Genetic characterization of an almond germplasm collection and volatilome profiling of raw and roasted kernels

Almond is appreciated for its nutraceutical value and for the aromatic profile of the kernels.In this work,an almond collection composed of 96 Sicilian accessions complemented with 10 widely cultivated cultivars was phenotyped for the production of volatile organic compounds using a proton-transfer time-of-flight mass spectrometer and genotyped using the Illumina Infinium®18 K Peach SNP array.The profiling of the aroma was carried out on fresh and roasted kernels enabling the detection of 150 mass peaks.Sixty eight,for the most related with sulfur compounds,furan containing compounds,and aldehydes formed by Strecker degradation,significantly increased during roasting,while the concentration of fifty-four mass peaks,for the most belonging to alcohols and terpenes,significantly decreased.Four hundred and seventy-one robust SNPs were selected and employed for population genetic studies.Structure analysis detected three subpopulations with the Sicilian accessions characterized by a different genetic stratification compared to those collected in Apulia(South Italy)and the International cultivars.The linkage-disequilibrium(LD)decay across the genome was equal to r^(2)=0.083.Furthermore,a high level of collinearity(r^(2)=0.96)between almond and peach was registered confirming the high synteny between the two genomes.A preliminary application of a genome-wide association analysis allowed the detection of significant marker-trait associations for 31 fresh and 33 roasted almond mass peaks respectively.An accurate genetic and phenotypic characterization of novel germplasm can represent a valuable tool for the set-up of marker-assisted selection of novel cultivars with an enhanced aromatic profile.

GIS tools for preliminary debris-flow assessment at regional scale

The assessment of the areas endangered by debris flows is a major issue in the context of mountain watershed management. Depending on the scale of analysis, different methods are required for the assessment of the areas exposed to debris flows.While 2-D numerical models are advised for detailed mapping of inundation areas on individual alluvial fans, preliminary recognition of hazard areas at the regional scale can be adequately performed by less data-demanding methods, which enable priority ranking of channels and alluvial fans at risk by debris flows. This contribution focuses on a simple and fast procedure that has been implemented for regionalscale identification of debris-flow prone channels and prioritization of the related alluvial fans. The methodology is based on the analysis of morphometric parameters derived from Digital Elevation Models(DEMs). Potential initiation sites of debris flows are identified as the DEM cells that exceed a threshold of slope-dependent contributing area. Channel reaches corresponding to debris flows propagation, deceleration and stopping conditions are derived from thresholds of local slope. An analysis of longitudinal profiles is used for the computation of the runout distance of debris flows. Information on erosion-resistant bedrock channels and sediment availability surveyed in the field are taken into account in the applications. A set of software tools was developed and made available(https://github.com/Hydrogeomorphology Tools) to facilitate the application of the procedure. This approach, which has been extensively validated by means of field checks, has been extensively applied in the eastern Italian Alps. This contribution discusses potential and limitations of the method in the frame of the management of small mountain watersheds.

Forecasting Model to Evaluate C&D Wastes by Maintenance and Refurbishment:The Case of Le Vallette

The urban regeneration lies on closed loops of energy,materials,information.The aim of case study is to evaluate and support policies of urban regeneration.The topic of the study is the control of waste flow made by the C&D(construction&demolition)activities involving the urban district.Each building produces a continuous flow of wastes during its predicted service life.This flow is mainly due to small building sites that generate small amount of wastes.In this way the collection,recycle and reuse material can be less accurate.In a regeneration perspective the reused and/or recycled part must be maximized.The study develops a GIS(geographic information system)based model for the assessment of the maintenance workloads of wastes produced.Coming from the data available by the public authorities and the survey on sites,the research group has carried out evaluation of the amount of wastes for building envelope,interior refurbishment of apartments,roads and parking lots.The output is a raw estimation of the C&D wastes by the maintenance and refurbishment of an urban district in Turin based on real evaluation of works needed.

Relation Contractive Selfmaps Involving Cauchy Sequences

We obtain two generalizations of a known theorem of A. Alam and M. Imdad (J. Fixed Point Theory Appl. 17 (2015) 693-702) showing that some standard proofs can be obtained involving only Cauchy sequences of the successive approximations. Suitable examples prove the effective generalization of our results in metric spaces not necessarily complete.

Some Theorems for Real Increasing Functions in Elementary Fixed Point Theory

We obtain some theorems for real increasing functions showing that elementary fixed point theory can bring to astonishing results by assuming only a few properties, some of which intrinsically possessed from these functions. An application is given for a theorem of quasi-compactness and a known result in posets is also recalled and applied to real intervals.

First Order Fuzzy Transform for Images Compression

In this paper, we present a new image compression method based on the direct and inverse F1-transform, a generalization of the concept of fuzzy transform. Under weak compression rates, this method improves the quality of the images with respect to the classical method based on the fuzzy transform.

The Tower of Nisida as centre of 17^(th)century fortified naples system

The paper investigates the territorial layout of the fortified system of Naples that developed during the Spanish Vice Kingdom in the 16th-17th centuries.Both existing castles and towers,and constructions built for the purpose,were included in the system.The Tower of Nisida is one of the existing ancient towers that became part of the impressive 17th century defense system of Naples.The study focus is on the strategic importance acquired by Nisida and its Tower in those years,when it became a key location in the fortified system,both evidencing its cruciality through the study of the field of vision that widens from the location and dealing the issue with the point of view landscape and territorial defense,recalling the concept that the defense architecture is part of architectural heritage.

Free Convention Heat Transfer from an Isothermal Horizontal Thin Strip:the Influence of the Prandtl Number

Simultaneous free convection above and below a uniformly heated horizontal plate has been widely investigated,both in the case of an isothermal surface,and of a uniformly heated surface,but always assuming only air as fluid(Pr=0.7).Nevertheless,there are works dealing with horizontal plates whose results show that the Nu dependence on Pr may not be simply expressed by a power law with the same exponent of the Gr one.So it was considered useful to study the Prandtl number influence in the case of the isothermal horizontal strip.Results show that,while for the lower surface of the strip the Nu dependence in Gr can be expressed by a power law with an exponent close to the Gr one,for the upper surface the exponent is sensibly different.Correlating equations related to the investigated situations are proposed.