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The best–worst method (BWM) is a multiple criteria decision-making (MCDM) method for evaluating ≤a set of alternatives based on a set of decision criteria where two vectors of pairwise comparisons are used to calculate the importance weight of decision criteria. The BWM is an efficient and mathematically sound method used to solve a wide range of MCDM problems by reducing the number of pairwise comparisons and identifying the inconsistencies derived from the comparison process. In spite of its simplicity and efficiency, the BWM does not consider the decision-makers’ (DMs’) confidence in their pairwise comparisons. We propose a neutrosophic enhancement to the original BWM by introducing two new parameters as the DMs’ confidence in the best-to-others preferences and the DMs’ confidence in the others-to-worst preferences. We present two real-world cases to illustrate the applicability of the proposed neutrosophic enhanced BWM (NE-BWM) by considering confidence rating levels of the DMs.

Although there are a handful of studies on business angel investment returns, the business angel literature has given little or no attention to exits and the exit strategy. This is surprising given that a primary objective of investing is to achieve a capital gain through some form of liquidity event. Using the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) as an interpretative heuristic, we examine how exits happen: specifically, what are the motivations to seek an exit and to what extent are they planned or opportunistic? Based on multiple case studies in which business angels were invited to tell the story of their most recent exit(s), the evidence suggests that the majority of liquidity events are the outcome of planned behaviour. We propose a typology of angel-backed investment exits as the basis for identifying future directions for research and developing practical advice to angels on effective business practices.

Rearrangement of RET proto-oncogene is the major event in the etiopathogenesis of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). We report a high prevalence of BRAF(V599E) mutation in sporadic PTC and in PTC-derived cell lines. The BRAF(V599E) mutation was detected in 23 of 50 PTC (46%) and in three of four PTC-derived cell lines. The prevalence of the BRAF(V599E) mutation in PTC is the highest reported to date in human carcinomas, being only exceeded by melanoma. PTC with RET/PTC rearrangement as well as the TPC-1 cell line (the only one harboring RET/PTC rearrangement) did not show the BRAF(V599E) mutation. BRAF(V599E) mutation was not detected in any of 23 nodular goiters, 51 follicular adenomas and 18 follicular carcinomas. A distinct mutation in BRAF (codon K600E) was detected in a follicular adenoma. Activating mutations in RAS genes were detected in 15% of FA, 33% of FTC and 7% of PTC. BRAF(V599E) mutation did not coexist with alterations in any of the RAS genes in any of the tumors. These results suggest that BRAF(V599E) mutation is frequent in the etiopathogenesis of PTC. The BRAF(V599E) mutation appears to be an alternative event to RET/PTC rearrangement rather than to RAS mutations, which are rare in PTC. BRAF(V599E) may represent an alternative pathway to oncogenic MAPK activation in PTCs without RET/PTC activation.

Tools established for managing information flow in supply chain management and logistics should match digital transformations. This issue is particularly salient for developing nations that hope to achieve sustainable development goals in a globalized era. Modern technologies are required to ensure a secure, transparent, and traceable path of information flow in global supply chains; however, it is not always straightforward for businesses in developing economies to adopt new digital technologies while sustaining productivity. One of the foundational technologies that can be used to create a basis for economic and social systems and to affect manufacturing supply chains in developing economies is blockchain. In this study, we analyze the barriers to blockchain technology adoption in manufacturing supply chains using the neutrosophic analytic hierarchy process (N-AHP). We propose an action plan framework for the validation of blockchain technology in a developing economy. The findings demonstrate that “transaction-level uncertainties” comprise the most critical barrier and have the highest weight in the final ranking followed by “usage in the underground economy”, “managerial commitment”, “challenges in scalability”, and “privacy risks”. This paper can assist industrial managers and experts in emerging economies to more clearly identify barriers to the implementation of blockchain technology and show them how to successfully employ blockchain technology in their supply chains.

Clinical trials are human research studies that are used to evaluate the effectiveness of a surgical, medical, or behavioral intervention. They have been widely used by researchers to determine whether a new treatment, such as a new medication, is safe and effective in humans. A clinical trial is frequently performed to determine whether a new treatment is more successful than the current treatment or has less harmful side effects.However, clinical trials have a high failure rate. One method applied is to find patients based on patient records. Unfortunately, this is a difficult process. This is because this process is typically performed manually, making it time-consuming and error-prone. Consequently, clinical trial deadlines are often missed, and studies do not move forward. Time can be a determining factor for success. Therefore, it would be advantageous to have automatic support in this process. Since it is also important to be able to validate whether the patients were selected correctly for the trial, avoiding eventual health problems, it would be important to have a mechanism to present justifications for the selected patients.In this dissertation, we present one possible solution to solve the problem of patient selection for clinical trials. We developed the necessary algorithms and created a simple and intuitive web application that features the selection of patients for clinical trials automatically. This was achieved by combining knowledge expressed in different formalisms. We integrated medical knowledge using ontologies, with criteria that were expressed using nonmonotonic rules. To address the validation procedure automatically, we developed a mechanism that generates the justifications for each selection together with the results of the patients who were selected.In the end, it is expected that a user can easily enter a set of trial criteria, and the application will generate the results of the selected patients and their respective justifications, based on the criteria inserted, medical information and a database of patient information.

A high prevalence of the BRAF(V600E) somatic mutation was recently reported in several series of papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTC). This mutation appears to be particularly prevalent in PTC with a predominantly papillary architecture. Another BRAF mutation (K601E) was detected in a follicular adenoma and in some cases of the follicular variant of PTC. The few studies on record provided controversial data on the relationship between the occurrence of BRAF mutations and clinicopathologic parameters such as gender, age and tumour staging. In an attempt to clarify such controversies we decided to enlarge our previous series to 315 tumours or tumour-like lesions diagnosed in 280 patients, including a thorough analysis of several clinicopathologic features. The BRAF(V600E) mutation was exclusively detected in PTC with a papillary or mixed follicular/papillary architecture both of the conventional type (46%) and of other histotypes, such as microcarcinoma (43%), Warthin-like PTC (75%) and oncocytic variant of PTC (55%). The BRAF(K601E) mutation was detected in four of the 54 cases of the follicular variant of PTC (7%). The mean age of patients with conventional PTC harbouring BRAF(V600E) (46.7 years) was significantly higher (P<0.0001) than that of patients with conventional PTC without BRAF(V600E) (29.5 years). The BRAF (BRAF(V600E)) mutated PTC did not exhibit signs of higher aggressiveness (size, vascular invasion, extra-thyroid extension and nodal metastasis) and were in fact less often multicentric than PTC without the mutation.

Business angels are widely acknowledged as being a key source of risk finance for growth-oriented enterprises. Their importance has become even more significant since the onset of the financial crisis. Research on business angels goes back some 30 years, focusing primarily on two themes: (i) their characteristics and (ii) the investment process. It has become clear that business angels are not a homogeneous population. Various studies have sought to develop typologies of business angels based on their personal characteristics, competence, motivations, investment approach and types of investment made. However, this stream of research remains limited and has not progressed beyond establishing typologies. Moreover, the possibility that typologies are dynamic, with angels shifting between categories over time remains largely unexplored. Neither has it been considered how different types of business angels approach the process of making investment decisions or managing the post-investment relationship. The aim of this research is to further develop this line of research on angel typologies to explore differences between types of angel investors in terms of their approach to investment, looking in particular, at their decision-making criteria. This dissertation starts by questioning the methodologies used in research on business angel decision making. In particular, how comparable are results that arise from different methodologies. Using a sample of 51 business angels (21 gatekeepers and 30 individual investors), the findings indicate that the results are methodologically dependent. The next stage used data collected through an online survey with 472 investment decisions made by 238 angel investors. These data were used in the subsequent analysis. Firstly, a two-step cluster analysis procedure was conducted to cluster the investment decisions by the criteria weights. Three clusters were identified. The investment experience and the level of influence of others are both helpful in explaining the differences across groups. Secondly, the cluster membership was used to evaluate if angel investors change their investment criteria. A logistic model was developed. The results indicate that the likelihood of a business angel’s change the investment criteria depend on three key areas: investment specific area (ISA), angel specific area (ASA) and group specific area (GSA).

Periodontal disease is a polymicrobial inflammatory and plaque-induced process of the periodontium that can progress from gingivitis to periodontitis, if not stopped. Periodontal disease comprises two of the most prevalent diseases worldwide – periodontitis and gingivitis – and contributes to the global burden of chronic diseases.The average life span has been increasing due to medical progression, healthcare, and socioeconomic growth. The prevalence of periodontitis among older people endures a substantial epidemiological challenge, while estimates presented in recent years have been very dissimilar, even in countries with similar socio-economically backgrounds. Alarmingly, the majority of systemic risk factors associated with periodontitis are precisely increased in elder inhabitants, which contributes to the complexity of these patient’s treatment and management. As a consequence, it is imperative to better characterize periodontal health among elder people in order to determine preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic framework strategies to promote health.Mindful of the epidemiological difficulties to survey periodontal disease among older people, several studies have reported high prevalence of periodontitis among this group of people. Regarding the Portuguese scenario, epidemiologic studies on the periodontal status are scarce, and so an imperative issue. Beyond its systemic impact in elders, periodontitis worsens perceived quality of life. Remarkably, the clinical burden of periodontitis, as missing teeth and denture use, have a higher impact on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) than the periodontal status itself mainly because this target populations are frequently uneducated for periodontitis but are familiarized with side issues, as teeth loss or denture use. In particular, stress has been linked to both periodontitis and OHRQoL, and xerostomia has been associated to poorer quality of life. Therefore, studying other features and how they influence OHRQoL could improve our knowledge and clarify potential confounding variables, in particular stress and xerostomia that have never been investigated in the elderly context.To these ends, our main purpose was to investigate the prevalence of periodontal disease and its risk factors in a Portuguese elderly population of the Southern Lisbon Metropolitan Area.Previous to the epidemiologic survey design and implementation, we conducted a series of preliminary investigations in a Portuguese subpopulation of the Egas Moniz Dental Clinic (EMDC) (Chapter 3). Preliminary data confirmed that age was a major risk factor for chronic periodontitis in this subpopulation(Section 3.2). Multivariate analysis showed that elderly patients with 65 years old or older presented an Odds Ratio (OR) of 8.70 towards chronic periodontitis, and this result was in line with previous studies. Furthermore, smoking was the other major risk factor, although variables such as obesity and lower educational level warranted consideration. This group of elders evidenced alarming levels of tooth loss and periodontal parameters, which revealed elevated periodontal destruction. Then, due to the discrepancy between national estimates for periodontitis prevalence in elders and other European epidemiologic studies of reference we evaluated bias magnitudes, sensibility, and specificity of particular partial-mouth recording protocols (PRPs) used in the Portuguese national survey. Overall, the PRP used in the Direção Geral de Saúde (DGS) national study showed low sensitivity, specificity, and concordance to estimate periodontal clinical measurements(Section 3.3).

Este trabalho tem como objetivo analisar o impacto da venda da Cimpor, em 2012, ao grupo Camargo Corrêa, sediado no Brasil, na performance da empresa. Tenciono analisar a forma como a mudança de gestão e estratégia influenciou o desempenho operacional e financeiro da maior empresa cimenteira portuguesa. Irei começar por explorar o tema de fusões e aquisições de um modo mais pormenorizado, apoiado pelo contributo na literatura de diversos autores, de modo a preparar a base do trabalho. Posteriormente, irei analisar os dados de vários indicadores económicos e relatório e contas da empresa, calcular alguns rácios financeiros e compará-los com a média verificada no setor. Enumero e quantifico também os riscos que a Cimpor enfrenta de modo a justificar o porquê de os resultados da empresa terem ficado aquém do esperado, vários anos após a sua venda. A nova estrutura de capital da Cimpor, com uma dívida bastante superior à inicial após a aquisição, aliada a um cenário macroeconómico desfavorável, ditaram um desfecho muito diferente do inicialmente previsto.

Por intermédio desta investigação busca-se a elucidação da ideia de necessidade, cujo não atendimento conduz a dano, e sua vinculação com o conceito de mínimo vital, fora da acepção meramente biológica, assim como suas correlatas amarrações com os direitos fundamentais à moradia e à alimentação e com a Política Fundiária. Nesse contexto, explicita-se de qual forma a política fundiária, enquanto ferramenta essencial para o planejamento do uso bem como da distribuição de terras, pode auxiliar no atendimento dessas duas espécies de Direitos Fundamentais. Isso porque, segundo dados do último censo agropecuário, a correta e adequada distribuição de terras desvela-se como importante instrumento de fixação do homem ao solo, assim como que a pequena propriedade rural é responsável pela grande maioria da produção de alimentos. Demais disso, ao estabelecer critérios racionais de produção, a política fundiária também auxilia na construção de um meio ambiente sadio tal qual preconizado pela Constituição Federal. Por fim, faz-se uma breve exposição histórica da introdução do direito de alimentação e à moradia no rol dos direitos sociais na Carta Política Brasileira, a assunção do caráter instrumental do acesso à terra, com união visceral à ponto de garantir à função social da propriedade a eficácia imediata. Through this investigation we seeks to elucidate the idea of “necessity”, whose non-compliance leads to damage, and their relationship to the concept of minimum living outside of its merely biological meaning, as well as their related linkages with fundamental rights to housing and to food and the Land Policy. In this context, explicitly as land policy, as an essential tool for planning the use and distribution of land, can assist in meeting these two species of Fundamental Rights. That's because, according to the last agricultural census, the correct and appropriate distribution of land reveals itself as an important instrument for laying of man to his lands, as well as the small farming is responsible for the vast majority of food production. Furthermore, to establish rational criteria of production, land policy, also helps in building a healthy environment as is advocated by the Federal Constitution. Finally, it is a brief historical introduction of the right to food and housing in the role of social rights in the Brazilian Constitution, and the assumption of the instrumental character of access to land, as a manner to guarantee for the social function doctrine immediately effectiveness. Keywords: Existential minimum, right to food, right to housing, land policy, constitutional norms and its effectiveness.