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The international standard ISO 140-5 for the measurement of the sound insulation of building façades will soon be replaced by the new standard ISO 16283-3. This revision includes the procedures for measurements at low frequencies down to 50 Hz. The uncertainty of façade sound insulation, in particular at low frequencies, was evaluated by a Round Robin Test, conducted in a full-scale experimental building at ITC-CNR. Each of the 10 teams involved in the RRT replicated the tests 5 times, for a total of 50 measurements. The different measurement positions inside the receiving room are compared. In particular, all the teams involved in the RRT assessed corner and center room positions; their energy average values according to ISO 16283-1 are considered and the relative uncertainty in terms of repeatability and in situ reproducibility standard deviations are compared with the ones measured and calculated following ISO 140-5.

Noise pollution is an important part of the environmental impact of ships. The noise inside the vessel (affecting crew and passengers) has been regulated since a few decades, while the impact of emissions in water on the marine fauna has been under consideration at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) only in the last few years. No specific effort seems to be in place towards a regulatory framework for external airborne noise emissions from sea going commercial ships. Only the particular cases of inland vessels and pleasure crafts are partially covered by rules. The airborne noise pollution from commercial ships, on the other hand, does affect people living near channels, in coastal areas with intense traffic or near ports, where ships enter and stay at wharf for loading/unloading processes. The actual dimension of the problem is remarked by several cases of complaints sent out by citizens living in the urban areas affected. Within the SILENV project (Ships oriented Innovative soLutions to rEduce Noise & Vibrations, funded by the E.U.) assessment criteria for the airborne noise emitted by sea-going ships have been proposed: the background information, the general criteria at the basis of the formulation, the aims as well as the verification procedure of the proposed limits are discussed in the paper.

The issue of the environmental impact of shipping activities is treated in this work from the specific viewpoint of underwater noise emissions from the vessels. There has been recently a rising concern about the negative effects that this kind of emissions can have on the marine wildlife in general and in particular on marine mammals. In these animals, acoustic communication and perception has acquired a privileged role compared with other senses and other zoological groups. The paper examines the role in this scenario of noise emissions from shipping and explores how their impact can be quantified, in order to establish a target for the control of such emissions. The standards recently issued for the characterisation of underwater noise signature by commercial vessels are also reviewed. The paper builds on the first results of the project SILENV, funded with the 7th Framework programme of the European Union

International audience; no abstract

Background: Human and animal trichinosis has been recorded in Chile since the late XIX century and is irregularly distributed along the country. From high rates of infection in the early 1900, the frequency of this parasitosis in man has progressively decreased. Aim: To describe and discuss the epidemiological situation of trichinosis in Chile during the decade 1991 - 2000. Material and methods: Human infection was assessed using annual incidence and lethality reports provided by the Ministry of Health, periodic photostrichinoscopies in corpses of non selected individuals autopsied at the Medico Legal Service and periodic national serologic surveys. The advise of one of the authors in an epidemic that occurred in 1999 in the VIII Region was also used. Animal infection was assessed using the annual prevalence of infection in pigs slaughtered in abattoirs, furnished by the Ministry of Health. Results: A total of 631 clinical cases with 4 deaths (0.6%) was recorded. A decline in the incidence, from 0.7 x 100,000 in 1991 to 0.2 x 100,000 in 2000 was recorded. The higher frequency of the parasitosis was observed in the Metropolitan, VI, VIII and X regions. Although human trichinosis has been observed in all seasons, its frequency increases in close relation with the higher pork consumption in cold seasons (45.8% in winter and 37.5% in spring). There has been a decrease of infection rates in pigs from 0.17%o in 1991 to 0.04%o in 1998 - 2000. Conclusions: The incidence and prevalence of trichinosis shows a constant decline in Chile. Considering the geographical characteristics of Chile, it is possible that an undetermined number of pigs are home reared and butchered without veterinary control, constituting an important source of human trichinosis (Rev Méd Chile 2002; 130: 281-5