An audit tool for intellectual property management: IP management in the Queensland Department of Primary Industries

Smart State is a Queensland Government initiative that recognises the central role of knowledge-based economic growth. In this context, the management of intellectual property (IP) within Queensland and Australian government research and development agencies has changed dramatically over recent years. Increasing expectations have been placed on utilising public sector IP to both underpin economic development and augment taxes by generating new revenues. Public sector research and development (R&D) management has come under greater scrutiny to commercialise and/or corporatise their activities. In a study of IP management issues in the Queensland Public Sector we developed a framework to facilitate a holistic audit of IP management in government agencies. In this paper we describe this framework as it pertains to one large public sector Agriculture R&D Agency, the Queensland Department of Primary Industries (QDPI). The four overlapping domains of the framework are: IP Generation; IP Rights; IP Uptake; and Corporate IP Support. The audit within QDPI, conducted in 2000 near the outset of Smart State, highlighted some well developed IP management practices within QDPI's traditional areas of focus of innovation (IP Generation) and IP ownership and licensing (IP Rights). However, further management practice developments are required to improve the domains of IP Uptake and Corporate IP Support.

International drivers of Brazilian agricultural cooperation in Africa in the post-2008 economic crisis

This text focuses on the major drivers of Brazilian agricultural cooperation in Africa as conceived and pursued from 2004 to 2014, with emphasis on the impacts of political and economic international changes that took place in that period, and particularly the impacts of the 2008 economic crisis, in framing Brazil's foreign policy and development assistance initiatives. It addresses current international forces and developments at the systemic level, but also analyses recent economic domestic developments, in particular those directly related to Brazilian agriculture and those related to the policy framework of its evolving internationalization. Special attention is paid to the dual dimensions of Brazilian agricultural policy and to its projection in agricultural cooperation as pursed in Africa.

Climate strategies of firms in the automotive and pulp & paper industries in Brazil: insights from an international perspective

This article focuses on the results of the final stage of research into the climate strategies of firms in the automotive and pulp-and-paper industries in Brazil, a country that is becoming increasingly important also in terms of climate change issues. In the first stage, the Climate Strategy Model (CSM) was developed to assess whether firms were adopting the necessary practices to assure the successful implementation of climate strategies. In the second, the CSM was applied to firms in the above mentioned industries that were chosen because of their important role in the domestic economy. In the final stage, interviews with executives of these firms were conducted to identify root causes of climate strategy implementation deficiencies and obtain new insights from an international perspective.

Agricultural development and arthropod-borne diseases: a review

A review is presented of the interrelationships between arthropod vectors, the diseases they transmit and agricultural development. Particular attention is given to the effects of deforestation, livestock development and irrigation on the abundance of vectors and changing patterns of diseases such as malaria, trypanosomiases, leishmaniasis, Chagas' and some arboviral infections. The question as whether keeping livestock diverts biting away from people and reduces diseases such as malaria - that is zooprophylaxis, or whether the presence of cattle actually increases biting populations is discussed.

Efficiency Measures in the Agricultural Sector: The Beginning

Copyright © 2013 Springer Netherlands.

Efficiency Measures in the Agricultural Sector: With Applications

Copyright 2013 Springer Netherlands.

Espresso coffee residues: a valuable source of unextracted compounds

Espresso spent coffee grounds were chemically characterized to predict their potential, as a source of bioactive compounds, by comparison with the ones from the soluble coffee industry. Sampling included a total of 50 samples from 14 trademarks, collected in several coffee shops and prepared with distinct coffee machines. A high compositional variability was verified, particularly with regard to such water-soluble components as caffeine, total chlorogenic acids (CGA), and minerals, supported by strong positive correlations with total soluble solids retained. This is a direct consequence of the reduced extraction efficiency during espresso coffee preparation, leaving a significant pool of bioactivity retained in the extracted grounds. Besides the lipid (12.5%) and nitrogen (2.3%) contents, similar to those of industrial coffee residues, the CGA content (478.9 mg/100 g), for its antioxidant capacity, and its caffeine content (452.6 mg/100 g), due to its extensive use in the food and pharmaceutical industries, justify the selective assembly of this residue for subsequent use.

Management of agricultural waste on a sample of farms on the island of São Miguel (Açores)

Dissertação de Mestrado em Ambiente, Saúde e Segurança.

Valorização de subprodutos da vinha e do vinho: impacto do tempo e métodos de preservação nas suas características

Os polifenóis constituem um grupo biologicamente relevante de compostos naturais, que têm gerado um crescente interesse por parte dos consumidores e das indústrias alimentar, farmacêutica e de cosméticos. Os compostos fenólicos exibem uma vasta gama de propriedades fisiológicas, tais como anti-alérgica, anti-aterogénica, anti-inflamatória, anti-microbiana, antioxidante, anti-trombótica, possuindo efeitos cardio-protetores e vasodilatadores. Por conseguinte, o interesse na obtenção deste compostos ativos de uma forma fácil, barata e rápida tem vindo a aumentar. Uma das fontes de polifenóis são os subprodutos agrícolas, tais como os produtos derivados do vinho e/ou processamento de uvas. As folhas, os caules e os resíduos obtidos durante o processo de produção do vinho têm sido subutilizados, apesar de representarem uma boa fonte de compostos antioxidantes e bioativos. Portugal é um dos mais importantes países produtores de vinho, onde todos os anos são geradas várias toneladas de subprodutos associados a esta indústria. A extração, caracterização, quantificação e avaliação da atividade antioxidante de compostos bioativos extraídos destes subprodutos são, pois, tarefas importantes a fim de avaliar o potencial de utilização destes produtos como novas fontes de compostos antioxidantes. O objetivo deste trabalho foi quantificar e avaliar os teores de polifenóis de extratos preparados a partir de folhas e caules de videira, e bagaço, engaço e grainha de uva. Os parâmetros experimentais da extração foram otimizados, incluindo a proporção de solvente de extração (água/etanol), a temperatura e o tempo de extração. A quantificação dos polifenóis (como fenóis totais e flavonoides) foi efetuada por espetrofotometria de UV/Vis. Verificou-se que a melhor razão de solventes extratores foi de 50/50 (v/v) em água/etanol para todos os subprodutos estudados. No caso dos subprodutos folhas e caules, as condições ideais de extração foram obtidas quando se usou uma temperatura de 40ºC e um tempo de extração de 30 min. Para o bagaço, a temperatura ideal foi de 55ºC durante 5 min. Para o engaço e grainha a utilização de uma temperatura de 40ºC durante 5 min e 30 min, respetivamente, revelou-se o ideal para se obter os compostos. Com este trabalho conclui-se que os subprodutos da vinha e do vinho efetivamente possuem compostos de elevado valor e com capacidade antioxidante.

Modelação do aquecimento de água de uma indústria local por meio de energias renováveis e estudo da sua viabilidade económica

Dissertação de Mestrado, Engenharia e Gestão de Sistemas de Água, 12 de Outubro de 2015, Universidade dos Açores.

Sorption of phenanthrene on agricultural soils

Polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) sorption to soil is a key process deciding the transport and fate of PAH, and potential toxic impacts in the soil and groundwater ecosystems, for example in connection with atmospheric PAH deposition on soils. There are numerous studies on PAH sorption in relatively low organic porous media such as urban soils and groundwater sediments, but less attention has been given to cultivated soils. In this study, the phenanthrene partition coefficient, KD (liter per kilogram), was measured on 143 cultivated Danish soils (115 topsoils, 0–0.25-m soil depth and 28 subsoils, 0.25–1-m depth) by the single-point adsorption method. The organic carbon partition coefficient, KOC (liter per kilogram) for topsoils was found generally to fall between the KOC values estimated by the two most frequently used models for PAH partitioning, the Abdul et al. (Hazardous Waste & Hazardous Materials 4(3):211– 222, 1987) model and Karickhoff et al. (Water Research 13:241–248, 1979) model. A less-recognized model by Karickhoff (Chemosphere 10:833–846, 1981), yielding a KOC of 14,918 Lkg−1, closely corresponded to the average measured KOC value for the topsoils, and this model is therefore recommended for prediction of phenanthrene mobility in cultivated topsoils. For lower subsoils (0.25–1-m depth), the KOC values were closer to and mostly below the estimate by the Abdul et al. (Hazardous Waste & Hazardous Materials 4(3):211–222, 1987) model. This implies a different organic matter composition and higher PAH sorption strength in cultivated topsoils, likely due to management effects including more rapid carbon turnover. Finally, we applied the recent Dexter et al. (Geoderma 144:620–627, 2008) theorem, and calculated the complexed organic carbon and non-complexed organic carbon fractions (COC and NCOC, grams per gram). Multiple regression analyses showed that the NCOC-based phenanthrene partition coefficient (KNCOC) could be markedly higher than the COCbased partition coefficient (KCOC) for soils with a clay/OC ratio <10. This possibly higher PAH sorption affinity to the NCOC fraction needs further investigations to develop more realistic and accurate models for PAH mobility and effects in the environment, also with regard to colloid-facilitated PAH transport.

Goldra: premier gisement karstique en Algarve, faune et industries

A bone breccia from Goldra, near Loulé, is studied. It corresponds to the infilling of a karst depression, consisting of: rather worn and probably transported dolomite pebbles at the bottom; accumulations of frequently burnt bone scraps, much broken and with acute edges (no transport), certainly debris of human food, suggesting habitat level (s); in association with the former, stone (flint, quartz, quartzite, graywacke) rather uncharacteristic artifacts that seem compatible with middle and upper Paleolithic, or with Epipaleolithic; and small mammal teeth and bones. Fauna includes an extinct species, Microtus brecciensis recognized for the first time in Portugal. It is not older than Riss-Wiirm interglacial, and may be of this age or later, maybe that of one of wurm's first interstades. Fauna points out to a varied landscape with open country and woods; and to a rather warm and dry temperate, or dry subtropical mediterranean climate. Climate differences should not be significant in comparison with the extant situation. The presence of the mammal species found so far is consistent with modern distribution.

Social network analysis applied to knowledge creation and transfer in the portuguese agricultural R&D field: an exploratory study

Paper presented at the 9th European Conference on Knowledge Management, Southampton Solent University, Southampton, UK, 4-5 Sep. 2008. URL: http://academic-conferences.org/eckm/eckm2008/eckm08-home.htm

Projecto de sistema de fixação de punções para quinadoras hidráulicas

Mestrado em Engenharia Mecânica - Construções Mecânicas