Browsing by Issue Date, starting with "2011-06"
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- Tourists' satisfaction and loyalty in the hotel business: an application to the island of São Miguel, AzoresPublication . Couto, João Pedro Almeida; Batista, Maria da Graça Câmara; Botelho, Diana RochaGiven the recent competition in the hotel business and the constant search for satisfaction and loyalty of the guests, the objective of this study is to understand tourists’ perceptions of service quality offered at the hotels in São Miguel, and the factors contributing to their satisfaction and loyalty. Based on a reference model taken from literature on satisfaction and loyalty, na exploratory research of national and international tourists who stayed at the hotels of São Miguel was made. The data was used to simulate a model of structural equations to test the hypotheses of investigation. The results showed that the main influential variables of satisfaction were the quality of service offered and management of complaints. The factors that contributed most to the loyalty of the guests were the affective commitments, satisfaction, price, customer services and finally the image of the hotel itself. The information management became a fundamental factor in the satisfaction and loyalty of tourists.
- Estimation of the milk production function : application of the incomplete gamma function in the São Miguel Island (Azores)Publication . Silva, Francisco; Batista, Maria da Graça Câmara; Ponte, Rui Alexandre ViveirosThe Incomplete Gamma Function was used to explain the behavior of 305 days of lactation of dairy cows on São Miguel Island in the Azores. Ultimately, 330,127 observations of the daily production of these animals were used to estimate the production functions and income per animal of each lactation. Lactations were checked, as were the months of cow calving that maximized production and income for each lactation. The conclusion was that the fourth and fifth lactations maximized the income and production per animal for the 305 days of production. The calving between the months of October and December was shown to maximize the accumulated production of lactation whereas calving between the months of August and December contributed to maximizing the accumulated income per lactation. The management of livestock directed toward the maximization of the income of the dairy farm must take into account that insemination of these animals will have to take place between the months of December and March so that calving can occur in the intended months and lactation can start at the time of the year conductive to optimal income. The management of livestock lactation of a dairy farm on São Miguel Island demonstrated that it was possible to increase production and income per animal by up to 25%, while the management of calving months was shown to also maximize production and income per animal by up to 9%. However, the low adjustment value of the model (R2 of 25%) pointed to the weak adaptation of the Incomplete Gamma Function to the data used.
- Disturbance, regeneration and the spatial pattern of tree species in Azorean mountain forestsPublication . Elias, Rui B.; Dias, Eduardo; Pereira, Fernando E. A.Disturbance related vegetation dynamics differs with Azorean mountain forest communities, where each tree species has its own regeneration strategy. Knowledge of the spatial distribution of tree species may help us to generate hypotheses on the relation between disturbance, regeneration and spatial organization and on the possible underlying ecological mechanisms. In view of this, we asked the following questions regarding the spatial pattern of tree species: What is the spatial distribution of saplings and adults? Are there any spatial associations or exclusions between saplings and adults of the same and different species? To what extent do the disturbance regimes and regeneration strategies of each species explain its spatial pattern? Six 225 m² (15 × 15 m) plots were placed in each of three different forest types in three Islands (Pico, Terceira and Flores). Patterns of tree individuals were analysed through Morisita’s index of dispersion (Iδ) and Iwao ω index. With the exception of Laurus azorica and Frangula azorica, saplings are in most cases aggregated. Erica azorica is the only species whose adults are aggregated at short distances. Spatial distribution is mostly random for the other species. At short distances, few strong associations or exclusions were detected. Pioneer species such as Juniperus brevifolia tend to be more aggregated due to their dependence on gaps to germinate and recruit new individuals. In fact, increasing disturbance and gap size enhances the regeneration of J. brevifolia. Primary species tend to be randomly distributed in part due to their strategy of forming seedling-sapling banks. Spatial pattern of tree species is largely explained by disturbance regimes and regeneration strategies of each species. However, factors such as habitat related patchiness, competition and dispersion limitation may also explain many of the observed patterns.
- Association of bovine papillomavirus type 2 (BPV-2) and urinary bladder tumours in cattle from the Azores archipelagoPublication . Resendes, Ana; Roperto, Sante; Trapani, Francesca; Urraro, Chiara; Rodrigues, ArmindoUrinary bladder tumours in cattle are caused by chronic ingestion of bracken fern and BPV-1/2 infection. The objective of the present study was to assess if BPV-2 was present in urinary bladder lesions from cattle with chronic enzootic haematuria (CEH) from the Azores archipelago (Portugal), in order to gain further information regarding the epidemiologic distribution of this virus. Samples were analysed using PCR specific primers for BPV-2 DNA and an immunohistochemistry for BPV E5 oncoprotein detection. We found a 28% incidence rate of BPV-2 DNA in different types of tumours and cystitis cases (13 out of 46 samples). Tested positive samples for PCR were also positive for the viral E5 oncoprotein; protein immunolabeling was mainly detected within the cytoplasm of urothelial cells, displaying a juxtanuclear distribution. This is the first report of BPV-2 detection in urinary bladder tumours associated with CEH in cattle from the Azores archipelago.
- Knowledge, technology and innovation cyclePublication . Tiago, Flávio Borges; Couto, João Pedro Almeida; Tiago, Maria TeresaThere is a common thought both in business and academia that some factos such as technology, innovation and knowledge are key components of success and allowing firms to achieve and sustain competitive advantages. There is a considerable amount of research performed around these three concepts and some of them analyzed their relationship. However, it still suffers from oversimplification of its development processes and methodological limitations. Nevertheless, there is a consensus in business and academia that knowledge is a key component of success and allows firms to achieve and sustains competitive advantages. In a digital era, these advantages arise from the potential of data and information that can be gathered, processed, shared, and used to improve e-business activities. Thus, this research bridges the gap in the assessment of knowledge management and e-business relationship, by applying an SEM to a large database sample of KM activities performed by European firms.
- Projecto - XV Expedição Científica do Departamento de Biologia - São Jorge 2011.Publication . Tavares, João; Furtado, DuarteO Departamento de Biologia (DB) vai realizar, entre 25 e 31 de Julho de 2011, a XV Expedição Científica SÃO JORGE 2011. destinada à ilha do mesmo nome e que em 1992 foi objecto da VII Expedição Científica. Trata-se de prosseguir com as actividades estatutárias da Universidade dos Açores, em concreto com aquelas que são competência do DB, no que respeita à criação, transmissão e difusão da cultura da ciência e da tecnologia na Região Autónoma dos Açores. Como e do conhecimento geral, o DB desenvolve a actividade na sua sede, no Campus Universitário de Ponta Delgada. Para que esta actividade não fique somente consignada àquele espaço, torna-se necessário realizar actividades de investigação científica nas outras ilhas do Arquipélago. Dai a existência do projecto Expedições Científicas do DB, que remonta aos anos iniciais da fundação da Instituição, actualmente designada por Universidade dos Açores. Estes são desenvolvidos de preferência em períodos de pausa lectiva e tem sido sempre muito bem-vindos pelo comunidade visitada, que sempre contribuiu com um considerável apoio institucional público e privado. À semelhança dos eventos anteriores, para a realização desta expedição à ilha de São Jorge, o DB irá deslocar uma parte dos seus recursos humanos e materiais, bem como cientistas e técnicos de instituições nacionais e regionais com os quais vem colaborando. No evento, também participarão nos trabalhos de campo os alunos da Universidade dos Açores dos diferentes graus, desde a licenciatura ao doutoramento, assim como, alunos do Ensino Básico e Secundário essencialmente da ilha de São Jorge. Os principais objectivos deste último grupo de participantes são o reforço de motivações de aprendizagem, para permitir uma melhor exploração de vocações e o desenvolvimento do gosto da área das Ciências da Natureza.
- Plasma aminothiol profile in apparently healthy subjects from the Azores Archipelago, PortugalPublication . Pavão, Maria Leonor; Lima, Ana; Ferin, Rita; Baptista, José
- Scale-up for the production of astaxanthin from Haematococcus pluvialis Flotow in vertical photobioreactorsPublication . Xavier, Emanuel D.; Teves, Luis; Mota, Gonçalo; Neto, Ana I.
- Illegal harvesting affects the success of fishing closure areasPublication . Martins, Gustavo M.; Jenkins, Stuart R.; Hawkins, Stephen J.; Neto, Ana I.; Medeiros, André; Thompson, Richard C.There is clear evidence that marine reserves can be used as effective tools to foster the recovery of disturbed ecosystems. In the Azores, intense exploitation of the patellid limpets Patella candei and P. aspera has led to a rapid decline in their populations and subsequent collapse of the fishery in 1985. In 1993, legislation was passed to protect limpets, including the establishment of limpet protected zones (LPZs) where harvesting was completely prohibited. Outside LPZs, a seasonal fishing closure prohibited the harvesting of limpets from October to May. Here we examine the effect of such measures 16 years after they were put into practice. In each of the 3 years examined, limpet density, biomass and size were generally similar both inside and outside the LPZs. In addition, there were clear signs of exploitation as most individual limpets inside the LPZ were smaller than the legal catch size suggesting that illegal harvesting was taking place. Observations confirmed that illegal harvesting of limpets was common both inside and outside LPZs. Lack of enforcement of regulations is therefore a likely reason for the failure of legislation to protect limpet populations and facilitate stock recovery.
- Ponta Delgada e o TurismoPublication . Moniz, Ana Isabel Arruda"[…]. Exercendo os poderes próprios em matéria legislativa e de governo, os Açores avançaram com a aprovação de importantes instrumentos de planeamento estratégico: o Plano Regional de Desenvolvimento Sustentável, o Plano de Ordenamento Turístico dos Açores, o Sistema Integrado para a Gestão dos Resíduos dos Açores, os Planos de Ordenamento das Bacias Hidrográficas das Lagoas das Furnas e Sete Cidades, a Rede Regional de Áreas Protegidas, o Plano Regional da Água e os Planos de Ordenamento das Orlas Costeiras. Mais acções ainda se desenvolveram no domínio da protecção da biodiversidade e da preservação do património natural e cultural da Região. […]".