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- Bugs and Society II : Testing Two Communication Strategies for Public Engagement in the AzoresPublication . Amorim, Isabel R.; Arroz, Ana Margarida Moura; Marcos, Rita S.; Borges, Paulo A. V.; Gabriel, RosalinaTwo initiatives to raise biodiversity awareness towards Azorean endemic species, an outdoor exhibition Açorianos há milhões de anos (Azoreans for millions of years) and a web contest to name insects Chama-lhe Nomes! (Pick a Name!), are presented in this chapter. Both communicational strategies targeted non-traditional audiences, relied on the Portuguese and Azorean cultural identity and on anthropic verisimilitude of situations involving insects. The context, principles, assumptions and multidisciplinary approach involved in the development of the public awareness activities were presented in detail in chapter “Bugs and Society I: Raising Awareness About Endemic Biodiversity”. Apart from having symbolically occupied the urban public domain, the outdoor exhibition triggered positive reactions in more than three-quarters of the observers, prompting them to seek more information about the insects, to want to see them alive, to photograph them, etc. On the other hand, the web contest attributed common names to 12 endemic species of insects and motivated over one hundred people to carefully consider their photos and descriptions, engaging in sheer naturalistic pleasure. Less favourable were the post-observation recognition indicators of urban exposure, since only less than one-third of the interviewees correctly identified the insect’ group represented on the banner or could place the origin of the animal. Nevertheless, the means assigned to the evaluation of the intervention were not enough to undertake a full assessment of the impacts produced in the knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of viewers and users. Still, the resonance in the media was considerable, in terms of the number of news stories and the diversity of vehicles and audiences reached at regional (outdoor exhibition) and national levels (web contest). Communication devices like the ones presented are expected to raise biodiversity awareness and empower people regarding its preservation in the Azores. Moreover, the critical analysis of these initiatives is expected to provide guidelines that maximise the transferability of communication strategies to other social settings.
- Bugs and Society I : Raising Awareness About Endemic BiodiversityPublication . Arroz, Ana Margarida Moura; Gabriel, Rosalina; Amorim, Isabel R.; Marcos, Rita S.; Borges, Paulo A. V.The negative impact of biodiversity loss on ecosystem functioning and services, and ultimately on human well-being, has been unequivocally established; however, despite all efforts, biodiversity is still declining worldwide. It is widely accepted that biodiversity awareness is crucial for its conservation. Nevertheless, after many initiatives to alert society about the consequences of losing biodiversity, biodiversity loss is still perceived as a minor environmental risk compared to others such as climate change. Thus far, most communication strategies have involved conventional venues, targeting people who are already “environmentally-aware”, and have not incorporated societal idiosyncrasies and cultural backgrounds. The wicked problem of loss of biodiversity and the existing strategies to promote people’s engagement are discussed under the risk communication framework. The risk perspective focuses science communication on the mitigation of risk and/or the minimisation of its consequences. Further, it helps to keep the target in mind, to establish activities and strategies that are useful for reaching the proposed goals, and to regulate the processes based on desired outcomes. After presenting the role of communication in risk governance, the principles and strategic options of the Azorean intervention, Bugs & Society, are presented. This communicational programme will be analysed and evaluated in another chapter through the presentation of two activities, which are provided as examples for further discussion.
- Fluoride in volcanic areas : a case study in medical geologyPublication . Linhares, Diana P.; Garcia, Patrícia; Rodrigues, ArmindoVolcanic regions have always attracted many people worldwide because of the high fertility of their soils. However, human proximity to volcanoes can lead to several health problems as consequence of the chronic exposure to the materials released from the volcanic activity. An element often found in elevated concentrations in volcanic regions is fluorine. Although fluoride is recognized to have a beneficial effect on the rate of occurrence of dental caries when ingested in small amounts, its excessive intake results in a widespread but preventable pathological disease called fluorosis. While skeletal fluorosis, the most severe form of fluorosis, requires a chronic exposure to high concentrations of fluoride in water (4-8 mg/L), dental fluorosis occurs after shorter periods of exposure to fluoride in lower concentrations (1.5-2.0 mg/L). In some volcanic regions, where exposure to elevated amounts of fluoride is persistent, biomonitoring programs are fundamental to assess the main sources of exposure and to evaluate the effects of the exposure in resident populations. This chapter aims to cover the main effects of fluoride exposure in humans and discuss the use of a multidisciplinary approach that brings together the geoscience, biomedical, and public health communities to address environmental health problems.
- Trace elements in volcanic environments and human health effectsPublication . Linhares, Diana P.; Garcia, Patrícia; Rodrigues, ArmindoTrace elements play an essential role in the normal metabolism and physiological functions of living beings. The distribution and concentration of trace elements in the environment results from both anthropogenic and natural origins; this chapter will focus on volcanism as one of the major natural sources of trace elements. In volcanic areas, the emissions and deposits of volcanogenic elements are key factors for geochemical mobility of trace elements and their distribution in the environment and, their effects on animals and human health. Volcanic areas have been associated with increased incidence of several diseases, such as fluorosis or even some types of cancer, leveraging the studies on the potential of this natural phenomenon as a promoter of diseases. As the Azores Archipelago is a volcanic area, with several manifestations of active volcanism, this region presents itself as an ideal study scenario for a multidisciplinary approach on environmental health problems, such as the exposure to toxic and/or deficient levels of trace elements. This chapter will present an integrated approach, describing the occurrence, the monitoring of trace elements and their characterization, the biological role in human body, and the human biomonitoring and health risk assessment, using case studies as examples.
- Species accumulation curves and extreme value theoryPublication . Borda-de-Água, Luís; Alirezazadeh, Saeid; Neves, Manuela; Hubbell, Stephen P.; Borges, Paulo A. V.; Cardoso, Pedro; Dionísio, Francisco; Pereira, Henrique M.The species–area relationship (SAR) has been described as one of the few general patterns in ecology. Although there are many types of SAR, here we are concerned solely with the so-called species accumulation curve (SAC). The theoretical basis of this relationship is not well established. Here, we suggest that extreme value theory, also known as the statistics of extremes, provides a theoretical foundation for, as well as functions to fit, empirical species accumulation curves. Among the several procedures in extreme value theory, the appropriate way to deal with the species accumulation curve is the so-called block minima procedure. We first provide a brief description of this approach and the relevant formulas. We then illustrate the application of the block minima approach using data on tree species from a 50 ha plot in Barro Colorado Island, Panama. We conclude by discussing the extent to which the assumptions under which the extreme types theorem occurs are confirmed by the data. Although we recognize limitations to the present application of extreme value theory, we predict that it will provide fertile ground for future work on the theory of SARs and its application in the fields of ecology, biogeography and conservation.
- Capacidade de carga de praias. Conceitos, reflexões e desafiosPublication . Silva, Carlos P.; Fonseca, CatarinaOs sistemas litorais são naturalmente sensíveis, susceptíveis a impactos negativos derivados de ações antrópicas que podem gerar mudanças irreversíveis. No entanto, as atividades humanas nessas áreas revestem-se de grande importância econômica, como o turismo balnear. Desde os anos 1960, com a massificação do turismo, as praias são espaços eleitos para o recreio e lazer, emergindo daí problemas de ordenamento e gestão. Por outro lado, o número crescente de usuários de praias torna-se também mais exigente, fazendo que a sua percepção e avaliação seja um elemento central para a gestão desses espaços. É assim importante que o seu planejamento vá também ao encontro das expectativas dos usuários, emergindo o conceito de capacidade de carga como aspecto importante para tal. De forma simplificada, a capacidade de carga de uma praia pode ser entendida como a relação entre a área disponível e o seu nível de ocupação. No entanto, existem diversos outros fatores que devem ser considerados na avaliação da capacidade de carga.
- Chemical Composition and Phytopharmaceuticals : An Overview of the Caulerpa and Cystoseira GeneraPublication . Rosa, Gonçalo P.; Barreto, Maria do Carmo; Seca, Ana M. L.; Pinto, Diana C. G. A.In recent years, macroalgae attracted increasing attention from many industries of diverse branches such as plastics, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and food. This interest is due to the diverse chemical composition existing within the various macroalgae classes, which offer the possibility of finding a wide array of primary and secondary metabolites with exciting properties and great potential for pharmacological applications. Caulerpa spp. and Cystoseira spp. produce a wide array of exciting compounds that have been isolated and showed a broad range of biological activities such as anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, antiprotozoal, antitumor, cytotoxic activities, among others. These compounds present high biomedical potential, constituting natural structures that could serve as scaffolds for designing novel leads for pharmacological purposes. However, Caulerpa and Cystoseira species and their cosmetic potential are still understudied, which shows a great research opportunity.
- Marine macroalgae for industrial extraction of valuable biofunctional compounds using biorefinery. Algal Metabolites: Biotechnological, Commercial and Industrial ApplicationsPublication . Nunes, Nuno; Barreto, Maria do Carmo; Carvalho, Miguel A. A. Pinheiro deAlgal secondary metabolites have several biotechnological, pharmaeceutical, industral, cosmetic, and other commercial applications. This new book highlights the recent advances in algal active metabolites, emphasizing their pharmaceutical, therapeutic, nutraceutical, and industral potential. It first provides an introduction to algal metabolites and discusses their applications. It then looks at microalgal- their pharmaeceutical, therapeutic, nutraceutical, and industrial applications. Providing a wealth of information, this book illustrates the diversity of these metabolites from indegeneous marine of freshwater sources, providing a gateway that can enable researchers and pharmaceutical companies to develop novel nontoxic, cost-effective, and highly efficient drugs.
- Fichas de espécies - MoluscasPublication . Frias Martins, A. M.ABSTRACT: The terrestrial molluscs of the Azoreswere first dealt with in dept by the Frenchnaturalist Arthur Morelet (1860) wholisted 66 species, of which 32 wereendemic. Backhuys (1975), in a detailedreview of the land and freshwatermolluscs of the Açores, listed 97 speciesof which 35 were considered endemic.Since Backhuys’ work, extensive collectingand intensive research on malacology wascarried out at the Department of Biologyof the University of the Açores, resultingin the establishment of a “referencecollection” (DBUAç-MT). On the basis ofthe material therein contained, Martins(2011) updated the former listings of landmolluscs and, for the purpose of giving amore realistic account of the richness ofthe Açorean malacofauna and supportedby extensive preliminary anatomicalresearch (Martins, 2005), included aseries of putative, to-be-described taxa.The 2011 list was updated in a field guidefold-out (Martins, 2019), illustrating the122 described species known to live in thearchipelago, 53 of which being endemic.
- PrefácioPublication . Brilha, José B. R.Não conheço ninguém que tenha visitado os Açores e ficasse desiludido! Embora muitos daqueles que visitam o arquipélago disso não tenham consciência, mas uma das razões do fascínio dos Açores está na sua geodiversidade. A geodiversidade corresponde àquela parte da natureza que passa muitas vezes despercebida pela generalidade das pessoas: rochas, minerais, fósseis, solos e formas de relevo não são, habitualmente, motivo de conversa entre amigos e familiares, nem tema de debate na comunicação social, nem motivo de confronto no discurso político. Porém, a nossa vida e o nosso bem-estar, assim como a saúde dos ecossistemas, estão completamente dependentes da geodiversidade. E os Açores são, provavelmente, um dos locais onde esta dependência é mais fácil de entender.
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