Sono aperte le iscrizioni 2024/2025 ai 17 master attivati dall'Università di Trieste, un’ampia offerta formativa che prevede sei percorsi di primo livello e undici di secondo livello: ad essere prevalentemente trattati sono i temi dell'area medica, ma trovano rappresentanza anche le discipline economiche e manageriali, socio-politiche e della formazione, con un forte accento sugli argomenti interdisciplinari e della sostenibilità.

Due i percorsi di nuova istituzione, tra questi il master in Scienze e Tecniche del Recupero nell’Esercizio e nello Sport (I livello) che si distingue per l'approfondita formazione su protocolli avanzati di recupero post-infortunio e prevenzione degli infortuni. Questo corso, rivolto a fisioterapisti e medici, punta a formare "recovery specialist", professionisti capaci di gestire tutte le fasi della riabilitazione sportiva con un approccio basato su evidenze scientifiche. 

Il programma integra conoscenze teoriche avanzate con attività pratiche coprendo l'intera "piramide del recupero", dalle tecniche di integrazione nutrizionale al monitoraggio del sonno, passando per terapie termiche e l'uso di nuove tecnologie. 

Gli studenti avranno l'opportunità di collaborare con società sportive e aziende del settore, affrontando casi reali e perfezionando le loro competenze sotto la guida di professionisti di fama internazionale. 

Tra le novità anche il master in Dolore Cronico Orofacciale in Medicina Orale (II livello), sviluppato in collaborazione con le università di Napoli e Milano, che offre un percorso di approfondimento, focalizzato sulla gestione di una delle sfide cliniche più complesse: il dolore orofacciale cronico. Il corso si rivolge principalmente a odontoiatri e medici, psichiatri, neurologi e altri professionisti interessati al trattamento delle patologie dolorose orofacciali. Il programma si distingue per il suo approccio multidisciplinare, che integra tecniche diagnostiche avanzate e nuove terapie, offrendo ai partecipanti la possibilità di specializzarsi in un settore di grande rilevanza clinica.

Si rinnovano invece il master in Management Sanitario per Pazienti Stomizzati ed Incontinenti (I livello), che fornisce una formazione specifica per la gestione clinica delle stomie, e il master in Chirurgia Laparoscopica in Ginecologia (II livello), che aggiornerà medici e specializzandi delle aree ginecologiche e ostetriche sulle tecniche di laparoscopia più moderne, preparando all’uso delle ultime tecnologie endoscopiche.

All’interno dell’offerta formativa anche il consolidato master in Diritto e Management del Terzo Settore (DMTS), realizzato in collaborazione con la Regione Autonoma Friuli Venezia Giulia, che si rivolge a quanti hanno conseguito una laurea magistrale. In un contesto sociale in cui le organizzazioni non profit hanno acquisito un ruolo sempre più centrale, il percorso - proposto dal Dipartimento di Scienze Politiche e Sociali di UniTS - offre una formazione completa e multidisciplinare, che prepara professionisti in grado di guidare tali realtà attraverso le sfide normative, gestionali e di raccolta fondi. 

Il programma combina teoria e pratica, consentendo inoltre agli studenti di realizzare esperienze formative concrete tramite project work e tirocini. La partnership con la Regione FVG garantisce un forte legame con il territorio, promuovendo la creazione di reti collaborative e di innovazione sociale. I partecipanti avranno modo di sviluppare competenze in governance, leadership, gestione delle risorse e comunicazione, con un focus sull’impatto sociale e sulla sostenibilità. Questo master si pone come un'opportunità unica per coloro che vogliono contribuire attivamente al cambiamento della società, gestendo progetti che hanno un impatto significativo sulle comunità.

Le domande di iscrizione devono essere inoltrate online tramite il portale Esse3, entro il 15 ottobre 2024. Per ulteriori dettagli, è possibile consultare il bando e la pagina dedicata ai Master, oppure contattare l'Ufficio Post Lauream - Master.

Fiftyfive years after the Apollo 11 landing, the Moon continues to reveal its dark side to scientists still studying Earth's natural satellite: for the first time, international research has identified more than 20 structures linked to now-buried craters and various inclined stratifications in the regolith, which is the layer of material composed of dust, rock and debris that lies on the Moon's surface and is the result of millennia of meteorite impacts and erosive processes. 

Coordinating the team of researchers is the Applied Geophysics group of Professor Michele Pipan from the Department of Mathematics, Computer Science and Geosciences at the University of Trieste.

Scientists interpreted geological structures at a depth of more than 30 metres from the lunar surface by analysing radar data collected by the Chinese Chang'E-4 mission from 2019, through the first rover landed on the moon's hidden face and integrating them with measurements from remote sensors.

The investigation involved part of the Van Kármán crater, located within the South Pole-Aitken Basin, an unexplored area of the satellite with a diameter of more than 180 km now at the centre of new geological revelations. For the first time, the researchers used deep learning algorithms based on artificial intelligence to collect and process the data, which allowed them to examine the radar data much more precisely and objectively than before, uncovering features and evolution of the hidden side of the lunar surface and revealing a complexity in the geometry of the regolith that was previously unknown. In fact, the regolith in the area observed does not have a constant thickness, contrary to previous assumptions, but varies between 5 and 15 metres.

‘These results demonstrate the importance of multidisciplinary analyses, which not only provide crucial information from a scientific point of view, but are also the essential starting point for the evaluation of potential lunar subsurface resources and for the planning of future missions and permanent lunar bases’, explains Michele Pipan, Professor of Applied Geophysics at the University of Trieste.

The research, published in the scientific journal Icarus, involved scientists from the University of Trieste, the INAF - National Institute of Astrophysics in Rome, Purdue University (USA), the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Zhejiang University (China). 

In January 2024, the same research team corrected and validated the radar data collected by the mission, available on the Lunar and Planetary data release system site of the National Astronomical Observatory of China and made them available to the international community through publication in the journal Scientific Data.

Currently, the University of Trieste research group that led this study is involved in a project selected by the European Space Agency (ESA) to send a magnetometer and radar system to the Moon for geophysical surveys of the lunar subsurface.

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Full study published in Icarus

Deep learning driven interpretation of Chang’E – 4 Lunar Penetrating Radar

G. Roncoroni a, E. Forte a, I. Santin a, A. ˇCernok a, A. Rajˇsi´c b, A. Frigeri c, W. Zhao d, G. Fang e,f,g, M. Pipan a

a Department of Mathematics, Informatics and Geosciences, University of Trieste, Italy
b Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
c Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali (IAPS), Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF), Rome, Italy
d Key Laboratory of Geoscience Big Data and Deep Resource of Zhejiang Province, School of Earth Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
e Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
f Key Laboratory of Electromagnetic Radiation and Sensing Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
g School of Electronic, Electrical and Communication Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China

Matteo Parenzan, a table tennis champion and student at the University of Trieste, will be competing for the second time in the most prestigious and evocative setting for a sportsman: the Paralympics in Paris, which kicks off today.

The Class 6 table tennis tournament will take place next week, but the Trieste student-athlete has already arrived in the French capital and Olympic venue to prepare in the best possible way. On 1st September, the draw will be made with the names of the 16 participating players, while the matches will start the following day: Matteo, the youngest competitor, will be the No. 3 seed.

Parenzan has just come back from a three-year period in which he consolidated his position at the top of the discipline, having become world champion in Granada in 2022 and European champion in Sheffield in 2023.

Living with a neuromuscular disease characterised by hypotonia and muscle weakness since birth, the young world champion first took hold of the bat as a child, beginning a journey that at 21 is already full of successes and has led him to be the flag-bearer of the Italian team in the closing ceremony of the Tokyo Games in 2021.

‘In the run-up to the Paralympics in Paris, I have committed myself not only to improving technically, but also to growing mentally and emotionally,’ says Parenzan, who combines his commitment to table tennis with his studies. 

Enrolled in the second year of Political Science and Administration, his university curriculum tries not to be outdone by his sporting one. Often travelling to international tournaments, Matteo always carries his gym bag with clothes and backpack with books. 

On an intercontinental trip that took him to Singapore for an exhibition tournament, he says he took advantage of the flight to study: ‘The exam session was coming up and I had two exams to prepare for,’ he says with a satisfied smile.

‘Life as a student and an athlete,’ continues Parenzan, ‘is a continuous challenge. I still have many sporting dreams to fulfil, and I try to apply the same determination to the goal of graduating. Determination is crucial, but so is serenity.’

The five-ring dream is about to begin, and the whole of UniTS is ready to cheer on its champion.

It is with great sadness that the University of Trieste learnt of the untimely death of Professor Teresa Tonchia on 15th August, an esteemed colleague and lecturer in the Department of Political and Social Sciences.

Teresa Tronchia taught Women’s History to undergraduate students of Political Science and Administration and remained committed to studying the relationship between genders, disputing harmful feminine stereotypes, and furthering the social and political recognition of the role of women.

Her commitment to women's issues, however, was not confined to the classroom and a record of this dedication is to be found (among other examples) in her involvement as a referee in 2017 for the tenth edition of the ‘Society, Politics and Cinema’ seminar series organised for the University entitled ‘The Power of Women’.

Her attention to different modes of communication and to modes of representation in cinema is reflected in her contributions to the volumes Lo spettro della fine. Pensare l'Apocalisse tra filosofia e cinema (Mimesis 2016) and L'enigma del potere. L'immaginario politico nel cinema (Mimesis 2020), of which she was also editor.

The whole University remembers her kindness with affection and sincerely shares in the grief of her family.

Today the academic community and the local sports community met as Rector Roberto Di Lenarda welcomed the President of Triestina Calcio Ben Rosenzweig to the Sala Cammarata for his first visit to the University of Trieste.

The American businessman, who has owned Trieste’s football club for just over a year, and the UniTS Rector exchanged mutual good wishes for both the 100th anniversary of the University of Trieste on 8th August and for the forthcoming start of the football season, which kicks off on Saturday 24th August.

The meeting spoke to the ongoing consolidation of the partnership between the University and the football club, both of which are ready to outline future opportunities for collaboration, in the interest of the territory and the academic community.

The event was marked by an exchange of T-shirts, in keeping with sporting tradition. Rosenzweig presented the Rector with a Triestina T-shirt, customized with UniTS and the number 100, to celebrate the University's important anniversary. Rector Di Lenarda, in turn, reciprocated by presenting the Triestina president with a t-shirt celebrating the UniTS centenary.

The University of Trieste will activate a bachelor’s degree in Dietetics  starting from the academic year 2024-2025: the publication of the call for applications for degree courses for health professions confirms what has been anticipated in the last weeks about the new course catalogue. 

The bachelor’s degree with competitive admission in Dietetics will be based in Pordenone and will have 30 places available. It will train food and nutrition professionals in safety, healthcare, catering, research and teaching as well as in the educational and collaborative aspects of food policies, and will prepare graduates to be able to work both independently and in teams with other professional figures.

Teaching will be divided into theoretical and practical lessons that will provide a solid basis of skills and knowledge in the propaedeutic and biomedical sciences. It will then focus on healthcare, which also involves the main medical and surgical specialities, without neglecting training in psychology and pedagogy, law, economics and ethics.

The course will favour international aspects and experiences, including participation in European networks and collaboration with professional associations and the relevant communities.

The compulsory internship will then enable the student to gain real life work experience. The final examination, in addition to awarding the degree, will be valid in the same way as the State examination qualifying the student to practice the profession.

The degree course will pay particular attention to training future dieticians so that they will be able to carry out their professional activity according to scientific evidence and in compliance with the code of ethics. They will also possess knowledge of food safety and catering and will be able to manage the needs of patients at various stages of life.

In addition to the opportunities offered by the new activation of Dietetics, the call for applications for degree courses for health professions will also see a significant overall increase in available places, almost one hundred more than in the past.

There are more places available in Nursing (+20), which reaches the 200 threshold, in Physiotherapy (+10), Psychiatric Rehabilitation Techniques (+10), Speech Therapy (+5) and Medical Radiology Imaging and Radiotherapy Techniques (+20), which doubles the number of possible admissions compared to the previous call for applications two years ago.

The numbers for Dental Hygiene, Biomedical Laboratory Techniques, Prevention Techniques in the Environment and in the Workplace and Health Care remain constant, the latter two being activated at the Gorizia Campus.

Applications must be submitted, exclusively online, by 13:00 on 26th August according to the procedures outlined in the call for applications. 

The admission test will be held on Thursday 5th September 2024 in Trieste, Piazzale Europa Campus, in buildings H3 and C1. The test will begin at 11:00 (identification operations will start at 8:30), last one hundred minutes and consist of sixty questions with five options for each answer.

Achieving the ‘dream reaction’, the long sought-after reaction that makes it possible to convert greenhouse gases into green fuels, is no longer just a dream, but a real scientific perspective encouraged by the results of a study that has brought together the main research bodies and universities in Friuli Venezia Giulia.

The Istituto Officina dei materiali of the National Research Council of Italy (CNR-IOM), the University of Udine, the University of Trieste, Elettra Sincrotrone and Area Science Park have implemented a synergy that has formed a broad and interdisciplinary research group: collaboration on the project has enabled the development of a technology for the preparation of innovative catalysts capable of promoting the transformation of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that negatively affects the energy balance of our planet by favouring global warming. 

The methodology identified concerned, in particular, the possibility of directly converting methane into methanol, a valuable ally in the energy transition process, by means of a new low-cost material based on Cerium and Copper, whose catalytic properties were explored thanks to state-of-the-art techniques available at the region's universities and research centres. 

‘The possibility of synthesising innovative materials at low cost has been investigated, avoiding the use of additional solvents and time-consuming steps in the preparation phase: this technology simply exploits the mechanical force that modifies the structure of the starting material and makes it more efficient in transforming methane into other molecules,’ explain Silvia Mauri, a researcher at CNR-Istituto Officina dei Materiali and Rudy Calligaro, a researcher at the University of Udine, both authors of the work. 

‘The result was twofold: on the one hand having identified a promising material for the catalysis process, and on the other hand having implemented our knowledge of the mechanisms underlying the effectiveness of these materials. This has been possible thanks to the use of advanced techniques using synchrotron light, together with the computing power available today. This will make it easier and faster from now on to further improve the design and use of these catalysts.'

The study therefore has important implications on supporting the process of the energy transition imposed by the consequences of global warming: ‘Methane is a precious resource and its exploitation represents a major challenge in heterogeneous catalysis: this is why the scientific community around the world is concentrating its efforts on the search for new materials that facilitate its transformation processes into products that can be used in a more sustainable way,’ adds Luca Braglia from Area Science Park. 'This fundamental study identifies a new class of catalysts prepared in an economically and environmentally more sustainable way. It also confirms how the simultaneous use of several advanced techniques and interdisciplinary skills is necessary to identify and develop new materials and technologies to support the ecological transition.’ 

Carlo Federico Pauletti, PhD student in Physics at the University of Trieste, was also part of the working group: ‘I contributed to the project by creating a computer model representing the catalyst synthesised by Piero Torelli's group (CNR-IOM), and then studying its behaviour through numerical simulations. What emerged from our study is, in agreement with the experimental results, a promising activity with regard to the direct conversion of methane into methanol, due to the particular nano-structural characteristics of the material, also observed in the experiments. 

The wide variety of techniques, both experimental and theoretical, used in the study of this system constitutes a considerable added value according to the UniTS doctoral student: ‘It has greatly improved our understanding of this reaction and the material used, and the great variety of approaches has made the work very stimulating, thanks to the continuous comparison with researchers from all the institutions involved,’ comments Pauletti.

The research, which demonstrates Italy's leading role in tackling the crucial challenge of the green transition and new materials, shows how cooperation between regional top scientific institutions brings results of great impact. The results of this collaboration have been described in the US scientific journal ‘Small’, published by Wiley, which also dedicated a cover page to the study.