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Physicochemical and sensory fruit characteristics were studied to assess the effects of cool storage on quality attributes of sweet cherries of the Sciazza variety, widespread in the Campania region and Ferrovia variety, marketed in Italy and abroad. The major sugar and organic acid constituents, anthocyanin composition, colour (CIE L*, a*, b*), firmness, volatile neo-formation compounds (acetaldehyde, ethanol and methanol) and sensory attributes were determined at harvest and after 15 days of fruit storage at 1 °C and 95% RH. The ANOVA and PCA plots showed that both cherry varieties and storage conditions affected sensory/chemical quality but the variation caused by cool storage seemed to be dependent on the varieties under study: Ferrovia cherries apparently varied less than Sciazza. The total anthocyanin and its qualitative composition were confirmed to be distinctive of the cherry varieties and important indicators of cool storage. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The arrival of the Longobards in Northern Italy in 568 CE marked a period of renewed political stability in the Peninsula after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. The trajectory of the spread of Longobards in Italy across the Alps and into the South is known from many literary sources. However, their mobility and residence patterns at a population level remain to be fully understood. Here we present a multi-isotopic analysis ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr and 18 O/ 16 O) of 39 humans and 14 animals buried at the Longobard necropolis of Povegliano Veronese (VR, Italy; 6th-8th century CE), to address mode and tempo of the spread of this population in the Peninsula. The geographical location of Povegliano Veronese plays a key role: the site lies along the Via Postumia, which was one of the main ancient Roman roads of Northern Italy, representing an important route in post-classical Italy. The integration of isotopic data with the archaeological evidence allowed us to determine the presence of individuals from at least three different regions of origin, building a diachronic map of the dynamics of mobility of this group in northern Italy.

The province of Siena, Italy, enacted a new garbage plan (NGP) with the objective of increasing separate waste collection (SWC), shutting down six landfills and increasing incineration. The aim of the paper is to evaluate costs and benefits of the NGP. The hypothesis is that willingness to pay (WTP) should reflect the value to the community of having better environmental quality, according to the Contingent Valuation literature. The paper reports the results of a contingent valuation (CV). The sample was divided into two subsets: firms and households. Through the information gathered via a detailed questionnaire, parametric and non-parametric estimates were elaborated to analyse the WTP of the population for the benefits flowing from increased SWC, increased incineration and shutting down of landfills. These values were expressed as a share of the tax actually paid. Although a small subset of firms and households valued increasing incineration less positively, requesting compensation, on the whole interviewees (with large differences between firms and households) had a net positive WTP for the provisions included in NGP. Parametric estimation procedures enabled us to analyse the economic as well as social and demographic factors affecting these results. These elements are useful for computing a value for the waste charge that also reflects external effects. Finally, we estimated household income elasticity of WTP for the increase in SWC and found less than one: environmental quality is not a luxury good.