Assessing the Impact of Agricultural Research: Data Requirements and Quality of Current Statistics in Europe

Assessing the impact of agricultural research on sustainability targets often implies to face two main issues: the complexity of the causal path, and the lack of appropriate data. In this paper, we discuss which data would be necessary to measure short- and long-term impacts in Europe, and suggest a set of indicators to evaluate their quality, exploiting both available metadata (qualitative indicator) and the evidence stemming from the data themselves (quantitative indicator based on missing values, temporal contiguity and outliers). An application is shown for a subset of variables. According to our results, qualitative and quantitative indicators often provide conflicting information

Assessing the impact of agricultural research: Data requirements and quality of current statistics in Europe

Assessing the impact of agricultural research on sustainability targets often implies to face two main issues: the complexity of the causal path, and the lack of appropriate data. In this paper, we discuss which data would be necessary to measure short- and long-term impacts in Europe, and suggest a set of indicators to evaluate their quality, exploiting both available metadata (qualitative indicator) and the evidence stemming from the data themselves (quantitative indicator based on missing values, temporal contiguity and outliers). An application is shown for a subset of variables. According to our results, qualitative and quantitative indicators often provide conflicting information

Augmented Interaction Systems for Supporting Autistic Children. Evolution of a Multichannel Expressive Tool: The SEMI Project Feasibility Study

International audienceBackground: Over the past ten years, the authors have been designing, developing, and testing pervasive technology to support children with autism (ASD). Methods: In the present study, an integrated system based on multimedia and augmented interaction technologies have been tested on young subjects with ASD and dyspraxia in the age range of 6-10 years, in charge for rehabilitation treatments; a team of clinical psychologists has analyzed the results of the experimentation. The ten children involved in the project underwent an initial assessment of praxis skills and motor coordination. Subsequently, the subjects were subdivided into two subgroups: five children participated in the experimentation and five were evaluated as the control group (treatment as usual). Results: The evaluation showed an increased score in the several aspects considered, and particularly those related to motor coordination. An improvement in balancing tests and in hands-movement testing was found. Conclusion: The children involved in the sessions showed greater ability to self-control the movement as well as to select specific motor areas. The methods used seem to be promising to improve emotional and social skills too in a motivating and enjoyable climate. A high level of acceptance by professionals was observed and parents' feedback was also positive

EXPLORAÇÃO DE HIDROCARBONETOS NA FOZ DO RIO AMAZONAS: PERSPECTIVAS DE IMPACTOS AMBIETAIS NO ÂMBITO DAS ÁREAS OFERTADAS NA 11o RODADA DE LICITAÇÕES DA AGÊNCIA NACIONAL DO PETROLÉO

As atividades ligadas à indústria do petróleo, desde a fase de prospecção até a produção, causam diversos impactos ambientais sobre o meio ambiente. O objetivo deste artigo é analisar os setores e blocos ofertados na 11a rodada de licitações da Agência Nacional do Petróleo na foz do rio Amazonas. São analisados os possíveis impactos que a futura exploração pode provocar na região. O litoral do Amapá está distante apenas 60  quilômetros do bloco ofertado mais próximo da costa. Um rico ecossistema de manguezal cobre a maioria desse litoral, com alto grau de preservação e se constituindo na maior extensão de manguezais contínuos do Brasil. O litoral é fortemente influenciado pela dinâmica do rio Amazonas, que tem sua foz nesse local. Outro agravante é que para a foz do Amazonas ainda não está disponível a carta de suscetibilidade a derramamento de óleo. É sabido que a exploração de petróleo além de impactos também traz muitos benefícios sobretudo com o aquecimento da economia via recebimento de royalties e chegada de novas empresas, no entanto em áreas com elevada riqueza biológica, ecossistemas complexos e com pouco conhecimento científico, os cuidados para mitigar os impactos sobre o meio ambiente devem ser redobrados.Palavras-chave: Petróleo, Foz Amazonas, Impactos AmbientaisHYDROCARBONS EXPLORATION IN THE AMAZON RIVER MOUTH: IMPACTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL PERSPECTIVES OFFERED WITHIN AREAS IN 11a ROUND OF TENDERS AbstractThe activities related to the oil industry from the exploration phase to production cause significant stress and strain on the environment. The aim of this paper is to analyze geographical sectors and blocks offered in the 11th round of bidding of the National Agency of Petroleum proposed near the mouth of the Amazon River. Possible impacts from future exploration in the region are analyzed. The coast of Amapá is only 60 miles from the nearest block on offer. A rich mangrove ecosystem covers most of this coastline and constituting the largest continuous expanse of mangroves in Brazil, this area is subject to high degree of preservation and conservation. The coastline is heavily influenced by the dynamics of the Amazon River estuary at that location. The estuary of the Amazon River has not been the subject of detail analyses in the case of an oil spill. It is known that oil exploration brings many benefits to a deprived areas and fuels economic recovery through the receipt of royalties and the arrival of new companies, however in areas with high biological richness, complex ecosystems with little scientific knowledge, care must be taken to mitigate impacts on the environment.Keywords: Petroleum, Mouth of the Amazon, Environmental Impact

ESTUPRO DE VULNERÁVEL: A EXISTÊNCIA DE LIMITAÇÃO À AMPLA DEFESA DO RÉU COM O ADVENTO DA LEI Nº 13.431/17

O presente artigo analisa se a limitação a apenas uma oitiva do menor, balizada pela Lei nº 13.431/17, poderia influenciar no direto à ampla defesa do acusado. Para tanto, a pesquisa se desenvolveu de forma bibliográfica, a partir dos métodos qualitativo e indutivo, e delineou, de forma pormenorizada, no que se constitui o direito de defesa do acusado; a inovação legislativa presente na Lei nº 13.431/17; o estupro de vulnerável; e se há restrição à ampla defesa do réu com a realização de apenas uma oitiva da vítima, através do depoimento especial. Ao final, verificou-se que, no caso de somente existir a oitiva da vítima como prova na ação penal, será necessário realizar uma ponderação de direitos para a resolução do conflito

Socio-environmental vulnerability index: a methodological proposal based on the case of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The term vulnerability has been more frequently used in several studies, striving to better understand the specificities and needs of different population groups. The scope of this study was to identify, characterize and analyze populations in situations of socio-environmental vulnerability in Rio de Janeiro city, consolidating social, economic, environmental, health and public security indicators in a synthesis index - the Socio-Environmental Vulnerability Index. The data sources used were the IBGE-2010 Demographic Census, the Geo-Rio Foundation and the Public Security Institute of the state of Rio de Janeiro. The methodology integrated Multicriteria Decision Analysis into a Geographic Information System. According to our results, the socio-environmental vulnerability in Rio de Janeiro city is aggravated by risk situations and environmental degradation. Those aspects are accentuated by the population density in shantytown areas, where the most disadvantaged strata exist in a process of environmental and urban exclusion. The study makes it possible to locate spatially vulnerable areas, emphasizing the importance of these tools to guide resource allocation, formulation and implementation of more effective public policies.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Analysis of social vulnerability and environmental risk in the municipality of Rio de Janeiro

A questão da vulnerabilidade está cada vez mais presente em estudos acadêmicos e também em pesquisas de órgãos governamentais no Brasil e no mundo, esse crescimento ocorre pela necessidade de se compreender mais profundamente a sociedade e seus diferentes graus de vulnerabilidade, buscando soluções para uma sociedade mais igualitária. O objetivo deste trabalho é analisar áreas em situação de vulnerabilidade social e risco ambiental no município do Rio de Janeiro. Com a aplicação de técnicas de geoprocessamento, foram identificadas áreas de muito alta, alta, moderada e baixa vulnerabilidade social e risco ambiental. Esses resultados foram obtidos através da sobreposição espacial entre o Índice de Vulnerabilidade Social e as áreas suscetíveis ao escorregamento. Os resultados deste artigo expressam o ponto de partida para análises mais aprofundadas da vulnerabilidade social e do risco ambiental.The issue of vulnerability is increasingly present in academic studies and in research activities from government agencies in Brazil and the world, this growth occurs through the need to understand society more deeply and its different degrees of vulnerability, seeking solutions for a more inclusive society. The objective of this study is to analyze the areas of social vulnerability and environmental risk in the municipality of Rio de Janeiro. With the application of GIS techniques, areas of Very High, High, Moderate and Low social vulnerability and environmental risk were identified. These results were obtained through the spatial overlap between the Social Vulnerability Index and areas susceptible to landslide. The results of this article express the starting point for further analysis of social vulnerability and environmental risk.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

on prefermentative maceration techniques statistical analysis of sensory descriptors in sangiovese wine

SummaryThe analysis of wine sensory descriptors is a fundamental step in the improvement of wine making, because the procedures are judged just before bottled wine is ready for consumption. Despite several contributions in the literature, traditional analysis of variance methods are not adequate to analyse sensory descriptors, because they are defined on ordinal scales. In this paper, we exploit cumulative link mixed models in a three-way full factorial design to assess the effect of prefermentative maceration, temperature and saignée on wine sensory descriptors. Using cumulative link mixed models, the bias introduced by assessors' judgement and the ordinal scale of sensory descriptors are taken into account. The results were the following: the application of prefermentative maceration techniques did not lead to an improvement in the sensory profile of wines after a year from bottling; wines treated with saignée showed greater intensity in olfactive descriptors; and higher fermentation temperatures resulted in wines that were generally more concentrated