Statistics of languages are usually calculated by counting characters, words, sentences, word rankings. Some of these random variables are also the main “ingredients” of classical readability formulae. Revisiting th...Statistics of languages are usually calculated by counting characters, words, sentences, word rankings. Some of these random variables are also the main “ingredients” of classical readability formulae. Revisiting the readability formula of Italian, known as GULPEASE, shows that of the two terms that determine the readability index G—the semantic index , proportional to the number of characters per word, and the syntactic index GF, proportional to the reciprocal of the number of words per sentence—GF is dominant because GC is, in practice, constant for any author throughout seven centuries of Italian Literature. Each author can modulate the length of sentences more freely than he can do with the length of words, and in different ways from author to author. For any author, any couple of text variables can be modelled by a linear relationship y = mx, but with different slope m from author to author, except for the relationship between characters and words, which is unique for all. The most important relationship found in the paper is that between the short-term memory capacity, described by Miller’s “7 ? 2 law” (i.e., the number of “chunks” that an average person can hold in the short-term memory ranges from 5 to 9), and the word interval, a new random variable defined as the average number of words between two successive punctuation marks. The word interval can be converted into a time interval through the average reading speed. The word interval spreads in the same range as Miller’s law, and the time interval is spread in the same range of short-term memory response times. The connection between the word interval (and time interval) and short-term memory appears, at least empirically, justified and natural, however, to be further investigated. Technical and scientific writings (papers, essays, etc.) ask more to their readers because words are on the average longer, the readability index G is lower, word and time intervals are longer. Future work done on ancient languages, such as the classical Greek and Latin Literatures (or modern languages Literatures), could bring us an insight into the short-term memory required to their well-educated ancient readers.展开更多
Glyphosate is widely used in row crop weed control programs of glyphosate-resistant (GR) crops. With the accumulation of glyphosate use, several weeds have evolved resistance to glyphosate. In order to control GR weed...Glyphosate is widely used in row crop weed control programs of glyphosate-resistant (GR) crops. With the accumulation of glyphosate use, several weeds have evolved resistance to glyphosate. In order to control GR weeds for profitable crop production, it is critical to first identify them in crop fields. Conventional method for identifying GR weeds is destructive, tedious and labor-intensive. This study developed hyperspectral imaging for rapid sensing of Italian ryegrass (Lolium perenne ssp. multiflorum) plants to determine if each plant is GR or glyphosate-susceptible (GS). In image analysis, a set of sensitive spectral bands was determined using a forward selection algorithm by optimizing the area under the receiver operating characteristic between GR and GS plants. Then, the dimensionality of selected bands was reduced using linear discriminant analysis. At the end the maximum likelihood classification was conducted for plant sample differentiation of GR Italian ryegrass from GS ones. The results indicated that the overall classification accuracy is between 75% and 80%. Although the accuracy is lower than the classification of Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S. Wats.) in our previous study, this study provides a rapid, non-destructive approach to differentiate between GR and GS Italian ryegrass for improved site-specific weed management.展开更多
Italian ryegrass is an annual/biennial grass that is typically used as a pasture crop or a cover crop along roadsides, rights-of-way, and industrial areas. Glyphosate-resistant (GR) Italian ryegrass populations have b...Italian ryegrass is an annual/biennial grass that is typically used as a pasture crop or a cover crop along roadsides, rights-of-way, and industrial areas. Glyphosate-resistant (GR) Italian ryegrass populations have been documented around the world, mostly in orchard and vineyard situations. The first evidence of evolved GR Italian ryegrass in row/agronomic crops was reported from Washington County, Mississippi in 2005. GR Italian ryegrass populations can jeopardize preplant burndown options in reduced-tillage crop production systems, thereby, delaying planting operations. The effects of competition of Italian ryegrass on crop growth and yield are poorly understood. A field study was conducted in the 2012 growing season and repeated in the 2013 growing season. GR and susceptible (GS) Italian ryegrass populations were established in the greenhouse and transplanted in prepared corn row beds in the fall of 2011 and 2012 at 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 plants·meter> of crop row. Italian ryegrass plants overwintered and developed over the following spring-summer. Glyphosate was applied at 1.26 kg·ae/ha (1.5× of labeled rate) in the spring to burndown the Italian ryegrass plants and corn was planted into the ryegrass residue 2 - 3 wk later. Current corn production practices were followed. Corn density (early and late season), height (early season), and yield and Italian ryegrass biomass (early-mid season) measurements were recorded during both years. Corn height was greater in 2012 than that in 2013 at comparable stages of the growing season, due to a cooler and wetter early season in 2013 than that in 2012. Averaged across weed densities, corn density (both early and late season) and yield were higher in the GS than those in the GR population, but Italian ryegrass biomass was similar for both populations. Averaged across Italian ryegrass populations, corn density (both early and late season), and yield were inversely proportional to Italian ryegrass density. In summary, Italian ryegrass significantly reduced corn density and yield and reduction was greater with the GR than that with the GS population. Studies are underway to study inter population competition in Italian ryegrass and investigate allelopathic effects of Italian ryegrass on selected crops.展开更多
The study introduced the development of stone elements in Italian Renaissance Garden and Chinese classical garden, analyzed the stonework of Renaissance Garden and the placing stone technique of Chinese classical gard...The study introduced the development of stone elements in Italian Renaissance Garden and Chinese classical garden, analyzed the stonework of Renaissance Garden and the placing stone technique of Chinese classical garden from different angles and made a comparative analysis of the two from the aesthetic thought, stone selection and technique.展开更多
Objective: The aim of this study is to validate the Italian version of the Developmental Disability-Child Global Assessment Scale (DD-CGAS), a scale developed to assess global functioning in children with Autism Spect...Objective: The aim of this study is to validate the Italian version of the Developmental Disability-Child Global Assessment Scale (DD-CGAS), a scale developed to assess global functioning in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs). Methods: Following the validation procedures used for the English version of the scale, inter-rater reliability, temporal stability and convergent validity were assessed in a group of 48 children with ASD and temporal stability in a subset of 42 subjects. Results: Inter-rater reliability and temporal stability (ICC) were respectively 0.78 and 0.79;effect size for convergent validity were moderate to large;the pre-post DD-CGAS change had an effect size of 0.59. Conclusions: The Italian version of the DD-CGAS is a reliable instrument for measuring global functioning of children with ASD.展开更多
Objective: To evaluate the distribution of cardiovascular risk factors and the prevalence of cardiovascular disease in a sample of the Italian population. Methods: CHECK (Cholesterol and Health: Education, Control and...Objective: To evaluate the distribution of cardiovascular risk factors and the prevalence of cardiovascular disease in a sample of the Italian population. Methods: CHECK (Cholesterol and Health: Education, Control and Knowledge) is a cross-sectional observational study in a randomised sample of the Italian adult population aged 40 - 79 years, in the setting of general practice. Results: 5846 subjects (50.3% male) were included in the analysis. The mean age [±SD] of the observed cohort was 57.8 (±10.3) years. One out of five subjects smoked cigarettes and almost 80% didn’t engage in regular leisure-time physical activity. The mean blood pressure was 132.0 [±14.7]/81.2 [±7.9] mmHg. The total and LDL-cholesterol levels were respectively 205.3 [±35.9] mg/dL and 124.9 [±29.9] mg/dL. The mean glucose concentration was 98.3 [±28.2] mg/dL. The prevalence rate of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and type 2 diabetes were respectively 51.8%, 55.6%, and 13.0%. 8.9% of the observed subjects had a history of cardiovascular events, while in the primary prevention group the 10-year-risk of coronary heart disease (Framingham algorithm) was 10.1% [±8.3%] and of cardiovascular disease (CUORE algorithm) was 5.2% [±5.9%]. Conclusion: The CHECK study provides a detailed description of a randomised sample of the Italian population, contributing to evaluate the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and the main cardiovascular disease in Italy and to provide a baseline to set priorities and objectives for future intervention of health policy.展开更多
Fuelization of Italian ryegrass and Napier grass was examined by the combination of biological treatments and photocatalytic reforming (photo-Reform). The alkali-pretreated Italian ryegrass and Napier grass were subje...Fuelization of Italian ryegrass and Napier grass was examined by the combination of biological treatments and photocatalytic reforming (photo-Reform). The alkali-pretreated Italian ryegrass and Napier grass were subjected to the enzymatic saccharification using cellulase and xylanase. Xylose and glucose were produced in 56.6% and 71.1% from Italian ryegrass and in 49.5% and 67.3% from Napier grass, respectively. Xylose and glucose were converted to hydrogen by the photo-Reform using a Pt-loaded titanium oxide (Pt/TiO2) under UV irradiation. Moreover, a low-moisture anhydrous ammonia (LMAA) pretreatment was performed for Italian ryegrass and Napier grass by keeping moist powdered biomass under NH3 gas atmosphere at room temperature for four weeks. The Italian ryegrass and Napier grass which were pretreated by LMAA method were subjected to simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) using a mixture of cellulase and xylanase as well as Saccharomyces cerevisiae in acetate buffer (pH 5.0). Ethanol and xylose were produced in 91.6% and 51.6% from LMAA-pretreated Italian ryegrass and 78.6% and 68.8% from Napier grass, respectively. After the evaporation of ethanol, xylose was converted to hydrogen by the photo-Reform. In the case of saccharification→photo-Reform, energy was recovered as hydrogen from the alkali-pretreated Italian ryegrass and Napier grass in 71.9% and 77.0% of energy recovery efficiency, respectively. In the case of SSF→photo-Reform, the energy was recovered in 82.7% and 77.2% as ethanol and hydrogen from the LMAA-pretreated Italian ryegrass and Napier grass, respectively.展开更多
文摘Statistics of languages are usually calculated by counting characters, words, sentences, word rankings. Some of these random variables are also the main “ingredients” of classical readability formulae. Revisiting the readability formula of Italian, known as GULPEASE, shows that of the two terms that determine the readability index G—the semantic index , proportional to the number of characters per word, and the syntactic index GF, proportional to the reciprocal of the number of words per sentence—GF is dominant because GC is, in practice, constant for any author throughout seven centuries of Italian Literature. Each author can modulate the length of sentences more freely than he can do with the length of words, and in different ways from author to author. For any author, any couple of text variables can be modelled by a linear relationship y = mx, but with different slope m from author to author, except for the relationship between characters and words, which is unique for all. The most important relationship found in the paper is that between the short-term memory capacity, described by Miller’s “7 ? 2 law” (i.e., the number of “chunks” that an average person can hold in the short-term memory ranges from 5 to 9), and the word interval, a new random variable defined as the average number of words between two successive punctuation marks. The word interval can be converted into a time interval through the average reading speed. The word interval spreads in the same range as Miller’s law, and the time interval is spread in the same range of short-term memory response times. The connection between the word interval (and time interval) and short-term memory appears, at least empirically, justified and natural, however, to be further investigated. Technical and scientific writings (papers, essays, etc.) ask more to their readers because words are on the average longer, the readability index G is lower, word and time intervals are longer. Future work done on ancient languages, such as the classical Greek and Latin Literatures (or modern languages Literatures), could bring us an insight into the short-term memory required to their well-educated ancient readers.
文摘Glyphosate is widely used in row crop weed control programs of glyphosate-resistant (GR) crops. With the accumulation of glyphosate use, several weeds have evolved resistance to glyphosate. In order to control GR weeds for profitable crop production, it is critical to first identify them in crop fields. Conventional method for identifying GR weeds is destructive, tedious and labor-intensive. This study developed hyperspectral imaging for rapid sensing of Italian ryegrass (Lolium perenne ssp. multiflorum) plants to determine if each plant is GR or glyphosate-susceptible (GS). In image analysis, a set of sensitive spectral bands was determined using a forward selection algorithm by optimizing the area under the receiver operating characteristic between GR and GS plants. Then, the dimensionality of selected bands was reduced using linear discriminant analysis. At the end the maximum likelihood classification was conducted for plant sample differentiation of GR Italian ryegrass from GS ones. The results indicated that the overall classification accuracy is between 75% and 80%. Although the accuracy is lower than the classification of Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S. Wats.) in our previous study, this study provides a rapid, non-destructive approach to differentiate between GR and GS Italian ryegrass for improved site-specific weed management.
文摘Italian ryegrass is an annual/biennial grass that is typically used as a pasture crop or a cover crop along roadsides, rights-of-way, and industrial areas. Glyphosate-resistant (GR) Italian ryegrass populations have been documented around the world, mostly in orchard and vineyard situations. The first evidence of evolved GR Italian ryegrass in row/agronomic crops was reported from Washington County, Mississippi in 2005. GR Italian ryegrass populations can jeopardize preplant burndown options in reduced-tillage crop production systems, thereby, delaying planting operations. The effects of competition of Italian ryegrass on crop growth and yield are poorly understood. A field study was conducted in the 2012 growing season and repeated in the 2013 growing season. GR and susceptible (GS) Italian ryegrass populations were established in the greenhouse and transplanted in prepared corn row beds in the fall of 2011 and 2012 at 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 plants·meter> of crop row. Italian ryegrass plants overwintered and developed over the following spring-summer. Glyphosate was applied at 1.26 kg·ae/ha (1.5× of labeled rate) in the spring to burndown the Italian ryegrass plants and corn was planted into the ryegrass residue 2 - 3 wk later. Current corn production practices were followed. Corn density (early and late season), height (early season), and yield and Italian ryegrass biomass (early-mid season) measurements were recorded during both years. Corn height was greater in 2012 than that in 2013 at comparable stages of the growing season, due to a cooler and wetter early season in 2013 than that in 2012. Averaged across weed densities, corn density (both early and late season) and yield were higher in the GS than those in the GR population, but Italian ryegrass biomass was similar for both populations. Averaged across Italian ryegrass populations, corn density (both early and late season), and yield were inversely proportional to Italian ryegrass density. In summary, Italian ryegrass significantly reduced corn density and yield and reduction was greater with the GR than that with the GS population. Studies are underway to study inter population competition in Italian ryegrass and investigate allelopathic effects of Italian ryegrass on selected crops.
文摘The study introduced the development of stone elements in Italian Renaissance Garden and Chinese classical garden, analyzed the stonework of Renaissance Garden and the placing stone technique of Chinese classical garden from different angles and made a comparative analysis of the two from the aesthetic thought, stone selection and technique.
文摘Objective: The aim of this study is to validate the Italian version of the Developmental Disability-Child Global Assessment Scale (DD-CGAS), a scale developed to assess global functioning in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs). Methods: Following the validation procedures used for the English version of the scale, inter-rater reliability, temporal stability and convergent validity were assessed in a group of 48 children with ASD and temporal stability in a subset of 42 subjects. Results: Inter-rater reliability and temporal stability (ICC) were respectively 0.78 and 0.79;effect size for convergent validity were moderate to large;the pre-post DD-CGAS change had an effect size of 0.59. Conclusions: The Italian version of the DD-CGAS is a reliable instrument for measuring global functioning of children with ASD.
文摘Objective: To evaluate the distribution of cardiovascular risk factors and the prevalence of cardiovascular disease in a sample of the Italian population. Methods: CHECK (Cholesterol and Health: Education, Control and Knowledge) is a cross-sectional observational study in a randomised sample of the Italian adult population aged 40 - 79 years, in the setting of general practice. Results: 5846 subjects (50.3% male) were included in the analysis. The mean age [±SD] of the observed cohort was 57.8 (±10.3) years. One out of five subjects smoked cigarettes and almost 80% didn’t engage in regular leisure-time physical activity. The mean blood pressure was 132.0 [±14.7]/81.2 [±7.9] mmHg. The total and LDL-cholesterol levels were respectively 205.3 [±35.9] mg/dL and 124.9 [±29.9] mg/dL. The mean glucose concentration was 98.3 [±28.2] mg/dL. The prevalence rate of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and type 2 diabetes were respectively 51.8%, 55.6%, and 13.0%. 8.9% of the observed subjects had a history of cardiovascular events, while in the primary prevention group the 10-year-risk of coronary heart disease (Framingham algorithm) was 10.1% [±8.3%] and of cardiovascular disease (CUORE algorithm) was 5.2% [±5.9%]. Conclusion: The CHECK study provides a detailed description of a randomised sample of the Italian population, contributing to evaluate the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and the main cardiovascular disease in Italy and to provide a baseline to set priorities and objectives for future intervention of health policy.
文摘Fuelization of Italian ryegrass and Napier grass was examined by the combination of biological treatments and photocatalytic reforming (photo-Reform). The alkali-pretreated Italian ryegrass and Napier grass were subjected to the enzymatic saccharification using cellulase and xylanase. Xylose and glucose were produced in 56.6% and 71.1% from Italian ryegrass and in 49.5% and 67.3% from Napier grass, respectively. Xylose and glucose were converted to hydrogen by the photo-Reform using a Pt-loaded titanium oxide (Pt/TiO2) under UV irradiation. Moreover, a low-moisture anhydrous ammonia (LMAA) pretreatment was performed for Italian ryegrass and Napier grass by keeping moist powdered biomass under NH3 gas atmosphere at room temperature for four weeks. The Italian ryegrass and Napier grass which were pretreated by LMAA method were subjected to simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) using a mixture of cellulase and xylanase as well as Saccharomyces cerevisiae in acetate buffer (pH 5.0). Ethanol and xylose were produced in 91.6% and 51.6% from LMAA-pretreated Italian ryegrass and 78.6% and 68.8% from Napier grass, respectively. After the evaporation of ethanol, xylose was converted to hydrogen by the photo-Reform. In the case of saccharification→photo-Reform, energy was recovered as hydrogen from the alkali-pretreated Italian ryegrass and Napier grass in 71.9% and 77.0% of energy recovery efficiency, respectively. In the case of SSF→photo-Reform, the energy was recovered in 82.7% and 77.2% as ethanol and hydrogen from the LMAA-pretreated Italian ryegrass and Napier grass, respectively.