Do loan officers get soft by the month-end? : lending inefficiency and the end-of-month effect : the portuguese case

In this dissertation, we study the monthly distribution of all loans granted to Portuguese non-financial companies, between 2013 and 2016. We find a strong evidence of an end-of-month effect: 38% of all loans were granted in the last three days of the month. We isolate this effect and conclude that it is derived from credit lines, with a default rate 4.5x times higher than similar credit lines granted on the remaining days of the month. We find a reversal pattern on the 15th of each month, which we justify as a possible window dressing strategy from Portuguese banks – they have to report their loans’ portfolio by this time of the month. Our results are robust to both the number of operations initiated (extensive margin) and the average loan amount (intensive margin). We perform a back-of-the-envelope computation and compute an increase in potential future credit losses of €3.2 billion as a consequence of the end-of-month relaxation in loan officers’ standards. Our dissertation contributes to the field of end-of-month performance misalignments in a banking context, but takes a step forward: prior studies consider this event a consequence of variable compensation based on loan volume. In our context, we are able to split between banks that reward loan officers based on volume-granted and the ones that do not: the end-of-month effect is common to both.Nesta dissertação, estudamos a distribuição mensal de todos os empréstimos concedidos a empresas portuguesas não-financeiras, entre 2013 e 2016. Encontramos evidência significativa de um efeito de fim de mês: em média, 38% dos empréstimos foram concedidos nos últimos três dias do mês. Isolamos este efeito e concluímos que é derivado de linhas de crédito com uma taxa de incumprimento 4.5x superior às linhas de crédito concedidas nos restantes dias do mês. No dia 15 de cada mês ocorre um padrão de inversão: os empréstimos concedidos apresentam perspetivas significativamente superiores, o que justificamos como uma possível estratégia de window dressing por parte dos bancos portugueses – têm de reportar o seu portfólio de empréstimos nesta altura do mês. Os resultados obtidos são robustos à utilização do número de operações (margem extensiva), bem como ao volume de cada empréstimo (margem intensiva). Efetuamos cálculos de impacto do efeito de fim de mês, e concluímos que aumentaram em €3.2 mil milhões o valor de potenciais futuras perdas. A nossa dissertação contribui para a área que estuda desalinhamentos de performance no fim do período num contexto bancário, mas dá um passo extra: estudos anteriores consideram este evento como uma consequência de compensação variável baseada no volume de empréstimos. No nosso contexto, conseguimos separar entre bancos que recompensam os gestores de crédito com base no volume concedido, e os bancos que não o fazem: o efeito de fim de mês é comum a ambos

Deteção de defeitos em materiais compósitos usando tecnologia de ultrassons

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Engenharia de PolímerosA utilização de materiais compósitos em aplicações estruturais comporta alguns desafios, pois a sua natureza heterogénea, resulta em mecanismos de dano complexos, sendo alguns tipos de defeito de difícil deteção a olho nu. O uso de técnicas de Ensaios Não Destrutivos (END) neste tipo de materiais é de extrema importância, uma vez que, permite a deteção de defeitos de outro modo impercetíveis. Este trabalho tem como objetivo principal o uso da técnica de análise não destrutiva de ultrassons (UT) no estudo, avaliação e caracterização de defeitos em materiais compósitos de matriz polimérica. Para o efeito foi utilizado o equipamento Prisma da Sonatest do tipo A-Scan com sonda Phased Array. Tendo em conta a pretensão referida, numa primeira fase, foram produzidos diferentes laminados com defeitos impostos como furos e inclusões, recorrendo ao processo de produção por infusão de resina assistida a vácuo (VARI). No caso das furações, os resultados experimentais obtidos evidenciam uma pequena tendência para a diminuição da extensão da região delaminada com o aumento do diâmetro da broca. Por outro lado, o estudo efetuado sobre as inclusões mostra que, quanto menores forem as suas dimensões, maior é a facilidade dos ultrassons em “contorná-las”, tornando-se a superfície oposta do laminado menos esbatida. Numa segunda fase, e utilizando o mesmo processo de produção, foram fabricados provetes de diferentes laminados sem defeitos, para análise UT de dois tipos de defeitos específicos: danos mecânicos e juntas adesivas. Os danos mecânicos foram induzidos por ação de diferentes solicitações mecânicas controladas como impacto e flexão, e caracterizados quanto à sua estrutura. As juntas adesivas (colagens entre laminados), por sua vez, foram avaliadas quanto à sua qualidade, tendo sido também submetidas a tensões mecânicas controladas, nomeadamente tração, de forma a causar danos nas juntas. Em relação aos resultados obtidos a partir da análise UT de laminados submetidos a solicitações de impacto de baixa energia e flexão, conclui-se que estas solicitações provocam um dano de formato cónico, verificando-se um fenómeno de crescimento das delaminações ao longo da espessura, à medida que a distância à superfície solicitada aumenta. Por último, constata-se que o dano induzido nas juntas origina uma descontinuidade no material, resultando em falhas no sinal de UT quer na interface substrato superior/adesivo quer no fundo do adesivo.The use of composite materials in structural applications poses some challenges, as their heterogeneous nature results in complex damage mechanisms, with some types of defects difficult to detect with the naked eye. The use of Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) techniques in this type of material is extremely important, since it allows the detection of defects that are otherwise imperceptible. This work has as main objective the use of the non-destructive ultrasound analysis (UT) technique in the study, evaluation and characterization of defects in polymeric matrix composite materials. For this purpose, Sonatest Prisma A-Scan equipment with Phased Array probe was used. In view of the above claim, in the first stage different laminates with defects imposed, such as, holes and inclusions, were produced using the vacuum assisted resin infusion (VARI) production process. In the case of defects produced by drilling, the experimental results obtained show a small tendency to decrease the extension of the delaminated region with the increase of the diameter of the drill. On the other hand, the study carried out on the inclusions shows that the smaller the dimensions, the greater the ease of ultrasound in “surrounding them” making the opposite surface of the laminate less blurred. In a second phase, and using the same production process, specimens of different defect-free laminates were fabricated for UT analysis of two specific types of defects: mechanical damage and adhesive joints. Mechanical damage was induced by the action of different controlled mechanical stresses, such as, impact and bending, and characterized by its structure. Adhesive joints (glue between laminates), in turn, were evaluated for their quality, and were also subjected to controlled tensile stress, to cause damage to the joints. Regarding the results obtained from the UT analysis of laminates subjected to low energy impact and bending, it is concluded that these stresses cause damage of a conical shape, indicating a phenomenon of growth of delamination along the thickness, as that the distance to the requested surface increases. Finally, it appears that the damage induced in the joints causes a discontinuity in the material, resulting in flaws in the UT signal both at the upper substrate/adhesive interface and at the bottom of the adhesive

PASO -- Astronomy and Space Situational Awareness in a Dark Sky Destination

The Pampilhosa da Serra Space Observatory (PASO) is located in the center of the continental Portuguese territory, in the heart of a certified Dark Sky destination by the Starlight Foundation (Aldeias do Xisto) and has been an instrumental asset to advance science, education and astrotourism certifications. PASO hosts astronomy and Space Situational Awareness (SSA) activities including a node of the Portuguese Space Surveillance \& Tracking (SST) infrastructure network, such as a space radar currently in test phase using GEM radiotelescope, a double Wide Field of View Telescope system, a EUSST optical sensor telescope. These instruments allow surveillance of satellite and space debris in LEO, MEO and GEO orbits. The WFOV telescope offers spectroscopy capabilities enabling light curve analysis and cosmic sources monitoring. Instruments for Space Weather are being considered for installation to monitor solar activities and expand the range of SSA services.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures, Keywords: Dark Sky, radioastronomy, space, space debris, space situational awareness; Draft from Talk presented at Astronomy and Satellite Constellations: Pathways Forward, IAU Symposium 385, October 2023, Ed. C. Walker, D.Turnshek, P.Grimley, D.Galadi-Enriquez & M.Aub\'e, International Astronomical Union Proceedings Series, Cambridge University Press, 202

Physical and transport proferties of edible films composed of galactomannan and chitosan

Edible films and coatings can provide additional protection for food, while being a fully biodegradable, environmentally friendly packaging system. The main objective of the study was to produce edible films and coatings based on chitosan and galactomannan of A. pavonina L., with the incorporation of sodium acetate and characterize them as to their physical properties. Films were cast and, the water vapor, O2 and CO2 permeabilities of the films were determined, together with their solubility in water, opacity, color and mechanical properties. The film of chitosangalactomannan with the addition of sodium acetate had lower permeability to water vapor (1.40 ± 0.02 (g.(m.day.atm)-1)) and elongation at break (67.11 ± 0.89%) being the most rigid film for presenting the highest Youngs modulus (35.68 ± 0.64 MPa). The blends showed the highest values of maximum voltage and breakdown voltage. The films based on galactomannan had a decreased permeability to O2 of 0.20 to 0.18 x 10-12 (g.(m.Pa.s.m2)-1, incorporating sodium acetate, also showing high permeability to CO2. The chitosan film without addition of sodium acetate had low lightness value L * (81.23 ± 1.43) and a higher opacity compared with the film containing acetate, suggesting that incorporation of sodium acetate increased transparency of the film. The films containing chitosan exhibited low water solubility and high b* component values, indicating the predominance of yellowing. The reported results is important once it will reduce the characterization work needed in subsequent applications of these coatings/films on foods

In vivo antileishmanial efficacy of a naphthoquinone derivate incorporated into a Pluronic? F127-based polymeric micelle system against Leishmania amazonensis infection.

New therapeutic strategies against leishmaniasis are desirable, since the treatment against disease presents problems, such as the toxicity, high cost and/or parasite resistance. As consequence, new antileishmanial compounds are necessary to be identified, as presenting high activity against Leishmania parasites, but low toxicity in mammalian hosts. Flau-A is a naphthoquinone derivative recently showed to presents an in vitro effective action against Leishmania amazonensis and L. infantum species. In the present work, the in vivo efficacy of Flau-A, which was incorporated into a Poloxamer 407-based micelle system, was evaluated in a murine model against L. amazonensis infection. Amphotericin B (AmB) and Ambisome? were used as controls. The animals were infected and later treated with the compounds. Thirty days after the treatment, parasitological and immunological parameters were evaluated. Results showed that AmB, Ambisome? , Flau-A or Flau-A/M-treated animals presented significantly lower average lesion diameter and parasite burden in tissue and organs evaluated, when compared to the control (saline and micelle) groups. Flau-A or Flau-A/M-treated mice were those presenting the most significant reductions in the parasite burden, when compared to the others. These animals developed also a more polarized antileishmanial Th1 immune response, which was based on significantly higher levels of IFN-?, IL-12, TNF-?, GM-CSF, and parasite-specific IgG2a isotype; associated with low levels of IL-4, IL10, and IgG1 antibody. The absence of toxicity was found in these animals, although mice receiving AmB have showed high levels of renal and hepatic damage markers. In conclusion, results suggested that the Flau-A/M compound may be considered as a possible therapeutic target to be evaluated against human leishmaniasis

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Identification of heavy-flavour jets with the CMS detector in pp collisions at 13 TeV

Many measurements and searches for physics beyond the standard model at the LHC rely on the efficient identification of heavy-flavour jets, i.e. jets originating from bottom or charm quarks. In this paper, the discriminating variables and the algorithms used for heavy-flavour jet identification during the first years of operation of the CMS experiment in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, are presented. Heavy-flavour jet identification algorithms have been improved compared to those used previously at centre-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV. For jets with transverse momenta in the range expected in simulated $\mathrm{t}\overline{\mathrm{t}}$ events, these new developments result in an efficiency of 68% for the correct identification of a b jet for a probability of 1% of misidentifying a light-flavour jet. The improvement in relative efficiency at this misidentification probability is about 15%, compared to previous CMS algorithms. In addition, for the first time algorithms have been developed to identify jets containing two b hadrons in Lorentz-boosted event topologies, as well as to tag c jets. The large data sample recorded in 2016 at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV has also allowed the development of new methods to measure the efficiency and misidentification probability of heavy-flavour jet identification algorithms. The heavy-flavour jet identification efficiency is measured with a precision of a few per cent at moderate jet transverse momenta (between 30 and 300 GeV) and about 5% at the highest jet transverse momenta (between 500 and 1000 GeV)

Evidence for the Higgs boson decay to a bottom quark–antiquark pair

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Familial hypercholesterolaemia in children and adolescents from 48 countries: a cross-sectional study

Background: Approximately 450 000 children are born with familial hypercholesterolaemia worldwide every year, yet only 2·1% of adults with familial hypercholesterolaemia were diagnosed before age 18 years via current diagnostic approaches, which are derived from observations in adults. We aimed to characterise children and adolescents with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (HeFH) and understand current approaches to the identification and management of familial hypercholesterolaemia to inform future public health strategies. Methods: For this cross-sectional study, we assessed children and adolescents younger than 18 years with a clinical or genetic diagnosis of HeFH at the time of entry into the Familial Hypercholesterolaemia Studies Collaboration (FHSC) registry between Oct 1, 2015, and Jan 31, 2021. Data in the registry were collected from 55 regional or national registries in 48 countries. Diagnoses relying on self-reported history of familial hypercholesterolaemia and suspected secondary hypercholesterolaemia were excluded from the registry; people with untreated LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) of at least 13·0 mmol/L were excluded from this study. Data were assessed overall and by WHO region, World Bank country income status, age, diagnostic criteria, and index-case status. The main outcome of this study was to assess current identification and management of children and adolescents with familial hypercholesterolaemia. Findings: Of 63 093 individuals in the FHSC registry, 11 848 (18·8%) were children or adolescents younger than 18 years with HeFH and were included in this study; 5756 (50·2%) of 11 476 included individuals were female and 5720 (49·8%) were male. Sex data were missing for 372 (3·1%) of 11 848 individuals. Median age at registry entry was 9·6 years (IQR 5·8-13·2). 10 099 (89·9%) of 11 235 included individuals had a final genetically confirmed diagnosis of familial hypercholesterolaemia and 1136 (10·1%) had a clinical diagnosis. Genetically confirmed diagnosis data or clinical diagnosis data were missing for 613 (5·2%) of 11 848 individuals. Genetic diagnosis was more common in children and adolescents from high-income countries (9427 [92·4%] of 10 202) than in children and adolescents from non-high-income countries (199 [48·0%] of 415). 3414 (31·6%) of 10 804 children or adolescents were index cases. Familial-hypercholesterolaemia-related physical signs, cardiovascular risk factors, and cardiovascular disease were uncommon, but were more common in non-high-income countries. 7557 (72·4%) of 10 428 included children or adolescents were not taking lipid-lowering medication (LLM) and had a median LDL-C of 5·00 mmol/L (IQR 4·05-6·08). Compared with genetic diagnosis, the use of unadapted clinical criteria intended for use in adults and reliant on more extreme phenotypes could result in 50-75% of children and adolescents with familial hypercholesterolaemia not being identified. Interpretation: Clinical characteristics observed in adults with familial hypercholesterolaemia are uncommon in children and adolescents with familial hypercholesterolaemia, hence detection in this age group relies on measurement of LDL-C and genetic confirmation. Where genetic testing is unavailable, increased availability and use of LDL-C measurements in the first few years of life could help reduce the current gap between prevalence and detection, enabling increased use of combination LLM to reach recommended LDL-C targets early in life