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This paper aims at analysing the emergence of the Technical Councils as the state economic planning bodies, between 1930 and 1945, seeking to identify the main organs. This analysis will provide an understanding of some political, social and institutional dynamics of the Brazilian Government history, its relations with the representation of interests, the paths, and the main bodies involved in planning and setting development guidelines. Thus, it will be possible to map out the main centres of the decision and planning of the Brazilian economic and industrial development in this period. Also, it will be possible to identify the roots and nature of these organs, their duties, their effective period of influence, their composition, and the criteria for recruiting members through their foundational legislation. KEYWORDS. Technical Councils, corporatism, authoritarianism, economic planning, Brazilian State.

The level of potentially toxic elements (PTE) in phytopharmaceuticals can be a potential threat to human health through the food chain. The traditional herbal medicinal products (THMPs) with the marshmallow root (Althaea officinalis L., radix), which we can find in European pharmacies, are widely used among the European population. However, recently, voices have been heard in the public about alleged PTE occurrence. In this article, the levels of Pb and Cd impurities were measured in samples of THMPs with marshmallow root available in Polish pharmacies (n = 10). Our proposed toxicological approach was based on two important issues. The first was PTE levels (Pb: 1.60–6.80 μg/L and Cd: 0.80–3.81 μg/L presented as raw results) in comparison with the permissible limit set by FAO/WHO for medicinal herbs (10,000 µg/kg for Pb and 300 µg/kg for Cd) and also ICH Q3D guidelines (0.5 μg/g for Pb and also Cd). The second was the estimation of exposure of investigated PTE in a single dose and daily dose for each THMP. It should be noted that the content of analyzed heavy metals in a single dose of analyzed products was very low, and hence is not a threat for patients. The obtained daily intake of heavy metals impurities in comparison with PDE values confirms the safety of all analyzed phytopharmaceuticals (all of the samples meet the standards of the ICH Q3D guideline). It can be summarized that each of the analyzed THMP with marshmallow root available in Poland are safe for the patients. Based on literature review, this article is the first study about heavy metals impurities level in final THMPs with A. officinalis L., radix (marshmallow root) available in European pharmacies.

This paper attempted to analyze how public managers use performance information at Tanzania Public Service College (TPSC), Tabora campus. It based on self-reported performance information. We systematically reviewed the TPSC Self-Evaluation Study Report (2019); TPSC Service Delivery Survey report, 2016; TPSC steering committee report, 2017; and TPSC performance reports of 2016-2019. This review was corroborated with interviews from 89 respondents and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) to offer the following insights: First, despite the presence of sound governance structures in TPSC and adherence to the public service rules and regulations, there is a weak purposeful use of performance information by public managers at TPSC to improve organizational performance through their decisions. This can be attributed to the nature of vertical information flow in TPSC. Second, there is weak culture of performance information use, paucity of performance information, lack of institutionalization of information and support from TPSC top leadership, which could facilitate strong internal use of performance data and in turn, improve organizational performance. Based on the findings, the paper offers recommendations to encourage performance information use at TPSC and NACTE, and points to new avenues for future research.

This study deals with research on health literacy undertaken in Germany in recent years. A proper debate started after the results of the EU Health Literacy Survey had been published. The debate in Germany is influenced by American authors, but with a focus on the specific abilities of the patients and features of health literacy. Studies based on the EU Health Literacy Survey focus on the most threatened groups of citizens and create recommendations in this regard. There are some results which indicate that a more complex approach supporting general knowledge might be more efficient. Nevertheless, the approach which builds on a deep focus on the specific needs of threatened groups still prevails. Official recommendations issued by the Federal Government follow this line to a great extent. A slight change of institutions involved is observed as well. The development of health literacy in Germany goes hand-in-hand with a general shift of the healthcare system to a more patient-oriented model, which gives more responsibility to individuals. It is clear that health literate citizens are a necessary precondition. Overall, this study shows that a sociological approach is specific for the German discussion. This approach is reflected also, in practical steps undertaken by the Federal Government. As a result of the debate, the National Action Plan of Health Literacy for Germany is analyzed.

An interesting issue facing software engineering relates to the evidence for adopting new techniques, tools, languages methodologies, and so on. We shouldn't always reject new models based on pure argument and logic, but ideally, we should subject such developments to some form of validation. The software engineering community has addressed this issue in part by the establishment of specialist conferences. Two of these are merging, and the Technical Council on Software Engineering thought you would like to know why.

Moore discusses the latest on software engineering standards.

The enduring effort to infuse more engineering discipline into software development has brought several issues to the forefront: standards, best practices, and, perhaps the most controversial, licensing and certification. To get an update on this area, I spoke with an expert: Leonard Tripp, Boeing Technical Fellow and past president of the IEEE Computer Society.

Multiregional clinical trials (MRCT) are a standard strategy used to improve global drug approval efficiency and the feasibility of clinical trials. Japan is the world's third largest drug market with a unique health care system, making it a key inclusion as an operational region for MRCT (MRCT-JP) for global drug development. We aimed to identify the factors required for efficient drug development by comprehensively reviewing the clinical trials of drugs approved in Japan to identify the factors associated with whether or not MRCT-JP is implemented. We surveyed the review reports and summaries of application data published by the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency. We identified drugs for which the clinical trial data package included MRCT-JP and selected the same number of drugs for which the clinical trial data package did not include MRCT-JP from the most recent survey period for comparison. We also examined other publication information, in addition to the review reports, as necessary. The influence of each explanatory variable was analyzed by logistic regression analysis, with whether or not MRCT-JP was implemented as the explanatory variable. Statistical significance was set at 5%. In the survey period up to September 2017, 165 drugs developed with MRCT-JP were approved for manufacture and sale in Japan. “Respiratory system,” “inhalation,” “biological drug,” and “under review” evaluation status for the United States, European Union, and other areas, “approved” evaluation status for the United States, “new ingredients,” “priority review,” “non-Japanese firm,” and “Top 1–10” and “Top 11–20” drug sales rankings for pharmaceutical companies were identified as potential factors leading to the implementation of MRCT-JP. In contrast, “general anti-infectives for systemic use,” “various,” “external,” “chemical compound,” “unsubmitted” evaluation status for both the United States and European Union, and “Top 51+” drug sales rankings were potential factors for not implementing MRCT-JP. Therapeutic classification and agent type, in addition to capital type and United States and European Union evaluation status suggested by a previous study, were associated with implementing MRCT-JP. It is important to determine the best way to utilize MRCT-JP to maximize the value of products. Our findings were based on successful cases and may therefore be helpful for designing clinical development plans. Appropriate use of MRCT-JP will improve productivity in the pharmaceutical industry.

Undergraduate software engineering education is now well established in many countries, and many of these degree programs have received formal accreditation by the relevant country's professional body for computing. SE 2004 represents an enormous effort by numerous individuals across the discipline. Its quality has been clearly recognized by the sponsoring organizations. The developmental team confidently looks forward to the volume's use and to your participation in future evaluations and in the next phase of development. The volume provides usable results for those in emerging economies who wish to enter the software engineering community, and we know that individual project members and the participating national bodies are ready to assist.