Identificação de Outliers

Todo o investigador já deparou com um conjunto de dados em que algumas observações se afastam demasiado das restantes, parecendo que foram geradas por um mecanismo diferente. O estudo destas observações é importante dado que "uma das importantes etapas, em qualquer análise estatística de dados, é estudar a qualidade das observações..." Muñoz-Garcia et al.(1990)

Issues related to the classification of Mediterranean temporary wet habitats according with the European Union Habitats Directive

From a biological and biogeographic point of view, Mediterranean temporary wet habitats are recognised to be amongst the most interesting habitats in the Mediterranean bioclimatic region. They are considered to be habitats of Community Interest and are included in the “standing water group”. Due to an overlap in the plant species and syntaxa indicated as characteristic, the assignment of the plant communities to the habitats 3120, 3130 and 3170* is far from straightforward. We propose that the Isoetion communities be assigned to habitat 3170*, the Preslion cervinae, Cicendio-Solenopsion and Agrostion pourretii communities to habitat 3120, and the Cyperetalia fusci and Littorelletea uniflorae communities to habitat 3130

Small scale plant distribution in Mediterranean temporary ponds: implications for conservation

The research was undertaken with the aims to improve the knowledge of small scale distribution of plant communities in Mediterranean temporary habitats and to evaluate their diversity and conservation relevance in order to provide a sound basis for the prioritization of conservation efforts according to the Habitats Directive

Categorizing basic factors driving soil genesis, pedovariability and plant assemblages in Mediterranean Temporary Wetlands (TWs)

A research was carried out in six Temporary Wetlands (TWs), located in north-western Sardinia (Italy), with the aim to categorize the basic factors driving and linking soil genesis and plant assemblages in Mediterranean basin

Outcome evaluation of school-based alcohol prevention: a European multi-centric trial (EU-Dap study)

Background: Curricula aiming at preventing substance use are widespread in European schools, without formal evaluation of their effectiveness. Promising programmes based on the Comprehensive Social Influence (CSI) model have never been evaluated in Europe. Aim: The overall aim of this thesis was to advance knowledge on the effectiveness of school-based best practice programmes on adolescents’ alcohol use, as well as to elucidate the possible pathways to behavioural changes. Methods: A cluster randomized controlled trial was carried out in 143 schools from seven European countries, involving 7079 students 12-14 years of age. Schools were randomly assigned to either control or to a 12-session standardised curriculum based on the CSI model, taught by trained teachers. Randomisation was blocked within socioeconomic levels of the school neighbourhood. Students were surveyed through a self-completed anonymous questionnaire at baseline, 6 (short term) and 18 (medium term) months thereafter. The effect of the programme on alcohol-related cognitive factors (intention to drink and to get drunk, knowledge on alcohol-related effects, skills to resist pressure to drink alcohol, normative beliefs, expectations and risk perceptions concerning alcohol) was analysed at the short term follow-up, on alcohol consumption and problematic use at the medium term. Additionally, the effect of some class characteristics on programme implementation was studied using the intervention classes as units of analysis. Given the hierarchical structure of the data all data analyses were carried out using multilevel models. Results: The programme was associated with decreased positive expectations towards alcohol (odds ratio (OR)=0.81) and perception of peer drinking (OR=0.79), as well as with increased resistance skills against pro-alcohol pressures (OR=1.21) and knowledge (OR=2.25) at the short term follow-up. One year later the programme was associated with a decreased odds of reporting episodes of drunkenness (OR=0.79) and alcohol-related problematic behaviours (OR=0.78). There was no reduction in the frequency of alcohol use but non-drinkers and occasional drinkers at baseline progressed towards frequent drinking less often in the intervention group than in the control group. Associations were stronger among students from schools located in area of low socio economic level. Some characteristics of the class predicted the level of programme implementation: prevalence of substance use was associated with a decreased odds of implementing the programme in its entirety (OR=0.81), while students’ connectedness was associated with an increased odds of teachers using roleplay (OR=1.52). Conclusions: School curricula based on the CSI model can modify cognitive factors for alcohol use and reduce occurrence of drunkenness and alcohol-related behavioural problems among students from European Countries. These programmes are likely to be particularly useful in socially disadvantaged areas. There was support for the hypothesis that resistance skills, norm perception and positive expectations may mediate the effect of school prevention on behavioural outcomes. Specific organizational strategies such as teachers’ training in class management techniques may be integral to the provision of this type of programmes, in order to improve their implementation

Mediterranean temporary wetlands: biodiversity, functioning and conservation

The aims of this research were to: i) assess plant biodiversity in Sardinian Mediterranean temporary wetlands (TWs); ii) identify key environmental factors affecting it and possible interactions with other taxonomic groups, and iii) define conservation issues. Plant biodiversity was evaluated at different spatial scale. The application of a fine-scale zonation sampling approach allowed identifying different assemblages “within TW”, with different floristic, structural, and sintaxonomical features at each site in the same relative position. Three belts were recognized: central, intermediate and outer characterised by different water depth and flooding period. Comparisons at scale of the entire temporary TW pointed out differences due to substratum, elevation and size. At temporal scale differences between assemblages were significant only in the same environmental conditions (e.g. TWs located at the same site). While vegetation pattern was mainly driven by “within TW” effect, investigation on soil pattern pointed out that it is mainly due to “a site effect”. Significant positive relationships were found between plant and crustacean assemblages, not only in terms of community structure but also at composition level. Conservation relevance was related to the presence of habitats of Community interest and listed species. Intraspecific variability and conservation status were assessed to some species strongly dependent to this habitat type (e.g. Isoetes histrix)

Identificação de outliers: uma aplicação ao conjunto das maiores empresas com actividade em Portugal.

Dissertação em Matemática Aplicada à Economia e à Gestão.N/

Competenze digitali per la media education: il modello blended learning di Monopoli

Digital culture requires a constant implementation of multilevel digital skills, oriented both to the management of tools and content. Monopoly's blended learning model refers to this latter dimension, and aims to implement the development of digital skills for media education. The article presents the results of experimentation conducted with students of the Communication, culture and media education course at the University of Calabria

development and test of a portable device to monitor the health status of sarda breed sheep by the measurement of the milk electrical conductivity

The electrical conductivity (EC) of milk is a parameter which is often used for identifying sub-clinical mastitis in dairy animals. It is widely used for cattle, and is measured either by means of probes integrated into the milking machine or by means of portable devices. However this is not the case for small ruminants, where the available devices are few. The aim of this study is to deepen the knowledge of about the relationship between EC and certain constituents of Sarda sheep milk, and thus to develop a portable device specifically designed for on-site measurement of conductivity and to estimate the somatic cell count (SCC) of Sarda sheep milk. Therefore, the device allows a rapid test for checking the acceptability of milk to monitor the effects of udder infection. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) method was used to evaluate how efficacious EC was in discriminating between animals with a somatic cell level higher or lower of a threshold value previously defined. The cut-off values, sensitivity, specificity and the area under the ROC curve for EC were, respectively, 4.835 mS/cm, 73.08, 75.46 and 0.804, using a threshold of 700 000 cells/ml. Our results gave a positive evaluation of the portable device that we had designed for estimating the SCC in sheep milk. Only 8.8% of the samples were incorrectly identified as negative. A portable device for EC measurement is a useful tool for monitoring the somatic cell level individually, and allows early and efficacious action to contrast new intramammary infections