This paper addresses the study of a fading-rejection algorithm based on joint spectrum and antenna selection in a vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) multiple antenna system. The central objective of this selective scheme is to provide resilience against the destructive effects of the superposition of line-of-sight (LOS) and ground-reflected signals. The paper also provides an extension to channels that combine such deterministic superposition of multiple paths and reflections with an uncorrelated double scattering component, which shows how the algorithm is also beneficial under more general channel modelling assumptions. A multiple-ray performance model is used to describe the deterministic signal interactions between multiple antennas across contiguous vehicles. The antenna selection component is shown to reject deterministic fading, particularly at short values of the inter-vehicular distance. By contrast, when the spectrum bands are correctly chosen, the spectrum selection component can exhibit gains for a wider range of inter-vehicular distances than its antenna selection counterpart. This indicates that both components of the proposed solution are, in some cases, complementary, and therefore, they should be considered together in V2V multiple antenna design. Derivation of the statistics of the selective scheme considering an additional double scattering stochastic channel component is here proposed. Simulation results from all expressions show important gains for a given range of inter-vehicular distances.

The non-classical bacterial peroxidase from Escherichia coli, YhjA, is proposed to deal with peroxidative stress in the periplasm when the bacterium is exposed to anoxic environments, defending it from hydrogen peroxide and allowing it to thrive under those conditions. This enzyme has a predicted transmembrane helix and is proposed to receive electrons from the quinol pool in an electron transfer pathway involving two hemes (NT and E) to accomplish the reduction of hydrogen peroxide in the periplasm at the third heme (P). Compared with classical bacterial peroxidases, these enzymes have an additional N-terminal domain binding the NT heme. In the absence of a structure of this protein, several residues (M82, M125 and H134) were mutated to identify the axial ligand of the NT heme. Spectroscopic data demonstrate differences only between the YhjA and YhjA M125A variant. In the YhjA M125A variant, the NT heme is high-spin with a lower reduction potential than in the wild-type. Thermostability was studied by circular dichroism, demonstrating that YhjA M125A is thermodynamically more unstable than YhjA, with a lower TM (43 °C vs. 50 °C). These data also corroborate the structural model of this enzyme. The axial ligand of the NT heme was validated to be M125, and mutation of this residue was proven to affect the spectroscopic, kinetic, and thermodynamic properties of YhjA.

This paper contributes to the literature by presenting new developments about knowledge to teach and practices of primary teachers who participated in a teachers’ professional development program focused on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) hands-on practices. This training context brings added challenges for teachers to innovate their practices in class, namely mathematical practices related to STEM. In particular, we research what knowledge promotes the development and implementation of mathematical interdisciplinary practices within the referred context. With a qualitative methodology and an interpretative approach, and based on data collected for three school years, we conclude that there exists specialized knowledge that is crucial for teachers to be able to develop and implement mathematical interdisciplinary practices in class, which must be taken into account, with a view to the effectiveness of teachers’ professional development programs.

The vast biological and biochemical diversity of the global ocean is the driver behind marine bioprospecting for novel bioproducts. As Marine Biotechnology is gaining momentum as one of the main pillars of the ‘Brue Growth’ revolution, the ability to screen for novel compounds of interest in species with little or no genomic resources is paramount. With this respect, proteins, which are easily metabolised, can be synthetised using convenient DNA recombinant methods and can easily be modified to better meet the needs of human society, making them prized targets. Evidently, proteins that hold natural bioactivity and specificity such as toxins and other venom components, have long captured the focus of biotechnologists, leading to the merger between environmental omics and toxinology termed as ‘venomics’. Indeed, bioactive proteins such as conopeptides, conotoxins, turripeptides and others are long deemed important subjects of research. Even though current mainstream paradigms set the focus on secondary metabolites from marine organisms, transcriptomics and proteomics approaches and their combination are rising strategies for screening for thousands of proteins and peptides in non-conventional biological models, emphasising, but not limited to, marine invertebrate animals due to their abundance, biodiversity and uncanny biochemical strategies to cope with selective pressure in literally every known marine habitat. Untargeted approaches, such as RNA-Seq - based transcriptomics and tandem mass spectrometry - based proteomics, can circumvent limitations related with absent or reduced genomic annotation. The present review will outline the main contributions of ‘omics’ and computational approaches for bioprospecting for proteinaceous marine bioactives. Despite the relatively low number of ‘omics’ studies with the main purpose of discover novel compounds, there is already important literature showcasing pipelines and approaches for revolutionising the exploration of the ocean.

Resumo: Os péptidos semelhantes à insulina (Ilps) da família Relaxina têm funções importantes na reprodução, desenvolvimento e função do sistema nervoso em várias espécies e sinalizam através de recetores acoplados à proteína G (GPCRs) específicos da Relaxina. Em Drosophila, o Ilp7 é o mais altamente conservado entre os oito Ilps descritos, mas a sua função biológica permanece desconhecida. O Leucine-Rich Repeat-containing GPCR 4 (Lgr4) de Drosophila é um claro ortólogo dos recetores de Relaxina vertebrados, mas qual Ilp de Drosophlia, se houver, atua como seu ligando, ainda está por determinar. Com base na nossa análise filogenética evolutiva, eu hipotetizo que o Dilp7 e o Lgr4 formam um par ligante-recetor em Drosophila. Aqui, incorporamos os genes repórter GAL4 e LexA no locus endógeno do Lgr4 (Lgr4::P2A::GAL4 ou Lgr4::P2A::LexA, respetivamente) e utilizamos estes repórteres para inferir padrões de expressão do Lgr4 durante o desenvolvimento de Drosophila. Descobrimos que a maioria das células positivas para Lgr4 (Lgr4+) no sistema nervoso central (SNC) expressa a proteína de ligação ao ARN elav (embryonic lethal, abnormal vision), um marcador de neurónios pós-mitóticos. Isto sugere que a maioria ou todas as células Lgr4+ são neurónios, não gliais ou outras células no SNC. Ao analisar os dados de sequência dos nossos alelos GAL4 e LexA, descobrimos que existem dois alelos Lgr4 previamente não observados segregando em estirpes de Drosophila. São observadas diferenças nos padrões de expressão do Lgr4 entre estes alelos, particularmente no lobo ótico. A caracterização neuroanatómica identifica células notáveis positivas para Lgr4 na pars intercerebralis (PI), distintas das células produtoras de insulina (IPCs), sugerindo significado funcional. A expressão do Lgr4 também é detetada no gânglio proventricular (PVG), ABLKs e nos sistemas gustativos, indicando expressão extensiva tanto nos sistemas nervosos central quanto periférico, com potenciais funções diversas. Demonstramos que mutantes em Ilp7 ou Lgr4 não apresentam defeitos óbvios em condições laboratoriais normais relativamente ao desenvolvimento, fertilidade e fecundidade. No entanto, mutantes em Ilp7 e Lgr4 exibem comportamento aberrante de evitação da luz e desempenham um papel crucial no final do terceiro instar tardio das larvas, levando-as a selecionar um ambiente escuro para se pupar. Além disso, validamos bioquimicamente que o Ilp7 e o Lgr4 co-imunoprecipitam quando versões epitopadas de ambas as proteínas são expressas ectopicamente em células de Drosophila S2 cultivadas in vitro. Além disso, confirmamos que a confinamento induz um atraso na expansão da asa de D. melanogaster usando uma configuração diferente (nossas pequenas câmaras nas arenas de filmagem), e descobrimos que as moscas da estirpe mutante Ilp7 (Ilp7[1]) falham em realizar o comportamento de expansão da asa sob confinamento. No entanto, colocar a mutação Ilp7[1] em outro fundo genético (RAL486) eliminou este efeito. Além disso, a redução mediada por RNAi de Ilp7 usando drivers panneuronais e ubíquos não teve efeito ou teve o efeito oposto na expansão da asa sob confinamento. Estes resultados sugerem fortemente que o Ilp7 não é necessário para a expansão da asa. Portanto, concluímos que o fenótipo mutante Ilp7[1] observado sob confinamento é devido a uma alteração genética ou não genética na estirpe w[1118], Ilp7[1]. Os mesmos efeitos inconsistentes foram observados quando mutações no gene codificante do recetor de Ilp7, Lgr4, foram testadas. Portanto, concluímos que a via Ilp7-Lgr4 não é necessária para o comportamento de expansão da asa em situações de confinamento, rejeitando a nossa hipótese.

We study the equational theories and bases of meets and joins of several varieties of plactic-like monoids. Using those results, we construct sublattices of the lattice of varieties of monoids, generated by said varieties. We calculate the axiomatic ranks of their elements, obtain plactic-like congruences whose corresponding factor monoids generate varieties in the lattice, and determine which varieties are joins of the variety of commutative monoids and a finitely generated variety. We also show that the hyposylvester and metasylvester monoids generate the same variety as the sylvester monoid.

The implementation of an integrated approach of STEM education with real-life scenarios is crucial to motivate students to learn and to better prepare them for real-world challenges, which is a big challenge for teachers. Therefore, there are implications for teaching practice and consequently the need for professional development. This paper presents an integrated approach of STEM education developed in the context of a collaborative professional development programme implemented in an exclusive online context, provoked by the COVID-19 pandemic. The programme aimed at providing teachers with knowledge and skills to develop STEM integrated tasks to be implemented in class. This study used a quantitative–qualitative approach to answer the research questions, using mixed methods to collect data. Participants are primary school teachers who participated in the programme during four months in the school year 2020/2021. Based on data collected from questionnaires, participant observation and teachers’ final reports, it was verified that teachers recognized the importance of obtaining training in STEM education and that this type of professional development was very relevant and improved their knowledge and skills to implement STEM hands-on practices in class. In addition, a case study of a science and mathematics 6th grade teacher is presented to illustrate how she implement integrated STEM tasks in class based on a real-world scenario such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, teachers recognized the importance of this approach and that it increases students’ motivation to learn.

This article describes the development of the GamIN Platform, conceived to support the creation of mixed-reality location-based gamified solutions, that support the use of interactive narratives in urban space. The narratives are supported by multimedia collected materials, with audio information playing a key role. In this sense, a technological framework was implemented to support the development of games or gamified applications that include motivational capabilities and support the use of augmented reality (AR). The latter enables the visualisation of synthetic elements, as well as auditory or musical pieces, allied to itineraries, as drivers of interactive narratives, in order to make the exploration of contextual space more appealing. The validation of the platform was conducted through the development of associated applications (instantiated in the context of the PASEV1 project) and taking into account its main objectives of dissemination of the cultural heritage of the Portuguese city of Évora and its soundscape. The prototypes, implemented through the platform, take advantage of the two main components of interaction incorporated: the interactive map and AR. Thus, a musical instruments collection game was conceived having a young audience as main target, which incorporates AR technology associated to itineraries. The second designed prototype takes advantage of the map component of the platform and uses gamification techniques, associated with thematic itineraries, to make the exploration of the city more challenging and interactive.

Western diets are poor in healthy n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA), namely eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), iodine (I), and other nutrients that may protect against cognitive ageing. Given DHA richness in chub mackerel (Scomber colias), high vitamin B9 levels in quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa), and I abundance in the seaweed Saccorhiza polyschides, a functional hamburger rich in these nutrients by using these ingredients was developed. This research focused on the factors affecting its quality by examining the impact of cooking (steaming at 100 °C, roasting at 180 °C, grilling at 180 °C) and storage time (after 4 and 6 months at −20 °C) upon the product's properties. Cooking treatments were found to influence the burger's colour and texture, whereas storage duration impacted FA levels and the polyene index. Cooked burgers presented lighter (L*, 45.1–55.0 vs 36.9 ± 2.4) and more yellow colouration (b*, 15.8–17.8 vs 13.6 ± 1.0) than raw burgers. Cooked burgers also exhibited higher textural values across various parameters than their raw versions. Grilled burgers (excluding initial time) were firmer (50.0 ± 5.1 N) than those cooked otherwise (37.0–39.9 N). Regarding FA levels, a decrease in DHA was recorded after four months (21.8–23.0% vs 26.4–30.6%). The polyene index followed a similar trajectory, declining from 2.6 to 3.6 initially to 1.8–1.9 in the fourth month. Hence, the studied mackerel burger could be a promising source of EPA, DHA, and other n-3 PUFAs in human diets, optimally with a frozen storage duration of fewer than four months to preserve nutritional integrity.

This book results from, and expands with further contributions, the international conference The Trouble With Primitivism: Uses of the Past in Iberian and Transatlantic Modernisms, which closed the Project “Iberian Modernisms and the Primitivist Imaginary” (PIM) [PTDC/ART-HIS/29837/2017] and that took place at NOVA FCSH, Lisbon, on 26-28 May 2022. A wide range of authors discuss the uses of the past and the myths of origins implicated in the troublesome concept of “primitivism” and its operability in the Spanish, Portuguese, Latin American and other semi-peripheral contexts.