The Tenure Game: Building Up Academic Habits

Why do some academics continue to be productive after receiving tenure? This paper answers this question by using a Stackelberg differential game between departments and scholars. We show that departments can set tenure rules and standards as incentives for scholars to accumulate academic habits. As a result, academic habits have a lasting positive impact in scholar’s productivity, leading to higher scholar’s productivity rate of growth and higher productivity level.Role of economists; sociology of economics.

From Growth Spurts to Sustained Growth: The Nature of Growth and Unified Growth Theory

The recent literature on unified growth theory has shed new light on the transition to sustained economic growth. Nevertheless, unified growth theory has not devoted a lot of attention to the nature of economic growth and its impact in the transition from Malthus to Solow. This research presents new evidence on the existence of pre-industrial growth spurts and provides new foundations concerning the nature of economic growth during the Malthus to Solow transition. Following previous research in unified growth theory, sustained economic growth arises due to complementarities between the triple engines of growth of technological development, human capital and the organization of the workplace. In this research, growth spurts are an intrinsic feature of the economy, but throughout history their effect on standards of living is mostly temporary. The rise in living standards only becomes sustained when the complementarity of the triple engines of growth emerges. In Malthusian economies, most technologies were basic and only require straightforward knowledge or human capital, and thus the skill-technology complementarity did not play a role in their development. As a consequence, most technological developments in Malthusian economies generated growth spurts that did not become sustained, although there was a temporary increase in standards of living. However, the increasing complexity of the epistemic knowledge base reported by the historical literature meant that investments in applied technology were progressively more significant, enhancing the role of human capital. After a certain threshold of the knowledge base was surpassed, more and more complex applied technologies were developed, and growth spurts became permanent features of the economy. This research thus captures some of the most important historical features concerning the nature of growth in the transition to sustained economic growth.growth spurts, unified growth theory, sustained economic growth

Maxwell, Kenneth. Pombal, Paradox of the Enlightenment

Discussing what has or has not been said in the historiography written in English about themes from Portuguese history runs the risk of being transformed into a string of constantly repeated lamentations. As a general rule, there is almost always a tendency to fall back on a comment made by Laura de Mello e Souza in the first published review (1995) of Maxwell’s book about Pombal: “peripheral, both in the past and in the present, Portugal has ended up being miniaturized by European historians, who have placed it well below its real dimensions or have simply ignored it.” Nonetheless, the eighteenth century has a number of quite distinctive marks, which are best not forgotte

What I Learned from Joaquim Romero Magalhães

Precisely because they were grounded on a solid knowledge of institutional and social matrices of the Portuguese trans-continental reality, Romero Magalhães’s works provide many relevant contributions on specific matters. Often there are less prominent ideas in the overall economy of a work that can be very striking to those who read them. I would like to emphasize three, which decisively influenced my understanding of Portuguese history and all my historiographical output.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Network anomalies detection via event analysis and correlation by a smart system

The multidisciplinary of contemporary societies compel us to look at Information Technology (IT) systems as one of the most significant grants that we can remember. However, its increase implies a mandatory security force for users, a force in the form of effective and robust tools to combat cybercrime to which users, individual or collective, are ex-posed almost daily. Monitoring and detection of this kind of problem must be ensured in real-time, allowing companies to intervene fruitfully, quickly and in unison. The proposed framework is based on an organic symbiosis between credible, affordable, and effective open-source tools for data analysis, relying on Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), Big Data and Machine Learning (ML) techniques commonly applied for the development of real-time monitoring systems. Dissecting this framework, it is composed of a system based on SIEM methodology that provides monitoring of data in real-time and simultaneously saves the information, to assist forensic investigation teams. Secondly, the application of the Big Data concept is effective in manipulating and organising the flow of data. Lastly, the use of ML techniques that help create mechanisms to detect possible attacks or anomalies on the network. This framework is intended to provide a real-time analysis application in the institution ISCTE – Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (Iscte), offering a more complete, efficient, and secure monitoring of the data from the different devices comprising the network.A multidisciplinaridade das sociedades contemporâneas obriga-nos a perspetivar os sistemas informáticos como uma das maiores dádivas de que há memória. Todavia o seu incremento implica uma mandatária força de segurança para utilizadores, força essa em forma de ferramentas eficazes e robustas no combate ao cibercrime a que os utilizadores, individuais ou coletivos, são sujeitos quase diariamente. A monitorização e deteção deste tipo de problemas tem de ser assegurada em tempo real, permitindo assim, às empresas intervenções frutuosas, rápidas e em uníssono. A framework proposta é alicerçada numa simbiose orgânica entre ferramentas open source credíveis, acessíveis pecuniariamente e eficazes na monitorização de dados, recorrendo a um sistema baseado em técnicas de Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), Big Data e Machine Learning (ML) comumente aplicadas para a criação de sistemas de monitorização em tempo real. Dissecando esta framework, é composta pela metodologia SIEM que possibilita a monitorização de dados em tempo real e em simultâneo guardar a informação, com o objetivo de auxiliar as equipas de investigação forense. Em segundo lugar, a aplicação do conceito Big Data eficaz na manipulação e organização do fluxo dos dados. Por último, o uso de técnicas de ML que ajudam a criação de mecanismos de deteção de possíveis ataques ou anomalias na rede. Esta framework tem como objetivo uma aplicação de análise em tempo real na instituição ISCTE – Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (Iscte), apresentando uma monitorização mais completa, eficiente e segura dos dados dos diversos dispositivos presentes na mesma

Guiding legacy systems for evolution. PmatE: a case study of maintenance and engineering

Even though software change is inevitable, accurate maintenance can extend software lifespan in a subtle way when both budget and time constraints get in the way of software replacement. In the University of Aveiro, the project PmatE – a quiz web platform created to encourage students to like Math – emerged in the early 1990’s and stacked several applications over the decades without major planning, cleaning or upgrade. This resulted in a huge-sized framework that was crucial to be always available and online and had high operational cost, leading to an increasing amount of technical debt. After 3 decades, the project was studied, refactored and refurbished, leading to a stable consistent framework ready for evolution and software spinouts. This work shows how to manage and engineer solutions to maintain a legacy system and evolve it even when tied up to heavy constraints.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The challenges of digital transformation for community pharmacies in Portugal

Healthcare has been facing Digital Transformation and Community Pharmacies (CP) are no exception. The introduction of digital technology posed several challenges to pharmacies management. Departing from Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovation Model as a conceptual framework the study classified CP into clusters by their level of adoption of innovation, based on the Technical Directors’ answers to an online survey, which retrieved a distribution according to the model used. The results indicated that low level of adoption CP rely more on Pharmacy associations. Besides, the respondents’ perception shows that they believe that CP in Portugal are innovative, however, Innovators were the ones with lower rate of agreement to that. The main challenge identified was the need for an integrated network with other Healthcare agents, to improve communication and data sharing. The synergy between physical and digital, such as the integrations of more digital tools in the Pharmacy’s management are other of the biggest concerns. The discussion of results argues about the challenges that were raised; the CP’s innovativeness; the preferred communication channels; the importance of regulatory policies; and the future digital solutions. Literature gaps are identified to better assess the universe of CP: the pharmacists’ job satisfaction, and the importance of the regulatory policies to the innovation of the sector. Finally, this thesis shows there are opportunities for further digital innovation in the sector, and starts exploring the role of pharmacists, pharmacy associations and suggests different approaches of the government and regulators in the process.A Transformação Digital tem impactado cada vez mais a área da Saúde, particularmente as Farmácias Comunitárias. A introdução de tecnologias digitais tem testado a gestão das Farmácias. O estudo foi enquadrado no Modelo da Difusão de Inovação de Rogers, classificando as farmácias por níveis de adoção de Inovação, com base nas respostas dos Diretores Técnicos a um questionário online. Este retornou uma distribuição de acordo com o modelo. Os resultados indicam que os níveis de inovação mais baixos dependem mais de associações de farmácias. Além disso, a perceção dos participantes é de que as Farmácias são inovadoras, embora, os Inovadores tenham apresentado maior desconfiança sobre tal. O principal desafio identificado foi a necessidade de uma rede integrada com os demais agentes de cuidados de Saúde. A sinergia entre o espaço físico e o digital, bem como a integração de mais ferramentas digitais na gestão da farmácia são outras das maiores preocupações. A discussão dos resultados assenta nos desafios que surgiram; na inovação das Farmácias; nos canais de comunicação preferidos; e na importância das políticas de regulação. São identificadas algumas lacunas na literatura: a avaliação da satisfação com o emprego dos farmacêuticos, bem como a importância das políticas regulatórias na inovação do setor e as futuras soluções digitais para o setor. Finalmente, a tese aponta oportunidades no setor de maior integração digital, debate o papel dos farmacêuticos e da importância das associações de farmácias e sugere novas abordagens do Estado e dos reguladores

Multi level marketing and the impact on distributors’ loyalty of (un)success factors: an approach to measure loyalty

Multi-level marketing industry besides on the 20th century has had a great expansion and some companies became huge players in their activity sectors, a lot of missing points still exists and remain to be explained. This study has the aim to explore MLM model, making a three-part analysis taking into account the stakeholders of MLM - companies, distributors and consumers. At the same time offering a way to multi-level marketing companies’ managers can accurate the loyalty and the changes in loyalty that distributors have once a decision is taken by them (managers). Using a sample with 149 answers, were tested the factors pointed in literature review having a negative impact towards the distributors’ loyalty. The results discussion and analysis suggest that those “negative” factors for distributors loyalty towards the companies weren’t negative. The empirical results show that they have a positive influence over the distributors loyalty, rejecting almost all hypotheses. The proposed model offers a tool to managers to better understand which the negative and positive factors and those are which have more and less influence over loyalty. Analysing the model, we also can identify differences in factors’ interpretation over the active and non-active distributors.A indústria do marketing multi nível apesar de ao longo do século XX ter tido uma grande expansão e algumas empresas que se implementam terem se tornado grandes “players” do seus sectores continua com muitas pontas soltas por esclarecer. Este estudo tem como objetivo abordar este tão pouco explorado modelo abordando os três agentes relevantes (empresa, distribuidor e consumidor), enquanto oferece uma forma dos gestores das empresas de marketing multi nível conseguirem ponderar o vínculo e a lealdade que os distribuidores têm com a empresa após a tomada de estratégias que em muito podem mudar o rumo da empresa. Usando uma amostra de 149 pessoas, foram testados os fatores que anteriormente tinham sido estudados e apresentados na revisão literária como de influência negativa para a ligação entre os distribuidores e a empresa. A análise dos resultados sugere que esses fatores, que se apresentavam como negativos para o vínculo e lealdade do distribuidor com a empresa, se apresentam como positivos para essa ligação, rejeitando praticamente todas as premissas assumidas. O modelo proposto oferece então uma forma dos gestores perceberem que fatores são negativos e positivos e quais têm maior ou menor influência. Analisando o modelo conseguimos também identificar diferenças entre a interpretação dos distribuidores ativos e dos distribuidores inativos

Analysis of residue interaction networks in molecular dynamics simulations

É sabido que a estrutura de uma proteína não é estática, mas sim dinâmica. Porém, a análise dinâmica da sua estrutura não é de todo fácil, muito por via das dimensões dos sistemas a analisar. Por outro lado, a variedade de fatores que pode causar perturbações num sistema biológico também dificulta a análise. Nesse sentido, as simulações de dinâmica molecular (MD) apresentam-se como uma ferramenta muito importante pois geram toda uma biblioteca de dados a partir de uma determinada simulação. A análise detalhada destes dados é um processo complexo e demorado que requer diversas ferramentas computacionais. Neste projeto foi utilizado a MDAnalysis, uma biblioteca open source orientada a objetos para análise estrutural e temporal de resultados de dinâmica molecular, em particular de trajetórias de simulação e de estruturas de proteínas. Está escrita na linguagem Python, com algum código de desempenho crítico em C, recorrendo ainda a funcionalidades do pacote NumPy. Adicionalmente, foi criado um script em Python que tentou facilitar e otimizar o processo com via a obter uma interface que permita ao utilizador selecionar o tipo interações a analisar, necessitando apenas de fornecer como input os ficheiros gro e xtc da dinâmica molecular de uma simulação de sistema biológico. O script criado, por sua vez, faz todo o processo de seleção, tratamento, análise e representação dos resultados com maior interesse da simulação fornecida sobre a forma de ficheiro .pdf, bem como em formato .csv com os dados detalhados da análise de cada simulação. O script desenvolvido foi aplicado ao estudo da capacidade da transferrina, uma proteína envolvida no transporte de ferro, associado ao anião carbonato, transportar também vanádio. Foram analisadas as ligações para todos os tipos de interações possíveis envolvendo os metais Fe(III) e V(III) e o anião sinergístico carbonato, nos diferentes estados de protonação possíveis, de modo a validar o funcionamento do código desenvolvido. Foi observado que as conformações mais fechadas da proteína estabelecem mais interacções do que a conformação aberta, sendo a distância média na conformação fechada inferior à na conformação relaxada. O anião favorecido através da análise das interações entre os metais e os aniões para todas as proteínas, revelou ser o ácido carbónico, juntamente com o Fe(III) uma vez que este estabelece mais interações do que V(III). Estes resultados correspondem ao que é conhecido da literatura par esta proteína, permitindo validar o funcionamento do código desenvolvido. Estes resultados permitem concluir que o código origina resultados fiáveis.It is known that the structure of the protein is not static, but its analysis is not at all easy, due to the dimensions of the studies, the variety of factors that can cause disturbances in a biological system also make these analyzes difficult. In this sense, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are a very important tool because they generate a whole library of data from a given simulation. Uhis is a complex and time-consuming process that requires several computational tools to perform a detailed analysis. MDAnalysis was used in this project, it's an open source object-oriented library for structural and temporal analysis of molecular dynamics (MD), simulation's trajectories and structures analysis of individual proteins. It's written in Python language with some critical code in C, it also uses features from the NumPy package. Additionally, a python script was created in order to improve and optimize the process with an interactive user interface that would allow selecting the type of interactions to be analyzed, only needing to provide the .gro and .xtc files of the molecular dynamics of a molecular dynamics simulation as input. The script created makes the entire process of selection, treatment, analysis and representation easier. The results are provided in the form of .pdf as well as .csv. The developed script was applied to the study of the ability of transferrin, a protein involved in the transport of iron, associated with the carbonate anion, to also transport vanadium, as well as its ability to use other synergistic anions. Interactions were analyzed for all types of possible interactions involving metals - Fe(III) and V(III) - and the different protonation states of carbonate, in order to validate the script. It was observed that the closed and relaxed conformations of the protein were more likely to establish bonds than the open conformation. When there were coincident interactions, the average distance in the more closed conformation values were inferior to those of the relaxed conformation. The favored anion through the analysis of interactions between metals and anions for all proteins turned out to be carbonic acid, together with Fe(III) since this establishes more interactions than V(III). Additionally, in the case of the open conformation, interactions with cysteine residues were observed, although average values of distance of interactions are very high. These results indicate that the developed code is working as expected