The consumption of beauty products on famale young adults in Portugal. Recommenrations for the brand Lancôme to improve its store trafic

This project aims to explore the Portuguese Beauty and Cosmetics market, and to discuss the usage and purchase behaviour of young female adults, between 18 and 26 years old. After a market analysis based on secondary data, it evaluates the results of qualitative and quantitative research based on 9 interviews and 126 online questionnaires to explore the consumers’ reasoning when choosing products from this category – fragrances, skin care or make-up – as well as their attitude towards brands, with a special focus on the premium cosmetics brand Lancôme. Contrary to our expectations there was no statistically significant positive influence of the online touchpoints within this age segment’s purchase intention. However, results indicate that Lancôme is already being perceived by some as young and modern, but is still suffering the threat of Mass Market brands that are valued by this target, mainly due to a price sensitivity towards premium beauty brands.

The role of arl13b in cilia length regulation and in zebrafish development

RESUMO: Arl13b é uma importante proteína ciliar, presente em cílios primários e cílios móveis. Ratinhos mutantes para Arl13b têm comprimento dos cílios reduzido e defeitos nos B-túbulos dos cílios. Como consequência destes fenótipos, deficiências na Arl13b originam, em modelos animais, várias doenças congénitas, incluindo problemas no estabelecimento do eixo esquerda-direita, malformações cerebrais e deformações corporais. Nos seres humanos, deficiências na Arl13b levam a uma doença crónica congénita chamada Síndrome de Joubert. Por outro lado, a sobreexpressão de Arl13b origina cílios mais longos, no entanto existe uma ausência da caracterização dos fenótipos celulares e durante o desenvolvimento embrionário. Neste trabalho, quisemos explorar o efeito da sobre-expressão de Arl13b em embriões de peixezebra. Descobrimos que, ao nível ciliar, a sobre-expressão de Arl13b nas células aumenta o comprimento ciliar em cílios primários e móveis, no entanto, a esses cílios falta adequada acetilação da alfa-tubulina no citoesqueleto feito por microtúbulos. Os nossos resultados mostraram que esse efeito é específico de Arl13b sobre-expressão e quando se manipularam as enzimas responsáveis pela acetilação (Mec17) e pela de-acetilação (HDAC6) encontrámos uma sinergia potencial com ambas. Testámos ainda, que o aumento no comprimento ciliar não estava causalmente relacionado com a falta de acetilação, ou seja, os cílios com menos acetilação não eram necessariamente os mais longos. Também mostrámos que a sobre-expressão de Arl13b é capaz de restaurar o comprimento dos cílios em mutantes com cílios curtos e como isso pode ser explorado para um futuro potencial papel terapêutico para Arl13b. Em seguida, foi avaliado o impacto do aumento da quantidade de Arl13b no desenvolvimento embrionário do peixe-zebra. Observou-se que a sobre-expressão de Arl13b apresentava fenótipos muito fracos, quando comparados com a perda de função dos mutantes de Arl13b. Focados no inesperado fenótipo leve no estabelecimento do eixo esquerda-direita abordámos a questão através do estabelecimento de uma colaboração com matemáticos, descobrimos que os cílios mais longos que potencialmente têm a capacidade de movimentar mais fluido são atenuados por amplitudes de batimento menores, e, como resultado, estes longos cílios não prejudicam o movimento do fluido e consequentemente não afetam o estabelecimento dos padrões de esquerda-direita. Sugerimos assim que a Arl13b é um regulador chave, do comprimento ciliar. Descobrimos uma nova interação com as enzimas de acetilação/de-acetilação e levantamos novas hipóteses quanto aos mecanismos moleculares da função da Arl13b. Propomos um novo modelo para o mecanismo molecular da Arl13b na regulação do comprimento dos cílios onde podemos integrar os nossos resultados com os relatados na literatura. Este trabalho adiciona mais conhecimento para o mecanismo de ação da Arl13b e, portanto, fornece uma importante contribuição para o campo da investigação em cílios.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ABSTRACT: Arl13b is an important ciliary protein, present in primary and motile cilia. arl13b-/- mouse mutants have reduced cilia length and cilia B-tubule defects. As a consequence of these phenotypes, Arl13b loss of function animal models suffer from several congenital disorders including left-right problems, brain malformations and body deformations. In humans Arl13b depletion leads to a congenital chronic disease called Joubert Syndrome. On the other hand, overexpressing Arl13b leads to longer cilia but the characterization of the cellular and developmental phenotypes was missing. In this work we explore the effect of Arl13b overexpression in zebrafish embryos. We found that, at the ciliary level, Arl13b overexpression from 1 cell stage produces longer primary and motile cilia, but these cilia lack proper alpha tubulin acetylation of their microtubule cytoskeleton. Our results showed that this effect is specific from Arl13b overexpression and when we manipulated the enzymes responsible for acetylation, Mec17, and de-acetylation, HDAC6, we found a potential synergy of both mec17 knockdown and HDAC6 activity with Arl13b overexpression. We tested that the ciliary increase in length was not causally related to the lack of acetylation, meaning the more de-acetylated cilia were not necessarily the longer ones. We also showed that Arl13b overexpression is able to restore cilia length in short cilia mutants and how that may be explored to a potential future therapeutic role for Arl13b. Next, we evaluated the impact of increasing the amount of Arl13b in zebrafish embryonic development. We observed that Arl13b overexpression presented very mild phenotypes when compared to the loss of function mutants. We focused on the unexpected left-right mild phenotype and by establishing a mathematical modeling collaboration, we found out that the longer cilia generated force was attenuated by smaller beating amplitudes, and as a result, these long cilia were not impairing the cilia generated flow and the establishment of left-right patterning. We suggest that Arl13b is one key cilia length regulator. We disclosed a novel interaction with the acetylation / de-acetylation enzymes and raised new hypothesis as to the mechanisms of Arl13b function. We propose a new model for the Arl13b molecular mechanism of cilia length regulation where we integrate our findings with those reported in the literature. This work adds more knowledge to the Arl13b mechanism of action and therefore provides an important contribution to the cilia research field.

Inheritance of ductile and brittle structures in the development of large rock slope instabilities: Examples from western Norway

The high density of slope failures in western Norway is due to the steep relief and to the concentration of various structures that followed protracted ductile and brittle tectonics. On the 72 investigated rock slope instabilities, 13 were developed in soft weathered mafic and phyllitic allochthons. Only the intrinsic weakness of such rocks increases the susceptibility to gravitational deformation. In contrast, the gravitational structures in the hard gneisses reactivate prominent ductile or/and brittle fabrics. At 30 rockslides along cataclinal slopes, weak mafic layers of foliation are reactivated as basal planes. Slope-parallel steep foliation forms back-cracks of unstable columns. Folds are specifically present in the Storfjord area, together with a clustering of potential slope failures. Folding increases the probability of having favourably orientated planes with respect to the gravitational forces and the slope. High water pressure is believed to seasonally build up along the shallow-dipping Caledonian detachments and may contribute to destabilization of the rock slope upwards. Regional cataclastic faults localized the gravitational structures at 45 sites. The volume of the slope instabilities tends to increase with the amount of reactivated prominent structures and the spacing of the latter controls the size of instabilities.

Offshore Sourcing in Software Development: Case Studies of Finnish-Russian Cooperation

The study examines international cooperation in product development in software development organisations. The software industry is known for its global nature and knowledge-intensity, which makes it an interesting setting to examine international cooperation in. Software development processes are increasingly distributed worldwide, but for small or even medium-sized enterprises, typical for the software industry, such distribution of operations is often possible only in association with crossing the company’s boundaries. The strategic decision-making of companies is likely to be affected by the characteristics of the industry, and this includes decisions about cooperation or sourcing. The objective of this thesis is to provide a holistic view on factors affecting decisions about offshore sourcing in software development. Offshore sourcing refers to a cooperative mode of offshoring, where a firm does not establish its own presence in a foreign country, but utilises a local supplier. The study examines product development activities that are distributed across organisational and geographical boundaries. The objective can be divided into two subtopics: general reasons for international cooperation in product development and particular reasons for cooperation between Finnish and Russian companies. The focus is on the strategic rationale at the company level, in particular in small and medium-sized enterprises. The theoretical discourse of the study builds upon the literature on international cooperation and networking, with particular focus on cooperation with foreign suppliers and within product development activities. The resource-based view is also discussed, as heterogeneity and interdependency of the resources possessed by different firms are seen as factors motivating international cooperation. Strategically, sourcing can be used to access resources possessed by an industrial network, to enhance the product development of a firm, or to optimise its cost structure. In order to investigate the issues raised by the theoretical review, two empirical studies on international cooperation in software product development have been conducted. The emphasis of the empirical part of the study is on cooperation between Finnish and Russian companies. The data has been gathered through four case studies on Finnish software development organisations and four case studies on Russian offshore suppliers. Based on the material from the case studies, a framework clarifying and grouping the factors that influence offshore sourcing decisions has been built. The findings indicate that decisions regarding offshore sourcing in software development are far more complex than generally assumed. The framework provides a holistic view on factors affecting decisions about offshore sourcing in software development, capturing the multidimensionality of motives for entering offshore cooperation. Four groups of factors emerged from the data: A) strategy-related aspects, B) aspects related to resources and capabilities, C) organisation-related aspects, and D) aspects related to the entrepreneur or management. By developing a holistic framework of decision factors, the research offers in-depth theoreticalunderstanding of offshore sourcing rationale in product development. From the managerial point of view, the proposed framework sums up the issues that a firm should pay attention to when contemplating product development cooperation with foreign suppliers. Understanding different components of sourcing decisions can lead to improved preconditions for strategising and engaging in offshore cooperation. A thorough decisionmaking process should consider all the possible benefits and risks of product development cooperation carefully.

A critical examination of the involvement of Canadian high-performance athletes in the development of anti-doping policy

The use of certain perfonnance enhancing substances and methods has been defined as a major ethical breach by parties involved in the governance of highperfonnance sport. As a result, elite athletes worldwide are subject to rules and regulations set out in international and national anti-doping policies. Existing literature on the development of policies such as the World Anti-Doping Code and The Canadian antiDoping Program suggests a sport system in which athletes are rarely meaningfully involved in policy development (Houlihan, 2004a). Additionally, it is suggested that this lack of involvement is reflective of a similar lack of involvement in other areas of governance concerning athletes' lives. The purpose ofthis thesis is to examine the history and current state of athletes' involvement in the anti-doping policy process in Canada's high-perfonnance sport system. It includes discussion and analysis of recently conducted interviews with those involved in the policy process as well as an analysis of relevant documents, including anti-doping policies. The findings demonstrate that Canadian athletes have not been significantly involved in the creation of recently developed antidoping policies and that a re-evaluation of current policies is necessary to more fully recognize the reality of athletes' lives in Canada's high-perfonnance sport system and their rights within that system.

Perceived learning needs in staff development of some care providers in five long-term care settings in Southern Ontario /

This exploratory descriptive study described what 20 care providers in 5 long-term care facilities perceived to aid or hinder their learning in a work-sponsored learning experience. A Critical Incident Technique (Woolsey, 1986) was the catalyst for the interviews with the culturally and professionally diverse participants. Through data analysis, as described by Moustakas (1994), I found that (a) humour, (b) the learning environment, (c) specific characteristics of the presenter such as moderate pacing, speaking slowly and with simple words, (d) decision-making authority, (e) relevance to practice, and (f) practical applications best met the study participants' learning needs. Conversely, other factors could hinder learning based on the participants' perceptions. These were: (a) other presenter characteristics such as a program that was delivered quickly or spoken at a level above the participants' comprehension, (b) no perceived relevance to practice, (c), other environmental situations, and (d) the timing of the learning session. One of my intentions was to identify the emic view among cultural groups and professional/vocational affiliations. A surprising finding of this study was that neither impacted noticeably on the perceived learning needs of the participants. Further research with a revised research design to facilitate inclusion of more diverse participants will aid in determining if the lack of a difference was unique to this sample or more generalizable on a case-to-case transfer basis to the study population.

KAIRON PROJECT : assessing the role of expressive arts in community-based breast cancer support systems in the Niagara Region

Research Report Written for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

Psychotropic medication use by adults with intellectual disabilities living in community settings

This study examined the variables related to psychotropic medication use among 73 adults with intellectual disabilities living in community residential settings in Ontario, Canada over a one-year period based on staff reports. Despite only 16% percent having a documented psychiatric diagnosis, 84% of these individuals were receiving psychotropic medications, and 74% were receiving two or more psychotropic medications (polypharmacy). Anti-psychotics, anti-anxiety medications, and anti-convulsant medications were the most frequently reported drug classes. While problem behaviour was reported for 60% of the participants, only 33% had a formal behaviour plan. There was a significant relationship between the reported number of problem behaviours and the reported number of prescribed psychotropic medications. Reported medication reviews did not adhere to the Canadian 'Consensus Guidelines for the Primary Care of Adults with Developmental Disabilities' (Sullivan et aI., 2006). Results, based on staff reports, suggested incongruence with recommended best practices, and raised concern about over-reliance on psychotropic medication with these individuals. Keywords: intellectual disabilities, psychotropic medication, problem behaviour

Investigation of Changes in Prescribed and Voluntary Job Roles in Community Service Delivery for People who have Intellectual Disabilities after the Implementation of the 3 Rs; Rights, Respect and Responsibility Project

The purpose of this thesis was to explore whether there is change in organizational citizenship behaviours in community agency staff following agency adoption of a rights - based service philosophy. Four community agency support staff were interviewed to investigate how residential care providers in services for persons who have intellectual disabilities describe their voluntary job related behaviours following training about human rights. The major finding was that the participants were actively engaged in displaying civic virtue, courtesy, and altruism discretionary behaviours. There was evidence of a post rights training shift in communication patterns with support staff reporting that they used language that prom,oted and advocated for human rights, and reported increased communication exchanges among persons supported by the agency, support staff and managers. Participants also suggested that the individuals they support asserted their rights more frequently and they were more active in their own life choices following rights training.

Managing Risk in a Culture of Rights: Providing Support and Treatment in Community-Based Settings for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities who Sexually Offend

People with intellectual disability who sexually offend commonly live in community-based settings since the closing of all institutions across the province of Ontario. Nine (n=9) front line staff who provide support to these individuals in three different settings (treatment setting, transitional setting, residential setting) were interviewed. Participants responded to 47 questions to explore how sex offenders with intellectual disability can be supported in the community to prevent re-offenses. Questions encompassed variables that included staff attitudes, various factors impacting support, structural components of the setting, quality of life and the good life, staff training, staff perspectives on treatment, and understanding of risk management. Three overlapping models that have been supported in the literature were used collectively for the basis of this research: The Good Lives Model (Ward & Gannon, 2006; Ward et al., 2007), the quality of life model (Felce & Perry, 1995), and variables associated with risk management. Results of this research showed how this population is being supported in the community with an emphasis on the following elements: positive and objective staff attitude, teamwork, clear rules and protocols, ongoing supervision, consistency, highly trained staff, and environments that promote quality of life. New concepts arose which suggested that all settings display an unequal balance of upholding human rights and managing risks when supporting this high-risk population. This highlights the need for comprehensive assessments in order to match the offender to the proper setting and supports, using an integration of a Risk, Need, Responsivity model and the Good Lives model for offender rehabilitation and to reduce the likelihood of re-offenses.

Article - "Those darling young women in their flying machines", 1977

A retrospective article written by Dorothy Rungeling as she recalls the the International Air Races that often began or ended in Welland-Port Colborne Airport. The article was published in the Welland Evening Tribune, 9 September 1977.

Postsecondary Teaching and Learning Development Needs: Motivators and Barriers Associated With Participation in Educational Development

This study investigated instructor perceptions of motivators and barriers that exist with respect to participation in educational development in the postsecondary context. Eight instructors from a mid-size, research intensive university in south-western Ontario participated in semistructured interviews to explore this particular issue. Data were analyzed using a qualitative approach. Motivation theory was used as a conceptual framework in this study, referring primarily to the work of Ryan and Deci (2000), Deci and Ryan (1985), and Pink (2009). The identified motivators and barriers spanned all 3 levels of postsecondary institutions: the micro (i.e., the individual), the meso (i.e., the department or Faculty), and the macro (i.e., the institution). Significant motivators to participation in educational development included desire to improve one’s teaching (micro), feedback from students (meso), and tenure and promotion (macro). Significant barriers to participation included lack of time (micro), the perception that an investment towards one’s research was more important than an investment to enhancing teaching (meso), and the impression that quality teaching was not valued by the institution (macro). The study identifies connections between the micro, meso, macro framework and motivation theory, and offers recommendations for practice.

Managing Antimicrobial Resistance In Food Production : Conflicts Of Interest And Politics In The Development Of Public Health Policy

Antimicrobial resistance is a growing public health concern and is associated with the over or inappropriate use of antimicrobials in both humans and agriculture. While there has been recognition of this problem on the part of agricultural and public health authorities, there has nonetheless been significant difficulty in translating policy recommendations into practical guidelines. In this paper, we examine the process of public health policy development in Quebec agriculture, with a focus on the case of pork production and the role of food animal veterinarians in policy making. We argue that a tendency to employ strictly techno-scientific risk analyses of antimicrobial use ignores the fundamental social, economic and political realities of key stakeholders and so limits the applicability of policy recommendations developed by government advisory groups. In particular, we suggest that veterinarians’ personal and professional interests, and their ethical norms of practice, are key factors to both the problem of and the solution to the current over-reliance on antimicrobials in food production.

Epithelial-Mesenchymal-Transition : a proposed mechanism in the development of Bronchiolitis Obliterans

La transplantation pulmonaire pour les patients avec une maladie pulmonaire en phase terminale est leur seul espoir de survie. Malheureusement, certains greffés du poumon rencontrent des difficultés après la transplantation du poumon, dont l'un est le rejet chronique du greffon pulmonaire également connu histologiquement comme la bronchiolite oblitérante et cliniquement comme syndrome de bronchiolite oblitérante. L'étiologie exacte de la BO reste mal comprise. Certaines hypothèses suggèrent l'implication des cellules épithéliales dans le processus de remodelage des voies respiratoires, conduisant à l'obstruction des voies aériennes. Un des mécanismes proposés est un processus de transition, connue sous le nom de transition épithéliale-mésenchymateuse (TEM). Lors de ce processus, les cellules perdent leurs propriétés épithéliales, acquièrent un phénotype mésenchymateux et deviennent plus mobiles et envahissantes. Cette transformation leur permet de participer activement au processus de remodelage bronchique dans la bronchiolite oblitérante. L’induction de la TEM peut être due à certains facteurs tels que l'inflammation et l'apoptose. Le principal objectif de ce travail de maîtrise est de détecter in vivo la présence de la TEM dans des biopsies transbronchiques obtenues chez des greffés et de l’associer à leurs conditions cliniques. Le deuxième objectif est d'induire la TEM in vitro dans les cellules épithéliales des petites voies aériennes à l'aide de milieux conditionnés apoptotiques et non apoptotiques produits par les cellules endothéliales microvasculaires humaines du poumon. D’autre part, nous avons évalué si des médiateurs connus pour participer au processus de TEM tels que le facteur de croissance du tissu conjonctif (CTGF)et le facteur de croissance transformant bêta (TGF-beta) ainsi que le perlecan sont présents dans les milieux conditionnés utilisés.