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This paper deals with the identification of the wood species used for the production of wooden tools in an ancient plant for manual paper production. After a quick historic contextualisation of the importance of the paper industry developed in the Pescia district (Tuscany, Italy), this paper describes the process of manual paper production and the different tools, mostly wooden, used by the workers. The historic plant "Le Carte" still preserves these tools, which were sampled to scientifically identify the timber species. Samples were drawn from any wooden component of the equipment involved in the whole manual paper making process. Sampling was performed on any portion of the artefact where the species of origin was not clearly and reliably identifiable by eye, or aided by a manual magnifying lens. In total, 1223 identifications were performed and 25 timber types observed. Most of timber identifications regard the large mould collection (434 artefacts, 1154 identifications, 17 timbers), while the equipment included fewer artefacts, identifications and timbers. Obtained results are then technologically discussed, considering the features of each species and the specific needs of each final use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmers' Markets (FMs) have gained relevance in recent years as increasingly acknowledged to be critical to turn to more equitable food systems, easing agroecological transition, and preserving biocultural heritage. However, the issue of the forms of social and institutional coordination needed to create, organize, manage and promote FMs is a recent topic in the literature, and their governance is still poorly considered. Based on a set of case studies in Tuscany, Italy, this paper intends to contribute to filling this gap by analysing the forms of governance and the role of different stakeholders. The hypothesis is that FMs are social constructions that respond to processes of social and institutional innovation through direct exchanges between producers, consumers and other stakeholders, articulated at both local and non-local level. The aim of the paper is to explore the interactions between stakeholders and the corresponding forms of multi-level governance that emerge. The method for testing the hypotheses is qualitative, through semi-structured interviews to FMs managers and conversations with producers and other stakeholders, conducted between May and August 2022 in Tuscany. The research was complemented by consultation of indirect sources, such as FMs websites and social networks. The results are summarized in the elaboration of a three-dimensional and territorially embedded governance model. The first dimension refers to the management of internal relations between stakeholders within the FM. The second corresponds to the activation of dialogue, negotiation, and agreement with the municipality and other local authorities, and with local farmers' unions. The third type corresponds to vertical flows between the FMs and extraterritorial bodies, i.e., regional government, regional and national farmers' unions and other stakeholder associations. It is important to note that at FMs level, processes of hybridization between the different types of governance are established. The article contributes to the analysis of FMs as economic and social constructions and may be useful for establishing comparative frameworks around institutional and collective action dimensions, multi-actor and multilevel studies of governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transition towards sustainable food systems demands a change to integrated or territorial policy approaches and boundary-spanning governance arrangements. Territorial approaches provide an effective framework to address food systems transformation at a scale where it can be tackled with the active participation of all stakeholders. The paper brings the territorial governance approach to the food governance debate and introduces the concept of participatory multi-stakeholder food platforms as arrangements to implement territorial food governance. The paper investigates the implementation of territorial food governance in Tuscany (Italy) at local level and explores the emerging attempt to scaling-up local food governance by developing a regional participatory multi-stakeholder food platform: the Regional Food Roundtable of Tuscany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This comprehensive retrospective data-linkage study aimed at evaluating the impact of Direct-Acting Antivirals (DAAs) on Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) testing, treatment trends, and access to care in Tuscany over six years following their introduction. Utilizing administrative healthcare records, our work reveals a substantial increase in HCV tests in 2017, attributed to the decision to provide universal access to treatment. However, despite efforts to eradicate chronic HCV through a government-led plan, the target of treating 6,221 patients annually was not met, and services contracted after 2018, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Key findings indicate a higher prevalence of HCV screening among females in the 33–53 age group, influenced by pregnancy-related recommendations, while diagnostic tests and treatment uptake were more common among males. Problematic substance users constituted a significant proportion of those tested and treated, emphasizing their priority in HCV screening. Our paper underscores the need for decentralized HCV models and alternative testing strategies, such as point-of-care assays, especially in populations accessing harm reduction services, communities, and prisons. The study acknowledges limitations in relying solely on administrative records, advocating for improved data access and timely linkages to accurately monitor HCV care cascades and inform regional plans. Despite challenges, the paper demonstrates the value of administrative record linkages in understanding the access to care pathway for hard-to-reach populations. The findings emphasize the importance of the national HCV elimination strategy and the need for enhanced data collection to assess progress accurately, providing insights for future regional and national interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Reti Medievali is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Remote sensing products are typically assessed using a single accuracy estimate for the entire map, despite significant variations in accuracy across different map areas or classes. Estimating per-pixel uncertainty is a major challenge for enhancing the usability and potential of remote sensing products. This paper introduces the dataDriven open access tool, a novel statistical design-based approach that specifically addresses this issue by estimating per-pixel uncertainty through a bootstrap resampling procedure. Leveraging Sentinel-2 remote sensing data as auxiliary information, the capabilities of the Google Earth Engine cloud computing platform, and the R programming language, dataDriven can be applied in any world region and variables of interest. In this study, the dataDriven tool was tested in the Rincine forest estate study area—eastern Tuscany, Italy—focusing on volume density as the variable of interest. The average volume density was 0.042, corresponding to 420 m3 per hectare. The estimated pixel errors ranged between 93 m3 and 979 m3 per hectare and were 285 m3 per hectare on average. The ability to produce error estimates for each pixel in the map is a novel aspect in the context of the current advances in remote sensing and forest monitoring and assessment. It constitutes a significant support in forest management applications and also a powerful communication tool since it informs users about areas where map estimates are unreliable, at the same time highlighting the areas where the information provided via the map is more trustworthy. In light of this, the dataDriven tool aims to support researchers and practitioners in the spatially exhaustive use of remote sensing-derived products and map validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objective: The embryo and the fetus develop in a physiologically hypoxic environment, where vascularization is sustained by HIF-1, VEGF, and the β-adrenergic system. In animals, β3-adrenoceptors (β3-ARs), up-regulated by hypoxia, favor global fetal wellness to such an extent that most diseases related to prematurity are hypothesized to be induced or aggravated by a precocious β3-AR down-regulation, due to premature exposure to a relatively hyperoxic environment. In animals, β3-AR pharmacological agonism is currently investigated as a possible new therapeutic opportunity to counteract oxygen-induced damages. Our goal is to translate the knowledge acquired in animals to humans. Recently, we have demonstrated that fetuses become progressively more hypoxemic from mid-gestation to near-term, but starting from the 33rd–34th week, oxygenation progressively increases until birth. The present paper aims to describe a clinical research protocol, evaluating whether the expression level of HIF-1, β3-ARs, and VEGF is modulated by oxygen during intrauterine and postnatal life, in a similar way to animals. Materials and Methods: In a prospective, non-profit, single-center observational study we will enroll 100 preterm (group A) and 100 full-term newborns (group B). We will collect cord blood samples (T0) and measure the RNA expression level of HIF-1, β3-ARs, and VEGF by digital PCR. In preterms, we will also measure gene expression at 48–72h (T1), 14 days (T2), and 30 days (T3) of life and at 40 ± 3 weeks of post-menstrual age (T4), regardless of the day of life. We will compare group A (T0) vs. group B (T0) and identify any correlations between the values obtained from serial samples in group A and the clinical data of the patients. Our protocol has been approved by the Pediatric Ethical Committee for Clinical Research of the Tuscany region (number 291/2022). Expected Results: The observation that in infants, the HIF-1/β3-ARs/VEGF axis shows similar modulation to that of animals could suggest that β3-ARs also promote fetal well-being in humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Sheep farmers face increasing pressure to produce more in order to meet market demands, while consumers have more interest in animal welfare status and the environment. The aim of this paper was to categorize the on-farm welfare risks using the ClassyFarm protocol and to identify if welfare risk changed according to farm size. The critical issues we found were the low number of stockpersons, the small areas available for the animals, the lack of udder cleaning procedures during milking, and the lack of prevention plans for the most important infectious ovine diseases. As the number of animals within the farm increased, the management of the flock improved; on the other hand, the number of animal inspections decreased and the hygiene of the water worsened. The objective of the present work was to categorize the risks in the on-farm welfare of dairy sheep in semi-extensive systems in order to highlight if risks in welfare vary according to the farm size. To the best of our knowledge, this study constitutes one of the few categorizations of the risks in the welfare of dairy sheep reared semi-extensively. The survey was conducted on 12 semi-extensive dairy sheep farms in Tuscany (Central Italy), which were classified according to flock size: <500, from 500 to 1000, and >1000. The results showed an adequate rating for all the farms included in the study. The most critical issues concerned the ratio between the number of stockpersons and the number of animals within the farms, the small decubitus areas, the lack of udder cleaning procedures during milking operations, and, in terms of biosecurity, the lack of prevention, control, and eradication plans for the most important infectious ovine diseases. The results show that different items in the five areas evaluated, including the assessments of management of the flock, the number of daily inspections, and the hygiene of the water supplies are associated with the farm size. In large farms, the assessment of management of the flock was better, but the number of daily inspections and the hygiene of the water supplies were worse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The asymmetrical process of industrial development tends to increase regional disparities and result in different patterns of territorial exposure: the amount of support given to activities placed within industrial agglomerates. Spatial Attractiveness towards industrial placement tends to follow such patterns, as places with lower exposure tend to be more attractive, providing more support to productive activities. Spatial models based in economic methods have issues in precising the nature of Spatial Attractiveness disparities, as their interpretation of space as an abstracted parameter, provides insufficient locational precision to demonstrate these patterns and how those are dependent on relations between production, territorial endowments, and industrial agglomerates’ internal organization. Novel spatial-economic models ought to consider and incorporate spatial units reflecting the microfoundations of space while providing an accurate spatialization, crucial aspects to create knowledge useful for decision-making. Hence, the paper showcases spatial models tailored to address the differences in Spatial Attractiveness, based in spatial and economic territorial exposure indexes, to unveil the territorial-imbalances’ spatial logics. Organized in a GIS-based environment and using Tuscany as a proof-of-concept, the index-models identified factors of sensitivity or support to firms placed within industrial agglomerates providing an overview of spatial attractiveness within the territory, useful for supporting decision-making practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Sciurus vulgaris, commonly known as the Eurasian red squirrel, is a wild rodent species widely distributed throughout Europe and currently classified as "least concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Despite its conservation status, several threats, such as infectious diseases, habitat fragmentation and the introduction of the alien invasive species grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis), could affect S. vulgaris populations. Ectopic pregnancy is a condition consisting of a pregnancy developing outside the uterus. Tumors affecting the reproductive tract are known to predispose to this condition. In this paper, we describe for the first time a case of lymphoma leading to an ectopic pregnancy in a Eurasian red squirrel. A deeper knowledge of the pathology of this species is important for estimating the impact of diseases on the S. vulgaris population. Moreover, wildlife can be a sentinel for pathologies that have environmental causes and that could affect other animals and humans that share the same environment. Thus, deeper knowledge of wildlife cancer incidence and the environmental and individual causes of cancer development is relevant from a comparative pathology perspective. Ectopic pregnancy (EP) is a life-threatening disease that affects humans and other mammals. Tumors causing ruptures of the reproductive tract have been identified as possible predisposing factors in human and veterinary medicine. We here describe a case of concomitant ectopic pregnancy and lymphoma in a Eurasian red squirrel found deceased in Italy and submitted to the public health laboratory Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana (IZSLT) for post-mortem examination. A full-term partially mummified ectopic fetus in the abdomen and a large fibrinonecrotic tubal scar adjacent to the right ovary were observed at necropsy. The tubal scar is likely the point of tubal rupture through which the fetus displaced. Histology revealed the presence of neoplastic cells referable to lymphoma infiltrating the ovary, spleen, small intestine, heart and peripancreatic adipose tissue. The lymphoma was further characterized as T-cell-type using immunohistochemistry. We suggest that the lymphoma, by involving the ovary, played a pathogenetic role in the development of a secondary EP by altering the genital tract at the structural and hormonal levels. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of concomitant ovarian lymphoma and EP in animals and humans in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Covid-19 pandemic has wrought significant challenges on both national and regional economic systems, resulting in an exacerbation of poverty and a deceleration of economic growth. These repercussions have led to increased social tensions and discontent. Tuscany a key player in the Italian and European economies, warrants scrutiny concerning its economic structure post-pandemic, particularly in relation to the role played by industry districts and the ways for it to get out of the crisis and get back on track. This paper undertakes an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the Tuscan economy, with a focus on EMAS-APO industry districts. It examines the region's standing in terms of national and European ERCI competitiveness, placing it at an average level. Additionally, the region ranks in the third decile of the DESI digitalization, indicating a commendable technological dynamism. An equally satisfying spending power in R&D, in percentage of GDP higher than the national one, and ranking 6th in the regions' rank, is flanked by a particularly vigorous innovation capacity of the production sector. Employing a symmetric branch-by-branch SAM 2019 analysis, derived from a sector-by-product 2014 SAM constructed by IRPET, serves as the foundational step in understanding the interventions and investments necessary for resuming growth. While affirming Tuscany's competitiveness, digitalization and technological dynamism, the analysis underscores the pivotal role of manufacturing. Notably, the textile, fashion and leather sectors hold significant weight, along with the slightly less impactful paper and pharmaceutical sectors, and the noteworthy role of tourism. The region emerges as innovative, competitive and export-oriented, albeit with certain sectors grappling with environmental challenges. The IMM based analysis reveals a satisfactory average integration degree of the production system, suggesting that, for an effective, robust and sustainable post-Covid recovery and economic resurgence, focused investments and demand stimulus policy should be directed towards the textile, fashion and leather industries. Additionally, there is a strong indication to channel investments into pharmaceuticals and health care, and on transportation (especially freight transportation), as well as wholesale and retail trade. While weaker, there is a notable suggestion to invest in metallurgy, computer hardware, tourism and paper industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the letters preserved in the Datini archive, women could take the epistolary stage when it came to their (pre-)entry into a labour relation with the Datinis or their social network. The negotiating scope of women during these entries is the analytical focus of this paper; to negotiate and/or to be negotiated is the central question. Based on 53 letters from the years 1393-1398, four different search and recruitment processes for three different types of female workers - servants, slaves, and wet nurses - are comparatively examined by way of a historical semantic reading. Taking the verb-oriented method as a starting point, this study proposes two methodological extensions: an attribute-oriented method and an adaption of the semantic roles approach from linguistics. The paper argues that this historical semantic trio of methods can help to understand group-related and individual degrees of (non-)control over actions in the arrangement of labour relations in late medieval Tuscany by bringing positions of power to the epistolary surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Reti Medievali is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The paper presents the Story Map Building and Visualizing Tool (SMBVT) that allows users to create story maps within a collaborative environment and a usable Web interface. It is entirely open-source and published as a free-to-use solution. It uses Semantic Web technologies in the back-end system to represent stories through a reference ontology for representing narratives. It builds up a user-shared semantic knowledge base that automatically interconnects all stories and seamlessly enables collaborative story building. Finally, it operates within an Open-Science oriented e-Infrastructure, which enables data and information sharing within communities of narrators, and adds multi-tenancy, multi-user, security, and access-control facilities. SMBVT represents narratives as a network of spatiotemporal events related by semantic relations and standardizes the event descriptions by assigning internationalized resource identifiers (IRIs) to the event components, i.e., the entities that take part in the event (e.g., persons, objects, places, concepts). The tool automatically saves the collected knowledge as a Web Ontology Language (OWL) graph and openly publishes it as Linked Open Data. This feature allows connecting the story events to other knowledge bases. To evaluate and demonstrate our tool, we used it to describe the Apuan Alps territory in Tuscany (Italy). Based on a user-test evaluation, we assessed the tool's effectiveness at building story maps and the ability of the produced story to describe the territory beyond the map. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The study investigates the use of early forms of environmental accounting in the implementation of environmental strategies in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany between the 16th and 17th centuries. Design/methodology/approach: The study adopts the Foucauldian concept of raison d'État to shed light on the ways in which environmental accounting practices were used by Tuscan Grand Dukes to form a detailed knowledge of the territory to be governed and act accordingly. Findings: Financial and non-financial information relating to environmental issues enabled the Grand Dukes to "visualise" the territory to be managed as an enclosed disciplinary space whereby the conduct of people living therein could be decisively influenced. Accounting practices as a tool for the implementation of environmental strategies did not merely aim to protect the environment but were a means to reinforce the power of the State. Research limitations/implications: The paper can inform future works that investigate the ways in which environmental policies and accounting are used to pursue far-reaching governmental goals. It encourages scholars to examine further the origins of environmental accounting and its early forms. Social implications: The study documents how environmental strategies and the related use of accounting can have a significant influence on how individuals are allowed to conduct themselves. It also shows that environmental accounting practices can be an important tool in a State's machinery of power. Originality/value: The study offers a novel perspective on the use of environmental accounting information as a tool in the exercise of State power. It explores explicitly the interrelations between accounting, sustainability and power. It also adds new evidence to historical research that has engaged with early forms of environmental accounting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic had a great impact on adolescent mental health, with a dramatic rise in psychiatric emergencies that has challenged healthcare systems worldwide. This paper aims at focusing on reporting the authors' experience and their data collected on adolescent emergencies in 2022 in Tuscan, within the context of the "Azienda USL Toscana Nord Ovest", a large department covering about a third of Tuscany's Regional Health Service, in central Italy. The collected findings will be shortly presented and commented on, while providing insights concerning the importance of adapting healthcare systems to adequately respond to this growing crisis and the need for broader strategies to support adolescent mental health in these challenging times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Acta Histriae is the property of Historical Society of Southern Primorska of Koper and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Mountain archaeology has a long research tradition and in recent years the number of studies on this topic has increased considerably, shedding new light on the dynamics of mountain's communities. Versilia and Garfagnana districts (Lucca, north-western Tuscany) largely fall between the Apuan Alps and the Apennine ridge. Although these territories have never been systematically investigated, the collection of all available archaeological legacy data indicates a settlement pattern of undoubted interest for the Roman times. This paper aims at exploring the settlement pattern of these mountain territories, integrating Point Pattern Analysis and Logistic Regression to achieve a predictive map of archaeological presences and to analyse their interrelations with the environment. Analyses prove the spatial dependence of finds with geomorphological and pedological variables, but also with the distance to major watercourses and solar irradiation. Based on the considered variables, the predictive map confirms that the foothill and gentler slopes facing E-SE areas have suitable characteristics for permanent settlement. Moving towards the more inland and higher altitude territories, the nonevent areas increase proportionally, especially along the ridges, and the steeper, north-facing areas. Thus, the results make it possible to integrate the archaeological framework, clarifying human-environment dynamics, and directing new studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to provide a case study related to two small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of the Italian footwear supply chain, comparing sales and production data from pre-pandemic years with those affected by the COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic. Specifically, two Tuscany companies in the world of fashion footwear sector have been assisted in the analysis of their supply chains. In particular, the case research method has been employed for theory building to evaluate how companies reacted to the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to focus on potential resilience strategies that could be adopted to deal with a disruption, such as that caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, in order to understand the dynamics of the supply chains, the standard production processes were initially studied and mapped, analyzing in detail the planning, programming, and control phase. After conducting a descriptive analysis of the data, possible resilience factors of SMEs' fashion supply chains have been extracted, and strategies that SMEs could adopt to better cope with the disruption caused by the pandemic have been suggested. The outcomes of this study can be used by decision-makers to predict the operative and long-term impacts of epidemic outbreaks on the supply chains with some suggestions of potential resilience improvement strategies. The paper is concluded by summarizing the most important insights and outlining future research agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural and forest ecosystems provide multiple ecosystem services (ESs) fundamental to the well-being and quality of life of citizens. However, in the European context, these ecosystems are often threatened by processes of urban development, around cities, or abandonment, in mountainous or remote areas. Faced with the need for solutions oriented towards greater sustainability and resilience of socio-ecological systems, planning should contribute to rebuilding more integrated and mutually beneficial relationships between urban and rural areas, ensuring the effective production of multiple ESs. The regulation and management of ESs are complex and require scientifically sound and widely understandable policies and governance models, based on detailed assessment methods. This paper proposes a method for mapping and bundling the supply of five ESs produced in agricultural and forest areas, based on the processing of open source territorial data through the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), and tailored for the Tuscany region (Italy). The method integrates the land use and land cover map with other data to obtain a comprehensive ESs assessment, and then uses cluster analysis to identify bundles of ESs. Based on a first trial, the method seems to show high potentialities as a Decision Support System to promote innovative governance models for ES management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among the many diversity indices in the ecologist toolbox, measures that can be partitioned into additive terms are particularly useful as the different components can be related to different ecological processes shaping community structure.In this paper, an additive diversity decomposition is proposed to partition the diversity structure of a given community into three complementary fractions: functional diversity, functional redundancy and species dominance. These three components sum up to one. Therefore, they can be used to portray the community structure in a ternary diagram.Since the identification of community‐level patterns is an essential step to investigate the main drivers of species coexistence, the ternary diagram of functional diversity can be used to relate different facets of diversity to community assembly processes more exhaustively than looking only at one index at a time.The value of the proposed diversity decomposition is demonstrated by the analysis of actual abundance data on plant assemblages sampled in grazed and ungrazed grasslands in Tuscany (Central Italy). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Tuscany, the art of paving has never been codified in written form, being already encapsulated in knowledge based on practical experience, with specialized tradesmen and stonemasons relying on direct observation and passing on their knowledge to apprentices through repetition of gestures. The streets of Volterra, a historic town in Tuscany, are still paved with the local stone, the panchina volterrana (Volterran panchina stone). Photogrammetry techniques allow high-resolution reconstruction of 3-D pavement models and geometric representation of the macrotexture component resulting from the chiselling of the stone, as well as gaining high-resolution, high-precision geometry information along with colour information. In this way, it is possible to fully characterize the stone and generate a catalogue, which can become an operational tool for those involved in monitoring and maintaining pavements. This paper presents the methodology of photogrammetric surveying and the possibility of obtaining indices of the macrotexture of the processed surface of the stone, in terms of Virtual Mean Texture Depth (V-MTD), in analogy with the analysis of asphalt surfaces. The classification is also proposed by integrating the geometric macrotexture data with the data derived from a segmentation of the different textures obtainable for the model (diffuse, ambient occlusion). This geometric information could be then enriched by the stonemason's indications, constituting, therefore, a tool for passing on one's knowledge and experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provides information on two events about systems research and behavioral science. The 2nd International Conference on Politics and Information Systems: Technologies and Applications, in Orlando, Florida on July 21-25, 2004; The Second International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities, in Tuscany, Italy on July 20-23, 2004.

On 13 January 2012, the Italian vessel Costa Concordia wrecked on the shore of Giglio Island, about 15 km off the coast of southern Tuscany (Italy), causing the loss of 32 lives. It is considered one of the worst disasters in maritime history. Salvage operations started immediately after the wreck with the coordination of the Italian National Civil Protection Department and the technological support of several Research Centers, which were activated for the management of the consequent emergency phase. A multi-parametric and multiplatform monitoring system was promptly implemented, involving several advanced remote sensing techniques, among which was Infrared Thermography (IRT). In this framework, IRT monitoring was performed during a 35-day period (25 January–1 March 2012), using a terrestrial, hand-held thermal camera. Six different thermal images were acquired daily from the island's coastline in three different positions, both in daylight and night times. The aim was to detect thermal anomalies connected to possible deformations of the vessel and oil spills. Between 3–4 February, IRT successfully revealed on oil spill drifting from the stern of the wreck towards the island harbor. Furthermore, the wreck's thermal dilatation was also analyzed during a 24-day close-range monitoring, providing interesting insights for the interpretation of the deformation monitoring results. This paper presents the outcomes of these innovative and experimental monitoring activities, with the aim of testing the potential of IRT as a versatile and operative tool to be used in maritime and environmental disaster response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a 1:20,000 scale Geoarchaeological map of the Cornia river coastal plain in southern Tuscany. The Geoarchaeological map integrates a comprehensive dataset of geomorphological and archaeological features. The spatial relationships between landforms and archaeological records show that the settlement pattern from the VII century BC to the V century AD was mostly influenced by the presence of several depositional landforms which formed before the period under consideration. Integrating the outputs of geomorphological and topographical analyses with archaeological databases is also helpful for land planning, especially in areas where present-day anthropic exploitation needs predictive and valid tools to assess the archaeological hazard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Reti Medievali is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Muon radiography (muography) is an imaging technique based on atmospheric muon absorption in matter that allows to obtain two and three-dimensional images of internal details of hidden objects or structures. The technique relies on atmospheric muon flux measurements performed around and underneath the object under examination. It is a non-invasive and passive technique and thus can be thought of as a valid alternative to common prospecting techniques used in archaeological, geological and civil security fields. This paper describes muon radiography measurements, in the context of archaeological and geological studies carried out at the Temperino mine (LI, Tuscany, Italy), for the search and three-dimensional visualisation of cavities. This mine has been exploited since Etruscan times until recently (1973), and is now an active tourist attraction with public access to the tunnels. Apart from the archaeological interest, the importance of mapping the cavities within this mine lies in identifying the areas where the extraction ores were found and also in the safety issues arising from the tourist presence inside the mine. The three-dimensional imaging is achieved with two different algorithms: one involving a triangulation of two or more measurements at different locations; the other, an innovative technique used here for the first time, is based on the back-projections of reconstructed muon tracks. The latter requires only a single muographic data tacking and is to be preferred in applications where more than one site location can be difficult to access. Finally the quality of the three-dimensional muographic imaging was evaluated by comparing the results with the laser scan profiles obtained for some known cavities within the Temperino mine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A recent study has proposed and tested a semi-empirical method to estimate crop irrigation based on a water balance logic and Sentinel-2 Multi Spectral Instrument (MSI) NDVI imagery. The current paper aims at extending the same approach to the analysis of the main irrigation patterns occurred in Tuscany (Central Italy) during the 2000–2019 period. This operation was made possible by feeding the irrigation water (IW) estimation method with 250-m spatial resolution Terra/Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) NDVI images. The results of this operation were first assessed versus various reference datasets available for the region; next, the annual maps of IW estimated for the 20 study years were analyzed at province scale in conjunction with relevant agricultural statistics. The use of MODIS in place of MSI images reduces the IW estimation accuracy irregularly at local scale, depending on the size and spatial arrangement of irrigated and non-irrigated fields; the reduction in accuracy is, however, marginal over relatively large areas. Irrigated crops are decreasing throughout most Tuscany provinces, while they are increasing in the most southern and driest province. The possible reasons and implications of these findings are finally discussed in relation to the main environmental issues affecting the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Emergency Remote Teaching experience during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in schools reviewing teaching methods and strategies. The Italian Society for Educational Research (SIRD) conducted a survey in which more than 16,000 Italian teachers took part. The aim of this study is to be a first step in analysing the data from the Tuscany and Umbria regions by comparing them with national data in relation to the teaching and assessment methods and strategies used, and with the previous teacher training in distance learning. Secondly, the paper aims to deepen the link between the use of certain teaching and assessment methods, the previous training, and the quality of the distance learning experience perceived by teachers. For this purpose, some items and scales from the questionnaire used in the SIRD survey and some categories from the qualitative analysis of the responses to the open-ended questions were selected. The study, first and foremost, revealed some peculiarities of the two regions, including Tuscany's lower evaluation of the effectiveness of the experience. On the national level, a positive relationship was found between teachers using interactive teaching strategies and "alternative" assessment activities and the higher perception of both effectiveness for student learning and adequate performance assessment. Finally, the role of previous training is underlined as useful only if it is not generally technology-centred, but rather related to teaching and assessment methods in virtual learning environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ricerche di Pedagogia e Didattica is the property of Universita di Bologna, Dipartimento di Scienze dell'Educazione and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

To control the spread of COVID-19, exceptional restrictive measures were taken in March 2020 that imposed a radical change on the lifestyle of millions of citizens around the world, albeit for a short period. The national lockdown, which lasted from 10 March to 18 May 2020 in Italy, was a unique opportunity to observe the variation in air quality in urban environments under conditions comprising almost total traffic restriction and a strong reduction in work activities. In this paper, the data from 17 urban monitoring sites in Tuscany are presented, and the PM and NO2 concentrations in the 2 months before the start of the lockdown and the 2 months after lockdown are compared with the corresponding months of the previous 3 years. The results show that the total loads of PM 2.5 and PM 10 (particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than 2.5 and 10 µm , respectively) decreased, but they did not exhibit significant changes compared to previous years, whereas NO2 underwent a drastic reduction. For three of these sites, the chemical composition of the collected samples was measured using thermal–optical techniques, ion chromatography, and particle-induced X-ray emission analysis, and the application of multivariate positive matrix factorization analysis also allowed for PM 10 source identification and apportionment. Using these analyses, it was possible to explain the low sensitivity of PM 10 to the lockdown effects as being due to different, sometimes inverse, behaviors of the different sources that contribute to PM. The results clearly indicate a decline in pollution levels related to urban traffic and an increase in the concentration of sulfate for all sites during the lockdown period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Villa Garzoni and its garden are an extraordinary example of 18th-century Tuscan taste and culture. They are located on the slope of a hill at the mouth of the Pescia di Collodi stream in the Pescia plain (northern Tuscany). The garden presents scenographic and surprise effects that are part of a single decorative ensemble of great stylistic coherence. The steeply sloping terrain influenced the planimetric organisation, which develops along a central axis of symmetry, with an arrangement of terraces. In this paper the results of a diagnostic campaign performed on the materials of the villa and garden are reported. Stones, mortars and plasters were identified and analysed according to a well-established chemical and minero petrographic approach. Local and imported stones, raw materials and technologies used for the preparation of mortars and plasters, materials used for decoration were identified. To plan the best restoration approach their state of conservation was assess. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims to relate the observations of some historians who have dealt with epidemic events in early modern Italy to some central features of Norbert Elias' approach, and to observe some social phenomena related to such events in the perspective of Eliasian sociology. In this way, we will try to suggest that the social implications of great epidemic events that occurred "in the past" can be included among the various fields of investigation in which the Eliasian approach can be tested, and we will attempt to highlight the usefulness of some key concepts of the figurational sociology for the interpretation of what can be observed in that field. With particular reference to seventeenth-century Tuscany, attention will be focused on some dynamics of change that involved - at the same time - both certain institutions engaged in the fight against the plague and certain dimensions of people's attitudes and "sensibilities". Following Norbert Elias, we will also try to suggest that the role played by the plague in defining the direction of those dynamics of change was part of a broader (civilizing) process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Botanic Garden of Pisa was established in 1543 as a teaching tool and research facility. As with the vast majority of its sister institutions, it focuses on plant collections. However, for a short time in the first half of the XIX century, the Botanic Garden exhibited a living giraffe, a cow, and a calf. Due to the transient nature of the exhibition, it could have easily gone unnoticed but for the fortuitous representation of the animals in a drawing of the same period and for sparse notes archived in the libraries of Pisa University. Furthermore, a XIX-century publication on the morphological and behavioural traits of three antelopes indirectly suggests that those animals had been kept in the Botanic Garden for research purposes. This paper presents the evidence of the living animal display in the Botanic Garden of Pisa and the context in which it was collected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Management scholars investigated the motivational aspects of volunteers, mainly focusing on their positive reciprocity – individuals feel obligated to reciprocate whenever they receive benefits from others – but neglected the possible role of negative reciprocity, the tendency to retaliate in case of mistreatments. Based on motivational functions theory and the norm of reciprocity, this paper proposes a framework assessing other-oriented and self-oriented motives as the main antecedents of volunteers' intention to stay in non-profit organizations (NPOs). Design/methodology/approach: Covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) and the PROCESS macro were used to empirically validate and test the hypothesized conceptual model on a sample of 379 volunteers actively involved in Italian NPOs. Findings: Positive reciprocity partially mediated the relationships between volunteers' other-oriented motives and self-oriented motives and their intention to stay. Instead, negative reciprocity fully mediated the relationship between self-oriented motives and intention to stay but not the relationship between other-oriented motives and intention to stay. Practical implications: Managers and marketers of NPOs should pay more attention to volunteers' attitudinal and behavioral signals to encourage within-organization positive reciprocal attitudes and discourage negative reciprocal attitudes. This represents a strategic lever to prevent volunteers from quitting the organization – which is one of the most critical challenges for NPOs' management – and improve their intention to stay. Originality/value: This is one of the first studies that simultaneously investigate the mediating role of both positive and negative reciprocity of volunteers actively involved in NPOs. Moreover, the constructs of other-oriented and self-oriented motivations are statistically validated as two separate psychological dimensions impacting on volunteers' turnover. Finally, the study has been conducted in the Region of Tuscany (Italy) which, despite its centuries-old tradition of volunteerism, has received scant attention by non-profit scholars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This data set collects capture–mark–recapture data, biometric data, and stomach contents of seven populations of the Italian cave salamander (Speleomantes italicus), one of the strictly protected European plethodontid species endemic to mainland Italy. We monitored six subterranean populations inside caves, and one fully epigean population living in a forest, surveying a total area of >5200 m2. Data collection was performed 24 times throughout a year for each of the subterranean populations, and seven times in late winter‐early spring for the epigean population. Salamanders were individually identified using two different marking methods: subcutaneous injection of visual implant elastomers (VIE) and photographic recognition of the dorsal pattern. Overall, the data set contains information on 1283 captured salamanders, corresponding to 783 different individuals and 500 recapture events. This type of data can be used to assess the species detection probability and to estimate the size of the populations, which are fundamental parameters for the assessment of its conservation status. Captured salamanders were weighed using a digital scale and photographed next to a reference ruler to perform post hoc measurements. This allows to assess the potential variation of the body condition of individuals through the time, and the potential divergences between conspecific populations. Furthermore, repeated measurements of recaptured individuals can allow to evaluate the seasonal growth rates of Speleomantes. Before their release, the salamanders underwent stomach flushing, a non‐invasive technique that allows us to investigate the food residues in the salamanders' stomach. In 951 salamanders, we were able to recognize a total of 7077 consumed prey items belonging to 37 different prey categories (i.e., order level or lower), completing the information on the consumed prey for the entire Speleomantes genus. Data on consumed prey can be used to assess potential divergences between populations or between individuals of different ages/sexes, but also to assess the potential trophic specialization of individuals. The distinctiveness of this data set is that, by combining the capture–mark–recapture data with those on the diet of individuals, it allows to perform detailed studies on the consistency of individuals' food preference over time, an analysis that has never been performed on these salamanders. We release the data set into the public domain under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license (CC‐BY). When you use this data in your publication, we request that you cite this data paper; if you are using the whole data set related to the entire project, please cite all the related papers. If this data set will be an important part of the data analyzed in your study, you should consider discussing a collaboration with the data set contact person. If you plan to use data from the European plethodontid salamanders trophic niche project, please contact the contact person to find out if similar analyses are already underway or if unpublished updates are available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serpentinite is a low-grade metamorphic rock derived from the transformation of ultramafic rocks. Mainly because of its aesthetic characteristics it has been widely used as a building and ornamental stone. "Verde di Prato" is the most common local name used in Tuscany to refer to this type of rock, historically quarried in this area and used for many centuries in a large number of monuments of this region. In this paper, we report the results of a study carried out on the serpentinite from the pavement of the Florence baptistery, to properly characterize it from a physical point of view, describe the rock conservation state, and understand the phenomena responsible for its decay. The studied rock displays numerous forms of decay including fractures, loss of material, erosion, discolouration and efflorescence. X-ray diffractometer analyses of the efflorescence revealed the presence of numerous salts whose formation can be imputed to multiple, possibly concomitant, causes such as the high relative humidity and the variation of inside temperature, the presence of concrete and/or cementitious mortars in the subsoil, atmospheric pollution and the burial ground existing close the baptistery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Garfagnana region of Tuscany has witnessed a resurgence in the small-scale farming sector. Rooted in a historical practice of multifunctional agriculture, over the last decade family farmers and local institutions have increasingly focused on place-based development initiatives, such as revalorizing native livestock breeds and promoting agroecological practices, as ways to strengthen small-scale agriculture and the local rural economy. This place-based turn is now reshaping the development trajectories of many family farms and communities in Garfagnana. Drawing on qualitative field research conducted in 2015, this paper utilizes the sociological conceptual lenses of multifunctional agriculture and place-based development to analyze three casestudy farms, each with different production systems and territorial relations. Multifunctional agriculture theory is used to analyze how farming practices in the three case-studies represent a range of adaptive shifts away from productionist trends and toward a more diversified farming approach. Then place-based theory is used to demonstrate how these multifunctional agriculture practices relate to the distinct socio-ecological landscape of Garfagnana, uniquely rooting these farms in the territory. This article ultimately examines how new forms of multifunctional agriculture are fostering a place-based food and agriculture system in central Italy and how this approach can strengthen family farming and rural communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Reti Medievali is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of InTRAlinea: Online Translation Journal is the property of Department Interpreting & Translation (DIT) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This work aims to analyze the impact of technological eco-innovation on the modernization and development of a local area. The role of eco-innovation would be to stimulate an innovative environment and spur a development of the territory and economic districts, and the diffusion of said particularities among wider geographic contexts, hence allowing a globalization model more observant of local specificities, and thus an open system able to develop economic and cultural exchange respecting local particularities. In recent years, smart city has asserted itself as a general model for the city of tomorrow, and sustainability has become a focal point in urban development policies. In this paper, we investigate how an integrated and intermodal methodology for the development of smart mobility systems—the European project "Life for Silver Coast"—is impacting the modernization and development of an Italian coastal area in Tuscany. The main focus of our paper is to understand how an integrated mobility network allows a transition toward a sustainable form of social relationship and a new economic pattern and could represent the starting point for a spatial, relational and institutional reorganization process that would lead to a change in the production and management dynamics of the local ecosystem concerning cultural, social and economic issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many regions of Europe, semi-natural grasslands not properly utilized face different threats, concerning changes in botanical composition and structural evolution, which can lead to a reduction of the qualitative value of forage biomass or, in the mid-long term, forest recovery. The present paper assesses various semi-natural grasslands within a mountain public property located in Tuscany (North Apennines, Italy) subjected to different types of utilization. Some of them are managed through cattle grazing during summer, whereas some others are only periodically mowed and utilization is performed only by wildlife occurring in the area. The paper analyses the importance of resource management and its impact on botanical composition and on qualitative value of forage production. Data collection of studied areas was conducted by means of vegetation assessment performed with a fast procedure that simplifies the botanical composition sampling. Results show the relevance of some environmental factors on grasslands evolution and on their composition (such as altitude and slope) and the importance of management on grassland quality and on level of shrub encroachment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the stationary configurations of a vapor-dominated geothermal system. We propose a general mathematical model, which turns out to be a free boundary problem, and we focus on the stationary solutions. The analysis, developed considering the data of the geothermal field in Larderello, Tuscany (Italy), shows that steady-stable states may exist both when the re-injection takes place in depth and when the natural recharge is distributed both in the area occupied by vapor and in the one occupied by liquid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper litho-sedimentological and morphodynamic maps of the coastal sector belonging to the Pisa Province are presented as an example of how increasing the accessibility to data on lithology, sedimentology, and morphodynamics may lead to a better approach to coastal management. The database used to build the maps includes an original rendering of remote sensing data (aerial imagery) and new field data (geologic survey), as well as data retrieved from the scientific literature (grain-size and past coastline positions). The maps show that the geometry of beach ridges is an indication of the evolution of the Arno River delta in the last 3000 years, highlighting the relationships between geological aspects and morphodynamic features. The maps represent the synthesis of different data available in the database, and they may be a useful support to coastal management as they are more easily understandable and straightforward than the database from which are created. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Tuscany region of Italy is at the top of the preferences of Romanian immigrants. In this area, there were registered, in 2018, 84,621 Romanians representing 20.72% of the total foreign population, according to the data provided by ISTAT. Starting from the theory of social representations (Moscovici, 1978), the paper attempts to investigate how Romanian immigrants are represented in the mass media in Tuscany. Mass media contributes to a great extent to the formation of a positive or negative perception towards immigrants among the indigenous population, to the crystallization of the collective and individual image regarding immigrants, and the construction of new social representations. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to establish the elements that lead to the creation of a positive or negative symbolic capital of Romanian immigrants, according to the most important online newspapers in the region. The premise from which we start is that the elements that shape the symbolic image of the Romanian immigrants from Tuscany are rather negative, as the isolated actions of some immigrants lead to stereotypes and prejudices towards the entire minority group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Etruscan control in Italy was not constrained distinctly by the well-known region of Etruscan culture (Tuscany and northern Lazio). The Etruscan power also extended toward the southwestern areas (Campania) as well as to the northern parts of Italy (Po valley). The impact of Etruscan culture spread over the entire land. The essential wellsprings of the paper are represented by the ancient sources in Latin and Greek from different periods treating Etruscan culture and society. The ancient authors portrayed the high class of society intentionally. They planned to define Etruscans as pleasure-seekers that participated in the spectacular banquets. The truth of the matter, from an archaeological perspective, is that it was not completely real. Archaeobotanical and anthropological investigation demonstrates that the way of life of the vast majority of the Etruscan population was standardly modest. Comparison of ancient written sources with archaeological data proves that the ancient writers were one-sided, sometimes without a critical approach to the sources, which could cause the misconception of certain components of Etruscan culture. There could be several reasons why it was so. The main focus of this paper is the examination of these reasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of the different drivers of the establishment of innovation relationships in an aerospace cluster. In particular, the work investigates the impact of the various forms of proximity in the formation of inter-organisational collaborations for innovation. Design/methodology/approach: The analysis is based on primary data collected through interviews and questionnaires on innovation collaborations, administered to all the firms operating in the aerospace cluster in Tuscany. The work applies social network analysis and Exponential Random Graph Models to analyse the forces that drive inter-organisational collaborations for innovation. Findings: Results confirm the importance of geographical proximity in the formation of ties in the cluster, but social proximity is one of the main drivers for tie formation. Reciprocity shows that companies develop innovations in a reciprocal way and that most relationships are bidirectional. Triadic closure is also relevant, where the role played by trust and previous relationships is evident. Finally, hierarchy network processes are underlined, where the most central actors of the network are the most popular confirming a processes of preferential attachment. The central organisations gradually are more important, whereas the marginal ones are left in the periphery. Originality/value: The work presents some novelties. First, it measures the different impacts of the various forms of proximity together with more advanced measures of network analysis. It allows pointing out the relevance of a firm's network position in clusters and the fact that clusters assume hierarchical structures similar to centre-periphery networks, where most relevant nodes are in the inner core and marginal organisations are relegated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of accounting in the enactment of the Napoleonic imperial project in Tuscany and the Kingdom of Naples in the early nineteenth century. Design/methodology/approach: The study adopts the Foucauldian theoretical framework of governmentality and a comparative approach to highlight similarities and differences between the two regions. Findings: The presence of different cultural understandings and structures of power meant that in Tuscany accounting mirrored and reinforced the existing power structure, whereas in the Kingdom of Naples accounting practices were constitutive of power relations and acted as a compensatory mechanism. In the Kingdom of Naples, where local elites had been traditionally involved in ruling municipalities, control of accounting information and the use of resources "re-adjusted" the balance of power in favour of the French whilst letting local population believe that Napoleon was respectful of local customs. Research limitations/implications: The ability of accounting technologies to act as compensatory mechanisms within governmentality systems paves the way to further investigations about the relationships between accounting and other governmentality technologies as well as the adjustment mechanisms leading to accounting resilience in different contexts. Social implications: By identifying accounting as an adaptive instrument supporting less obvious practices of domination the study helps unmask a hidden mechanism underlying attempts to know, govern and control populations which still characterises modern forms of imperialism. Originality/value: The comparative perspective leads to a new specification of the multifaceted roles that accounting plays in different cultural and political contexts in the achievement of the same set of imperial goals and enhances understanding of the translation of politics, rhetoric and power into a set of administrative tasks and calculative practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses results of an interdisciplinary research project integrating lead isotope, chemical, and archaeological analysis of 20 early metal objects from central Italy. The aim of the research was to develop robust provenance hypotheses for 4th and 3rd millennia BC metals from an important, yet hitherto neglected, metallurgical district in prehistoric Europe, displaying precocious copper mining and smelting, as well as socially significant uses of metals in 'Rinaldone-style' burials. All major (and most minor) ore bodies from Tuscany and neighbouring regions were characterised chemically and isotopically, and 20 Copper Age axe-heads, daggers and halberds were sampled and analysed. The objects were also reassessed archaeologically, paying special attention to find context, typology, and chronology. This multi-pronged approach has allowed us to challenge received wisdom concerning the local character of early metal production and exchange in the region. The research has shown that most objects were likely manufactured in west-central Italy using copper from Southern Tuscany and, quite possibly, the Apuanian Alps. A few objects, however, display isotopic and chemical signatures compatible with the Western Alpine and, in one case, French ore deposits. This shows that the Copper Age communities of west-central Italy participated in superregional exchange networks tying together the middle/upper Tyrrhenian region, the western Alps, and perhaps the French Midi. These networks were largely independent from other metal displacement circuits in operation at the time, which embraced the north-Alpine region and the south-eastern Alps, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marginal rural areas are undergoing major pressures from the effects of globalization, especially when no alternative has been found to conventional extensive agriculture and a lack of investments and vision squeezes the income of farmers. The objective of the paper is to show how Integrated Supply Chain Projects (Progetti Integrati di Filiera (PIF)), Italian rural policy tools funded in the framework of EU's Rural Development Policy, can integrate supply chain innovation and territorial integrated strategies, fostering a multifunctional development of marginal rural areas towards a newly discovered identity. The case study is the PIF "Flora Aromatica Santa Luce" funded by the Tuscany Regional Administration RDP in 2016. The project aims at creating a new supply chain of organic aromatic plants in the Santa Luce Valley (PI). The integration is based, on the one side, on the creation and valorization of the new supply chain product, represented by an organic cosmetic line made with lavender essential oil, and, on the other side, on the territorial development of the Valley, in an economic, social, environmental and touristic perspective. From a theoretical point of view, the approach used was based on the new rural development paradigm, assuming that the processes of broadening, deepening and regrounding, together compose the main axis of rural development. The canvas model was used in order to identify a business model for the new supply chain and the territorial development of the area, while, at the methodological level, a participatory action research (PAR) approach was adopted. Results show how a supply chain project (like a PIF) can enhance innovation and stable commercial relationships within the supply chain and support processes of vertical and horizontal coordination, but also stimulate extended territorial strategies supporting the integration processes between agriculture, processing and other economic activities following a territorial multifunctional development logic. At the same time, key benefits for the policymaker and local administrations can also be identified in particular for marginal rural areas where farmers and other local actors are weaker and collective action is more difficult. Thanks to the PAR approach, a PIF can stimulate participation of farmers to relevant RDP measures but also allow convergence of individual actions towards wider regional and local strategic objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]