Sovereignity, statehood and self-determination in international law - The Kosovo case

The self-proclamation of Kosovo’s independence announced on February 17 invites us to some general considerations that may be linked to the specific event. The IL principle of Self-determination will be on the focus of this article to considering it as one of the way to archive the creation of new IL entity. Self-determination is a more recent principle then the others but its history, theory and practice is immense. The origin of the term and idea also is in discussion and debating among historian and lawyer. The term have been used simultaneously in the same period (end of WW I) by the US President Wilson and the USSR Premier Lenin referring to the right of the non self-governed territory like colony and occupied regions

Effects of Irrigation and Tree Spacing on Soil and Air Temperature Profiles of Olive Orchards

Changes on the climate of the boundary layer occur when a vegetation cover above a bare soil is introduced, namely on temperatures and humidity profiles, above and under soil surface. Since air and soil temperatures affect crop growth and development and also soil moisture, they have been used as driving variables in numerous crop growth and development models as well as in those referred to soil mineralization, evaporation, transpiration, etc. The aim of this work was to evaluate (a) the soil thermal behavior in two olive orchards (Olea europaea sp. europaea), both grown on soils with little profile development (Regosol and Cambisol) and subject to drip irrigation but with different spacing between trees, and (b) the air thermal profile over olive rows. Experiments were performed from April to June 2012 in Southern Portugal. Soil and air temperatures were measured by thermocouples. The two orchards changed spatial distribution of soil surface temperature, soil temperature profiles and air temperature within the canopy, either on a daily or hourly basis. Olive tree spacing and irrigation affected both the soil thermal behavior and air thermal profiles. Tree spacing affected the horizontal gradients established along the interrows (intensity and rhythm). Irrigation reduced hourly and daily mean soil surface temperatures and daily thermal amplitudes of both profiles. Differences were also found on damping depths of the thermal wave estimated for the driest and the wettest profiles. Along the row, the effect of shading seems to overlap that of irrigation in a hourly basis

Secession and EU Membership - Is an EU member state secessionist territory automatically within EU after archiving its independence or have to reapply for membership?

One of the political goals of the EU in broad is the absorption of all European continent state in a sort of United States of Europe. Nowadays the EU counts 28 states and the perspective of enlargement is not stopped by the current economic crisis. The current situation after the just completed pro-EU revolution in Ukraine and the implementation of strong economic link with former USSR Transcaucasian Republics (Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan) may suggest the final number of state in the EU. Many people believe that the United States of Europe puzzle is nearly full defined … but a new kind of EU enlargement may change the situation. This paper will focus only in one question. “Is an EU Member state secessionist territory automatically in the EU after archiving its Independence or have to reapply?” To answer to this question I will analyses the possible past experiences in secessionist territory getting membership in international organization like UN. The Vienna Convention on Succession of States in Respect of Treaties is a good material to use in case of succession but the fact that is not in force and not signed by the greatest part of EU member state make it only advisory and not binding

The Ottoman empire in early modern Austrian history : assessment and perspectives

This paper discusses the over-focalisation on the Mediterranean area of historians of the early modern Euro-Ottoman relationship and it offers a critical assessment of the numerous studies conducted by historians of the Habsburg Monarchy over thirty years. It shows that the histories of the Austrian monarchy and of the Ottoman Empire were interdependent and that war is a marginal element in their relationship. This paper emphasises the political use of the Ottoman history by Austrian scholars from Hammer-Purgstall’s essential enterprise to the violent contestation of Samuel Huntington and his civilizational pattern. Cultural history, trade and diplomacy appear as the three ways of the Austrian historiographical shift, which nevertheless calls nowadays for a more pragmatic approach

Is the Application of Plant Probiotic Bacterial Consortia Always Beneficial for Plants? Exploring Synergies between Rhizobial and Non-Rhizobial Bacteria and Their Effects on Agro-Economically Valuable Crops

The overgrowth of human population and the demand for high-quality foods necessitate the search for sustainable alternatives to increase crop production. The use of biofertilizers, mostly based on plant probiotic bacteria (PPB), represents a reliable and eco-friendly solution. This heterogeneous group of bacteria possesses many features with positive effects on plants; however, how these bacteria with each other and with the environment when released into a field has still barely been studied. In this review, we focused on the diversity of root endophytic rhizobial and non-rhizobial bacteria existing within plant root tissues, and also on their potential applications as consortia exerting benefits for plants and the environment. We demonstrated the benefits of using bacterial inoculant consortia instead of single-strain inoculants. We then critically discussed several considerations that farmers, companies, governments, and the scientific community should take into account when a biofertilizer based on those PPBs is proposed, including (i) a proper taxonomic identification, (ii) the characterization of the beneficial features of PPB strains, and (iii) the ecological impacts on plants, environment, and plant/soil microbiomes. Overall, the success of a PPB consortium depends on many factors that must be considered and analyzed before its application as a biofertilizer in an agricultural system

As organizações não governamentais de ambiente (ONGA's) em Portugal

Como resultado do aumento das preocupações com o ambiente, a uma escala global, e das inúmeras campanhas levadas a cabo pelos meios de comunicação a denunciar catástrofes ambientais, tem-se verificado um aumento e uma proliferação de grupos ambientalistas. Estes grupos começaram a organizar-se constituindo as designadas Organizações Não Governamentais de Ambiente (ONGA’s). Em Portugal merecem destaque a LPN (Liga para a Protecção da Natureza), a GEOTA (Grupo de Estudos de Ordenamento do Território e Ambiente) e a Quercus (Associação Nacional de Conservação da Natureza). É precisamente o caso da Quercus que servirá para ilustrar a importância da comunicação para as ONGA’s “atingirem” os seus públicos alvoOrganização Não Governamental de Ambiente (ONGA), Marketing Ambiental

Aptidão física e composição corporal : estudo em raparigas dos 11 aos 15, praticantes e não praticantes de futsal

O presente estudo tem como objectivo principal conhecer e avaliar a Aptidão Física e a Composição Corporal de raparigas em idade escolar praticantes de Futsal do Desporto Escolar, comparando-as com um grupo que não pratica nenhuma actividade desportiva de forma regular e sistemática, a não ser as aulas de Educação Física. Os resultados foram ainda comparados com os valores de referência estabelecidos pelo Fitnessgram. Foram seleccionadas 80 raparigas da Escola E.B. 2, 3 Professor Carlos Teixeira, sendo 40 Praticantes Futsal de Desporto Escolar e 40 Não Praticantes, com idades compreendidas entre os 11 e os 15 anos de idade. O grupo de Praticantes de Futsal de Desporto Escolar foi constituído por raparigas que praticassem Futsal pelo menos desde o início do ano lectivo, com dois treinos por semana com a duração de 90 minutos e jogo ao fim-de-semana de 60 minutos, além das aulas de Educação Física (90 minutos + 45 minutos). O grupo de Não Praticantes foi constituído pelas raparigas cuja actividade física/desportiva se reportasse exclusivamente às aulas de Educação Física (90 minutos + 45 minutos). Para a avaliação da actividade física foi aplicado o questionário Internacional de Actividade Física (Heyward, 1997). As raparigas em estudo realizaram a bateria de testes do Fitnessgram, para avaliar a Aptidão Física (Corrida da Milha; Abdominais; Extensão dos Braços; Extensão do Tronco e Senta e Alcança) e a Composição Corporal (Estatura; Peso; Medição das Pregas adiposas; Índice de Massa Corporal e % de Massa Gorda). Quanto ao tratamento estatístico dos dados, foram calculados as médias, o desvio padrão, a amplitude de variação e foi usado o teste "t" de Student para medidas independentes, cujo nível de significância estatística foi mantido em 5%. Para a análise dos dados foi utilizado o software Microsoft Excel. As principais conclusões obtidas nesta pesquisa foram as seguintes: há diferenças significativas entre as Praticantes de Futsal e as Não Praticantes, no que diz respeito a peso, IMC, % Massa gorda, pregas tricipital e geminal, capacidade aeróbia, força média, extensão do tronco e senta e alcança. Relativamente à idade, estatura e força superior não se verificaram diferenças estatisticamente significativas. Relativamente aos valores critérios do Fitnessgram verificou-se que, em relação ao total da amostra, na Composição Corporal a maior percentagem de raparigas encontram-se dentro da Zona Saudável, com 87,5% na %Massa Gorda e 82,5% no IMC. No que diz respeito à Aptidão Física constatou-se que no teste da milha (capacidade aeróbica), na força média e na extensão do tronco estas alunas encontram-se dentro do intervalo de Zona Saudável, mas na força superior e na flexibilidade encontram-se fora desse intervalo, estando no intervalo Abaixo da Zona Saudável. Em relação aos resultados das raparigas Praticantes de Futsal e das Não Praticantes, através dos valores estabelecidos pelo Fitnessgram, verificou-se que na Composição Corporal, tanto o grupo das Praticantes como o grupo das Não Praticantes apresentam a maior percentagem dentro do intervalo da Zona Saudável. No que concerne à Aptidão Física as Praticantes apresentaram maiores percentagens dentro do intervalo da Zona Saudável para todos os testes realizados, com a excepção da Força Superior, onde obtiveram maiores percentagens no intervalo abaixo da Zona Saudável. As Não Praticantes apenas obtiveram percentagens no intervalo da Zona Saudável nos testes de Capacidade Aeróbica e de Extensão do Tronco. Através desta análise, podemos concluir que as Praticantes obtiveram, em todos os testes de Fitnessgram realizados, valores superiores, no intervalo de Zona Saudável, aos valores alcançados pelas Não Praticantes.The purpose of this study is to investigate and evaluate the Physical fitness and body composition of school girls aged 11-15, practising Footsal, comparing them to the ones who are physically inactive, except for the Physical Education classes. The results were also compared to the standard levels established by the Fitnessgram. The subjects of the study consisted of 80 girls - aged 11-15. Forty of them practise Footsal, and the other forty do not. The Footsal group is formed by girls who practise it at least since the beginning of the school year. Besides the Physical Education classes (90minutes + 45 minutes), they practise Footsal twice a week for 90 minutes, and play a 60 minutes match on the weekends. The group of girls who do not practise Footsal was formed by physically inactive girls, except for the Physical Education classes (90minutes + 45 minutes). The physical activity of the sample was accessed with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (Heyward, 1997). Their physical ability was measured according to the recommendations of the Fitnessgram assessment, by evaluating their Aerobic Capacity (Mile Walk), Muscle Strength, Endurance, and Flexibility – abdominal (curl-up), trunk extension (trunk lift), upper body (push-up) and Flexibility (back-saver Sit and Reach) -, and their body composition (Percent Body Fat - calculated from triceps and calf skinfold measurements - and Body Mass Index - calculated from height and weight). Microsoft Excel was used to calculate and analyse the data; the t-test was used to test independent measurements and its statistical significance was set at 5%. We conclude that, considering weight, Body Mass Index, Percent Body Fat, aerobic capacity, muscle strength, trunk extension and flexibility (back-saver Sit and Reach), there are significant differences between the girls who practise Footsal and the ones who do not. In what concerns to age, physical structure and upper body strength, there were not significant differences. We also found that, according to the health fitness standards, established by Fitnessgram, the majority of girls is in the Healthy Fitness Zone, with 87,5% of percent Body Fat, and 82,5% of Body Mass Index. In what concerns to Physical Ability, we reached the conclusion that in the Aerobic Capacity test (Mile Walk), Muscle Strength and trunk extension these students are also in the Healthy Fitness Zone, but concerning the upper body and Flexibility, they are out of this zone. Considering the results of the girls who practise Footsal and the results of the girls who do not practise any other physical activity besides their Physical Education classes, we conclude that in the tests of body composition both of the groups present a higher percentage of girls in the Healthy Fitness Zone. However, the group that practises Footsal presents a higher percentage in the Healthy Fitness Zone in all the other tests, except for upper body (push-up) test, in which they got a result under the Healthy Fitness Zone. The girls of the group who do not practises Footsal only achieved percentages in the Healthy Fitness Zone in the Aerobic Capacity (Mile Walk) and trunk extension (trunk lift). Therefore, we conclude that, in every test made, all the girls who practise Footsal achieved higher levels in the Healthy Fitness Zone than the girls who do not practise Footsal or any other physical activity, except for their Physical Education classes

A digital image based method to quantify intracellular polyphosphates in microbial aggregates

Dissertação de mestrado em BioinformáticaEutrophication is a serious problem of aquatic ecosystems that can threaten biodiversity and human health. It is caused by a high concentration of nutrients, such as phosphorus, leading to excessive growth of aquatic plants and, consequently, to stagnation and decreased levels of oxygen in water systems. To prevent this problem, wastewater from rural, industrial and urban backgrounds are treated using enhanced biological phosphorous removal. This technique uses microorganisms already present in wastewater that incorporate phosphorous into their cells in the form of polyphosphate, removing the nutrient from the water. A very important part of this technique consists of evaluating the polyphosphate levels present in the microorganisms, which is usually done through expensive or time consuming analytical methods. To improve the polyphosphate measurement step, the objective of this thesis was to create a quantitative image analysis program that can correlate image obtained data with analytical data, creating linear regression models useful for polyphosphate quantification. This program used color segmentation between polyphosphate and biomass regions, based on RGB, HSV and LAB color spaces, and was applied on images of samples dyed with different stains (methylene blue and toluidine blue) and with different dilution factors (no dilution and 10x dilution). These images experienced gamma values and contrast adjustments, to evaluate different image settings on color segmentation. Models for methylene blue stained and diluted samples presented the highest regression coefficients between the image data results and analytical data (0.920 and 0.992, respectively), also existing some differences between models of images with different contrast and gamma values. The color space chosen for image analysis seems to be very important with RGB and LAB presenting more satisfying results than HSV. More work is needed before this method can be used, however the results seen on this thesis are promising.A eutrofização é um grave problema de ecossistemas aquáticos que pode ameaçar a biodiversidade e a saúde humana. É causada por uma alta concentração de nutrientes, tal como fósforo, levando a um crescimento excessivo de plantas aquáticas e, consequentemente, à estagnação e diminuição dos níveis de oxigênio nos sistemas de água. Para evitar este problema, as águas residuais das zonas rurais, industriais e urbanas são tratadas com recurso a remoção biológica de fósforo melhorada. Esta técnica utiliza microrganismos já presentes em águas residuais que incorporam o fósforo dentro das suas células na forma de polifosfato, removendo assim o nutriente da água. Uma parte muito importante desta técnica consiste em avaliar os níveis de polifosfato presentes nos microrganismos, o que é geralmente efetuado por métodos analíticos caros e demorados. Para melhorar a etapa de medição de polifosfatos, o objetivo desta tese foi criar um programa de análise quantitativa de imagem que pudesse correlacionar dados obtidos de imagens com dados analíticos, criando modelos de regressão linear úteis para a quantificação de polifosfatos. Este programa utilizou segmentação de cores entre regiões de polifosfato e biomassa, com base nos espaços de cores RGB, HSV e LAB, e foi aplicado em imagens de amostras tingidas com diferentes colorações (azul de metileno e azul de toluidino) e com diferentes fatores de diluição (sem diluição e diluição 10x). Estas imagens foram ajustadas nos seus valores de gamma e contraste, para avaliar diferentes configurações de imagem em segmentação de cor. Os modelos para amostras de azul de metileno e amostras diluídas apresentaram os maiores coeficientes de regressão entre os resultados dos dados de imagem e os dados analíticos (0,920 e 0,992, respetivamente), existindo também algumas diferenças entre os modelos de imagens com diferentes contrastes e valores de gamma. O espaço de cores escolhido para a análise de imagens parece ser muito importante, pois o RGB e o LAB apresentam resultados mais satisfatórios do que o HSV. Mais trabalho é necessário antes que este método possa ser usado, no entanto os resultados vistos nesta tese são promissores

The Context Influence in Volunteers Motivations

Volunteers working in different areas or different NPO (Non-profit Organisations) are significantly different according to several variables, namely in terms of motivation, satisfaction and permanence. Thus, the main goal of this research is to understand volunteers’ motivations and the influence of the context on it. Additionally, demographic variables might have an important impact on volunteers’ activities, be an important predictor of volunteering and, at the same time, influence their time commitment. In this paper we present data from twelve different NPO - 10 hospitals and 2 food banks. The model of data collection was a survey conducted by self-administered questionnaire. The results showed significant differences between the volunteers’ belonging to the two organisations and their motivations, confirming that volunteer’ motivations differ according the type/nature of organisation; this is particularly important because the field in which one works is influenced by a self-evident affinity with shared ideologies, religious convictions, and collective identities. These results present important outcomes that should be reflected in the way organisations act. Keywords: Volunteering; Occasional and permanent volunteers; Motivations; Non-profit organisations