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presented here, part of my PhD dissertation written under Professor Brian Reddaway's guidance, is offered as an example of his approach to applied economics as well as a tribute to his legacy. The scope of this paper is to suggest an operational approach to the analysis of growth, an approach that allows us to grasp immediately the most important changes that might occur in the structure of an economy. This procedure is applied to the Italian economy over the period of its most rapid growth (1960-79) to see whether some of the most important results established in the literature on modern economic growth are confirmed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the Italian recession in a theoretical framework which combines Marxian and Kaldorian elements. The interpretation proposed of the slow rate of growth of the Italian economy in the last decades is based on the view that the implementation of a liberal agenda (mainly in the form of increasing labour market deregulation and increasing taxation on labour) has generated increasing income inequality and the reduction of the growth rate. The basic idea, derived from Kaldor, is that the decline of labour share, the increasing precariousness and measures of fiscal consolidation have reduced domestic demand with negative effects on the level of employment and the growth of labour productivity. Moreover, the increase in public debt involves increasing taxation (mainly on labour), which, in turn, contributes to the reduction of the rate of growth of labour productivity via the deterioration of the quality of the workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present paper the energy impact of buildings' insulation materials in Italy is analyzed, taking into account both the savings in the annual climatisation and the energy consumed to produce them (Life Cycle Assessment, LCA); furthermore the economic matter is evaluated in an investment analysis (Life Cycle Cost, LCC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In traditional tight integration of high-rate GNSS and strong motion sensors, an appropriate process variance is crucial for obtaining accurate broad-band coseismic deformations. In this paper, instead of using a subjectively empirical value, we present an approach for determining the process variance adaptively based on the adaptive Kalman filter for real-time use. The performance of the approach was validated by the colocated stations collected during the 2010 M w 7.2 earthquake in El-Mayor, 2016 M w 7.8 earthquake in New Zealand and 2016 M w 6.5 earthquake in central Italy. The results show that this method complements the advantages of GNSS and strong motion accelerometers and can provide more accurate coseismic waveforms especially during the strong shaking period, due to the ability of the method to adjust the process variance in real time according to the actual status of the station. In addition, this method is also free from the influence of the baseline shift. Testing of the new method for the integration of strong motion and multi-GNSS indicates that multi-GNSS has an obvious improvement in the precision while single GPS has a poor observation condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper three logit models of school continuation are presented. The Italian school system was divided into three separate school transitions: from primary education to lower secondary school, from lower to higher secondary school, and from higher secondary education to university. Data derive from the Italian Social Mobility Survey, carried out in 1985 on a sample of over 5,000 people, both male and female, employed and unemployed. They are used in this paper for a cohort analysis of trends over time of educational inequalities due to social origin and sex. The main conclusion of this study is that, apart from minor changes in the rapidly contracting sector of agriculture, there is no consistent sign of reduction of educational inequalities by social origin in Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The joint inversion of multiple data sets encompasses the advantages of different geophysical methods but may yield to conflicting solutions. Global search methods have been recently developed to address the issue of local minima found by derivative-based methods, to analyse the data compatibility and to find the set of trade-off solutions, since they are not unique. In this paper, we examine two evolutionary algorithms to solve the joint inversion of electrical and electromagnetic data. These nature-inspired metaheuristics also adopt the principle of Pareto optimality in order to identify the result among the feasible solutions and then infer the data compatibility. Since the joint inversion is characterized by more than one objective, we implemented the algorithm multi-objective particle swarm optimization (MOPSO) to jointly interpret time-domain electromagnetic data and vertical electrical sounding. We first tested MOPSO on a synthetic model. The performance of MOPSO was directly compared with that of a multi-objective genetic algorithm, the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-III), which has often been adopted in geophysics. The adoption of MOPSO and NSGA-III enabled avoiding both simplification into a single-objective problem and the use of a weighting factor between the objectives. We tested the two methods on real data sets collected in the northwest of Italy. The results obtained from MOPSO and NSGA-III were highly comparable to each other and largely consistent with literature findings. The MOPSO performed a rigorous selection of the best trade-off solutions and its convergence was faster than NSGA-III. The analysis of the Pareto Front reported data incompatibility, which is very common for real data due to different resolutions, sensitivities and depth of investigations. Notwithstanding this, the multi-objective optimizers provided a complementary interpretation of the data, ensuring significant advantages with respect to the separate optimizations we carried out using the single-objective particle swarm optimization algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Lower levels of sun exposure in childhood have been suggested to be associated with increased risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). In this paper we extend previous work, using two novel analytical strategies.Methods: Data collected in the Environmental risk factors In MS (EnvIMS) study, a case-control study with MS cases and population-based controls from Canada, Italy and Norway, were used. Participants reported on sun exposure behaviours for 5-year age intervals from birth; we focused on the first three age intervals (≤15 years). We compared two life course epidemiology conceptual models, the critical period and the accumulation model. We also used latent class analysis to estimate MS risk for different latent sun exposure behaviour groups.Results: The analyses included 2251 cases and 4028 controls. The accumulation model was found to be the best model, which demonstrated a nearly 50% increased risk of MS comparing lowest reported summer sun exposure with highest [risk ratio (RR) = 1.47 (1.24, 1.74)]. The latent sun exposure behaviour group, characterized by low sun exposure during summer and winter and high sun protection use, had the highest risk of MS; a 76% increased risk as compared with the group with high sun exposure and low sun protection use [RR = 1.76 (1.27, 2.46)].Conclusions: Our analyses provide novel insights into the link between sun exposure and MS. We demonstrate that more time indoors during childhood and early adolescence is linked with MS risk, and that sun protection behaviours in those who spend most time indoors may play a key role in increasing risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The annual meeting of the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging, EuroEcho-Imaging, was held in Milan, Italy, in December 2018. In the present paper, we report a summary of the 'Highlights' session. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to estimate fiscal multipliers in Italy by assessing the effect of an increase in government expenditure and taxes on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). By applying structural vector autoregressive modelling to Italian quarterly data for the 1995–2019 period, I show that expansionary fiscal policies produce positive effects on the GDP level. Estimated spending multipliers are higher than 1, and when government investment and consumption are compared, findings show that government investment has a larger effect on GDP than government consumption. Estimated tax multipliers are lower than 1, and tax-based policies are less effective in stimulating GDP than expenditure-based fiscal plans. My findings strongly support the Keynesian perspective and indicate that Italy should increase public investments considerably in order to foster economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper traces the developments of quality assurance in the Italian university system since the early 1990s. Based on the theoretical assumption that the 'quality assurance' label covers a wide range of different mixes of policy tools by means of which governments regulate (substantially at a distance) the systemic dynamics of their university systems, this paper adopts a mechanistic perspective in order to show how the Italian version of quality assurance, and of the respective NPM policy tools, has been significantly affected by the ambiguity of governments' approaches to the question, and by the basic inability of universities to perform as corporate actors. This has resulted in quality assurance policy becoming yet another set of formal rules to be complied with, and has had the effect of partially re-centralizing the governance of the entire university system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After World War II, Prato (in Italy) became known for the extraordinary development of its textile industry. The development was extraordinary due to its size and because it was based on small firms, the study of which contributed to the rediscovery of the Marshallian industrial district. In recent decades Prato has become increasingly known for the rise of the largest agglomeration in Italy of Chinese immigrants’ businesses specialised in fast fashion clothing. Despite the attention devoted to this phenomenon, how and why the Chinese in Prato were so successful remains somewhat of a mystery. This paper explores the case of the Chinese in Prato, considering first their influx into the district as subcontractors and then their transformation into final producers of pronto moda. The paper focuses on the causes of these immigrants’ exceptional development and on the possible consequences of this evolution for the future of Prato in the new global economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper estimates the causal relationship of supply of art on domestic tourist flows. To this aim, we use aggregate bilateral data on tourist flows and various data on museums in the twenty Italian regions. To solve the potential endogeneity of the supply of museums, we use three different empirical strategies: we use a fixed effects model controlling for bilateral macro-area dummies, we compute the degree of selection on unobservables relative to observables which would be necessary to drive the result to zero and, finally, we adopt a two-stage least squares approach that uses a measure of historical patronage, the number of noble families, as an instrument for the number of museums. For each empirical strategy, there is strong evidence of a positive effect of the number of 'net-museums' on bilateral tourist flows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the impact of the public smoking ban which came into effect in Italy in January 2005 on individual smoking behaviour. Current empirical evidence supports the existence of a negative effect of the Italian ban on smoking prevalence and consumption in the general population. Our analysis shows that the apparent success of the ban is due to the fact that existing results do not take into account seasonal differences in smoking behaviour. Using quarterly data from the 1999/2000 and 2004/2005 Italian Health Surveys and adopting a difference-in-difference approach that nets out monthly variation in smoking rates, we show that the Italian smoking ban had no impact on smoking behaviour for the population as a whole but only on some subgroups. This result notwithstanding, we find that the smoking ban increased the overall well-being of non-smokers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Primary hyperoxaluria (PH) is a rare, severe genetic disorder, characterized by increased urinary excretion of calcium oxalate, which is responsible for kidney damage and systemic clinical manifestations. Since the year 2020, a new molecule, lumasiran, based on RNA interference (RNAi) technology, has been added to the traditional therapeutic approach. The aim of this analysis was to define the baseline characteristics of a PH1 pediatric population treated with lumasiran in a compassionate-use program setting, and to evaluate the medium-term efficacy of this drug in the routine clinical setting. Methods A retrospective observational analysis was conducted in nine pediatric patients (male:female 5:4; median age at lumasiran start 1.9 years, range 0–14.1). Data concerning oxalate concentration in plasma and urine, kidney stones events, ultrasound and kidney function were collected during the study period (follow-up, mean ± standard deviation: 15.3 ± 5 months). Results In this analysis, a reduction in the urinary oxalate to creatinine ratio (reduction range within the sixth month of treatment from 25.8% to 69.6%, median 51.2%) as well as plasma oxalate concentration under the limit of supersaturation of oxalate in all the patients. Only one patient presented new stone events; kidney ultrasonographic findings related to nephrocalcinosis remained stable in eight out of nine patients. Glomerular filtration rate remained stable during treatment. No adverse events related to lumasiran were noted. Conclusion Data from this analysis support the efficacy and safety of lumasiran in a pediatric clinical setting, especially if administrated in early life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY In this paper, we present a significant update of the Italian present-day stress data compilation not only to improve the knowledge on the tectonic setting of the region or to constrain future geodynamic models, but also to understand the mechanics of processes linked to faulting and earthquakes. In this paper, we have analysed, revised and collected new contemporary stress data from borehole breakouts and we have assembled earthquake and fault data. In total, 206 new quality-ranked entries complete the definition of the horizontal stress orientation and tectonic regime in some areas, and bring new information mainly in Sicily and along the Apenninic belt. Now the global Italian data set consists of 715 data points, including 499 of A-C quality, representing an increase of 37 per cent compared to the previous compilation. The alignment of horizontal stresses measured in some regions, closely matches the ∼N-S first-order stress field orientation of ongoing relative crustal motions between Eurasia and Africa plates. The Apenninic belt shows a diffuse extensional stress regime indicating a ∼NE-SW direction of extension, that we interpret as related to a second-order stress field. The horizontal stress rotations observed in peculiar areas reflect a complex interaction between first-order stress field and local effects revealing the importance of the tectonic structure orientations. In particular, in Sicily the new data delineate a more complete tectonic picture evidencing adjacent areas characterized by distinct stress regime: northern offshore of Sicily and in the Hyblean plateau the alignment of horizontal stresses is consistent with the crustal motions, whereas different directions have been observed along the belt and foredeep. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY Campi Flegrei collapse caldera (Italy) is a high-risk volcanic area located close to Naples and includes part of the densely populated city. This area is characterised by large up and down ground displacements. The last large uplift episode caused 3.5 m of cumulative vertical displacement at the centre of the town of Pozzuoli, during the period 1969-1984. Up and down ground movements in this area often occur without intercurring eruptions and are similar to what is observed at other calderas worldwide. Here, however, they appear more evident and amplified. Understanding the mechanism of such movements is crucial for hazard assessment and eruption forecast, mainly due to this densely populated area. This paper presents a detailed model for ground displacements due to deep fluid injection in shallower layers. Such a model explains in a natural way the occurrence of uplift and subsidence without eruptions. We show that it is possible to fit observed ground deformation in this area with a thermofluid dynamical model. The model obtained is also consistent with other observations like microgravity changes, changes in CO2 flux, etc. Here, we suggest that significant uplift and subsidence at calderas can be due to effects of deep fluid injections other than magma. At Campi Flegrei, however, a partial magmatic contribution at the origin of the observed episodes cannot be excluded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary The Great Recession triggered a resurgence of short-time work (STW) throughout the OECD. Several countries introduced STW from scratch or significantly expanded the scope of the programmes already in place. In some countries like Italy, Japan and Germany between 2.5% and 5% of the workforce participated in STW schemes at the trough of the recession. In this paper we analyse the rationale for STW benefits and their effects on labour adjustment from both a cross-country and a time-series perspective. We find that STW actually contributed to reduce job losses during the Great Recession. However, the number of jobs saved, according to our macroeconomic and microeconomic estimates, is smaller than the number of participants in these schemes and the full-time equivalent jobs involved, pointing in some countries to sizeable deadweight costs. Other institutions, like plant-level bargaining over hours, wages and employment levels, may be more effective than STW in encouraging adjustment along the intensive margins in the presence of temporary shocks. Our results also suggest that STW cannot be readily extended to countries having much different institutional configurations as the demand for STW is very much affected by other institutions such as employment protection legislation and the degree of centralization of collective bargaining. Furthermore, STW must be temporary as during upturns may actually negatively affect employment. We also find that specific design features of STW - such as experience-rating and disincentives to 100% reductions in working hours - are important in improving the cyclical properties of STW. - Tito Boeri and Herbert Bruecker [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives This paper reports the measurement of technical efficiency of Tuscan Local Health Authorities and its relationship with quality and appropriateness of care. Design First, a bias-corrected measure of technical efficiency was developed using the bootstrap technique applied to data envelopment analysis. Then, correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationships among technical efficiency, quality and appropriateness of care. Setting and Participants These analyses have been applied to the Local Health Authorities of Tuscany Region (Italy), which provide not only hospital inpatient services, but also prevention and primary care. All top managers of Tuscan Local Health Authorities were involved in selection of the inputs and outputs for calculating technical efficiency. Main Outcome Measures The main measures used in this study are volume, quality and appropriateness indicators monitored by the multidimensional performance evaluation system developed in the Tuscany Region. Results On average, Tuscan Local Health Authorities experienced 14(%) of bias-corrected inefficiency in 2007. Correlation analyses showed a significant negative correlation between per capita costs and overall performance. No correlation was found in 2007 between technical efficiency and overall performance or between technical efficiency and per capita costs. Conclusions Technical efficiency cannot be considered as an extensive measure of healthcare performance, but evidence shows that Tuscan Local Health Authorities have room for improvement in productivity levels. Indeed, correlation findings suggest that, to pursue financial sustainability, Local Health Authorities mainly have to improve their performance in terms of quality and appropriateness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic and social vitality of industrial districts (IDs) depends on the interaction between two major sub-systems: a community of people and a population of firms. A range of circumstances determined inconsistencies between the rationales of these two sub-systems. The emergence of leader firms that substitute the ID as coordinating instances and cost scrapping as a strategy that bypasses quality enhancement undermine the ID as a system. The paper contends that this outcome is not the only possible one. An alternative would require a regulatory—as opposed to merely permissive—action of public actors. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper we study the impact of firms’ productivity and scale of activity on the cost of labour for Italian manufacturing firms, investigating how the work-force composition affects the total expenditures for wages. Our analysis reveals that once productivity differences among firms are accounted for, size still retains a positive effect on cost of labour. We show that the source of this phenomenon is the relatively higher proportion of non-production workers in bigger firms, which results in a cost of labour for white collar workers that increases with increasing firm size. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Labor market ‘flexibilization’ or ‘deregulation’ is seen by many as a requirement for economic and occupational growth. As one route towards more flexibility, many European countries increased the so-called atypical or non-standard forms of employment while leaving the regulation of existing employment relations largely unchanged. In Italy, this led to a strong segmentation of the labour market. As employment is the only connection to a series of welfare entitlements, this praxis might lead to strong cleavages in the society. In this paper, we investigate the ongoing process of labour market ‘flexibilization’ and its consequences for individual labour market careers and social inequalities and ask whether the deregulation has fulfilled the expectations attached to it. In detail, we study the entries into the marginal labour market and the consequences for employment careers of these forms of ‘new’ flexible employment. Empirical findings based on Indagine Longitudinale sulle Famiglie Italiane data cast doubts on the effectiveness of the specific form of market deregulation in Italy and confirm strong long-term implications of atypical employment episodes for career chances. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The paper analyses inequalities in educational outcomes (IEO) by class of family of origin in Italy and Spain for five 10-year cohorts born from 1920 to 1969, using the cumulative logit (ordinal regression) model. In both countries the question is whether, as education expanded, the class IEO's remained stable or diminished. The dominant view in the 1990s was that, with the exception of a few countries, inequalities persisted. In the current decade the consensus on this is changing, and decreasing class IEO is now more often found. Italy has been given as an example of educational expansion while maintaining class IEO. Spain was not included in previous analyses. The results show clearly that class IEO diminished in Spain as well as in Italy; differences in the timing of expansion and change in IEO can be accounted for through the different institutional settings of the two countries. A more contained reduction of IEO is found in Spain than in Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the relationship between finance and R&D for a panel of more than 1000 Italian manufacturing firms. While Italian firms obtain a significant share of their financing from debt, the results from a unique survey show that firms use virtually no debt to finance R&D. Because Italian firms typically do not receive external equity, the obvious source of innovation financing is internal cash flow. The sensitivity of capital investment to cash flow for small and medium-large firms is estimated, testing for the presence of informational frictions in the credit market for companies performing R&D activities. A GMM method that controls for unobserved firm-specific effects and endogenous explanatory variables is used. Cash flow plays an important role in explaining capital investment, especially for small firms. Interestingly, when the measure of firms' innovative activities is considered, significant differences are found between the sub-samples of small and medium- large firms. While small innovative firms are subject to relevant financing constraints, larger companies investing in R&D have easier access to external financing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is the first paper to analyse the labour-market assimilation of foreign (i.e. non-citizen) workers in Italy. It considers the daily wages and the days of employment of mile workers in WHIP a matched employer-employee panel dataset, from 1990 to 2003. The traditional human-capital approach is augmented by a control for the probability of staying abroad, modelled by aggregate variables of the origin country. The human-capital variables considered are age and experience, both in and out of employment. What emerges from the empirical analysis is discouraging. Foreigners who are able to get higher wages are the least likely to stay, but assimilation profiles do not change when return migration is taken into account. Foreigners employed in the private sector earn the same wages as natives upon entry into employment, but the two wage profiles diverge with on-the-job experience. Neither do foreigners assimilate from an employment perspective: a differential in employment between foreign and native workers is found even upon entry, which increases over time. In the construction sector the wage and employment differential is even larger, while manufacturing and services follow the aggregate trend. Africans immigrants have the fewest career prospects while Eastern European and Asian workers are less far behind. The general pattern for foreign workers appears to be a fragmented career, either restricted to seasonal or temporary jobs or alternating between legal and illegal employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a fixed-effect panel methodology that enables us to simultaneously take into account both TFP convergence and the traditional neoclassical-type of convergence. We analyse a sample of Italian regions between 1963 and 1993 and find strong evidence that both mechanisms were at work during the process of aggregate regional convergence observed in Italy up to the mid-seventies. Finally, we find that our TFP estimates are highly positively correlated with standard human capital measures, where the latter is not statistically significant in growth regressions. This evidence confirms one of the hypotheses of the Nelson and Phelps approach, namely that human capital is the main determinant of technological catch-up. Our results are robust to the use of different estimation procedures such as simple LSDV, Kiviet-corrected LSDV, and GMM à la Arellano and Bond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]