Seasonal variation, Chemical composition and antioxidante and antimicrobial proprieties of Calamintha nepeta

The aim of this study is to evaluate the chemical composition and the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of EOs of C. nepeta collected in two different seasons, spring (leaves) and autumn (leaves and flowers) and to understand the relationship between seasonality composition and these biological activities. EOs were extracted by hydrodistillation of aerial parts of the plants wild grown in Évora (Alentejo) and their chemical composition was evaluated by GC-FID and GC-MS. Antioxidant activity was determined by β -carotene/linoleic acid system, total reducing power assay and DPPH radical methods [1]. Antimicrobial activity was assessed against Gram-negative and Gram-positive clinical isolates and food spoilage fungi [2,3].

Estratégias de fitorremediação de duas minas abandonadas - Tinoca e Mostardeira

O presente trabalho teve como objectivo a implementação de estratégias de remediação de duas minas abandonadas na região do Alto Alentejo, a mina da Tinoca e a mina da Mostardeira. Neste trabalho foram realizados ensaios de fitoremediação com as espécies Brassica juncea (L.) Czern, Solanum nigrum L., Piptatherum miliaceum (L.)Coss. e Spergularia purpurea (Persoon)G. Don fil. As misturas utilizadas como suporte para desenvolvimento das plantas resultaram da mistura (1:1) de resíduos de escombreira e solo. Estas misturas foram realizadas para as duas minas independentemente. A estas misturas foram adicionados correctivos minerais e um correctivo orgânico. Dos estudos realizados observou-se que medidas de atenuação/diluição não se mostraram suficientemente eficazes para permitir uma estabilização da zona superficial em causa, pelas espécies de plantas estudadas. Por outro lado, a adição de um correctivo orgânico, juntamente com a subida do pH do solo, conduziu a um melhoramento das características físicas e químicas das misturas originais facilitando a sua revegetação. ABSTRACT: This study was designed to implement remediation strategies in two abandoned mines in the region of Alto Alentejo, the Tinoca mine and Mostradeira mine. Phytoremediation tests were carried out with the species Brassica juncea (L.) Czern, Solanum nigrum L., Piptatherum miliaceum (L.) Coss. and Spergularia purpurea (Persoon) G. Don fil. The mixtures used to support plant growth resulted from the admixture (1:1) of waste tailings and soil and were performed independently for the two mines. Soil mineral correctives and organic fertilizers were added to these mixtures. The study showed that mitigation/dilution measures were not sufficiently effective to allow the stabilization of the area with the plant species studied. However, the addition of an organic corrective, along with the rise of soil pH, led to an improvement in the physical and chemical properties of the original amendment soil mixtures, hence facilitating its phytorestoration.

As grandes empresas portuguesas e estrangeiras na exploração do Mármore do Anticlinal de Estremoz no século XX

A indústria dos mármores do Alentejo, actividade milenar que recebeu o mais recente impulso modernizador à menos de um século a esta parte, alterou por completo todo o território no qual se instalou. Constituindo-se como uma actividade muito dinâmica que trouxe muitos benefícios económicos, com a actividade empresarial, os postos de trabalho e a constituição empresarial, apresenta-nos também desafios no decorrer do seu desenvolvimento.

As Minas Portuguesas da Faixa Piritosa Ibérica: A Pirite Alentejana na Economia Nacional Oitocentista

No século XIX, a mineração no sul de Portugal teve como protagonistas quatro pólos industriais: S. Domingos, Aljustrel, Caveira e Lousal. Por excelência, estas minas localizavam-se na Faixa Piritosa Ibérica, uma área geográfica a sul da península com aproximadamente 250 km de comprimento por 30 a 50 km de largura, e um dos mais ricos chapéus de ferro da Europa. Esta realidade potenciou a ascensão meteórica e persistente da pirite ibérica nos grandes centros de mercado mundiais, durante cerca de um século.

Tracking the Origin of a Rabbit Haemorrhagic Virus 2 Outbreak in a Wild Rabbit Breeding Centre in Portugal; Epidemiological and Genetic Investigation

As key prey, the wild rabbit downsize constitutes a major drawback on the endangered Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) re-introduction in the Iberia. Several captive breeding units mostly located in Alentejo, endeavour the wild rabbit repopulation of depleted areas assigned for the lynx re-introduction. Here we report an RHDV2 outbreak that occurred in early 2016 in a wild rabbit captive breeding unit located in Barrancos municipality. The estimated mortality rate between March and April 2016 was approximately 8.67%. Anatomopathologic examination was carried out for 13 victimized rabbits. Molecular characterization was based on the complete vp60 capsid gene. The 13 rabbit carcasses investigated showed typical macroscopic RHD lesions testing positive to RHDV2- RNA. Comparison of the vp60 nucleotide sequences obtained from two specimens with others publically available disclosed similarities below 98.22% with RHDV2 strains originated in the Iberia and Azores and revealed that the two identical strains from Barrancos-2016 contain six unique single synonymous nucleotide polymorphisms. In the phylogenetic analysis performed, the Barrancos-2016 strains clustered apart from other known strains, meaning they may represent new evolutionary RHDV2 lineages. No clear epidemiological link could be traced for this outbreak where the mortalities were lower compared with previous years. Yet, network analysis suggested a possible connection between the missing intermediates from which the strains from Barrancos 2013, 2014 and 2016 have derived. It is therefore possible that RHDV2 has circulated endemically in the region since 2012, with periodic epizootic occurrences. Still, six years after its emergence in wild rabbits, RHDV2 continues to pose difficulties to the establishment of natural wild rabbit populations that are crucial for the self-sustainability of the local ecosystems.

Global Monitor Entrepreneurship Monito - Relatório Executivo 2014/15 EUROACE

Neste estudo analisa-se a situação da atividade empreendedora na EUROREGIÃO EUROACE, que inclui em Portugal o Alentejo e o Centro e em Espanha a Extremadura. As dimensões analisadas compreendem a atividade empreendedora e as suas caraterísticas, os valores, perceções e atitudes empreendedoras, aspirações da atividade empreendedora e o ambiente empreendedor na EUROACE. Os resultados levam a concluir que o ecossistema empreendedor da EUROREGIÃO EUROACE apresenta ainda debilidades importantes face à média dos países europeus cujas economias são baseadas na inovação. Entre as debilidades que deverão ser melhoradas encontram-se as infraestruturas físicas e comerciais, a abertura dos mercados, o apoio ao financiamento das empresas e as políticas governamentais.

As rotas Jacobeias em Portugal : estudo e divulgação do caso alentejano. Proposta de valorização - criação de um museu virtual e de um centro de interpretação

As peregrinações, entre elas a Santiago de Compostela, marcaram profundamente a sociedade europeia. Além das questões religiosas, os caminhos de Santiago originaram a criação de uma rede de infraestruturas que permitiu o desenvolvimento de regiões e aglomerados urbanos. Para provar a importância desses caminhos no distrito de Évora partimos de uma abordagem aos testemunhos patrimoniais evocando S. Tiago (móveis e imóveis, materiais e imateriais), procurando, como objectivo da Dissertação de Mestrado, conceber um projecto para divulgação da informação recolhida. Assim, sabendo que a sociedade actual exige mais informação visual na compreensão do legado cultural, optámos pela criação de um Museu Virtual e de um Centro de Interpretação. Se os Museus Virtuais oferecem inúmeras possibilidades de acesso às manifestações culturais, possibilitando ainda a formação através de tecnologias aplicadas na educação, os Centros de Interpretação criam condições de acolhimento e visita adequadas, fornecendo informações essenciais na compreensão e valorização dos legados patrimoniais. ABSTRACT: The pilgrimages, among them Santiago de Compostela, profoundly marked European society. ln addition to religious matters, the Way of Saint James led to the creation of a network infrastructure that enabled the development of regions and urban areas. To prove the importance of these pathways in the district of Évora part of an asset with reference to testimonies S. James (movable and immovable, tangible and intangible), for such purpose the master's thesis, designing a project to disseminate the information collected. So, knowing that society is demanding more visual information to understand the cultural legacy, we decided to create a Virtual Museum and an Interpretation Center. lf the Virtual Museums offer many opportunities for access to cultural events and can therefore training through technologies applied to education, the Centers for Interpretation create conditions for the reception and visit appropriate, providing key information in understanding and appreciation of legacies.

Between and within-year effects of haying on grassland bird

In recent years, haying has extended to Iberian Mediterranean dry grasslands potentially threatening grassland birds. We evaluate the between and within-year effects of haying on grassland birds in Alentejo region, Portugal. Our main goals were: (1) to investigate variations on bird abundance and species richness in the fields hayed, with respect to past haying events occurred in a field and its surroundings and (2) to investigate the shifts in bird abundance, species richness and spatial dynamics resulting from haying a field and its surrounding area in a given year. We conducted grassland bird censuses during the breeding season through point counts from 2012 to 2015. The relationship between bird abundance/richness and past haying events was investigated using Generalized Linear Models whereas within-year effects of haying were analysed using Generalized Additive Models. Bird abundance in a field was positively related with the surface hayed in the vicinity of that field in the previous year. However, contrasting yearly effects were found for non passerines. Also, some species prefer fields with less haying events or surface hayed, whereas others occur mostly in fields frequently managed for haying. Haying a field leads, in the short term, to its abandonment by birds, and thus to a decrease in bird abundance and, for some species, to spatial concentration in surrounding fields offering suitable habitat. We conclude that within-year effects of haying have higher impact on grassland birds than between-year effects. Maintaining haying at low levels by rotating haying yearly through the different fields in each farm and using partial haying may be an adequate way to ensure an effective management of grassland bird populations.

The Selection Process of Applications to the Portuguese Innovation Incentive System: Who Gets Financial Support?

Public policies to support entrepreneurship and innovation play a vital role when firms have difficulties in accessing external finance. However, some authors have found evidence of long-term inefficiency in subsidized firms (Bernini and Pelligrini, 2011; Cerqua and Pelligrini, 2014) and ineffectiveness of public funds (Jorge and Suárez, 2011). The aim of the paper is to assess the effectiveness in the selection process of applications to public financial support for stimulating innovation. Using a binary choice model, we investigate which factors influence the probability of obtaining public support for an innovative investment. The explanatory variables are connected to firm profile, the characteristics of the project and the macroeconomic environment. The analysis is based on the case study of the Portuguese Innovation.Incentive System (PIIS) and on the applications managed by the Alentejo Regional Operational Program in the period 2007 – 2013. The results show that the selection process is more focused on the expected impact of the project than on the firm’s past performance. Factors that influence the credit risk and the decision to grant a bank loan do not seem to influence the government evaluator regarding the funding of some projects. Past activities in R&D do not significantly affect the probability of having an application approved under the PIIS, whereas an increase in the number of patents and the number of skilled jobs are both relevant factors. Nevertheless, some evidence of firms’ short-term inefficiency was found, in that receiving public financial support is linked to a smaller increase in productivity compared to non-approved firm applications. At the macroeconomic level, periods with a higher cost of capital in financial markets are linked to a greater probability of getting an application for public support approved, which could be associated with the effectiveness of public support in correcting market failings.

Generalities of vertebrate responses to landscape composition and configuration gradients in a highly heterogeneous Mediterranean region

Aim To examine the distributional patterns of vertebrates (including birds, bats, carnivores and lagomorphs) along landscape composition and configuration gradients to better understand the effects of landscape modification on occurrence patterns at both species and community level. Location The region of Alentejo, a forest-dominated area of southern Portugal. Methods The study area was framed using 1647 hexagonal plots, each of 259 ha in size. Composition and configuration gradients were obtained for each plot by integrating the proportions of the main land cover types and their configuration patterns using multivariate analyses. Species-specific vertebrate responses were investigated using data from 75 plots in which carnivores, bats and lagomorphs were sampled, and from 135 plots in the case of birds. Community- level responses were investigated through changes in species richness and beta-diversity in 57 plots where all vertebrate groups were simultaneously sampled. At the species-level, an information-theoretic approach was used to determine the effects of landscape gradients on species’ responses. At the community level, Mantel tests were used to determine between-plot differences in species composition using the Sørensen dissimilarity index. Results We found that the occurrence patterns of most vertebrate species were best predicted by composition-related gradients, although configuration gradients were also frequently included in species-specific occurrence models. We also found a weak correlation between species richness and most landscape gradients suggesting a turnover in the identity of species, something that was corroborated by the stronger correlation between environmental gradients and beta-diversity measures. The amount of forest cover and landscape complexity (estimated as the heterogeneity in the size and number of land cover types) were the main composition and configuration gradients determining vertebrate responses at both species and community level. Main conclusions Our work contributes to a more refined understanding of the mechanisms underlying species distributional patterns in real-world human-modified landscapes. By uncovering generalities of species with multiple ecological requirements and by describing the entire landscape mosaic through landscape gradients, we also suggest that our work greatly helps to fill the gap between existing conceptual landscape models aimed to understand species distributional patterns in human-modified landscapes.

Memórias da escuridão da História em José Saramago

A nossa reflexão sobre a memória na ficção de José Saramago incide sobre as memórias da repressão em Levantado do Chão. Trazer de novo à memória a repressão é reler o passado, não esquecendo os actos atrozes que a História dos homens veicula. Memória e História articulam-se assim num “grito” de resistência que o romance leva até ao leitor ao denunciar a repressão.

Análise de imagens em Geologia

O curso proposto está dividido em sete capítulos que vão desde a apresentação da importância da análise de imagens em geologia até à discussão e aplicação de aprendizagem máquina na análise de imagens. Sou defensor do software livre, assim todos os programas utilizados neste curso caiem nesta categoria. Os exemplos apresentados serão demonstrados com recurso aos seguintes programas:  QGIS – Sistemas de informação geográfica  GIMP – Tratamento de imagens  R - Cálculo  RStudio – IDE para o R  Anaconda Python Notebook – IDE para Python  OpenCV – Visão computacional Pretendo que o curso para o qual este texto serve de suporte seja eminentemente prático, um curso de “mãos na massa”, esperando-se que cada participante possa tratar temas do seu interesse pessoal. No primeiro capítulo é feita uma introdução sobre o que são imagens e a sua importância em geologia. O segundo capítulo trata de descrever os passos para a instalação do software proposto e fornecer pequenos exemplos da sua utilização. O terceiro capítulo descreve os métodos e as limitações da aquisição das imagens. São dados alguns exemplos de funções de aquisição de imagens. Os exemplos práticos deste capítulo incluem exemplos em Python e R. O quarto capítulo fala dos parâmetros contidos num ficheiro de imagens. Neste capítulo são apresentados exemplos em Python. O quinto capítulo trata das ferramentas que se podem aplicar durante o préprocessamento de uma imagem. O sexto capítulo trata de mostrar alguns exemplos de análise de imagens e no sétimo capítulo é abordada a questão de utilização de algoritmos de aprendizagem máquina na análise de imagens.

Influência de factores culturais em parâmetros de maturação de uvas de diferentes castas na região de Borba

O presente trabalho contempla os resultados das análises de controlo de maturação obtidos na vindima de 2014, em algumas parcelas da Adega de Borba, em particular na evolução do teor de antocianinas nas castas Touriga Nacional, Syrah, e Cabernet Sauvignon durante a maturação.Este estudo teve em consideração diferentes níveis de factores culturais nas parcelas de cultivo, nomeadamente tipo de solo, vigor das plantas e produtividade das mesmas. Os solos mais profundos e férteis são os que apresentam melhores resultados nos parâmetros qualitativos em todas as castas (teores de açucares, e antocianinas mais altos), com maior evidência na casta Syrah. A acumulação de antocianinas e açucares é mais rápida nas plantas com menor vigor e menor produção. Durante a maturação, as plantas com menor vigor são as que apresentam maior concentração de antocianinas, com excepção da casta Cabernet Sauvignon em solos menos férteis, onde as plantas mais vigorosas e produtivas têm maior concentração de antocianinas.

QUANTIFICATION OF CALCIUM IN SPARKLING WINES BY INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY

Markets are increasingly competitive and the companies feel the urge to improve their manufacturing processes. Blending that with a larger control of quality and safety it was created a need to develop new methods of analysis each time more accurate, faster and with lower costs. Alentejo is a region with a wide variety of soils, most of them are rich in calcium and potassium. In the production of sparkling wine many wineries use encapsulated yeast in alginate beads, instead of the traditional method, champenoise. The first method is faster, allowing a more versatile production, reducing the risk of contamination and features organoleptic characteristics similar to the traditional method (yeast free). However, encapsulated yeast spheres should be only used if the base wine matches a number of features, among them calcium content. In this study the calcium content in the wine was determined by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) and by near-infrared spectroscopy. The AAS is a high sensitivity method clearly produces a reliable result, however it is very time consuming and produces great quantities of environmental waste, therefore the possibility of using near-infrared spectroscopy as a method was studied to be a fast, simple and clean alternative to the AAS. It was obtained a calibration model with a variation coefficient higher than 0.80 which indicates that the near-infrared spectroscopy as an adequately alternative the ASS.

No trabalho e para o trabalho. Uma análise sobre as práticas de formação em contexto real de trabalho

Este artigo resulta do projeto de investigação da unidade curricular de Laboratório de Investigação, para conclusão da licenciatura em sociologia. Procuramos refletir sobre a forma como a formação profissional foi ganhando terreno junto das empresas, assim como o impacto que teve, e ainda tem, junto das próprias empresas, dos seus colaboradores, e que consequências possam advir para a sociedade em geral.