Comparison of the initial Ebola virus disease symptoms and subsequent sequelae of 10 survivors in the Koinadugu district of Sierra Leone during the 2014-2015 outbreak (a pilot study)

A epidemia pelo vírus Ébola que devastou a África Ocidental em 2014-2015 foi a maior que o Mundo testemunhou até hoje. Começou em Dezembro de 2013 e permaneuceu indetectável durante 3 meses, permitindo que o vírus se continuasse a espalhar de forma descontrolada e para a epidemia escalar até ao ponto em que foi declarada uma emergencia internacional em Agosto de 2014. Consequências a curto e longo prazo têm sido documentadas em sobreviventes, variando desde físicas, a psicológicas e sociais. Além disso, a permanência do vírus em determinados compartimentos biológicos de sobreviventes (ex: sémen) colocam os países em alto risco do vírus voltar a ser introduzido em comunidades onde este já foi eliminado. Este estudo procurou identificar os sintomas de 10 sobreviventes da doença pelo vírus Ébola, escolhidos de forma não aleatória, tanto no momento em que estavam com a doença na sua fase activa como nos meses de convalescença, e verificar se haveria alguma relação entre os dois. Os sintomas mais comuns durante a fase activa da doença foram perda de peso, artralgia e febre; e nos meses de convalescença foram cefaleias, fadiga, astenia e lombalgias. Sessenta por cento dos sobreviventes apresentavam na fase de convalescença, um ou mais dos sintomas que tinham durante a fase activa da doença, sendo as cefaleias o sintoma mais comum a persistir, seguido de astenia. No entanto, todos os sobreviventes apresentavam no mínimo um sintoma meses após a fase activa da doença, independentemente dos sintomas que haviam desenvolvido na fase activa. Os eventos biológicos e patogénicos que estão envolvidos no desenvolvimento do síndrome pós-Ébola ainda não são claros e mais estudos são necessários nesta área. No entanto, e tendo em consideração uma abordagem sindromática, este estudo em particular conclui que a gravidade da doença pelo vírus Ébola na sua fase aguda não parece estar associada com a gravidade das sequelas apresentadas, também conhecidas como síndrome pós-Ébola.The 2014-2015 West Africa Ebola Outbreak was the largest the World has ever seen. It started in December 2013 and was left unnoticed for 3 months, allowing for the virus to keep spreading uncontrollably and for the outbreak to keep escalating until it was declared an International emergency in August 2014. Both short and long term complications have been reported on EVD survivors, ranging from physical to psychological and social and, in addition, the persistence of EVD in selected body compartments of the survivors (i.e.: semen) poses a great risk of reintroduction of the virus in areas where transmission has previously been eliminated. This study aimed to identify the symptoms presented by 10 non-randomized EVD survivors both during the acute stage of the disease and months after recovery and understand if there was any relation between these two stages. The most common symptoms recorded during the active stage of EVD were weight loss, joint pain and fever; and months after were headache, fatigue, weakness and back pain. Sixty per cent of survivors presented months after recovery with one or more of the symptoms they had during the acute stage of the disease, being headache the most common symptom to persist, followed by weakness. However, all survivors presented with one or more symptom months after recovery, regardless of the symptoms existing during the acute stage of the disease. The pathogenic and biological events that lead to the development of PEVDS are still unclear and more studies still need to be done on that subject. However, taking in consideration a symptomatic approach, this particular study concludes that the severity of the disease in its acute stage doesn‟t seem to be associated with the severity of the sequelae, also known as post-EVD syndrome

Understanding the Variations in Gibrat's Law with a Markov-Perfect Dynamic Industry Model

Gibrat's Law of proportionate effect, as applied to firms, states that the growth rate of a firm is independent of its size. Empirical work on firm dynamics finds crucial deviations from Gibrat's Law such as smaller firms growing faster than larger firms (Evans, 1987, and Hall, 1987), a negative relationship between the variance of growth rates and size (Dunne and Hughes, 1994), and first-order positive autocorrelation in the growth rates (Kumar, 1995). Moreover, the degree of deviation from Gibrat's Law varies across industries. This paper contributes to our understanding of the forces that make Gibrat's Law a close, but imperfect approximation of firm size distributions and seeks to determine potential sources of cross-industry variation. Here, we employ an extension of the Ericson-Pakes (1995) theoretical framework that allows for firm growth developed by Laincz (2004a). By varying key parameters, the simulations demonstrate potential sources for the various, and sometimes conflicting, results on Gibrat's Law uncovered in the empirical literatureGibrat's Law, Firm Size Distribution, Entry, Exit

A Theoretical Foundation for Understanding Firm Size Distributions and Gibrat's Law

This paper presents a dynamic model of the firm size distribution. Empirical studies of the firm size distribution often compare the moments to a log-normal distribution as implied by Gibrat's Law and note important deviations. Thus, the first, and basic questions we ask are how well does the dynamic industry model reproduce Gibrat's Law and how well does it match the deviations uncovered in the literature. We show that the model reproduces these results when testing the simulated output using the techniques of the empirical literature. We then use the model to study how structural parameters affect the firm size distribution. We find that, among other things, fixed and sunk costs increase both the mean and variance of the firm size distribution while generally decreasing the skewness and kurtosis. The rate of growth in an industry also raises the mean and variance, but has non-monotonic effects on the higher moments.Firm size distribution; Gibrat's Law; R&D.

Selling happiness

A thesis uncovering the conditions associated to the happiness seeking need. It starts with a scientific screening and characterization of happiness as a human condition, happiness as a need and formulates the evidences supporting the happiness seeking market. From here after, exploratory research tools are manipulated, to understand the Portuguese Happiness Seeker, its characteristics and potential, and best strategies are presented to be considered in the pursuit of happiness.Esta é uma tese que explora as condições associadas à necessidade de procura de felicidade. Começa com uma triagem científica e no âmbito das características e condições intrinsicas á felicidade humana. É definida a necessidade de “procura de felicidade” e são formuladas as evidências que apoiam a existencia do mercado procura do felicidade. A partir daqui, ferramentas de pesquisa exploratória são manipuladas, com o objectivo de entender o Português que procura a felicidade (happiness seeker), as suas características. As potencialidades do mercado e as melhores estratégias a ter em consideração no recurso ao mercado formal para a busca de felicidade serão também apresentadas

LocoMouse: a novel system for studying the role of cerebellum in gait coordination

Smooth and efficient walking requires the coordination of movement across different parts of the body. The cerebellum plays an important role in this process, yet the specific neural circuit mechanisms of whole-body coordination are poorly understood. Although sophisticated genetic tools exist to manipulate the cerebellar circuit in mice, analyses of mouse gait have typically been limited to gross performance measures and lack detail about precision and timing of limb movements. In this project, I developed an automated, high-throughput, markerless 3D tracking system (LocoMouse) for quantifying locomotion in freely walking mice. Using LocoMouse, I showed that locomotor parameters for individual limbs vary systematically with mouse walking speed and body size. In visibly ataxic Purkinje cell degeneration (pcd) and reeler mice, I found that 3D limb trajectories and, especially, interlimb and whole-body coordination are specifically impaired. Our findings suggest a failure to predict the consequences of movement across joints, limbs, and body. These experiments were essential to establish a quantitative framework for whole-body locomotor coordination in mice (Machado, Darmohray et al. eLife 2015). The LocoMouse system was then combined with optogenetic tools to ask how different output regions of the cerebellum differentially contribute to locomotor coordination. I expressed ChR2 in Purkinje cells and stimulated their terminals in the medial, interposed, and lateral cerebellar nuclei of freely walking mice. Here, I identified locomotor parameters that were specifically related to the manipulation of each nucleus. Acute disruption of neural activity in medial and interposed nuclei immediately perturbed ongoing locomotion. In contrast, similar manipulation of Purkinje cell inputs to the lateral nucleus had no observable effect on ongoing locomotor behavior. These results are broadly consistent with previous anatomical and lesion studies suggesting a medial-to-lateral functional organization of cerebellar outputs. Taken together, these experiments isolated impairments in interlimb and whole-body coordination in mice with cerebellar manipulations. In contrast, spinal cord mutant mice revealed impairments at the intralimb level with no alteration in the interlimb coordination. I characterized distinct motor deficits associated with manipulations in different brain regions and identified and quantified core features of cerebellar ataxia in mice. These experiments establish the LocoMouse system, combined with genetic manipulations, as a powerful system to dissect cerebellar circuit mechanisms of coordinated locomotion

Os Livros de Divulgação Científica e as Biografias de Cientistas para Jovens

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Internationalization of a SME: Multivision, Lda

With the Portuguese IT consultancy market entering in a phase of saturation as well as the fierce competition among the companies on the market, internationalization is a key economic indicator (and success factor) to achieve and maintain a healthy market share and growth potential. This thesis objective is to analyze the internationalization phenomenon from a strategic point of view, while presenting the project of a business plan to internationalize the IT consultancy company "Multivision, Lda". Fundamentally, this project is focused on finding the best-fit strategy to internationalize business including the locations / countries most appropriate to be focused on from the company´s portfolio. The main dynamics of an internationalization process are examined - from a theoretical point of view first and then adapting this framework to the company's environment. A qualitative research was performed, mainly consisting of information provided by the Financial Manager of the company and information provided by the internationalization project PT2020. In order to analyze the internationalization of a SME, the understanding of the bestfitted criteria for the identification of target markets, their market-entry barriers as well as the company´s operational strategy are key factors. One believes that studying this theme, the understanding of the criteria needed to make the best choice of target markets, entry mode decisions and the operational strategy is implied. Through the development of the internationalization project of "Multivision, Lda", the author realized that this process is an always more relevant technique in the world of Small and Medium Enterprises, in order for companies to develop their business or even to be able to remain in the market.Com o mercado de consultoria de IT principiando a ficar saturado e com muitos concorrentes, a internacionalização é um indicador económico fundamental para garantir um lugar na consultoria e ter a oportunidade de crescimento. A presente tese tem como objetivo analisar o fenómeno da internacionalização do ponto de vista estratégico, apresentando o projeto de um plano de negócios para internacionalizar a empresa de consultoria de IT "Multivision, lda". Fundamentalmente, este projeto está focado em encontrar a melhor estratégia para internacionalizar e em quais países o mercado aceitaria melhor a presença da empresa. Será analisada a principal dinâmica de um processo de internacionalização do ponto de vista teórico, adaptando-a a um cenário real. Foi realizada uma pesquisa qualitativa e parcialmente quantitativa, consistindo principalmente em informações fornecidas pela Gestora Financeira da empresa e providenciadas ao projeto de internacionalização PT2020. No estudo deste tema, a compreensão dos critérios necessários para fazer a melhor escolha de mercados-alvo, as decisões de modo de entrada e a estratégia operacional estão implícitas. Através do desenvolvimento do projeto de internacionalização da "Multivision, lda", percebe-se que este processo é uma técnica gradual no mundo das Pequenas e Médias Empresas, para que as estas desenvolvam os seus negócios ou até mesmo possam manter um lugar no mercado e desenvolver a sua marca

The effect of vegetation on slope stability of shallow pyroclastic soil covers

The effect of the local vegetation, composed of cultivated Castanea sativa, on slope stability was investigated on a test site in Mount Faito (Campania, Southern Italy). In Campania, shallow pyroclastic soil covers are susceptible to landslides triggered by rainfall. Prolonged rainfall periods followed by heavy short-term rainfall events trigger fast moving and highly destructive landslides in road cuts and pyroclastic scarps on rocky cliffs in the areas surrounding the Vesuvius volcano. Undisturbed pyroclastic soil samples containing roots of mature C. sativa were used for hydraulic characterization through an extensive set of laboratory experiments. Saturated permeability, evaporation and imbibition response, water content for high suction ranges, and the root dry biomass were determined. The presence of roots increased the hydraulic permeability by one order of magnitude in the most surficial soil (10-7 to 10-6 m s-1) and decreased the air-entry value of the water retention curves (6 to 4 kPa). The variability of soil permeability among soil layers was identified as conditioning of the groundwater flow with regard to the speed of the wetting front movement and generation of positive pore-water pressures within the soil profile. The calibration of hysteretic model to characterize natural pyroclastic soil provided a more approximate manner of modelling in situ hydraulic responses. A good agreement between the model and the field observations was obtained. Field monitoring was performed with the intent of showing that the distribution of roots of C. sativa is associated to the groundwater regime. The spatial and vertical distribution of root density and traits were quantified for C. sativa roots collected from several boreholes performed in Mount Faito. Minimum suction, minimum water content and minimum gradient (indicative of downward water flow), were monitored throughout the year and related to root distribution and spatial distribution of trees. An increasing root density was found to be associated to lower values of suction and higher gradients of infiltration, which can potentially have a negative influence of the slope stability. A modelling investigation on the mechanical reinforcement of soil by tree roots allowed us to understand the importance of hydraulic and mechanic components on the stability of a slope. Roots increase greatly the shear strength of soil (up to 25.8 kPa in Mount Faito) through mechanical reinforcement and consequently, the safety factor of the slope increased significantly. Considering the root reinforcement in the estimation of potential failure surfaces safety factor showed that the weakest failure surface was found at 2.2 m, where the root reinforcement was 1.3 kPa, instead of 0.9 m without the root reinforcement of 13.8 kPa. The weakest failure surface found was in agreement with the failure surfaces observed from previous landslides near the test site. The test site did not present the characteristics of a landslide triggering area. The slope angle of the landslide triggering areas (35° to 45°) can easily exceed the soil friction angle (36.5° to 38.5°) and the hydraulic effect (the contribution of suction to the shear strength) would not be enough to guarantee the stability of the slope during the wet season (0 to 10 kPa). However, the root reinforcement was estimated to be able to sustain the slopes until an angle of 42°. Therefore, the presence of tree roots was found to affect hydraulically and mechanically stability of pyroclastic soil covers. Such conclusions may be extended to the areas of Campania where C. sativa plantations are present. The hydraulic effect of vegetation was greatly compensated by the mechanical reinforcement of roots

The effect of Brand Experience on Consumer Satisfaction, Brand Trust and Brand Loyalty - In the Portuguese Skincare Industry

Dissertation presented as the partial requirement for obtaining a Master's degree in Information Management, specialization in Marketing IntelligenceThis study intends to understand and examine the direct and indirect effects that brand experience may have on consumer satisfaction, brand trust and brand loyalty, and ultimately to determine whether Portuguese women have brand loyalty when it comes to skincare products in the cosmetic sector and what can be done to improve that loyalty. The main factors that may affect the purchase of this type of products were also analyzed in order to determine which factors exert higher influence on Portuguese women when it comes to the purchase of skincare products. With this in mind, the results provided by this study will contribute to the existing knowledge in this subject with meaningful data that has clear practical application, since it can help either existing or new domestic and international companies to better understand the Portuguese market and consequently, develop their marketing strategies. A total of 255 responses were collected through an online questionnaire that targeted Portuguese women with ages between 18 and 65. The findings of this study revealed that brand experience has a significantly and positive effect on consumer satisfaction, brand trust and brand loyalty. In addition, a mediation analysis showed that consumer experience and brand trust significantly mediate the relationship between brand experience and brand loyalty. The findings also demonstrate that country of origin (preference for Portuguese products), price and social influence have a significative influence on brand loyalty, while the organic nature of skincare products and the use of harmful ingredients in these products don’t affect brand loyalty in a significative way

Is going public a good path for microfinance institutions? : a case study analysis of SKS's IPO and its post-issue performance

Companies go public in order to obtain more attractive financing prices from stock markets in exchange for the promise of delivering profits to the investors who buy their stock. Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) aim at alleviating poverty in the society by providing the poor with opportunities for the creation and development of income generating activities. The uprise in the number of connections between capitalist interests and social ones originated several discussions and controversies among the microfinance community. This paper presents SKS Microfinance IPO, which was the first Microfinance Institution in India to go public. The IPO was a success and so were the ensuing 5 weeks. However, soon afterwards a crisis was triggered in the industry, making SKS’s value fall enormously. In this study it is our goal to understand the reasons behind SKS’s performance and whether going public is a viable path for Microfinance Institutions. Our analysis focuses on the internal and external factors behind the company's market performance, its operational evolution, and its position relative to its peers. We discover that the factors influencing SKS performance were specific to its managerial distress and to external conflicts arising in the sector. With strategic coherence and market transparency we believe there is an open way for MFIs to go public.Les entreprises s'introduisent en bourse afin d'obtenir du financement à un meilleur prix sur le marché. En échange, elles promettent des bénéfices aux investisseurs qui achètent leur stock. Les Institutions de Microfinance (IMF) visent à réduire la pauvreté sociale: elles offrent aux plus démunis la possibilité de générer une activité rémunératrice qui leur permettra de sortir de leur condition. L'augmentation des liens entre les intérêts capitalistes et les intérêts sociaux ont généré de nombreuses discussions et controverses parmi les experts en microfinance Cet article présente l’introduction en bourse de SKS Microfinance, la première institution de microfinance en Inde à s'introduire en bourse. Cette introduction a été un succès pendant les 5 premières semaines. Cependant, une crise dans l'industrie se déclanche à ce moment, entraînant une chute significative de la valeur de SKS. Nous avons ici l'intention d'étudier les raisons qui expliquent la performance de SKS ainsi que de discuter si l'introduction en bourse est une voie viable pour les institutions de microfinance. Notre analyse se focalise sur les facteurs internes et externes liés à la performance de cette entreprise, sur son évolution opérationnelle, et sue sa position par rapport aux autres entreprises. Au terme de cette étude, nous concluons que les facteurs influençant les performances de SKS étaient liés aux problèmes de management et aux conflits externes propres au secteur. Ainsi, nous croyons qu' avec une stratégie cohérente et de la transparence dans le marché, les IMF peuvent trouver leur place en bourse.Uma empresa é cotada em bolsa com o objectivo de obter melhores condições de financiamento “pagando” aos investidores parte do lucro do seu negócio. As Insituições Microfinanceiras (MFIs) têm como objectivo reduzir a pobreza na sociedade e dar uma oportunidade aos menos favorecidos de produzir um negócio rentável. A capitalização bolsista de Instituições Microfinanceiras originou muitas controvérsias entre os especialistas de microfinanças, por ligar objectivos sociais e capitalistas. Este artigo estuda a listagem da SKS Microfinance, primeira MFI na Índia. A Oferta Pública de Venda (OPV) foi um sucesso durante 5 semanas mas, uma crise na indústria desencadeou-se e o valor do SKS caiu substancialmente. Através de um estudo exploratório não só das variáveis que influenciaram a ação nos mercados, como da sua robustez operacional e financeira, pretendemos compreender as razões por detrás da performance do SKS. Deste modo, tentamos compreender se a introdução nos mercados é um caminho viável para as MFIs. Descobrimos que os fatores que influenciaram a performance do SKS foram especificamente devidos, por um lado a uma ineficiente gestão e por outro devido a conflitos no sector. Concluímos que, com uma estratégia coerente e transparência nos mercados, existe um caminho aberto para a cotação em bolsa das MFIs