ICT in higher education in Portugal. Call computer assisted language learning

Este artículo pretende explorar el Aprendizaje de Lenguas Asistido por Ordenador (CALL, Computer-Assisted Language Learning) en Portugal. Para ello, se centrará en el nivel de educación superior. La escasa explotación del CALL en Portugal ha sido ampliamente estudiado en varios informes, por ejemplo, el informe encargado por la UE titulado The Impact of Information and Communications Technologies on the Teaching of Foreign Languages and on the Role of Teachers of Foreign Languages (2002: 5): "The use and employment of ICT in FLT and FLL is far from satisfactory, as ICT resources are traditionally reserved for '(computer) science' subjects, and rarely assigned to art subjects. A general lack of appropriate training of language teachers in meaningful uses of ICT tends to strengthen this trend". Este artículo abordará dichas necesidades centrándose en los resultados de proyectos europeos como POOLS. Analizaremos cuestiones relativas a los materiales en línea que pueden utilizarse para desarrollar contenidos de clases de lengua, hacienda uso de las ventajas del e-Learning.G.I. HUM 767 (ayudas a Grupos de Investigación de la Junta de Andalucía) / Editorial Comares (colección interlingua

About the relations between Management Accounting Systems, Intellectual Capital and Performance

The present study is focused on the contribution of management accounting systems (MAS) in the development of intellectual capital (IC). Based on empirical evidence that supports the proposition that the value creation process is strongly associated to the level of IC, the study also examines the mediating effect of MAS on performance through their positive direct effect on IC. These relationships were consolidated into a model and empirically tested with data from 281 Portuguese firms using the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The findings show that six out of nine hypothesized relationships were supported by data with positive and significant causal links between MAS and the human and structural dimensions of IC. Results confirmed the conceptual validity of the circular model for the interactions among the three IC dimensions. Results also showed a positive and significant direct effect of structural capital on performance. Overall, the results confirmed the validity of the proposed model and contributed to the literature on the role of MAS in supporting the development of the I

Analysing projects of professionalizing education: The challenge of quality

This work intends to describe the theoretical-conceptual design of an investigation whose main aim is to analyse and interpret an ongoing process of reconstruction of a teacher education curricular project (1st to the 4th grade teaching) as well as its bases. We use several theoretical frameworks that form three dimensions of analysis: curricular, organisational and personal / interpersonal. We are seeking to identify points and levels of intersection of these analysis dimensions, in search of a "pluralist" synthesis of several theoretical frameworks, that will provide conceptual consistency to the interpretations of the phenomenon under scrutiny

Analytical and numerical results for American style of perpetual put options through transformation into nonlinear stationary Black-Scholes equations

We analyze and calculate the early exercise boundary for a class of stationary generalized Black-Scholes equations in which the volatility function depends on the second derivative of the option price itself. A motivation for studying the nonlinear Black Scholes equation with a nonlinear volatility arises from option pricing models including, e.g., non-zero transaction costs, investors preferences, feedback and illiquid markets effects and risk from unprotected portfolio. We present a method how to transform the problem of American style of perpetual put options into a solution of an ordinary differential equation and implicit equation for the free boundary position. We finally present results of numerical approximation of the early exercise boundary, option price and their dependence on model parameters

Visitors to the city of Évora: Who are they?

Nowadays, driven by multiple factors, tourist demand presents patterned behaviour which is subdivided into several typologies according to destination, product consumed and visitor profile features. In the case of cultural tourism, a good example is that of historic cities, which have their own cultural identity and heritage, and compete to make themselves different from one another through many marketing strategies. This study presents the profile of visitors to the World Heritage City of Évora, including their travel motivations and level of satisfaction with the attributes. Subsequently, the main purpose of this study is to determine the cultural profile of visitors to the World Heritage City of Évora. The data collection technique applied was a visitor survey. The process adopted for the sample definition was a probabilistic sampling, namely the adoption of a stratified sampling plan, by place of residence. Further analysis shows that the most important motivations for visitors in selecting Évora are leisure, heritage/monuments and having a new cultural experience. However they indicate the fact that Évora is considered World Heritage City by UNESCO did influence the decision to visit this destination. Several findings provide the opportunity to establish adequate managerial and marketing strategies to suit the needs of the visitors

A Nonsmooth Maximum Principle for Optimal Control Problems with State and Mixed Constraints-Convex Case

Here we derive a nonsmooth maximum principle for optimal control problems with both state and mixed constraints. Crucial to our development is a convexity assumption on the "velocity set". The approach consists of applying known penalization techniques for state constraints together with recent results for mixed constrained problems.Comment: Published in 'Discrete and Continuous Dynamical Systems, Vol. 2011, pp. 174-18

Temporal and spatial variation of limnological variables and biomass of different macrophyte species in a Neotropical reservoir (São Paulo - Brazil)

Aim: This study reports an investigation of limnological characteristics and aquatic macrophyte occurrence in a neotropical reservoir in order to assess the spatio-temporal variation of water and sediment variables and their influence on plant distribution. Methods: Macrophytes, water and sediment samples were collected from a Brazilian reservoir in different seasons from four main arms of the reservoir. In total sixteen water-sediment variables were analyzed including N:P ratio and Trophic State Index. The plants were collected using a quadrat sampling procedure and the dry weight per sample was measured. MANOVA was performed to evaluate spatial and temporal variation of environmental variables as well as seasonal biomass differences. To assess the relationship among environmental variables and macrophytes an ordination analysis (using Canonical Correspondence Analysis: CCA) was carried out. Results: The spatial and temporal variation of limnological variables generated a heterogeneous system which supports the presence of different species of macrophyte. pH, dissolved oxygen and sediment composition were important predictors of Polygonum lapathifolium occurrence while nutrients were associated with Eichhornia crassipes and Pistia stratiotes. Inorganic substances were related to biomass variation of Eichhornia azurea and Myriophyllum aquaticum. Conclusions: The spatial variation of the environmental variables has caused heterogeneity in the reservoir and it may support the occurrence of different species of macrophyte. Limnological variables highlighted in CCA are important to predict the species occurrence and their control in the study area

Early Diagenesis of Lower Pliensbachian Sediments from the Algarve Basin (Portugal): Characterisation and Relation with Tectonic Evolution

The Lower Jurassic (Lower Pliensbachian) sedimentary record of the western end of the Algarve Basin (Portugal) is made of decimetric thick layers of limestone and dolomitized limestone with chert nodules and inter-layered chert beds. Most of the observable lithologies are the product of an early diagenetic evolution and the original lithological content of the formation included limestones, marls and calciclastic limestones. In this area the sedimentation was controlled by the tectonic stretching responsible for the evolution of the Algarve Basin, as well as by short-lived events of tectonic inversion. These episodes of tectonic inversion were responsible for the some uplift with the development of unconformities, sometimes with erosional surfaces separating the different sedimentary packages. The early diagenesis affecting the Lower Pliensbachian sediments is characterized by: (i) a mechanical event controlled by the syn-sedimentary stretching, responsible for the development of calciclastic dikes and nodules alignements; (ii) the substitution of the carbonates from the most permeable calciclastic limestone layers by silica, leading to the development of the observed cherts; (iii) the dolomitization of the preserved limestones; and (iv) the infilling of joints and normal fault planes by silica-rich fluids leading to the development of quartz veins. This set of diagenetic transformations took place before the Upper Pliensbachian which lacks the evidences of their occurrence. The whole-rock geochemical data of the carbonate and siliceous sediments of the Lower Pliensbachian revealed some affinities between both lithological types namely the lack of Ce anomalies and the presence of La anomalies in the REE patterns of all samples. The similarities between the carbonate lithologies which diagenetic evolution is marked by the replacement of calcite by dolomite and the siliceous sediments derived from the replacement of calcite by quartz establish a chemical connection between the two sets of rocks. This connection can be interpreted as a testimony of a common primary precursor for both lithological groups or as a testimony of a common character of the diagenetic fluids which interacted with the original sediments. The dolomitization changed the Sr isotopic signature increasing the 87Sr/86Sr ratios from 0.7073 in the unchanged limestone to a maximum value of 0.7113 in the dolomitized samples. This strong increase together with the 13C/12C and 18O/16O values support an external origin for the dolomitizing fluids. A possible origin for the diagenesis is meteoric water coming into the basin after weathering the country rocks. The hydrologic regime in the basin certainly underwent important changes during the uplift events associated to the mentioned tectonic inversion episodes and uplift allowing for input of water from land