The use of parish marriage registers in biodemographic studies: two case studies from 19th-century Italy

No previous studies have critically evaluated the representativeness or reliability of parish marriage registers for biodemographic studies of historical Italian populations. Because of the widespread Italian custom of spouses settling down in the groom's parish after getting married in the bride's, such registers do not contain any information on wife-exogamous unions. This fact affects not only the number of marriages considered, but also any estimates of the biodemographic parameters usually assessed in these types of studies, especially when open populations are considered. Due to the richness of the parish archives for two populations in central Italy, it was possible to retrieve from the Status Animarum (Register of Souls) information concerning the missing data regarding marriages. Consequently, it was possible to compare values of marital structure indices obtained using only data from marriage registers with the corresponding figures computed using either the complete data series of marriages or solely that of resident couples. The results demonstrate the existence of significant variations in the figures for the exogamy rate, as well as in the number of new family names introduced by marriage. In addition, F and RP values showed important but nonhomogeneous variations.     

Integrating environmental and economic life cycle analysis in product development: a material selection case study

Purpose

Achieving sustainability by rethinking products, services and strategies is an enormous challenge currently laid upon the economic sector, in which materials selection plays a critical role. In this context, the present work describes an environmental and economic life cycle analysis of a structural product, comparing two possible material alternatives. The product chosen is a storage tank, presently manufactured in stainless steel (SST) or in a glass fibre reinforced polymer composite (CST). The overall goal of the study is to identify environmental and economic strong and weak points related to the life cycle of the two material alternatives. The consequential win–win or trade-off situations will be identified via a life cycle assessment/life cycle costing (LCA/LCC) integrated model.

Methods

The LCA/LCC integrated model used consists in applying the LCA methodology to the product system, incorporating, in parallel, its results into the LCC study, namely those of the life cycle inventory and the life cycle impact assessment.

Results and discussion

In both the SST and CST systems, the most significant life cycle phase is the raw materials production, in which the most significant environmental burdens correspond to the Fossil fuels and Respiratory inorganics categories. The LCA/LCC integrated analysis shows that the CST has globally a preferable environmental and economic profile, as its impacts are lower than those of the SST in all life cycle stages. Both the internal and external costs are lower, the former resulting mainly from the composite material being significantly less expensive than stainless steel. This therefore represents a full win–win situation. As a consequence, the study clearly indicates that using a thermoset composite material to manufacture storage tanks is environmentally and economically desirable. However, it was also evident that the environmental performance of the CST could be improved by altering its end-of-life stage.

Conclusions

The results of the present work provide enlightening insights into the synergies between the environmental and the economic performance of a structural product made with alternative materials. Furthermore, they provide conclusive evidence to support the integration of environmental and economic life cycle analysis in the product development processes of a manufacturing company or, in some cases, even in its procurement practices.     

Tick-borne diseases in ruminants of Central and Southern Italy: epidemiology and case reports

Sera and blood from cattle and sheep were examined for the presence of Babesia and Theileria spp by microscopy and serology at the Parasitology Department of the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale of Abruzzo and Molise (IZSAM). Of the 47 bovine herds (323 animals) tested, 15 were found positive for Babesia bigemina and 1 for Babesia bovis. Two outbreaks occurred, one caused by B. bigemina and one by B. bovis. The B. bigemina outbreak occurred in Abruzzo and has been followed for two years. The isolate of B. bigemina was very pathogenic leading to the death of two cows out of 57. The vector responsible of the transmission appeared to be Rhipicephalus bursa. Parasites were observed in the erythrocytes for 30 days whereas sera were positive to indirect immunofluorescence (IFA) for at least one year. The B. bovis outbreak occurred in the province of Mantova (Northern Italy) in a group of 70 beef cattle imported from France. The infection resulted in the death of 5 animals and severe illness in another 6. In contrast with what occurred for Babesia infection, no clinical cases were recorded in cattle when species of Theileria were detected by microscopy. Of the 24 bovine herds (252 animals) tested for Theileria, 21 were found positive for the T. "sergenti"/buffeli/orientalis group. Single and mixed infection of T. "sergenti" and T. buffeli/orientalis were detected in herds of cross-bred cattle from Abruzzo and Marche. The parasites were identified by using a polymerase chain reaction which amplified DNA encoding p32/34. Most of the collected ticks (90%) were adults of R. bursa whereas the others were adults of Hyalomma detritum. During the period the animals have been observed (18 months), no clinical cases have been recorded and no associations have been found between blood abnormalities and animals found infected with Theileria. Prevalences of subclinically infected carriers increased from February till December (95.4%) even if the animals were indoors and no ticks were present. The prevalence then dropped dramatically six months later (76.7%). In calves less than 1 year old, the prevalence of infection significantly (p<0.05) increased with age, however intraerythrocytic stages of Theileria were found in the blood of three newborn calves (<7 days of age). Of the 18 ovine flocks tested for Babesia spp. (150 animals examined), 1 was positive for B. ovis and 2 for B. motasi. B. motasi infection was not associated with symptoms, while an outbreak of babesiosis caused by B. ovis occurred in Abruzzo. The infection resulted in the death of 3 animals (0.75% of the flock), two rams (20% of the total number) and a ewe, and severe illness in another 5 ewes (2% of the flock). Specimens of R. bursa and R. turanicus were collected from the infected animals. Of the 18 flocks (150 animals) examined, 12 were microscopically positive for Theileria spp. No clinical cases were recorded and identification at species level was not possible on the basis of morphological criteria. The prevalence distribution of infected herds and infected animals within herds and flocks have been calculated by a Monte Carlo simulation model, running 10,000 iterations. The most likely levels of prevalence of infected herds and infected animals within herds found for the species observed were as follows: 20% for B. bigemina with a prevalence within herd of 27%, 11% for B. bovis (18% within herd), 10% for Babesia ovis (19% within herd), 10% for B. motasi (17.5% within herd), 63% for Theileria in cattle (66% within herd) and 51% for Theileria in sheep (55% within herd).     

An overview of environmental issues in Southern Africa

This paper provides an overview of some of the significant environmental problems in the Southern African region. The key problems highlighted are global warming and climate variability, loss of biodiversity, deforestation, desertification-land degradation, waste and littering, population growth, urbanization, pollution, poverty and health hazards. These problems present a challenge to governments and other players within and outside Southern Africa to seek for long-term solutions by addressing the root causes of these problems. The paper notes that although the environmental problems facing the Southern African region are being tackled at national, regional and international levels, there is more that can be done. At the national level, the different agencies and players, both within and outside government need to strengthen coordination and implementation of key interventions in different sectors in both rural and urban areas. At the African regional and international levels, there is a need to address geopolitical forces and issues that contribute to the underdevelopment of the African region. Among the major issues are poor terms of international trade, political instability, poverty, declining economic performance and international debt.     

Acarological studies in two protected areas of Central Italy

In the present note are reported the results of preliminary studies on tick distribution in two wildlife areas of Abruzzo (National Park of Abruzzo, a mountainous area, approximately 40,000 ha, in Central Apennines, interesting Abruzzo, Latium and Molise regions) and Latium (Capocotta-Castel Porziano Presidential reserve, on the Tyrrhenian coast, 30 km from Rome). Sampling of ticks from domestic and wild mammals as well as from vegetation, was performed in three different areas of the National Park in 1995. Tick species identified include Rhipicephalus bursa, R. sanguineus, Hyalomma marginatum, Haemaphysalis punctata, Dermacentor marginatus, Ixodes ricinus, I. hexagonus. The presence of I. ricinus was discontinuous and sporadic. In Capocotta estate, samplings were performed bimonthly from March to November 1997 in an restricted area (1 ha) with typical Mediterranean flora and fauna. The following species were collected: I. ricinus, Haemaphysalis concinna, D. marginatus, R. bursa, Hy. marginatum. There was a high dominance of I. ricinus and H. concinna.     

Using functional groups to investigate community response to environmental changes: two grassland case studies

Functional groups (FG) are an useful generalization to investigate environmental change effects on biotic communities. Assigning species to FGs is a contextual task and carries an arbitrary element, regardless of whether the grouping is obtained a priori or by sophisticated numerical methods. Using two grassland community case studies, we show that even simple FG allocation based on growth form, architecture and longevity (plants and mosses), or foraging characteristics (above-ground invertebrates) can be useful to increase our understanding of community processes. For example, the sensitivity of organisms to climate change increases with trophic rank and is higher in disturbed than in undisturbed communities. Complexity of interaction webs (in terms of web connectance), however, is larger in undisturbed than in disturbed communities. A significant and important relationship is likely to exist between anthropogenic disturbances, community complexity and the ecosystem effects of climate change. Trophic interactions may be disrupted much easier by climate changes in disturbed than in undisturbed communities where complexity may be buffering these effects.     

Modelling and the monitoring of mesocosm experiments: two case studies

Mesocosm experiments have played an important role over thelast decade in increasing our understanding of marine ecosystems.Many studies use these controlled environments to examine ecosystemresponses to factors such as nutrient addition and light limitation.A few studies have been able to successfully model mesocosmexperiments using carefully designed and comprehensive modelsand experimental design. Nevertheless, it is rare for such modelsto be compared with oceanic studies, and to consider the sulphurcycle as well as the carbon and nitrogen budgets. Here we takean ecosystem model, including a dimethylsulphide loop, thathas been successfully used in modelling the evolution of theplanktonic system in a Lagrangian field experiment in the NorthAtlantic—the PRIME cruise of 1996—and apply it totwo mesocosm experiments. These were operated by two differentgroups of scientists, but in the same field station in a Norwegianfjord. The experiments were not explicitly designed with thedata requirements of any model in mind. We show that the modelis best able to simulate mesocosm data using model parameterstaken from the real ocean. However, most sensitivity tests aresignificantly less successful in the mesocosm environment thanthe real ocean, especially if the model parameters are allowedto vary in a best fit sense. The limitations of the model–mesocosmmatch highlight the importance of comprehensive monitoring ofmesocosms if they are to be useful for validating models suitablefor the open ocean.     

An economic analysis of reforestation with a native tree species: the case of Vietnamese farmers

The area of degraded forests in Vietnam is substantial, currently about 3.1 million ha of which about 1.7 million ha (55 %) were granted to individual farms for reforestation. However, the result of farmers’ reforestation efforts is limited. We aimed to examine the financial return, technical efficiency, and factors determining reforestation with a native tree species (Canarium album) by farms. Our results showed that reforestation with C. album is less financially profitable than that with an exotic tree species (Acacia mangium) as the alternative land use option. The subsidy from the government is found insufficient to compensate for the income losses of farmers participating in reforestation with the native tree species. Reforestation with C. album could be more successful if participating farmers were equipped to be more technically efficient. Finally, our findings clearly showed that the security of forest land property rights and the provision of forest extension services are among the determinants of participation in, and the subsequent success of reforestation with C. album.     

Product environmental footprint of a cross-laminated timber system: a case study in Italy

Purpose

This study aims to apply the product environmental footprint (PEF) methodology to a wooden wall element, the Massiv–Holz–Mauer® (MHM), in an existing building in Northern Italy. The PEF is a multi-criteria measure of the environmental performance of products throughout their life cycle (European Commission 2013).

Methods

The environmental footprint of the MHM wall element was calculated for the impact categories required by the PEF, using a cradle-to-grave approach. Foreground data was collected at each life stage and completed using data from the Ecoinvent 3.1 database (Wernet et al. 2016). An additional analysis (optional according to the PEF methodology) was conducted for assessing the sustainability of forest management in the sites where wood is extracted from, using data from the forest management plan.

Results and discussion

The results show that, for most of the environmental indicators, the use phase has the highest environmental impact, followed by the production, end-of-life, raw material acquisition, and construction phases. These results depend on the different duration of the life cycle phases, and on the attribution of the total operational energy of the building to the structural components of the wall, though other factors, such as the efficiency of the heating system, may be responsible. Future PEF sectorial specification should specify how to account for the use phase of structural building components. For the majority of the impact categories, the impact is mainly due to processes that occur in the background system, such as production of capital goods and construction of facilities and storehouses. The wooden material production generates relatively low impacts, thanks to the fact that the wood is sourced locally and from forests where a close-to-nature forest management is adopted, characterized by natural regeneration without the use of fertilizers and pesticides.

Conclusions

This study shows that the PEF methodology can be successfully applied to a single wood supply chain, allowing the identification of the main hotspots and actions for reducing the environmental impacts. The PEF leaves space for additional environmental information, which, for some product categories, may play an important role. In the case of wood products, we suggest the inclusion of an assessment, even qualitative, of the sustainability of forest management.

     

Modelling the economic and environmental performance of engineering products: a materials selection case study

Purpose

Life cycle assessment (LCA) studies allow understanding all relevant processes and environmental impacts involved in the life cycle of products. However, in order to fully assess their sustainability, these studies should be complemented by economic (LCC) and societal analyses. In this context, the present work aims at assessing all costs (internal and external) and the environmental performance associated to the full life cycle of specific engineering products. These products are lighting columns for roadway illumination made with three different materials: a glass fibre reinforced polymer composite, steel and aluminium.

Methods

The LCA/LCC integrated methodology used was based in a ??cradle-to-grave?? assessment which considers the raw materials production, manufacture, on-site installation, use and maintenance, dismantlement and end-of-life (EoL) of the lighting columns. The fossil fuels environmental impact category was selected as the key environmental impact indicator to perform the integrated environmental and cost analysis.

Results

The potential total costs obtained for the full life cycle of the lighting columns demonstrated that the one made in steel performs globally worse than those made in composite or aluminium. Although the three systems present very similar internal costs, the steel column has higher external costs in the use phase that contribute for its higher total cost. This column has very high costs associated to safety features, since it constitutes a significant risk to the life of individuals. The raw material and column production stages are the main contributors for the total internal life cycle costs. The EoL treatment is a revenue source in all systems because it generates energy (in the case of the composite incineration) or materials (in the case of metal recycling). The composite and aluminium lighting columns present similar ??cradle-to-grave?? life cycle total cost. However, until the dismantlement phase, the aluminium column presents the highest environmental impact, whereas in the EoL treatment phase this scenario is reversed. The ??cradle-to-grave?? life cycle potential total cost and the environmental impact (fossil fuels) indicator of the steel lighting column are higher than those of the other columns.

Conclusions

Even though the uncertainties in the LCC are larger if external costs are included, their consideration when modelling the economic performance of engineering products increases the probability of developing a more sustainable solution from a societal perspective.     

An invaded wet ecosystem in Central Italy: An arrangement and evidence for an alien food chain

The aim of this work is to provide an account of alien species richness and composition in a remnant Mediterranean coastal wetland of Central Italy. Data were obtained from different taxa-specific methods, in 2001–2005 (terrestrial vertebrates) and in 2005 (fish, arthropoda, mollusca). Among the 353 species sampled, 17 (4.8 %) are aliens (7.1% if we consider only vertebrates).Data on abundance, introduction type and status of alien species are reported. A crustacean, Procambarus clarkii, a fish, Gambusia sp. and three rodents, Myocastor coypus, Rattus norvegicus and Mus domesticus are the naturalized invasive species that locally could constitute a threat on economic and ecological levels. Data on Agapornis nigrigenis and Quelea cardinalis represent the first records for Italy. We also report evidence of a food chain on three levels, among the most invasive species (predation of Gambusia sp. by Procambarus clarkii and of Rattus norvegicus on Procambarus clarkii).      

Boundaries inside the body: Women's sufferings in Southern Peasant Italy

In a village of Southern Italy the secret world of women's emotions is fundamentally expressed through the body. The female body is open to events of the world and absorbs and feels their effect and defines a new identity, a minimal one. This gives rise to a symbolic anatomy, pathology, and physiology that serve to distinguish male and female worlds and to bridge inner and outer experience. These traces of external and extraordinary events, which in the past and in daily life have cut the secret and emotional world of women, are inscribed on the body. This body becomes a phenomenological memoir that opens a new way of interpreting distress and suffering and illness. This article represents a bridge from the interpretation of suffering and illness in Southern Italy via Gramsci and De Martino to a metacultural process of creating a polysemic and multilevel sense of self.

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Résumé Dans un village du Sud de l'Italie le monde secret des émotions des femmes s'exprime souvent à travers une histoire inscrite dans le corps. Le corps féminin est en effet ouvert aux événements du monde et en reçoit les effecs. Ceci nous donne une anatomie, une pathologie, et une physiologie symbolique, qui souligne la différence entre le monde de la femme et le monde des hommes et qui crée un pont entre l'expérience du dehors et l'expérience du dedans. Ces traces des événements extérieurs et extraordinaires, qui dans le passé ont marqué le monde secret des émotions féminines, sont inscrites dans le corps en tant que mémorial corporel qui ouvre la voie à une autre forme d'interprétation de la détresse, de la souffrance, et de la maladie. En effet, les idées exposées dans cet article représentent un pont entre une interprétation de la maladie et de la souffrance en Italie du Sud via Gramsci et De Martino et un processus metaculturel qui montre les niveaux différentes du sens et de l'identité.

     

An Ancient Mediterranean Melting Pot: Investigating the Uniparental Genetic Structure and Population History of Sicily and Southern Italy

Due to their strategic geographic location between three different continents, Sicily and Southern Italy have long represented a major Mediterranean crossroad where different peoples and cultures came together over time. However, its multi-layered history of migration pathways and cultural exchanges, has made the reconstruction of its genetic history and population structure extremely controversial and widely debated. To address this debate, we surveyed the genetic variability of 326 accurately selected individuals from 8 different provinces of Sicily and Southern Italy, through a comprehensive evaluation of both Y-chromosome and mtDNA genomes. The main goal was to investigate the structuring of maternal and paternal genetic pools within Sicily and Southern Italy, and to examine their degrees of interaction with other Mediterranean populations. Our findings show high levels of within-population variability, coupled with the lack of significant genetic sub-structures both within Sicily, as well as between Sicily and Southern Italy. When Sicilian and Southern Italian populations were contextualized within the Euro-Mediterranean genetic space, we observed different historical dynamics for maternal and paternal inheritances. Y-chromosome results highlight a significant genetic differentiation between the North-Western and South-Eastern part of the Mediterranean, the Italian Peninsula occupying an intermediate position therein. In particular, Sicily and Southern Italy reveal a shared paternal genetic background with the Balkan Peninsula and the time estimates of main Y-chromosome lineages signal paternal genetic traces of Neolithic and post-Neolithic migration events. On the contrary, despite showing some correspondence with its paternal counterpart, mtDNA reveals a substantially homogeneous genetic landscape, which may reflect older population events or different demographic dynamics between males and females. Overall, both uniparental genetic structures and TMRCA estimates confirm the role of Sicily and Southern Italy as an ancient Mediterranean melting pot for genes and cultures.     

On-farm monitoring of economic and environmental performances of cropping systems: Results of a 2-year study at the field scale in northern Italy

Cropping systems in northern Italy are intensively managed, but an integrated environmental accounting of these systems has not been published yet. We conducted this study to evaluate cropping systems management in a study area in northern Italy using indicators. The study area is a regional agricultural Park, with cereal and livestock farms, cultivating mostly maize, rice, meadows, and winter cereals.To select the indicators, we identified for the study area the most relevant issues concerning the potential impact of agriculture on the environment: nutrient and pesticide management, use of fossil energy and soil management. Subsequently, we selected indicators from the literature, which could address these issues. We also added indicators describing the economic performance. The data were collected at the field level by periodic face-to-face interviews with seven farm managers over 2 years. Indicators were calculated for all crops cultivated in each field (n = 266).According to the methodology proposed, the best economic performance (gross margin) was obtained by rice, followed by maize, winter cereals, and forage crops. Nitrogen and phosphorus surpluses were high for maize (due to a large use of animal manures), and moderate for rice and permanent meadows (where mineral fertilisers are not usually applied). Maize used high fossil energy inputs; however, the output/input ratio (an indicator of the dependence of food and feed production on non-renewable energy) was elevated, due to high aboveground biomass production. The potential impact due to pesticide use (evaluated with indicators that consider the toxicity and the exposure to active ingredients) was relevant only for rice, moderate for maize and other cereals, and null for forages. Finally, soil management was evaluated for the 2-year crop succession on each field (n = 131): permanent meadows are excellent (due to continuous soil cover and large returns of organic carbon to soil), rice-based successions are unsatisfactory (due to low residues and manure application and continuous cropping), and maize successions are intermediate. This work shows that good quality data can be collected on-farm for economic and environmental accounting at field level. The indicators chosen for the analysis describe a range of issues in the study area, and make it possible to clearly separate and characterise different cropping systems. The procedure for their calculation is transparent and sound, and can be applied for ex-ante, ex-post, and monitoring procedures.     

Saint cults and political alignments in Southern Italy

Conclusion People are seldom able to account for the meanings implied in the particulars of the rituals, but the most important element in the interaction with the saint seems to be of a reciprocal character-exchange of gifts for miracles or protection. The saint cult can be seen as part of a total social phenomenon which articulates the symmetrical reciprocity in the interpersonal relationships in the social structure and asymmetrical relationships in the clientela system. The feasts amount to a popular gathering with multiple functions where all the activities that are being performed renew and confirm networks that constitute village solidarity. The saint cult also joins all these functions and meanings in a complex cultural-personal metaphor that relates expressions of reciprocity as instances of the underlying forms of the society.The saint cult does not merely express a metaphor.A metaphor uses imagery from one domain or level of experience to illuminate relationships, objects and processes in a different domain or at a different level. It follows from this that the domain of thought or experience which is being explicated by metaphor is that which metaphor is used to illuminate, not that from which the idioms of metaphor is fetched .There is also a formal similarity between the gift-giving to a patron saint and to a profane patron. But the rituals in the saint cults do not account for a divine justification of the order in the substantial world. On the contrary, the rituals of the saint cults use a known and common language of reciprocity to get hold of a difficult and inexplicable world. I thus argue that the rituals of the saint cults use idioms similar to the profane political and social relations to express the quality of the relationship between saint and devotee, but this in no way implies that the two domains are substantively confounded. The forms are part of the same world view that emphasizes reciprocity as the basis for social solidarity; receiving evokes obligations for return giving, a favor for a gift. Ritual is not a substitute for the world or displacement of action in it; it is part of, an expression of, a world articulated by those values/views of reciprocity. Consequently, the saint cults which have been analyzed here do not represent an alternative to political or other activities, but a continuation and a completion of that activity into the total means by which one seeks goals in a world so conceived.Mia Di Tota is associated with the Ethnographic Museum at the University of Oslo.

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