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A practical engineering approach to the design of a 60 kW wind generator with improved performances is presented. The proposed approach relies on the use of a specific, “ad hoc” developed software, OPTIWR (Optimization Software), expressly conceived to define an “optimum” rotor configuration in the framework of the blade element-momentum theory. Starting from an initial input geometric configuration (corresponding to an already existing 50 kW turbine) and for given values of the wind velocity Vwind and of the advance ratio X = Vwind/ΩR (where Ω is the blade rotational speed and R is the propeller radius), this software is used to determine iteratively the optimized distributions of chords and twists which can guarantee a constant value of the socalled axial induction factor a = 1/3 along the blade. The output configuration is then converted into a CAD model to be used, in turn, as input data for a CFD commercial software. With this tool the relative rotational motion between the fluid and the wind turbine are simulated resorting to a MRF (Moving Reference Frame) technique (for which continuity and momentum equations are solved in a rotating reference frame). The outcomes of the numerical simulations are then used to verify the improved performances of the optimized configuration and to which extent the CFD data agree with “expected” behaviours (i.e. performances predicted on the basis of the simplified model). Finally, some details about the construction technique used to turn the optimized configuration into an effective working prototype are provided, in conjunction with a critical discussion of suitable production methods for composite components.

Previous studies regarding the Animal Assisted Interventions (AAI) have mainly focused on the beneficial effects of human–animal interactions on human health, whereas the impact of such activities on the welfare of the animals involved has received limited attention. So far, few studies have addressed this issue by evaluating the physiological and behavioral reactions of therapy dogs during the interventions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential effect of AAI on the cortisol levels of shelter dogs. Five dogs participated in weekly AAI working activities with adult inmates held at a prison of the South of Italy for two months. Saliva samples were collected every two weeks in three conditions: at the kennel (baseline), after transportation and at the end of the working sessions. The results revealed a significant decrease in the cortisol baseline at the end of the AAI program, suggesting that the activities carried out with humans and in a different environment could improve the welfare of dogs housed in kennels. Moreover, we found that transportation significantly increased subjects’ cortisol levels, suggesting that it is a critical phase that deserves particular care.

An increasing number of institutions and companies is recently showing increasing interest in supersonic and hypersonic flight with particular focus on sub-orbital flight and high-speed point-to-point transportation. In this scenario, the University of Naples “Federico II” is currently studying advanced concepts of supersonic/hypersonic aircraft and suitable high-speed propulsion system integration for efficient travel in the Mach 4-5 speed range. Within this framework, a collaboration is in progress with the SME Blue Engineering. In the present work a study is undertaken to investigate the performances along with aerodynamic design of the supersonic intake for the turboramjet engines and the engine-airframe integration for a Mach 4 supersonic business jet. Firstly, attention is focused on directional stability and trimmability enhancement acting on aircraft configuration. The following section is dedicated to the aerodynamic design of a high-efficiency intake adapted to different flight conditions. To conclude, the last section addresses the sensitive issue of airframe-engine integration. The configuration analysis has been carried out with the quick and low-cost software Missile DATCOM, well suited for aircraft preliminary design. For the supersonic intake aerodynamic design and the airframe-engine integration analysis, the commercial Navier-Stokes solver Siemens STAR CCM+ has been used. An improved configuration has been proposed, actioning on vertical tail and wing for the directional stability enhancement, while the trim conditions have been improved using a canard. As for the supersonic intake aerodynamic design, the choice fell on mixed-compression variable-geometry. In particular, a total spike forward translation of 0.65 m guarantees adaptive operations along the supersonic trajectory. In addition, the choice of mixed-compression configuration ensured high efficiency values thanks to the multiple shock waves’ reflection in the supersonic diffuser. For what concerns the engine-airframe integration, the engine location above the wing has been shown to be not suitable due to the strong aerodynamic interference that reflects in a completely off-design intake functioning. Therefore, the configuration has been upgraded integrating the engine with the wing avoiding the issues experienced in the previous case

Nel saggio è analizzato lo sviluppo di Sessa Aurunca in età moderna attraverso la lettura delle carte (purtroppo lacunose) dell’archivio privato della famiglia di Transo, custodito ancor oggi in città nell’omonimo palazzo in corso Lucilio. Estremamente interessante si rivela, in particolare, la lettura delle divisioni testamentarie e delle compravendite immobiliari effettuate tra la metà del Quattrocento e i primi decenni del Settecento, specchio fedele di una precisa e ben calibrata strategia insediativa che, seguendo dinamiche urbane già in atto agli inizi del XV secolo nel progressivo ricompattamento dei borghi extramoenia con il tessuto edilizio consolidato, vedrà i diversi membri della famiglia abbandonare il largo di S. Giovanni, luogo di primo insediamento considerato oramai marginale, per insediarsi più opportunamente nella vasta insula compresa tra la strada Maggiore e il largo della Cattedrale, condizione irrinunciabile in una precisa ottica di visibilità e di prestigio sociale.

The fascinating nature of the Amalfi coast is the background for territories full of history and places of immense value. Starting from some of the main representations of the Salerno territory, it was possible to retrace the main evolutionary phases of the city and then focus on what is a ‘product’ of the events that have taken place over time, the Cetara Tower. The research and iconographic documentation, in fact, have made possible to highlight some of the transformations and superfetations that the tower, in the homonymous city, has undergone during the years; up to assume the current conformation

After an introduction on the issue of the art-architecture relationship during Fascism, the paper analyzes four significant cases in the delicate historical transition from the Regime to the republican age in Sicily, in order to understand the role of artistic decorations in the facade, in relation to the architecture and cultural traditions of the island. The first two belong to the monumental type of the Palace of Justice, while the others are representative buildings: a Hotel and a Bank.

A partire dalla metà del XVI secolo, con l’avvio della riconfigurazione dell’antica reggia normanna di Palermo, tutta l’area fu interessata da radicali interventi architettonici e urbanistici sfociati infine nella realizzazione del grande piano del palazzo. Luogo privilegiato dell’attività istituzionale e celebrativa della monarchia, testimoniata da una ricca documentazione iconografica, si mantenne così inalterato fino alla sua ‘cancellazione’ di inizio Novecento, quando fu sostituito dalla villa Bonanno. From the mid-16th century, when the works for the rearrangement of the old Norman royal palace of Palermo started, the whole area was affected by radical architectural and urban interventions that finally led to the construction of the great square before the Palace. Large iconographic documentation can testify that the square remained the privileged place for the institutional and celebratory activity of the monarchy and stood unchanged until its ‘cancellation’ at the start of the 20th century when it was replaced by the villa Bonanno.

In 1891 the IV Italian National Exposition was held in Palermo, the first to have a southern city as its protagonist. The area on which the pavilions were built, obtained from the expropriation of the land belonging to the Prince of Villafranca, lent itself from the following year to accommodate the housing development and new buildings to complete the Via della Libertà, a high-bourgeois boulevard that already in 1850, by cutting the same "Firriato" of the Villafranca family, had marked the expansion towards the north of the city and seen the construction of the first buildings on its eastern front. Ernesto Basile was one of the main designers of the event and future urban creations. Although in a lower tone than this, the following years saw a multiplication of other similar events, often linked to projects for future subdivision and urbanization of the areas chosen for their realization. In the contribution that we propose we are interested in the “Esposizione Agricola Siciliana” (1902), reassembling the plan and the elevations thanks to the reading of the few iconographic documents received (photos, postcards) in relation to Basile's project sketches. The result offers new points of investigation for the identification of the places concerned and the possible permanence of some pavilions subsequently incorporated in other architectures.

Negli anni del dopoguerra, l’interesse per le città crebbe. I concorsi di piano regolatore divengono mezzi per attuare questa trasformazione, in cui generatori sono le provvidenze amministrative e le combinazioni finanziarie. Anche a Palermo si tentò di diffondere una consapevolezza urbanistica, che si manifesta nella competizione per il Piano Regolatore di Palermo del 1939, e una serie di competizioni tra cui quella del Rione Villarosa. L’annuncio prevedeva infatti la creazione di una vera “città”, di fatto estranea alla natura del luogo. Tra i quindici progetti presentati, il bozzetto con lo pseudonimo “V. R. 112” formato da Aldo Della Rocca, Ignazio Guidi, Enrico Lenti e Giulio Sterbini è stato dichiarato vincitore. La ricerca ricostruisce le fasi della competizione e dei progetti, fino alla ricostruzione del progetto vincitore che non è stato realizzato completamente. La documentazione archivistica, la riprogettazione e la modellazione 3D sono stati i tre momenti che hanno segnato la ricerca. In the post-war years, interest in cities grew. Regulatory planning competitions become the means to implement this transformation, in which generators are administrative provisions and financial combinations. In Palermo, too, an attempt was made to spread an urbanistic awareness, which is manifested in the competition for the Palermo Plan of 1939, and a series of competitions including that of the Rione Villarosa. The announcement foresaw in fact the creation of a real "city", in fact extraneous to the nature of the place. Among the fifteen projects presented, the sketch with the pseudonym "V. R. 112" formed by Aldo Della Rocca, Ignazio Guidi, Enrico Lenti and Giulio Sterbini was declared the winner. The research reconstructs the phases of the competition and the projects, up to the reconstruction of the winning project that has not been completely realized. The archival documentation, redesign and 3D modeling were the three moments that mark the research.

Tra i monasteri eretti per l’Ordo Cartusiensis nella provincia di Sancti Brunonis, un esempio interessante è enucleato nel complesso di San Lorenzo, a Padula. Dalle dimensioni notevoli, il cenobio sostanzia una cittadella che esclude – solo formalmente – dai suoi luoghi la comunità. Le vicende della Certosa raccontano, al contrario, processi di inclusione e di determinazione del territorio, esperiti nei secoli, tra le trame dei diritti feudali, del rigore monastico, delle guerre mondiali

The proposed contribution is focused on the graphic analysis of an eighteenth-century perspective view portraying one of the most ancient squares of the City of Palermo (piazza Garraffello). It is an engraving print made by F. Cichè in 1711 on commission of the Guild of Silversmiths: the square is completely described with the fountain (still existing) in the foreground, and with the corporate lodges of foreign nations in the background (these two buildings nowadays have disappeared). In the picture is also visible a temporary triumphal arch with canopy erected by the same guild who had commissioned the view: this is the object of main perspectival interest. The study of the perspective used by Cichè, however, lends itself to interpretations that do not fully converge with the reality of the places: in fact there is a basic ambiguity on what is the road framed by perspective, and many architectural elements do not correspond to the real presences of the place. The three-dimensional modeling operations performed on the critical redesign of the image - in comparison with the survey of the current situation and with other documents from the historical iconography of the city- intend to focus the attention on the use of the architectural / urban perspective more in a rhetorical-figurative way than as an effective tool for describing reality.

In seguito al drammatico terremoto che nel 1968 devastò 14 comuni della Valle del Belice, fu avviata una complessa macchina della ricostruzione, in cui le scelte non furono dettate da linee programmatiche omogenee ed univoche, determinando in alcuni casi la ricostruzione in situ dei centri distrutti, in altri il trasferimento in aree anche distanti dall’insediamento originario. La ricostruzione fu occasione per la comunità scientifica e professionale nazionale per sperimentare soluzioni progettuali che però, il più delle volte, non hanno tenuto conto della tradizione insediativa, tradendone le radici identitarie. Following the dramatic earthquake that devastated 14 municipalities in the Belice Valley in 1968, a complex reconstruction machine was launched, in which the operational choices were not dictated by uniform and univocal planning, determining in some cases the reconstruction “in situ” of the destroyed centres, in others the transfer to areas away from the original settlement. The reconstruction was an opportunity for the national scientific and professional community to experiment with design solutions that, however, most of the time did not take into account the settlement tradition, translating their identity roots.

Nell’ambito dei temi sulla percezione e comunicazione visiva, il presente contributo intende mettere a fuoco l’identità visuale di un popolo dalla tradizione culturale prevalentemente orale, quello romanì. Il lavoro si propone inizialmente come studio delle principali fonti iconografiche che esibiscono figurazioni sull’identità visiva di Zingari, Zigani o Gitani da parte degli artisti dal ‘400 ad oggi. Successivamente, si analizzerà la loro forte presenza sul territorio attraverso segni grafici e visuali attivati da dinamiche di alterità sociale e culturale.

Questo volume propone un ricco corpus di contributi sulla ‘Città Altra’, un tema sinora poco battuto ma degno di tutta la nostra attenzione, che s’impone sulla scena della storiografia internazionale, moderna e contemporanea, per la sua innegabile attualità. Nel corso della storia, la città ha dovuto sempre fare i conti con le ‘alterità’ sociali, ossia con i privilegi di classe e, conseguentemente, con la discriminazione e l’emarginazione delle minoranze, dei meno abbienti, degli stranieri, insomma con le diversità di status, di cultura, di religione. Sicché il tessuto urbano ha finito per strutturarsi anche in funzione di quelle diseguaglianze, oltre che dei luoghi strategici per l’esercizio del potere, del controllo politico, militare o sociale, degli spazi per la reclusione, per l’isolamento sanitario o per il rimedio ‘temporaneo’ alle catastrofi. Dai primi ritratti di città elaborati e diffusi sul principio del Quattrocento per fini di esaltazione politica o per la propaganda religiosa e per scopi devozionali, che spesso, attraverso tecniche grafiche sempre più raffinate, falsano o addirittura negano la vera immagine urbana, si giunge, all’alba della storia contemporanea, al nuovo significato dato dalla topografia scientifica e dai nuovi metodi di rappresentazione, atti a svelare la struttura e il paesaggio urbano nella loro oggettività, spesso cruda e inaspettata per quanti, prima di allora, avessero conosciuto la città attraverso il filtro dell’iconografia ‘di regime’. La rappresentazione dell’immagine urbana mostra ancora oggi le contraddizioni di una comunità che a volte include, e persino esalta, le diversità, altre volte le respinge, tradendo il malessere di una difficile integrazione. / This volume proposes a rich corpus of papers about the ‘Other City’, a subject only few times dealt with, but worthy of all our attention: it imposes itself on the scene of international modern and contemporary historiography for its undeniable topicality. Throughout history, the city has always had to deal with social ‘otherness’, i.e. with class privileges and, consequently, with discrimination and marginalization of minorities, of the less well-off, of foreigners, in short, with the differences in status, culture, religion. So that the urban fabric has ended up structuring itself also in function of those inequalities, as well as of the strategic places for the exercise of power, of the political, military or social control, of the spaces for imprisonment, for the sanitary isolation or for the ‘temporary’ remedy to the catastrophes. From the first portraits of cities, made and diffused at the beginning of the fifteenth century for political exaltation purposes or for religious propaganda and for devotional purposes, which often, through increasingly refined graphic techniques, distort or even deny the true urban image, we reach, at the dawn of contemporary history, the new meaning given by scientific topography and new methods of representation; these latter aimed at revealing the structure and the urban landscape in their objectivity, often unexpected for who had known the city through the filter of ‘regime’ iconography. The representation of the urban image still shows the contradictions of a community that sometimes includes and even exalts the diversities, other times rejects them, showing the unease of a difficult integration.

The abundant literary accompanied by the iconography description, is a guide to the knowledge of the main cities of the Reign of Naples, delineated by the abbot Gio. Battista Pacichelli in his work Il Regno di Napoli in prospettiva and published shortly after his death in Naples in 1703. Although the work resume and continue the tradition of urban representations as descriptive cartography, the great harvest of views of cities (more than a hundred, contained in the three volumes of which the work is composed) as well as the modes variety types of representations therein they allowed to reproduce these iconographic testimonies by virtue of graphical analysis to read not only the different 'views', from which the cities were observed, but also the similarities and differences that distinguish themselves in the use of different geometric representation mode for 'shaping' of urban planimetric systems. The analysis concludes with a case of study on the Gallipoli graphical representation.