Augmenting spaces and creating interactive experiences using video camera networks

This research addresses the problem of creating interactive experiences to encourage people to explore spaces. Besides the obvious spaces to visit, such as museums or art galleries, spaces that people visit can be, for example, a supermarket or a restaurant. As technology evolves, people become more demanding in the way they use it and expect better forms of interaction with the space that surrounds them. Interaction with the space allows information to be transmitted to the visitors in a friendly way, leading visitors to explore it and gain knowledge. Systems to provide better experiences while exploring spaces demand hardware and software that is not in the reach of every space owner either because of the cost or inconvenience of the installation, that can damage artefacts or the space environment. We propose a system adaptable to the spaces, that uses a video camera network and a wi-fi network present at the space (or that can be installed) to provide means to support interactive experiences using the visitor’s mobile device. The system is composed of an infrastructure (called vuSpot), a language grammar used to describe interactions at a space (called XploreDescription), a visual tool used to design interactive experiences (called XploreBuilder) and a tool used to create interactive experiences (called urSpace). By using XploreBuilder, a tool built of top of vuSpot, a user with little or no experience in programming can define a space and design interactive experiences. This tool generates a description of the space and of the interactions at that space (that complies with the XploreDescription grammar). These descriptions can be given to urSpace, another tool built of top of vuSpot, that creates the interactive experience application. With this system we explore new forms of interaction and use mobile devices and pico projectors to deliver additional information to the users leading to the creation of interactive experiences. The several components are presented as well as the results of the respective user tests, which were positive. The design and implementation becomes cheaper, faster, more flexible and, since it does not depend on the knowledge of a programming language, accessible for the general public.

The new economy: Essays in network economics and two-sided markets

Following the Introduction, which surveys existing literature on the technology advances and regulation in telecommunications and on two-sided markets, we address specific issues on the industries of the New Economy, featured by the existence of network effects. We seek to explore how each one of these industries work, identify potential market failures and find new solutions at the economic regulation level promoting social welfare. In Chapter 1 we analyze a regulatory issue on access prices and investments in the telecommunications market. The existing literature on access prices and investment has pointed out that networks underinvest under a regime of mandatory access provision with a fixed access price per end-user. We propose a new access pricing rule, the indexation approach, i.e., the access price, per end-user, that network i pays to network j is function of the investment levels set by both networks. We show that the indexation can enhance economic efficiency beyond what is achieved with a fixed access price. In particular, access price indexation can simultaneously induce lower retail prices and higher investment and social welfare as compared to a fixed access pricing or a regulatory holidays regime. Furthermore, we provide sufficient conditions under which the indexation can implement the socially optimal investment or the Ramsey solution, which would be impossible to obtain under fixed access pricing. Our results contradict the notion that investment efficiency must be sacrificed for gains in pricing efficiency. In Chapter 2 we investigate the effect of regulations that limit advertising airtime on advertising quality and on social welfare. We show, first, that advertising time regulation may reduce the average quality of advertising broadcast on TV networks. Second, an advertising cap may reduce media platforms and firms' profits, while the net effect on viewers (subscribers) welfare is ambiguous because the ad quality reduction resulting from a regulatory cap o¤sets the subscribers direct gain from watching fewer ads. We find that if subscribers are sufficiently sensitive to ad quality, i.e., the ad quality reduction outweighs the direct effect of the cap, a cap may reduce social welfare. The welfare results suggest that a regulatory authority that is trying to increase welfare via regulation of the volume of advertising on TV might necessitate to also regulate advertising quality or, if regulating quality proves impractical, take the effect of advertising quality into consideration. 3 In Chapter 3 we investigate the rules that govern Electronic Payment Networks (EPNs). In EPNs the No-Surcharge Rule (NSR) requires that merchants charge at most the same amount for a payment card transaction as for cash. In this chapter, we analyze a three- party model (consumers, merchants, and a proprietary EPN) with endogenous transaction volumes and heterogenous merchants' transactional benefits of accepting cards to assess the welfare impacts of the NSR. We show that, if merchants are local monopolists and the network externalities from merchants to cardholders are sufficiently strong, with the exception of the EPN, all agents will be worse o¤ with the NSR, and therefore the NSR is socially undesirable. The positive role of the NSR in terms of improvement of retail price efficiency for cardholders is also highlighted.

Prevalência do excesso de peso em idade pré-escolar no concelho da Murtosa: um estudo transversal

RESUMO - A prevalência de obesidade infantil em Portugal é das mais elevadas da Europa. No concelho da Murtosa (Aveiro), para estimar a prevalência de excesso de peso e obesidade entre os 3 e os 6 anos e determinar os factores que lhe estão associados, desenvolveu-se, durante o ano de 2008, um estudo transversal que consistiu na avaliação estatoponderal das crianças frequentadoras dos estabelecimentos de ensino pré-escolar do concelho e aplicação de um questionário aos pais sobre antecedentes e perinatais, hábitos alimentares, actividades da criança e características da família. Através de um modelo de regressão logística multivariada identificaram-se as variáveis associadas ao excesso de peso/obesidade. Participaram no estudo 258 crianças, estimando-se uma prevalência de excesso de peso de 15,5 % (IC 95 % : 11,6 % a 20,4 %) e de obesidade de 6,2 % (IC 95 % : 3,9 % a 9,8 % ). Observou-se uma maior prevalência de excesso de peso nos meninos (19,5 %) e de obesidade nas meninas (10,4 %). O excesso de peso materno e o hábito de comer a ver televisão aumentaram o risco de excesso de peso/obesidade (OR: 10,548; OR: 13,815); o maior número de horas de sono diário, o maior número de refeições diárias e o aumento ponderal materno durante a gravidez (OR: 0,490; OR: 0,366; OR: 0,804) associaram-se a um menor risco de excesso de peso/obesidade. Justifica-se o desenvolvimento de programas de prevenção primária e secundária da obesidade infantil dirigidos aos factores de risco modificáveis identificados, sugerindo-se a necessidade de uma abordagem familiar e da avaliação sistemática deste tipo de intervenções.

The effects of glutamine-supplemented diet on the intestinal mucosa of the malnourished growing rat

Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in the blood and plays a key role in the response of the small intestine to systemic injuries. Mucosal atrophy is an important phenomenon that occurs in some types of clinical injury, such as states of severe undernutrition. Glutamine has been shown to exert powerful trophic effects on the gastrointestinal mucosa after small bowel resection or transplant, radiation injury, surgical trauma, ischemic injury and administration of cytotoxic drugs. Since no study has been performed on the malnourished animal, we examined whether glutamine exerts a trophic effect on the intestinal mucosa of the malnourished growing rat. Thirty-five growing female rats (aged 21 days) were divided into 4 groups: control - chow diet; malnutrition diet; malnutrition+chow diet; and malnutrition+glutamine-enriched chow diet (2%). For the first 15 days of the experiment, animals in the test groups received a malnutrition diet, which was a lactose-enriched diet designed to induce diarrhea and malnutrition. For the next 15 days, these animals received either the lactose-enriched diet, a regular chow diet or a glutamine-enriched chow diet. After 30 days, the animals were weighed, sacrificed, and a section of the jejunum was taken and prepared for histological examination. All the animals had similar weights on day 1 of experiment, and feeding with the lactose-enriched diet promoted a significant decrease in body weight in comparison to the control group. Feeding with both experimental chow-based diets promoted significant body weight gains, although the glutamine-enriched diet was more effective. RESULTS: The morphological and morphometric analyses demonstrated that small intestinal villous height was significantly decreased in the malnourished group, and this change was partially corrected by the two types of chow-based diet. Crypt depth was significantly increased by malnutrition, and this parameter was partially corrected by the two types of chow-based diet. The glutamine-enriched diet resulted in the greatest reduction of crypt depth, and this reduction was also statistically significant when compared with control animals. CONCLUSIONS: Enteral glutamine has some positive effects on body weight gain and trophism of the jejunal mucosa in the malnourished growing rat.

Evaluation of efficacy, reliability, and tolerability of sibutramine in obese patients, with an echocardiographic study

This is a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of sibutramine in the management of obese patients for a 6-month period. METHOD: Sixty-one obese patients (BMI >30, <40 kg/m2), aged 18-65 years were evaluated. In the first phase of the study (30 days), the patients were given a placebo. We monitored compliance with a low-calorie diet (1200 kcal/day) and to the placebo. In the next stage, the double-blind phase (6 months), we compared placebo and sibutramine (10 mg/day). The criteria for evaluating efficacy were weight loss, reduction in body mass index (BMI), and abdominal and hip circumferences. Tolerability was assessed based on reported side effects, variation in arterial blood pressure and heart rate, metabolic profile (fasting glucose, total cholesterol and its fractions, and triglycerides), laboratory tests (renal and hepatic functions), and flow Doppler echocardiogram. RESULTS: We observed a greater weight loss (7.3 kg, 8% vs 2.6 kg, 2.8%) and a reduction in body mass index (7.4% vs 2.1%) in the sibutramine group than in the placebo group. Classifying the patients into 4 subgroups according to weight loss (weight gain, loss <5%, loss of 5% to 9.9%, and loss >10%), we observed a weight loss of >5% in 40% of the patients on sibutramine compared with 12.9% in the placebo group. We also detected weight gain in 45.2% of the placebo group compared to 20% in the sibutramine group. The sibutramine group showed improvement in HDL- cholesterol values (increased by 17%) and triglyceride values (decreased by 12.8%). This group also showed an increase in systolic blood pressure (6.7%, 5 mmHg). There were no changes in echocardiograms comparing the beginning and end of follow-up, and side effects did not lead to discontinuation of treatment. DISCUSSION: Sibutramine proved to be effective for weight loss providing an 8% loss of the initial weight. Compliance to prolonged treatment was good, and side effects did not result in discontinuation of treatment. These data confirmed the good efficacy, tolerability, and safety profiles of sibutramine for treatment of obesity.

Wideband CMOS low noise amplifiers

Modern fully integrated receiver architectures, require inductorless circuits to achieve their potential low area, low cost, and low power. The low noise amplifier (LNA), which is a key block in such receivers, is investigated in this thesis. LNAs can be either narrowband or wideband. Narrowband LNAs use inductors and have very low noise figure, but they occupy a large area and require a technology with RF options to obtain inductors with high Q. Recently, wideband LNAs with noise and distortion cancelling, with passive loads have been proposed, which can have low NF, but have high power consumption. In this thesis the main goal is to obtain a very low area, low power, and low-cost wideband LNA. First, it is investigated a balun LNA with noise and distortion cancelling with active loads to boost the gain and reduce the noise figure (NF). The circuit is based on a conventional balun LNA with noise and distortion cancellation, using the combination of a common-gate (CG) stage and common-source (CS) stage. Simulation and measurements results, with a 130 nm CMOS technology, show that the gain is enhanced by about 3 dB and the NF is reduced by at least 0.5 dB, with a negligible impact on the circuit linearity (IIP3 is about 0 dBm). The total power dissipation is only 4.8 mW, and the active area is less than 50 x 50 m2 . It is also investigated a balun LNA in which the gain is boosted by using a double feedback structure.We propose to replace the load resistors by active loads, which can be used to implement local feedback loops (in the CG and CS stages). This will boost the gain and reduce the noise figure (NF). Simulation results, with the same 130 nm CMOS technology as above, show that the gain is 24 dB and NF is less than 2.7 dB. The total power dissipation is only 5.4 mW (since no extra blocks are required), leading to a figure-of-merit (FoM) of 3.8 mW

Coupling organic substrate removal to methane production in a fully biological microbial electrolysis cell

Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) are an innovative and emerging technique based on the use of solid-state electrodes to stimulate microbial metabolism for wastewater treatment and simultaneous production of value-added compounds (such as methane). This research studied the performance of a two-chamber MEC in terms of organic matter oxidation (at the anode) and methane production (at the cathode). MEC‟s anode had been previously inoculated with an activated sludge, whereas the cathode chamber inoculum was an anaerobic sludge (containing methanogenic microorganisms). During the experimentation, the bioanode was continuously fed with synthetic solutions in anaerobic basal medium, at an organic load rate (OLR) of around 1 g L-1 d-1, referred to the chemical oxygen demand (COD). At the beginning (Run I), the feeding solution contained acetate and subsequently (Run II) it was replaced with a more complex solution containing soluble organic compounds other than acetate. For both conditions, the anode potential was controlled at -0.1 V vs. standard hydrogen electrode, by means of a potentiostat. During Run I, over 80% of the influent acetate was anaerobically oxidized at the anode, and the resulting electric current was recovered as methane at the cathode (with a cathode capture efficiency, CCE, accounting around 115 %). The average energy efficiency of the system (i.e., the energy captured into methane relative to the electrical energy input) under these conditions was over 170%. However, reactor‟s performance decreased over time during this run. Throughout Run II, a substrate oxidation over 60% (on COD basis) was observed. The electric current produced (57% of coulombic efficiency) was also recovered as methane, with a CCE of 90%. For this run the MEC‟s average energy efficiency accounted for almost 170 %. During all the experimentation, a very low biomass growth was observed at the anode whereas ammonium was transferred through the cationic membrane and concentrated at the cathode. Tracer experiments and scanning electron microscopy analyses were also carried out to gain a deeper insight into the reactor performance and also to investigate the possible reasons for partial loss of performance. In conclusion, this research suggests the great potential of MEC to successfully treat low-strength wastewaters, with high energy efficiency and very low sludge production.

Cross-presentation by WASp deficient B cells and dendritic cells

The immune system comprises of different cell types whose role is to protect us against pathogens. This thesis investigates a very important mechanism for our organism protection in a specific disorder: cross-presentation in Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome (WAS). WAS is caused by loss-of-function mutations in the cytoskeletal regulator WASp and WAS patients suffer from eczema, thrombocytopenia, and immunodeficiency. X-linked neutropenia (XLN) is caused by gain-of-function mutations in WASp and XLN patients suffer from severe congenital neutropenia and immunodeficiency. This thesis was focused on the role of B and T lymphocytes and dendritic cells (DCs). This work will be divided into two main topics: 1) In the first part I studied the capacity of B cells to take up, degrade and present antigen. Moreover I studied the capacity of B cells to induce T cell proliferation. 2) In the second part, I studied T cell proliferation induced by dendritic cells. To increase our understanding about this mechanism, additional experiments were performed, including acidification capacity of CD8+ and CD8- DCs, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production since it is directly connected to acidification. These assays were measured by flow cytometry. Localization of Rac1 and Rac2 GTPases was assessed by confocal microscopy. Proliferation, acidification and ROS production assays were performed also with cells from X-linked neutropenia (XLN) mice. From this study we concluded that B cells cannot induce CD8+ T cell proliferation however they take up and present antigen. Moreover I have shown that increased cross-presentation by WASp KO DCs with ovalbumin is associated with decreased capacity to acidify endosomal compartment; and WASp KO CD8- DCs have increased Rac2 localization to the phagosome. XLN dendritic cells have similar acidification and ROS production capacity than wildtype cells. In conclusion, our data suggests that WASp regulates antigen processing and presentation in DCs.

Otimização de esquemas terapêuticos do carcinoma da próstata envolvendo braquiterapia de baixa taxa de dose e radioterapia externa : abordagens física e radiobiológica

RESUMO: Este trabalho teve como objetivo a determinação de esquemas de tratamento alternativos para o carcinoma da próstata com radioterapia externa (EBRT) e braquiterapia de baixa taxa de dose (LDRBT) com implantes permanentes de Iodo-125, biologicamente equivalentes aos convencionalmente usados na prática clínica, com recurso a modelos teóricos e a métodos de Monte Carlo (MC). Os conceitos de dose biológica efetiva (BED) e de dose uniforme equivalente (EUD) foram utilizados, com o modelo linear-quadrático (LQ), para a determinação de regimes de tratamento equivalentes. Numa primeira abordagem, utilizou-se a BED para determinar: 1) esquemas hipofracionados de EBRT mantendo as complicações retais tardias de regimes convencionais com doses totais de 75,6 Gy, 77,4 Gy, 79,2 Gy e 81,0 Gy; e 2) a relação entre as doses totais de EBRT e LDRBT de modo a manter a BED do regime convencional de 45 Gy de EBRT e 110 Gy de LDRBT. Numa segunda abordagem, recorreu-se ao código de MC MCNPX para a simulação de distribuições de dose de EBRT e LDRBT em dois fantomas de voxel segmentados a partir das imagens de tomografia computorizada de pacientes com carcinoma da próstata. Os resultados das simulações de EBRT e LDRBT foram somados e determinada uma EUD total de forma a obterem-se: 1) esquemas equivalentes ao tratamento convencional de 25 frações de 1,8 Gy de EBRT em combinação com 110 Gy de LDRBT; e 2) esquemas equivalentes a EUD na próstata de 67 Gy, 72 Gy, 80 Gy, 90 Gy, 100 Gy e 110 Gy. Em todos os resultados nota-se um ganho terapêutico teórico na utilização de esquemas hipofracionados de EBRT. Para uma BED no reto equivalente ao esquema convencional, tem-se um aumento de 2% na BED da próstata com menos 5 frações. Este incremento dá-se de forma cada vez mais visível à medida que se reduz o número de frações, sendo da ordem dos 10-11% com menos 20 frações e dos 35-45% com menos 40 frações. Considerando os resultados das simulações de EBRT, obteve-se uma EUD média de 107 Gy para a próstata e de 42 Gy para o reto, com o esquema convencional de 110 Gy de LDRBT, seguidos de 25 frações de 1,8 Gy de EBRT. Em termos de probabilidade de controlo tumoral (igual EUD), é equivalente a este tratamento a administração de EBRT em 66 frações de 1,8 Gy, 56 de 2 Gy, 40 de 2,5 Gy, 31 de 3 Gy, 20 de 4 Gy ou 13 de 5 Gy. Relativamente à administração de 66 frações de 1,8 Gy, a EUD generalizada no reto reduz em 6% com o recurso a frações de 2,5 Gy e em 10% com frações de 4 Gy. Determinou-se uma BED total de 162 Gy para a administração de 25 frações de 1,8 Gy de EBRT em combinação com 110 Gy de LDRBT. Variando-se a dose total de LDRBT (TDLDRBT) em função da dose total de EBRT (TDEBRT), de modo a garantir uma BED de 162 Gy, obteve-se a seguinte relação:.......... Os resultados das simulações mostram que a EUD no reto diminui com o aumento da dose total de LDRBT para dose por fração de EBRT (dEBRT) inferiores a 2, Gy e aumenta para dEBRT a partir dos 3 Gy. Para quantidades de TDLDRBT mais baixas (<50 Gy), o reto beneficia de frações maiores de EBRT. À medida que se aumenta a TDLDRBT, a EUD generalizada no reto torna-se menos dependente da dEBRT. Este trabalho mostra que é possível a utilização de diferentes regimes de tratamento para o carcinoma da próstata com radioterapia que possibilitem um ganho terapêutico, quer seja administrando uma maior dose biológica com efeitos tardios constantes, quer mantendo a dose no tumor e diminuindo a toxicidade retal. A utilização com precaução de esquemas hipofracionados de EBRT, para além do benefício terapêutico, pode trazer vantagens ao nível da conveniência para o paciente e economia de custos. Os resultados das simulações deste estudo e conversão para doses de efeito biológico para o tratamento do carcinoma da próstata apresentam linhas de orientação teórica de interesse para novos ensaios clínicos. --------------------------------------------------ABSTRACT: The purpose of this work was to determine alternative radiotherapy regimens for the treatment of prostate cancer using external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and low dose-rate brachytherapy (LDRBT) with Iodine-125 permanent implants which are biologically equivalent to conventional clinical treatments, by the use of theoretical models and Monte Carlo techniques. The concepts of biological effective dose (BED) and equivalent uniform dose (EUD), together with the linear-quadratic model (LQ), were used for determining equivalent treatment regimens. In a first approach, the BED concept was used to determine: 1) hypofractionated schemes of EBRT maintaining late rectal complications as with the conventional regimens with total doses of 75.6 Gy, 77.4 Gy, 79.2 Gy and 81.0 Gy; and 2) the relationship between total doses of EBRT and LDRBT in order to keep the BED of the conventional treatment of 45 Gy of EBRT and 110 Gy of LDRBT. In a second approach, the MC code MCNPX was used for simulating dose distributions of EBRT and LDRBT in two voxel phantoms segmented from the computed tomography of patients with prostate cancer. The results of the simulations of EBRT and LDRBT were added up and given an overall EUD in order to obtain: 1) equivalent to conventional treatment regimens of 25 fraction of 1.8 Gy of EBRT in combination with 110Gy of LDRBT; and 2) equivalent schemes of EUD of 67 Gy, 72 Gy, 80 Gy, 90 Gy, 100 Gy, and 110Gy to the prostate. In all the results it is noted a therapeutic gain using hypofractionated EBRT schemes. For a rectal BED equivalent to the conventional regimen, an increment of 2% in the prostate BED was achieved with less 5 fractions. This increase is visibly higher as the number of fractions decrease, amounting 10-11% with less 20 fractions and 35-45% with less 20 fractions. Considering the results of the EBRT simulations an average EUD of 107 Gy was achieved for the prostate and of 42 Gy for the rectum with the conventional scheme of 110 Gy of LDRBT followed by 25 fractions of 1.8 Gy of EBRT. In terms of tumor control probability (same EUD) it is equivalent to this treatment, for example, delivering the EBRT in 66 fractions of 1.8 Gy, 56 fractions of 2 Gy, 40 fractions of 2.5 Gy, 31 fractions of 3 Gy, 20 fractions of 4 Gy or 13 fractions of 5 Gy. Regarding the use of 66 fractions of 1.8 Gy, the rectum EUD is reduced to 6% with 2.5 Gy per fraction and to 10% with 4 Gy. A total BED of 162 Gy was achieved for the delivery of 25 fractions of 1.8 Gy of EBRT in combination with 110 Gy of LDRBT. By varying the total dose of LDRBT (TDLDRBT) with the total dose of EBRT (TDEBRT) so as to ensure a BED of 162 Gy, the following relationship was obtained: ....... The simulation results show that the rectum EUD decreases with the increase of the TDLDRBT, for EBRT dose per fracion (dEBRT) less than 2.5 Gy and increases for dEBRT above 3 Gy. For lower amounts of TDLDRBT (< 50Gy), the rectum benefits of larger EBRT fractions. As the TDLDRBT increases, the rectum gEUD becomes less dependent on the dEBRT. The use of different regimens which enable a therapeutic gain, whether deivering a higher dose with the same late biological effects or maintaining the dose to the tumor and reducing rectal toxicity is possible. The use with precaution of hypofractionated regimens, in addition to the therapeutic benefit, can bring advantages in terms of convenience for the patient and cost savings. The simulation results of this study together with the biological dose conversion for the treatment of prostate cancer serve as guidelines of interest for new clinical trials.

A importância da comunicação estratégica na alteração de comportamentos na sociedade : o caso Sociedade Ponto Verde

A comunicação estratégica poderá ser entendida como a comunicação alinhada com a estratégia global de uma organização para alcançar o seu posicionamento estratégico. Ou seja, para alcançar o sucesso, uma organização precisa de ter uma comunicação consistente com a sua identidade e, ao mesmo tempo, adequada ao seu público-alvo e ao tipo de sector onde se insere. Só desta forma consegue conquistar a confiança e fidelidade dos consumidores, essenciais para o alcance dos objectivos. Em relação à alteração comportamentos, é essencial que as empresas costruam uma estratégia de comunicação coerente e consistente, adaptando as mensagens e os públicos-alvo escolhidos. Neste âmbito da alteração de comportamentos, estudou-se neste trabalho a Sociedade Ponto Verde (SPV), uma associação portuguesa sem fins lucrativos, que actua no âmbito da gestão e reciclagem de resíduos de embalagens. Procurou estudar-se a evolução da sua comunicação ao longo dos anos e a forma como adaptou as suas mensagens, de forma a conseguir incutir na sociedade portuguesa a importância do comportamento de reciclagem de resíduos. Neste estudo, procedeu-se a uma análise individualizada de cada uma das campanhas de comunicação da SPV e, posteriormente, aplicou-se um inquérito por questionário, para verificar a eficácia das mesmas campanhas perante o público-alvo. A metodologia utilizada neste trabalho consistiu na distribuição de um inquérito por questionário online, que permitiu recolher uma amostra probabilística por conveniência. Em seguida, recolhidos e tratados os dados referentes às 482 respostas recebidas, utilizou-se o programa SPSS (Stastitical Package for the Social Sciences) para analisar, tratar e discutir os resultados obtidos. Estes resultados demonstraram que, de facto, não houve uma grande percentagem de inquiridos que se lembram das campanhas da SPV. Os resultados são positivos e não desmentem a qualidade e coerência das mensagens, mas a verdade é que a percentagem de indivíduos que não se lembra de algumas campanhas chega a ser elevada (em especial nas campanhas iniciais da organização, quando existia falta de uma estratégia coerente). Justifica-se este facto, em parte, pelo excesso de informação e estímulos a que as pessoas estão sujeitas, pelo que a informação que retêm não fica para sempre, acabando por dar lugar a outras informações. Os indivíduos são inconscientemente selectivos com a informação que processam e guardam, pois não seria possível guardar toda a informação que lhes é transmitida. No que diz respeito à comunicação estratégica que visa alterar uma atitude e, posteriormente, um comportamento, conclui-se que, no geral, o comportamento das pessoas inquiridas aparenta ter sido influenciado pela comunicação da SPV, caso contrário, as respostas afirmativas quanto à reciclagem e de concordância com algumas das afirmações teriam sido inferiores. Ou seja, mesmo reconhecendo o carácter um pouco enviesado da amostra (não deverá ser considerada representativa da população portuguesa), é possível dizer que a estratégia de comunicação da SPV (em especial a partir de 2005) foi eficiente. Palavras-

O serviço fiscal aduaneiro criminal e contraordenacional da GNR

At a time of global economic instability, to which Portugal is not oblivious, and aware that the main source of Portuguese State revenue relies on the collection of tribute, the National Republican Guard holds within its mission relevant assignments to the protection of the financial interests of the country, in particular, fiscal and customs. These assignments were inherited from the century - old institution Guarda Fiscal - with evidence given in this domain, which was integrated into the National Republican Guard in 1993, to adopt, a 1St model, that held a specialized unit – Brigada Fiscal, with surveillance and patrolling missions of costa and fiscal and customs supervision, throughout the national territory and maritime zone of respect. In 2009, the result of political decisions, reorganization the State's central administration, appears de 2Nd model, because the Brigada Fiscal assignments were divided by two specialized units - UAF with investigation skills, and UCC for patrolling and surveillance of the coast. Analyzed the legal spectrum of special legislation leading the criminal and transgression sector punitive (RGIT), in essence, is in the UAF that resides the role assignments from the scope of the investigation and supervision of goods in the national territory on a par with the tax authority. Tax inspection assignments, fiscal and customs of the National Republican Guard, are unmatched in the National Tribute System, constituting itself as a potentiality of this special body, in similarity of their counterparts - Spain and Italy; however, have some constraints, that urge to clarify and repair. Foreseeing the future, face the announced news of a new restructuring, on behalf of the interests of the country, and in order to raise the quality of performance of the tax inspection, fiscal and customs, the National Republican Guard shall maintain a model based on the experience already accumulated, obviously adapted to the new demands of a changing society. Despite the current model gain in efficiency, loses in effectiveness. However, the efficiency of a model, without the necessary resources, can never bring “the letter to Garcia” against any kind of infringements, criminal or transgressions. Unless better opinion, both tax structures of the National Republican Guard are valid as an instrument for the prevention and combat of these illegal types. Because they are strategic in pursuing the public interest, given the scarce resources of the country and be the National Republican Guard, the force with the means and know-how of this nature. The political power has the final word.

O governo da justiça : o Conselho Superior da Magistratura

O Conselho Superior da Magistratura (CSM), enquanto instituição de governo do poder judicial, desempenha um papel central na democracia portuguesa. Estudado maioritariamente sob a perspectiva jurídica, este Conselho, tal como todo o sistema de justiça, reclama hoje um olhar atento da ciência política. Nesta Dissertação principia-se com um estudo comparativo entra as diferentes soluções de governo da justiça europeias. Procurando isolar variáveis foram analisados os sistemas de Espanha, França, Alemanha e Inglaterra. Seguidamente, e tendo em conta o momento crítico da transição para a democracia, analisa-­se o lugar do CSM na constituição daí resultante, acompanhando a sua evolução até aos dias de hoje. Finalmente, procede-­se à caraterização prosopográfica da elite de juízas e juízes que ocuparam os lugares do CSM ao longo destes 40 anos. Os resultados obtidos no estudo comparado, vêm confirmar que estando garantida a liberdade individual de cada juíza ou juiz no ato de julgar, a forma de governo da justiça parece definitivamente configurar um campo em aberto. Mais do que um modelo ideal, estes órgãos são o resultado de autênticas complementaridades institucionais. A análise histórica demonstra que no poder judicial, a transição decorreu de forma pacífica e consensual, traduzindo-se num ganho progressivo de autonomia externa da magistratura ao longo destes 40 anos. O estudo da elite judicial pertencente ao CSM veio revelar uma uniformidade com poucas variações. Neste momento, os membros do conselho privilegiam o princípio da independência, verificando-­se uma certa desconfiança entre o poder político e o poder judicial.

Improving Millennium Bank's personal finance manager

Double Degree

Detection of road accident accumulation zones with a visual analytics approach

Nowadays, road accidents are a major public health problem, which increase is forecasted if road safety is not treated properly, dying about 1.2 million people every year around the globe. In 2012, Portugal recorded 573 fatalities in road accidents, on site, revealing the largest decreasing of the European Union for 2011, along with Denmark. Beyond the impact caused by fatalities, it was calculated that the economic and social costs of road accidents weighted about 1.17% of the Portuguese gross domestic product in 2010. Visual Analytics allows the combination of data analysis techniques with interactive visualizations, which facilitates the process of knowledge discovery in sets of large and complex data, while the Geovisual Analytics facilitates the exploration of space-time data through maps with different variables and parameters that are under analysis. In Portugal, the identification of road accident accumulation zones, in this work named black spots, has been restricted to annual fixed windows. In this work, it is presented a dynamic approach based on Visual Analytics techniques that is able to identify the displacement of black spots on sliding windows of 12 months. Moreover, with the use of different parameterizations in the formula usually used to detect black spots, it is possible to identify zones that are almost becoming black spots. Through the proposed visualizations, the study and identification of countermeasures to this social and economic problem can gain new grounds and thus the decision- making process is supported and improved.

A review of squeaking in ceramic total hip prostheses

The occurrence of audible squeaking in some patients with ceramic-on-ceramic (CoC) hip prostheses is a cause for concern. Considering multifactor contributing to this phenomenon, many studies have been conducted over the last decade. Great efforts have been put on understanding the mechanics of the hip squeaking to gain a deep insight into factors resulting in sound emission from hip articulation. Disruption of fluid-film lubrication and friction were reported as main potential causes of hip squeaking, while patient and surgical factors as well as design and material of hip implants were identified as affecting factors. This review article therefore summarised the recent available literature on this subject to provide a platform for future developments. Moreover, high wear rates and ceramic liner fracture as viable consequences of hip squeaking were discussed.