05.03. Educational, History of Science, Public Issues

The Oath of Hippocrates is the first and the most popular moral code for the physicians. Throughout varying historical fortunes, from its almost complete oblivion in the Middle Age to its rediscovery and high recognition in the Renaissance, the Oath, written in the second half of the fifth century B.C., continues today to be pledged in many Faculties and Schools of Medicine and in many professional associations throughout the world, both keeping to the original text or one of the modernized versions. It is widely regarded as a cornerstone of the medical approach. Historically, the Oath of Hippocrates marks the first sharp changeover to a rational approach to the illness and to the human health; for this reason it is reserved only to people who is able to operate because of their scientific knowledge of medicine. Human healt and defence against the illness always are seen as one of the basic goods of Mankind; so, the Oath enforces the ethical duty of a rational and positive use of the power possessed by the individuals because of their capability to apply scientific knowledge on the other men, becoming patients. Every oath entails a personal moral engagement. But, the public Hippocratic Oath swarn by the physicians over the world has marked through the centuries the awareness of an assignment of universal value, that goes well beyond the professional duty, becoming a mission that calls for the total willingness to operate in art and consciousness where and when need arises. The awareness of the sacred value of the Human life is profoundly rooted in every man. The awareness of the value of our planet as the unique and often not renewable resource for Human life has emerged rather recently and not yet on a worldwide scale. Also the understanding of the planet as a living system, with its natural and unavoidable processes, including those (geo-hazards) with dangerous effects for man, is anything but widespread and well established. And, only now governments are reaching a greater appreciation of the guiding role of the scientific approach for the management of our planet, of its health and for the defense against dangerous events. From that derives the special responsibility of those who possess the knowledge of the geological processes and the power arising from (or, better, which ought to arise from) it; this responsibility goes beyond a merely correct professional conduct. Geologist is like a physician. He or she are ethically involved; he or she must be fully and consciously engaged, wherever and whenever geological knowledge can provide a contribution to solving problems linked to the sustainable use/management of land and the Earth’s resources. This means to be ready to go beyond geologist’s professional duty and economic convenience, willing to counter any political, industrial and social interests conflicting with the health of the planet; being conscious that the latter, in the short or long time, represents the real interest of the society; aiming to assure a harmonic interaction between geologists, governments and population, in considering the cost-benefit ratio, the technological capabilities, and the public media. For these reasons, the authors, who are members of the recently set up Commission of Geoethics of the FIST (Italian Federation of Earth Sciences), consider it useful to submit to the Italian geological community the proposal for the introduction of a voluntary Hippocratic Oath for geologists, through which they would solemnly and publicly declare their consciousness to be the repository of the geological knowledge and of its entailed ethical duty.

Mattia Damiani da Volterra (1705–1776), “renowned Doctor,” was the author in 1754 of a collection of scientifi c poems, Le Muse Fisiche (The Physical Muses) on two subjects: Newtonian physics and the plurality of the worlds. Damiani’s interest in science was precocious, but even at that, it was superimposed on his studies in jurisprudence completed in Pisa in 1726. In 2003, Damiani’s lost text, De Hygrometris et eorum defectibus disputatio (Disputation about hygrometers and their defects), which was printed in 1726 in Pisa, was brought to light. It characterizes him as a young scientist who refl ected upon the properties and limits of laboratory instruments and on nascent aspects of climatology. In this Disputation, a delightful amalgamation of scientifi c and humanistic literature is pursued. A discussion of the properties and limits of contemporary hygrometers and a comparison of the Cartesian and Newtonian hypotheses about cloud formations are interspersed with quotations of verses on natural phenomena, mostly from poems of the classic age—a prelude to the author’s future involvement in writing scientifi c verses. The poetry of Damiani, which often shows a musicality comparable to that of the poet Giacomo Leopardi (1798–1837), deserves to be recognized and saved from oblivion. Especially remarkable is the implicit “multimedia” project of a union among science, poetry, theater, and music. The rediscovered Disputation about hygrometers opens a new window on the personages involved and on the evolution of meteorological concepts in Europe in the context of the then-new Galilean and Newtonian physics.

On December 16, 1857, an earthquake wreaked havoc across a huge area of the regions of Basilicata and Campania (Val d’Agri and Vallo di Diano). More than 180 villages in an area of over 20,000 km2 suffered very severe damage. More than 6,000 houses collapsed or became uninhabitable, and 19,000 people were killed. In the months of February and March 1858, the Irish engineer Robert Mallet undertook a mission to study the earthquake with a grant from the Royal Society of London. In 1862, he published his extraordinary study diary, in which the technical and scientific observations mingled with descriptive and literary details. This represents, from different angles, a unique ‘observatory’ over the landscape and the social, economic and cultural aspects of Val d’Agri and Vallo di Diano. In 2003, the Provinces of Salerno and Potenza started up a joint venture with the Storia Geofisica Ambiente of Bologna and with the scientific partnership of the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, with a view to setting up provincial laboratories dedicated to environmental education, and named after Robert Mallet. The Mallet Project proceeded up to 2009 on three agreements. Within the framework of the idea of a ‘Mallet Laboratories’ Project, there has been the opportunity to set up a network of study centers in the territories of these two provinces (Salerno and Potenza), which can promote research with great national and international breadth, starting with the world of schools and local communities. The study entitled Viaggio nelle aree del terremoto del 16 dicembre 1857 was published through the period from 2004 to 2009.

In una società come quella attuale, in cui sapere e tematiche sociali e ambientali si fondono nella realtà di tutti i giorni, la scuola non svolge più la sola semplice funzione di insegnamento. Essa ha infatti il ben più difficile compito di rendere i giovani consapevoli della realtà in cui vivono e di guidarli verso la conoscenza di tutto ciò che possa essere utile a migliorare e preservare ciò che li circonda. Questo vale in ogni ambito e si applica indifferentemente all’ambiente, alla cultura umanistica, al patrimonio culturale, a quello economico. In questo compito gli insegnanti possono essere agevolati dalla collaborazione con i ricercatori che, per loro funzione, tentano di risolvere problemi che incidono sul patrimonio e possono contribuire alla cultura della scuola in campi specifici ma soprattutto negli aspetti applicativi e con gli aggiornamenti a cui spesso, con i loro studi, contribuiscono in prima persona. In questo senso e con questo obiettivo l’Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV nel seguito) ha da molti anni intrapreso un lungo cammino fatto di reciproche collaborazioni con insegnanti e scuole, istituendo un apposito gruppo di lavoro specializzato in divulgazione per le scuole e per i cittadini. Negli anni è stato creato un sostanzioso patrimonio di pubblicazioni a stampa, supporti multimediali, audiovisivi e siti web creati con il compito di agevolare la divulgazione su temi scientifici.

In questa scheda vengono descritte le caratteristiche della sismicità storica e recente della regione, la pericolosità e il rischio sismico.

The selection of the topics included in this issue is far from being exhaustive, but it contributes to demonstrate how many questions arise from the investigation of the coupling between ionized and neutral atmosphere and from the solarterrestrial relationship. We would like to thank the authors for their excellent contributions and patience in assisting us. Finally, the fundamental work of all reviewers on these papers is also very warmly acknowledged.

Milano ospita una mostra sui sismi, dove uno spazio è riservato anche a quelli storici come Messina 1908. Una studiosa analizza i più importanti e ciò che abbiamo imparato

In public research organizations in Italy, communication and outreach, as well as research support services, are often left to women. Consequently, the role which female staff plays, becomes central in communication processes both inside and outside the organization. An increasing number of female researchers have to abandon terms like “il ricercatore” (the researcher, used in the masculine form of the noun) or “man/month” in everyday language without fear of being diminished because of the use of feminine, nor of being discriminated while considered feminists. They should instead use inclusive expressions, taking into account gender, hence communicating real images of science and scientists. On the other hand, administrative documents should address the whole personnel, and not only to the ubiquitous “il dipendente” (the employee, masculine noun) opposed to “lavoratrici madri” (“mother-workers”). There is a plenty of opportunities to convey images of science meaning that research is performed both by women and men, and that consequences are addressed to women and men: activities with schools, seminars, outreach events and exhibitions, institutional communication and social networks. The responsibilities of an inclusive communication are numerous; they invest institutions and bodies in charge with structural changes in the organizations as well as those people who every day interact with users and participants of knowledge processes. Training as well as a daily practice are necessary. The paper comments some communication experiences in earth sciences, in progress at the National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology of Italy – INGV.

One of the relevant objectives of the researchers should be filling the gap between the scientific research and the school. Such objective should be pursued methodically, through commitment, foresight and cooperation. In this frame the idea to communicate and to share the experience of the scientific research in Antarctica with the public and with the school is a challenge that a team of INGV researchers, engaged for many years in scientific missions in Antarctica, carries on with great enthusiasm within the several outreach activities of the Italian National Program for Antarctic Research (PNRA). The outreach activities, aiming to disseminate the knowledge and the culture of the polar regions, have been mainly addressed to a public of adults and students of the secondary school (11-19 years). Recently, the researchers matured the need to realize outreach paths addressed to pupils of the primary school (8-10 years), taking the advantage of the multidisciplinary themes offered by the Antarctic research. The present work reports the experience of the outreach laboratory “On a mission to the South Pole”, realized in the frame of events organized by INGV (ScienzAperta 2012 e 2014) and dedicated to the primary school. The educational themes developed within the laboratory concern the research in Antarctica, with particular focus on the human aspects, the geophysics and the progress of new technologies. The innovative aspect of the laboratory stands in the strategy to deal with Antarctica with an educational aim, proposing Antarctica as a natural laboratory, not only from a scientific point of view, but also as a laboratory of shared human experiences. The didactic path, based on interactive methodology that uses the role-paly and the experiential activities, enable the children to acquire the knowledge on Antarctica (knowledge); to explore the Antarctic characteristics as a natural laboratory and to experiment an emotional education through individual and team experiences (doing); to develop civics path linked to “sense of belonging and citizenship”, that will make the children aware that Antarctica does not belong to anyone but it belongs to everybody: it is a common and unique good (being). The proposed work is an example of how it is possible, by means of educational paths, promote and support integration values between human beings and nature also in extreme environments as the Antarctic continent.

Italy is a country well known for the seismic and volcanic hazard. As a matter of fact the first seismological and volcanological observations were done in since the Roman times. However, a similarly great hazard, although not well recognized, is posed by the occurrence of tsunami waves along the Italian coastline. This is testified by a rich catalogue and by field evidence of deposits left over by pre- and historical tsunamis, even in places today considered safe. This observation is of great importance since many of the areas affected by tsunamis in the past are today touristic places. The Italian tsunamis can be caused by different sources: 1- off-shore or near coast in-land earthquakes (e.g. 1627, 1783 and 1908 events); 2- very large earthquakes on distant sources in the Mediterranean (e.g. the 365 Crete subduction zone earthquake); 3- submarine volcanic explosion in the Tyrrhenian sea; 4- submarine landslides triggered by earthquakes and volcanic activity (e.g. 2002 Stromboli landslide). The consequence of such a wide spectrum of sources is that an important part of the more than 7000 km long Italian coast line is exposed to the tsunami risk, and thousands of inhabitants (with numbers increasing during summer) live near hazardous coasts. In order to reduce this risk and following the emotional impact of the december 2004 Sumatra earthquake and tsunami, we developed an outreach program consisting in talks given by scientists and in a movie, both exploring the causes of the tsuanami waves, how do they propagate in deep and shallow waters, and what are the effects on the coasts. Hints are also given on the most dangerous Italian coasts (as deduced by scientific studies), and how to behave in the case of a tsunami approaching the coast. These seminars are open to the general publics, but special programs are developed with schools of all grades. In this talk we want to present the movie used during the seminars and scientific expositions, that was realized from a previous 3D version originally developed for science festivals.