Science

(ANSA) - Rome, November 20 - The Ara Pacis, an altar to peace built in the first century BC in honor of Emperor Augustus will show its true colors on Sunday thanks to a groundbreaking light projection system.

Though the stark-white monument has lost its color over the centuries, visitors next weekend will see its intricate array of friezes in dazzling technicolor.

(ANSA) - Rome, November 19 - Seven people who died with H1N1 flu virus on Thursday brought the pandemic's death toll in Italy to 75.

According to doctors, all of the victims suffered from serious pre-existing health problems aggravated by flu infections.

Three of the victims died in Naples bring the number of flu deaths in the Campania region to 28, the highest in Italy, despite having only the fifth highest estimated rate of infection.

(ANSA) - Rome, November 19 - A dark chocolate developed by a company near Turin has been proven to be effective in protecting the skin from ultra violet(UV) rays, according to recent studies carried out in London.

The chocolate, named Oxicoa, was found to have three times the amount of the natural antioxidant polyphenol found in normal dark chocolate and ten grams of it has the same amount of antioxidants as three full glasses of blueberries, two cups of green tea or a 3kg watermelon.

(ANSA) - Rome, November 18 - An Italian technician who claims to have developed a device to predict earthquakes by measuring radon gas emissions confirmed on Wednesday that he has failed to get an international patent on his invention.

The method developed Gioacchino Giampaolo Giuliani from the National Astrophysics Institute came under fire in April after the devastating earthquake in the Abruzzo region which he claimed he had predicted.

(ANSA) - Arezzo, November 18 - Three out of ten Italians don't wash their hands properly, health experts said Wednesday ahead of a conference on disease prevention in Tuscany.

Considered the most effective way to stop the spread of infectious diseases, including the H1N1 flu virus, proper hand washing takes between 60 and 90 seconds and requires enough hand soap or antiseptic to work up a thick, microbe-killing lather.

(ANSA) - Rome, November 18 - A 58-year-old Calabria man with diabetes and lung disease on Wednesday became the 68th person in Italy to die with the H1N1 flu virus.

The flu's death doll has been rising steadily in recent weeks with the drop in temperatures and approach of flu season, according to the health ministry, which estimated that over 1.5 million Italians have been infected by the virus so far, up from 500,000 at the beginning of the month.

Projections from the ministry's pandemic surveillance network say the virus is spreading at rate of 15,000 new cases per week.

(ANSA) - Rome, November 17 - The Turin shroud, revered by many as the holiest relic of Christ, will be placed on public display from April to May, for the first time since 2000, the Italian Bishops Council (CEI) said on Tuesday.

Believers say the shroud wrapped the body of Jesus Christ after his crucifixion.

Pope Benedict XVI has never commented on the authenticity of the relic but the Vatican has announced that he will visit Turin on May 2 to see it along with other pilgrims.

(ANSA) - Rome, November 16 - The number of H1N1 flu fatalities in Italy rose to 58 on Monday with three new victims.

Two of the Italians who died with the virus were from the Campania region, whose 25 flu victims account for nearly half the nation's total.

All of the victims on Monday had severe health problems prior to contracting the flu.

The first death was a 32-year-old Campania woman who came down with the virus just before giving birth last month.

(ANSA) - Florence, November 16 - Italian researchers have developed a new technique that regenerates the breast tissue of cancer survivors without using invasive surgery, an expert said Monday.

The team at the Careggio University teaching hospital have successfully tested a method that uses stem cells, explained Professor Luigi Cataliotti.

''Stem cells extracted from fatty tissue can help improve the quality of the reconstruction after a full mastectomy,'' he said.

(ANSA) - Brussels, November 16 - Negotiators must continue seeking agreement ahead of next month's climate change summit, the European Commission said Monday, as ministers gathered in Copenhagen for a final, critical preparatory meeting.

Over 40 environment, energy and climate ministers attended the closed-door conference in the Danish capital, which got under way just hours after US President Barack Obama said there would be no legally binding deal at the December summit.

(ANSA) - Naples, November 12 - Two more victims of the H1N1 flu virus on Thursday brought the death toll in Italy to 41.

The victims were a 49-year-old man from Naples who had recently undergone a liver transplant and a 38-year-old Sicilian woman in critical condition with an immune disorder.

The death toll from the virus has more than doubled since the start of November.

Experts said the rising death toll is a sign the pandemic is gaining momentum towards its expected peak during the holiday season, experts said.

(ANSA) - Rome, November 11 - The number of victims in Italy from the H1N1 flu climbed to 39 on Wednesday with the death of two elderly patients in the Tuscany and Campania regions.

Both of the victims were over 80 years old and in poor health before coming down with symptoms, doctors said.

However, neither would have been eligible for the vaccine, which the health ministry has reserved for people with chronic illnesses up to 65 years of age.

(ANSA) - Vatican City, November 11 - Alien life is perfectly plausible even though there is no evidence yet for its existence, according to the Vatican's top astronomer.

Speaking at the end of a weeklong conference on astrobiology, Father Jose Gabriel Funes said extraterrestrial life was a valid area of study.

(ANSA) - Avellino, November 10 - Police on Tuesday arrested four people on suspicion of fraudulently obtaining public funds to build wind farms in Sicily and Sardinia.

Another 11 people were informed that they may face prosecution and nine wind farms were impounded, for a total of 185 turbines, the estimated value of which was put at over 153 million euros.

According to investigators, a complicated scheme was used to obtain development funds from Italy and the European Union.

(ANSA) - Eboli, November 10 - The death toll from the H1N1 flu virus in Italy rose to 36 on Tuesday with a death of a man from the Campania region.

Doctors said the 42-year-old man also suffered from heart and lung disease which greatly reduced his ability to fight off infection.

According to the health ministry, the H1N1 flu pandemic has hit Campania harder than any other region in Italy, with 14 deaths and the highest rate of infection in the country.