Rendiconti Lincei. Scienze Fisiche e Naturali

Accademia dei Lincei was founded in 1603 by Marchese Federico Cesi. The Linceo (lynx) was chosen as the symbol of the institution, because of the presumed keenness of its eye. The aim of the Accademia  was, and still is, the study of scientific disciplines from a global point of view, and the fostering of cooperation among researchers in any field all over the world. Some 540 members, both Italian and non-Italian, belong to the Accademia, and are grouped into two classes: Scienze Matematiche, Fisiche e Naturali and Scienze Morali, Storiche e Filologiche. From its beginnings, the Accademia has drawn together some of the most important people who contributed to building the history of humanity, including Galileo Galilei, Enrico Fermi, Albert Einstein, T.S. Eliot,   Camillo Golgi, Luigi Einaudi, Quintino Sella, Giulio Natta, Louis Pasteur, Charles Darwin, Benedetto Croce, Vito Volterra, Carlo Rubbia, Rita Levi- Montalcini. Springer will further improve the diffusion of the journal Rendiconti Lincei di Scienze Fisiche e Naturali.

Topical Collections on Lincei Prizewinners

The origin of water on Earth: stars or diamonds? Abstract This contribution deals with two different hypotheses on the origin of superficial water on the Earth: the Endogenous hypothesis and the Exogenous one. They proposed that water either was brought to the surface of the Earth from the deep interior of the Earth or would have come to the Earth from celestial bodies that bombarded the planet billions of years ago. The evidence from recent astronomical and geological findings supporting the two alternative hypotheses will be discussed.

A database approach for materials selection for hydrogen storage in aerospace technology Abstract Hydrogen economy has been suggested as a possible green alternative to produce energy, also in the framework of transport applications. According to the specific transport means, different kinds of materials can be adopted. The choice of the most suitable materials should then be addressed according to a systematic analysis of available data. In this paper, together with the major physical storage technologies typically used for aerospace applications, additional possible candidates are suggested, namely clathrates hydrates and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). They are chosen according to the specific features that are asked in the aerospace industry, such as high storage capacities, low weight and materials cost, high cyclability and full reversibility. To this scope, a comprehensive database based on a large set of information from literature (containing, for example, details on the synthesis processes, the operating temperatures and pressures, volumetric and gravimetric capacities) has been created, and specific tools have been developed to query the database. Indeed, the selection of the materials has been performed via an alternative database approach where the queries can be managed using a user-friendly tool, and potential materials can be selected based on any pool of desirable properties in quantitative terms. Essential information and characterization on theoretical and experimental data about these performing materials are provided and commented. As an example, in this paper, the case of clathrates hydrates is shown, and their potential impact is explored and characterized in this context, suggesting the most suitable synthesis processes.

Exploring vascular flora diversity of two protected sandy coastal areas in southern Italy Abstract Coastal ecosystems are among the world’s most threatened environments, as they undergo diverse anthropogenic pressures, which trigger habitat alteration along with rarefaction and/or local extinction of native species. In this study, we performed a floristic investigation aimed at assessing the environmental status of two protected sandy areas located on the Tyrrhenian coast of southern Italy, the southern Garigliano estuary area and Castel Volturno Nature Reserve. These localities show similar geomorphological and climatic conditions, but different land uses and management practices. The sampling of the vascular plants was carried out through geo-location of species, to allow their availability to national and international floristic mapping projects. At whole territory and habitat types level, major trends for shared and exclusive species composition were identified through the analysis of life form, chorology percentage spectrum and similarity index. We detected that the total vascular flora is composed by 429 species, and found out that Garigliano is slightly richer in species (317) than Castel Volturno (311). It is important to note that Garigliano and Castel Volturno’s richness in plants was considerably significant in comparison with other coastal areas of central and southern Italy. Furthermore, although we pointed out that the studied areas showed a low degree of floristic similarity, the shrubland habitat encompassed the highest number of total species and plants of floristic interest (i.e., Italian endemic, rare in Campania, plants included in CITES convention, Habitat Directive, Regional Law of Campania 40/94, National and Regional Red List) in both areas. Finally, despite a severe alteration due to direct anthropogenic disturbance and large-scale alterations that occurred in the last 60 years, we showed that several species of phytogeographical interest are still found in the studied coastal sandy areas, confirming the great importance of this territory for plant diversity and conservation.

Effect of cadmium, chromium, and lead on micropropagation and physio-biochemical parameters of Bacopa monnieri (L.) Wettst. cultured in vitro Abstract Heavy metals are released into the environment as a result of anthropogenic activities such as melting metallic ores, industrial productions, power stations, and pesticides. Among these, cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) are the most common heavy metals in the environment and can cause serious toxic effects on both animals and plants. In this study, the effect of Cd, Cr, and Pb on the propagation of Bacopa monnieri (L.) Wettst. by tissue culture was investigated. In addition, various physio-biochemical parameters (photosynthetic pigments contents, protein contents, lipid peroxidation, and hydrogen peroxide) and survival frequency of the plant were evaluated. The shoot tip explants of B. monnieri were cultured in Murashige and Skoog (MS) nutrient media supplemented with 0.50 mg/L 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and different concentrations of Cd, Cr, and Pb (0.25–1.00 mg/kg) for 10 weeks. 100% shoot regeneration was determined in MS medium containing 0.25, 0.50, and 0.75 mg/kg Cd, 0.25 mg/kg Cr and 0.25 and 0.50 mg/kg Pb. Mean number of shoots per explant and shoot lengths decreased significantly with increasing metal concentration. In Cd, Cr, and Pb applications, maximum number of shoots per explant was obtained as 30.52, 22.47, and 27.12 shoot/explant and the highest shoot lengths were determined as 4.16, 4.27, and 4.35 cm, respectively. As the concentration of the metal exposed to the explant increased, the photosynthetic pigment contents of the plant decreased. The negative impact of metals on photosynthetic pigment contents was found to increase in the order: Cd < Cr < Pb. Similarly, the protein content of plants also decreased due to the negative effect of metals. On the other hand, malondialdehyde (MDA) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) values elevated with increasing concentrations of heavy metals. The findings of this study carried out under in vitro conditions may shed light on researchers who want to investigate the effects of heavy metals on plants.

Quantum mechanics in Earth sciences: a one-century-old story Abstract Nowadays, it is possible to calculate, at the ab initio level, large classes of properties of condensed matter, from the crystal structure and mechanical properties, to the thermodynamics, and therefore the stability in a given environment and in a range of temperature and pressure conditions. Predictions from calculations of this type can be used to estimate geophysical properties such as densities of mantle rocks as they change along geotherms, the geotherms themselves, phase transitions and their features, seismic velocity profiles to be compared with models derived from other paradigms and techniques. Moreover, known facts and observations concerning structure, behaviour, properties of materials and properties of whole complex systems of materials can be explained or at least rationalized within a common and very general frame that is at the basis of all the currently known physics and chemistry. However, the development of ideas, paradigms and related techniques did not come out all of a sudden, but steadily proceeded from the early days till now, without a real solution of continuity. During the time, quantum mechanics heavily contributed to create a language, a set of basic ideas and a frame of mind that is extensively used by chemists and crystallographers to interpret the relevant facts. What we know today, and how we currently apply quantum mechanics to systems of our interest, is largely dependent upon the path followed during the years to implement the theory in practical and efficient algorithms to make calculations for real systems. This paper will present a brief review of the paths followed, along with their motivations, since those early and heroic days of physics at the beginning of the last past century. The aim is to provide the reader with a general view of the subject that could possibly drive her/him toward the choice of more specific papers from the huge literature, concerning more restricted and specialized topics.

Petrographic and chemical characterization of Middle Bronze Age pottery from Sicily: towards a definition of an Etnean production Abstract The Middle Bronze Age in Sicily (fifteenth–thirteenth century BC) represents a crucial moment in the evolution of Prehistoric pottery production. However, the scarcity of specific petrographic and chemical studies has represented until now a serious interpretative handicap for archeologists. The recent study of two important Middle Bronze Age pottery complexes from the Etnean area (Grotte di Marineo di Licodia Eubea and Monte San Paolillo di Catania) has offered the possibility to add new significant data to characterize the manufacturing practices behind such production. A new assemblage of Thapsos pottery from the Middle Bronze Age site of St. Ippolito hill at Caltagirone can shed new light on the features of such Etnean production. This paper highlights the potential of the application of an array of techniques such as petrographic analysis of thin sections and chemical analyses via X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and electron microprobe analysis to better investigate production technology of Middle Bronze Age Sicilian pottery.

A multipurpose X-ray fluorescence scanner developed for in situ analysis Abstract Over the time, instrument transportability has become more and more important, especially in Cultural Heritage, as often artworks cannot be moved from their site, either because of the size or due to problems with permission issues, or simply because moving them to a laboratory is physically impossible, as e.g. in the case of mural paintings. For this reason, the INFN-CHNet, the network for Cultural Heritage studies of the Italian National Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN), has developed an XRF scanner for in situ analyses. The instrument is the result of a wide collaboration, where different units of the network have been developing the diverse parts, then merged in a single system. The XRF scanner has been designed to be a four-season and green instrument. The control/acquisition/analysis software has been fully developed by our group, using only open-source software. Other strong points of the system are easiness of use, high portability, good performances and ultra-low radiation dispersion, which allows us to use even when the public can be present. It can run both with mains or on batteries, in the latter case with a maximum runtime longer than 10 h. It has a very low cost, when compared to commercial systems with equivalent performances, and easily replaceable components, which makes it accessible for a much wider portion of the interested community. The system has been thought and designed as an open system, suitable for further development/improvements, that can result interesting for non-conventional XRF analysis. The CHNet XRF scanner has proved to be really very well suited for applications in the Cultural Heritage field, as testified by the many recent applications. This paper describes the present version of our instrument and reports on the tests performed to characterise its main features. Graphical abstract

Potential of southern Latin-American coastal areas for stone pine ( Pinus pinea L.) cropping Abstract Stone pine (Pinus pinea L.) was introduced to Argentina and Chile approximately a century ago for several uses, mainly for dune stabilization, but not for pine nut production. Many plantations were established along the Mediterranean coastal area of both countries, where some areas have unproductive soils. The comparison of growth and fruit quality on stone pine in exotic and native environments is useful to gain insights on the potential crop areas outside the species native habitat. Accordingly, we provided a comparison of growth performance (diameter at breast height and height) and pine nut chemical composition among stone pine populations cultivated along coastal areas in Argentina and Chile. Results showed similar growth rates between countries, with these values being higher than values reported for coastal areas of Italy and Spain (native habitat), where thermal oscillations are lower and average temperatures are higher. Pine nut composition analyses highlighted an elevated high-quality fat and protein content. We conclude that stone pine could be cultivated in coastal areas of the Southern hemisphere, where the species grows vigorously and its pine nuts maintain the worldwide reported beneficial properties. The study provides information for improving forestry management in the tested areas.

Environmental characterization of mine waste at the Pb–Zn Sidi Kamber abandoned mine (NE Algeria) Abstract The mining wastes coming from Sidi Kamber mine stored at the surface are exposed to weathering conditions, which favour the leaching of toxic metals into the environment. This situation presents serious risks for humans and ecosystems. To better understand this problem, eight representative samples of Sidi Kamber mine tailing were taken from the surface along two vertical trenches and tested using static and dynamic leaching tests. The studied samples present a wide diversity in terms of particle size distribution, mineralogical and chemical compositions. These parameters may greatly affect the reaction rates. The mineralogical investigations show the presence of various sulphide minerals, such as pyrite, galena, sphalerite and chalcopyrite which are present in either free and/or associated with gangue minerals (i.e. quartz, albite, chlorite and muscovite). Moreover, the presence of only minerals with low neutralizing potential such as silicates, promotes the acid mine drainage generation, which is characterized by high concentrations of metals and sulphates. Leaching tests showed an acidic pH and the release of some toxic contaminants (i.e., Pb, Zn and Cu), which exceed the recommended limits (Algerian regulation law for industrial wastewater and US EPA thresholds).