Weight of gravity - The bodies and the gestores in Galician-Portuguese Medieval poetry

Portuguese version: http://hdl.handle.net/10362/3593

Recent droughts and the impact of North Atlantic Oscillation in Iberia; a spatiotemporal analysis based on vegetation temperature condition Index (VTCI)

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies.

Leadership in Angola and Mozambique: How Portuguese leaders overcome the human resources challenge and contribute to organizational success

This Work Project presents human resources as one of the major challenges that Portuguese leaders meet in Angola and Mozambique. The main goal is to understand the role of leaders in translating this challenge into benefits for their own business and the African society. To conduct this study 13 leaders who work in Portugal and Africa were interviewed. Then, a framework was constructed based on the two ways these leaders recognize the importance of their employees for sustainable growth ��� financial incentives or/and personal development. The main conclusion here is that individually, incentives and personal development are not effective methods. Because of this, an employee empowerment process is proposed that encloses both, along with the leaders��� personal qualities needed to implement that ���ideal��� process.

Exploring the relationship between toxin and spore production in the human enteric pathogen Clostridium difficile

RESUMO: Clostridium difficile �� presentemente a principal causa de doen��a gastrointestinal associada �� utiliza����o de antibi��ticos em adultos. C. difficile �� uma bact��ria Gram-positiva, obrigatoriamente anaer��bica, capaz de formar end��sporos. Tem-se verificado um aumento dos casos de doen��a associada a C. difficile com sintomas mais severos, elevadas taxas de morbilidade, mortalidade e recorr��ncia, em parte, devido �� emerg��ncia de estirpes mais virulentas, mas tamb��m devido �� m�� gest��o do uso de antibi��ticos. C. difficile produz duas toxinas, TcdA e TcdB, que s��o os principais fatores de virul��ncia e respons��veis pelos sintomas da doen��a. Estas s��o codificadas a partir do Locus de Patogenicidade (PaLoc) que codifica ainda para um regulador positivo, TcdR, uma holina, TcdE, e um regulador negativo, TcdC. Os esporos resistentes ao oxig��nio s��o essenciais para a transmiss��o do organismo e recorr��ncia da doen��a. A express��o dos genes do PaLoc ocorre em c��lulas vegetativas, no final da fase de crescimento exponencial, e em c��lulas em esporula����o. Neste trabalho constru��mos dois mutantes de elimina����o em fase dos genes tcdR e tcdE. Mostr��mos que a auto-regula����o do gene tcdR n��o �� significativa. No entanto, tcdR �� sempre necess��rio para a express��o dos genes presentes no PaLoc. Trabalho anterior mostrou que, com a exce����o de tcdC, os demais genes do PaLoc s��o expressos no pr��-esporo. Mostr��mos aqui que TcdA �� detectada �� superf��cie do esporo maduro e que a elimina����o do tcdE n��o influencia a acumula����o de TcdA no meio de cultura ou em associa����o ��s c��lulas ou ao esporo. Estas observa����es t��m consequ��ncias para o nosso entendimento do processo infecioso: sugeremque o esporo possa ser tamb��m um ve��culo para a entrega da toxina nos est��gios iniciais da infec����o, que TcdA possa ser libertada durante a germina����o do esporo, e que o esporo possa utilizar o mesmo receptor reconhecido por TcdA para a liga����o �� mucosa do c��lon.---------------------------ABSTRACT: Clostridium difficile is currently the major cause of antibiotic-associated gastrointestinal diseases in adults. This is a Gram-positive bacterium, endospore-forming and an obligate anaerobe that colonizes the gastrointestinal tract. Recent years have seen a rise in C. difficile associated disease (CDAD) cases, associated with more severe disease symptoms, higher rates of morbidity, mortality and recurrence, which were mostly caused due to the emergence of ���hypervirulent��� strains but also due to changing patterns of antibiotics use. C. difficile produces two potent toxins, TcdA and TcdB, which are the main virulence factors and the responsible for the disease symptoms. These are codified from a Pathogenicity Locus (PaLoc), composed also by the positive regulator, TcdR, the holin-like protein, TcdE, and a negative regulator, TcdC. Besides the toxins, the oxygen-resistant spores are also essential for transmission of the organism through diarrhea; moreover, spores can accumulate in the environment or in the host, which will cause disease recurrence. The expression of the PaLoc genes occurs in vegetative cells, at the end of the exponential growth phase, and in sporulating cells. In this work, we constructed two in-frame deletion mutants of tcdR and tcdE. We showed that the positive auto regulation of tcdR is not significant. However, tcdR is always necessary for the expression of the PaLoc genes. A previous work showed that, except tcdC, all the PaLoc genes are expressed in the forespore. Here, we detected TcdA at the spore surface. Furthermore, we showed that the in-frame deletion of tcdE does not affect the accumulation of TcdA in the culture medium or in association with cells or spores. This data was important for us to conclude about the infeccious process: it suggests that the spore may be the vehicle for the delivery of TcdA in early stages of infection, that TcdA may be released during spores germination and that this spore may use the same receptor recognized by TcdA to bind to the colonic mucosa.

���Culture Stops Development!���: Bijag�� Youth and the Appropriation of Developmentalist Discourse in Guinea-B

African Studies Review, Volume 52, Number 2, pp. 69���

Understanding the relationship between central metabolism and virulence in the human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae

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

Precious transition metals: the importance of Zn2+, Mn2+ and Cu2+ in the human pathogen Enterococcus faecalis

Dissertation presented to obtain the Ph.D degree in Biology

Robots and humans as co-workers? The human-centred perspective of work with autonomous systems

The design of work organisation systems with automated equipment is facing new challenges and the emergence of new concepts. The social aspects that are related with new concepts on the complex work environments (CWE) are becoming more relevant for that design. The work with autonomous systems implies options in the design of workplaces. Especially that happens in such complex environments. The concepts of ���agents���, ���co-working��� or ���human-centred technical systems��� reveal new dimensions related to human-computer interaction (HCI). With an increase in the number and complexity of those human-technology interfaces, the capacities of human intervention can become limited, originating further problems. The case of robotics is used to exemplify the issues related with automation in working environments and the emergence of new HCI approaches that would include social implications. We conclude that studies on technology assessment of industrial robotics and autonomous agents on manufacturing environment should also focus on the human involvement strategies in organisations. A needed participatory strategy implies a new approach to workplaces design. This means that the research focus must be on the relation between technology and social dimensions not as separate entities, but integrated in the design of an interaction system.

The impact of high involvement human resources practices on resistance to change: The mediator effect of commitment to change and the influence of ethical leadership

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

UNCERTAINTY AND DECISION-MAKING IN THE HUMAN BRAIN

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

Development and efficiency optimizing of the human body energy converters

Nowadays it is known that the human body is continuous source of many types of energy and the devices used for collecting energy taken from the environment also have the required capabilities for the collection of the energy produced by the Human body (HB), but very limited and with very low efficiency. Low power and high yield converters are particularly needed in these cases of collecting energy from human activity and its movements due to the small amount of energy generated this way. But this situation can be improved. Enhancing or focusing the human movements by using mechanical amplifiers applied to the piezoelectric element. By doing so the input of energy in the element increases. As such increasing its output, therefore producing more energy.

Spiteful Strategies. The ontogeny and the practice of spite in human interaction: an experimental game theory approach and empirical applications

As estrat��gias de malevol��ncia implicam que um indiv��duo pague um custo para infligir um custo superior a um oponente. Como um dos comportamentos fundamentais da sociobiologia, a malevol��ncia tem recebido menos aten����o que os seus pares o ego��smo e a coopera����o. Contudo, foi estabelecido que a malevol��ncia �� uma estrat��gia vi��vel em popula����es pequenas quando usada contra indiv��duos negativamente geneticamente relacionados pois este comportamento pode i) ser eliminado naturalmente, ou ii) manter-se em equil��brio com estrat��gias cooperativas devido �� disponibilidade da parte de indiv��duos malevolentes de pagar um custo para punir. Esta tese prop��e compreender se a propens��o para a malevol��ncia nos humanos �� inerente ou se esta se desenvolve com a idade. Para esse efeito, considerei duas experi��ncias de teoria de jogos em crian��as em ambiente escolar com idades entre os 6 e os 22 anos. A primeira, um jogo 2x2 foi testada com duas variantes: 1) um pr��mio foi atribu��do a ambos os jogadores, proporcionalmente aos pontos acumulados; 2), um pr��mio foi atribu��do ao jogador com mais pontos. O jogo foi desenhado com o intuito de causar o seguinte dilema a cada jogador: i) maximizar o seu ganho e arriscar ter menos pontos que o advers��rio; ou ii) decidir n��o maximizar o seu ganho, garantindo que este n��o era inferior ao do seu advers��rio. A segunda experi��ncia consistia num jogo do ditador com duas op����es: uma escolha ego��sta/altru��sta (A), onde o ditador recebia mais ganho, mas o seu recipiente recebia mais que ele e uma escolha malevolente (B) que oferecia menos ganhos ao ditador que a A mas mais ganhos que o recipiente. O dilema era que se as crian��as se comportassem de maneira ego��sta, obtinham mais ganho para si, ao mesmo tempo que aumentavam o ganho do seu colega. Se fossem malevolentes, ent��o prefeririam ter mais ganho que o seu colega ao mesmo tempo que tinham menos para eles pr��prios. As experi��ncias foram efetuadas em escolas de duas ��reas distintas de Portugal (continente e A��ores) para perceber se as prefer��ncias malevolentes aumentavam ou diminu��am com a idade. Os resultados na primeira experi��ncia sugerem que (1) os alunos compreenderam a primeira variante como um jogo de coordena����o e comportaram-se como maximizadores, copiando as jogadas anteriores dos seus advers��rios; (2) que os alunos repetentes se comportaram preferencialmente como malevolentes, mais frequentemente que como maximizadores, com especial ��nfase para os alunos de 14 anos; (3) maioria dos alunos comportou-se reciprocamente desde os 12 at�� aos 16 anos de idade, ap��s os quais come��aram a desenvolver uma maior toler��ncia ��s escolhas dos seus parceiros. Os resultados da segunda experi��ncia sugerem que (1) as estrat��gias ego��stas eram prevalentes at�� aos 6 anos de idade, (2) as tend��ncias altru��stas emergiram at�� aos 8 anos de idade e (3) as estrat��gias de malevol��ncia come��aram a emergir a partir dos 8 anos de idade. Estes resultados complementam a literatura relativamente escassa sobre malevol��ncia e sugerem que este comportamento est�� intimamente ligado a prefer��ncias de considera����o sobre os outros, o paroquialismo e os est��gios de desenvolvimento das crian��as.************************************************************Spite is defined as an act that causes loss of payoff to an opponent at a cost to the actor. As one of the four fundamental behaviours in sociobiology, it has received far less attention than its counterparts selfishness and cooperation. It has however been established as a viable strategy in small populations when used against negatively related individuals. Because of this, spite can either i) disappear or ii) remain at equilibrium with cooperative strategies due to the willingness of spiteful individuals to pay a cost in order to punish. This thesis sets out to understand whether propensity for spiteful behaviour is inherent or if it develops with age. For that effect, two game-theoretical experiments were performed with schoolboys and schoolgirls aged 6 to 22. The first, a 2 x 2 game, was tested in two variants: 1) a prize was awarded to both players, proportional to accumulated points; 2), a prize was given to the player with most points. Each player faced the following dilemma: i) to maximise pay-off risking a lower pay-off than the opponent; or ii) not to maximise pay-off in order to cut down the opponent below their own. The second game was a dictator experiment with two choices, (A) a selfish/altruistic choice affording more payoff to the donor than B, but more to the recipient than to the donor, and (B) a spiteful choice that afforded less payoff to the donor than A, but even lower payoff to the recipient. The dilemma here was that if subjects behaved selfishly, they obtained more payoff for themselves, while at the same time increasing their opponent payoff. If they were spiteful, they would rather have more payoff than their colleague, at the cost of less for themselves. Experiments were run in schools in two different areas in Portugal (mainland and Azores) to understand whether spiteful preferences varied with age. Results in the first experiment suggested that (1) students understood the first variant as a coordination game and engaged in maximising behaviour by copying their opponent���s plays; (2) repeating students preferentially engaged in spiteful behaviour more often than maximising behaviour, with special emphasis on 14 year-olds; (3) most students engaged in reciprocal behaviour from ages 12 to 16, as they began developing higher tolerance for their opponent choices. Results for the second experiment suggested that (1) selfish strategies were prevalent until the age of 6, (2) altruistic tendencies emerged since then, and (3) spiteful strategies began being chosen more often by 8 year-olds. These results add to the relatively scarce body of literature on spite and suggest that this type of behaviour is closely tied with other-regarding preferences, parochialism and the children���s stages of development.