The efficacy of transcranial current stimulation techniques to modulate resting-state EEG, to affect vigilance and to promote sleepiness

Transcranial Current Stimulations (tCSs) are non-invasive brain stimulation techniques which modulate cortical excitability and spontaneous brain activity by the application of weak electric currents through the scalp, in a safe, economic, and well-tolerated manner. The direction of the cortical effects mainly depend on the polarity and the waveform of the applied current. The aim of the present work is to provide a broad overview of recent studies in which tCS has been applied to modulate sleepiness, sleep, and vigilance, evaluating the efficacy of different stimulation techniques and protocols. In recent years, there has been renewed interest in these stimulations and their ability to affect arousal and sleep dynamics. Furthermore, we critically review works that, by means of stimulating sleep/vigilance patterns, in the sense of enhancing or disrupting them, intended to ameliorate several clinical conditions. The examined literature shows the efficacy of tCSs in modulating sleep and arousal pattern, likely acting on the top-down pathway of sleep regulation. Finally, we discuss the potential application in clinical settings of this neuromodulatory technique as a therapeutic tool for pathological conditions characterized by alterations in sleep and arousal domains and for sleep disorders per se

VirtuE: a Formal Model of Virtual Enterprises for Information Markets

A vital part of a modern economy is an information market. In this market, information products are being traded in countless ways. Information is bought, modified, integrated, incorporated into other products, and then sold again. Often, the manufacturing of an information product requires the collaboration of several participants. A virtual enterprise is a community of business entities that collaborate on the manufacturing of complex products. This collaboration is often ad hoc, for a specific product only, after which the virtual enterprise may dismantle. The virtual enterprise paradigm is particularly appealing for modeling collaborations for manufacturing information products, and in this paper we present a new model, called VirtuE, for modeling such activities. VirtuE has three principal components. First, it defines a distributed infrastructure with concepts such as members, products, inventories, and production plans. Second, it defines transactions among members, to enable collaborative production of complex products. Finally, it provides means for the instrumentation of enterprises, to measure their performance and to govern their behavior.A vital part of a modern economy is an information market. In this market, information products are being traded in countless ways. Information is bought, modified, integrated, incorporated into other products, and then sold again. Often, the manufacturing of an information product requires the collaboration of several participants. A virtual enterprise is a community of business entities that collaborate on the manufacturing of complex products. This collaboration is often ad hoc, for a specific product only, after which the virtual enterprise may dismantle. The virtual enterprise paradigm is particularly appealing for modeling collaborations for manufacturing information products, and in this paper we present a new model, called VirtuE, for modeling such activities. VirtuE has three principal components. First, it defines a distributed infrastructure with concepts such as members, products, inventories, and production plans. Second, it defines transactions among members, to enable collaborative production of complex products. Finally, it provides means for the instrumentation of enterprises, to measure their performance and to govern their behavior.Non-Refereed Working Papers / of national relevance onl

EEG oscillations during sleep and dream recall. State- or trait-like individual differences?

Dreaming represents a peculiar form of cognitive activity during sleep. On the basis of the well-known relationship between sleep and memory, there has been a growing interest in the predictive role of human brain activity during sleep on dream recall. Neuroimaging studies indicate that rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is characterized by limbic activation and prefrontal cortex deactivation. This pattern could explain the presence of emotional contents in dream reports. Furthermore, the morphoanatomical measures of amygdala and hippocampus predict some features of dream contents (bizarreness, vividness, and emotional load). More relevant for a general view of dreaming mechanisms, empirical data from neuropsychological and electroencephalographic (EEG) studies support the hypothesis that there is a sort of continuity between the neurophysiological mechanisms of encoding and retrieval of episodic memories across sleep and wakefulness. A notable overlap between the electrophysiological mechanisms underlying emotional memory formation and some peculiar EEG features of REM sleep has been suggested. In particular, theta (5–8 Hz) EEG oscillations on frontal regions in the pre-awakening sleep are predictive of dream recall, which parallels the predictive relation during wakefulness between theta activity and successful retrieval of episodic memory. Although some observations support an interpretation more in terms of an intraindividual than interindividual mechanism, the existing empirical evidence still precludes from definitely disentangling if this relation is explained by state- or trait-like differences

Evolving VirtuE

One of the most attractive aspects of virtual enterprises is their agility: the inherent ability to adapt and evolve in response to changing market conditions. Evolving VirtuE is a formal framework within which such agility can be realized. Through the concepts of enterprise time, activity logging, and log mining, the recent behavior and performance of an enterprise may be studied,and corresponding evolutionary steps can be induced. These steps may be intended to benefit the operation of individual enterprise members, as well the enterprise as a whole. In addition, we examine enterprise creation, a period of rapid evolution that concludes when the enterprise reaches stability and begins transacting its business activities.One of the most attractive aspects of virtual enterprises is their agility: the inherent ability to adapt and evolve in response to changing market conditions. Evolving VirtuE is a formal framework within which such agility can be realized. Through the concepts of enterprise time, activity logging, and log mining, the recent behavior and performance of an enterprise may be studied,and corresponding evolutionary steps can be induced. These steps may be intended to benefit the operation of individual enterprise members, as well the enterprise as a whole. In addition, we examine enterprise creation, a period of rapid evolution that concludes when the enterprise reaches stability and begins transacting its business activities.Monograph's chapter

Il Business Model come punto di contatto tra Tecnologia ed Organizzazione

Con la nascita e lo sviluppo della new-economy il concetto di ``Business Model'' si è diffuso sia nella pratica di business che nella ricerca scientifica. Sebbene l'interesse nei confronti di questa tematica, segnalato dalla frequenza della ricorrenza del termine nelle pubblicazioni di carattere scientifico, sia sufficientemente sostenuta, allo stato attuale la ricerca sui Business Model soffre di un problema di frammentazione. I Business Model sono stati analizzati da differenti discipline con obiettivi e finalità diverse. Allo stato attuale manca ancora consenso unanime su una definizione condivisa di Business Model ed emerge la necessità di intensificare la ricerca empirica in questo settore. Recenti lavori di ricerca, nel tentativo di riassumere e considerare tutte le precedenti posizioni, hanno proposto l'adozione di ontologie per la derivazione di una definizione di Business Model condivisa e condivisibile. Il processo di creazione di queste ontologie mette in evidenza come tratti comuni alle esperienze di ricerca in questa area tematica, seppur provenienti da differenti settori scientifici, consistono nel rapporto tra organizzazione, tecnologia e strategia. Alla luce di questo scenario, nel presente paper, dopo una analisi della letteratura esistente sui Business Model, viene presentata l'applicazione della Business Model Ontology al progetto europeo LD- CAST con l'obiettivo di analizzare l'utilità di questo schema concettuale di riferimento, applicandolo ad un caso reale, nell'ambito di un processo di progettazione organizzativa che prende in considerazione una o più tecnologie informatiche e di comunicazione1. 1 Attività di ricerca parzialmente finanziata dal progetto europeo LD-CAST: Local Development Cooperation Action Enabled by Semantic Technology (FP6-2004-IST) -- Sito web del progetto: http://www.ldcastproject.com.Con la nascita e lo sviluppo della new-economy il concetto di ``Business Model'' si è diffuso sia nella pratica di business che nella ricerca scientifica. Sebbene l'interesse nei confronti di questa tematica, segnalato dalla frequenza della ricorrenza del termine nelle pubblicazioni di carattere scientifico, sia sufficientemente sostenuta, allo stato attuale la ricerca sui Business Model soffre di un problema di frammentazione. I Business Model sono stati analizzati da differenti discipline con obiettivi e finalità diverse. Allo stato attuale manca ancora consenso unanime su una definizione condivisa di Business Model ed emerge la necessità di intensificare la ricerca empirica in questo settore. Recenti lavori di ricerca, nel tentativo di riassumere e considerare tutte le precedenti posizioni, hanno proposto l'adozione di ontologie per la derivazione di una definizione di Business Model condivisa e condivisibile. Il processo di creazione di queste ontologie mette in evidenza come tratti comuni alle esperienze di ricerca in questa area tematica, seppur provenienti da differenti settori scientifici, consistono nel rapporto tra organizzazione, tecnologia e strategia. Alla luce di questo scenario, nel presente paper, dopo una analisi della letteratura esistente sui Business Model, viene presentata l'applicazione della Business Model Ontology al progetto europeo LD- CAST con l'obiettivo di analizzare l'utilità di questo schema concettuale di riferimento, applicandolo ad un caso reale, nell'ambito di un processo di progettazione organizzativa che prende in considerazione una o più tecnologie informatiche e di comunicazione1. 1 Attività di ricerca parzialmente finanziata dal progetto europeo LD-CAST: Local Development Cooperation Action Enabled by Semantic Technology (FP6-2004-IST) -- Sito web del progetto: http://www.ldcastproject.com.Uninvited Submission

State- or trait-like individual differences in dream recall. Preliminary findings from a within-subjects study of multiple nap REM sleep awakenings

We examined the question whether the role of EEG oscillations in predicting presence/absence of dream recall (DR) is explained by "state-" or "trait-like" factors. Six healthy subjects were awakened from REM sleep in a within-subjects design with multiple naps, until a recall and a non-recall condition were obtained. Naps were scheduled in the early afternoon and were separated by 1 week. Topographical EEG data of the 5-min of REM sleep preceding each awakening were analyzed by power spectral analysis [Fast Fourier Transform (FFT)] and by a method to detect oscillatory activity [Better OSCillations (BOSC)]. Both analyses show that REC is associated to higher frontal theta activity (5-7 Hz) and theta oscillations (6.06 Hz) compared to NREC condition, but only the second comparison reached significance. Our pilot study provides support to the notion that sleep and wakefulness share similar EEG correlates of encoding in episodic memories, and supports the "state-like hypothesis": DR may depend on the physiological state related to the sleep stage from which the subject is awakened rather than on a stable individual EEG pattern

Oscillatory EEG activity during REM sleep in elderly people predicts subsequent dream recall after awakenings

Several findings underlined that the electrophysiological (EEG) background of the last segment of sleep before awakenings may predict the presence/absence of dream recall (DR) in young subjects. However, little is known about the EEG correlates of DR in elderly people. Only an investigation found differences between recall and non-recall conditions during NREM sleep EEG in older adults, while—surprisingly—no EEG predictor of DR was found for what concerns REMsleep. Considering REMsleep as a privileged scenario to produce mental sleep activity related to cognitive processes, our study aimed to investigate whether specific EEG topography and frequency changes during REM sleep in elderly people may predict a subsequent recall of mental sleep activity. Twenty-one healthy older volunteers (mean age 69.2 ± 6.07 SD) and 20 young adults (mean age 23.4 ± 2.76 SD) were recorded for one night from19 scalp derivations. Dreams were collected upon morning awakenings from REM sleep. EEG signals of the last 5min were analyzed by the Better OSCillation algorithm to detect the peaks of oscillatory activity in both groups. Statistical comparisons revealed that older as well as young individuals recall their dream experience when the last segment of REM sleep is characterized by frontal theta oscillations. No Recall (Recall vs. Non-Recall) × Age (Young vs. Older) interaction was found. This result replicated the previous evidence in healthy young subjects, as shown in within- and between-subjects design. The findings are completely original for older individuals, demonstrating that theta oscillations are crucial for the retrieval of dreaming also in this population. Furthermore, our results did not confirm a greater presence of the theta activity in healthy aging. Conversely, we found a greater amount of rhythmic theta and alpha activity in young than older participants. It is worth noting that the theta oscillations detected are related to cognitive functioning. We emphasize the notion that the oscillatory theta activity should be distinguished from the non-rhythmic theta activity identified in relation to other phenomena such as (a) sleepiness and hypoarousal conditions during the waking state and (b) cortical slowing, considered as an EEG alteration in clinical samples

IL Business model come punto di contatto tra tecnologia e organizzazione

Con la nascita e lo sviluppo della new-economy il concetto di “Business Model” si è diffuso sia nella pratica di business che nella ricerca scientifica. Sebbene l’interesse nei confronti di questa tematica, segnalato dalla frequenza della ricorrenza del termine nelle pubblicazioni di carattere scientifico, sia sufficientemente sostenuta, allo stato attuale la ricerca sui Business Model soffre di un problema di frammentazione. I Business Model sono stati analizzati da differenti discipline con obiettivi e finalità diverse. Allo stato attuale manca ancora consenso unanime su una definizione condivisa di Business Model ed emerge la necessità di intensificare la ricerca empirica in questo settore. Recenti lavori di ricerca, nel tentativo di riassumere e considerare tutte le precedenti posizioni, hanno proposto l’adozione di ontologie per la derivazione di una definizione di Business Model condivisa e condivisibile. Il processo di creazione di queste ontologie mette in evidenza come tratti comuni alle esperienze di ricerca in questa area tematica, seppur provenienti da differenti settori scientifici, consistono nel rapporto tra organizzazione, tecnologia e strategia. Alla luce di questo scenario, nel presente paper, dopo una analisi della letteratura esistente sui Business Model, viene presentata l’applicazione della Business Model Ontology al progetto europeo LDCAST con l’obiettivo di analizzare l’utilità di questo schema concettuale di riferimento, applicandolo ad un caso reale, nell’ambito di un processo di progettazione organizzativa che prende in considerazione una o più tecnologie informatiche e di comunicazioneCon la nascita e lo sviluppo della new-economy il concetto di “Business Model” si è diffuso sia nella pratica di business che nella ricerca scientifica. Sebbene l’interesse nei confronti di questa tematica, segnalato dalla frequenza della ricorrenza del termine nelle pubblicazioni di carattere scientifico, sia sufficientemente sostenuta, allo stato attuale la ricerca sui Business Model soffre di un problema di frammentazione. I Business Model sono stati analizzati da differenti discipline con obiettivi e finalità diverse. Allo stato attuale manca ancora consenso unanime su una definizione condivisa di Business Model ed emerge la necessità di intensificare la ricerca empirica in questo settore. Recenti lavori di ricerca, nel tentativo di riassumere e considerare tutte le precedenti posizioni, hanno proposto l’adozione di ontologie per la derivazione di una definizione di Business Model condivisa e condivisibile. Il processo di creazione di queste ontologie mette in evidenza come tratti comuni alle esperienze di ricerca in questa area tematica, seppur provenienti da differenti settori scientifici, consistono nel rapporto tra organizzazione, tecnologia e strategia. Alla luce di questo scenario, nel presente paper, dopo una analisi della letteratura esistente sui Business Model, viene presentata l’applicazione della Business Model Ontology al progetto europeo LDCAST con l’obiettivo di analizzare l’utilità di questo schema concettuale di riferimento, applicandolo ad un caso reale, nell’ambito di un processo di progettazione organizzativa che prende in considerazione una o più tecnologie informatiche e di comunicazioneUninvited Submission

From Supply Chains to Supply Networks: the Beer Game evolution

The new trends in inter-organisation configurations are challenging the traditional concept of supply chain. Concepts such as Virtual Enterprise have been introduced to describe scenarios in which manufacturers operate as nodes in a network of suppliers, customers, engineers, and other specialised service functions Our aim is to create a simulation based on the rules of the Beer Game which includes the variables of a virtual enterprise, VirtuE in particular, and risk management, in order to understand the strategies underlying the subjects behavior in the face of risk within a means-end chain. This study shows the tests carried out on the original game, the variables that we proposed and the simulation results.The new trends in inter-organisation configurations are challenging the traditional concept of supply chain. Concepts such as Virtual Enterprise have been introduced to describe scenarios in which manufacturers operate as nodes in a network of suppliers, customers, engineers, and other specialised service functions Our aim is to create a simulation based on the rules of the Beer Game which includes the variables of a virtual enterprise, VirtuE in particular, and risk management, in order to understand the strategies underlying the subjects behavior in the face of risk within a means-end chain. This study shows the tests carried out on the original game, the variables that we proposed and the simulation results.Uninvited Submission

Single Sign-On in Cloud Computing Scenarios: A Research Proposal

Cloud computing and Software as a Service infrastructure are becoming important factors in E-commerce and E-business processes. Users may access simultaneously to different E-services supplied by several providers. An efficient approach to authenticate and authorize users is needed to avoid problems about trust and redundancy of procedure. In this paper we will focus on main approaches in managing Authentication and Authorization Infrastructures (AAI): i.e. federated and centralized and cloud based. Then we will discuss about related some critical issues in Cloud computing and SaaS contexts and will highlight the possible future researches.Cloud computing and Software as a Service infrastructure are becoming important factors in E-commerce and E-business processes. Users may access simultaneously to different E-services supplied by several providers. An efficient approach to authenticate and authorize users is needed to avoid problems about trust and redundancy of procedure. In this paper we will focus on main approaches in managing Authentication and Authorization Infrastructures (AAI): i.e. federated and centralized and cloud based. Then we will discuss about related some critical issues in Cloud computing and SaaS contexts and will highlight the possible future researches.Monograph's chapter