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We reconstruct the intriguing case of the formation of the Naples group of Statistical Mechanics, which took more than two decades, from the first steps at the end of 1960 aimed at acquiring skills and knowledge abroad, until the formal establishment of the group at the beginning of the 1990 s. A number of important results were obtained seamlessly during this period by Antonio Coniglio and his large number of collaborators, but although favorable opportunities for the formation of the group emerged, starting from the beginning of the 1980 s, several factors (including a certain disinterest in supporting research in Italy) effectively delayed the formation of a group by about a decade. We here provide a fairly comprehensive picture of the relevance of the group of Neapolitan statistical physicists even before its formation, also reviewing the main contributions achieved by these people both during the process of formation of the group and in the first decade of its life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Promoting energetic and environmental sustainability in the naval sector requires a necessary understanding of the energy demand of vessels and of the factors affecting it. This article shows the results of a study conducted by the shipping company MedMar aimed at acquiring a detailed analysis of the energetic performances of its fleet. The study involved the analysis of fuel consumption and emissions of the fleet using a specific software and under different scenarios, assuming the navigation speed and the cargo level of the vessels as reference parameters. Simulations also provided a comparison, concerning emissions and externalities, between ships and two different means of transport. The purpose of this study was to identify potential areas of improvement, where ad hoc strategies could be used to further optimise the energetic and environmental performance of MedMar fleet and mitigate its impact on the delicate ecosystem of the gulf of Naples, where the fleet sails. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An interesting, yet unknown episode concerning the effective permeation of the scientific revolution in eighteenth-century Kingdom of Naples (and Italy more generally) is recounted. The intriguing story of James Watt's steam engine, prepared to serve a Royal Estate of the King of Naples in Carditello, reveals a fascinating piece of the history of that kingdom, as well as an unknown step in the history of Watt's steam engine, whose final entrepreneurial success for the celebrated Boulton & Watt company was a direct consequence. This story reveals that, contrary to what claimed in the literature, the first introduction in Italy of the most important technological innovation of the eighteenth century did not take place with the construction of the first steamship of the Mediterranean Sea, but rather thirty years before that, thanks to the incomparable work of Giuseppe Saverio Poli, a leading scholar and an influential figure in the Kingdom of Naples. The tragic epilogue of Poli's engine accounts for its vanishing from historical memory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]