A concepção e implementação da prova de aptidão profissional nos cursos Profissionais do Ensino Secundário Público

No âmbito do recente alargamento da oferta educativa de Cursos Profissionais às Escolas Secundárias, este estudo debruça-se sobre a concepção e implementação da Prova de Aptidão Profissional (PAP), as semelhanças e diferenças que esta prova assume nos diferentes Cursos Profissionais. A selecção do objecto de estudo recaiu nas sete turmas do décimo segundo ano dos Cursos Profissionais da Escola Secundária Padre Benjamim Salgado, visto encontrarem-se nessas turmas os Alunos que irão realizar a PAP no ano lectivo 2010/2011, com o apoio dos Professores Acompanhantes e com a coordenação dos Directores de Curso. Os meios utilizados nesta investigação dividiram-se em: (i) Inquéritos por questionários, a serem aplicados a Alunos e Professores Acompanhantes; (ii) Entrevistas, a serem realizadas aos Directores de Curso. A PAP, nos Cursos Profissionais do Ensino Secundário público, constitui uma mudança significativa nas dinâmicas inerentes ao espaço educativo. O seu papel, neste contexto, poderá representar uma evolução na relação entre os conhecimentos e as competências adquiridas nos cursos e o empreendedorismo e a criatividade do Aluno. Este será mais evidente se os actores educativos apostarem numa formação vocacionada para a inovação e para o risco, apoiados num currículo adaptado às condições do mercado de trabalho local e motivador para os jovens Alunos, e isso marcará, certamente, a diferença rumo ao sucesso.

Conservation strategy maps: a tool to facilitate biodiversity action planning illustrated using the heath fritillary butterfly

1. The UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UKBAP) identifies invertebrate species in danger of national extinction. For many of these species, targets for recovery specify the number of populations that should exist by a specific future date but offer no procedure to plan strategically to achieve the target for any species. 2. Here we describe techniques based upon geographic information systems (GIS) that produce conservation strategy maps (CSM) to assist with achieving recovery targets based on all available and relevant information. 3. The heath fritillary Mellicta athalia is a UKBAP species used here to illustrate the use of CSM. A phase 1 habitat survey was used to identify habitat polygons across the county of Kent, UK. These were systematically filtered using relevant habitat, botanical and autecological data to identify seven types of polygon, including those with extant colonies or in the vicinity of extant colonies, areas managed for conservation but without colonies, and polygons that had the appropriate habitat structure and may therefore be suitable for reintroduction. 4. Five clusters of polygons of interest were found across the study area. The CSM of two of them are illustrated here: the Blean Wood complex, which contains the existing colonies of heath fritillary in Kent, and the Orlestone Forest complex, which offers opportunities for reintroduction. 5. Synthesis and applications. Although the CSM concept is illustrated here for the UK, we suggest that CSM could be part of species conservation programmes throughout the world. CSM are dynamic and should be stored in electronic format, preferably on the world-wide web, so that they can be easily viewed and updated. CSM can be used to illustrate opportunities and to develop strategies with scientists and non-scientists, enabling the engagement of all communities in a conservation programme. CSM for different years can be presented to illustrate the progress of a plan or to provide continuous feedback on how a field scenario develops.

Nitrosospira spp. can produce nitrous oxide via a nitrifier denitrification pathway

Nitrous oxide (N2O) emission from soils is a major contributor to the atmospheric loading of this potent greenhouse gas. It is thought that autotrophic ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) are a significant source of soil-derived N2O and a denitrification pathway (i.e. reduction of NO2- to NO and N2O), so-called nitrifier denitrification, has been demonstrated as a N2O production mechanism in Nitrosomonas europaea. It is thought that Nitrosospira spp. are the dominant AOB in soil, but little information is available on their ability to produce N2O or on the existence of a nitrifier denitrification pathway in this lineage. This study aims to characterize N2O production and nitrifier denitrification in seven strains of AOB representative of clusters 0, 2 and 3 in the cultured Nitrosospira lineage. Nitrosomonas europaea ATCC 19718 and ATCC 25978 were analysed for comparison. The aerobically incubated test strains produced significant (P < 0.001) amounts of N2O and total N2O production rates ranged from 2.0 amol cell(-1) h(-1), in Nitrosospira tenuis strain NV12, to 58.0 amol cell(-1) h(-1), in N. europaea ATCC 19718. Nitrosomonas europaea ATCC 19718 was atypical in that it produced four times more N2O than the next highest producing strain. All AOB tested were able to carry out nitrifier denitrification under aerobic conditions, as determined by production of N-15-N2O from applied N-15-NO2-. Up to 13.5% of the N2O produced was derived from the exogenously applied N-15-NO2-. The results suggest that nitrifier denitrification could be a universal trait in the betaproteobacterial AOB and its potential ecological significance is discussed.

Selection and sticklebacks

Over the last decade, there has been increasing circumstantial evidence for the action of natural selection in the genome, arising largely from molecular genetic surveys of large numbers of markers. In nonmodel organisms without densely mapped markers, a frequently used method is to identify loci that have unusually high or low levels of genetic differentiation, or low genetic diversity relative to other populations. The paper by Makinen et al. (2008a) in this issue of Molecular Ecology reports the results of a survey of microsatellite allele frequencies at more than 100 loci in seven populations of the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). They show that a microsatellite locus and two indel markers located within the intron of the Eda gene, known to control the number of lateral plates in the stickleback (Fig. 1), tend to be much more highly genetically differentiated than other loci, a finding that is consistent with the action of local selection. They identify a further two independent candidates for local selection, and, most intriguingly, they further suggest that up to 15% of their loci may provide evidence of balancing selection.

Conservation strategy maps: a tool to facilitate biodiversity action planning illustrated using the heath fritillary butterfly

1. The UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UKBAP) identifies invertebrate species in danger of national extinction. For many of these species, targets for recovery specify the number of populations that should exist by a specific future date but offer no procedure to plan strategically to achieve the target for any species. 2. Here we describe techniques based upon geographic information systems (GIS) that produce conservation strategy maps (CSM) to assist with achieving recovery targets based on all available and relevant information. 3. The heath fritillary Mellicta athalia is a UKBAP species used here to illustrate the use of CSM. A phase 1 habitat survey was used to identify habitat polygons across the county of Kent, UK. These were systematically filtered using relevant habitat, botanical and autecological data to identify seven types of polygon, including those with extant colonies or in the vicinity of extant colonies, areas managed for conservation but without colonies, and polygons that had the appropriate habitat structure and may therefore be suitable for reintroduction. 4. Five clusters of polygons of interest were found across the study area. The CSM of two of them are illustrated here: the Blean Wood complex, which contains the existing colonies of heath fritillary in Kent, and the Orlestone Forest complex, which offers opportunities for reintroduction. 5. Synthesis and applications. Although the CSM concept is illustrated here for the UK, we suggest that CSM could be part of species conservation programmes throughout the world. CSM are dynamic and should be stored in electronic format, preferably on the world-wide web, so that they can be easily viewed and updated. CSM can be used to illustrate opportunities and to develop strategies with scientists and non-scientists, enabling the engagement of all communities in a conservation programme. CSM for different years can be presented to illustrate the progress of a plan or to provide continuous feedback on how a field scenario develops.

New mathematical modeling approach for predicting microbial inactivation by high hydrostatic pressure

A new primary model based on a thermodynamically consistent first-order kinetic approach was constructed to describe non-log-linear inactivation kinetics of pressure-treated bacteria. The model assumes a first-order process in which the specific inactivation rate changes inversely with the square root of time. The model gave reasonable fits to experimental data over six to seven orders of magnitude. It was also tested on 138 published data sets and provided good fits in about 70% of cases in which the shape of the curve followed the typical convex upward form. In the remainder of published examples, curves contained additional shoulder regions or extended tail regions. Curves with shoulders could be accommodated by including an additional time delay parameter and curves with tails shoulders could be accommodated by omitting points in the tail beyond the point at which survival levels remained more or less constant. The model parameters varied regularly with pressure, which may reflect a genuine mechanistic basis for the model. This property also allowed the calculation of (a) parameters analogous to the decimal reduction time D and z, the temperature increase needed to change the D value by a factor of 10, in thermal processing, and hence the processing conditions needed to attain a desired level of inactivation; and (b) the apparent thermodynamic volumes of activation associated with the lethal events. The hypothesis that inactivation rates changed as a function of the square root of time would be consistent with a diffusion-limited process.

Streptococcus ovis sp. nov., isolated from sheep

Seven strains of an unknown Gram-positive catalase-negative chain-forming coccus-shaped organism isolated from clinical specimens from sheep were characterized by phenotypic and molecular taxonomic methods. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequencing studies demonstrated that the bacterium represents a new sub-line within the genus Streptococcus. The unknown bacterium was readily distinguished from recognized streptococcal species by biochemical tests and electrophoretic analysis of whole-cell proteins. Based on phylogenetic and phenotypic evidence, it is proposed that the unknown bacterium be classified as Streptococcus ovis sp. nov. The type strain of Streptococcus ovis is CCUG 39485T (= LMG 19174T).

Team leadership across contexts: a qualitative study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to compare leadership functions from different team contexts considering context characteristics that contribute to team effectiveness. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative study was conducted. Seven leaders of multidisciplinary child protection teams (MDTs) and nine managers of an information technology (IT) company took part in semi-structured interviews. The data were analyzed using content analysis with ATLAS.ti. Findings – Results showed that the two types of teams used different performance criteria, with teams from non-profit contexts lacking defined performance criteria. The results also showed that transition leadership functions are more frequently mentioned by IT than by MDT leaders. Moreover, interpersonal leadership functions emerged as independent functions that may occur in both the transition and action phases. Research limitations/implications – Context is paramount for performance criteria definition and for the relevance of certain team leadership functions over others. It also presents some suggestions for improvement to the model of Morgeson et al. (2010a). Practical implications – The results support the idea that there are differences in the leadership functions that are most valued by leaders, depending on the specific team’s context. Results also showed that some non-profit and less task-structured teams lack the specific performance criteria that could help them make more successful interventions. Originality/value – This paper reviews context literature, it shows that the emphasis on team leadership functions can vary across contexts and to the knowledge it is the first that compares the model of Morgeson et al. (2010a) in different contexts.

Putting the P in Ptilotus: a phosphorus accumulating herb native to Australia

Background and Aims Ptilotus polystachyus (green mulla mulla; ptilotus) is a short-lived perennial herb that occurs widely in Australia in arid and semi-arid regions with nutrient poor soils. As this species shows potential for domestication, its response to addition of phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) was compared to a variety of the domesticated exotic perennial pasture herb Cichorium intybus (chicory), ‘Puna’. Methods Pots were filled with 3 kg of an extremely nutrient-deficient sterilized field soil that contained 3 mg kg−1 mineral N and 2 mg kg−1 bicarbonate-extractable P. The growth and P and N accumulation of ptilotus and chicory in response to seven rates of readily available phosphorus (0–300 mg P pot−1) and nitrogen (N) (0–270 mg N pot−1) was examined. Key Results Ptilotus grew extremely well under low P conditions: shoot dry weights were 23, 6 and 1·7 times greater than for chicory at the three lowest levels of P addition, 0, 15 and 30 mg P pot−1, respectively. Ptilotus could not downregulate P uptake. Concentrations of P in shoots approached 4 % of dry weight and cryo-scanning electron microscopy and X-ray microanalysis showed 35–196 mm of P in cell vacuoles in a range of tissues from young leaves. Ptilotus had a remarkable tolerance of high P concentrations in shoots. While chicory exhibited symptoms of P toxicity at the highest rate of P addition (300 mg P pot−1), no symptoms were present for ptilotus. The two species responded in a similar manner to addition of N. Conclusions In comparison to chicory, ptilotus demonstrated an impressive ability to grow well under conditions of low and high P availability. Further study of the mechanisms of P uptake and tolerance in ptilotus is warranted.

PKC stimulated by glucagon decreases UT-A1 urea transporter expression in rat IMCD

It is well-known that glucagon increases fractional excretion of urea in rats after a protein intravenous infusion. This effect was investigated by using: (a) in vitro microperfusion technique to measure [(14)C]-urea permeability (Pu x 10(-5) cm/s) in inner medullary collecting ducts (IMCD) from normal rats in the presence of 10(-7) M of glucagon and in the absence of vasopressin and (b) immunoblot techniques to determine urea transporter expression in tubule suspension incubated with the same glucagon concentration. Seven groups of IMCDs (n = 47) were studied. Our results revealed that: (a) glucagon decreased urea reabsorption dose-dependently; (b) the glucagon antagonist des-His(1)-[Glu(9)], blocked the glucagon action but not vasopressin action; (c) the phorbol myristate acetate, decreased urea reabsorption but (d) staurosporin, restored its effect; e) staurosporin decreased glucagon action, and finally, (f) glucagon decreased UT-A1 expression. We can conclude that glucagon reduces UT-A1 expression via a glucagon receptor by stimulating PKC.

Inhibition Effect on the Allium cepa L. Root Growth When Using Hexavalent Chromium-Doped River Waters

The effect of Cr(6+) on Allium cepa root length was studied using both clean and polluted river waters. Seven series of Cr(6+)-doped polluted and non-polluted river waters were used to grow onions. Chromium concentration (Cr(6+)) of 4.2 mg L(-1)(EC(50) value), doped in clean river water caused a 50% reduction of root length, while in organically polluted samples similar root growth inhibition occurred at 12.0 mg Cr(6+) L(-1). The results suggested that there was a dislocation to higher values in toxic chromium concentration in polluted river water due to the eutrophization level of river water.

Road and Traffic Signs Recognition using Vector Machines

Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) is a system that builds a safe, effective and integrated transportation environment based on advanced technologies. Road signs detection and recognition is an important part of ITS, which offer ways to collect the real time traffic data for processing at a central facility.This project is to implement a road sign recognition model based on AI and image analysis technologies, which applies a machine learning method, Support Vector Machines, to recognize road signs. We focus on recognizing seven categories of road sign shapes and five categories of speed limit signs. Two kinds of features, binary image and Zernike moments, are used for representing the data to the SVM for training and test. We compared and analyzed the performances of SVM recognition model using different features and different kernels. Moreover, the performances using different recognition models, SVM and Fuzzy ARTMAP, are observed.

European Solar Engineering School ESES : Past and Future

The European Solar Engineering School ESES is a one-year masters program that started in 1999 at the Solar Energy Research Center SERC, Dalarna University College. It has been growing in popularity over the years, with over 20 students in the current year. Approximately half the students come from Europe, the rest coming from all over the globe. This paper described the contents and experiences from seven years of running the programme and the plans for adapting the programme to the Bologna process. The majority of the students from ESES have found work in the solar industry, energy industry or taken up PhD positions. An alumni group has been started that actively gives support to past, present and potential future students.

Avaliação preliminar de um protocolo assistencial de artroplastia total do quadril

A artrose do quadril é uma doença articular degenerativa que atinge principalmente idosos, faixa etária que vem gradativamente aumentando nos últimos tempos. Assim, medidas de racionalização do uso de leitos e recursos hospitalares são necessárias para melhor viabilizar os procedimentos cirúrgicos e reduzir gastos para o sistema de saúde, uma vez que quase dois terços destes gastos decorrem do período de internação. Com esse objetivo, foi desenvolvido um protocolo assistencial de artroplastia total de quadril (PAATQ), multidisciplinar, com consultas ambulatoriais e visitas domiciliares programadas para pacientes a serem submetidos à artroplastia total de quadril (ATQ), visando uma melhor abordagem por parte da equipe médica e de enfermagem e uma melhor orientação dos pacientes e familiares quanto ao procedimento cirúrgico. Este estudo transversal (piloto), com controle histórico aninhado a um ensaio clínico randomizado, tem por objetivo avaliar a factibilidade de implantação e a adesão, por parte das equipes médica e de enfermagem, à utilização deste protocolo. Secundariamente, visa determinar o impacto desta rotina no tempo de internação, na independência funcional do paciente e nos eventos clínicos da fase hospitalar, bem como avaliar a factibilidade das visitas domiciliares de enfermagem. Um total de 22 pacientes (9 homens e 13 mulheres) submetidos à ATQ no Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (Brasil), com média (dp) de idade de 58,86 (16,87), variando de 21 a 86 anos, foram incluídos no estudo. Os pacientes foram divididos em dois grupos  grupo 1 (n=12) e grupo 2 (n=10)  de acordo com aplicação ou não do PAATQ. No grupo 1, as principais comorbidades foram a hipertensão arterial sistêmica (HAS) (dois casos), o diabete mellitus (um caso); e o alcoolismo (um caso).No grupo 2, houve um caso de HAS. O tempo de permanência médio (dp) pós-operatório (DPO) foi de 5,2 e 7,5 dias para os grupos 1 e 2, respectivamente (p=0.0055). A adesão ao protocolo foi de 90% e 100% por parte das equipes médica e de enfermagem, respectivamente. Sete pacientes do grupo 1 conseguiram sentar fora do leito no 2o dia pós-operatório (PO), dois sentaram no 3o e nenhum foi incapaz de sair do leito. Todos deambularam com muletas um dia após sentarem. No grupo 2, todos os pacientes saíram do leito no 4o DPO. Em conclusão, o presente protocolo mostrou-se factível, tendo obtido ótima adesão por parte da equipe e propiciado redução do tempo de internação. O seguimento do programa determinará mais detalhadamente a sua eficácia e a factibilidade das visitas domiciliares.

O gerenciamento de riscos na prevenção de perdas trabalhistas : um estudo de caso no Grupo Eberle Mundial

Este trabalho tem como objetivo geral verificar como uma empresa gerencia seus riscos trabalhistas com vistas a preveni-los. É um estudo de caso único, de natureza descritiva e qualitativa. Foi desenvolvido junto ao Grupo Eberle Mundial, através de entrevista do Gerente de Recursos Humanos, questionário auto-aplicado por sete membros do corpo executivo da organização, exame de documentos e análise de artigos de revistas e de jornais. Paralelamente, buscou experiências e opiniões de quatro especialistas da área trabalhista, também mediante questionário auto-aplicado. Em face dos resultados obtidos, o trabalho descreve a forma de gerenciamento de riscos trabalhistas adotada pelo Grupo Eberle Mundial e atende os objetivos específicos nos termos adiante sintetizados. Demonstra que o Grupo mantém rotinas para identificação de riscos trabalhistas, porém, não pratica a definição prévia do que sejam riscos relevantes e não relevantes. Identifica uma diversidade de riscos trabalhistas percebidos pelo Grupo e verifica que esses não abrangem riscos operacionais. Mostra que o Grupo criou métodos e instrumentos de trabalho próprios para o gerenciamento de seus riscos trabalhistas, atua de forma permanente na prevenção desses e faz a revisão anual de seus processos, buscando chegar à incorporação dessa filosofia à cultura da empresa, contudo, não mantém um sistema que integre seus procedimentos, na forma proposta pela literatura. Confirma que, através do projeto implantado pela nova administração, o Grupo que, em 1998, estava com sua sobrevivência comprometida, até 2003 já reduziu em mais de 50% as perdas financeiras que vinha sofrendo e restabeleceu sua credibilidade e imagem internas e externas. Constata que existe comprometimento da alta direção do Grupo com o gerenciamento de riscos trabalhistas, todavia, esse comprometimento não é do conhecimento de todos membros do corpo executivo da organização. Aponta que o Grupo não mantém área específica para gerenciamento de seus riscos trabalhistas, nem tem claro quem são os profissionais responsáveis por esses procedimentos.