Quality of the Azores destination in the perspective of tourists

Tourism is a growing industry in the Autonomous Region of the Azores. However, little is known about how tourists evaluate this destination, something which certainly constitutes a shortcoming if one takes into consideration that this is a very competitive industry, with new destinations appearing every year and others increasing their market share. This paper focuses on the quality of the Azores destination in the perspective of tourists and, to an extent, has the goal of contributing to reduce this shortcoming. According to our findings, 74% of the tourists interviewed consider the global quality of the Azores destination to be very good or excellent, with the landscape, the climate/weather, the hospitality, the cleanliness and the security being the most highly-rated partial indicators. Additionally, a regression analysis indicates that the evaluation of the global quality of this destination varies according to the individual characteristics of tourists.N/

LMS in higher education: analysis of the effect of a critical factor ‘faculty training’

The purpose of this research is the analysis of the impact of ICT-related training in the adoption of a learning management systems (LMS) for teaching practicesby faculties in a higher education institution. Based on comparative analyses the impact will be obtained by the number of LMS courses created and managed by participants in ICT for teaching workshops and those who have not attended to any workshops. Involving near 1320 LMS courses and 265 faculties, the results evidence that(i) faculties who have not attend any workshop present a larger distribution of empty courses and (ii) faculties who have attended three or more workshops managed a higher distribution of courses with a considerable level of use intensity, when compared to the others groups. These findings supportthe idea that faculty training is a crucial factor in the process of LMS integration in higher education institutions and that faculties who have been enrolled in three or more workshops develop a higher level of technical and pedagogical proficiency in LMS

Preparação e caraterização dos resíduos de espumas de poliuretano do setor do calçado para reciclagem química

O presente trabalho de tese é um relatório de estágio que se enquadrou num projeto de investigação desenvolvido pelo Centro de Investigação Cartif, com o título de “RECICLADO QUÍMICO DE ESPUMAS DE POLIURETANO PARA SU USO EN EL SECTOR DEL CALZADO”. Assim, o relatório apresentado representa todas as atividades desenvolvidas no período de estágio, quatro meses (entre catorze de Fevereiro de 2013 e catorze de Junho de 2013), no Centro de Investigação Cartif, no departamento de Meio Ambiente. O trabalho apresentado resulta da concretização das primeiras etapas do projeto de investigação, nomeadamente a realização da Tarefa 1 que foi completada e consistia na receção e caracterização dos resíduos do polímero Poliuretano provenientes do setor do calçado; iniciação da Tarefa 2, associada ao estudo das condições ótimas da reciclagem química (glicólise) dos resíduos de espumas de Poliuretano. Globalmente, obtiveram-se 5 amostras de espuma poliuretano diferentes (resíduos de diferentes etapas na fabricação do calçado e de diferente aspeto visual) a partir dos resíduos obtidos do setor do calçado e duas amostras de poliol puro (material de base do polímero de poliuretano) fornecidas pelas empresas do sector do calçado. As amostras de resíduos obtidas sofreram um pré-tratamento para selecionar o material de espuma de poliuretano. Na caraterização destes resíduos pré-tratados aplicaram-se as metodologias de determinação da densidade (real e aparente), análise termo gravimétrica, análise com FTIR, análise da Viscosidade e análise do Índice de Hidroxilos. Os resultados obtidos mostram que as diferentes amostras pré-tratadas mostram uma grande variabilidade ao nível da densidade, como era esperado pois, os resíduos analisados são de diferentes etapas na fabricação do calçado (realçado pelos diferentes aspetos visuais do materiais). As análises termo gravimétrica e de infravermelho mostraram que as amostras pré-tratadas são semelhantes na variação da massa com a temperatura e nos espectros de infravermelho, respetivamente. Estes resultados mostram que o pré-tratamento aos resíduos permitiu obter amostras de composição homogênea de espuma de poliuretano. As amostras de poliol obtidas mostraram valores de viscosidade e de índice de Hidroxilos que se enquadram nos valores normais para compostos poliol e servirão de padrões para o poliol que se vai obter da reciclagem química de cada uma das amostras prétratadas obtidas a partir dos resíduos do setor de calçado.This thesis is a report of the work carried out in the Research Centre Cartif, in a research project named "RECYCLED CHEMICAL OF THE POLYURETHANE FOAM FOR USE IN THE FOOTWEAR INDUSTRY". The report is about all the activities done during the time of traineeship, four months (between February 14, 2013 and June 14, 2013), held at the Research Centre Cartif, in the department of Environment. This work presents the results from the two first tasks of the research project, which included the completion of Task 1 (consisted in the polyurethane foam wastes reception and characterization which were obtained from footwear industry sector; and the initiation of Task 2, associated with the study of the optimum conditions for chemical recycling (glycolysis) of polyurethane foams wastes. Globally, five different polyurethane foam samples were obtained (residues from various steps in the footwear manufacturing and with different visual appearance) and two samples of pure polyol (base material for the polyurethane polymer production) provided by companies of the footwear industry. The obtained wastes samples had undergone pretreatment to select the polyurethane foam material. In the characterization of these pre-treated wastes, the analytical methodologies applied were density analysis (real and apparent), thermogravimetric analysis, FTIR analysis and analysis of Viscosity and Index hydroxyls. The results showed that the different pre-treated samples had a high variability in terms of density, as expected, because the analysed residues were from different stages in the manufacture of footwear (highlighted by the different visual aspects of the materials). The results from thermogravimetric and infrared analysis showed that the pre-treated samples had similar mass variation with temperature and infrared spectra, respectively. These results showed that the wastes pre-treatment allowed to obtain final samples of polyurethane foam with homogeneous composition. The obtained polyol samples showed expected viscosity and hydroxyl index values typical of polyol compounds and these samples will be used as standards for the polyols recycled that will be obtained from the chemical recycling of each of the pre-treated samples (obtained from the polyurethane foam wastes of the footwear industry sector)

Integration of Ecosystem Services into Land Use Planning in Mozambique

Atumane, A., & Cabral, P. (2021). Integration of Ecosystem Services into Land Use Planning in Mozambique. Ecosystems and People, 17(1), 165-177. https://doi.org/10.1080/26395916.2021.1903081The Ecosystem Service (ES) concept needs to be expressed and communicated effectively to be successfully integrated into decision-making. In this paper, we conducted a review of relevant documents to Mozambique’s spatial planning by performing a content analysis based on ES categories. Results revealed that of the seven Land Use Planning (LUP) documents analyzed, only the National Development Strategy referenced ES explicitly. However, all documents made implicit references to provisioning ES. Five out of the seven LUP documents referred to regulating and cultural ES. None of the LUP documents made any explicit or implicit references to supporting ES. A Strengths, Weakness Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis towards ES integration in LUP based on these documents showed that the major strength was acknowledging the need to preserve ecological equilibrium and ensure sustainability. The periodical revision of tools and participatory approaches in LUP opens opportunities for integrating ES into LUP processes. This integration could be achieved by establishing a SEA legal framework based on LUP and Environment legal frameworks assisted by a set of common planning tools that consider ES as an additional indicator applied to spatial planning in Mozambique.publishersversionpublishe

A Multiscale Framework Based on Global Geospatial Data

Almeida, B. and Cabral, P. (2023). Data-Driven Modelling of Freshwater Ecosystems: A Multiscale Framework Based on Global Geospatial Data. In Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Geographical Information Systems Theory, Applications and Management - GISTAM; ISBN 978-989-758-649-1; ISSN 2184-500X, SciTePress, pages 104-111. DOI: 10.5220/0012037800003473---This work was supported by the research project MaSOT – Mapping Ecosystem Services from Earth Observations, funded by the Portuguese Science Foundation – FCT [EXPL/CTA-AMB/0165/2021], and by national funds through FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia), under the project - UIDB/04152/2020 - Centro de Investigação em Gestão de Informação (MagIC)/NOVA IMSFreshwater ecosystems are primarily impacted by climate, land use and land cover changes, and over-abstraction. Satellite Earth observation (SEO) data and technologies are key in environmental modelling and support decisions. These technologies combined with machine learning (ML) are a powerful approach for modelling freshwater ecosystems at a multiscale level. The goal of this study is to present a set of reference data and guidelines that can be used to estimate the water and wetness probability index (WWPI) in different spatial and temporal scales. To find the best model’s predictors, sensitivity analyses were carried out in a predictive ML model implemented in a transnational river basin district (Portugal – Spain), the Tagus Basin. Satellite imagery, satellite-derived data, biophysical variables, and landscape characteristics were the explanatory variables evaluated in the sensitivity analyses, and some of them were included in the framework as a reference source of spatial data.publishersversionpublishe

Brown bear behaviour in human-modified landscapes: the case of the endangered Cantabrian population, NW Spain

Large carnivore populations are recovering in Europe after centuries of population decline. The Cantabrian brown bear Ursus arctos population is endangered, and it is a good example of a large carnivore inhabiting a human-modified landscape. In order to study the impact of human landscape elements on bear behaviour we analysed 10 years of Cantabrian brown bear records. Human activity and structures do not appear to have an impact on the duration or appearance of vigilance behaviour. While bears avoid direct contact with humans, the mere presence of human infrastructure and activities don't not appear to impact its vigilance behaviours. The brown bear seems to be adapted to human coexistence and this should give a different perspective in future conservation efforts; Comportamento do Urso-Pardo em paisagens modificadas pelo Homem: o caso da população Cantábrica em perigo, NO Espanha Resumo: As populações de grandes carnívoros estão a recuperar por toda a Europa após séculos de declínio populacional. A população Cantábrica de urso pardo Ursus arctos encontra-se em perigo e é um bom exemplo de um grande carnívoro que habita uma paisagem modificada pelo Homem. A fim de estudar o impacto dos elementos da paisagem humanizada no comportamento do urso pardo, analisamos 10 anos de registos de comportamento de urso pardo Cantábrico. A atividade e estruturas humanas não parecem ter impacto na duração ou no aparecimento do comportamento de vigilância. O urso-pardo evita o contato direto com os seres humanos, no entanto a mera presença de infraestruturas e atividades humanas não parece ter impacto no comportamento de vigilância. O urso-pardo parece estar adaptado à coexistência humana e isso deverá dar uma perspetiva diferente a futuros esforços de conservação

Induction Motor Thermal Analysis Based on Lumped Parameter Thermal Network

Many industry applications required the use of the induction motors. In such envirenement the electrical machines are facing of many stressed operating conditions. One of the critical creteria which decide the choice of the induction motor is the thermal behaviour under different mode operation. In this paper a study of the thermal behavior of an induction motor is presented. In order to predict the temperature in the different machine components, a model based on the lumped parameter thermal network   has been developed. The geometry of the machine and the thermal properties of its various components are used to express the developed model. The joule and the iron losses are considering as the inputs. The proposed model is implemented and tested using MATLAB software. It is a simple model which could predict rapidly the different temperatures. Keywords: Induction motor, Thermal analysis, Lumped parameters thermal network, Modeling, Heat source

Interactive geodesic structures for attracting wider audience to marine concerns

Recent surveys indicate that there is a greater emotional disconnect between the European population and Europe’s aquatic environments [1]. Although a wider audience recognizes anthropogenic issues (i.e. litter pollution, overfishing, noise pollution, etc) where most people can feel connected to nature, however, they do not exhibit pro-environmental behaviors towards them. Interactive environ ments, which depict marine concerns, remain passive and informative, i.e. not being able to engage with the audience, failing to provide a long-term positive effect. This thesis explores the usage of geodesic structures in depicting marine concerns, exploring possible interactive environments among them in effort to increase the awareness of marine concerns. Dissertation performs five geodesic dome iterations and validations. In first, it studies the role of the open and porous geodesic structure, resembled as four marine species (seabird, sea turtle, dolphin and whale). In second, it enhances the first with the covers, studying more immersive experiences. Third setup contributed to the scaling-down of the geodesic dome marine species. Fourth setup showcased its deployment in wider public spaces. Fifth setup streamlined further the structures, so they can be used at diverse public spots. Two additional Augmented Reality modalites were used, with the former with interaction with the sea turtle and the latter, interacting with the whale.Pesquisas recentes indicam que há uma maior desconexão emocional entre a pop ulação europeia e os ambientes aquáticos da Europa. Embora um público mais amplo reconheça questões antropogênicas (ou seja, poluição maritima, pesca pre datória, poluição sonora, etc.), onde a maioria das pessoas pode se sentir conec tada à natureza, no entanto, eles não exibem comportamentos pró-ambientais em relação a eles. Os ambientes interativos, que retratam preocupações mar inhas, permanecem passivos e informativos, ou seja, não conseguem envolver o público, deixando de proporcionar um efeito positivo a longo prazo. Esta tese explora o uso de estruturas geodésicas na representação de preocupações mar inhas, explorando possíveis ambientes interativos entre elas em um esforço para aumentar a conscientização sobre preocupações marinhas. A dissertação real iza cinco iterações e validações de Domes geodésicas. Na primeira, é estudado o papel da estrutura geodésica aberta e porosa, semelhante às quatro espécies marinhas (ave marinha, tartaruga marinha, golfinho e baleia). Na segunda, po tencializa a primeira com as coberturas, estudando experiências mais imersivas. A terceira configuração contribuiu para a redução de espécies marinhas na cúpula geodésica. Na quarta configuração foi implantada em espaços públicos mais amp los. A quinta configuração simplificou ainda mais as estruturas para que possam ser usadas em vários locais públicos. Foram utilizadas duas modalidades adi cionais de Realidade Aumentada, a primeira com interação com a tartaruga marinha e a segunda com interação com a baleia