Regulation as both enabler of technology use and global competitive tool: The Gibraltar case

Distributed ledger technologies (DLTs) such as Blockchain appear to have disruptive economic potential to traditional finance-sector and non-financial markets as the success of crypto currencies demonstrates. While traditional financial and securities markets are highly regulated, DLT transactions and exchanges have so far widely remained unregulated, which potentially poses major threats to individual investors and, via money laundering, terrorist financing, and tax evasion, to society at large. Governments have been taking different approaches to monitoring and regulating the fledgling DLT provision arena. However, the small jurisdiction of Gibraltar, an affluent self-governed and self-financed British overseas territory with a population of 34,000 at the Southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula has taken a proactive approach. What makes this case stand out is that Gibraltar is not only is the first jurisdiction worldwide to regulate general DLT provision, but it is rather using the regulation as a competitive tool and a means for creating new public value. The study inquires the potential benefits and challenges to this particular approach to DLT provision regulation, and it investigates and presents the various facets of public value generation, which might serve as a poster child for fast and smart regulation in the digital age.     

Silence as Weapons: Transformative Praxis among Native American Students in the Urban Southwest

This article explores the benefits of verbal conflicts—contested storied spaces—in a Native American literature classroom composed of a multi-tribal and multicultural urban student body. Students in this course engage in whole-class verbal discussions focusing on contemporary and historical issues concerning Native American tribes and communities. Often these conversations focus on issues of oppression, colonization, and the unjust treatment of people of color. This article discusses the ways silence has been interpreted as a deficiency within standard schooling, then moves toward a view of silence as engaging, rich in identity construction, and filled with agency. Specifically, students who appeared to be silent during verbal exchanges in whole-class discussions were very much engaged and critical of the conversation, challenging dominant perceptions of silence as detrimental to education and learning. The conversations, herein, occurred within an ethnic studies course in a state that has banned the teaching of ethnic studies. Federal law protects Native American students from such dangerous legislation.     

Motivational profiles as a combination of academic goals in higher education

The aim of the current study was to obtain information from students in higher education on different motivational profiles that resulted from the combination of three academic goals (i.e. learning goals (LG), performance-approach goals and performance-avoidance goals). Moreover, information related to the relevance of each goal within each motivational profile was explored to explain conditions closely related to the academic engagement. The sample consisted of 2556 students from five Spanish universities. Motivational profiles were obtained by using cluster analysis followed by a relevance analysis of each goal within each motivational profile. The results support the hypothesis concerning motivational profiles, and further suggest for motivational profiles with a predominance of LG to be more adaptive. According to our findings, high level of LG in one’s motivational profile appear to be a powerful protective factor in maintaining high interest in academic work, as well as high control beliefs and self-efficacy.     

The European Project Semester at ISEP: the challenge of educating global engineers

Current engineering education challenges require approaches that promote scientific, technical, design and complementary skills while fostering autonomy, innovation and responsibility. The European Project Semester (EPS) at Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto (ISEP) (EPS@ISEP) is a one semester project-based learning programme (30 European Credit Transfer Units (ECTU)) for engineering students from diverse scientific backgrounds and nationalities that intends to address these goals. The students, organised in multidisciplinary and multicultural teams, are challenged to solve real multidisciplinary problems during one semester. The EPS package, although on project development (20 ECTU), includes a series of complementary seminars aimed at fostering soft, project-related and engineering transversal skills (10 ECTU). Hence, the students enrolled in this programme improve their transversal skills and learn, together and with the team of supervisors, subjects distinct from their core training. This paper presents the structure, implementation and results of the EPS@ISEP that was created in 2011 to apply the best engineering practices and promote internationalisation and engineering education innovation at ISEP.     

Technology as culture and embodied knowledge

An operational definition for knowledge is presented and, invoking the economic concept of a transformation process, a definition of technology emerges as a static form of knowledge embodied within a functional piece of some material form. The knowledge of a social group, or of the human kind, is then observable, at a certain moment in time, in its technological forms. In this sense, technology is the visible part of its culture. Microeconomic and macroeconomic views, as well as management understanding of what it is and which role technology plays, are also considered and discussed.     

Nordic walking practice might improve plantar pressure distribution

Nordic walking (NW), characterized by the use of two walking poles, is becoming increasingly popular (Morgulec-Adamowicz, Marszalek, & Jagustyn, 2011). We studied walking pressure patterns of 20 experienced and 30 beginner Nordic walkers. Plantar pressures from nine foot zones were measured during trials performed at two walking speeds (preferred and 20% faster), and under two walking conditions (NW vs. normal walking). In comparison to normal walking, NW experience led to a significant (p < .05) pressure reduction of about 50% on the central metatarsals. No significant increases were detected in other foot regions. The differences between experienced and beginners during normal walking including a 40% pressure reduction on the metatarsal area, suggests that regular NW practice might also have a beneficial effect on plantar pressure when walking without poles.     

Nutritional intake of elite football referees

Abstract

There is a paucity of dietary data in football referees. In this study, 23 elite main and assistant referees (34.4 ± 5.6 years) completed a 7-day dietary record during the competitive season. No nutritional intake differences were observed between main and assistant referees. Referees’ mean daily energy intake (DEI) was 2819 ± 279 kcal. The intake of proteins (1.7 ± 0.2 g · kg^?1), carbohydrates (4.1 ± 0.8 g · kg^?1) and fats (1.4 ± 0.2 g · kg^?1) represented, respectively, 18.4 ± 1.5%, 44.4 ± 4.4% and 34.6 ± 4.1% of the DEI. Carbohydrate intakes before, during and after exercise were 66 ± 42, 7 ± 15 and 120 ± 62 g. Daily carbohydrate, fibre, polyunsaturated fat and water intakes were below recommendations, while fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium intakes were above recommended values. The prevalence of inadequate intake was high for vitamin E (96%), folate (74%), vitamin A (61%), vitamin C (39%), magnesium (26%) and calcium (22%). Carbohydrate intake before, during and after exercise were far from achieving the minimum recommended values. Most referees demonstrated a negligent behaviour of hydration during exercise. Referees would benefit from dietary education in order to optimise performance and health.