Students' choice of a master in management in Portugal: A means-end chain approach

In the increasingly competitive market of higher education introduced by the Bologna Declaration, understanding the decision-making of master in management students is at the center of institutional management and marketing efforts on its mission to attract prospective students in a less costly, more efficient manner. The means-end chain approach, applied to the choice of a Portuguese institution in which to pursue a master in management, points to the position in rankings and to the non-specificity of the program as the most important attributes. Additionally, results show that students with distinct demographic, household, or background characteristics choose in significantly different manners.

BIWiki - Using a Business Intelligence Wiki to Form a Virtual Community of Practice for Portuguese Master's Students

Web 2.0 software in general and wikis in particular have been receiving growing attention as they constitute new and powerful tools, capable of supporting information sharing, creation of knowledge and a wide range of collaborative processes and learning activities. This paper introduces briefly some of the new opportunities made possible by Web 2.0 or the social Internet, focusing on those offered by the use of wikis as learning spaces. A wiki allows documents to be created, edited and shared on a group basis; it has a very easy and efficient markup language, using a simple Web browser. One of the most important characteristics of wiki technology is the ease with which pages are created and edited. The facility for wiki content to be edited by its users means that its pages and structure form a dynamic entity, in permanent evolution, where users can insert new ideas, supplement previously existing information and correct errors and typos in a document at any time, up to the agreed final version. This paper explores wikis as a collaborative learning and knowledge-building space and its potential for supporting Virtual Communities of Practice (VCoPs). In the academic years (2007/8 and 2008/9), students of the Business Intelligence module at the Master's programme of studies on Knowledge Management and Business Intelligence at Instituto Superior de Estatistica e Gestao de Informacao of the Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal, have been actively involved in the creation of BIWiki - a wiki for Business Intelligence in the Portuguese language. Based on usage patterns and feedback from students participating in this experience, some conclusions are drawn regarding the potential of this technology to support the emergence of VCoPs; some provisional suggestions will be made regarding the use of wikis to support information sharing, knowledge creation and transfer and collaborative learning in Higher Education.

Modelling of a wastewater treatment plant using GPS-X

Dissertation to obtain the degree of Master in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering

Melanosome transfer between melanocytes and keratinocytes

RESUMO: A pele é o maior órgão do corpo humano e a sua pigmentação é essencial para a sua coloração e proteção contra os efeitos nocivos da radiação ultravioleta (UV). A pigmentação da pele resulta essencialmente de três processos: a síntese e o armazenamento de melanina pelos melanócitos, em organelos especializados denominados melanossomas; o transporte dos melanossomas dentro dos melanócitos; e finalmente, a transferência dos melanossomas para os queratinócitos adjacentes. Nos queratinócitos, a melanina migra para a região perinuclear apical da célula para formar um escudo protetor,responsável pela proteção do DNA dos danos causados pela radiação UV. Os melanócitos estão localizados na camada basal da epiderme e contactam com 30-40 queratinócitos. Em conjunto, estas células formam a “unidade melano-epidérmica”. Apesar dos processos de síntese e transporte de melanina nos melanócitos estarem bastante bem caracterizados, os mecanismos moleculares subjacentes à transferência inter-celular de melanina são menos conhecidos e ainda controversos. Dados preliminares obtidos pelo nosso grupo, que se basearam na observação de amostras de pele humana por microscopia electrónica, indicam que a forma predominante de transferência de melanina na epiderme consiste na exocitose dos melanossomas pelos melanócitos e subsequente endocitose da melanina por queratinócitos. Para além disso sabe-se que as proteínas Rab, que controlam o tráfego membranar, estão envolvidas em várias etapas de pigmentação da pele, nomeadamente na biogénese e no transporte de melanina. Assim, dado o seu papel fundamental nestes processos, questionámo-nos sobre o seu envolvimento na transferência de melanina. Com este trabalho, propomo-nos a expandir o conhecimento atual sobre a transferência de melanina na pele, através do estudo detalhado dos seus mecanismos moleculares, identificando as proteínas Rab que regulam o processo. Pretendemos também confirmar o modelo de exo/endocitose como sendo o mecanismo principal de transferência de melanina. Primeiro, explorámos a regulação da secreção de melanina pelos melanócitos e analisámos o papel de proteínas Rab neste processo. Os resultados foram obtidos recorrendo a um método in vitro, desenvolvido previamente no laboratório, que avalia a quantidade de melanina segregada para o meio de cultura por espectrofotometria, e ainda por microscopia, contando o número de melanossomas transferidos para os queratinócitos. Através de co-culturas de melanócitos e queratinócitos, verificou-se que os queratinócitos estimulam a libertação de melanina dos melanócitos para o meio extra-celular, bem como a sua transferência para os queratinócitos. Além disso, a proteína Rab11b foi identificada como um regulador da exocitose de melanina e da sua transferência para os queratinócitos. De facto, a diminuição da expressão de Rab11b em melanócitos provocou a redução da secreção de melanina estimulada por queratinócitos, bem como da transferência desta. Em segundo lugar, para complementar o nosso estudo, centrámos a nossa investigação na internalização de melanina por queratinócitos. Especificamente, usando uma biblioteca de siRNA, explorámos o envolvimento de proteínas Rab na captação de melanina por queratinócitos. Como primeira abordagem, usámos esferas fluorescentes como substituto de melanina, avaliando os resultados por citometria de fluxo. No entanto, este método revelou-se ineficaz uma vez que a internalização destas esferas é independente do recetor PAR-2 (recetor 2 ativado por protease), que foi previamente descrito como essencial na captação de melanina por queratinócitos Posteriormente, foi desenvolvido um novo protocolo de endocitose baseado em microscopia, usando melanossomas sem a membrana envolvente (melanocores) purificados do meio de cultura de melanócitos, incluindo um programa informático especialmente desenhado para realizar uma análise semi-automatizada. Após internalização, os melanocores acumulam-se na região perinuclear dos queratinócitos, em estruturas que se assemelham ao escudo supranuclear observado na pele humana. Seguidamente, o envolvimento do recetor PAR-2 na captação de melanocores por queratinócitos foi confirmado, utilizando o novo protocolo de endocitose desenvolvido. Para além disso, a necessidade de quatro proteínas Rab foi identificada na internalização de melanocores por queratinócitos. A redução da expressão de Rab1a ou Rab5b em queratinócitos diminuiu significativamente o nível de internalização de melanocores, enquanto o silenciamento da expressão de Rab2a ou Rab14 aumentou a quantidade de melanocores internalizados por estas células. Em conclusão, os resultados apresentados corroboram as observações anteriores, obtidas em amostras de pele humana, e sugerem que o mecanismo de transferência predominante é a exocitose de melanina pelos melanócitos, induzida por queratinócitos, seguida por endocitose pelos queratinócitos. A pigmentação da pele tem implicações tanto ao nível da cosmética, como ao nível médico, relacionadas com foto-envelhecimento e com doenças pigmentares. Assim sendo, ao esclarecer quais os mecanismos moleculares que regulam a transferência de melanina na pele, este trabalho pode conduzir ao desenvolvimento de novas estratégias para modular a pigmentação da pele.----------------ABSTRACT: Skin pigmentation is achieved through the highly regulated production of the pigment melanin in specialized organelles, termed melanosomes within melanocytes. These are transported from their site of synthesis to the melanocyte periphery before being transferred to keratinocytes where melanin forms a supra-nuclear cap to protect the DNA from UVinduced damage. Together, melanocytes and keratinocytes form a functional complex, termed “epidermal-melanin unit”, that confers color and photoprotective properties to the skin. Skin pigmentation requires three processes: the biogenesis of melanin; its intracelular transport within the melanocyte to the cell periphery; and the melanin transfer to keratinocytes. The first two processes have been extensively characterized. However, despite significant advances that have been made over the past few years, the mechanisms underlying inter-cellular transfer of pigment from melanocytes to keratinocytes remain controversial.Preliminary studies from our group using electron microscopy and human skin samples found evidence for a mechanism of coupled exocytosis-endocytosis. Rab GTPases are master regulators of intracellular trafficking and have already been implicated in several steps of skin pigmentation. Thus, we proposed to explore and characterize the molecular mechanisms of melanin transfer and the role of Rab GTPases in this process. Moreover, we investigated whether the exo/endocytosis model is the main mechanism of melanin transfer. We first focused on melanin exocytosis by melanocytes. Then, we started to investigate the key regulatory Rab proteins involved in this step by establishing an in vitro tissue culture model of melanin secretion. Using co-cultures of melanocytes and keratinocytes, we found that keratinocytes stimulate melanin release and transfer. Moreover, depletion of Rab11b decreases keratinocyte-induced melanin exocytosis by melanocytes. In order to determine whether melanin exocytosis is a predominant mechanism of melanin transfer, the amount of melanin transferred to keratinocytes was then assayed in conditions where melanin exocytosis was inhibited. Indeed, Rab11b depletion resulted in a significant decrease in melanin uptake by keratinocytes. Taken together, these observations suggest that Rab11b mediates melanosome exocytosis from melanocytes and transfer to keratinocytes. To complement and extend our study, we of melanin by keratinocytes. Thus, we aimed to explore the effect of depleting Rab GTPases on melanin uptake and trafficking within keratinocytes. As a first approach, we used fluorescent microspheres as a melanin surrogate. However, the uptake of microspheres was observed to be independent of PAR-2, a receptor that is required for melanin uptakecentred our attention in the internalization of melanin by keratinocytes. Thus, we aimed to explore the effect of depleting Rab GTPases on melanin uptake and trafficking within keratinocytes. As a first approach, we used fluorescent microspheres as a melanin surrogate. However, the uptake of microspheres was observed to be independent of PAR-2, a receptor that is required for melanin uptake.Therefore, we concluded that microspheres were uptaken by keratinocytes through a different pathway than melanin. Subsequently, we developed a microscopy-based endocytosis assay using purified melanocores (melanosomes lacking the limiting membrane) from melanocytes, including a program to perform a semi-automated analysis. Melanocores are taken up by keratinocytes and accumulate in structures in the perinuclear area that resemble the physiological supranuclear cap observed in human skin. We then confirmed the involvement of PAR-2 receptor in the uptake of melanocores by keratinocytes, using the newly developed assay. Furthermore, we identified the role of four Rab GTPases on the uptake of melanocores by keratinocytes. Depletion of Rab1a and Rab5b from keratinocytes significantly reduced the uptake of melanocores, whereas Rab2a, and Rab14 silencing increased the amount the melanocores internalized by XB2 keratinocytes. In conclusion, we present evidence supporting keratinocyte-inducedmelanosome exocytosis from melanocytes, followed by endocytosis of the melanin core by keratinocytes as the predominant mechanism of melanin transfer in skin. Although advances have been made, there is a need for more effective and safer therapies directed at pigmentation disorders and also treatments for cosmetic applications. Hence, the understanding of the above mechanisms of skin pigmentation will lead to a greater appreciation of the molecular machinery underlying human skin pigmentation and could interest the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.

Social impact bond feasibility study: Children and youth at risk: the Projecto Família program

Social impact bonds are an increasingly popular method of unlocking typical social investment barriers and fuelling social innovation. This feasibility study aims to understand whether a social impact bond is a suitable tool for decreasing unnecessary foster care placements in Portugal, which have been proven to cause significant social and financial damage to societies. This research question is answered through a financial model which combines the costs of this social problem with Projecto Família’s intervention model, a leading intensive family preservation service. Main findings suggest using SIB funding for a 5-year project with the goal of generating the proper impact measurement metrics lacking in the field.

Essays in health economics: Volume-Outcome Effect, upcoding behaviour and the evaluation of a short-term intervention program

Evidence in the literature suggests a negative relationship between volume of medical procedures and mortality rates in the health care sector. In general, high-volume hospitals appear to achieve lower mortality rates, although considerable variation exists. However, most studies focus on US hospitals, which face different incentives than hospitals in a National Health Service (NHS). In order to add to the literature, this study aims to understand what happens in a NHS. Results reveal a statistically significant correlation between volume of procedures and better outcomes for the following medical procedures: cerebral infarction, respiratory infections, circulatory disorders with AMI, bowel procedures, cirrhosis, and hip and femur procedures. The effect is explained with the practice-makes-perfect hypothesis through static effects of scale with little evidence of learning-by-doing. The centralization of those medical procedures is recommended given that this policy would save a considerable number of lives (reduction of 12% in deaths for cerebral infarction).

Uma cultura de segurança comum na UE através de um programa de formação europeu para as polícias

This master dissertation is to bring a contribution to the reflection on the need to strengthen cross-border cooperation, among the various entities applying the law with a view to building a European security culture through police training. On this basis, it proposes a reflection on the new security paradigm, focused on the demanding and informed security needs by the citizen due to an increasingly transnational crime throughout the different States. This development, coupled with globalization itself, led to the definition of strategies to gear the work of the police in preventing and combating new criminal phenomena such as the European Internal Security Strategy. However, without a true safety culture, which fosters trust among the various actors and ensures a coordinated and uniform action of the police, it will not be easy to achieve the desired effectiveness in protecting the fundamental rights that underpin European integration. Against this background, attempts to explain that the implementation of a common European training program for the police (LETS) is the way forward, with a view to a more effective security in the Union, based on values that embody a genuine European security culture, coveted by all, based on an idea of governance held at different levels of intervention, European, regional and national levels.

Connect to success- consulting program of the U.S. embassy Lisbon creation of a business plan for “Quinta dos I’s”

The purpose of this project is to analyse and evaluate if the rural tourism cottage Quinta dos I’s will be profitable within the first five years of operation. It starts with a brief description of the business, followed by an industry analysis of the rural tourism market in Portugal and an intensive competitor analysis to evaluate Quinta dos I’s’ competitive advantages. The project then defines a marketing plan to generate awareness and establish the cottage in the market. Finally, a financial analysis is performed to examine the outcome of Quinta dos I’s’ recommended strategic activities. The results of this project show that the cottage is profitable after the first year of operation and expects to grow annually.