Convegni e Seminari

Comitato organizzatore composto da:​​​
Prof. Mauro Botta, Prof. Giovanni B. Giovenzana, Dott. Claudio Cassino, Dott. Alessandro Nucera, Dott. Marco Ricci, Dott. Lorenzo Risolo, Dott. Fabio Travagin, Dott.ssa Maria Ludovica Macchia, Dott. Federico Forgione (UNIUPO-DiSIT / DSF)
31 Maggio 2024, ore 9.15 AULA 101-102

Recently, the use of Gd³⁺ chelates as contrast agents (CAs) in MRI has encountered two significant challenges. The first arose, ca. 20 years ago, with the occurrence of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) in patients with renal impairment who had undergone contrast-enhanced MRIs, prompting safety concerns regarding Gd³⁺ chelates. While regulations restricting CA use in renally compromised patients have mitigated NSF cases, apprehensions regarding safety persist. Additionally, the environmental impact of CAs in MRI is becoming evident. Gd³⁺, typically sequestered in the lithosphere, is now detectable at elevated levels in drinking water sources and marine ecosystems. Addressing these challenges is imperative. This workshop aims to explore potential alternatives and discuss future directions.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 31-05-2024

Prof.ssa Ginestra Bianconi
Dipartimento di Informatica in Pampulha, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais (Brasile)
21 Febbraio 2024, ore 14.00 AULA 203

From the brain to the climate, complex systems constitute a real challenge for scientists and mathematicians as they are giving rise to dynamical phenomena notoriously difficult to understand, model and predict.
In the last twenty years the scientific community has made unprecedented progress in unveiling the structure of complex systems encoded in their network skeleton describing the set of their pairwise interactions. However networks are not able to characterize the ubiquitous higher-order interactions between  more than two nodes that give rise  to the complex systems topology captured by higher-order networks and simplicial complexes.
Here we reveal how non-linear dynamical processes can be used to learn the topology, by defining Topological Kuramoto model and Topological global synchronization. These critical phenomena capture the synchronization of topological signals, i.e. dynamical signal defined not only on nodes but also on links, triangles and higher-dimensional simplices in simplicial complexes. Moreover will discuss how the Dirac operator can be used to couple and process topological signal of different dimensions, formulating Dirac signal processing. Finally we will reveal how non-linear dynamics can shape topology by formulating triadic percolation. In triadic percolation triadic interactions can turn percolation into a fully-fledged dynamical process in which nodes can turn on and off intermittently in a periodic fashion or even chaotically leading to period doubling and a route to chaos of the percolation order parameter. Triadic percolation changes drastically our understanding of percolation and can describe real systems in which the giant component varies significantly in time such as in brain functional networks and in climate.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 21-02-2024

Prof.ssa Cristina Tuni (Università di Torino)
11 Dicembre 2023, ore 16.30 SEMINARIO ONLINE AD ACCESSO LIBERO, RAGGIUNGIBILE DAL LINK DI PARTECIPAZIONE ALL'EVENTO (organizzato su piattaforma Meet)

La socialità nei ragni è molto rara eppure esistono specie che cooperano nella difesa del territorio e nel prendersi cura della prole. Queste specie hanno un forte inbreeding.

LOCANDINA SEMINARI DiSIT 04, 06 e 11-12-2023

Prof.ssa Michelina Pusceddu (Università di Sassari)
06 Dicembre 2023, ore 13.30 SEMINARIO ONLINE AD ACCESSO LIBERO, RAGGIUNGIBILE DAL LINK DI PARTECIPAZIONE ALL'EVENTO (organizzato su piattaforma Meet)

L'immunità sociale dal gorilla fino ad arrivare all'ape da miele presentata dalla Prof.ssa Michelina Pusceddu.

LOCANDINA SEMINARI DiSIT 04, 06 e 11-12-2023

Prof. Alessandro Cini (Università di Pisa)
04 Dicembre 2023, ore 16.00 SEMINARIO ONLINE AD ACCESSO LIBERO, RAGGIUNGIBILE DAL LINK DI PARTECIPAZIONE ALL'EVENTO (organizzato su piattaforma Meet)

Presentazione delle ricerche del Prof. Alessandro Cini nell'ambito delle vespe sociali.

LOCANDINA SEMINARI DiSIT 04, 06 e 11-12-2023

Prof. Luis Rocha (Binghamton University, State University of New York​​​)
27 Novembre 2023, ore 11.00 AULA 205

Many advances in network science derive from the study of patterns of connectivity (network structure), which provides many insights into the organization of complex systems. Yet, a critical gap remains in understanding how the structure of networks affects the dynamics of complex systems. We have been addressing this gap from a complementary angle: in addition to patterns of connectivity and patterns of dynamics, there are important patterns of redundancy which dictate how interaction structure and logic shape network dynamics. 
We first characterize structural redundancy via the concept of distance backbone of a weighted graph: the sub-graph formed by all edges that obey a generalized triangle inequality for a given path length measure. We show that distance backbones are a parameter-free, principled method to obtain typically very small subgraphs that preserve all shortest paths and connectivity of the original networks across domains---and also preserve the modular and hierarchical structure of shortest distances. We illustrate the relationship to dynamics on networks by showing that the metric backbone is a primary subgraph for epidemic transmission based on pure diffusion processes. We further show that the (semi-triangular) edges that break the triangle inequality have highly variable importance in spreading dynamics. While all of them have null edge betweenness, a measure of how much they break the triangle inequality, the semi-triangular distortion, is highly correlated with edge relevance for spreading dynamics. Additionally, we discuss recent extensions to directed and multilayer graphs. 
Finally, we summarize the distinct concept dynamical redundancy in (discrete dynamical systems) models of biochemical regulation and signaling. We show that the redundancy found in biological models is much more pronounced than what is expected from random networks, and a major reason for them being much more ordered than what the current criticality hypothesis, or “edge-of-chaos” theory, predicts.

LOCANDINA SEMINARI DiSIT 27-11-2023

Prof. Marco Milanesio (Dipartimento di Scienze e Innovazione Tecnologica - UPO)
23 Novembre 2023, ore 14.00 AULA 303

Si parlerà delle possibilità analitiche nel campo dei raggi X con particolare attenzione alle misure in condizioni non ambientali, in situ, batteria e infine alle misurazioni PDF.

LOCANDINA SEMINARI DiSIT 23-11-2023

Prof. Anatoly Nikitin (National Academy of Sciences, Kyiv and visiting professor DiSIT, UPO)
22 Novembre 2023, ore 10.00 AULA 301
22 Novembre 2023, ore 14.00 AULA 301
29 Novembre 2023, ore 10.00 AULA 301
29 Novembre 2023, ore 16.30 AULA 301

These lectures present the latest developments on superintegrable quantum mechanical systems. After an introduction recalling the general context, the case of Schroedinger equations with position depended masses will be studied in detail.

LOCANDINA SEMINARI DiSIT 22 e 29-11-2023

Dr.ssa Anna Barbui, Dr. Alessandro Miceli, Dr. Massimo Geuna
Ordine dei Biologi del Piemonte, della Liguria e della Valle d'Aosta
18 Ottobre 2023, ore 14.00 WEBINAR AD ACCESSO LIBERO, RAGGIUNGIBILE DAL LINK DI REGISTRAZIONE ALL'EVENTO (organizzato su piattaforma Zoom)

Obiettivo di questo webinar è fornire informazioni riguardanti la professione del Biologo. In particolare, il
programma di questo secondo incontro prevede:
1) illustrazione delle opportunità offerte dall'iscrizione all'Ordine;
2) presentazione e discussione delle scuole di specialità per Biologi;
3) confronto degli sbocchi professionali dei laureati e dei laureati iscritti all'Ordine.

LOCANDINA WEBINAR DiSIT 18-10-2023
REGISTRAZIONE VIDEO DELL'EVENTO disponibile sul canale YouTube di UPO Dottorato di Ricerca in Chemistry and Biology

Dr.ssa Anna Barbui, Dr. Alessandro Miceli, Dr. Massimo Geuna
Ordine dei Biologi del Piemonte, della Liguria e della Valle d'Aosta
11 Ottobre 2023, ore 14.00 WEBINAR AD ACCESSO LIBERO, RAGGIUNGIBILE DAL LINK DI REGISTRAZIONE ALL'EVENTO (organizzato su piattaforma Zoom)

Il webinar si propone di fornire tutte le informazioni necessarie alla preparazione dell'esame di stato per l’iscrizione alla sezione A (Biologo) e alla sezione B (Biologo junior). In particolare, il programma di questo secondo incontro prevede:
1) saluti e introduzione da parte del Presidente dell'Ordine regionale, Dr. Alessandro Miceli;
2) presentazione e struttura della FNOB - Federazione Nazionale degli Ordini dei Biologi (ex Ordine Nazionale dei Biologi);
3) struttura attuale dell'esame di stato per l'abilitazione alla professione di Biologo e Biologo Junior;
4) stato dell'arte dell'iter giuridico volto all'istituzionalizzazione della laurea abilitante in Scienze Biologiche e Biologia.

LOCANDINA WEBINAR DiSIT 11-10-2023
REGISTRAZIONE VIDEO DELL'EVENTO disponibile sul canale YouTube di UPO Dottorato di Ricerca in Chemistry and Biology

Dr. Giuseppe Cappellano
Department of Health Sciences DISS-UPO
26 Settembre 2023, ore 14.30 AULA 101

Micro- and nano-scaled devices have revolutionized the area of diagnostics, drug testing, analytical methods, chemical sensing, among others. Progress in microfluidic fabrication technology have led to the establishment of a chip environment as a versatile platform to model pathophysiologic conditions. The greatest advantage of microfluidics is the creation of a controlled microenvironment that precisely drives and controls the microfluidic flow in microchannels, improving detection sensitivity. Recently, microfluidic chips have been successfully developed for several organisms, including microbes, plants and human organs. For example, microbes-on-chip allows for the systematic study of chemical and biological interactions within a microbial community, as well as bacteria mobility and motility, quorum sensing or antibiotic resistance. Plant-on-chip fluidic platforms permits the monitoring of root growth and development, as well as root-pathogen interactions. Finally, human organ-on-chip reproduces in vitro the physiological environment of a whole living organ representing a powerful tool for drug screening, including applications to organ/disease modelling and personalized medicine. The implementation of artificial intelligence in these systems makes them more advanced, thereby helping to provide a more accurate diagnosis. These miniatured chips would help understand complex molecular networks, by determining how individual parts are integrated in time and space to form complex, dynamic cellular functions, and how cellular interactions create higher-order functions.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 26-09-2023

Prof. Attila Forgács
Università di Debrecen, Facoltà di Scienze e Tecnologie, Istituto di Chimica, Dipartimento di Chimica Inorganica e Analitica (Ungheria)
20 Luglio 2023, ore 10.00 AULA 303

The term aerogel is used to describe a family of open porous solids that can be fabricated from a wide variety of basematerials e.g. inorganic oxides, carbon, biopolymers, synthetic polymers. Aerogels are highly porous and consist of an open-cell pore network. Their main characteristics are high specific surface area (500–1200 m2 g-1), high porosity (80–99.8%), low density (~0.003–0.5 g cm-3), low thermal conductivity (0.005–0.1 W/mK), ultra-low dielectric constant (k = 1.0–2.0) and low refraction index (~1.05). Relying on these characteristics, the main research directions for the applications of aerogels are as follows: i) thermal and electrical insulation for industrial applications; ii) high performance adsorbents for gas separation and for environmental remediation; iii) catalysts and catalyst supports; iv) drug delivery systems, and scaffolds for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. For these reasons, aerogels are currently one of the most extensively researched porous materials.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 20-07-2023

Prof. Davide Comoretto
Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Genova
14 Luglio 2023, ore 15.00 AULA 204

Year by year, the importance of organic and hybrid highly ordered nanostructures in photonics is increasing. Polymers - even recycled or from renewable sources - represent an interesting alternative to more traditional metal oxides, being easily processable and allowing for light, free-standing and flexible structures able to address several sustainable development goals of the ONU 2030 agenda. In sensing, they allow for the preparation of label-free sensors for food degradation by products or for environmental monitoring. In the thermal shielding field, they would allow for thin, transparent films able to reduce heating by sunlight and to improve the sustainability of buildings or to keep the quality of foods/beverages. Mechanochromic photonic systems allow an easy read-out chromatic response to mechanical stimuli. Moreover, in fluorescence control and lasing, photonic crystals are fundamental towards all-organic photonics and polymer quantum electrodynamics providing fundamental hints to quantum technologies and polymer metamaterials. Finally, hybrid materials are of great interest in these regards as they combine the processability of polymers with the superior refractive index properties of inorganics.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 14-07-2023

Prof. Takafumi NOGUCHI (https://moonshot-c4s.jp/en)
University of Tokyo - Department of Architecture
05 Luglio 2023, ore 14.00 AULA 104

Concrete is an indispensable construction material for social capital development, but around 8% of total CO2 emitted annually worldwide comes from cement production. To establish a carbon neutral society by 2050, 55 billion tons of CO2 in the atmosphere which have been emitted due to calcination of limestone during cement production and Ca which has been remained in the concrete should be combined again to form a carbon neutral circulation. Consequently, global warming will be greatly suppressed, and the global environment will be regenerated by concrete, “White Carbon”.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 05-07-2023

Leonardo Marchese (Dipartimento di Scienze e Innovazione Tecnologica - UPO)
Giovannina Albano e Cristina Coppola (Università di Salerno)
Tiziana Pacelli (Univeristà di Napoli)
Francesca Martignone (Dipartimento di Scienze e Innovazione Tecnologica - UPO)
Cristina Sabena e Marta Saccoletto (Univeristà di Torino)
Domingo Paola (Laboratorio di didattica della matematica - DIMA Genova)
Giovanna Mora (I.C. Bassa Atesina di Egna)
Annarita Monaco (I.C. Francesca Morvillo di Roma)
09 Giugno 2023, ore 9.15 AULA 104

Giornata di seminari in presenza in onore del Prof. Pier Luigi Ferrari.

LOCANDINA SEMINARI MATEMATICA 09-06-2023

Dott.ssa Marta Betti (Dipartimento Attività Integrate Ricerca Innovazione, DAIRI - Azienda Ospedaliera di Alessandria​​​​)
31 Maggio 2023, ore 14.00 AULA 101

Master di primo livello organizzato dall'Università del Piemonte Orientale in collaborazione con l’Azienda Ospedaliera “SS Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo”, Dipartimento Attività Integrate Ricerca Innovazione (Alessandria) che prevede una durata annuale. L’obiettivo del Master è l’acquisizione delle conoscenze e competenze necessarie alla pianificazione e conduzione di sperimentazioni cliniche, alla raccolta dei dati, all’analisi statistica e alla presentazione dei risultati. In particolare, l’obiettivo è quello di integrare l’attività didattica frontale con insegnamenti molto pratici, grazie alle numerose esercitazioni previste.
Il Master fornisce conoscenze e competenze per Data Manager/Clinical Study Coordinator, Clinical Research Associate (CRA) e Infermieri di Ricerca. Il Data Manager/Clinical Study Coordinator è quella figura che si occupa non solo dei dati clinici, dalla fase di trasferimento dalla cartella clinica alle schede di raccolta dati (CRF) a quella del processo di cleaning fino al conclusivo trasferimento ai centri statistici, garantendone accuratezza e verificabilità, ma soprattutto è colui che svolge un ruolo di coordinamento dei vari aspetti della sperimentazione, e costituisce il riferimento sia per l'equipe clinica che per i comitati etici e le autorità regolatorie. Il Clinical Research Associate provvede al monitoraggio delle sperimentazioni cliniche, in accordo con le norme di Good Clinical Practice, verificandone la corretta applicazione dei relativi criteri di qualità. L’Infermiere di Ricerca opera con un elevato grado di coinvolgimento nel contesto della ricerca sanitaria, erogando attività infermieristiche di supporto alle sperimentazioni cliniche. Il fabbisogno delle suddette figure professionali, che tramite il Master si specializzano, si può ritenere in leggero aumento, data la richiesta di questi esperti sia nel settore pubblico sia nel settore privato. La terza edizione del Master si prevede che prenderà avvio nei primi mesi del 2024, con pubblicazione del bando nell'autunno 2023.

LOCANDINA EVENTO 31-05-2023

Elena Grasselli e Raffaella Boggia (UNIGE)
Viviana Negro (POLITO)
Enrico Boccaleri ​​​​(Dipartimento per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile e la Transizione Ecologica - UPO)
Antonio Comite (UNIGE)
Francesca Demichelis (POLITO)
Flavio Anastasia (Dipartimento di Scienze e Innovazione Tecnologica - UPO)
25 Maggio 2023, ore 14.30 AULA MAGNA

La Giornata Nazionale della Bioeconomia (BIOECONOMY DAY) è un evento promosso e coordinato dal Cluster SPRING con Assobiotec-Federchimica.
Il Bioeconomy Day prevede l’organizzazione di numerosi eventi, iniziative e manifestazioni su tutto il territorio nazionale, un’occasione importante per raccontare e approfondire di fronte a target diversificati, dalle famiglie alle scuole fino agli addetti ai lavori e alle istituzioni, le caratteristiche e opportunità offerte dalla nuova economia che impiega risorse biologiche rinnovabili. In questa edizione, tre Università (UPO, UNIGE e POLITO) presenteranno e condivideranno alcune loro esperienze nel settore della Bioeconomia.
Ognuna di queste organizzerà seminari che verranno trasmessi alle altre sedi ed è prevista una discussione sui temi trattati.

LOCANDINA CONVEGNO 25-05-2023

Alessandro Antonucci​​​
IDSIA, Lugano, Svizzera
19 Aprile 2023, ore 10.00 SALA SEMINARI INFORMATICA (C192) con trasmissione dal vivo sul canale Youtube UPO del Prof. Luigi Portinale

Structural causal models are the fundamental modeling unit in Pearl’s theory of causality.
In principle they allow to solve counterfactuals, which are at the top rung of the ladder of causation. In practice they often contain latent variables, this limiting their application to special settings.
We notice how observations of the manifest variables induce constraints on the probabilities of the latent ones. This allows to map a causal model into a credal network. Causal inferences, such as those based on interventions and counterfactuals, can consequently be obtained by inference algorithms for credal networks. These return sharp values in the identifiable case, while intervals corresponding to the exact bounds are produced in the unidentifiable case.
To bypass the computational hurdles imposed by credal network inference in the general case, we then derive an EM scheme that allows to address inference via standard algorithms for Bayesian networks.
The result is a general method to compute counterfactuals, be they identifiable or not (in which case we deliver an inner approximation of the bounds). We also provide credible intervals proving that the EM approximation becomes accurate in a fair number of runs. We finally discuss an empirical validation on a synthetic benchmark, a case study on palliative care and some recent extensions to cope with hybrid and/or biased data.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 19-04-2023

Dr. Enrico Moiso
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA
03 Aprile 2023, ore 15.00 AULA 102

Cancer is partly a developmental disease, with malignancies named based on cell or tissue of origin. However, a systematic atlas of tumor origins is lacking. Here we map the single-cell organogenesis of 56 developmental trajectories to the transcriptomes of over 10,000 tumors across 33 cancer types. We deconvolute tumor transcriptomes into signals for individual developmental trajectories. Using these signals as inputs, we construct a developmental multilayer perceptron (D-MLP) classifier that outputs cancer origin. D-MLP (ROC-AUC: 0.974 for top prediction) outperforms benchmark classifiers. We analyze tumors from patients with cancer of unknown primary (CUP), selecting the most difficult cases in which extensive multimodal workup yielded no definitive tumor type. Interestingly, CUPs form groups distinguished by developmental trajectories, and classification reveals diagnosis for patient tumors. Our results provide an atlas of tumor developmental origins, provide a tool for diagnostic pathology, and suggest developmental classification may be a useful approach for patient tumors.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 03-04-2023

Architetto Roberto Scabiosi
Volontario e Formatore della Protezione Civile
27 Marzo e 03 Aprile 2023, ore 10.00 AULA 204

Il volontario della protezione civile presenterà le buone pratiche di protezione civile in caso di eventi catastrofici. In particolare verranno affrontati i seguenti argomenti: 1) descrizione delle caratteristiche, delle funzioni e della struttura del Servizio Nazionale della Protezione Civile; 2) le alluvioni, sistema previsionale, sistema di allertamento, fenomeno fisico, danni causati, pianificazione territoriale; 3) i terremoti, fenomeno fisico, sistema di emergenza, danni causati, 4) i maremoti, fenomeno fisico, sistema di allertamento, danni. La trattazione degli argomenti sarà accompagnata da numerosi esempi di interventi di assistenza alla popolazione attraverso immagini e documenti vari. Sarà data importanza anche e soprattutto alla fase di pianificazione territoriale, previsione dell'emergenza e norme di autoprotezione attraverso l'elencazione delle buone pratiche di Protezione Civile. 

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 27-03 e 03-04-2023

Alberto Doretto ​​​​(Dipartimento per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile e la Transizione Ecologica - UPO)
Emanuele Bompan (Giornalista, Direttore di Materia Rinnovabile)
Chiara Bisio (Dipartimento di Scienze e Innovazione Tecnologica - UPO)
Cristina Calvi (PNRR e contratti fiume, Provincia di Alessandria)
Adriano Simoni (Direttore, Egato6)
31 Marzo 2023, ore 10.30 AULA MAGNA

La grave siccità che sta colpendo l’Italia e, in particolare, la Regione Piemonte costringe tutti gli attori coinvolti a una seria riflessione sulle modalità disponibili per affrontare il cambiamento climatico in corso. La scarsità d’acqua impone che vengano individuate strade alternative per compensarla e superarla: il necessario ammodernamento delle strutture, compiuto in un’ottica di investimenti cospicui e strategici, non può prescindere da un ripensamento del modello economico e produttivo. Il diritto all’acqua, come sancito all’interno dell’Obiettivo n. 6 dell’Agenda Onu 2030 per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile, è universale e, in quanto tale, va tutelato attraverso l’adattamento climatico: risparmiare la risorsa idrica e allo stesso tempo trovare modalità innovative per riutilizzarla in una visione circolare e di lungo periodo.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT 31-03-2023

Prof. Marcello Baricco (Dipartimento di Chimica e NIS-INSTM - Università di Torino)
Prof. Leonardo Marchese (Dipartimento di Scienze e Innovazione Tecnologica - UPO)
Ing. Alberto Tancini (SOL Group, ricerca e commercializzazione gas tecnici​​​​​)
Dott.ssa Patrizia Maccone e Ing. Daniele Facchi (Centro Ricerche e Sviluppo, Solvay Specialty Polymers Italy S.p.A - Bollate, MI)
Dott. Alberto Ruffino (Team Alternative Propulsion Business Development - IVECO Group)
Dott. Fulvio Canonico (BUZZI UNICEM Innovazione Laboratori e Tecnologia - BUILT)
14-21 Marzo 2023, ore 14.30 AULA MAGNA

Il service promosso dal Rotary Club di Alessandria in partnership con il Dipartimento di Scienze e Innovazione Tecnologica (DiSIT) dell’Università del Piemonte Orientale – sede di Alessandria, ha l’obiettivo di promuovere ed incentivare la ricerca sul tema dell’idrogeno ed in particolare dell’idrogeno verde per la produzione di energia pulita e per la mobilità. L’idrogeno si sta affermando come uno degli elementi chiave per la transizione energetica ed è al centro delle agende politiche e delle strategie energetiche di numerosi paesi del mondo e della Commissione Europea, che nel testo del Recovery Plan ha previsto 3 miliardi per il suo sviluppo. Il service in quest’ottica si propone di incentivare la ricerca e lo studio in materia, approfondendo attraverso seminari tecnici con relatori d’eccezione e presentazione di case history i vantaggi e gli svantaggi delle tecnologie attualmente in via di sviluppo, dalla teoria alle applicazioni, passando attraverso i materiali attualmente sviluppati. Il service è rivolto agli studenti della Laurea Magistrale di Scienze Chimiche e ai dottorandi del corso di Chemistry & Biology.

LOCANDINA SEMINARI TECNICI 14 e 21-03-2023

Prof. Nikolas Thomaidis
University of Athens, Greece
Prof. Bruno Hagenbuch
University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, USA
Prof. Marco Parolini
University of Milan, Italy
Dott.ssa Sara Valsecchi
National Council of Research (IRSA-CNR), Milan, Italy
12 Dicembre 2022, ore 14.00 AULA MAGNA

As part of the annual meeting of the H2020-project SCENARIOS, the "First International Workshop on PFAS Transport and PFAS Toxicology" will feature high-level speakers and experts PFAS is the acronym for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and represents a group of emerging contaminants known for their persistence and mobility in the environment. This is a hotly debated topic these days. Chemicals such as PFOA and PFOS are ubiquitous pollutants found in all environmental matrices and in biota where they readily accumulate. The Po River basin, Italy's largest river, has been subject to constant and continuous contamination with such chemicals. Even though these Legacy PFAS have been restricted since 2014 under the Stockholm Convention, their traces are still present today. The Trissino disaster in the province of Vicenza, Italy, resulted in the contamination of one of the largest underground aquifers in Europe. A large number of citizens of all ages were exposed to PFAS and will therefore forever carry traces of these substances in their blood. These substances are also of concern to supranational organizations, which are called upon to regulate their use and release. The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is due to rule in the next three months whether to ban short carbon chain PFAS, known as alternative PFAS, in firefighting foams. In addition, a public consultation for a full restriction of the entire class of compounds under the European regulation REACH will begin in January 2023 after five EU member states made the proposal. Today's workshop is the first in a series of workshops designed within the SCENARIOS project to contribute to a better understanding of the effects of PFASs on human health and the environment so that decision makers can make informed and fair decisions about the regulation of these substances.

Il seminario è promosso dal Prof. Francesco Dondero.

INFO SU MEDIACENTRE

Prof.ssa Silvia Vicini (Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Genoa)
18 Novembre 2022, ore 14.00 AULA 205

Over the last years electrospinning technique has emerged as an easy, fast and affordable approach to prepare nanofibrous membranes with a micro-structure which strongly resemble the extra-cellular matrix.
Electrospinning is based on the application of a strong potential difference to create an electrically charged polymer solution jet which leads to the formation of nano and/or microfibres subsequently collected on a proper surface; thus, highly porous mats with a high specific surface area can be easily obtained and, above all, they were found able to promote human cell viability.
Alginate and chitosan-based membranes are prepared via electrospinning using solution and poly(ethylene oxide) as co-spinning agent. Different solutions are rheologically characterized in order to assess the viscosity values suitable to proceed with the electrospinning process.
The membranes are coagulated to stabilize them using different baths. Moreover, a crosslinking approach are optimized to obtain insoluble mats whose composition is investigated, proving the elimination of the co- spinning agent. Mechanical characterization is performed to test the stress/strain behaviour.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT - Venerdì 18.11.2022 ore 14.00

Dr. Leo Ferres (Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago de Chile)
27 Ottobre 2022, ore 10.00 Diretta Meet

During the COVID-19 pandemic, mobile phone data sets have been used all over the world to measure the effectiveness of mobility restrictions and to inform epidemiological models of disease dynamics. However, there are several issues with mobile phone datasets that have not been thoroughly investigated, and which can cause serious impacts in the conclusions drawn from the studies using these data, and their implementation or impact in public policy, for example. Here we discuss three of these issues: Modifiable area units (MEAP) and the politics of administrative boundaries, common evaluation techniques of trip/mobility algorithms, and the ethics/responsibility of data sharing. Some of these issues have straightforward methodologies (even if not solutions per se, such as the MEAP), others have straightforward solutions, but haven’t been discussed yet (trip evaluations), and others are downright difficult to reach a common ground, such as the sharing of private, sensitive, commercial data. In this work, we discuss a few solutions to each of these issues, and open the door for a more open scientific discussion.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT - Giovedì 27.10.2022 ore 10.00

Dott.ssa Anna Sapienza (Copenhagen Center for Social Data Science - SODAS)
20 Ottobre 2022, ore 10.00 AULA 203

Recent years have seen an explosive growth in the use of mobile apps on smartphones and tablets. With over 2.7 billion smartphone users across the world checking their phones over 80 times a day, smartphone data offer a unique opportunity to understand main aspects of human behaviors, e.g., mobility, sleep patterns, and mobile app usage. Despite the impact that smartphones have in shaping our society, there is surprisingly little general knowledge about what has changed and what goes on when people stare at their screen. In this talk, I will present the differences in smartphone use across users, based on the study of an unprecedented dataset, including mobile app traces of thousands of users in time. I will show how users interact with smartphones with the aim of characterizing users with high/low levels of engagement, the type of apps underlying this engagement, and the effects of external factors, such as user demographics and the environment.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT - Giovedì 20.10.2022 ore 10.00

Prof. Roberto Simonutti (Department of Materials Science - University of Milan-Bicocca)
23 Settembre 2022, ore 11.00 AULA 203

Polymer networks, including rubbers and hydrogels, are ubiquitous materials. The determination of their structure-property relationship is fundamental for their rational improvement.
Low Field (LF) Time Domain (TD) Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is a powerful technique to probe molecular-level dynamics, through 1H relaxation times T1 e T2. and the measure of residual dipolar couplings (Dres), which are linearly proportional to crosslinks density (CLD).1
This technique has been exploited to measure the evolution of crosslinking in conventional rubbers and their blends,2 and to prove the formation of polar crosslinks clusters in more innovative modified EPDM rubbers crosslinked via reversible Diels-Alder chemistry3. Figure 1 (right) highlights the bimodal distribution of Dres in a heterogeneous system as compared to a more homogeneous one. Access to CLD distribution is the most outstanding advantage of TD-NMR compared to traditional method for the determination of CLD, such as equilibrium swelling measurements.
Important variations in chain dynamics, such as phase transitions, can be easily monitored with the study of T2 at varying temperatures. In Figure 1, a methylated cellulose thermogelating material4 shows increased T2 upon temperature increase, followed by a sudden drop at the gelation point. The reversibility of the process, the formation of a metastable phase and the associated hysteresis phenomena can be monitored, obtaining results in line with rheological testing.
These examples highlight that LF TD-NMR is a comprehensive tool to characterize in details polymeric networks, making it suitable for both academic and industrial applications.

LOCANDINA SEMINARIO DiSIT - Venerdì 23.09.2022 ore 11.00

Prof. Anatoly Nikitin (National Academy of Sciences, Kyiv and visiting professor DiSIT, UPO)
20 Luglio 2022, ore 11.00 SALA SEMINARI INFORMATICA (C192)

This is an introduction to the symmetries of the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics. After considering symmetries with respect to continuous groups of transformation, supersymmetries are discussed.
Finally, time permitting, we discuss integrals of motion belonging to second order differential operators; these are important constituents of superintegrable systems.

Prof. Anatoly Nikitin (National Academy of Sciences, Kyiv and visiting professor DiSIT, UPO)
13 Luglio 2022, ore 14.00 SALA SEMINARI INFORMATICA (C192)

This is an introduction to the symmetries of the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics. After considering symmetries with respect to continuous groups of transformation, supersymmetries are discussed.
Finally, time permitting, we discuss integrals of motion belonging to second order differential operators; these are important constituents of superintegrable systems.

Prof. Anatoly Nikitin (National Academy of Sciences, Kyiv and visiting professor DiSIT, UPO)
22 Giugno 2022, ore 10.00 AULA 204

This is an introduction to the symmetries of the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics. After considering symmetries with respect to continuous groups of transformation, supersymmetries are discussed.
Finally, time permitting, we discuss integrals of motion belonging to second order differential operators; these are important constituents of superintegrable systems.

Prof. Anatoly Nikitin (National Academy of Sciences, Kyiv and visiting professor DiSIT, UPO)
20 Giugno 2022, ore 14.00 AULA 203

This is an introduction to the symmetries of the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics. After considering symmetries with respect to continuous groups of transformation, supersymmetries are discussed.
Finally, time permitting, we discuss integrals of motion belonging to second order differential operators; these are important constituents of superintegrable systems.

Prof. Anatoly Nikitin (National Academy of Sciences, Kyiv and visiting professor DiSIT, UPO)
06 Giugno 2022, ore 14.00 AULA 303

This is an introduction to the symmetries of the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics. After considering symmetries with respect to continuous groups of transformation, supersymmetries are discussed.
Finally, time permitting, we discuss integrals of motion belonging to second order differential operators; these are important constituents of superintegrable systems.

Dott.ssa Alice Boarino (Institut des Matériaux and Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Laboratoire des Polymères, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland)
23 Maggio 2022, ore 14.00 AULA 203

Lignin is one of the main components of biomass, discarded a by-product of the paper industry in huge quantities every year. The complex structure of lignin, composed of aromatic rings with hydroxy and methoxy functional groups, provides interesting properties such as antioxidant, UV-barrier and antimicrobial activity. Due to the high availability, biodegradability and biocompatibility of this plant-derived polymer, significant attention has been given to a wide-scale use of lignin-derived products in various applications. In this seminar, the valorisation of this under-exploited material into high added-value applications will be discussed.

Prof. Mauro Rebelo (Federal University Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
16 Maggio 2022, ore 14.00 AULA 207
17 Maggio 2022, ore 11.00 AULA 303
31 Maggio 2022, ore 11.00 AULA 206
07 Giugno 2022, ore 11.00 AULA 206
09 Giugno 2022, ore 09.00 AULA 103
13 Giugno 2022, ore 10.00 AULA 206
13 Giugno 2022, ore 14.00 AULA 204
​​​​​​14 Giugno 2022, ore 11.00 AULA 206

Prof. Mauro Rebelo is a Graduate at Marine Biology from Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (1994), master's at Biological Oceanography from Universidade Federal do Rio Grande (1996) and Ph.D. at Byophysics from Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (2001). Did 1 year of post-doc in Environmental Molecular Biology at Fiocruz (2002) and 2 years at Università del Piemonte Orientale in Itália (2004). He is Adjunct Professor at Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro since 2004 and head of the Environmental Molecular Biology Laboratory (BioMA). Has experience in Biochemistry and Ecology, with emphasis in Molecular Biology, studying gene-environment relationships in aquatic organisms. His main research lines are toxicity mechanism of environmental contaminants, invertebrate genomics, metagenomics of aquatic environments and the use of non-traditional models in biomedical research. Is an entrepreneur in biotechnology developing innovation with the biotech company Bio Bureau. He is deeply involved with Distance Learning and Science Communication. His blog at the Brazilian brach of ScienceBlogs (http://scienceblogs.com.br/vqeb) has hundreds of posts and thousands of visits.
The Synthetic Conservation Biology program will include the following topics:
1. What is natural?
2. How many species are there? What is a species? Can we know how many species there are?
3. Are we losing species? Mass extinctions Estimation of species in the environment. Estimation of species extinction
4. Should we save endangered species? Estimation of endangered species. Charismatic fauna
5. Should we rescue extinct species? Neanderthal and mammoth
6. Is it time for synthetic conservation biology? About synthetic biology projects: The golden mussel (Limnoperna fortunei); Sun corals; Aedes sp and Anopheles sp

Prof. Peter Liljedahl (Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada)
15 Marzo 2022, ore 15.00 Diretta Zoom

Much of how classrooms look and much of what happens in them today is guided by institutional norms laid down at the inception of an industrial-age model of public education. These norms have enabled a culture of teaching and learning that is often devoid of student thinking. In this session I present some of the results of over 15 years of research into how teachers can transform their classrooms from a space where students mimic to where students think. The practices discussed will intertwine with, and make extensive references to, the recently published book, Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics (Grades K-12): 14 Teaching Practices for Enhancing Learning.

Prof.ssa Margherita Benzi (UNIUPO-DiGSPES)
07 Febbraio 2022, ore 16.00 AULA 102

Come suggerisce il titolo, "prestato" da uno dei padri dell'IA, la filosofia ha svolto un ruolo importante in intelligenza artificiale. Altrettanto importante, anche se fino a tempi recenti meno riconosciuta, è stato il contributo dell’IA alla riflessione su alcune tematiche centrali della filosofia come la causalità e il rapporto mente-cervello. La relazione tra filosofia e IA è però anche complicata, con intersezioni, illusioni reciproche e malintesi. Questo seminario intende ripercorre la storia di alcuni aspetti di tale relazione, e mostrerà come alcuni degli attuali problemi filosofici dell’IA possano avere conseguenze molto pratiche nella nostra vita.

Dott. Giovanni Pagano (Department of Mathematics, University of Salerno)
02 Febbraio 2022, ore 16.00 AULA 203

We show techniques that allow to improve the accuracy and/or stability properties of classical explicit numerical schemes solving ordinary differential equations systems.
These techniques foresee, with different motivations, the modification of the classical methods coefficients, which become matrices dependent on the Jacobian of the problem. Obviously, the new Jacobian-dependent schemes thus derived can also be used for the solution of partial differential equations systems through the method of lines, then solving the semi-discretized in space problem.
In detail, we analyze the application of the mentioned methodologies on explicit Runge-Kutta methods and peer methods, proving that it is possible to make them A-stable, while preserving their explicit structure. Since the inversion of Jacobian-dependent matrices is required at each step, it is not possible to classify the new schemes as totally explicit methods. However, for some problems these methods are actually explicit, as the Jacobian is either constant, or it can be approximated with a constant matrix. Numerical tests highlight the advantages of the new methods.

Dott.ssa Simona Losio e Dott.ssa Laura Boggioni (SCITEC CNR, Milano)
17 Gennaio 2022, ore 11.00 AULA 204

Polycarbonates can be prepared by the copolymerization of epoxides with carbon dioxide (CO2) as an inexpensive, abundant, nontoxic, and renewable feedstock. Since the discovery of Inoue in 1969, the copolymerization of epoxides and CO2 has become an important and useful technology for the large-scale utilization of CO2 in chemical synthesis, employing mainly propylene oxide and cyclohexene oxide. In recent years, the use of functional epoxide monomers has become an emerging topic with a broad scope of potential applications This presentation will cover the synthesis, the physico-chemical properties, and the growing applications of this class of green polymers.