Caste in the swarming wasps: 'queenless' societies in highly social insects

Morphometric data for 30 species of swarming wasps (Vespidae: Polistinae: Epiponini) are presented, representing all currently recognized genera. Data are coded according to whether females that were shown by dissection to be egglayers are larger, similar, or smaller for each dimension than non-egglayers. These data are analysed in a phylogenetic framework with primitively social Polistes and Mischocyttarus as outgroups. Representative measurements are illustrated to show that most genera of Epiponini appear to have ancestry in a lineage that has no queen caste comparable with either the primitively social outgroups, or the more derived species of the tribe. This analysis indicates that a conspiracy of workers that operates without a queen characterizes the societies of many Epiponini, or their recent ancestors. (c) 2008 The Linnean Society of London.

Do Brasil à Africa: resgatando valores através da Literatura, construindo uma sociedade multicultural e pluriétnica

This paper addresses the role of literature in the construction of the new Brazilian society. The rescue of the cultural formation of identity values of the country, highlighting the African presence in various sectors of national life. In a project dedicated exclusively to children and young Brazilian students, aiming to demonstrate the multicultural and multiethnic existing in Brazilian culture. Literatures of Portuguese aid in the understanding of this reality.

Validation of the Scandinavian stroke scale in a multicultural population in Brazil

Background: The objective of this study was to evaluate the consistency, coherence, and interobserver reliability of the Portuguese version of the Scandinavian Stroke Scale (SSS) in a multicultural population of stroke. Methods: The SSS was translated, culturally adapted, and applied by two independent investigators. This was a randomized transverse study involving two groups: group 1 included 20 patients in the acute phase and group 2 included 20 patients in the subacute phase after stroke was confirmed by computed tomography with a pre-stroke modified Rankin Scale score of 0. Each patient also underwent National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) evaluation at hospital entry and at the time of the SSS evaluation for correlation with our current standard hospital practice. Consistency and coherence were analyzed by Cronbach’s α and interobserver reliability by ĸ. Results: Forty patients were evaluated with 0.88 consistency and coherence in both stroke phases. Mean interobserver ĸ was 0.76, with reliability considered excellent and good for most scale items, and moderate for only the facial palsy item. Conclusion: The SSS is adequate and validated to study post-stroke patients in a multicultural Brazilian population and in the Portuguese language.