Conception of a YBCO Superconducting ZFC-Magnetic Bearing Virtual Prototype

This paper presents the conception of an original superconducting Frictionless Zero Field Cooling bearing virtual prototype. In previous work also shown in this conference, a viability study of a Zero Field Cooling-superconducting bearing concept was conducted. It showed that the virtual prototype is feasible. Moreover, the simulation studies showed that a Zero Field Cooling superconducting track provides not only effective lateral stability but also higher levitation forces than the commonly used Field Cooling tracks. In this paper the new Zero Field Cooling -bearing virtual prototype is modeled in 3D. The virtual prototype was designed having in mind: i) a future implementation in high density polyurethane, for low temperature robustness; ii) future manufacturing in a three axes CNC milling machine and; iii) future implementation of some parts using an additive manufacturing technique.

Evaluation of different postharvest conditions to preserve the amount of bioactive compounds, physicochemical quality parameters and sensory attributes of ‘Sweetheart’ cherries.

Sweet cherries (Prunus avium L.) ‘Sweetheart’ were harvested at different production regions from Portugal (Cova da Beira and Portalegre) and Spain (Valle de Jerte). Cherries were harvested at their commercial maturation according to the empirical knowledge of external color corresponding to good quality. Fruits were stored and evaluated in order to study their quality on the harvest day and during a period of 21 days, at cold storage (1 ºC, 95% RH). The sweet cherry ‘Sweetheart’ is a well-known variety and a highly appreciated one but fruits present a short shelf life. On the other hand the effect of different “terroir” on cherry characteristics should be known and clarified. Fruits from day 0, considered without storage, were kept at 20ºC and analyzed. Every weak, 3 replicas were randomly picked up and 10 fruits from each one were submitted to several analyses after fruit temperature stabilized at 20ºC. Several quality parameters were evaluated: external colour (L*, a*, b*), texture, soluble solids content (SSC), titratable acidity (TA) and the ratio between soluble solid contents (SSC) and tritratable acidity (TA). Fruits from different orchards and locations were significantly different according to these parameters. Fruits from Cova da Beira were less firm comparing with other two regions, Valle de Jerte and Portalegre, which may indicate a higher maturation rate at harvest in those fruits. This is in accordance with SSC/titratable acidity rate suggesting a late harvest in Cova da Beira comparing with other two orchards, however fruits from Cova da Beira exhibit a poor color at harvest. These results clearly showed a lower correlation between SSC and firmness considering fruits origin.

A biblioteca escolar/centro de recursos educativos e o currículo - que (inter)ligação?: o caso de Vendas Novas

Este trabalho de investigação centra-se na importância do conhecimento da inter (ligação) entre a Biblioteca Escolar/Centro de Recursos Educativos e o currículo. A problemática da investigação é lançada pela questão que constitui o ponto de partida deste trabalho: “ De que forma é que a Biblioteca Escolar/Centro de Recursos Educativos interage com o Currículo como um recurso do processo de ensino-aprendizagem? “ Tendo como base esta problemática, o corpo da dissertação é constituída por duas panes. A primeira respeitante ao quadro teórico e a segunda referente ao estudo empírico. No quadro teórico procedemos a uma aproximação conceptual à problemática em estudo. Tecemos considerações acerca da evolução da biblioteca escolar, conhecendo igualmente os princípios e as formas de atuar do Programa Rede de Bibliotecas Escolares e a principal legislação sobre este assunto. Refletimos acerca do currículo do ensino pré-escolar e do 1° ciclo do ensino básico, níveis com os quais realizámos a componente empírica do trabalho, identificando a Biblioteca Escolar/Centro de Recursos Educativos como constituindo um recurso fundamental no processo de ensino aprendizagem, no contexto da diferenciação curricular, chamando igualmente a atenção para a importância das parcerias no âmbito da articulação entre o ambiente educacional e o território. A dimensão empírica da pesquisa envolveu a conceção e a testagem de instrumentos de recolha de dados, nomeadamente a análise documental, a observação direta em contexto de Biblioteca Escolar, a realização de entrevistas semi-directivas e a aplicação de um inquérito por questionário aos alunos do 1° ciclo do ensino básico. O conhecimento produzido permitiu-nos responder à problemática objetivada no início da investigação, evidenciando que a Biblioteca Escolar/Centro de Recursos Educativos interage com o Currículo como um recurso do processo de ensino aprendizagem, constituindo-se como um centro de motivação da comunidade educativa que potencia um conjunto de aprendizagens das quais se destacam a leitura e a escrita e as atividades de pesquisa, através da metodologia de projeto. A BE/CRE complementa e enriquece o trabalho da sala de aula, quer ao nível das áreas curriculares disciplinares, quer ao nível das áreas curriculares não disciplinares. Com base nas conclusões resultantes da investigação empírica, terminámos com a formulação de algumas sugestões e recomendações que a evolução do estudo nos foi aconselhando. /ABSTRACT - This research work focuses the importance of the school library/educational resource centre and its connection with the school curriculum. The research was focussed on the following question: “How can the school library/educational resource Centre interact with the curriculum as a teaching resource?” Based on this question, the dissertation includes two distinctive parts. The former concerns the theoretical framework and the latter the empirical study case. As far as the theoretical framework is concerned, we have studied the conceptual facts and drew some major conclusions about the evolution of the school library, taking into account the rules and proceedings of the School Library Network Programme and the legislation on the issue. We went through the curriculum of the kindergarten and the primary school on which we developed our study case. The school library/educational resource centre was, therefore, identified as a fundamental resource in the learning/teaching process for the curricula differentiation. We also emphasized the importance of partnerships to enhance the articulation between the educational environment and school territory. The empirical research included both the conception and the testing of some important data collecting techniques, namely the documentary analysis, direct observation in a School Library, half-directed interviews and a questionnaire which was answered by primary school students. The knowledge acquired allowed us to find possible answers for the question we have asked at the beginning of our research. We can conclude that the School Library/Educational Resource Centre does interact with the curriculum as motivation to improve the process of learning, such as reading and writing, of the educational community. The project work also gains a new perspective as the school library/educational resource centre enriches and complements the classroom work both on the curriculum subjects and non- subject curricular areas. Based on the conclusions we drew from our study case, we make suggestions and recommendations for further research.