Luca De Benedictis is a Professor of International Economics and Network Analysis at the University of Macerata's Department of Economics and Law. His research focuses on international trade empirics, including trade specialization measurement, network analysis, and causal models. He has authored numerous articles on topics like gravity models, migration impacts, and historical trade networks. His work spans journals such as the Journal of the Royal Statistical Society and Network Science . He teaches courses in International Economics and Network Analysis. His research interests include economic geography, policy evaluation, and applied econometrics. Notable projects include analyzing the Erasmus Program's inclusivity, Roman road networks' legacy, and immigration's effect on trade. De Benedictis has secured funding from EU initiatives like COSTNET and GeComplexity, focusing on network data science and economic systems. He serves on editorial boards of journals like Italian Economic Journal and Journal of Historical Network Research . His work bridges theoretical models with empirical applications in trade, migration, and policy.
Francesco Pilati is an Associate Professor at the Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Trento, where he serves as local coordinator for the scientific field ING-IND/17 (Industrial Plants and Logistic Systems). He chairs the research group on Industrial Plants, Production Systems, and Logistics, and teaches courses in Industrial Plants and Design of Digital Production and Assembly Systems. As coordinator of the Master's program in Management and Industrial Systems Engineering and University Coordinator for the EIT double degree in Zero-Defect Manufacture, Pilati bridges academic leadership with advanced manufacturing research. He has also served as Invited Lecturer at universities in Vienna and Göttingen. His research focuses on integrating environmental sustainability with technical-economic criteria through multi-objective optimization and impact assessment. Key areas include: Distribution networks and warehousing systems Manufacturing and assembly line design Hybrid energy production systems Digitization of manual production processes using depth cameras Recent publications highlight applications of Industry 4.0 technologies to pandemic safety, logistics optimization, and smart manufacturing. Pilati has received significant recognition including the Philip Morris Italia Empowering Research Award (2016) and Autostrade per l'Italia academic recognition. His editorial contributions include guest editing special issues on Digital Twins and Smart Factories in Q1 journals.
Gaetano Valenza is an Associate Professor of Bioengineering at the University of Pisa, Italy, where he leads the Neuro-Cardiovascular Intelligence Lab at the Enrico Piaggio Research Centre. He holds affiliations with the Neuroscience Statistics Research Laboratory at MIT and has served as a Research Fellow at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. His academic work spans bioengineering, computational physiology, and affective computing. His research focuses on statistical and nonlinear biomedical signal and image processing , cardiovascular and neural modeling , and physiologically interpretable artificial intelligence . He develops wearable systems for physiological monitoring, with applications in autonomic nervous system assessment, brain-heart interactions, and mental health. His work has led to novel metrics such as the Sympathetic and Parasympathetic activity indices derived from ECG. The 15 most recent publications reflect a consistent trend in brain-heart interplay , complexity analysis of physiological signals , explainable AI in healthcare , and virtual reality applications in mental health . His work integrates advanced signal processing, nonlinear dynamics, and machine learning to decode emotional and cognitive states from physiological data. Dr. Valenza is a Senior Member of IEEE and serves on several technical committees. He is an active editorial leader, currently serving as Associate Editor for IEEE-EMBC , Plos One , Complexity , and Scientific Reports , and has guest-edited special issues in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A and IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics . He has led or participated in numerous international research projects, including FP7 and H2020 initiatives such as NEVERMIND and EXPERIENCE. He teaches courses in Biostatistics, Probability & Biostatistics, and Advanced Image Processing at the University of Pisa. As lab head and project coordinator, he leads a multidisciplinary team working on neuro-cardiovascular intelligence, wearable systems, and AI-driven mental health interventions.
Sara Vinco is an Associate Professor at the Department of Control and Computer Engineering (DAUIN), Politecnico di Torino, Italy. She specializes in battery simulation, digital twins, and energy-efficient design automation for heterogeneous embedded systems, aligning with Industrial and Information Engineering (Area 0009) and ERC sectors including Computer Architecture and Machine Learning . Her research focuses on advancing cyber-physical systems through simulation frameworks like SystemC-AMS, enabling holistic modeling of analog, digital, and thermal domains. Key projects include data-driven digital twins for EV batteries and low-area digital circuits in industrial/medical applications, supported by commercial contracts such as C-based virtual prototyping. Her recent publications (2022-2023) emphasize machine learning for battery SOH/SOC estimation , energy monitoring in production lines , and multi-domain fault modeling . These works span journals like IEEE Transactions and conferences including DATE and ISLPED. Awarded the FFABR 2017 grant and IEEE FDL Best Paper Award 2011 , she also chairs editorial boards for IEEE Transactions on CAD and DATE Conference. She supervises PhD students Giovanni Pollo (Digital Circuits) and Khaled Alamin (EV Battery Twins), reflecting her leadership in smart systems design.
Alessia Ferrari is a fixed-term researcher in the Department of Engineering and Architecture at the University of Parma, Italy. She lectures on Hydrology within the Bachelor’s degree programme in Civil and Environmental Engineering and serves as the reference teacher for the same programme across multiple academic years (2020/2021 – 2025/2026). Research Focus Ferrari’s research integrates advanced numerical modelling with real-world flood-risk management. Key themes include: High-resolution 2-D shallow-water simulations using GPU-parallel codes. Porosity-based approaches for large-scale urban flood modelling. Levee-breach hydraulics and emergency-action planning. Calibration of hydraulic models using tools such as PEST. Integration of machine-learning techniques with physics-based flood forecasting. Publication Trends Across more than 25 peer-reviewed works (2015-2025), Ferrari has concentrated on computational hydraulics applied to extreme flood events in Northern Italy (e.g., Parma 2014, Lamone 2024). Her papers consistently advance numerical schemes (ADER, HLLEM Riemann solvers) and GPU acceleration while validating models against field data, thereby bridging theoretical development and practical flood-mitigation strategies. Contact & Office E-mail: alessia.ferrari@unipr.it Office: Science and Technology Campus – Pavilion 10, Engineering Scientific Headquarters, Parco Area delle Scienze 181/A, 43124 Parma, Italy.
Francesco Maisano, MD , is Full Professor of Cardiac Surgery at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University (Milan) since 2021, where he also serves as Director of the Cardiac Surgery Clinic and of the Valve Center at IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital. From 2014 to 2020 he held the Chair of Cardiac Surgery and directed the Department at University Hospital Zurich. Education & Training 1990 – MD, Catholic University of Rome 1994 – Clinical Fellowship, University of Alabama at Birmingham 1995 – Specialization in Cardiac Surgery, La Sapienza University of Rome Research Interests Professor Maisano’s work centres on innovative therapies for heart-valve disease, spanning surgical reconstruction, catheter-based interventions (TAVI, MitraClip, transcatheter tricuspid devices), and hybrid approaches. He leads translational programmes in biomedical engineering, multimodality cardiac imaging, and artificial-intelligence-guided interventions, with emphasis on the multidisciplinary “Heart Team” model for complex cardiovascular disease. His recent publications (2024-2025) demonstrate intense activity in transcatheter mitral and tricuspid repair, long-term durability of surgical mitral repair, AI-driven procedural guidance, and renal protection strategies during mechanical circulatory support. A dominant theme is translating imaging innovations and device concepts into first-in-human studies and large-scale registries. Scientific Awards & Recognitions European Society of Cardiology Silver Medal (2018) ICI Lifetime Achievement in Research & Teaching (2018) ICI Best Technology Parade Presentation (2010) C. Walton Lillehei Young Investigator Award (1999) Leadership & Grants He directs multiple postgraduate programmes, including Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS) tracks at the University of Zurich in multimodality imaging, aortic valve, and mitral–tricuspid interventions. He is principal investigator on investigator-initiated grants, coordinates industry-partnered device trials, and mentors numerous doctoral and post-doctoral researchers. His team has filed >24 patents and spun off several cardiovascular start-ups. Labs & Teams At IRCCS San Raffaele he leads the Valve Science Center , a multidisciplinary hub integrating cardiac surgeons, interventional cardiologists, imaging specialists, biomedical engineers, and data scientists focused on next-generation valve repair/replacement technologies and personalised cardiovascular medicine.
Gianfranco Chicco is a Full Professor at the Politecnico di Torino , Italy, within the Department of Energy (DENERG). He serves as Scientific Director of the Electrical Power Systems research group and the Turin unit of the ENSIEL Consortium. A Fellow of IEEE (since 2018), he has held editorial leadership roles as Editor-in-Chief of Sustainable Energy, Grids and Networks and Subject Editor of Energy , while chairing major conferences like IEEE ISGT Europe 2017 and UPEC 2020. Education : Laurea (cum laude) in Electrical Engineering (1987), Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering (1992), Doctor Honoris Causa (2017, Polytechnic University of Bucharest; 2018, Technical University 'Gheorghe Asachi' of Iasi). Research Interests : Focus on power transmission and distribution systems , distributed energy resources , and multi-energy smart grids , with applications in artificial intelligence , load management , and power quality . His work addresses technical, economic, and environmental aspects of distributed generation and smart grid sustainability . Publications Trends : Recent articles emphasize photovoltaic power optimization , dynamic grid modeling , and multi-energy system coordination , reflecting expertise in renewable integration , clustering algorithms , and adaptive control . Key subfields include voltage stability , load forecasting , and blockchain for energy trading . Awards : IEEE Fellow (2018-) Best Paper Awards at SEST (2018, 2020) Doctor Honoris Causa (2017, 2018) 'Giancarlo Vallauri' Degree Prize (1988) Advising and Grants : Supervises PhD students in power converters , renewable integration , and high-voltage measurement methodologies . Leads European projects like H2020 MIGRATE and OSMOSE, focusing on grid resilience , clustering-based network planning , and multi-energy sustainability .
Riccardo Raheli is a Full Professor at the University of Parma , Department of Engineering and Architecture, with a career spanning over three decades in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). He has served as Chair of the Councils for Telecommunications and Communication Engineering programs, and as representative of the University of Parma in CNIT and its Members' Assembly. Education: Laurea in Electronic Engineering (University of Pisa, 1983), M.Sc. in Electrical and Computer Engineering (University of Massachusetts, 1986), Postgraduate Diploma (Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, 1987) Key Roles: President of Degree Councils (2002-2018), CNIT Committee Member (2000-2005), Editorial Board member for IEEE Transactions, Springer and MDPI journals His research bridges telecommunications , digital signal processing , and healthcare applications , producing extensive international publications and industrial patents. He has co-authored monographs including Detection Algorithms for Wireless Communications (Wiley, 2004) and LDPC Coded Modulations (Springer, 2009). Recent article trends show interdisciplinary work in automotive stress monitoring (IoT/Matlab-based systems), video processing for healthcare (neonatal seizures, respiratory monitoring), and acoustic field control (microphone virtualization, personal sound zones). His work spans machine learning applications in automotive systems, stochastic acoustic modeling , and power-line communications . Scientific Leadership : Co-Chair for IEEE conferences (ICC 2010, GLOBECOM 2011, ISPLC 2020) Editorial roles in 7+ international journals Grants & Collaborations : Led industrial patents in communications systems Coordinated CNIT Technical Reports series (2025) He teaches Wireless Communications and Digital Signals Laboratory , emphasizing Matlab/Simulink proficiency. His laboratory sessions focus on practical implementation of signal processing algorithms, requiring full software installation on personal devices.
Marco Barla is a Full Professor of Geotechnical Engineering at the Department of Structural, Building and Geotechnical Engineering (DISEG) at the Polytechnic of Turin, where he also leads a research group focused on energy geostructures, tunneling, slope stability, and numerical modeling. He serves as Editor-in-Chief of the ASCE International Journal of Geomechanics and holds leadership roles in international organizations such as the International Society for Energy Geostructures (President, 2025–2029) and ELGIP (Past President). He is actively involved in multiple EU and national research projects, including GEOREFIT, REGENERATE, and FOLIAGE. Research Interests: Thermoactive geostructures for shallow geothermal energy Tunnel design and construction under challenging conditions Real-time detection of debris flows and snow avalanches using fiber optics Numerical modeling of geotechnical systems Energy retrofitting of existing underground infrastructure His recent publications (2024–2025) demonstrate a strong focus on sustainable urban development through geothermal energy integration, particularly in tunnels and buildings. Key themes include energy geostructures, thermal storage, landslide monitoring, and climate resilience, reflecting his commitment to SDGs 7, 9, 11, and 13. He frequently publishes in top venues such as Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology , Geothermics , and Landslides . Scientific Awards: Telford Premium, Institution of Civil Engineers (2016) IACMAG Excellent Contributions Award (2011) Best Paper, 11th ISRM Congress (2007) Iacmag Award (2005) Top 5 Project Nominee, European Geothermal Innovation Award (2018) Advising and Grants: He supervises multiple PhD students in civil and environmental engineering and has led over 70 research projects, securing more than 2 M€ in funding from national and international sources. His projects span fundamental research (e.g., PRIN, H2020) and applied consulting (e.g., tunnel safety, landslide risk, structural monitoring). He is the scientific responsible for numerous contracts with public and private entities, including Autostrade per l’Italia and regional governments. Labs and Teams: He leads the Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering research group at Politecnico di Torino ( www.rockmech.polito.it ), which conducts laboratory testing, field monitoring, and numerical simulations. The team is active in international collaborations and coordinates the COST Action FOLIAGE, dedicated to scaling up energy geostructure deployment.
Giuseppe Tipaldo is an Associate Professor at Politecnico di Torino's Department of Control and Computer Science (DAUIN), with affiliations to the SmartData@PoliTO Big Data and Data Science Laboratory and the DBDM Database and Data Mining Group. His interdisciplinary work bridges Sociology, Science and Technology Studies, and Digital Media Research. Research interests focus on epistemic instability, technoscientific conflicts (anti-vax, pseudoscience, infrastructure opposition), and methodological innovations in Computer-Assisted Text Analysis. He explores intersections between postmodern relativism and contemporary epistemic wars, examining truth negotiation in political decision-making and Gen-AI's impact on research methodologies. Recent publications analyze: 2024: Vaccine hesitancy trust dynamics in Europe 2023: Epistemic authority transitions in social media and science-society relations 2022: Xylella fastidiosa epidemics as epistemic wars and pandemic expert discourses He contributes to editorial boards (Italian Review of Sociology, Sinapsi) and serves on advisory panels for Circular Economy symposia. Teaching spans Master's and Doctoral programs in Management Engineering, Cybersecurity, and Communication Sciences.
Juha Kasperi Tolvanen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics and Finance at Tor Vergata University of Rome. He specializes in applied microeconomics, focusing on the role of information and communication in shaping market structures and political outcomes. His research bridges industrial organization and political economy, examining topics such as information asymmetry in markets and the strategic use of ambiguity by anti-establishment political parties. Dr. Tolvanen holds a PhD from Princeton University (2016). He teaches courses including Game Theory and Industrial Organization, Microeconomics 2, and contributes to graduate programs in Philosophy and Economics. His research combines theoretical frameworks with empirical data from corporate and political contexts. His recent publications explore themes like quantity contracts in decentralized markets, the impact of algorithmic recommendations on strategic behavior, and the empirical analysis of demand using managerial responses to pricing algorithms. He collaborates actively with firms to quantify the economic implications of communication strategies and information flows. Dr. Tolvanen’s work has appeared in leading journals such as the RAND Journal of Economics , Management Science , and American Political Science Review . His research agenda emphasizes bridging theory with real-world applications, particularly in understanding how information dynamics influence economic and political systems.
Laura Sanità is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computing Sciences at Bocconi University, Milano, Italy. She previously held academic positions at TU Eindhoven (Netherlands) and the University of Waterloo (Canada). Education: Bachelor's in Management Engineering (2003), Università di Roma Tor Vergata Master's in Management Engineering (2005), Università di Roma Tor Vergata PhD in Operations Research (2009), Università Sapienza di Roma Postdoctoral Fellow at EPFL (Switzerland, 2009-2011) Laura's research focuses on discrete mathematics, theoretical computer science, and operations research, with particular emphasis on algorithmic solutions for combinatorial optimization problems. Her work spans approximation algorithms, network design, polyhedral combinatorics, and algorithmic game theory, advancing methodologies for solving complex optimization challenges in theoretical and applied contexts. Her publications demonstrate expertise in network design problems, spanning from fundamental polyhedral characterizations to game-theoretic applications. Key contributions include iterative randomized rounding techniques for Steiner trees, circuit augmentation algorithms, and stabilization approaches for network games. Scientific Awards: NWO-VIDI Award (Netherlands) Discovery Accelerator Supplements Award (NSERC, Canada) Golden Jubilee Research Excellence Award (University of Waterloo) Early Researcher Award (Ontario) Best Paper Award at STOC 2010 Advising & Collaborations: Laura advises PhD students Dylan Hyatt-Denesik and Lucy Verbeck, and collaborates with postdoctoral researchers like Afrouz Jabal Ameli. She has served on program committees and as Associate Editor for top journals including Mathematical Programming, Mathematics of Operations Research, and Operations Research Letters.
Simon Masnou is a Full Professor at Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, affiliated with the Institut Camille Jordan (CNRS UMR 5208). He holds leadership roles as Head of the 'Applied Mathematics, Statistics' Master's degree and Head of the 'M2 Maths in Action' program. Previously, he served as Director of the Camille Jordan Institute (2018-2022). His research focuses on applied mathematics, image processing, shape optimization, and geometric measure theory, with contributions to variational models, geometric flows, and applications in computer vision and materials science. Education: PhD in Mathematics (1998, Paris Dauphine) and HDR (2008, Paris 6). Research projects include ANR STOIQUES (2024-2028), PEPR PDE-AI (2023-2028), and collaborations with industry on topics like defect prediction in aluminum production and high-dimensional data analysis. Teaching includes courses on linear algebra, optimization, and machine learning at undergraduate and graduate levels. Key contributions span phase field models, varifold-based surface approximation, and image inpainting. He supervises PhD students in geometric variational problems and computational methods. His work bridges theoretical mathematics with industrial challenges, addressing issues in materials science, medical imaging, and cultural heritage preservation.
Fabio Mazzola serves as Full Professor in the Department of Economics, Business and Statistics at the University of Palermo, concurrently holding the position of Vice Rector for Teaching and Internationalization from 2021 to 2027. His teaching portfolio for 2025/2026 spans Economic Policy across Economics and Business Administration and Economy and Finance programs, alongside specialized courses in Tourism Economics and Regional Policy for Tourism Systems and Hospitality Management. His research centers on Regional Economic Policy with three dominant strands: (1) EU cohesion policy effectiveness through spatial/spillover analyses of Italian regions; (2) Tourism-driven resilience in Mediterranean island economies compared to mainland territories; and (3) Crisis response mechanisms examining public expenditure impacts during economic downturns. Methodologically, he employs advanced panel and spatial econometric techniques for sub-national analysis. Publication trends (2019-2025) reveal consistent focus on regional disparities and policy evaluation , particularly assessing EU funds' additionality in Italy, tourism's role in island recovery, and asymmetric crisis impacts. Over 80% of his recent work analyzes Italian or Mediterranean contexts using NUTS-2/3 spatial units, with increasing emphasis on insular regions since 2020. Professor Mazzola maintains active student engagement through thesis supervision (listed as 'Edited theses' in his profile) and structured office hours on Mondays, though specific advising details remain unpublished. His research operates without documented external funding or awards in the provided materials.
Marco Badami is a Full Professor at the Department of Energy (DENERG) , Polytechnic of Turin. He serves as Scientific Director for national and EU-funded research projects in energy systems and has been a Course Lecturer for Energy Systems and Industrial Use of Energy since 2010. He supervises PhD students in Energetics and Electrical Engineering . Research Interests: His work spans energy systems optimization, machine learning applications for industrial energy efficiency, smart grids, cogeneration scheduling, blockchain-based energy data immutability, and predictive maintenance algorithms for photovoltaic plants. Current projects focus on AI-driven energy audits, optimized control systems for industrial microgrids, and digital twin architectures. Collaborations: He works with Trigenia Srl, Stogit SpA, and international institutions on commercial research contracts. His scientific contributions include 15+ publications on topics like LSTM forecasting for solar energy, deep reinforcement learning for multi-energy systems, and decentralized peer-to-peer energy trading platforms.
