Balanço e análise da sustentabilidade energética na produção orgânica de hortaliças.

Os insumos e serviços utilizados na produção vegetal representam custo energético. Dependendo desses fatores e das produtividades obtidas, a conversão da produção em energia determinará a eficiência energética do sistema. A agricultura orgânica somente atingirá a missão de preservação ambiental se tiver comprovada sustentabilidade energética. Neste trabalho, objetivou-se caracterizar os balanços energéticos dos cultivos orgânicos e analisar sua sustentabilidade, em comparação aos sistemas convencionais. Monitoraram-se campos de produção de dez culturas, de 1991 a 2000 em Domingos Martins-ES. Os dados do sistema convencional foram obtidos pelas médias dos coeficientes técnicos da região. Quantificaram-se os coeficientes técnicos, convertendo suas grandezas físicas em equivalentes energéticos, expressos em kcal. O sistema orgânico gastou 4.571.159 kcal ha-1 e apresentou 12.696.712 kcal ha-1 de energia inserida na colheita, mostrando balanço médio de 2,78. Esse valor foi similar ao obtido no sistema convencional (1,93). As participações dos componentes nos gastos do sistema orgânico foram embalagem (35,8%), composto orgânico (17,2%), irrigação (12,6%), sementes/mudas (12,4%) e mão-de-obra (11,0%), serviços mecânicos (5,0%) e frete (4,5%). Se os custos com embalagens fossem eliminados, os gastos do sistema orgânico seriam reduzidos para 2.930.113 kcal ha-1, aumentando sua eficiência. A maioria dos cultivos orgânicos pode ser considerada sustentável em transformação de energia, com balanços superiores a 1,00 e produção média diária de 80.421 kcal ha-1 por dia, superior à necessidade mínima de 58.064 kcal ha-1

Transient peak-strain matching partially recovers the age-impaired mechanoadaptive cortical bone response

Mechanoadaptation maintains bone mass and architecture; its failure underlies age-related decline in bone strength. It is unclear whether this is due to failure of osteocytes to sense strain, osteoblasts to form bone or insufficient mechanical stimulus. Mechanoadaptation can be restored to aged bone by surgical neurectomy, suggesting that changes in loading history can rescue mechanoadaptation. We use non-biased, whole-bone tibial analyses, along with characterisation of surface strains and ensuing mechanoadaptive responses in mice at a range of ages, to explore whether sufficient load magnitude can activate mechanoadaptation in aged bone. We find that younger mice adapt when imposed strains are lower than in mature and aged bone. Intriguingly, imposition of short-term, high magnitude loading effectively primes cortical but not trabecular bone of aged mice to respond. This response was regionally-matched to highest strains measured by digital image correlation and to osteocytic mechanoactivation. These data indicate that aged bone’s loading response can be partially recovered, non-invasively by transient, focal high strain regions. Our results indicate that old murine bone does respond to load when the loading is of sufficient magnitude, and bones’ age-related adaptation failure may be due to insufficient mechanical stimulus to trigger mechanoadaptation

Uncoupling human and climate drivers of late Holocene vegetation change in southern Brazil

In the highlands of southern Brazil an anthropogenitcally driven expansion of forest occurred at the expense of grasslands between 1410 and 900cal BP, coincident with a period of demographic and cultural change in the region. Previous studies have debated the relative contributions of increasing wetter and warmer climate conditions and human landscape modifcations to forest expansion, but generally lacked high resoltiuon proxies to measure these efects, or have relied on single proxies to reconstruct both climate and vegetation. Here, we develop and test a model of natural ecosystem distribution against vegetation histories, paleoclimate proxies, and the archaeological record to distinguish human from temperature and precipitation impacts on the distribution and expansion of Araucaria forests during the late Holocene. Carbon isotopes from soil profles confrm that in spite of climatic fuctuations, vegetation was stable and forests were spatially limited to south-facing slopes in the absence of human inputs. In contrast, forest management strategies for the past 1400 years expanded this economically important forest beyond its natural geographic boundaries in areas of dense pre-Columbian occupation, suggesting that landscape modifcations were linked to demographic changes, the efects of which are still visible today

TRY plant trait database - enhanced coverage and open access

Plant traits-the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants-determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait-based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits-almost complete coverage for 'plant growth form'. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait-environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives

Widespread forest vertebrate extinctions induced by a mega hydroelectric dam in lowland Amazonia

Mega hydropower projects in tropical forests pose a major emergent threat to terrestrial and freshwater biodiversity worldwide. Despite the unprecedented number of existing, underconstruction and planned hydroelectric dams in lowland tropical forests, long-term effects on biodiversity have yet to be evaluated. We examine how medium and large-bodied assemblages of terrestrial and arboreal vertebrates (including 35 mammal, bird and tortoise species) responded to the drastic 26-year post-isolation history of archipelagic alteration in landscape structure and habitat quality in a major hydroelectric reservoir of Central Amazonia. The Balbina Hydroelectric Dam inundated 3,129 km2 of primary forests, simultaneously isolating 3,546 land-bridge islands. We conducted intensive biodiversity surveys at 37 of those islands and three adjacent continuous forests using a combination of four survey techniques, and detected strong forest habitat area effects in explaining patterns of vertebrate extinction. Beyond clear area effects, edge-mediated surface fire disturbance was the most important additional driver of species loss, particularly in islands smaller than 10 ha. Based on species-area models, we predict that only 0.7% of all islands now harbor a species-rich vertebrate assemblage consisting of ≥80% of all species. We highlight the colossal erosion in vertebrate diversity driven by a man-made dam and show that the biodiversity impacts of mega dams in lowland tropical forest regions have been severely overlooked. The geopolitical strategy to deploy many more large hydropower infrastructure projects in regions like lowland Amazonia should be urgently reassessed, and we strongly advise that long-term biodiversity impacts should be explicitly included in pre-approval environmental impact assessments

Performance of the CMS Cathode Strip Chambers with Cosmic Rays

The Cathode Strip Chambers (CSCs) constitute the primary muon tracking device in the CMS endcaps. Their performance has been evaluated using data taken during a cosmic ray run in fall 2008. Measured noise levels are low, with the number of noisy channels well below 1%. Coordinate resolution was measured for all types of chambers, and fall in the range 47 microns to 243 microns. The efficiencies for local charged track triggers, for hit and for segments reconstruction were measured, and are above 99%. The timing resolution per layer is approximately 5 ns

Asteroseismology and Interferometry

Asteroseismology provides us with a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of stellar structure and evolution. Recent developments, including the first systematic studies of solar-like pulsators, have boosted the impact of this field of research within Astrophysics and have led to a significant increase in the size of the research community. In the present paper we start by reviewing the basic observational and theoretical properties of classical and solar-like pulsators and present results from some of the most recent and outstanding studies of these stars. We centre our review on those classes of pulsators for which interferometric studies are expected to provide a significant input. We discuss current limitations to asteroseismic studies, including difficulties in mode identification and in the accurate determination of global parameters of pulsating stars, and, after a brief review of those aspects of interferometry that are most relevant in this context, anticipate how interferometric observations may contribute to overcome these limitations. Moreover, we present results of recent pilot studies of pulsating stars involving both asteroseismic and interferometric constraints and look into the future, summarizing ongoing efforts concerning the development of future instruments and satellite missions which are expected to have an impact in this field of research.Comment: Version as published in The Astronomy and Astrophysics Review, Volume 14, Issue 3-4, pp. 217-36

Confiabilidad de un instrumento para clasificar al recién nacido de acuerdo con la complejidad de la atención

Na maioria das maternidades, a classificação, a avaliação e a definição da unidade a encaminhar o recém-nascido (RN) após o nascimento são realizadas pelo médico. A\ud avaliação ocorre na sala de parto considerando: peso ao nascer; idade gestacional;\ud condutas que definem quadro clínico e doença. Este estudo observacional teve\ud como objetivo avaliar a confiabilidade de um instrumento de classificação de RN. A pesquisa foi realizada no berçário de um hospital público, São Paulo. Nove enfermeiras\ud aplicaram o instrumento a 63 RN, sendo duas simultaneamente em cada um dos\ud cinco setores do berçário. Verificou-se que o nível de concordância Kappa entre as enfermeiras foi excelente para a maioria das áreas de cuidado (69,0%). Concluiu-se que houve consenso e concordância das enfermeiras quanto ao instrumento ser completo, de fácil entendimento e aplicável, porém despende muito tempo. As enfermeiras reconhecem a importância do instrumento para o dimensionamento dos profissionais, organização e planejamento do cuidado.In most maternity units, the physician classifies, evaluates, and determines which unit will receive the newborn (NB) after birth. Evaluation occurs in the delivery room, taking into consideration the following factors: birth weight, gestational age, and behaviors that define the clinical picture and disease. This observational study evaluates the reliability of an NB classification instrument. The study was conducted at the nursery of a public hospital in São Paulo. Nine nurses applied the instrument to 63 NB, with two of the nurses working simultaneously in each of the nursery’s fi ve sectors. The Kappa level of agreement among the nurses was found to be excellent for most care areas\ud (69.0%). It was concluded that there was a consensus and agreement among the\ud nurses that the instrument was complete, easy to understand and applicable, but was\ud very time consuming. The nurses recognize the instrument’s importance for the allocation of professionals, organization, and care planning.En la mayoría de las maternidades la clasificación, la evaluación y la definición de la unidad para referir el recién nacido (RN), son realizadas por el médico. La evaluación se realiza en la sala de parto, considerando: peso al nacer, edad gestacional y conductas que definen el cuadro clínico y la enfermedad. Este estudio observacional tuvo como objetivo evaluar la confiabilidad de un instrumento de clasificación del RN. Fue realizada en el servicio de neonatología de un hospital público en Sao Paulo. Nueve enfermeras\ud aplicaron el instrumento a 63 RN, siendo aplicados dos de forma simultánea en los cinco sectores de la unidad neonatal. El nivel de concordancia Kappa fue excelente para la mayoría de las áreas de atención (69,0%). Se concluyó que hubo consenso y\ud concordancia entre las enfermeras, quienes expresaron que el instrumento es completo, fácil de entender y de aplicar, pero se necesita mucho tempo. Las enfermeras reconocen la importancia de este instrumento para dimensionar el número de profesionales, la organización y la planificación de la atención

Evaluating Metaphor Reification in Tangible Interfaces

International audienceMetaphors are a powerful conceptual device to reason about human actions. As such, they have been heavily used in designing and describing human computer interaction. Since they can address scripted text, verbal expression, imaging, sound, and gestures, they can also be considered in the design and analysis of multimodal interfaces. In this paper we discuss the description and evaluation of the relations between metaphors and their implementation in human computer interaction with a focus on tangible user interfaces (TUIs), a form of multimodal interface. The objective of this paper is to define how metaphors appear in a tangible context in order to support their evaluation. Relying on matching entities and operations between the domain of interaction and the domain of the digital application, we propose a conceptual framework based on three components: a structured representation of the mappings holding between the metaphor source, the metaphor target, the interface and the digital system; a conceptual model for describing metaphorical TUIs; three relevant properties, coherence, coverage and compliance, which define at what extent the implementation of a metaphorical tangible interface matches the metaphor. The conceptual framework is then validated and applied on a tangible prototype in an educational application

Regional movements of the tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier, off northeastern Brazil: inferences regarding shark attack hazard

An abnormally high shark attack rate verified off Recife could be related to migratory behavior of tiger sharks. This situation started after the construction of the Suape port to the south of Recife. A previous study suggested that attacking sharks could be following northward currents and that they were being attracted shoreward by approaching vessels. In this scenario, such northward movement pattern could imply a higher probability of sharks accessing the littoral area of Recife after leaving Suape. Pop-up satellite archival taus were deployed on five tiger sharks caught off Recife to assess their movement patterns off northeastern Brazil. All tags transmitted from northward latitudes after 7-74 days of freedom. The shorter, soak distance between deployment and pop-up locations ranged between 33-209 km and implied minimum average speeds of 0.02-0.98 km.h(-1). Both pop-up locations and depth data suggest that tiger shark movements were conducted mostly over the continental shelf. The smaller sharks moved to deeper waters within 24 hours after releasing, but they assumed a shallower (< 50 m) vertical distribution for most of the monitoring period. While presenting the first data on tiger shark movements in the South Atlantic, this study also adds new information for the reasoning of the high shark attack rate verified in this region,State Government of Pernambuco and Petrobras (Brazil); Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (Portugal) [MCTES/FCT/SFRH/BD/37065/2007