Origins of Vulcanello based on the re-examination of historical sources (Vulcano, Aeolian Islands)

The lava platform and the three pyroclastic cones of Vulcanello constitute the northernmost volcanic structure of the island of Vulcano (Aeolian Islands). The sandy isthmus connecting the platform to the main island was definitively formed in the first half of the 1500s; before then, Vulcano and Vulcanello were two close but separate islands. For a long time, the interpretation of the sources of the II-I century BC, had considered the islet as built up about 2200 years ago. This belief, which proliferated among naturalists from the 17th century, is not confirmed in the ancient texts or even in the geographical documents of the time, which do not indicate the presence of Vulcanello as a new and stable island near Vulcano. The islet would only be mentioned at the dawn of the second millennium, and named in Arabic “Gabal’ al Burkān”, meaning Mount of Vulcano; shortly thereafter the toponym changed to the Latin “Insulam Vulcanelli” and then, towards the 15th century, finally to Vulcanello. Since the creation of a volcanic island certainly occurred in the Aeolian Islands in the classical era, but traces of it were quickly lost, the most plausible hypothesis is that it was formed in the area of the current Vulcanello, to be subsequently erased by the sea. The shallow, flat seabed, likely remaining as a result of sea abrasion, might have represented the morphological element on which the circular lava platform we know today was formed sometime between 950 and 1000 AD.

Virtual look around: comparing presence, cybersickness and usability for virtual tours across different devices

Virtual Reality has become readily available in the last few years through different devices, from desktop computers to head­-mounted displays (HMD). Also, virtual tours became popular with 360º panoramic photographs and video clips on online social media, so people could visit remote locations without being exposed to crowded transportation or long travels. Also, virtual tours demonstrate considerable potential as a form of escapism and even for remote teaching. Since we lack studies that evaluate the User Experience (UX) in virtual tours on different devices, this article aims to compare aspects of the User Experience (regarding sense of presence, cybersickness, and usability) in a virtual tour website developed in WebXR across different devices. To achieve our objective, we developed a virtual tour based on 360º pictures using WebXR API and React 360 framework and conducted an experiment with 41 undergraduate students using four different devices: a laptop computer, a smartphone, a Google Cardboard headset, and a Samsung Gear VR HMD. We evaluated users’ perceptions by adapting and translating the Suitability Evaluation Questionnaire (SEQ) and users’ performance by measuring the time to fulfill a set of tasks. The main findings from this study include that (i) the overall self-­reported experience using Google Cardboard is worse than using other devices, (ii) the users’ performance is quite similar between the platforms, (iii) there is evidence of unexpected cybersickness symptoms in tests with the smartphone, and (iv) the development of a plausible hypothesis concerning low usability having an effect upon the sense of presence. Additional contributions of our research are the adaptation, translation into Portuguese, psychometric analysis, and revised scoring procedures of the SEQ.

STARS IN THE ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF SPECIES

The proposed hypothesis of ‘Stars in the Origin and Evolution of Species’ is based on the principle underlying in ‘Jyotish’, one of the six Vedāngas and ancillary of most ancient Vedas of Hinduism. The principle of interaction of electromagnetic force with inorganic chemistry available to us in the universe defines life as an emergent property of matter and as the most plausible hypothesis for explaining the extra-terrestrial origin of species. The current hypothesis of evolution explains the critical milestones in the development of advanced life on Earth during the Cambrian explosion and the complexity of life when humans appeared on earth endowed with a brain of extraordinary intellectual capacities and capabilities which is far more complex than the animal brain and its development in stages is also observed as a plausible mechanism in tune with the phases of elements given out by the stars during their life cycles.

Anthropogenic Dispersal of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis in the Americas: A Plausible Hypothesis

There are several gaps in our knowledge on the origin and spread of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis, an etiological agent of cutaneous and mucocutaneous or American tegumentary leishmaniasis, to different biomes, hosts, and vectors, with important epidemiological implications, including the possible existence of an anthroponotic component. Historical, biological, and epidemiological evidence suggests that Leishmania (V.) braziliensis and its variants were preexistent in Amazonia with great genetic variability, where they dispersed with less variability to other regions (clonal expansion). During pre-Columbian times the parasite may have been transported by migrating humans and probably also their dogs, from western Amazonia to the high inter-Andean valleys and from there to other regions of South America. The same thing could have happened later, in the same way, when it spread to non-Amazonian regions of Brazil and other countries of South and Central America, between the late 19th and early 20th centuries, during the so-called Rubber Boom and construction of the Madeira-Mamoré Railway in the Brazilian Amazon, by migrant workers who later returned to their places of origin, transporting the agent. The parasite’s dispersal in genetic correlated clusters, involving unexpectedly distinct ecosystems in Brazil (Amazonian, Cerrado, Caatinga and Atlantic Forest biomes), has continued until the present through human displacement. The infection of certain species of domestic, synanthropic and even wild animals, could be secondary to anthropogenic introduction of L. (V.) braziliensis in new environments. We admit the same phenomena happening in the probable transference of Leishmania infantum (visceral leishmaniasis), and of Yersinia pestis (plague) from the Old world to the New world, generating domestic and wild enzotic cycles from these agents. These assumptions associated with human infections, chronicity and parasite persistence with possibility of recovery of Leishmania in peripheral blood, skin and scars of cured or asymptomatic patients, (that may provide an alternative blood meal), along with the sand flies’ adaptation to the peri-domicile and the high susceptibility of domestic dogs, horses, mules and cats to the parasite, can reinforce the evidence of anthropogenic spread of L. (V.) braziliensis.

Pigmented transverse nasal band: A review

Pigmented transverse nasal band/groove is an asymptomatic benign condition, characterized by the development of erythematous to hyperpigmented, well-demarcated, transverse groove at the junction of middle and lower two-third of the nasal dorsum. Although the pathogenesis is unclear, embryologic origin seems to be the most plausible hypothesis. This condition is often associated other related dermatological conditions such as milia, comedones, seborrheic dermatitis and atopic dermatitis. Diagnosis is mostly clinical, while reassurance is the mainstay of therapy. In persistent cases, topical retinoids have been used. In this article, we have reviewed the different aspects of this condition including treatment, along with the recent updates to create awareness about this dermatological entity.

Mathematical modeling suggests pre-existing immunity to SARS-CoV-2

Mathematical models have largely failed to predict the unfolding of the COVID-19 pandemic. We revisit several variants of the SEIR-model and investigate various adjustments to the model in order to achieve output consistent with measured data in Manaus, India and Stockholm. In particular, Stockholm is interesting due to the almost constant NPI’s, which substantially simplifies the mathematical modeling. Analyzing mobility data for Stockholm, we argue that neither behavioral changes, age and activity stratification nor NPI’s alone are sufficient to explain the observed pandemic progression. We find that the most plausible hypothesis is that a large portion of the population, between 40 to 65 percent, have some protection against infection with the original variant of SARS-CoV-2.

The Coţofeni Discoveries on the Jidovu Mountain (Zlatna): Domestic or Ritual Context?

On the Jidovu mountain in Zlatna, the exploitation of an andesite extraction quarry recently destroyed a Coţofeni site. In 2014, from the area of the peak (952 m altitude), fragments of four ceramic vessels (a pitcher, an amphora, a mug and a cup) were recovered. Afterwards, in 2015, other fragments dispersed by the quarry explosions were also discovered. The presence of these materials is very important in the context of mountain archaeology. Two possible hypotheses were discussed, regarding the presence of certain large-capacity vessels (the 30 l pitcher, the 60 l amphora) on the mountaintop: the possible exploitation of andesite and a ritualistic deposit. The first hypothesis cannot be supported, since in the Coţofeni area, there are very few artefacts made of andesite. However, the much more plausible hypothesis is that of the existence of a ritualistic deposit, since similar associations of vessels also occurred in other places of worship, especially in the caves of the Apuseni Mountains. The possibility of the existence of a seasonal inhabitation is much smaller, given the conformation of the mountain. The Coţofeni site from Jidovu is part of a region in which many Coţofeni discoveries were made, in Zlatna and in the neighbouring areas, concentrated on the upper course of the Ampoi Valley. Unfortunately, the site was destroyed, in the absence of an archaeological survey, and no other data can be recovered.

Some remarks on R. Carnap’s concept of construction in Aufbau and E. Hessserl’s concept of constitution

This paper turns to the concept of constitution and some to it more immediately related notions contained in R. Carnap's Aufbau and Husserl's works that might have had some influence there, in order to find similarities and differences between them. It hopefully will contribute to this assessment of the plausible hypothesis, recently raised in the literature, of an influence of the father of phenomenology not explicitly sufficiently credited in Aufbau. The argumentative strategy was to expose, firstly in a separate way, the relevant points in each strand and then to make the comparative examination. This first analysis took place by two general aspects, namely, to address, on the one hand, the very relation of constitution and what is a system of it and, given the implicated foundationalism attributed to such notion, the data which are at the base of system like this. Then I move on to examine the differences and similarities between such expositions. As result, similarities were observed in that the two of them imply a broader thesis of foundationalism; they propose, in this, to an encompassing system. In addition, they contend that the fact that there is a difference between a lower-level object and a higher-level object does not imply between them mereological composition or some necessary commonality of properties. However, there are also differences regarding the kind of relationship that the notions of constituting imply in each case. Distinctions were also found about the role of sensations in each system; but in that sense, there is, in both perspectives, also similarities concerning their status. The paper concludes with the notion that there must be husserlian influences in the Aufbau not sufficiently credited. However, it is unreasonable the diagnosis of extreme importance of Husserl's influence.