Citizen engagement through city apps: Technology adoption approach

Metropolitan areas are constantly evolving, and the smart city concept is gaining traction throughout local governance. The new paradigm for cities lands on an organic, efficient and interconnected structure, where the citizen is placed at the centre. Information and communication technologies (ICT) are the main technological enablers for this change and for citizen engagement, city services and applications (Apps) as one of the channels possible to use. The main objective of the present study is to find the key determinants that enable the adoption of city mobile apps. A theoretical model was created, and an online survey conducted to gather insights of the citizens' perspectives regarding the city apps. The results indicate the model is valid and that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are important components to the adoption of city apps. In addition, it was possible to identify some organizational and individual impacts recurring from the use of these apps. This study contributes to a new model of city apps adoption and provides evidence to organisms involved on the implementation and development of these apps.As áreas metropolitanas estão em constante desenvolvimento e o conceito de smart cities tem vindo a ganhar força entre organismos de governação local. Este novo paradigma para as cidades assenta numa estrutura orgânica, interconectada e eficiente, onde o cidadão é colocado no centro. As tecnologias de comunicação e informação são consideradas os principais facilitadores para esta mudança e envolvimento do cidadão, sendo os serviços e aplicações (apps) disponíveis um dos canais utilizados. O objectivo principal do presente estudo é determinar o que proporciona adopção de apps citadinas. Um modelo teórico foi desenhado e um questionário online realizado, de modo a recolher as percepções dos cidadãos, relativamente ao uso destas aplicações mobile. Os resultados indicam que o modelo é válido e que a percepção de utilidade e de facilidade de utilização são importantes componentes na adopção de apps citadinas. Adicionalmente, foi possível identificar algum impacto individual e organizacional promovido pelo uso destas apps. Este estudo vem contribuir para um novo modelo de adopção a apps citadinas e facilitar informação aos organismos envolvidos no desenvolvimento e implementação das mesmas

Developments on the e-health portuguese sector : case study about ConsultaClick´s approach

The main goal of this dissertation is to analyze how a recent Portuguese start-up within the health sector can bring some developments and innovation to the National Health System, at the same time that it tries to integrate Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to contribute for a better society. Written in the form of Case Study, the dissertation shows how CCK´s service can be helpful for the Portuguese population, through the study of its business model. The dissertation is structured in five chapters: (1) Introduction, which deeply describes deeply the present study and the motivation behind it; (2) Literature Review, explaining the main theoretical concepts within the Portuguese National Health System and e-commerce sector; (3) Case Study which illustrates CCK's best practices; (4) Teaching Notes, making an interesting analysis to the company's business model; and to conclude (5) some Future Guidelines are presented as well as the dissertation's Limitations.Esta dissertação visa, como objecto principal, analisar de que forma é que uma recente start-up Portuguesa, no sector da saúde, consegue trazer desenvolvimentos e inovação para o Sistema Nacional de Saúde, tentando, concomitantemente, integrar alguma Responsabilidade Social de modo a contribuir para uma sociedade melhor. Escrita sob a forma de um Caso de Estudo, esta mostra, através do estudo do modelo de negócios da CCK, como é que o seu o serviço pode ser útil para a população Portuguesa. A dissertação está estruturada em cinco capítulos. Iniciada por, uma Introdução que descreve de forma aprofundada o estudo em causa e a motivação por trás do mesmo, seguida de uma Revisão de Literatura (2ºcapítulo), que explica os principais conceitos teóricos dentro do Sistema Nacional de Saúde Português, bem como o sector dos negócios online. O Caso de Estudo, descrito no 3º capítulo ilustra as melhores práticas da CCK e precede as Notas Explicativas (no 4º capítulo), que fazem uma análise ao modelo de negócios da empresa. Este estudo é concluído (5º capítulo) com algumas orientações futuras, advertindo para as suas respectivas limitações

A method to impregnate wet soil samples, producing high-quality thin sections.

[120.031]Mineral soils with different moisture content and texture were impregnated successfully by the method described. The water present in the soil sample is replaced by acetone and the acetone-saturated sample is impregnated by FitzPatrick's method (1970) (using acetone as thinner of the polyester resin Synolith 544). Shrinkage is minimal and the thin sections are of high quality. It should be possible to correlate thin section data obtained by this method with physical data obtained from undisturbed material. Micromorphologically, a better understanding of the plasmic fabrics should be possible. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission

THE CHIME: POETICALLY TRANSLATING THE DISCRETE DIFFERENCE OF AGNSOTIC SENSORS INTO A SONIFICATION OF THE CITY

Inspired by Georg Simmel’s notion of the blasé and Mark Weiser’s vision for calm technology, this document detailing the application of critical concepts to the realization of a design intention is a critical and creative exploration of computation and the everyday. While paying particular attention to the conceptual underappreciation of acoustic space and place, I outline a case for poetically translating data collected from inherently agnostic sensors through the design, construction and use of an instrument for sensing environmental difference (comprised of 18 sensors measuring 27 data points) and exemplified through a musical sonification. A generative instrument, such as The Chime, takes external impulses and translates them poetically into a form that naturally casts the attention back upon the initial gust. In the built environment such treatment of discrete sensing could help engender what I call acoustic places; place that, even if for a passing moment, might resonate harmonically and reciprocally with the inspiration for its emission

Swine Carcass Studies. I. Genetic Variation and Covariation in Carcass Characters. II. The Probe as an Indicator of Carcass Merit

Animal Breedin

Exosome-mediated crosstalk between chronic myelogenous leukemia cells and human bone marrow stromal cells triggers an interleukin 8-dependent survival of leukemia cells

Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is a myeloproliferative disorder characterized by the Bcr–Abl oncoprotein with constitutive tyrosine kinase activity. Exosomes are nanovesicles released by cancer cells that are involved in cell-to-cell communication thus potentially affecting cancer progression. It is well known that bone marrow stromal microenvironment contributes to disease progression through the establishment of a bi-directional crosstalk with cancer cells. Our hypothesis is that exosomes could have a functional role in this crosstalk. Interleukin-8 (IL 8) is a proinflammatory chemokine that activates multiple signalling pathways downstream of two receptors (CXCR1 and CXCR2). We demonstrated that exosomes released from CML cells stimulate bone marrow stromal cells to produce IL 8 that, in turn, is able to modulate both in vitro and in vivo the leukemia cell malignant phenotype