Incentivizing innovation: A review of the Brazilian federal innovation support programs

Innovation is the transformation of knowledge of any kind into new products or services in the market. Its importance as a production factor is widely acknowledged. In the age of the knowledge-based economy innovation became critical for any company or even country to compete globally. Many countries are encouraging innovation through various mechanisms, and one of the most widely used is the provision of special incentives for innovation. This paper investigates incentive systems for the growth of technology companies as a strategy to promote knowledge-based economic development. As for the case investigations the study focuses on an emerging economy, Brazil. The research is based upon the available literature, best practices, government policy and review of incentive systems. The findings provide insights from the case study in a country context and some lessons learned for other countries using incentive systems to boost the innovation capabilities of their technology companies.

Modelling ciphersuite and version negotiation in the TLS protocol

Real-world cryptographic protocols such as the widely used Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol support many different combinations of cryptographic algorithms (called ciphersuites) and simultaneously support different versions. Recent advances in provable security have shown that most modern TLS ciphersuites are secure authenticated and confidential channel establishment (ACCE) protocols, but these analyses generally focus on single ciphersuites in isolation. In this paper we extend the ACCE model to cover protocols with many different sub-protocols, capturing both multiple ciphersuites and multiple versions, and define a security notion for secure negotiation of the optimal sub-protocol. We give a generic theorem that shows how secure negotiation follows, with some additional conditions, from the authentication property of secure ACCE protocols. Using this framework, we analyse the security of ciphersuite and three variants of version negotiation in TLS, including a recently proposed mechanism for detecting fallback attacks.

Pharmacology in one semester [Version 3, Semester 1, 2014]

- For use in Introductory Units/Courses to Biomedical/Science Students - For use with Allied Health Students who are taking pharmacology as a Unit/Course or a part Unit/Course

Validation and reliability of a Spanish version of Simple Shoulder Test (SST-Sp)

Background: The Simple Shoulder Test (SST-Sp) is a widely used outcome measure. Objective: The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a Spanish-version SST (SST-Sp). Methods: A two-stage observational study was conducted. The SST was initially cross-culturally adapted to Spanish through double forward and backward translation and then validated for its psychometric characteristics. Participants (n = 66) with several shoulder disorders completed the SST-Sp, DASH, VAS and SF-12. The full sample was employed to determine factor structure, internal consistency and concurrent criterion validity. Reliability was determined in the first 24–48 h in a subsample of 21 patients. Results: The SST-Sp showed three factors that explained the 56.1 % of variance, and the internal consistency for each factor was α = 0.738, 0.723 and 0.667, and reliability was ICC = 0.687–0.944. The factor structure was three-dimensional and supported construct validity. Criterion validity determined from the relationship between the SST-Sp and DASH was strong (r = −0.73; p < 0.001) and fair for VAS (r = −0.537; p < 0.001). Relationships between SST-Sp and SF-12 were weak for both physical (r = −0.47; p < 0.001) and mental (r = −0.43; p < 0.001) dimensions. Conclusions: The SST-Sp supports the findings of the original English version as being a valid shoulder outcome measure with similar psychometric properties to the original English version.

Spanish version of the screening Orebro Musculoskeletal Pain Questionnaire: A cross-cultural adaptation and validation

Background Spanish is one of the five most spoken languages in the world. There is currently no published Spanish version of the Örebro Musculoskeletal Pain Questionnaire (OMPQ). The aim of the present study is to describe the process of translating the OMPQ into Spanish and to perform an analysis of reliability, internal structure, internal consistency and concurrent criterion-related validity. Methods Design: Translation and psychometric testing. Procedure: Two independent translators translated the OMPQ into Spanish. From both translations a consensus version was achieved. A backward translation was made to verify and resolve any semantic or conceptual problems. A total of 104 patients (67 men/37 women) with a mean age of 53.48 (±11.63), suffering from chronic musculoskeletal disorders, twice completed a Spanish version of the OMPQ. Statistical analysis was performed to evaluate the reliability, the internal structure, internal consistency and concurrent criterion-related validity with reference to the gold standard questionnaire SF-12v2. Results All variables except “Coping” showed a rate above 0.85 on reliability. The internal structure calculation through exploratory factor analysis indicated that 75.2% of the variance can be explained with six components with an eigenvalue higher than 1 and 52.1% with only three components higher than 10% of variance explained. In the concurrent criterion-related validity, several significant correlations were seen close to 0.6, exceeding that value in the correlation between general health and total value of the OMPQ. Conclusions The Spanish version of the screening questionnaire OMPQ can be used to identify Spanish patients with musculoskeletal pain at risk of developing a chronic disability.

Validation of a Spanish version of the Spine Functional Index

Background The Spine Functional Index (SFI) is a recently published, robust and clinimetrically valid patient reported outcome measure. Objectives The purpose of this study was the adaptation and validation of a Spanish-version (SFI-Sp) with cultural and linguistic equivalence. Methods A two stage observational study was conducted. The SFI was cross-culturally adapted to Spanish through double forward and backward translation then validated for its psychometric characteristics. Participants (n = 226) with various spine conditions of >12 weeks duration completed the SFI-Sp and a region specific measure: for the back, the Roland Morris Questionnaire (RMQ) and Backache Index (BADIX); for the neck, the Neck Disability Index (NDI); for general health the EQ-5D and SF-12. The full sample was employed to determine internal consistency, concurrent criterion validity by region and health, construct validity and factor structure. A subgroup (n = 51) was used to determine reliability at seven days. Results The SFI-Sp demonstrated high internal consistency (α = 0.85) and reliability (r = 0.96). The factor structure was one-dimensional and supported construct validity. Criterion specific validity for function was high with the RMQ (r = 0.79), moderate with the BADIX (r = 0.59) and low with the NDI (r = 0.46). For general health it was low with the EQ-5D and inversely correlated (r = −0.42) and fair with the Physical and Mental Components of the SF-12 and inversely correlated (r = −0.56 and r = −0.48), respectively. The study limitations included the lack of longitudinal data regarding other psychometric properties, specifically responsiveness. Conclusions The SFI-Sp was demonstrated as a valid and reliable spine-regional outcome measure. The psychometric properties were comparable to and supported those of the English-version, however further longitudinal investigations are required.

The development and piloting of the ISPCAN child abuse screening tool-parent version (ICAST-P)

Objective Child maltreatment is a problem that has longer recognition in the northern hemisphere and in high-income countries. Recent work has highlighted the nearly universal nature of the problem in other countries but demonstrated the lack of comparability of studies because of the variations in definitions and measures used. The International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect has developed instrumentation that may be used with cross-cultural and cross-national benchmarking by local investigators. Design and sampling The instrument design began with a team of expert in Brisbane in 2004. A large bank of questions were subjected to two rounds of Delphi review to develop the fielded version of the instrument. Convenience samples included approximately 120 parent respondents with children under the age of 18 in each of six countries (697 total). Results This paper presents an instrument that measures parental behaviors directed at children and reports data from pilot work in 6 countries and 7 languages. Patterns of response revealed few missing values and distributions of responses that generally were similar in the six countries. Subscales performed well in terms of internal consistency with Cronbach's alpha in very good range (0.77–0.88) with the exception of the neglect and sex abuse subscales. Results varied by child age and gender in expected directions but with large variations among the samples. About 15% of children were shaken, 24% hit on the buttocks with an object, and 37% were spanked. Reports of choking and smothering were made by 2% of parents. Conclusion These pilot data demonstrate that the instrument is well tolerated and captures variations in, and potentially harmful forms of child discipline. Practice implications The ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tool – Parent Version (ICAST-P) has been developed as a survey instrument to be administered to parents for the assessment of child maltreatment in a multi-national and multi-cultural context. It was developed with broad input from international experts and subjected to Dephi review, translation, and pilot testing in six countries. The results of the Delphi study and pilot testing are presented. This study demonstrates that a single instrument can be used in a broad range of cultures and languages with low rates of missing data and moderate to high internal consistency.

ISPCAN child abuse screening tool children's version (ICAST-C): Instrument development and multi-national pilot testing

Objective To develop a child victimization survey among a diverse group of child protection experts and examine the performance of the instrument through a set of international pilot studies. Methods The initial draft of the instrument was developed after input from scientists and practitioners representing 40 countries. Volunteers from the larger group of scientists participating in the Delphi review of the ICAST P and R reviewed the ICAST C by email in 2 rounds resulting in a final instrument. The ICAST C was then translated and back translated into six languages and field tested in four countries using a convenience sample of 571 children 12–17 years of age selected from schools and classrooms to which the investigators had easy access. Results The final ICAST C Home has 38 items and the ICAST C Institution has 44 items. These items serve as screeners and positive endorsements are followed by queries for frequency and perpetrator. Half of respondents were boys (49%). Endorsement for various forms of victimization ranged from 0 to 51%. Many children report violence exposure (51%), physical victimization (55%), psychological victimization (66%), sexual victimization (18%), and neglect in their homes (37%) in the last year. High rates of physical victimization (57%), psychological victimization (59%), and sexual victimization (22%) were also reported in schools in the last year. Internal consistency was moderate to high (alpha between .685 and .855) and missing data low (less than 1.5% for all but one item). Conclusions In pilot testing, the ICAST C identifies high rates of child victimization in all domains. Rates of missing data are low, and internal consistency is moderate to high. Pilot testing demonstrated the feasibility of using child self-report as one strategy to assess child victimization. Practice implications The ICAST C is a multi-national, multi-lingual, consensus-based survey instrument. It is available in six languages for international research to estimate child victimization. Assessing the prevalence of child victimization is critical in understanding the scope of the problem, setting national and local priorities, and garnering support for program and policy development aimed at child protection.

Detection and characterisation of strong resistance to phosphine in Brazilian Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) (Coleoptera: Bostrychidae)

As failure to control Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) with phosphine is a common problem in the grain-growing regions of Brazil, a study was undertaken to investigate the frequency, distribution and strength of phosphine resistance in R. dominica in Brazil. Nineteen samples of R. dominica were collected between 1991 and 2003 from central storages where phosphine fumigation had failed to control this species. Insects were cultured without selection until testing in 2005. Each sample was tested for resistance to phosphine on the basis of the response of adults to discriminating concentrations of phosphine (20 and 48 h exposures) and full dose-response assays (48 h exposure). Responses of the Brazilian R. dominica samples were compared with reference susceptible, weak-resistance and strong-resistance strains from Australia in parallel assays. All Brazilian population samples showed resistance to phosphine: five were diagnosed with weak resistance and 14 with strong resistance. Five samples showed levels of resistance similar to the reference strong-resistance strain. A representative highly resistant sample was characterised by exposing mixed-age cultures to a range of constant concentrations of phosphine for various exposure periods. Time to population extinction (TPE) and time to 99.9% suppression of population (LT99.9) values of this sample were generally similar to those of the reference strong-resistance strain. For example, at 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 mg L-1, LT99.9 values for BR33 and the reference strong-resistance strain were respectively 21, 6.4 and 3.7 days and 17, 6.2 and 3.8 days. With both strains, doubling phosphine concentrations to 2 mg L -1 resulted in increased LT99.9 and TPE. High level and frequency of resistance in all population samples, some of which had been cultured without selection for up to 12 years, suggest little or no fitness deficit associated with phosphine resistance. The present research indicates that widespread phosphine resistance may be developing in Brazil. Fumigation practices should be monitored and resistance management plans implemented to alleviate further resistance development.

#20 [updated] Community wide interventions for increasing physical activity - Clinical Version

People who are physically active have higher levels of health related fitness, and a lower risk profile for developing a number of disabling medical conditions and chronic diseases. However, despite considerable evidence of the benefits of regular physical activity, global levels of physical inactivity remain stubbornly high. In response, governments are looking to find ways to increase the physical activity of their populations.

A parametric differentiation version with finite-difference scheme applicable to a class of problems in boundary layer flow with massive blowing

A numerical procedure, based on the parametric differentiation and implicit finite difference scheme, has been developed for a class of problems in the boundary-layer theory for saddle-point regions. Here, the results are presented for the case of a three-dimensional stagnation-point flow with massive blowing. The method compares very well with other methods for particular cases (zero or small mass blowing). Results emphasize that the present numerical procedure is well suited for the solution of saddle-point flows with massive blowing, which could not be solved by other methods.

The Feeding Practices and Structure Questionnaire (FPSQ-28): A parsimonious version validated for longitudinal use from 2-5 years

Prospective studies and intervention evaluations that examine change over time assume that measurement tools measure the same construct at each occasion. In the area of parent-child feeding practices, longitudinal measurement properties of the questionnaires used are rarely verified. To ascertain that measured change in feeding practices reflects true change rather than change in the assessment, structure, or conceptualisation of the constructs over time, this study examined longitudinal measurement invariance of the Feeding Practices and Structure Questionnaire (FPSQ) subscales (9 constructs; 40 items) across 3 time points. Mothers participating in the NOURISH trial reported their feeding practices when children were aged 2, 3.7, and 5 years (N = 404). Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) within a structural equation modelling framework was used. Comparisons of initial cross-sectional models followed by longitudinal modelling of subscales, resulted in the removal of 12 items, including two redundant or poorly performing subscales. The resulting 28-item FPSQ-28 comprised 7 multi-item subscales: Reward for Behaviour, Reward for Eating, Persuasive Feeding, Overt Restriction, Covert Restriction, Structured Meal Setting and Structured Meal Timing. All subscales showed good fit over 3 time points and each displayed at least partial scalar (thresholds equal) longitudinal measurement invariance. We recommend the use of a separate single item indicator to assess the family meal setting. This is the first study to examine longitudinal measurement invariance in a feeding practices questionnaire. Invariance was established, indicating that the subscales of the shortened FPSQ-28 can be used with mothers to validly assess change in 7 feeding constructs in samples of children aged 2-5 years of age.

The Politics of Pulp Investment and the Brazilian Landless Movement (MST)

The Politics of Pulp Investment and the Brazilian Landless Movement (MST) The paper industry has been moving more heavily to the global South at the beginning of the 21st century. In a number of cases the rural populations of the global South have engaged in increasingly important resistance in their scuffle with the large-scale tree plantation-relying pulp investment model. The resistance had generally not yet managed to slow down Southern industrial tree plantation expansion until 2004. After all, even the MST, perhaps the strongest of the Southern movements, has limited power in comparison to the corporations pushing for plantation expansion. This thesis shows how, even against these odds, depending on the mechanisms of contention and case-specific conflict dynamics, in some cases the movements have managed to slow and even reverse plantation expansion. The thesis is based on extensive field research in the Brazilian countryside. It outlines a new theory of contentious agency promotion, emphasizing its importance in the shaping of corporate resource exploitation. The thesis includes a Qualitative Comparative Analysis of resistance influence on the economic outcomes of all (14) Brazilian large-scale pulp projects between 2004-2008. The central hypothesis of the thesis is that corporate resource exploitation can be slowed down more effectively and likely when the resistance is based on contentious agency. Contentious agency is created by the concatenation of five mutually supporting mechanisms of contention: organizing and politicizing a social movement; heterodox framing of pulp projects; protesting; networking; and embedding whilst maintaining autonomy. The findings suggest that contentious agency can slow or even reverse the expansion of industrial plantations, whereas when contentious agency promotion was inactive, fast or even unchecked plantation expansion was always the outcome. The rule applied to all the assessed 14 pulp conflict cases. The hypothesis gained strong support even in situations where corporate agency promotion was simultaneously active. In previous studies on social movements, there has been a lack of contributions that help us understand the causal mechanisms of contention influencing economic outcomes. The thesis answers to the call by merging a Polanyian analysis of the political economy with the Dynamics of Contention research program and making a case for the impact of contentious agency on capital accumulation. The research concludes that an efficient social movement can utilize mechanisms of contention to promote the potential of activism among its members and influence investment outcomes. Protesting, for example via pioneering land occupations, seemed to be particularly important. Until now, there has been no comprehensive theory on when and how contentious agency can slow down or reverse the expansion of corporate resource exploitation. The original contribution of this research is to provide such a theory, and utilize it to offer an extensive explanation on the conflicts over pulp investment in Brazil, the globalization of the paper industry, and slowing of industrial plantation expansion in the global South.

Measuring the expressed emotion in Chinese family caregivers of persons with dementia: Validation of a Chinese version of the Family Attitude Scale

- Background Expressed emotion (EE) captures the affective quality of the relationship between family caregivers and their care recipients and is known to increase the risk of poor health outcomes for caregiving dyads. Little is known about expressed emotion in the context of caregiving for persons with dementia, especially in non-Western cultures. The Family Attitude Scale (FAS) is a psychometrically sound self-reporting measure for EE. Its use in the examination of caregiving for patients with dementia has not yet been explored. - Objectives This study was performed to examine the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the FAS (FAS-C) in Chinese caregivers of relatives with dementia, and its validity in predicting severe depressive symptoms among the caregivers. - Methods The FAS was translated into Chinese using Brislin's model. Two expert panels evaluated the semantic equivalence and content validity of this Chinese version (FAS-C), respectively. A total of 123 Chinese primary caregivers of relatives with dementia were recruited from three elderly community care centers in Hong Kong. The FAS-C was administered with the Chinese versions of the 5-item Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5), the Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) and the Revised Memory and Behavioral Problem Checklist (RMBPC). - Results The FAS-C had excellent semantic equivalence with the original version and a content validity index of 0.92. Exploratory factor analysis identified a three-factor structure for the FAS-C (hostile acts, criticism and distancing). Cronbach's alpha of the FAS-C was 0.92. Pearson's correlation indicated that there were significant associations between a higher score on the FAS-C and greater caregiver burden (r = 0.66, p < 0.001), poorer mental health of the caregivers (r = −0.65, p < 0.001) and a higher level of dementia-related symptoms (frequency of symptoms: r = 0.45, p < 0.001; symptom disturbance: r = 0.51, p < 0.001), which serves to suggest its construct validity. For detecting severe depressive symptoms of the family caregivers, the receiving operating characteristics (ROC) curve had an area under curve of 0.78 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.69–0.87, p < 0.0001). The optimal cut-off score was >47 with a sensitivity of 0.720 (95% CI = 0.506–0.879) and specificity of 0.742 (95% CI = 0.643–0.826). - Conclusions The FAS-C is a reliable and valid measure to assess the affective quality of the relationship between Chinese caregivers and their relatives with dementia. It also has acceptable predictability in identifying family caregivers with severe depressive symptoms.