Age and growth of the Atlantic chub mackerel Scomber colias Gmelin, 1789 off Madeira Island

The Atlantic chub mackerel, Scomber colias Gmelin, 1789, is one of the main fisheries resources of Madeira Island. It is caught by a small and coastal purse-seine fleet that traditionally operates around the island. From January 2002 to December 2003, monthly samples of chub mackerel were collected from landings by this commercial fishing fleet. A total of 2212 sagitta otoliths were extracted for age readings from 1068 males (17.4-41.7 cm total length, TL), 1066 females (18.0-41.2 cm TL) and 78 undetermined (13.0-26.8 cm TL). A single reader aged the fishes using surface-read whole otoliths aiming to build annual age-length keys. Age readings precision and reader consistency were assessed by using the average percentage error index (APE ≤ 1.52). Ages were validated up to 4 years using marginal analyses. Estimated mean lengths at age and length von Bertalanffy growth curve parameters, estimated by non-linear methods, showed no significant differences (p>0.05) between sexes (L∞=50.08 cm TL, k=0.252 yr-1 and t0=-1.339 yr; males and females combined). Length-weight relationships were estimated aiming to convert growth in length to growth in weight. No differences between sexes were found in length-weight parameters (P>0.05). For sexes combined, total weight (TW, g) = 0.00218.LT 3.40 and the estimated asymptotic weight, W∞=1523.7 g

Laboratory tests to characterize the mastic of bituminous mixtures

The bituminous mixtures are composed by more than one material (i.e. coarse and fine aggregates, filler and bitumen). The components are simultaneously present and contribute to the response of the mixture. Some studies have pointed out the mastic influence in the bituminous mixtures behaviour. The mastic is a mix of bitumen, filler and fine aggregates (maximum dimension of 2 mm) and represents the binder of the coarse aggregates in the bituminous mixtures. This research intends to observe the mechanical behaviour of the mastic as part of the bituminous mixture and it correlation with the bituminous mixtures. The mechanical performance of the mastic was observed in laboratory using tensile, compression and shear tests. Bituminous mixtures with the mastics defined in this work were made and then characterized using the same tests and the results were correlated to the mastic behaviour. The main conclusions explain the influence of the mastic in the performance of a bituminous mixture.(undefined

Anxiety, threat appraisal and coping in sports : individual trait anxiety differences

El propósito de este estudio fue analizar los niveles de ansiedad, percepción de amenaza y las estrategias de afrontamiento de deportistas portugueses, confirmando la posibilidad de diferenciar deportistas con baja y alta ansiedad basándonos en sus niveles de percepción de amenaza y en las estrategias de afrontamiento que utilizaban. 550 deportistas de ambos sexos, entre los 15 y los 35 años (19.8±4.5), rellenaron las versiones portuguesas de la Sport Anxiety Scale (Smith, Smoll, & Schutz, 1990) y del Brief COPE (Carver, 1997), así como la Escala de Avaliação Cognitiva da Competição - Percepção de Ameaça (Escala de Evaluación Cognitiva de la Competición - Percepción de Amenaza; Cruz, 1994). Los resultados sugirieron que deportistas con bajo y alto rasgo de ansiedad podían ser distinguidos a partir de los niveles de amenaza percibidos y de las estrategias utilizadas para su afrontamiento. Los resultados fueron discutidos en relación con su aplicación investigadora y práctica.The purpose of this study was to examine the levels of anxiety, threat perception, and coping strategies used by high and low-trait anxious Portuguese athletes, examining if they could be differentiated by their levels of threat perception and coping skills. Five-hundred and fifty male and female athletes, aged between 15 and 35 years (19.8±4.5), completed the Portuguese versions of the Sport Anxiety Scale (Smith, Smoll, & Schutz, 1990) and of the Brief COPE (Carver, 1997), as well as the Escala de Avaliação Cognitiva da Competição - Percepção de Ameaça (Cognitive Appraisal Scale in Sport Competition – Threat Perception; Cruz, 1994). Results suggested that high and low trait anxious athletes could be differentiated by their threat perception levels and coping strategies used. Results were discussed with regard to theoretical, research and applied issues.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

Anxiety and coping strategies in sport contexts: a look at the psychometric properties of Portuguese instruments for their assessmen

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Portuguese versions of the Sport Anxiety Scale and of the Brief COPE, as well as of the Cognitive Appraisal Scale in Sport Competition– Threat Perception, namely regarding their factor structure validity and internal consistency. Participants were 550 male and female athletes of several sports, aged 15 to 35 years old (M=19.8; SD=4.5). Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis indicated that the instruments demonstrated good psychometric properties. In general, the measurement models provided a good fit to the empirical data and with the exception of some scales of the Brief COPE, the calculated Cronbach’s a coefficient of reliability indicated adequate internal consistency for the three instruments. Overall, the results of the present study provided evidence for these instruments’ validity and reliability, ultimately supporting their importance for research and psychological intervention in sport contexts.El objetivo de este studio fue examinar las propiedades psicométricas de las versiones portuguesas del Sport Anxiety Scale, el Brief COPE, y el Cognitive Appraisal Scale in Sport Competition– Threat Perception, atendiendo a su validez de estructura factorial y consistencia interna. Los participantes fueron 550 atletas de ambos sexos y diversos deportes con edades entre 15 y 35 años (M=19.8; DT=4.5). Los análisis factoriales exploratorio y confirmatorio indicaron que los instrumentos mostraban buenas propiedades psicométricas. En general, los modelos de medida proporcionaron un buen ajuste a los datos empíricos y, con la excepción de algunas escalas del Brief COPE, el coeficiente de fiabilidad de Cronbach indicó una consistencia interna adecuada de los tres instrumentos. Globalmente los resultados de este estudio proporcionaron evidencia de la fiabilidad y validez de los citados instrumentos, reforzando su importancia para la investigación y la intervención psicológicas en contextos deportivosFundação para a Ciência e Tecnologi

Identification of yeasts isolated from wine-related environments and capable of producing 4-ethylphenol

www.elsevier.nl/locate/jnlabr/yfmic DOI:10.1016/S0740-0020(02)00152-1The ability to produce 4-ethylphenol from the substrate p-coumaric acid in synthetic media was evaluated for several yeast species associated with wine production.Molar conversion rates as high as 90% were found by only Dekkera bruxellensis, D. anomala and by some unidentified strains isolated from wine-related environments.Other unidentified strains produced traces of 4-ethylphenol. All unidentified strains showed the same cultural characteristics as D. bruxellensis when grown on DBDM (Dekkera/Brettanomyces differential medium) agar.The determination of long-chain fatty acid compositions and the utilization of peptide nucleic acid (PNA) probes specific for D. bruxellensis showed that the unidentified strains did not belong to this species.Further identification, by restriction pattern generated from PCR-amplification of the 5.8S rRNA gene and the two internal transcribed spacers (ITS), assigned the unidentified strains to Candida cantarelli, C. wickerhamii, Debaryomyces hansenii, Kluyveromyces lactis and Pichia guilliermondii.However, only some strains of P. guilliermondii were capable of converting p-coumaric acid into 4-ethylphenol with efficiencies close to those observed in D. bruxellensis and D. anomala

Pavement recycling: an environmentally sustainable rehabilitation alternative

The preservation of environment by reducing the use of material and natural resources together with important economic savings have led pavement recycling to be a prime solution for pavement maintenance/rehabilitation. It is based on sustainable development, by reusing materials reclaimed from the pavements and reducing the disposal of asphalt materials. The present paper focuses on the analysis of a heavily trafficked urban road rehabilitation project. The original pavement design did not take into account the current traffic levels which are considerably above the initial values. The pavement was reaching failure in several areas and needed urgent measures to avoid complete failure. The pavement condition was a result of lack of structural strength and a deficient drainage. A semi-rigid pavement structure was proposed in order to improve the bearing capacity of the pavement and minimize the maintenance operations in the future. The operations involved cold “in situ” recycling of part of the existing bituminous layers and the top part of the granular layers with the addition of cement, and the overlay with new bituminous mixtures incorporating a significant percentage of materials reclaimed from the surface course of the same pavement. This solution allowed the maintenance of the pavement level (without the need for footpath reconstruction) and minimized the use of new materials, contributing towards a sustainable development

Coping strategies, multidimensional competitive anxiety and cognitive threat appraisal : differences across sex, age and type of sport

The purpose of this study was to examine the levels of anxiety, threat perception, and the coping strategies used by Portuguese athletes, and to assess differences between athletes of different sexes, ages and sports. In this investigation there were 550 male and female participating athletes, aged between 15 and 35 years (19.8 ± 4.5), representing several individual and team sports. Subjects filled out the Portuguese versions of the Sport Anxiety Scale [34] and of the Brief COPE [4], as well as the Cognitive Appraisal Scale in Sport Competition – Threat Perception [9]. The results showed that all athletes experienced anxiety and threat perception, and used varied coping strategies, with a preference for adaptative strategies. Female athletes displayed higher levels of anxiety and threat perception, in addition to a greater use of diverse emotion- and problem-focused coping strategies; male athletes reported a greater substance abuse. Younger athletes seemed to use less efficacious coping strategies, and athletes from individual sports reported higher levels of anxiety, threat perception and venting of emotions; athletes from team sports reported a greater use of humor and substances

Emotions: past, present and future

Embora durante muito tempo a psicologia tenha relegado para segundo plano o estudo das emoções, actualmente estas são consideradas essenciais para a compreensão do comportamento e funcionamento dos seres humanos em praticamente todos os ramos da psicologia. Neste contexto, a presente revisão da literatura debruça-se sobre a análise de algumas das questões que mais têm preocupado os teóricos e investigadores no domínio das emoções – modelos teóricos, definição conceptual, dimensionalidade, universalidade e relação emoção- cognição – realizando, simultaneamente, uma análise do seu passado histórico e sugerindo direcções e caminhos futuros de investigação.Although in the present day emotions are considered an important component of human functioning, essential for understanding human behavior in virtually every branch of psychology, their study was long time neglected. Thus, the present review of the literature focuses on the analysis of some of the main concerns in this domain - theoretical models, conceptual definition, dimensionality, universality and emotion- cognition relation- while reviewing its past history and suggesting future research directions.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologi

The relationship between multidimensional competitive anxiety, cognitive threat appraisal, and coping strategies : a multi-sport study

Prova tipográficaThe purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between, multidimensional competitive trait anxiety (cognitive and somatic anxiety), trait cognitive threat appraisal, and coping styles. Five-hundred and fifty male and female athletes of several individual and team sports, between the ages of 15 and 35 (M ¼ 19.8 + 4.5), completed the translated and adapted versions of the Sport Anxiety Scale and of the Brief COPE, as well as the Cognitive Appraisal Scale in Sport Competition – Threat Perception. Pearson and Q2 Canonical correlations showed that higher levels of trait cognitive anxiety and threat appraisal were positively related to emotion-focused and avoidance coping and inversely related to problem-focused coping. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of individual differences in trait anxiety and threat appraisals, regarding athletes’ coping styles.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologi

Emoções, stress, ansiedade e coping : estudo qualitativo com atletas de elite

A influência dos factores e processos psicológicos no rendimento desportivo dos atletas está, de uma forma geral, amplamente demonstrada. No entanto, poucas investigações recorreram a uma metodologia qualitativa, a qual permite uma perspectiva mais detalhada e aprofundada das emoções e cognições dos atletas. Neste sentido, recorrendo a uma entrevista semi-estruturada, a presente investigação procurou, junto de 11 atletas portugueses de elite de vários desportos, com idades compreendidas entre os 22 e os 36 anos (M=30.64±4.84), identificar as suas principais fontes de stress e ansiedade e as estratégias de coping a que recorriam em situações stressantes e/ou problemáticas, bem como explorar o papel de outras emoções no seu desempenho desportivo. Os resultados revelaram que: i) as principais fontes de stress estavam relacionadas com aspectos ligados à natureza da competição, pressões externas e ao seu próprio desempenho, sendo comuns a diferentes modalidades; ii) os atletas recorriam a diversas estratégias de coping em simultâneo, geralmente adaptativas, centradas na resolução de problemas e/ou na gestão das emoções; e iii) para além da ansiedade, outras emoções, positivas e negativas, pareciam influenciar o desempenho dos atletas.The influence of psychological factors on athletes’ sport performance is, in general, well documented. However, few investigations used a qualitative methodology, which gives a more detailed and profound perspective of athlete’s emotions and cognitions. In this sense, using a semistructured interview with 11 Portuguese elite athletes from different sports, aged between 22 and 36 (M=30.64±4.84), the present study aimed to identify their major sources of stress and anxiety and the coping strategies they used in problematic and stressful situations, as well as to explore the role of other emotions, other than anxiety, in competitive performance. The results showed that: i) the major sources of stress were common to the different sports, and were related with the nature of competition, external pressures and the athletes’ performance; ii) the athletes used several coping strategies simultaneously, usually adaptative, either problem or emotion-focused; iii) in addition to anxiety, there were other positive and negative emotions that influenced athletes’ performanceFundação para a Ciência e Tecnologi