Service-oriented infrastructure to support the control, monitoring and management of a shop floor system

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Engenharia Electrotécnica e de Computadores

What makes a good team?

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

Coherent structures in open channel flows with bed load transport over an hydraulically rough bed

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Engenharia Civil – Perfil de Estruturas

Paleoclimatic correlations between Western european continental and marine areas Contribution of big villafranchian fauna

It is very difficult to make paleoclimatic correlations between continental and marine areas, but it is possible with biostratigraphic data. Reliable correlations can be made only between broad periods: between 3.5 and 3 Ma, around 2.4 Ma, until 1.6 Ma and after 1.6 Ma. The arid Mediterranean phases led to the disappearance of the European Villafranchian fauna (1.0 Ma).

Lean construction in rehabilitation works – suitability analysis and contribution for the definition of an implementation model

Proceedings IGLC-19, July 2011, Lima, Perú

Implementing quality management systems in small and medium construction companies: a contribution to a road map for success

Leadership and Management in Engineering, January 2009

Enterococcus faecalis V583 prophages: Dynamic interactions and contribution to bacterial pathogenic traits

Dissertation presented to obtain the Ph.D degree in Biology.

Collusion and reciprocity in infinitely repeated games

This paper extends the standard industrial organization models of repeated interaction between firms by incorporating preferences for reciprocity. A reciprocal firm responds to unkind behavior of rivals with unkind actions (destructive reciprocity), while at the same time, it responds to kind behavior of rivals with kind actions (constructive reciprocity). The main finding of the paper is that, for plausible perceptions of fairness, preferences for reciprocity facilitate collusion in infinitely repeated market games, that is, the critical discount rate at wish collusion can be sustained tends to be lower when firms have preferences for reciprocity than when firms are selfish. The paper also finds that the best collusive outcome that can be sustained in the infinitely repeated Cournot game with reciprocal firms is worse for consumers than the best collusive outcome that can be sustained in the infinitely repeated Cournot game with selfish firms.

Narrative Memory in Hyperfiction and Games

The aim of this paper is to address some theoretical issues concerning the narrative practice in cyberspace. From a narratological perspective it intends to clarify the functioning of time and space in storytelling. For that purpose it traces the concept(s) of memory inherited from rhetoric; the use of memory as a narrative device in traditional accounts; the adaptations imposed by hyperfiction. Using practical examples (including two Portuguese case studies - InStory 2006, and Noon 2007) it will show how narrative memory strategies can be helpful in game literacy. The main purpose is to contribute to serious game research and (trans)literary studies.

Contribution of Mental Health Service User Groups to Mental Health Services and Policy in Ghana : The Case of Mental Health Society of Ghana

RESUMO: Este estudo procurou documentar a perspectiva (s) dos utentes de saúde mental e das associações de prestadores de cuidados sobre a prestação, o papel e a contribuição de serviços de saúde mental da comunidade tal como foram percebidos por um número de informadores-chave, incluindo os utentes do serviço mentais e os próprios prestadores de cuidados. O caso específico da Sociedade Saúde Mental do Gana (MEHSOG) foi o foco deste estudo. O modelo foi o de um estudo de caso, utilizando discussões de grupo e entrevistas com informadores-chave como instrumentos de recolha de dados. Estas ferramentas de colheita de dados foram complementadas por observações dos participantes e pela revisão de documentos da MEHSOG e dos vários grupos de apoio da comunidade de auto-ajuda que compõem a associação nacional. O estudo revelou que os utentes dos serviços de saúde mental e seus prestadores de cuidados constituem um importante grupo de partes interessadas na prestação de serviços de saúde mental da comunidade e no desenvolvimento de políticas que tenham em conta as necessidades e os direitos das pessoas com doença mental ou epilepsia. O envolvimento da MEHSOG promove a mobilização de membros e famílias relacionadas com a doença mental de beneficiar de serviços de tratamento bem organizados com um impacto significativo na melhoria da saúde e da participação dos utentes dos serviços e seus prestadores de cuidados primários em processos de tomada de decisão da família e na comunidade processos de desenvolvimento. Os utentes dos serviços por beneficiarem de tratamento, e os prestadores de cuidados primários, por se tornarem mais livres e menos sobrecarregados com a responsabilidade de cuidar, podem passar a envolver-se mais em atividades que melhoramo seu estado, o de suas famílias e das comunidades. A advocacia dos membros da MEHSOG para conseguir que a “Mental Health Bill” se transforme numa Lei foi também um desenvolvimento significativo resultante da participação ativa dos utentes do serviço em chamar a atenção para uma nova e inclusiva legislação de saúde mental para o Gana. Entre os fatores e oportunidades que permitiram aos utentes dos serviços de saúde mental e aos prestadores de cuidados primários de pessoas com doença mental apoiar activamente a prestação de serviços de saúde mental comunitária e o desenvolvimento de políticas conta-se a contribuição da sociedade civil do Gana, particularmente o movimento da deficiência, e os esforços anteriores de ONGs em saúde mental e dos profissionais de saúde mental para ter uma nova lei em saúde mental. Observámos um certo número de desafios e barreiras que actuam de forma a limitar a influência dos utentes dos serviços de saúde mental na provisão da saúde mental comunitária e no desenvolvimento de políticas. Entre elas o estigma social contra a doença mental e pessoas com doença mental ou epilepsia e seus cuidadores primaries é um factor chave. O estigma tem alterado a percepção e as análises do público em geral, especialmente dos profissionais de saúde e das autoridades políticas afetando a priorização dos problemas de saúde mental nas políticas e programas. Outro desafio foi a deficiente infra-estrutura disponível para apoiar serviços de saúde mentais que assegurem aos utentes permanecerem em bom estado de saúde e bem-estar para serem advogados de si próprios. A recomendação do presente estudo é que os movimentos de utentes dos serviços de saúde mental são importantes e que eles precisam de ser apoiados e encorajados a desempenhar o seu papel como pessoas com experiência vivida para contribuir para a organização e prestação de serviços de saúde mental, bem como para a implementação, monitorização e avaliação de políticas e programas. ------------------------------------ ABSTRACT: This study sought to document the perspective(s) of mental health users and care-givers associations in community mental health service provision and their role and contribution as it was perceived by a number of key informants including the mental service users and care-givers themselves. The specific case of the Mental Health Society of Ghana (MEHSOG) was the focus of this study. A case study approach was used to with Focus Group Discussions and Key Informants Interviews being the data collection tools that were used. These data collection tools were complemented by participant observations and review of documents of the MEHSOG and the various community self-help peer support groups that make up the national association. The study revealed that mental health service users and their care-givers constitute an important stakeholder group in community mental health service provision and development of policies that factor in the needs and rights of persons with mental illness or epilepsy. MEHSOG’s involvement in mobilising members and education families to come forward with the relations with mental illness to benefit from treatment services were well made a significant impact in improving the health and participation of service users and their primary carers in family decision-making processes and in community development processes. Service users, on benefiting from treatment, and primary care-givers, on becoming freer and less burdened with the responsibility of care, move on to engage in secure livelihoods activities, which enhanced their status in their families and communities. The advocacy MEHSOG members undertook in getting the mental health Bill become Law was also noted as significant development that was realised as a result of active involvement of service users in calling for a new and inclusive mental health legislation for Ghana. Enabling factors and opportunities that enabled mental health service users and primary care-givers of people with mental illness to actively support community mental health service provision and policy development is with the vibrant civil society presence in Ghana, particularly the disability movement, and earlier efforts by NGOs in mental health in Ghana long-side mental health professionals to have a new law in mental health. A number of challenges were also noted which were found to limit the extent to which mental health service users can be influential in community mental health service provision and policy development. Key among them was the social stigma against mental illness and people with mental illness or epilepsy and their primary carers. Stigma has affected perceptions, analyses of the general public, especially health practitioners and policy authorities that it has affected their prioritisation of mental health issues in policies and programmes. Another challenge was the poor infrastructure available to support enhanced mental health care services that ensure mental health service users remain in a good state of health and wellbeing to advocate for themselves. The recommendation from the study is that mental health service user movements are important and need to be supported and encouraged to play their role as persons with lived experience to inform organisation and provision of mental health services as well as design and implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programes.

Contribution to drug discovery and development for tauopathies using yeast as a model

This work aimed to contribute to drug discovery and development (DDD) for tauopathies, while expanding our knowledge on this group of neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Using yeast, a recognized model for neurodegeneration studies, useful models were produced for the study of tau interaction with beta-amyloid (Aβ), both AD hallmark proteins. The characterization of these models suggests that these proteins co-localize and that Aβ1-42, which is toxic to yeast, is involved in tau40 phosphorylation (Ser396/404) via the GSK-3β yeast orthologue, whereas tau seems to facilitate Aβ1-42 oligomerization. The mapping of tau’s interactome in yeast, achieved with a tau toxicity enhancer screen using the yeast deletion collection, provided a novel framework, composed of 31 genes, to identify new mechanisms associated with tau pathology, as well as to identify new drug targets or biomarkers. This genomic screen also allowed to select the yeast strain mir1Δ-tau40 for development of a new GPSD2TM drug discovery screening system. A library of unique 138 marine bacteria extracts, obtained from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge hydrothermal vents, was screened with mir1Δ-tau40. Three extracts were identified as suppressors of tau toxicity and constitute good starting points for DDD programs. mir1Δ strain was sensitive to tau toxicity, relating tau pathology with mitochondrial function. SLC25A3, the human homologue of MIR1, codes for the mitochondrial phosphate carrier protein (PiC). Resorting to iRNA, SLC25A3 expression was silenced in human neuroglioma cells, as a first step towards the engineering of a neural model for replicating the results obtained in yeast. This model is essential to understand the mechanisms of tau toxicity at the mitochondrial level and to validate PiC as a relevant drug target. The set of DDD tools here presented will foster the development of innovative and efficacious therapies, urgently needed to cope with tau-related disorders of high human and social-economic impact.