Determinants of the development of corporate bond markets in Argentina: One size does not fit all

Conventional theory leads to expect bonds to be a financing vehicle for large firms because of economies of scale and contracting costs. We find both in our econometric evidence for firms quoted on Latin American stock exchanges, and in our survey results for Argentina, that size of assets is a robust determinant of the use of bond finance. This result, together with the fact that there are few firms that are large in terms of market value, can help understand why Argentina, as well as Latin America, has small bond markets in terms of the ratio of the stock of bonds to GDP. Since firm value represents the present value of the cash flows against which the firm borrows, the outstanding stock of corporate bonds is as small as the size of Argentine firms.debt structure, leverage, short term debt, corporate bonds, firm size, firm value

Development of a metrology method for the alignment of optical systems

Tese de mestrado integrado, Engenharia Física, Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências, 2022The alignment of optical systems is a fundamental step during metrological tests to obtain meaningful and traceable results. Depending on the application, several approaches can be used to achieve the alignment of the components. However, for large and complex systems, the typical approach relies on the materialization of the optic axis using a gaussian-like light source. The work developed on this thesis is focused on this approach. Using a gaussian-like beam that serves as a reference source for axis materialization along with a bidimensional image sensor to monitor this light source, it is possible to align an optical system. Another requirement is an imaging processing technique. Depending on the application, several methods are commonly used to characterise and determine the center of a spot. The first step for this thesis was to make a brief study based on beam alignment techniques that are commonly used to have a better grasp on the state of the art associated with this process. The ideal beam processing method must be applicable to large images in real-time to allow the alignment to occur in an iterative way, while being as precise as possible with all the necessary information displayed in a computer screen to aid the operator in positioning optical components in the setups. To verify the potential of the proposed method, other commonly used methods were tested alongside it, using generated images with gaussian spots, benchmarking their performance and, consequently, obtaining positive results. Afterwards, a setup was constructed to test the proposed method to a wide variety of extreme conditions, comparing the results to another commonly used method for the same application. The automation of the process was achieved in LabVIEW 2017, a software capable of controlling the equipment and acquiring data automatically. The results obtained show that the method performed better than the other tested, and a further analysis can be done to fully characterise its performance. Some improvements can be made in the future, but nonetheless, the method is ready to be employed in a lab environment and achieve satisfactory results

Loan and bond finance in Argentina, 1985-2005

Loan and bond finance during 1985-2005 can be divided into three sub-periods. After the 1982 debt crisis, which mainly involved domestic and foreign bank loans to both the corporate and government sectors, there was practically no credit. This situation of lack of credit persisted until the domestic economy was stabilized in 1991 with the Convertibility Plan, and foreign debt renegotiation was completed in 1993 with the Brady Plan. Loan finance recovered to unprecedented levels since the 1950s, and bond finance became for the first time an important financing vehicle for both the national government and large firms in the corporate sector. Credit came to a sudden stop in 2001, with widespread default on both corporate and government bonds. The 2001 debt crisis was not followed by runaway domestic inflation, and by 2005 Argentina was able to return to foreign capital markets.bank loans, sovereign bonds, provincial bonds, central bank bonds, corporate bonds, pension funds, yields, liquidity

Corporate bonds, asset-backed securities and deferred checks in Argentina

We describe the evolution of three types of corporate securities in Argentina, namely, corporate bonds, asset-backed securities and deferred checks. Corporate bonds (obligaciones negociables) were legally authorized in 1988, and after a tax reform in 1991 they became an important financing vehicle. Asset backed securities (fideicomisos), legally created in 1995, have been issued since 1996. They typically bundle together small credits of a similar category. Deferred checks (cheques de pago diferido) exist since 1993, alongside standard checks. They can be negotiated on the exchange since 2003, and are akin to commercial paper. Corporate bonds have been overwhelmingly issued by large firms and banks, with an average issue size of 53 million dollars. Asset backed securities have an average value of 9 million dollars. Deferred checks are typically used by smaller firms, and those traded on the exchange of the Buenos Aires board of trade have an average value of 9 thousand dollars.private securities, corporate bonds, asset-backed securities, deferred checks

Evaluation of growth, yield and calorific value of Miscanthus x giganteus (Poaceae) biomass established in south central of Chile

Se establecieron cultivos experimentales de Miscanthus x giganteus en tres sitios contrastantes del centro-sur de Chile para evaluar su crecimiento y potencial energético. Al segundo año de crecimiento el cultivo presentó grandes diferencias entre sitios, altura (52,1 a 158,2 cm), rendimiento en biomasa (1,1 a 9,0 Mg ha-1), contenido de cenizas (3,8 a 9,6%) y poder calorífico (16,64 a 18,14 MJ kg-1). La composición química de la biomasa indicó celulosa en un 36%, hemicelulosa con 22,3% y lignina con 26,9%. El análisis elemental indicó 41,9% de C y 6,6% de H. Miscanthus x giganteus presenta condiciones para su utilización en la generación de energía en Chile.Experimental crops of Miscanthus x giganteus were planted in three contrasting sites in Chile south central to evaluate its growth and energy potential. In the second year of growth, the crop exhibited large differences among sites regarding height (52.1 to 158.2 cm), biomass yield (1.1 to 9.0 Mg ha-1), ash content (3.8 to 9.6%) and calorific value (16.64 to 18.14 MJ kg-1). The chemical composition of the biomass indicated cellulose 36%, hemicellulose 22.3% and lignin 26.9%. Elemental analysis indicated C and H content of 41.9% and 6.6% respectively. Therefore, Miscanthus x giganteus offers suitable attributes to be used for energy generation in Chile.Fil: Muñoz, Fernando. Universidad de Concepción (Chile)Fil: Cancino, Jorge. Universidad de Concepción (Chile)Fil: Rodríguez, Roque. Universidad de Santiago de Compostela. Escuela Politécnica SuperiorFil: Olave, Rodrigo

Pectinase production profile of Aspergillus foetidus in solid state cultures at different acidities

Solid-state cultures of a pectinase-producing fungus (Aspergillus foetidus NRRL 341) were performed under different acidic conditions. Glass bottles containing 5 g of wheat bran and 7.5 mL of 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, or 0.5 N HCl were autoclaved (15 min, 121°C), inoculated with a spore suspension appropriately diluted to achieve an initial concentration of 4 × 10⁴ spores per gram of wet substrate (with a 60 % humidity, on wet basis) and incubated at 30°C. Time course of pH and of different pectinase activities were determined in culture extracts. Total pectinase activity (TPA), expressed in terms of viscosimetric units per gram of wet substrate (VU.g⁻¹), was affected by the initial culture acidity. The higher the HCl concentration used, the higher the TPA achieved, but after longer cultivation times. On the other hand, when 0.5 HCl was used, no fungal growth was observed. Nevertheless, enzyme productivity increased with culture acidity. When 0.4 HCl was used, TPA reached its maximum after 36 h of cultivation (2,535 VU.g⁻¹). With 0.2 and 0.3 N HCl, TPA was the highest at 24 h (733 VU.g⁻¹) and at 30 h (1,860 VU.g⁻¹) respectively. The composition of the pectinase pool was also affected by culture acidity. The higher the acidity, the lower the pectinesterase activity and the higher both the polymethylgalacturonate lyase and polygalacturonase activities.Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriale

Loan and bond finance in Argentina, 1985-2005

Loan and bond finance during 1985-2005 can be divided into three sub-periods. After the 1982 debt crisis, which mainly involved domestic and foreign bank loans to both the corporate and government sectors, there was practically no credit. This situation of lack of credit persisted until the domestic economy was stabilized in 1991 with the Convertibility Plan, and foreign debt renegotiation was completed in 1993 with the Brady Plan. Loan finance recovered to unprecedented levels since the 1950s, and bond finance became for the first time an important financing vehicle for both the national government and large firms in the corporate sector. Credit came to a sudden stop in 2001, with widespread default on both corporate and government bonds. The 2001 debt crisis was not followed by runaway domestic inflation, and by 2005 Argentina was able to return to foreign capital markets

Estudo da composição corporal e de habilidades motoras em crianças dos 6 aos 10 anos com diferentes níveis de atividade física

Dissertação apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação do Instituto Politécnico de Castelo, para cumprimento dos requisitos necessários à obtenção do grau de Mestre em Atividade física.A importância da atividade física (AF) para a população infanto-juvenil é hoje inquestionável, proporcionando a prática regular destas atividades efeitos positivos sobre o organismo. (Paulo, 2014). O objetivo geral deste estudo passa por verificar quais as diferenças, ao nível da composição corporal e das habilidades motoras, comparando crianças com níveis de prática de AF diferenciados, de ambos os sexos e idades distintas, correlacionando ainda as variáveis composição corporal, habilidades motoras e idade. Estudo transversal com amostra constituida por 204 crianças com uma idade média de 7.83 ±1.4 anos, de ambos os sexos divididos em dois grupos: Grupo AFEXTRA - 62 crianças que praticam algum tipo de atividade física, supervisionada e periodizada, complementando a prática letiva Grupo AFESCOLA - 142 crianças que apenas praticam Atividade Física durante o horário letivo. Para dividir os grupos foi feito um pequeno questionário que foi inserido no Termo de Consentimento Informado. Foram avaliados os valores de composição corporal (IMC, Perímetro Cintura (PC), Massa muscular (MM), Mineral Ósseo, (MO), % Massa Gorda (MG), Massa Corporal e Estatura), recorrendo aos respetivos protocolos de avaliação, e foi aplicada uma bateria de testes Körperkoordinationstest Für Kinder (KTK) (Kiphard & Schilling, 1974), que foi usada para avaliar as habilidades motoras das crianças. Os dados obtidos foram tratados no S.P.S.S. 23.0 recorrendo numa primeira fase à estatística descritiva, posteriormente procedeu-se à verificação da normalidade da amostra através do Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. Para as variáveis analisadas, que não apresentaram distribuição normal, procedeu-se à utilização do teste U de Mann- Whitney, adotando-se um nível de significância de 0.05. Os resultados obtidos demonstram indiferença, comparando os níveis de prática diferenciada, em muitos dos indicadores estudados. O grupo AFEXTRA apresenta resultados estatisticamente diferentes (p≤0,05) e mais favoráveis, ao nível de %MG. Nas variáveis referentes às habilidades motoras, verificam-se diferenças aceitáveis entre as crianças mais novas e as mais velhas, com as primeiras a apresentar resultados estatisticamente diferentes (p≤0,05) e mais favoráveis. A prática de exercício extraescolar, supervisionado e periodizado, parece contribuir para valores de %MG mais indicados. A adoção de hábitos de vida sedentários reflete-se nas habilidades motoras à medida que as crianças vão envelhecendo, influenciando negativamente a sua performance motora.The importance of physical activity (AF) for the population of children and youth is unquestionable today, providing the regular practice of these activities positive effects on the body. (Paul, 2014). The overall objective of this study goes on to note what differences, in terms of body composition and motor skills, comparing children with levels of practice of AF, of both sexes and different ages, correlating the body composition variables, motor skills and age. Cross-sectional study sample consisting of 204 children with an average age of 7.83 ± 1.4 years, of both sexes divided into two groups: AFEXTRA Group-62 children who practice some form of physical activity, supervised and periodizada, complementing the letiva AFESCOLA Group practice-142 children only practice physical activity during school hours. To split the groups was made a small questionnaire which was inserted at the end of informed consent. We evaluated body composition values (BMI, Waist Perimeter (PC) muscle mass (MM), Bone Mineral, (MO),% body fat (MG), body weight and Stature), using the respective evaluation protocols, and was applied to a battery of tests Körperkoordinationstest Für Kinder (KTK) (Kiphard & Schilling, 1974), which was used to evaluate the motor skills of the children. The data obtained were processed in the S.P.S.S. 23.0 initially using the descriptive statistics, later proceeded to the check the normality of the sample using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. For the variables analyzed, which did not show a normal distribution, using the Mann-Whitney U test, adopting a level of significance of 0.05. The results obtained show indifference, comparing levels of differentiated practice in many of the indicators studied. The AFEXTRA Group presents results statistically different (p ≤ 0.05) and more favourable, in terms of% MG. In the variables relating to motor skills, there are acceptable differences between the younger children and older women, with the first to deliver statistically different (p ≤ 0.05) and more favorable. The extracurricular exercise, periodized, supervised and seems to contribute to values of% MG more indicated. The adoption of sedentary living habits reflected in motor skills as the kids are older, influencing negatively to your motor performance

Profile of Prescription Medication in an Internal Medicine Ward

Aging-related loss of resilience associated with the lack of evidence regarding the therapeutic efficacy of medicines can prompt a lack of efficacy of treatments and multiple prescriptions. This work aims to characterize the medication profile of Portuguese older adult inpatients and explore the relationship between hospitalization days and the consumption of medicines. A retrospective data analysis study in older patients who were admitted to a medical internal medicine ward during 2019. The median age of the 616 patients included was 85 years. During the hospitalized period, patients took on average 18.08 medicines. The most prescribed drugs belong to the subgroup of (a) anti-thrombotic agents (6.7%), with enoxaparin being the most prescribed, (b) other analgesics and antipyretics (6.6%), paracetamol being the most frequent, and (c) the Angiotensin Conversion Enzyme Inhibitor (ACE) (6.5%), captopril being the most frequent. The high number of prescriptions in older adults during their hospitalization suggests the need of changing therapeutics to achieve a better efficacy of treatment, which corroborates the hypothesis that the lack of scientific evidence concerning the risk/benefits of many medical therapies in older adults can make it difficult to achieve good clinical outcomes and promote the wastage of health resources

Relatório da prática de ensino supervisionada realizada na Escola Secundária/3 da Rainha Santa Isabel, em Estremoz

O presente relatório é desenvolvido no âmbito da unidade curricular Prática de Ensino Supervisionada, inserida no segundo ano do Curso de Mestrado em Ensino de Educação Física nos Ensinos Básico e Secundário da Universidade de Évora. O mesmo pretende fazer uma descrição reflexiva daquilo que foi o trabalho desenvolvido ao longo do ano letivo, na Escola Secundária/3 da Rainha Santa Isabel de Estremoz, com uma turma de décimo e outra de oitavo ano. O relatório está dividido em quatro grandes partes, descrevendo aquilo que é ser professor, o trabalho desenvolvido ao longo do ano, as atividades dinamizadas na comunidade escolar pelo núcleo de estágio, e a forma como o estágio contribuiu para o meu desenvolvimento profissional, através do desenvolvimento de um projeto de investigação-ação. Este estágio foi desenvolvido na Escola Secundária/3 da Rainha Santa Isabel de Estremoz, com uma turma de décimo e outra de oitavo ano; ### Abstract: The present report is inserted in the supervised teaching practise, from the second year of the Physical Education Teaching in Primary and Secondary Education Master, in Universidade de Évora. This report aims to do a reflective description about all the work developed in this school year. The report is divided in four big parts, describing the skills that a teacher must have, all the work developed, the activities developed by our stage group composed by three students, in the school community, and how this stage contributed for my professional development, through an application of an investigation-action project. This stage was developed at Rainha Santa Isabel Secondary/3rd Cycle School in Estremoz, where i developed my work with two classes, in 10th and 8th grade