Rheology of fractal networks

We model the cytoskeleton as a fractal network by identifying each segment with a simple Kelvin-Voigt element, with a well defined equilibrium length. The final structure retains the elastic characteristics of a solid or a gel, which may support stress, without relaxing. By considering a very simple regular self-similar structure of segments in series and in parallel, in 1, 2 or 3 dimensions, we are able to express the viscoelasticity of the network as an effective generalised Kelvin-Voigt model with a power law spectrum of retardation times, $\cal L\sim\tau^{\alpha}$. We relate the parameter $\alpha$ with the fractal dimension of the gel. In some regimes ($0<\alpha<1$), we recover the weak power law behaviours of the elastic and viscous moduli with the angular frequencies, $G'\sim G''\sim w^\alpha$, that occur in a variety of soft materials, including living cells. In other regimes, we find different power laws for $G'$ and $G''$.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

"Global emblems" and "Transmission and intermediality: the impact of the emblematic culture on the early Americas"

Este libro blanco esboza brevemente dos iniciativas de investigación codependientes: “Emblemas globales” y “Transmisión e intermediación: el impacto de la cultura emblemática en Iberoamérica”. Ambos proyectos se encuentran en su etapa inicial de desarrollo, en la Brown University. “Global emblems” está diseñado para mapear, documentar y estudiar la presencia de emblemas en la cultura material, en todo el mundo, y vincular estos sucesos con colecciones digitales preexistentes de libros de emblemas. La base de datos será alimentada por una red internacional de especialistas, que ya está activa, con miembros en más de diez países y el apoyo de la Society for Emblem Studies. La plataforma permitirá búsquedas por conceptos (utilizando el sistema de clasificación Iconclass) y varias ubicaciones permitirán a los usuarios "visitarlas" a través de Realidad Virtual (360 fotos anotadas). La base de datos se estudiará sistemáticamente a través de "grupos temáticos". Si bien a primera vista el enfoque en los emblemas puede parecer estrecho, los emblemas tienen una amplia extensión geográfica e histórica, que se puede rastrear, y que proporciona los datos necesarios para el tipo de estudio analítico e interpretativo requerido en la segunda iniciativa de investigación, que ilustra la importancia de los emblemas en el marco más amplio de la historia cultural latinoamericana. “Transmisión e intermediación: el impacto de la cultura emblemática en las Américas tempranas” analizará los datos de “Emblemas globales” para comprender el papel de los emblemas en el proceso colonial en las Américas. Más concretamente, este proyecto abordará la “disputa pictórica” en el Nuevo Mundo, examinando el “giro pictórico” de los “catecismos jeroglíficos” a los emblemas exhibidos en el siglo XVII (muchos de ellos resultantes de la remediación de los grabados), y las implicaciones ideológicas, políticas y sociológicas en torno a la presencia de estos emblemas en edificios y festivales de principios de la era moderna.This white paper briefly outlines two co-dependent research initiatives: “Global Emblems” and “Transmission and Intermediality: the impact of the emblematic culture in Ibero-America”. Both projects are in their initial stage of development, at Brown University. “Global Emblems” is set to map, document and study the presence of emblems in material culture, around the world, and cross-link these occurrences with pre-existing digital collections of emblem books. The database will be fed by an international network of specialists, which is already active, with members in over ten countries and the support of the Society for Emblem Studies. The platform will allow searches by concepts (using Iconclass classification system) and a number of locations will allow users to ‘visit’ them through Virtual Reality (360 annotated photos). The database will be systematically studied through “thematic clusters”. Although at first glance the focus on emblems may seem narrow, emblems have a broad geographical and historical spread, which can be traced, and that provides the necessary data for the kind of analytical and interpretative study required in the second research initiative, which illustrates the importance of emblems within the wider frame of Latin American cultural history. “Transmission and Intermediality: the impact of the emblematic culture on the Early Americas” will analyse the data from “Global Emblems” in order to understand the role of emblems in the colonial process in the Americas. More specifically, this project will look at the “pictorial dispute” in the New World, by examining the “pictorial turn” from the “catecismos jeroglíficos” to the displayed emblems in the 17th-century (many of them resulting from the remediation of European prints), and the ideological, political and sociological implications around the presence of these emblems in buildings and early-modern festivals.peerReviewe

Physiotherapy intervention in Angola: what physicians think?

Background: Physical therapy is an essential part of health systems. Physiotherapists can practice independent of other health professionals and also in the context of programs and interdisciplinary projects of habilitation/rehabilitation with the aim of giving function and quality of life in individuals with loss movement. There are guidelines for physiotherapists based on international standards issued by the World Confederation of Physical Therapy. (WCPT), what must be followed by physiotherapists globally. There are several health problems in Angola such as Malaria, stroke and traffic accidents that require physical therapy intervention in their rehabilitation process. Since doctors are professionals first contact in Angola responsible for referral of patients for physical therapy, it is pertinent to understand their awareness of the importance of the intervention of physiotherapists. Purpose: This study sought to investigate the perception of medical professionals in orthopedics, neurology and general practitioner of some hospital institutions in Luanda, Porto Amboim, Sumbe in Angola on the intervention of physiotherapists. Methods: The method used was quantitative descriptive and exploratory. The evaluation was conducted through a questionnaire response you close to 19 items, and the first part of the characterization of the sample (5 Items) and the second part consisting for items the advice of the doctors on the intervention of the physiotherapist in Angola (14 Items). The sample consisted of 38 doctors from orthopedists, neurologists and general practitioner in Luanda, Porto Amboim and Sumbe in Angola. For the analysis of the data was used IBM software Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS statistics 20.0for Windows®). Results: The 38 individuals in the study 22 were male and 16 were female, Luanda is the city with the highest frequency of individuals who participated in the study, most are a general practitioner and worked in private clinics. Most believe that physiotherapists have a specific body of knowledge and can support their interventions. Most participants said that doctors have little knowledge of the professional physiotherapist role and not always refer their patients to physical therapy. The results of the study showed that neurologists and orthopedists have a perception of the greater importance of physiotherapy intervention. Conclusion(s): The doctors think it is important the intervention of the physiotherapist, and the three specialties orthopedics was considered as the one that needs more of the physiotherapist performance. Implications: This work can serve as an indicator of the view that doctors in Angola have of physiotherapists, can also serve to raise awareness of policies related to the integration of the physiotherapist in the multidisciplinary team in Angola.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evolution in public procurement and the impact of e-procurement platforms: a case study

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and EconomicsThe aim of this project is to understand the evolution that occurred in the public procurement due to the new Public Contracts Code that changed the procurement procedures and forced public entities to use electronic procurement platforms. This work is a contribution to the understanding of the main procurement changes with this new code as well to understand the impact and functioning of electronic procurement platforms. Moreover, a case study is presented, using the Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Norte, to assess the impacts of these changes and the inevitable adjustments needed

Psilocybin-assisted therapy and depression - a systematic review

A Psilocibina é um agonista dos recetores da serotonina, mais comummente encontrado, nos cogumelos da espécie Psilocybe. Sendo consumida por culturas indígenas por milénios, foi comercializada em diversos países, na década de 1960, sob o nome comercial Indocybin, e, previamente à sua eventual proibição, foi usada com segurança como adjuvante de psicoterapia no tratamento de depressão e ansiedade. Recentemente, a segurança e facilidade do uso prático da Psilocibina impulsionaram a sua ressurreição e relatórios preliminares positivos sobre a sua segurança e tolerabilidade para múltiplas doenças, como transtorno obsessivo-compulsivo e dependência, foram publicados. O principal objetivo desta revisão é apresentar a informação científica existente sobre os efeitos da terapêutica com Psilocibina em pacientes diagnosticados com depressão. Recorrendo à PubMed como fonte bibliográfica, foi realizada uma pesquisa, baseada nas palavras *Psilocybin e *Depression, tendo como alvo, ensaios clínicos. Referências dos artigos selecionados e artigos de revisão também foram analisados. 4 artigos cumpriram os critérios de inclusão: 2 destes avaliam os efeitos da Psilocibina em 32 pacientes com depressão resistente; Os restantes 2 artigos avaliam os efeitos da Psilocinbina em 80 pacientes com ansiedade e depressão relacionadas com o cancro. Todos os artigos demonstratam que a Psilocibina produz um efeito imediato e substancial nos sintomas depressivos que, em última análise, se sustentam até 6 meses após a sua administração. Em conclusão, a utilização da Psilocibina é uma inovadora terapêutica da depressão. Contudo, considerando as pequenas populações dos estudos existentes, são necessárias futuras investigações com o intuito de confirmar esta associação positiva, mas também com o intuito de compreender totalmente os mecanismos de ação e os efeitos da Psilocibina.Background: Psilocybin is a naturally occurring serotonin receptor agonist that can be, more commonly, found in the Psilocybe mushrooms. Consumed by indigenous cultures for millenia, Psilocybin, in the 1960s, was marketed in many countries under the trade name Indocybin, and, before its eventual ban, was safely used as an adjunct to psychotherapy in the treatment of depression and anxiety. Recently, the safety and ease of practical use of psilocybin propelled its resurrection and positive preliminary reports on the safety and tolerability of psilocybin for multiples diseases, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and addiction, have been published. Aims: The main objective of this review is to outline existing scientific information about the effects of Psilocybin-based therapy on patients diagnosed with depression. Methods: Using PubMed as the database, a research was conducted, based on the research words *Psilocybin and *Depression and targeting clinical trials. References of selected articles and review articles were also assessed. Results: A total of 4 articles met the inclusion criteria. 2 articles evaluate psilocybin effects in 32 patients with treatment-resistant depression. The remaining 2 articles evaluate psilocybin effects in 80 patients with cancer-related anxiety and depression. All articles showed that psilocybin produced immediate and substantial improvements in depression, that, ultimately, could sustain up to 6 months. Conclusion: Psilocybin-assisted therapy is a very appealing new possibility in the treatment of depression. However, due to the small populations of the existing trials, future studies are needed to prove this positive association and to fully understand Psilocybin´s mechanisms of action and effects

Equity research - the Walt Disney company: the entertainment giant

The purpose of this Equity Research is to analyze The Walt Disney Company, its peers, and its industry, in order to provide a recommendation regarding the company’s value and target share price to potential investors, which is based on three different scenarios and the Discounted Cash Flows Methodology. This Individual Report contains some of the sections that were vital to achieve an accurate estimate of Disney’s intrinsic value, including the valuation of its most relevant segment, Disney Media, Entertainment and Distribution