Scoping the potencial for outdoor microalgae production in the Azores

Microalgae cultivation has received much attention due to some desirable characteristics such as fast growth rates, high photosynthetic efficiencies and the production of valuable biochemicals. Mass cultivation of microalgae for commercial purposes is already a reality in some locations being an activity with approximately 45 years. The Azores archipelago, located in the North Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Portugal, features a temperate climate. To evaluate the feasibility of local outdoor microalgae production, certain fundamental factors must be analysed. In this study water, light, temperature, carbon sources, nutrients, international outlook and regional context were analyzed from the perspective of a local outdoor commercial microalgae production. A SWOT analysis was applied to the analysed factors to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The results nominate the Azores as a promising location to implement an outdoor production of valueadded products from microalgae.Oma – Observatório do Mar dos Açores ; MARE – Centro de Ciências do Mar e do Ambiente ; IMAR – Instituto do Mar ; DOP – Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas ; Universidade dos Açoresinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Investigating into the Prevalence of Complex Event Processing and Predictive Analytics in the Transportation and Logistics Sector: Initial Findings From Scientific Literature

As ever new sensor solutions are invading people’s everyday lives and business processes, the use of the signals and events provided by the devices poses a challenge. Innovative ways of handling the large amount of data promise an effective and efficient means to overcome that challenge. With the help of complex event processing and predictive techniques, added value can be created. While complex event processing is able to process the multitude of signals coming from the sensors in a continuous manner, predictive analytics addresses the likelihood of a certain future state or behavior by detecting patterns from the signal database and predicting the future according to the detections. As to the transportation and logistics domain, processing the signal stream and predicting the future promises a big impact on the operations because the transportation and logistics sector is known as a very complex one. The complexity of the sector is linked with the many stakeholders taking part in a variety of operations and the partly high level of automation often being accompanied by manual processes. Hence, predictions help to prepare better for upcoming situations and challenges and, thus, to save resources and cost. The present paper is to investigate the prevalence of complex event processing and predictive analytics in logistics and transportation cases in the research literature in order to motivate a subsequent systematic literature view as the next step in the research endeavor

Culture collection of freshwater microalgae from the Azores archipelago: resource for taxonomic and phycoprospecting research

ABSTRACT: In recent years, much interest has been focused on the biotechnological potential of microalgae, mainly due to their rapid growth and the identification of several substances synthesized by these organisms. The isolation and in vitro cultivation of native microalgae species is very important for taxonomic and conservation studies and is the first step towards feasibility studies of local commercial productions. In this study 114 isolates of microalgae were obtained from samples collected in 23 locations of the island of Sao Miguel, Azores. From them, 60 species were identified comprising 39 Chlorophyta, 10 Ochrophyta, 6 Cyanophyta, 3 Charophyta, 1 Euglenozoa and 1 Cryptophyta. Eighteen of the species identified constitute new records for the Island of Sao Miguel.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Intensive Growth of Microalgae in the Azores: an Integrated Biotechnological Approach

Jornadas "Ciência nos Açores – que futuro? Tema Ciências Naturais e Ambiente", Ponta Delgada, 7-8 de Junho de 2013.As microalgas são os organismos fotossintéticos de maior produtividade. A sua grande diversidade metabólica e fisiológica torna-as na fonte sustentável de uma grande variedade de produtos com interesse comercial. Nos últimos anos, muito interesse tem sido focado no potencial biotecnológico das microalgas, principalmente devido à identificação de diversas substâncias sintetizadas por estes organismos. Várias espécies são cultivadas comercialmente em alguns países, sendo a biomassa produzida utilizada como fonte de produtos para aplicação na indústria de alimentos, farmacêutica, médica, nutracêutica, cosmética e aquacultura. Apesar do crescente interesse internacional na biotecnologia de microalgas, a investigação nesta área no Arquipélago dos Açores está ainda numa fase inicial. Mesmo assim, os resultados obtidos na produção de astaxantina a partir de Haematococcus pluvialis foram extremamente promissores e deverão levar ao desenvolvimento de um projeto de investimento ainda no corrente ano. Atualmente está em curso um estudo que visa identificar e isolar estirpes autóctones de microalgas e valorizar o respetivo potencial biotecnológico na produção de metabolitos de elevado interesse comercial, utilizando como forma de produção de biomassa o cultivo em fotobioreactores submetidos às condições edafoclimáticas dos Açores.ABSTRACT: Microalgae are the photosynthetic organisms of highest productivity. Their vast physiological and metabolic diversity has been the sustainable source of a variety of products with commercial interest. In recent years, much interest has been focused on the biotechnological potential of microalgae, mainly due to the identification of various substances synthesized by these organisms. In certain countries several species are grown commercially where biomass is produced and utilized as a source of products for application in the food, medical, pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and cosmetic industries, and aquaculture. Research in this area in the Azores Archipelago is still in an initial phase. However, the results for the production of astaxanthin from Haematococcus pluvialis were promising and should lead to the development of an investment project in the current year. Currently a study is in progress which aims to identify and isolate native strains of microalgae and enhance the respective biotechnological potential for the production of metabolites of high commercial interest, using fotobioreactores for biomass production adapted to the edaphoclimatic conditions of the Azores.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia

Multifocal papillary carcinoma of the thyroid with heterotopic ossification and extramedullary hematopoiesis associated with a lipomatous follicular nodule

Heterotopic ossification has been described in papillary thyroid carcinoma in association with high incidence of extrathyroidal invasion, multifocality, lymph node metastasis, and older age. Nevertheless, it has not been described as a specific subtype of papillary thyroid carcinoma, because of its rarity. We described the case of an 80-year-old female patient, with familial history of papillary thyroid carcinoma. In the annual screening examination, she was diagnosed with thyroid nodules. The patient was submitted to a thyroidectomy because the fine needle aspiration cytology was positive for malignancy according to the Bethesda classification. The surgical specimen analyses showed a multifocal papillary carcinoma with one major lesion in the left lobe measuring 0.9 cm, and two small lesions (0.4 cm and 0.2 cm) in the right lobe. Only the biggest lesion in the right lobe had the osteoid matrix with rare osteoclasts and fat metaplasia with progenitor cells. There was perineural invasion, but vascular invasion was not identified. The margins were free and there was no extrathyroidal extension. In the left lobe there was an oncocytic nodule and a lipomatous follicular nodule. In recent years there has been a significant increase in the diagnosis of thyroid cancer, mainly because of the finding of microcarcinomas as a result of many requests for cervical image exams. Future studies may define (i) whether papillary thyroid carcinoma with heterotopic ossification is a true histological variant; (ii) the causes of that alteration; and (iii) eventual follow-up implications

A construção de atividades para o ensino de sequencias numéricas: Uma análise pela lente da Abordagem Documental do Didático

O presente estudo é fruto de resultados preliminares obtidos em uma formação continuada com professores da educação básica do estado de São Paulo. O objetivo da pesquisa é analisar a construção de um conjunto de atividades para introduzir o tema sequencias numéricas para alunos do 1o Ano do Ensino Médio sob a lente da Abordagem Documental do Didático. A metodologia utilizada foi a investigação reflexiva. Os primeiros resultados do estudo, permitiram compreender, por meio do fenômeno da Gênese Documental em um ambiente coletivo, a relação existente entre o sistema de recursos do professor e a construção de documentos

A new genus of pipimorph frog (anura) from the early Cretaceous Crato formation (aptian) and the evolution of South American tongueless frogs

Pipimorpha is a clade of tongueless anurans with a wide fossil record. Furthermore, the oldest South American fossils come from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) of Patagonia, Argentina. The aim of the present contribution is to describe a new genus and species of Pipimorpha from the Crato Formation (Aptian, Early Cretaceous), Araripe Basin, Brazil. The new specimen consists of a nearly complete skeleton that shows several anatomical similarities with other fossils from South America. Phylogenetic analysis resulted in the nesting of the new taxon within a previously unrecognized endemic South American clade. Further, some traditional groupings within Pipimorpha were not recognized. The new phylogenetic analysis reinforces previous biogeographical hypotheses sustaining dispersal of pipimorph between Africa and South America through an island chain or continental bridge across the Atlantic Ocean.Fil: Carvalho, Ismar. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Agnolin, Federico. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; Argentina. Fundación de Historia Natural Félix de Azara; Argentina. Universidad Maimónides; ArgentinaFil: Aranciaga Rolando, Alexis Mauro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Novas, Fernando Emilio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Xavier Neto, José. Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimiento Científico e Tecnológico; BrasilFil: Freitas, Francisco Idalécio de. Geopark Araripe; BrasilFil: Andrade, José Artur Ferreira Gomes de. Departamento Nacional Da Produção Mineral; Brasi

VALIDAÇÃO DE CONSTRUTO DO INSTRUMENTO PERFIL DO ESTILO DE VIDA INDIVIDUAL

Esta pesquisa buscou verificar as características psicométricas do instrumento Perfil do Estilo de Vida Individual (PEVI) de Nahas, Barros e Francalacci (2000) derivado do modelo do Pentáculo do Bem-Estar. Foram examinadas 168 pessoas do sexo feminino e masculino. A idade dos participantes variou entre 30 e 68 anos. Os sujeitos responderam ao questionário que possui 15 itens subdivididos, igualmente, em cinco fatores (Nutrição, Atividade Física, Comportamento Preventivo, Relacionamentos e Controle do Stress). Para responder, as pessoas usaram uma escala tipo Likert de quatro pontos. Os dados foram coletados em locais públicos, como associações e praças de um bairro classe média da cidade de Porto Alegre/RS. As respostas foram analisadas pelo SPSS 11.5 através das técnicas Análise Fatorial para componentes principais com rotação Varimax e Coeficiente Alpha de Cronbach. Os resultados revelaram vários itens saturando em fatores não prescritos pelos autores, comprometendo a validade de construto da medida. Além disso, a fidedignidade do instrumento ficou aquém do desejável