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Dissertação de Mestrado em Estudos Clássicos, na área de especialização em Culturas e Literaturas Clássicas, apresentada à Faculdade de Letras da Universidade de Coimbra Esta dissertação de Mestrado tem como principal objectivo reconstruir os múltiplos eventos que tomavam lugar durante os episódios da parte central do Ciclo Troiano, ou seja, todos aqueles que ocorriam entre o final da trama da Ilíada e o princípio da Odisseia. Com a intenção de se atingir esse objectivo primário, iremos recorrer ao estabelecimento de múltiplas intertextualidades e à leitura de diversas fontes iconográficas. Esse trabalho principiará por discutir, sucintamente, a existência de algumas fragilidades no Epítome da Crestomatia de Proclo, fonte que tende a ser considerada como uma das mais importantes evidências para o que teve lugar nos episódios aqui em consideração. Num segundo momento serão apresentadas outras fontes literárias que fazem referência a cada um desses episódios – incluindo textos de Ésquilo, Píndaro, Eurípides, Virgílio ou Ovídio, mas também obras muito menos conhecidas e estudadas, como o Excidium Troiae ou alguns dos textos de Tzetzes – prestando-se particular atenção às várias referências e relações que são feitas no contexto desses episódios que pretendemos reconstruir. Em terceiro lugar, as evidências recolhidas serão usadas numa tentativa de reconstrução dos vários eventos que teriam lugar nessa parte central do Ciclo Troiano, sendo essa síntese baseada nas diversas provas directas que os textos e imagens têm para nos oferecer. This Masters' dissertation has as its main goal reconstructing the multiple events that took place during the episodes of the central section of the Trojan Cycle, that is, all the episodes that had occurred between the end of the plot of Iliad and beginning of the Odyssey. With the goal of reaching that primary objective, we will resort to the establishment of multiple intertextualities, and to the reading of diverse iconographical sources. This work will begin by succinctly debating the existence of some fragilities in the Epitome of the Chrestomathy of Proclus, a source that tends to be considered one of the most important evidence for what took place in each of these episodes. In a second moment we will present several other literary sources that reference each of these episodes – including texts by Aeschylus, Pindar, Euripides, Virgil, or Ovid, but also texts a lot less known or studied, such as the Excidium Troiae or some of Tzetzes' productions – always paying special attention to the several references, and relationships, that are created in the context of those episodes that we seek to reconstruct. In third place, the evidence collected will then be used in an attempt to reconstruct the several events which would have their place in that central section of the Trojan Cycle, with that synthesis being based in the multiple direct evidence that the texts and images have to offer us.

Vascular grafts are used to bypass damaged or diseased blood vessels. Bacterial cellulose (BC) has been studied for use as an off-the-shelf graft. Herein, we present a novel, cost-effective, method for the production of small caliber BC grafts with minimal processing or requirements. The morphology of the graft wall produced a tensile strength above that of native vessels, performing similarly to the current commercial alternatives. As a result of the production method, the luminal surface of the graft presents similar topography to that of native vessels. We have also studied the in vivo behavior of these BC graft in order to further demonstrate their viability. In these preliminary studies, 1 month patency was achieved, with the presence of neo-vessels and endothelial cells on the luminal surface of the graft.

Dear Editor, The late scholar and medical researcher Plinio Prioreschi (1930–2014) MD., Ph.D., warned physicians and surgeons of the danger of neglecting medical history and delegating the task to social historians or journalists with little or no medical or surgical knowledge. Dr. Prioreschi summarized the point by stating that competent medical history is medicine. Medicine being a very esoteric field cannot easily be mastered by nonphysicians. Prioreschi wrote, “the asymmetry (in esoterism) between science and the humanities…allows the physicist to be a poet but forbids a poet to be a physicist.”[5] The same goes for historians and physicians. Because of the high degree of esoterism involved in medicine, physicians can be historians, but historians cannot be physicians without training in medicine.[5] The mysterious death of Stalin is an excellent and instructive case in point. On the fiftieth anniversary of Joseph Stalin's death, the British newspaper, the Daily Mail, headlined, “It's official! Stalin died of natural causes: Autopsy published for 1st time says Soviet leader suffocated after suffering a stroke death as from ‘natural causes.’”[4] Neither the journalist nor historian involved in this article apparently were aware of the article I wrote in Surgical Neurology International 2 years previously concluding with the strong possibility of the complete opposite. Two previous books[2,6] had already done a lot of footwork on Stalin's final hours and ended, as I did, strongly suggesting the possibility that Stalin was poisoned by members of his own inner circle, led by the head of the secret police, Minister of State Security Lavrenti Beria.[3] The work of those authors was supported by the portion of the autopsy report that was published in Pravda in 1953 and which I cited in my article: “AUTOPSY OF THE BODY OF J. V. STALIN: Postmortem examination disclosed a large hemorrhage in the sphere of the subcortical nodes of the left hemisphere of the brain. This hemorrhage destroyed important areas of the brain and caused irreversible disorders of respiration and blood circulation. Besides the brain hemorrhage there were established substantial enlargement of the left ventricle of the heart, numerous hemorrhages in the cardiac muscle and in the lining of the stomach and intestine, and arteriosclerotic changes in the blood vessels, expressed especially strongly in the arteries of the brain. These processes were the result of high blood pressure. “The findings of the autopsy entirely confirm the diagnosis made by the professors and doctors who treated J. V. Stalin. “The data of the postmortem examination established the irreversible nature of J. V. Stalin's illness from the moment of the cerebral hemorrhage. Accordingly, the energetic treatment which was undertaken could not have led to a favorable result or averted the fatal end. “U.S.S.R. Minister of Public Health A. F. Tretyakov; Head of the Kremlin Medical Office I. I. Kuperin; Academician N. N. Anichkov, President of the Academy of Medicine; Prof. M. A. Skvortsov, Member of the Academy of Medicine; Prof. S. R.”[1] What the Daily Mail journalist and the social historian did not understand is that if there was evidence of hemorrhage in any body system other than the brain, then this was strong evidence for a bleeding diathesis or poisoning as I described. Stalin did not have a history of a bleeding diathesis or treatment with anticoagulation, therefore poisoning by systemic anticoagulation is the most likely cause for the “numerous hemorrhages in the cardiac muscle and in the lining of the stomach and intestine.”[1] If the bleeding had been restricted to the brain, as with a hypertensive cerebral hemorrhage, then we could have safely ascribed the cause of death as “suffocation after suffering a stroke,”[4] but that was not the case. I conveyed this information to the historian consulted by the Daily Mail and asked for clarification, comment or rebuttal but received no response. And so I correct the record with this correspondence in SNI. I explained in my article why the Soviet doctors, who signed the autopsy report, may have been reluctant to propound any cause of death other than natural causes. Lavrenti Beria, the head of the secret police, was then the head of the ruling hierarchy in the Soviet Union, and it was he who would have been the number one suspect. The admission of poisoning of Stalin would have led to Beria as a suspect if not the culprit. So poisoning as the cause of death would have been out of the question as the official cause of Stalin's death in the official autopsy report. The doctors from the Ministry of Health who signed the autopsy and other medical reports acted cautiously:[3] As much as was possible to put in writing from a political standpoint, without getting their own heads into the repressive Soviet noose (was included in the autopsy report)! They also correctly protected the physicians who treated Stalin. Needless to say, the Doctors’ Plot episode was very fresh in their minds.[2] While prudently citing hypertension as the culprit, the good doctors left behind enough traces of pathological evidence in their brief report to let posterity know they fulfilled their professional duties, as best they could, without compromising their careers or their lives with the new masters at the Kremlin. High blood pressure, per se, commonly results in hypertensive cerebral hemorrhage and stroke but does not usually produce concomitant hematemesis (vomiting blood), as we see here in the clinical case of Stalin, and a further bleeding diathesis affecting the heart muscle, scantily as it is supported by the positive autopsy findings. As I have written elsewhere, we now possess clinical and forensic evidence supporting the long-held suspicion that Stalin was indeed poisoned by members of his own inner circle, most likely Lavrenti Beria, and perhaps even Nikita Khrushchev, all of whom feared for their lives. However, Stalin, the brutal Soviet dictator, was (and still is in some quarters of Democratic Russia) worshipped as a demigod – and his assassination would have been unacceptable to the Russian populace. So it was kept a secret until now.[3] I have concluded this letter citing my previous article above, as it remains unchallenged with no new disputing scholarship in the medical or historical literature. We continue to believe Stalin was poisoned unless the autopsy findings cited above are found to be erroneous or fabricated, which is very doubtful.

The perplexing mystery of why so many trephined skulls from the Neolithic period have been uncovered all over the world representing attempts at primitive cranial surgery is discussed. More than 1500 trephined skulls have been uncovered throughout the world, from Europe and Scandinavia to North America, from Russia and China to South America (particularly in Peru). Most reported series show that from 5-10% of all skulls found from the Neolithic period have been trephined with single or multiple skull openings of various sizes. The unifying hypothesis proposed by the late medical historian Dr. Plinio Prioreschi (1930-2014) regarding the reason for these trepanations (trephinations) is analyzed. It is concluded that Dr. Prioreschi's cohesive explanation to explain the phenomenon is valid and that his intriguing hypothesis is almost certainly correct. In the opinion of this author, the mystery within an enigma has been solved.

Nicotinic receptor (nAChR) subtypes involved in pre- and postjunctional actions underlying tetanic fade were studied in rat phrenic-nerve hemidiaphragms. We investigated the ability of subtype-specific nAChR antagonists to depress nerve-evoked contractions and [(3)H]-acetylcholine ([(3)H]-ACh) release. Muscle tension was transiently increased during brief high frequency trains (50 Hz for 5 sec). The rank potency order of nAChR antagonists to reduce tetanic peak tension was alpha-bungarotoxin > d-tubocurarine >> mecamylamine > hexamethonium. Reduction of maximal tetanic tension produced by dihydro-beta-erythroidine (0.03-10 microM), methyllycaconitine (0.003-3 microM), and alpha-conotoxin MII (0.001-0.3 microM) did not exceed 30%. Besides reduction of peak tension d-tubocurarine (0.1-0.7 microM), mecamylamine (0.1-300 microM), and hexamethonium (30-3,000 microM) also caused tetanic fading. With alpha-conotoxin MII (0.001-0.3 microM) and dihydro-beta-erythroidine (0.03-10 microM), tetanic fade was evident only after decreasing the safety factor of neuromuscular transmission (with high magnesium ions, 6-7 mM). The antagonist rank potency order to reduce evoked (50 Hz for 5 sec) [(3)H]-ACh release from motor nerve terminals was alpha-conotoxin MII (0.1 microM) > dihydro-beta-erythroidine (1 microM) approximately d-tubocurarine (1 microM) > mecamylamine (100 microM) > hexamethonium (1,000 microM). When applied in a concentration (0.3 microM) above that producing tetanic paralysis, alpha-bungarotoxin failed to affect [(3)H]-ACh release. Data obtained suggest that postjunctional neuromuscular relaxants interact with alpha-bungarotoxin-sensitive nicotinic receptors containing alpha1-subunits, whereas blockade of neuronal alpha3beta2-containing receptors produce tetanic fade by breaking nicotinic autofacilitation of acetylcholine release.

We investigated the modulatory role of endogenous adenosine on tetanic-induced (50 Hz for 5 s) nicotinic facilitation of [3H]acetylcholine release (5 Hz for 50 s) from rat motoneurons. Adenosine deaminase (0.5 U/ml) and the adenosine A(2A) receptor antagonist, 3,7-dimethyl-1-propargyl xanthine (DMPX, 30 microM), facilitated post-tetanic [3H]acetylcholine release. Release inhibition caused by tubocurarine (1 microM), dihydro-beta-erythroidine (1 microM) and alpha-conotoxin MII (0.1 microM) was attenuated after tetanic preconditioning. Nicotinic inhibitory action was fully restored after adenosine A(2A) receptor block by DMPX or adenosine deaminase. DMPX (10 microM) caused a leftward shift of the inhibitory dose-response curves for d-tubocurarine (0.1-1 microM), dihydro-beta-erythroidine (0.03-10 microM) and alpha-conotoxin MII (1-300 nM) on post-tetanic twitch amplitude. In contrast, the post-tetanic twitch depression caused by alpha-bungarotoxin (3-100 nM, which had no effect on transmitter release) was attenuated by DMPX (10 microM). It is concluded that activation of adenosine A(2A) receptors by endogenously generated adenosine prevents the post-tetanic release facilitation mediated by nicotinic alpha3beta2 autoreceptors.

En esta Tesis doctoral se estudia la obra pública realizada para la Dirección General de Edificios y Monumentos Nacionales (DGEMN) y SPNISNt por parte del estudio del arquitecto Rogéfio de Azevedo desde finales de los años veinte hasta la década de los cuarenta, especialmente los programas de las Escuelas Primarias-Tipo Regionalizadas, de las Posadas Regionales del SNI y las Intervenciones en espacios yedificios de interés patrimonial. A través del estudio de esas obras públicas se pretende analizar el posicionamento y las contribuciones realizadas por el arquitecto Rogério de Azevedo y la forma en que los arquitectos y las instituciones de la época Se relacionaron con los encargos públicos y con el patrimonio arquitectónico edificado en sus múltiples variantes. Se analiza también su contribución a las lecturas y apropiaciones del Movimiento Moderno, a la deriva regionalista que se sucede a la consecuente evolución de la arquitectura portuguesa en los años de afirmación y consolidación del Estado Nuevo., Departamento de Teoría de la Arquitectura y Proyectos Arquitectónicos, Doctorado en Arquitectura

A dor articular é o principal sintoma e problema mais amplamente descrito nas pessoas com osteoartrite. Esta patologia envolve a totalidade da articulação com um significativo impacto na qualidade de vida dos doentes, resultando em funções debilitadas e num profundo absentismo. Caracterizada patologicamente pelas altera-ções estruturais e processos inflamatórios, a dor articular permanece como a condição incapacitante mais reportada aos médicos. É, por isso, descrita como uma doença multifactorial influenciada principalmente pela idade e obesidade, ainda que a predis-posição genética pareça contribuir para o seu desenvolvimento e progressão A dor articular ao nível do joelho é largamente citada na literatura como a perturbação articu-lar que mais frequentemente leva os doentes a procurar os cuidados médicos. Tera-pêuticas comuns baseadas no paracetamol, AINEs, opióides e procedimentos cirúrgi-cos são alternativas terapêuticas no alívio da dor, mas a segurança destas é uma bar-reira complexa devido aos efeitos adversos e processo invasivos, respectivamente. As terapias não-farmacológicas também estão incluídas nas recentes guidelines, com resultados comprovados. Contudo, o desenvolvimento de novos sistemas de veicula-ção de fármacos é o objectivo principal das indústrias farmacêuticas. A Nanotecnolo-gia tem uma enorme importância no desenvolvimento de formulações mais eficazes cuja a principal vantagem irá naturalmente recair na libertação prolongada dos fárma-cos associados, e, em última instância, no aumento da adesão do doente à terapêuti-ca. Por exemplo, a aplicação à nanoescala das propriedades físico-químicas e funções biológicas do ácido hialurónico continuam sob investigação a fim de melhorar o contro-lo da osteartrite., Joint pain is the major symptom and the most extensively described problem in people with osteoarthritis. This illness is a complex “whole joint” disease with a re-markable impact in patients quality of life, resulting in impaired functions and deep full absenteeism. Characterized pathologically by structural changes and inflammatory processes, the joint pain remains as the most reported disabling condition to physi-cians. Thereby, this disease is described as a multifactorial disease influenced mainly by age and obesity. Nevertheless the genetic predisposition seems to take a part in its development and progression. The knee joint pain is cited to a great extent in literature as the most frequent joints disorders that takes patients to search for medical care. Common therapeutics based on paracetamol, NSAIDs, opioids and surgical proce-dures are therapeutic alternatives to provide pain relief, but their safety is a complex barrier due to adverse effects and invasive processes, respectively. Also non-pharmacological therapies are present on recent guidelines, with proved outcomes. However, the development of novel drug delivery systems is the mainstream aim of nanotechnology industries. Nanotechnology has significant importance in the develop-ment odf more effective formulations whose the main advantage will naturally fall on the prolonged release of the associated drugs, and, ultimately, on the improvement of the patient adherence to therapy. For example, the application on nanoscale of hyalu-ronic acid and its physicochemical properties and biological functions is still under re-search to provide improvements on osteoarthritis control., Orientação : Catarina Pinto Reis

We disentangle the extent to which the real exchange rate appreciation in Por- tugal during 1995-2010 re ected the emergence of wage-productivity misalignments or, instead, changes in the relative price of tradable and non-tradable goods. The available data suggests that the latter e ect dominated at the aggregate level. The evidence is consistent with the view that the external imbalance that character- ized the Portuguese economy during the 1990s and early 2000s was triggered by the liberalization of capital ows, and not by dysfunctional wage setting institu- tions. Using the Fundamental Equilibrium Exchange Rate approach, we nd that recent oil price shocks played an important role in explaining the real exchange rate overvaluation in Portugal., COMPETE; QREN; FEDER; Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)

A method for the determination of adenosine, cytidine, uridine, guanosine and inosine 5′-monophosphates in milk and dairy products was optimized and its performance evaluated. The technique was based on ion-pair reversed-phase HPLC separation of the nucleotides and diode array detection. The chromatographic separation was achieved using a C18 column and a gradient elution with a mixture of two solvents: solvent A, water/glacial acetic acid/tetrabutilammonium hydrogensulphate (TBAHS) and solvent B, methanol/glacial acetic acid/TBAHS. The effluent was monitored using a Diode Array detector set at 260 nm. Validation of the proposed method was carried out by standard additions method, with recoveries of 98.3%. The precision of the method was also evaluated and reported a coefficient of variation (CV) as less than 3.2. Upon development the technique was applied on different dairy products in order to study the distribution of nucleotides therein. The samples included bovine, ovine and caprine milks, the corresponding manually manufactured cheeses, whey cheese and whey. Three commercial cheeses made from bovine, ovine and caprine milks, respectively, and 20 infant formulae were also analysed. In contrast to their absence in cheese upon preparation nucleotides were present in cheese at the end of ripening; this observation led to the extraction of DNA in order to evaluate whether nucleotides were released from degradation of nucleoproteins.

This paper describes a procedure performed by high performance liquid chromatography/UV detection for quantification of the major carboxylic acids in table olives (lactic, acetic, succinic, and citric acids); derivatization of carboxylic acids with O-(4-nitrobenzil)-N,N′diisopropylisourea (PBNDI) was performed. The sample preparation involved deproteination with ethanol and the use of strong cation-exchange resin (Dowex 50W-X8) to liberate the free carboxylic acids. The same resin was used to remove the excess of derivatizing reagent. The chromatographic separation was achieved using reverse-phase column C18(ODS). The mobile phase used was a gradient of water and acetonitrile at a flow-rate of 1 mL/min. The effluent was monitored using a UV detector at 265 nm. The method allowed for well-resolved peaks of lactic, acetic, succinic, and citric acids in less than 25 min. Precision and recovery assays were performed with good results for the acids under study. Nineteen samples of table olives available on the...

A microsatellite DNA-based method for Vitis vinifera grape must authentication is presented. Five of the most important port wine producing grape cultivars (Tinta Roriz, Tinto Cão, Touriga Francesa, Touriga Nacional, and Tinta Barroca) were typed at four microsatellite loci described by Bowers et al. (Genome 1996, 39, 628-633) and Thomas and Scott (Theor. Appl. Genet. 1993, 86, 985-990). The corresponding 5 varietal musts and 26 must mixtures that result from the combination of the five varieties were also typed at the four loci. There were no differences between the corresponding leaf and varietal must profiles. All must combinations showed the expected band profiles corresponding to the sum of the varietal band profile components. Among the 26 must mixtures, 8 could be discriminated using the four loci.

This study assessed if the use of sterol demethylase inhibitor fungicides in vineyard production can induce resistance to azoles in Aspergillus strains and if it can induce selection of resistant species. We also tried to identify the Aspergillus species most prevalent in the vineyards. Two vineyards from northern Portugal were selected from “Vinhos Verdes” and “Douro” regions. The vineyards were divided into plots that were treated or not with penconazole (PEN). In each vineyard, air, soil, and plant samples were collected at three different times. The strains of Aspergillus spp. were isolated and identified by morphological and molecular techniques. We identified 46 Aspergillus section Nigri, eight Aspergillus fumigatus, seven Aspergillus lentulus, four Aspergillus wentii, two Aspergillus flavus, two Aspergillus terreus, one Aspergillus calidoustus, one Aspergillus westerdijkiae, one Aspergillus tamarii, and one Eurotium amstelodami. Aspergillus strains were evaluated for their susceptibility to medical azoles used in human therapy (itraconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole) and to agricultural azoles (PEN) used in the prevention and treatment of plant diseases. The isolates showed moderate susceptibility to voriconazole. We did not observe any decrease of susceptibility to the medical azoles tested throughout the testing period in any of the treated plots, although some of the resistant species were isolated from there.

Dissertação de mestrado em Biofísica e Bionanossistemas, O cancro é uma das doenças com maior incidência na população mundial na atualidade, com uma taxa de mortalidade enorme. Os principais problemas na luta contra o cancro prendem-se com a dificuldade de diagnóstico precoce, a citotoxicidade associada aos fármacos anticancerígenos usados em quimioterapia convencional e a falta de tratamentos mais eficazes. A nanotecnologia surge agora com capacidade para dar resposta a este tipo de problemas estando a revolucionar a área da medicina. Este trabalho teve como objetivo o desenvolvimento de magnetolipossomas (MGLs) baseados em magnetite com potencial de aplicação no tratamento do cancro pelo efeito conjugado da hipertermia intracelular e entrega controlada de fármacos antitumorais (quimioterapia direcionada), por aplicação de um campo magnético externo. Foram preparadas nanopartículas magnéticas (NMPs) de magnetite por vários métodos. Algumas das nanopartículas sintetizadas apresentam tamanho reduzido (, Cancer is one of the diseases with higher incidence among the world’s population nowadays, with a huge mortality rate. The main obstacles in the fight against cancer are due to difficulties in early diagnosis, the cytotoxicity associated with the antitumoral drugs used in conventional chemotherapy and the lack of more efficient treatments. Nanotechnology now arises with ability to provide answers to such problems, causing a revolution in medicine. The goal of this work was the development of magnetoliposomes (MGLs) based on magnetite to be applied in the treatment of cancer by the synergistic effect of intracellular hyperthermia and antitumor drug delivery, by application of an alternating magnetic field. Magnetic nanoparticles of magnetite were prepared by several methods. Some of the synthesized nanoparticles had a small size (

Psychosurgery was developed early in human prehistory (trephination) as a need perhaps to alter aberrant behavior and treat mental illness. The “American Crowbar Case” provided an impetus to study the brain and human behavior. The frontal lobe syndrome was avidly studied. Frontal lobotomy was developed in the 1930s for the treatment of mental illness and to solve the pressing problem of overcrowding in mental institutions in an era when no other forms of effective treatment were available. Lobotomy popularized by Dr. Walter Freeman reached a zenith in the 1940s, only to come into disrepute in the late 1950s. Other forms of therapy were needed and psychosurgery evolved into stereotactic functional neurosurgery. A history of these developments up to the 21st century will be related in this three-part essay-editorial, exclusively researched and written for the readers of Surgical Neurology International (SNI).

The need for reducing gun violence is discussed along with the necessity for citizens to assume some responsibility for protecting themselves, their families, and their property from criminal elements because the police cannot physically be everywhere to protect us all of the time. The problem of sensationalization of gun crimes by the media, multiple shootings by deranged individuals, accidents with firearms, suicide rates, and children with guns are discussed. The relationship of civilian disarmament in the context of tyrannical governments and genocide are also explored. Incidents in which liberty has been extinguished because firearms have been banned and citizens have been disarmed by increasingly oppressive governments, and the converse, countries where freedom has been preserved by armed citizens are also described. We conclude that guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens deter crimes, and nations that trust their citizens with firearms have governments that sustain liberty and affirm individual freedom. Governments that do not trust their citizens with firearms tend to be despotic and tyrannical, and are a potential danger to good citizens — and a peril to humanity.

The role of gun violence and street crime in the United States and the world is currently a subject of great debate among national and international organizations, including the United Nations. Because the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the individual right of American citizens to own private firearms, availability of firearms is greater in the U.S. than the rest of the world, except perhaps in Israel and Switzerland. Indeed, although the American people continue to purchase and possess more firearms, homicides and violent crimes have continued to diminish for several decades because guns in the hands of the law-abiding citizens does not translate into more crime. As neurosurgeons, we can be compassionate and still be honest and have the moral courage to pursue the truth and find viable solutions through the use of sound, scholarly research in the area of guns and violence. We have an obligation to reach our conclusions based on objective data and scientific information rather than on ideology, emotionalism or partisan politics.

Genetic diversity within Iberian populations of Ornithopus pinnatus, O. compressus, O. sativus and Biserrula pelecinus were assessed using ITS1 and ITS2 DNA sequences from sixty four specimens, and a phylogeny between Ornithopus species was estimated. Generally within-species variation was low, particularly within Ornithopus. The Mediterranean species of Ornithopus form a sister clade relative to the South American O. micranthopus. The sometimes considered a full species, O. sativus isthmocarpus, was not distinct from O. sativus. Between some species there is limited genetic divergence using these markers, although the situation of O. perpusillus requires additional specimens to be examined before firm conclusions can be drawn., Se evaluó la diversidad genética entre 64 poblaciones ibéricas de Ornithopus pinnatus, O. compressus, O. sativus y Biserrula pelecinus utilizando secuencias ITS1 e ITS2 de ADN, y se estimó la filogenia entre las especies de Ornithopus. En general la variación intraespecífica fue baja, especialmente dentro de Ornithopus. Las especies mediterráneas de Ornithopus forman un clado hermano del O. micranthopus sudamericano. La considerada a veces como una especie completa, O. sativus isthmocarpus, no fue distinta de O. sativus. Utilizando estos marcadores existe una divergencia genética limitada entre algunas especies, aunque la situación de O. perpusillus requiere el examen de muestras adicionales antes de que se puedan establecer conclusiones firmes.

The correct phylogenetic position of Lotus conimbricensis Brot. (Leguminosae, Loteae) based on nuclear ribosomal ITS sequences The nrDNA ITS sequence determined in Lotus conimbricensis in a previous phylogenetic study was unusual, in that it was almost identical to those retrieved from the morphologically distinct species L. subbiflorus. In the present study we sequenced new specimens of both species to reassess the phylogenetic position of L. conimbricensis. We conclude that the ITS sequence of L. conimbricensis used in the earlier analyses was most likely erroneous, and in fact L. conimbricensis is not closely related to L. subbiflorus. Critical reexamination of previously published data indicates that several other similar errors may exist for other Lotus species, and these should be checked before taxonomic conclusions are made.

This paper describes a tool-supported method for the formal verification of Ada programs. It presents ATOS, a tool that automati- cally extracts a model in SPIN from an Ada Program, together with a set of properties that state the correctness of the model. ATOS is also capable of extracting properties from user-provided annotations in Ada programs, inspired by the Spark Annotation language. The goal of ATOS is to help in the verification of sequential and concurrent Ada pro- grams based on model checking. The paper introduces the details of the proposed mechanisms, as well as the results of experimental validation, through a case study., Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)

A simple, reliable, and sensitive gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method for the quantification of volatile and nonvolatile biogenic amines in Port wines and grape juices was developed and evaluated. The method was based on a previously reported two-phase derivatization procedure with isobutyl chloroformate in a toluene medium, which provides a quantitative reaction in 10 min. Following the derivatization step, the excess of reagent was eliminated by treatment with alkaline methanol. The derivatization procedure was performed directly on 1 mL of sample, avoiding any fastidious and time-consuming cleanup extraction steps. The method allows the simultaneous quantification of 22 amines, which can be found in wines: methylamine, dimethylamine, ethylamine, diethylamine, propylamine, isopropylamine, butylamine, isobutylamine, amylamine, isoamylamine, 2-methylbutylamine, hexylamine, pyrrolidine, piperidine, morpholine, 1,3-diaminopropane, putrescine, cadaverine, 1,6-diaminohexane, 2-phenylethylamine, histamine, and tyramine. Because of the fact that histamine and tyramine derivatives are degraded during the isobutyl chloroformate elimination step, the corresponding determination was made after removal of the excess of derivatizing reagent by evaporating an aliquot of the toluene layer obtained after the reaction. The presented method showed excellent analytical characteristics in what linearity, recovery, repeatability, and limit of detections were respected. It was used to assess the concentration of biogenic amines in juice grapes and Tawny and Vintage Port wines with different aging times. On the whole, the total content of amines in Port wines was low. Most of the amines found in wines have their origin in the raw material used for their elaboration, so the Port winemaking process is not prone to the production of this kind of compounds. Total biogenic amine contents have shown a decrease with the aging of both types of Port wines.

This chapter describes the formal TLA + models of the OpenComRTOS Layer 1 Interaction Entities (L1-Entities). The L1-Entities represent the API (Application Programmer’s Interface) of OpenComRTOS used by the Task entities to build up the application. There are also so-called Layer 0 entities but these are not accessible to the user. The L1 Entities are also all derived from a common so-called Hub Entity. As we will see later, the L1-Entities represent services the operating system offers to the user. The L1-Entities names represent the type of service they provide.

Model checking (Clarke et al. 1999; Holzmann 2003b; Lamport 2002a) is a flexible and powerful technique for verifying systems formally with automated tools. In principle, it makes this task easy for the user: given a formal system description and certain conditions to be satisfied, the automated checker either confirms that the system satisfies the conditions, or provides a counterexample.

This paper introduces a rigorous methodology for requirements specification of systems that react to external stimulus by evolving through different operational modes. In each mode different functionalities are provided. Starting from a classical state-machine specification, the envisaged methodology interprets each state as a different mode of operation endowed with an algebraic specification of the corresponding functionality. Specifications are given in an expressive variant of hybrid logic which is, at a later stage, translated into first-order logic to bring into scene suitable tool support. The paper’s main contribution is to pro- vide rigorous foundations for the method, framing specification logics as institutions and the translation process as a comorphism between them., Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)

In this chapter, we discuss the requirements and specifications for the OpenComRTOS project from the point of view of its capabilities to support applications in meeting real-time requirements. As this is related to a distributed real-time operating system this is rather unique as most RTOS are designed for single processor systems and if not, they assume a shared memory architecture whereby the address space is global. OpenComRTOS on the other hand makes no such assumptions, but assumes that a processor has local memory and that the hardware allows to communicate somehow between the processors’ memory. It is a network model, but allowing to emulate it by shared memory if this is available. Hence the term “network-centric” RTOS. In this context, we also explain the CSP background that is still present in the conceptual design of OpenComRTOS.

OpenComRTOS is part of a systematic, formalised systems and software engineering methodology for embedded systems with a supporting environment and tools. While OpenComRTOS can be used independently of it, users will benefit from using the methodology in an integrated way. This methodology is characterised by two key concepts: unified semantics and interacting entities. When used in combination, they result in a better control of the engineering process leading to the development of systems and products. OpenComRTOS plays an important role in this approach as it is the system software layer allowing the mapping of the abstract interacting entities at the modeling level into concrete concurrent instances.

Tasks in OpenComRTOS interact using an intermediate Hub entity. This way the interaction is decoupled from the tasks themselves. Different temporal semantics (waiting, non-waiting, and waiting with timeout) of tasks synchronization are formalised. Conclusions are drawn on correct usage confirming the correctness of the original CSP semantics.

The previous chapters of this book concentrated the theoretical foundations of OpenComRTOS and the formal modelling effort that was done in order to develop a trustworthy Real Time Operating System (RTOS). This chapter concentrates on the development of applications which utilise OpenComRTOS, as provided by OpenComRTOS-Suite 1.3. It is designed as a tutorial the reader can follow step by step. Section 9.1 gives a detailed introduction to OpenVE (the main development tool of the OpenComRTOS-Suite) to develop a Semaphore-loop executing on a single win32-node. The resulting project is then extended in Sect. 9.2 to utilise multiple nodes (MP), by introducing a second win32-node and connecting the two win32-nodes using TCP/IP. This illustrates how easy it is to construct distributed systems using the OpenComRTOS-Suite.

Dissertação de mestrado em Optometria Avançada, Objetivo: O objetivo deste estudo foi comparar o comprimento axial e a refração periférica relativa, decomposta nas suas focais astigmáticas (tangencial e sagital), entre um grupo de míopes progressivos e outro com a refração estável há mais de dois anos. Métodos: Avaliaram-se 62 olhos com miopia entre -0.50 e -7.00 D de equivalente esférico (média -2.83±1.46 D) e com uma média de idades de 22.02±1.75 anos. Destes, 32 eram pacientes com miopia estável há pelo menos 2 anos e 30 com miopia ainda em progressão. Não se verificaram diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre a idade e o erro refrativo de ambos os grupos. Após o exame preliminar foi determinada a refração central e periférica ao longo do meridiano horizontal até aos 35º de excentricidade, nasal e temporal, em passos de 5º. O comprimento axial foi medido até aos 30º de excentricidade, nasal e temporal, em passos de 10º. Resultados: Foram encontradas diferenças estatisticamente significativas (p, Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the axial length and relative peripheral refraction, decomposed in both astigmatic focal (tangential and sagittal), between one group with progressive myopic refraction and another one stable for more than two years. Methods: We evaluated 62 eyes with myopia central myopia between -0.50 and -7.00 D of spherical equivalent (mean -2.83 ± 1.46 D) and with an average age of 22.02 ± 1.75 years. Of these, 32 patients were stable for at least 2 years and 30 still in progress. There were no statistically significant differences between age and refractive error in both groups. After the preliminary examination, central and peripheral refraction was determined, along the horizontal meridian to 35 ° of eccentricity nasal and temporal, in steps of 5º. Axial length was measured up to 30 ° eccentricity, nasal and temporal, in steps of 10º. Results: We found statistically significant differences (p

We briefly show that the resulting architecture generates very small code (5 KB for the distributed version) resulting in better performance and better safety properties.

As mentioned in Chap. 4, mathematics is the main intellectual tool for the genuine systems designer. In particular, the user of automated model or proof checkers can benefit from mathematical reasoning about both the system descriptions (e.g. programs) and the conditions (e.g. invariants, temporal formulas) in various respects.

This chapter discusses the implementation architecture of OpenComRTOS. This is done by using a small test program, called theSemaphore Loop. It follows a top down approach by first explaining the Semaphore Loop itself, including a definition of the Semaphore in terms of OpenComRTOS. This is followed by an explanation of what happens when a Task sends a request to the OpenComRTOS Kernel, taking as example the signalling and testing of a Semaphore. This example then is extended to a system consisting of two processing nodes, connected via a link, each of which executing part of the Semaphore Loop example. While the logical behaviour is the same, the resulting changes in the execution are discussed.

Publisher Summary Olive oil authenticity continues to be the target of many studies, reflecting its high economic value, not only for the producers in Mediterranean countries, but also for consumers worldwide. A vast amount of legislation relating to the accurate characterization and classification of olive oil has boosted scientific work on this subject. The main aim of these studies is to control changes of olive oil composition in order to protect both the consumer from adulteration and the industry from unfair competition, as well as preserving the prestigious image of olive oil itself. High-quality olive oils such as those labeled as Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) or mono-varietal olive oils can provide opportunities for very sophisticated types of adulterations that are very difficult to detect. Numerous attempts have been made to find suitable methods to authenticate the composition of olive oils. Generally, the analytical techniques used investigate one or more of the constituents of olive oil, such as triacylglycerols, fatty acids, sterols, alkanes, waxes and aliphatic alcohols. These can prove the presence/absence of adulterants, or verify geographical or cultivar origin by comparing with known samples or legally established limits. In recent years several reviews have been published using general techniques to authenticate olive oils or utilizing special techniques such as chromatographic techniques. Rather than being an exhaustive revision of published works, this chapter aims to summarize the analytical methods utilized so far to authenticate and provide quality control for olive oils, especially those categorized as extra virgin olive oil and virgin olive oil. Methods referred to are further divided into the type of technique used in the analytical methodology as follows: (i) chromatographic, (ii) spectroscopic/spectrometric and (iii) DNA-based techniques.

✓ On June 30, 1559, King Henry II of France (1519–1559), against the advice of his court ministers, participated in a fateful joust. The wooden lance of his younger opponent pierced the King's headgear, shattered into fragments, and penetrated his right orbit and temple. The King survived for 11 days following the mortal wound and was treated by two of the most distinguished physicians of the Renaissance: Ambroise Paré (1510–1590), the master surgeon, and Andreas Vesalius (1514–1564), the great anatomist. The unfortunate event, the nature of the injury, and the medical consultation between these eminent physicians should all be of interest to neurosurgeons. The historical consequences of this event are briefly reviewed.

Este trabalho ilustra o uso de espectroscopia do infravermelho próximo (NIRS) para fins de monitoramento da polimerização em suspensão de cloreto de vinila em tempo real. Resultados inéditos mostraram que é possível acompanhar a evolução de importantes propriedades morfológicas de resinas de PVC [poli(cloreto de vinila)], como por exemplo, BD (densidade aparente), CPA (absorção de plastificante a frio), DTP (distribuição de tamanho de partículas) e Dp (diâmetro de partícula). Mostrou-se também, pela primeira vez, que é possível analisar quantitativamente, com o auxílio da sonda NIRS in situ, a estrutura morfológica da partícula de PVC. Com a possibilidade de predizer a evolução dinâmica dos parâmetros morfológicos em tempo real, mostrou-se que é possível injetar dispersantes e variar a velocidade de agitação durante a reação para fins de controle das variáveis BD, CPA e DTP do PVC, até que o ponto de identificação da partícula seja atingido. Por meio do monitoramento e da estratégia de controle proposta, é possível antecipar fugas de temperatura no reator, aumentar a segurança do processo, diminuir o tempo de desenvolvimento de resinas com características morfológicas diferenciadas, evitando perdas de margem oriundas da venda de produtos fora de especificação, e otimizar os recursos para o desenvolvimento de novos produtos.

This article introduces the use of in-line and in situ monitoring of the dynamic evolution of PVC morphological properties in suspension polymerization reactions based on near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) intended for control applications. It is shown for the first time that it is possible to follow the dynamic evolution of morphological properties (such as the bulk density, BD, and the cold plasticizer absorption, CPA) in real time. The obtained results indicate that closed-loop control schemes can be properly implemented to control end-use resin properties, which depend upon the morphology of PVC polymer particles. Suspension polymerization of vinyl chloride performed in bench and pilot scale showed that process variables, such as the agitation speed and the amount of suspending agents) can be successfully manipulated in order to control the morphological parameters of PVC resin. Based on this information, a control scheme for these parameters is proposed.