Casa do Impacto : an internship at the leading portuguese social impact hub

Mestrado Bolonha em ManagementThis internship report provides a summary of the activities performed during a four-month period in Casa do Impacto, a Portuguese social impact hub, part of Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa. Initial chapters present a brief reflection on the concepts of Social Impact, Social Innovation, Social Entrepreneurship, Impact Investment and Social Impact Assessment. Comprehension of the word social and its influence on the terms guide the reflection. Compared to the traditional views on innovation, entrepreneurship and investment, the ones motivated by the ideals of social impact emphasize the positive change in the welfare of beneficiaries their endeavours bring. Profits, when available, are reinvested in the project to create more impact, which also affects the profile of investor that seeks to help social economy organizations. A short overview of the Social Economy Framework Law, studies by INE (CSES and Social Economy Sector Survey) and a report by the European Commission are used to describe the social economy sector in Portugal. Despite the tradition the sector has in the country, legislation does not acknowledge the existence of social enterprises, although organizations, such as the OECD and the EU, doing so. Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa is a crucial member of the Portuguese social economy, through its work in social care, health, education, and culture. The organization’s Department of Entrepreneurship and Social Economy and its commercial brand, Casa do Impacto, provide programs to help foster the Portuguese impact ecosystem. Casa do Impacto, a hub for social and environmental solutions, entrepreneurs, and investors, has over three years of proven results. The SDGs define the orienting values of Casa do Impacto, which drew a sustainability focused Masters in Management student to do this internship. It allowed knowledge gained during the program’s courses to be applied in the several settings Casa do Impacto operates in.O presente relatório de estágio sumariza as atividades realizadas durante um período de quatro meses na Casa do Impacto, um hub de impacto social, pertencente à Santa Casa de Misericórdia de Lisboa. Os capítulos iniciais apresentam uma breve reflexão sobre os conceitos de Impacto Social, Inovação Social, Empreendedorismo Social, Investimento para o Impacto e Avaliação de Impacto Social. A reflexão parte da compreensão da palavra social e a da sua influência nos termos. Comparativamente às visões tradicionais de inovação, empreendedorismo e investimento, aquelas que são motivadas por impacto social priorizam a mudança positiva em bem-estar dos beneficiários. Lucros, quando disponíveis, são reinvestidos no projeto, para criar ainda mais impacto, o que afeta o perfil de investidor que procura ajudar organizações da economia social. A economia social portuguesa é brevemente estudada, através da Lei de Bases da Economia Social, estudos do INE (CSES e o Inquérito do Setor da Economia Social) e um relatório da Comissão Europeia. Apesar da existência histórica do setor no país, legislação ainda não reconhece a existência de empresas sociais, ignorando as orientações de organizações como a OCDE e a UE. A Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa é um membro crucial da economia social portuguesa, através do seu trabalho em ação social, saúde, educação e cultura. O seu Departamento de Empreendedorismo e Economia Social e a sua marca, Casa do Impacto, disponibilizam programas que estimulam o ecossistema português de impacto. A Casa do Impacto, um hub de soluções, empreendedores e investidores sociais e ambientais, tem três anos de provas dadas. Os ODS determinam os valores orientadores da Casa do Impacto, facto que motivou um estudante do Masters in Management a efetuar um estágio curricular. Este permitiu que o conhecimento adquirido nas unidades curriculares fosse aplicado nos vários contextos onde a Casa do Impacto se insereinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Does a shell matter for defence? Chemical deterrence in two cephalaspidean gastropodes with calcified shells

Opisthobranch molluscs show an evolutionary trend to reduce, internalize and lose the shell. Many of them base their defensive strategies on natural deterrent products and current evolutionary theory suggests that the acquisition of chemical defences preceded shell reduction and loss, which has characterized the evolution of this group. Here we show that basal, shelled opisthobranch molluscs are defended against sympatric predators even if their protective shell is removed. The cephalaspideans Bulla striata and Haminoea orbignyana, both with distinct shell calcification, significantly deterred feeding by sympatric crab and fish predators, both in laboratory and field assays. However, our results argue against a progressive increment of chemical defences associated with shell reduction, because the cephalaspidean with the more fully calcified shell, Bulla striata, was also the more deterrent. These findings suggest that effective chemical defences might have evolved independently from shell loss, at least in basal opisthobranchs such as cephalaspideans

Impacto da COVID-19 nos índices VIX, VSTOXX e VHSI

Mestrado em Análise FinanceiraEm 2020, a sociedade viu o despoletar de uma pandemia com efeitos sem precedentes na história. Em tempos marcados pela incerteza e ansiedade na vida diária, surgem nos índices de volatilidade implícita um medidor importante do sentimento dos investidores face aos desenvolvimentos associados à COVID-19. Posto isto, este estudo almeja analisar os impactos registados nos índices VIX, VSTOXX e VHSI através da aplicação de um modelo EGARCH. Para esse fim, foram recolhidos os dados dos índices mencionados entre 1 de janeiro de 2018 e 31 de dezembro de 2021. Foram consideradas 3 séries temporais de maneira a construir as hipóteses de investigação, denominadas Evento 1 (entre 30 de janeiro de 2020 e 11 de março de 2020); Evento 2 (entre 12 de março de 2020 e 14 de dezembro de 2020); e Evento 3 (entre 15 de dezembro de 2020 e 31 de dezembro de 2021). Os resultados sugerem que, em relação ao Evento 1, não existe nenhum impacto significativo nos índices, algo que pode ser explicado com uma reação tardia por parte dos investidores à COVID-19. Para o Evento 2, regista-se um impacto significativo no índice VIX, mas não para o VSTOXX e VHSI, podendo-se justificar que nestes as medidas de apoio e adaptação à pandemia foram eficientes. No Evento 3, comprova-se que a COVID-19 não teve um efeito significativamente negativo nos índices.In 2020, society saw the triggering of a pandemic with unprecedented effects in history. In times marked by uncertainty and anxiety in daily life, implied volatility indices are an important gauge of investor sentiment given the developments associated with COVID-19. With that said, this study aims to analyze the impacts recorded in the VIX, VSTOXX and VHSI indices through the application of an EGARCH model. For this purpose, data from the aforementioned indices were collected between 1st January 2018 and 31st December 2021. 3 timelines were considered in order to build the investigation hypotheses, denominated Event 1 (between 30thJanuary 2020 and 11th March 2020); Event 2 (between 12th March 2020 and 14th December 2020); and Event 3 (between 15th December 2020 and 31st December 2021). The results suggest that relative to Event 1, there is no significant impact on the indices, something that can be explained by a delayed reaction by investors to COVID-19. For Event 2, there is a significant impact on the VIX index, but not for the VSTOXX and VHSI, and it can be justified that in these the measures to support and adapt to the pandemic were efficient. In Event 3, it is proven that COVID-19 did not have a significantly negative effect on the indices.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

O efeito da paisagem no padrão de ataque da Thaumetopoea pityocampa na herdade da Apostiça

A floresta representa mais de um terço da área de Portugal, contribuindo com cerca de 3,2% do PIB, com o pinhal a compor a segunda maior formação florestal. Tendo tanta relevância no país, e existindo em Portugal a processionária-do-pinheiro (PPM), Thaumetopoea pityocampa, uma das mais importantes pragas de resinosas, é pertinente compreender as suas dinâmicas populacionais. O objetivo deste trabalho era perceber se existe um padrão espacial de ataque da PPM na herdade da Apostiça, distrito de Setúbal, e, caso houvesse, compreender que fatores afeta-riam o padrão de ataque, nomeadamente as espécies de hospedeiro existentes, fatores paisagísticos e abióticos, e a área analisada. Procedeu-se à recolha de dados tendo-se registado o número de ninhos de PPM e a área basal de cada espécie arbórea. Calculou-se o índice de Moran univariado do número de ninhos para se perceber o padrão espacial de ataque da PPM, o Índice de Moran bivariado entre o número de ninhos e a área basal de Pinheiro-bravo e o índice de Moran bivariado entre o número de ninhos e várias métricas de diversidade de paisagem, de modo a perceber que fatores influenciam o padrão de ataque da PPM. Obteve-se a confirmação de que existe, realmente, um padrão espacial de agregação, dos ninhos da PPM, na herdade da Apostiça. Há grande influência de fatores paisagísticos, sendo o principal a diversidade da paisagem. Houve uma grande discrepância no ataque no que toca às espécies existentes, sendo que o pinheiro-manso quase não foi atacado enquanto o pinheiro-bravo foi bastante atacado, revelando a grande importância das espécies de árvores existentes.Forests cover more than a third of the Portuguese territory, contributing around 3.2% of GDP, with pine forests making up the second largest forest formation. Having such relevance in the country, and existing in Portugal the pine processionary moth (PPM), Thaumetopoea pityocampa, one of the main resinous trees’ pests, it is pertinent to understand its population dynamics. The objective of this work was to understand if there was a spatial pattern of attack by the PPM in the Apostiça estate, in the Setúbal district, and to understand which factors would affect, and how, the pattern of attack, namely the host tree species, landscape and abiotic fac-tors, and the analyzed area. Data was collected to record the number of PPM nests and the basal area of each tree species. The univariate Moran index of the number of nests was calculated to obtain the spatial pattern of attack, then the bivariate Moran indexes were calculated for the basal areas and for various landscape diversity indexes, in order to find which factors influence the PPM's spatial pattern of attack. It was confirmed the existence of a spatial pattern of aggregation, of the PPM, in the Apostiça estate. Landscape factors were determinant for this pattern with landscape diversity being the main one, with a negative effect on the incidence of the PPM's attack, while the dom-inance effect has a positive effect on the PPM. Contrary to expectations, solar radiation had a negative effect on the PPM. There was a large discrepancy in the attack regarding the existing species, with the stone pine tree being almost not affected while the maritime pine was heavily attacked, revealing the great importance of the existing tree species

Relatório de estágio realizado no Phive Health & Fitness Clubs

A indústria do fitness tem vindo a crescer ao longo dos anos. O aumento da competitividade e a constante inovação neste setor criou novos desafios para a gestão do desporto. A necessidade de diferenciação e de prestação de um melhor serviço, obrigou a uma especialização por parte dos gestores do desporto que vai além da formação normal. O relatório descreve a realização do estágio curricular no Phive Health & Fitness Clubs, desenvolvido no âmbito do Mestrado em Gestão do Desporto. Com passagem por todos os departamentos da marca, o principal foco do relatório é na área dos eventos do grupo. Organizar e planear os eventos de 2020 foi o principal objetivo do estágio. Neste relatório encontra-se um enquadramento da prática profissional, seguindo uma descrição das atividades realizadas e termina com as principais conclusões do trabalho desenvolvido ao longo do estágio.Year by year, fitness industry have been growing. The increased competitiveness and the constant innovation of this sector have created new challenges in sport’s management. Differentiation and provision of a better service, have forced a better specialization from sport’s managers that obviously goes beyond the normal formation. This report describes a curricular internship at Phive Health & Fitness Clubs, included in master’s degree in Sports Management. After passing through all departments of the brand, the focus of this report relies at Phive’s events. Organizing 2020’s events was the principal objective of the internship. This report provides a summary of professional practice, followed by a small description of the activities accomplished, and it ends with the key conclusions of the developed work during the internship

Learning Information Systems: Designing Education Programs Using Letrinhas

The Letrinhas information system contributes to the improvement of students' reading literacy combining the potential of mobile devices and the specific needs of students and teachers. This information system has emerged within the framework of a partnership established between the Instituto Politécnico de Tomar (IPT) and the Artur Gonçalves Cluster of Schools, in Torres Novas, Portugal. After three years of the creation of the tool and its use in a real learning environment, the evaluation already carried out suggests a high degree of satisfaction on the part of teachers and students, as well as a very positive impact on improving the reading skills of the students involved in the project. The latest version of Letrinhas has new features which lead to the specific challenges and needs of the teachers in the above-mentioned cluster of schools. Being so, in addition to the evaluation and improvement of reading skills, the new version provides features that enable the creation of educational scenarios promoting learning environments that enhance, not only the autonomy of students, but also their motivation.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Osteotomy at low-speed drilling without irrigation versus high-speed drilling with irrigation: an experimental study

"Introduction: Excessively traumatic surgery can adversely affect the maturation of bone tissue and consequently diminish the predictability of osseointegration so the mechanical and thermal damage should be minimized during surgical procedure. The purpose of this study is to evaluate immediate histological alterations in rabbit tibias, produced by low speed drilling (50 rpm) without irrigation and conventional drilling (800 rpm) under profuse irrigation. Material and Methods: Thirty-six implant osteotomies were created in the tibias of 6 White female rabbits. Drilling began with a 1.5 mm round bur, followed by 2.0 mm, 2.5 mm and 3.5 mm helical drills. The posterior tibial cortex was evaluated as the positive control, and it was preserved during the surgical procedure. The receptor beds were collected for histological analysis. Results: All defects showed regular edges. Hematoxylin eosin (HE) sections showed that both techniques preserved the bone structure and the presence of living cells. No histological differences between the two surgical drilling techniques were found. Conclusions: Based on our results, we can conclude that the effects of implant site preparation on bone by low speed drilling (50 rpm) without irrigation and conventional drilling (800 rpm) under abundant irrigation are similar. Both surgical drilling techniques preserve bone-cell viability and the clinician can decide which drilling technique to use, based on other criteria. Keywords: Osteotomy; Osseointegration; Rabbits; Therapeutic Irrigation; Tibia; Wound Healing.

A click chemistry strategy to specifically monitor and improve purification of Influenza virus-like particles

Virus-like particles (VLPs) constitute a promising platform in vaccine development and targeted drug-delivery. However, most applications use simple, non-enveloped VLPs that present less technical challenges, not only to produce and purify, but also in terms of characterization, compared to enveloped VLPs. Recent advances in upstream processing, new product quality requirements and other regulatory issues, as well as the search for more cost-effective processes, led to the need to develop more efficient downstream processes for biopharmaceuticals.[1] In that sense, new monitoring and product characterization methods, which can be applied at all stages of downstream processing, are needed. Here is reported a valuable platform for the downstream processing and monitoring of the in vivo production of site-specifically functionalized enveloped Influenza VLPs. This strategy involves a two-step procedure that consists of residue-specific replacement of methionine by an analog (azidohomolanine) that enabled for post-expression functionalization with a fluorophore.[2] Importantly, this platform does not impact VLP production or purification processes, and allows functionalization without deleterious effect on hemagglutinin biological function. As a proof of concept a complete downstream processing was performed, including clarification, capture and polishing steps. A flow cytometry analysis (FACS) step was added to achieve a refined discrimination and separation between VLPs and baculovirus - the major impurity of the process.[3] This was further confirmed using atomic force microscopy (AFM). This tool allowed to accurately monitor our product, achieve higher product recovery yields and higher impurity removal levels. The versatile system presented here is broadly applicable to the production of functionalized enveloped VLPs, for vaccine design, targeted drug delivery and molecular imaging. [1] CRAMER et al., Curr Opin Chem Eng, 1, 27-37, 2011. [2] BANERJEE et al., J. Virol., 85, 7546-7554, 2011. [3] VAN DER VLIST et al., Nature Protoc, 7.7, 1311-1326, 2012