Hybrid GMR Sensor Detecting 950 pT/sqrt(Hz) at 1 Hz and Room Temperature.

Advances in the magnetic sensing technology have been driven by the increasing demand for the capability of measuring ultrasensitive magnetic fields. Among other emerging applications, the detection of magnetic fields in the picotesla range is crucial for biomedical applications. In this work Picosense reports a millimeter-scale, low-power hybrid magnetoresistive-piezoelectric magnetometer with subnanotesla sensitivity at low frequency. Through an innovative noise-cancelation mechanism, the 1/f noise in the MR sensors is surpassed by the mechanical modulation of the external magnetic fields in the high frequency regime. A modulation efficiency of 13% was obtained enabling a final device's sensitivity of ~950 pT/Hz1/2 at 1 Hz. This hybrid device proved to be capable of measuring biomagnetic signals generated in the heart in an unshielded environment. This result paves the way for the development of a portable, contactless, low-cost and low-power magnetocardiography device

Paleobot.org: establishing open-access online reference collections for archaeobotanical research

Difficulty in accessing high quality reference materials has been a limiting factor in the advancement of archaeobotanical research. However, new developments in online open source content management technology and faster downloading capabilities make high quality and low cost dynamic online curation of archaeobotanical reference images increasingly feasible. We describe the establishment of Paleobot.org, an open access online reference collection database for macrobotanical, microbotanical and isotopic data to help standardize and improve the identification of archaeobotanical remain

Stellar and Gaseous Nuclear Disks Observed in Nearby (U)LIRGs

We present near-infrared integral field spectroscopy of the central kiloparsec of 17 nearby luminous and ultra-luminous infrared galaxies undergoing major mergers. These observations were taken with OSIRIS assisted by the Keck I and II Adaptive Optics systems, providing spatial resolutions of a few tens of parsecs. The resulting kinematic maps reveal gas disks in at least 16 out of 19 nuclei and stellar disks in 11 out of 11 nuclei observed in these galaxy merger systems. In our late-stages mergers, these disks are young (stellar ages $<30$ Myr) and likely formed as gas disks which became unstable to star formation during the merger. On average, these disks have effective radii of a few hundred parsecs, masses between $10^{8}$ and $10^{10} M_{Sun}$, and $v/\sigma$ between 1 and 5. These disks are similar to those created in high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations of gas-rich galaxy mergers, and favor short coalescence times for binary black holes. The few galaxies in our sample in earlier stages of mergers have disks which are larger ($r_{eff}\sim200-1800$ pc) and likely are remnants of the galactic disks that have not yet been completely disrupted by the merger.Comment: accepted for publication in Ap

Sweet music influences sensory and hedonic perception of food products with varying sugar levels

Reducing sugar intake is an important nutritional goal in most developed countries. Despite the health consequences of excessive sugar consumption (e.g., non-communicable diseases), individuals are often reluctant to shift dietary habits due to the high hedonic appeal of sugar-rich products. Manipulating the intrinsic sensory attributes of foods (such as color or aroma) has been put forward as a promising framework for enhancing taste perception and increasing acceptance of low-sugar products. So far, it is less known whether extrinsic sensory cues may have similar effects. In this within-subjects experiment (N = 106, 64 % women), we tested how auditory stimuli (i.e., music) may impact the perception and acceptance of products varying in sweetness levels. Participants tasted samples of two product categories (vegetables and cookies), with higher (carrots and cookies) and lower sweetness levels (cucumbers and 0 % sugar cookies), while listening to previously tested soundtracks that were strongly (vs weakly) associated with sweetness. Results showed that the high “sweetness” soundtrack increased the sweetness ratings of all products compared to the low “sweetness” soundtrack. Participants also reported higher preference and more favorable intentions of future consumption when the high “sweetness” soundtrack was played. Overall, these findings suggest that extrinsic sensory cues, namely music, may aid in reducing sugar intake by increasing the acceptance of products with lower sugar content

Gestão de ativos físicos em instalações e equipamentos hospitalares : estágio no SUCH

Os Ativos Físicos hospitalares têm um papel estratégico nas unidades de saúde. Com o avanço da tecnologia e a sua crescente complexidade, importa ter profissionais cada vez mais capacitados, quer na vertente da operação quer da manutenção. Os Ativos Físicos das unidades de saúde caracterizam-se pela sua grande heterogeneidade, seja na vertente tecnológica ou na do seu ciclo de vida, pelo que se impõe uma análise rigorosa destes diversos aspetos visando a racionalidade da sua gestão. A gestão de ativos hospitalares refere-se a todo o seu ciclo de vida, desde a sua aquisição até ao seu abate. Neste âmbito devem ser consideradas todas as variáveis necessárias à análise rigorosa do ciclo de vida, o que implica o registo temporal completo de todos os seus dados, quer de funcionamento quer de manutenção. A ISO 55000 define gestão de ativos como a "atividade coordenada de uma organização para realizar o valor dos ativos". Esta é uma norma estruturante para qualquer organização que dependa dos seus Ativos Físicos para a sua atividade. As vertentes da disponibilidade, do ciclo de vida do investimento e do plano estratégico, são apenas alguns aspetos que serão tratados neste relatório de estágio. No âmbito da Unidade Curricular Estágio do Mestrado de Engenharia e Gestão de Ativos Físicos foi realizado um estágio na área da gestão de ativos físicos em instalações e equipamentos hospitalares, no SUCH e no CHUC em Coimbra. O presente relatório tem como principal objetivo descrever os conhecimentos e experiências adquiridas, assim como os trabalhos desenvolvidos, bem como as atividades e funções desempenhadas durante o período de estágio na empresa

Enabling sustainable food transitions in schools : a systemic approach

Purpose Recent reviews and reports have highlighted the need for integrated, context-specific efforts to enable sustainable food transitions. This study aimed to identify pathways to promote healthier and more environmentally friendly food practices in school contexts, with a focus on increased plant-based eating. Design/methodology/approach The study used a systemic approach with data collected from relevant stakeholders in an EU country (Portugal) at diverse levels of influence in the school meals system (i.e. proximal, intermediate, distal; from end-consumers to food providers, market actors, civil society organizations, and policy and decision-makers). Data from individual interviews (N = 33) were subjected to thematic analysis. Findings Meat-centric cultural perceptions of a 'proper meal' can be a socio-emotional barrier for sustainable food transitions in schools. Main pathways identified to unlock these transitions included: (1) Levering orientations toward ethical and environmentally beneficial consumption; (2) Improving and increasing the offer of plant-based meals; and (3) Mobilizing local communities and society. Originality/value The current findings suggest that promoting healthier and more environmentally friendly food practices in schools requires systemic, integrated approaches which focus on food consumption, food provision, and the broader political and sociocultural environment.Peer reviewe

Plant-based school meals as levers of sustainable food transitions : A narrative review and conceptual framework

Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The AuthorsCurrent food systems face immediate and complex challenges in feeding a growing global population. It is necessary to mitigate the environmental impact of food systems while ensuring food security across the globe. Drawing on the example of recent multi-sectoral approaches which focus on the interconnections between public health and the environment, this work offers a narrative review and broader conceptual framework advancing two propositions. The first is that school meals systems have the potential to help enable sustainable food transitions. The second is that favoring well-planned plant-based meals in schools may strengthen this potential. The review and resulting framework highlight the relevance of seeking transdisciplinary dialogue and considering diverse sectors of society, such as public health, the environment, social protection, economic development, and community welfare. We review possible health benefits as well as possible economic and environmental outcomes, especially if school meals are sourced mainly from local communities and eco-friendly agricultural practices. Cross-sectoral implications related to social protection and community welfare are also identified and discussed, as well as potential pathways for materializing sustainable food transitions in schools.Peer reviewe

Which emoticons are in cheese? – a study linking psychological aspects with sensory perception

Which emotions are in cheese? - a study linking psychological aspects with sensory perception David Guedes1, Carla Simões2, Vlademir Silva2, Fernando Capela-Silva2, Cristina Pinheiro2, Raquel Lucas2, Sofia Tavares3, Elsa Lamy2 1Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal. 2Universidade de Evora, Portugal. 3 Universidade de Evora, Portugal Abstract Food preferences play a major role in food choices and consequent dietary habits. It is known that foods are associated to emotions and positive emotions are frequently associated to preference and intake, whereas negative emotions result in rejection. However, one food item is associated to certain emotions by some persons and to different emotions by others. Another factor known to influence food preferences is sensory perception. Also, in this case, variations among individuals exist in the way they perceive the sensory characteristics of a food. Taste, aroma and texture sensitivity can be a factor influencing sensory ratings and consequently preferences. Based on the thought that different factors affect food preferences, why not to study them together? We did perform a study aimed at evaluating: 1) how emotions, individuals’’ psychological characteristics, food sensory evaluation and taste sensitivity affect the hedonic value and preference of foods; 2) and how these several aspects are inter-related. Cheese is a product with marked characteristics, with a variety of products with different sensory characteristics. This is a type of product that dichotomize individuals: some love it and some hate it. Moreover, for the same individual, one type of cheese can be associated with pleasure and another type totally rejected. For these reasons, cheese was the product choose for this study. 231 individuals participated in this study. Five different types of cheese were given and, for each of them, each person was asked to point the intensity with which each emotion was perceived, and with which each sensory parameter. Moreover, for each cheese, individuals rated hedonics. Besides this, individuals were subjected to taste sensitivity tests and answered two questionnaires: 1) one for food nomophobia; 2) another for psychological profile. The results from this study will be presented and detailed discussed. Keywords psychology, emotions, sensory evaluation, taste, food preference

a field study

OBJECTIVE: Shifting from meat-centric to plant-rich diets may help to enable healthier and more sustainable food systems. Here we present the results of a 1-week intervention to promote plant-based eating in a meat-centric food context (i.e. canteen). DESIGN: The intervention included environmental restructuring strategies (e.g. promotional materials and menu redevelopment) and improvements to the offer of plant-based meals. The evaluation (sales data; pre-registered) spanned 3 weeks prior to the intervention (baseline), 1 week during the intervention (immediate/short-term impact) and 3 weeks after the intervention (follow-up). Opinion surveys were also used to collect data with customers during the intervention. SETTING: Canteen unit of a university campus in Portugal (Lisbon metropolitan area). PARTICIPANTS: In addition to sales data (baseline: 7965 meals; immediate/short-term: 2635 meals; follow-up: 7135 meals), we used opinion surveys to assess customers' meal appraisals during the intervention (n = 370). RESULTS: The odds of a sold meal being vegetarian were 24 % higher in the intervention week compared with the pre-intervention period [OR = 1·24, 95 % CI (1·10, 1·40)] and 9 % higher in the post-intervention period compared with the pre-intervention period [OR = 1·09, (95 % CI (1·00, 1·19)]. Survey data showed that vegetarian meals compared favourably to meat and fish alternatives in liking, sustainability and satiety. CONCLUSIONS: A short-term, theory-driven, operationally feasible intervention was effective in promoting increased plant-based meal choices in a collective meal context. Nevertheless, these changes were not entirely sustained over time. Future studies could test whether prolonged or more transformative interventions are necessary to unlock entrenched food practices more effectively in meat-centric collective meal contexts.publishersversionepub_ahead_of_prin