The Eastward Enlargement of the Eurozone: Trade and FDI

Trade and FDI, Economic Integration

Occurrence and relative abundance of common\ud dolphins in three sites of the Portuguese shore

Throughout the years some researchers have dedicated their efforts to the study of cetaceans’\ud occurrence off Portugal mainland. However, it is still missing a systemic scientific methodology\ud for studying the presence of coastal small cetaceans. This work is a recent approach to the\ud occurrence and relative abundance estimative of cetaceans and especially common dolphins off\ud the west central coast of Portugal. Boat-based visual surveys were conducted in three different\ud geographic locations, resulting in the sighting of several species. In Nazaré we have only\ud observed Delphinus delphis while in Peniche and Sesimbra a great diversity of species was\ud recorded, including Tursiops truncatus, Stenella coeruleoalba, Phocoena phocoena and\ud Balaenoptera acutorostrata. Most frequently sighted was common dolphin (62%). Occurrence\ud of large groups of this species seems to take place along main ocean topographic features, like\ud the Portuguese submarine canyons and we consider that great depths near shore are suitable\ud habitats for more pelagic species of dolphins such as common dolphins. Total index of common\ud dolphin abundance was of 2.198 individuals per surveyed hour. A much smaller APUE was\ud found for Peniche than for the other two regions, where common dolphins show a similar\ud relative abundance. Future studies using linear transects and continuous long-term approaches\ud will give further insight to small cetaceans’ occurrence along Portugal mainland and its relation\ud with different oceanographic features, particularly depths and distances to shore. On-going\ud efforts in coming years added to this first approach will be required to obtain knowledge for the\ud conservation of cetaceans

Colóquio sobre dendezeiro: prioridades de pesquisas econômicas, sociais e ambientais na Amazônia.

O Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia (INCT) em Biodiversidade e Uso da Terra da Amazônia, sediado no Museu Paraense Emilio Goeldi realizou um colóquio com estudantes e orientadores de cursos de pós-graduação que desenvolvem pesquisas socioeconômicas ou ambientais sobre o dendezeiro no País, no qual foi possível perceber os avanços, desafios e oportunidades para estudos interdisciplinares com relação à expansão dessa cultura na Amazônia. Assim, a partir dos objetivos e das metodologias que estão sendo utilizadas nessas pesquisas delineou-se a atual fronteira de conhecimento científico, socioeconômico e ambiental nessa temática e estabeleceu-se prioridades de pesquisa que pudessem compreender os novos e intensos processos produtivos e territoriais decorrentes da expansão dessa cultura na região nas últimas décadas. Essas prioridades devem servir de base para a orientação de uma política de C&T para as instituições financiadoras e de pesquisa no País

Young stars in the periphery of the Large Magellanic Cloud

Despite their close proximity, the complex interplay between the two Magellanic Clouds, the Milky Way, and the resulting tidal features, is still poorly understood. Recent studies have shown that the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) has a very extended disk strikingly perturbed in its outskirts. We search for recent star formation in the far outskirts of the LMC, out to ~30 degrees from its center. We have collected intermediate-resolution spectra of thirty-one young star candidates in the periphery of the LMC and measured their radial velocity, stellar parameters, distance and age. Our measurements confirm membership to the LMC of six targets, for which the radial velocity and distance values match well those of the Cloud. These objects are all young (10-50 Myr), main-sequence stars projected between 7 and 13 degrees from the center of the parent galaxy. We compare the velocities of our stars with those of a disk model, and find that our stars have low to moderate velocity differences with the disk model predictions, indicating that they were formed in situ. Our study demonstrates that recent star formation occurred in the far periphery of the LMC, where thus far only old objects were known. The spatial configuration of these newly-formed stars appears ring-like with a radius of 12 kpc, and a displacement of 2.6 kpc from the LMC's center. This structure, if real, would be suggestive of a star-formation episode triggered by an off-center collision between the Small Magellanic Cloud and the LMC's disk.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA

Analysis of Mechanical Response during Folding of Creased and Uncreased Paperboard

Creasing and folding of paperboard are two essential operations to obtain a well-defined shape and strength of a package. Relative Crease Strength, RCS, is specified for process control of creasing and folding and is defined as the ratio between the maximal bending force for a crease and uncreased sample bend to the bending angle of 30 degrees at a rate of 5 degrees/sec. Thus, the present work had as objective to evaluate RCS measured in real industrial samples used for process control of creasing and evaluate the influence of paperboard properties and converting processes creasing and folding. As RCS can be measured only after creasing, the study can give directions to paperboard production process control. Creasing measurements were done on both machine direction (MD) and cross machine direction (CD) samples. The paperboard property that showed the highest correlation to RCS was Scott Bond. Based on this one pilot production with lower Scott Bond was evaluated. Lower values of RCS were obtained, as predicted. X-Ray microtomography revealed higher stratification between fiber layers in the paperboard with lower Scott Bond

Stellar parameters for stars of the CoRoT exoplanet field

Aims:To support the computation and evolutionary interpretation of periods associated with the rotational modulation, oscillations, and variability of stars located in the CoRoT fields, we are conducting a spectroscopic survey for stars located in the fields already observed by the satellite. These observations allow us to compute physical and chemical parameters for our stellar sample. Method: Using spectroscopic observations obtained with UVES/VLT and Hydra/Blanco, and based on standard analysis techniques, we computed physical and chemical parameters ($T_{\rm{eff}}$, $\log \,(g)$, $\rm{[Fe/H]}$, $v_{\rm{mic}}$, $v_{\rm{rad}}$, $v \sin \,(i)$, and $A(\rm{Li})$) for a large sample of CoRoT targets. Results: We provide physical and chemical parameters for a sample comprised of 138 CoRoT targets. Our analysis shows the stars in our sample are located in different evolutionary stages, ranging from the main sequence to the red giant branch, and range in spectral type from F to K. The physical and chemical properties for the stellar sample are in agreement with typical values reported for FGK stars. However, we report three stars presenting abnormal lithium behavior in the CoRoT fields. These parameters allow us to properly characterize the intrinsic properties of the stars in these fields. Our results reveal important differences in the distributions of metallicity, $T_{\rm eff}$, and evolutionary status for stars belonging to different CoRoT fields, in agreement with results obtained independently from ground-based photometric surveys. Conclusions: Our spectroscopic catalog, by providing much-needed spectroscopic information for a large sample of CoRoT targets, will be of key importance for the successful accomplishment of several different programs related to the CoRoT mission, thus it will help further boost the scientific return associated with this space mission.Comment: 43 pages, 17 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Electrochemical detection of biofilms

[Excerpt] Biofilms are the result of adhesion and growth of microorganisms, creating microenvironments - a polymeric matrix - where several microbial reactions take place [1]. Usually, biofilms are divided in two groups: the ones that are beneficial, as in wastewater treatment or production of specific products, and the detrimental biofilms such as the ones that appear in drinking water pipes and heat exchangers. In any case it is very important to detect the biofilm as soon as possible, to increase its growth or to avoid the risks associated with its presence. The ideal detector must allow the easy detection of biofilms in the early stages of formation and on line. Electrochemical techniques are well known for their role in analytical chemistry, allowing the determination and quantification of a large number of organic, inorganic and biological compounds. These techniques have largely proved to provide an efficient means for detection in situ and on line of a variety of compounds [2]. [...