Browsing by Issue Date, starting with "2026-01"
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- Factorization à la Dirac applied to the time-fractional telegraph equationPublication . Ferreira, M.; Rodrigues, M.M.; Vieira, N.This paper examines a coupled system of two-term time-fractional diffusion Dirac-type equations. The system is derived by factorizing the multi-dimensional time-fractional telegraph equation with Hilfer fractional derivatives, using the Dirac method and a triplet of Pauli matrices. Solutions are obtained using operational methods provided by the combination of the Fourier transform in the space variable and the Laplace transform in the time variable. Key results include the discovery of novel Fourier transform pairs. These pairs relate specific Fourier kernels of bivariate Mittag-Leffler functions to Fox H-functions of two variables. This allows to obtain explicit solutions of the system in both Fourier-time and space-time domains. The asymptotic behaviour of these solutions is rigorously analysed, and graphical representations are generated. Further, we show that the factorization allows for the use of alternative triplets of Pauli matrices yielding related solutions. The results obtained can be generalised to the case of 𝜓-Hilfer derivatives.
- Exploring how exercise frequency impacts muscle strength and balance in institutionalized older adults: Protocol for a randomized controlled trialPublication . Rodrigues, Filipe; Pereira, Bernardo; Silva, Elisabete; Monteiro, Diogo; Antunes, RaulThis protocol for a randomized controlled trial aims to evaluate the impact of exercise frequency on muscle strength, balance, and fall risk among institutionalized older adults. Recognizing the unique physical and functional limitations of this population, the study will test whether two or three weekly sessions of multicomponent exercise yield differential outcomes. Sixty participants residing in nursing homes will be randomly assigned to one of two groups: a control group performing exercise twice weekly and an experimental group training three times weekly, over a 12-week intervention period. All sessions will follow international guidelines for older adults, incorporating aerobic, strength, balance, and flexibility training at light-to-moderate intensity. Primary outcomes include lower- and upper-body strength and dynamic balance; secondary outcomes comprise waist circumference, body mass index, and fall incidence. The program is designed with progressive adaptation and safety in mind, employing the Talk Test to regulate intensity and standardized measures to monitor physiological responses. The rationale stems from the gap in existing literature regarding optimal exercise frequency for institutionalized populations. While two sessions per week have been associated with functional improvements, it remains unclear whether an additional weekly session provides significant incremental benefits. By isolating frequency as the primary variable, the trial addresses the need to define the minimum effective dose of structured exercise for enhancing physical activity, functional capacity, and reducing fall risk. Results are expected to inform tailored physical activity guidelines and implementation strategies in long-term care settings, balancing clinical efficacy with feasibility and safety constraints typical of institutional environments.
- Load and psychophysiological responses in high-intensity interval training with fixed and self-selected recoveryPublication . Sant’Ana, Leandro; Macedo Vianna, Jeferson; Rodrigues Scartoni, Fabiana; Tolomeu de Oliveira, Géssyca; Macedo Carvalho, Bruna; De Sena Altomar, Marconi; Teixeira, Diogo; Antunes, R.; Rodrigues, Filipe; Matos, Rui; Novaes, Jefferson da Silva; Machado, Sérgio; Monteiro, DiogoIntroduction and Objective. The study analyzed the training load in high-intensity interval training sessions with different conditions of recovery time between stimuli: fixed (1min.) and self-selected. Methods. Nineteen individuals participated in the study: 13 men and 6 women (19±1.0 years; 64.0±9.2 kg; 169±8.5 cm; 22.0±2 BMI). For the training load analysis, heart rate variability (LnRMSSD), perceived effort (PE), and mood scale BRUMS (MS) were used. LnRMSSD and MS were evaluated before and after the sessions. The PE was evaluated during each session immediately after each stimulus. The protocol was 10 x 30s (95% Vpeak) with active recovery (40% Vpeak) in fixed or self-selected time. ANOVA-RM (2 [interventions] x 2 [time points]) for LnRMSSD and MS and (2 [interventions] x 10 [time points]) for PE was used. Results. Between condition and time*condition, no differences were observed for LnRMSSD (p=.626; p=.879, respectively), PE (p=.191; p=.792, respectively), and MS (tension: p=.673; p=.463; depression: p=.867; p=.359; anger: p=.867; p=.359; vigor: p=.811; p=.778; fatigue: p=.144; p=.998; mental confusion: p=.828; p=.752, respectively). In terms of time, significant differences were observed in LnRMSSD (p<.001) and PE (1≠3-10; 2≠4-10; 3≠5-10; 4≠5-10; 5≠7-10; 6≠7-10; 7≠ 9,10; 8≠10, p<.001). In MS, there was a difference in domains of tension (p<.001), depression (p<.015), anger (p<.033), and mental confusion (p<.001). But not for vigor (p=.339) nor fatigue (p=.419), which are associated with the training load. Conclusions. However, both recovery conditions showed similar acute internal load responses. Additionally, it is suggested that recovery with self-selected time (46.70±1.6.58s) may be a recovery option in HIIT prescription.
- Formar para Intervir: reflexões sobre trabalho colaborativo a partir de metodologias ativas de aprendizagem no Ensino SuperiorPublication . Mónico Lopes, Sara; Sousa, JennyO presente trabalho analisa a utilização de metodologias ativas de aprendizagem no Ensino Superior, com foco no trabalho colaborativo desenvolvido nas unidades curriculares de Métodos e Técnicas de Investigação Social e de Serviço Social de Casos, Grupos e Comunidades, da licenciatura em Serviço Social de uma universidade portuguesa. Centradas na participação ativa dos estudantes, as unidades curriculares assentam em metodologias promotoras da construção coletiva do conhecimento, do pensamento crítico e da interligação entre teoria e prática. Este artigo pretende analisar e discutir a perceção dos estudantes inscritos nestas duas Unidades Curriculares relativamente ao trabalho colaborativo realizado com recurso a metodologias ativas de aprendizagem, bem como identificar as competências por eles adquiridas e a importância que atribuem a estas experiências para a sua formação académica. A abordagem metodológica consistiu num estudo de caso descritivo-exploratório, privilegiando-se o inquérito por questionário como instrumento mais adequado para a recolha de dados. Foram obtidas informações quantitativas, analisadas estatisticamente, e dados mais descritivos e textuais(n=20), recorrendo-se a uma interpretação do seu conteúdo. Os resultados demonstram que o trabalho colaborativo entre Unidades Curriculares que utilizam metodologias ativas de aprendizagem favorece, por um lado, o desenvolvimento de competências fundamentais para a prática profissional,como a comunicação com públicos diferenciados, a adaptabilidade e flexibilidade,e por outro, estimula a reflexão crítica e o exercício de práticas investigativas e interventivas desde a formação inicial. Conclui-se que a utilização deste tipo de metodologia, especialmente no campo do Serviço Social, fortalece a aprendizagem significativa e prepara os estudantes para os desafios da prática profissional na sociedade atual.
- Descrever e interpretar visões do mundo: consciência crítica da linguagem e literacia cultural em contexto de ensino do Português como Língua EstrangeiraPublication . Alexandre, Marta; conde, inesLearning a foreign language involves more than merely developing skills related to the knowledge and use of grammatical structures for specific communicative purposes. It is a process that also integrates the recognition of discursive configurations, often ideological, that may be revealed in texts, particularly in specific cultural and social contexts of production and dissemination. Within a globalised world and in various communication contexts, often with an intercultural dimension, hegemonic discourses are produced and disseminated around beliefs, identities, events and geographies, which in some way sustain and naturalise unequal power relations and areas of tension and conflict. This work aligns with theoretical perspectives that recognise the importance of discursive and critical shifts in language teaching and intercultural communication, as well as with approaches that understand language as a social practice, namely Critical Multimodal Discourse Analysis. It is argued that teaching and learning contexts for Portuguese as a Foreign Language (PLE) benefit from training critical awareness of language through its different modes of realisation, and from teaching cultural literacy. In particular when framed by these approaches and equipped with strategies that facilitate the acquisition and application of socially committed textual analysis tools, PLE teaching methodologies enable students to question and evaluate texts in Portuguese in relation to their everyday and professional practices. They also facilitate the mastery of different modes of meaning and an understanding of how they work, making this explicit. To begin with, this article describes and explains a learning sequence for critical discourse analysis of authentic multimodal texts in Portuguese, involving classroom tasks and independent work. The sequence was implemented in the context of the Discourse and Multimodality course unit, part of the Applied Portuguese Language course taught at the School of Education and Social Sciences of the Polytechnic Institute of Leiria to Chinese students in the 2023/2024 academic year. In this context, the portfolio resource is highlighted as an element of individual application and assessment of knowledge, and the results of the application of the proposals are discussed, with reference to works describing and interpreting elements of connotation and interdiscursive configurations in texts selected by the students and included in their portfolios. As a result, the textual analysis work carried out by the students reveals that exposure to authentic texts, which allows them to describe and interpret verbal and visual choices, and the types of relationships that different modes establish between themselves, enables them to develop a critical and socially committed cultural awareness. There was evidence of students identifying and questioning the interrelationship between language, culture, economics, ideology and power, as well as the materiality of representation, both verbal and visual, and, very importantly, the social and communicative specificities of the texts.