Umberto Colombo

Magnetite Oxidation: A Proposed Mechanism.

All magnetites are oxidized topotactically with formation of solid solution at temperatures below 400�C. The oxidation of hematite-free magnetites proceeds to γFe2O3, whereas in the presence of hematite epitaxial growth of αFe2O3 takes place, with excess iron ions being returned to the solid solution. A method for synthesizing maghemite from natural magnetites is indicated.

Carbon Isotopic Study of Hydrocarbons in Italian Natural Gases

About a hundred gas samples were collected and studied from different wells in a multilayer gas field of Southern Italy. The reservoir is constituted by alternating sand an clay layers of Pliocene age. The total volume of gas accumulated in the sand traps is on the order of several billions cubic meters.

Alternative Energy Futures: The Case for Electricity

The energy trends of the past and their likely evolution in the next 50 years have been analyzed in the light of technological progress. It is concluded that society will tend to become less centralized than in the past and that it is possible to have future per capita values of energy consumption at the world level similar to those at present, with a substantial redistribution to allow for economic growth of the less developed countries. A condition for this is increasing penetration of electricity. The rationale for the suggested scenario is described, and prospects for electricity for both the industrialized and developing countries are discussed.

Science and art

Abstract Science and art have been intertwined since time immemorial. With the triumph of science in the seventeenth century, there began a process of dissociation between humanistic culture and the culture of science and technology. At the same time reciprocal stimulus from artists to scientists and from scientists towards artists can be traced. This offers a chance for continuous contact and feedback between the two areas leading to enhanced creativity.

A strategic view of the world energy problem

Abstract This paper reviews the current energy supply and consumption. Worldwide, there was an increase in the annual energy consumption of 5% between 1955 and 1973 and of 2.7% between 1973 and 1979, but there was a decrease of 0.2% from 1979 to 1983. The role of oil grew from 31% to 47% of world energy consumption between 1955 and 1973 but dropped to 40.3% in 1983. Despite an overall decline in energy consumption in the last few years, the consumption of electricity continues to grow. Nuclear energy has not completely recovered from the crisis of the second half of the 1970s. This is in part because of social acceptance factors and hostility to large plants. World energy problems will continue over the next 20 years. A comprehensive approach is needed which stresses renewable energy and nuclear fission.

The new technology and its human impact

Abstract In the years that have passed since publication of the Club of Romes seminal report “Limits to Growth,” the issues raised in terms of development, resource use and the environment have become ever more pressing. The potential of advances in science and technology to affect all aspects of life, including development, was then little understood. Todays unparalleled burst in scientific and technological creativity has given new options and opportunities to the world economic system. Central to this process is a series of concepts which includes the scientification of technology, by which technology is increasingly generated and developed on scientific bases, the breaking down of interdisciplinary barriers and mankinds new found capacity literally to invent resources, leading to the emergence of whole categories of new materials. These changes make possible a new approach to economic growth, relying on decentralization and flexibility and the selection of technology mixes best suited to different ...

Do Civilian Spin-offs Justify Investments in Military Technology?

Though reams have been written in an attempt to justify investments in military technology on the grounds of civilian spin-offs, a really convincing apologia has yet to appear. Useful civilian spin-offs are certainly the justification put forward by the military and it is quite true, of course, that there have been many such instances of some importance. However, specific cases for or against the thesis are not sufficient to lend force to what must be a generally applicable response which is neither arrogant nor ideologically based. We shall therefore endeavour to give a strategic reply founded on technical and economic rather than ethical evaluations, although in the final part of the chapter some ethical problems necessarily come to the fore.