Monitoramento atmosférico passivo de SO2, NO2 e O3 em áreas urbanas e de influência industrial como prática de química ambiental para alunos de graduação

This study is a result of undergraduate student participation in the Environmental Chemistry discipline provided by the Chemistry Institute/UFBA. The students were involved in the development of passive samplers, a project of the LAQUAM (Environmental Analytical Chemistry Laboratory). The students' residences and other neighborhoods were used to create a passive sampling network, allowing the measurement of atmospheric levels of pollutants in urban areas and in those under industrial influence. The assembly of the passive samplers, including impregnation of filters and chemical analysis were part of the students' practice tasks. The results were analyzed taking into consideration the Brazilian legislation.

Turkey's Accession to the European Union in terms of impact on the EU's security and defense policies: potential and drawbacks

This study explores the impact of Turkey's likely entry in the European Union (EU) in terms of the EU's foreign, security and defense policies. It reviews Turkish capabilities, namely its military capabilities, which could provide the EU with valuable defense assets. There are differences related to Turkey's relations with the EU, which have increasingly spilled over into the NATO, hindering the development of cooperation over crisis management operations. The article then delves in the implications of Turkey's strategic geographical location to EU policies. It reviews how far the EU and Turkey may have convergent interests in some of the neighboring regions, especially in the Middle East.

Security issues during Lula's administration: from the reactive to the assertive approach

Brazil's security agenda during Lula's administration was not homogeneous through the two mandates: the first tenure (2002-2006) revealed a reactive approach towards security topics, while the second one (2006-2010) was more assertive. More specifically, the shift occurred in terms of both its geographical scope - once it incorporated global issues in a more systematic way -, and instruments through which the security agenda was exercised, given the multilateral initiative of Unasur's CDS

Terrorism as war by other means: national security and state support for terrorism

The conventional approach in the discipline of International Relations is to treat terrorist organizations as "non-state" actors of international relations. However, this approach is problematic due to the fact that most terrorist organizations are backed or exploited by some states. In this article, I take issue with the non-stateness of terrorist organizations and seek to answer the question of why so many states, at times, support terrorist organizations. I argue that in the face of rising threats to national security in an age of devastating wars, modern nation states tend to provide support to foreign terrorist organizations that work against their present and imminent enemies. I elaborate on my argument studying three cases of state support for terrorism: Iranian support for Hamas, Syrian support for the PKK, and American support for the MEK. The analyses suggest that, for many states, terror is nothing but war by other means.

A network society communicative model for optimizing the Refugee Status Determination (RSD) procedures

This article recommends a new way to improve Refugee Status Determination (RSD) procedures by proposing a network society communicative model based on active involvement and dialogue among all implementing partners. This model, named after proposals from Castells, Habermas, Apel, Chimni, and Betts, would be mediated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), whose role would be modeled after that of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) practice.

UN Security Council decision-making: testing the bribery hypothesis

Liberal-Institutionalism and Structural Realism expectations about international organizations are confronted by looking at if and how US-controlled international aid is granted, and particularly if it is related or not to political affinity and to United Nations Security Council (UNSC) non-permanent membership. A preliminary assessment suggests that these relations only hold for the period of the Cold War, and, even then, only when UNSC non-permanent membership is in years in which the Security Council was deemed very important.

The international implications of the Chinese model of development in the Global South: Asian Consensus as a network power

This paper analyzes People's Republic of China (PRC) economic and political ascendance in the 21st century focusing on the evolution of the sui generis economic development model and its significances of the evolution of relationship between China and the developing countries in the peripheral "Global South." The objective of this article is to analyze the relationship between China and the Global South (Africa and South America) in the 21st century, characterized as a new Center-periphery global network power based on trade and investment that we call as "Asian Consensus."

The US experience in contracting out security and lessons for other countries

The United States has gone further than any country in the "privatization of security". Other countries may find the economic or financial logic in the use of contractors persuasive. The US experience with contracting out security, particularly in Iraq, was problematic, and can serve as a cautionary tale in order that other countries might learn how to avoid the pitfalls.

Biomassa seca acumulada, partições e rendimento industrial da cana-de-açúcar irrigada no Semiárido brasileiro

Objetivou-se, com este trabalho, determinar parâmetros de crescimento e de rendimento da cana-de-açúcar cv. RB92579, sob regime de irrigação, no Semiárido brasileiro, visando a avaliar o desempenho desta cultura nas condições edafoclimáticas locais. Foram avaliados o acúmulo de biomassa seca e as suas respectivas partições, durante dois ciclos consecutivos de cana-de-açúcar (soca e ressoca), além dos indicadores de rendimento e de qualidade da cultura ao final do período experimental. Em ambos os ciclos, foram realizadas dez coletas de amostras para se determinar a biomassa seca de seis componentes estruturais dos perfilhos (folhas verdes, bainhas, parte emergente, pseudocolmos, folhas e bainhas mortas e colmo). A cana-de-açúcar apresentou elevado acúmulo de biomassa seca da parte aérea da planta, com valor médio de 6.493 g m-2 para os dois ciclos de cultivo. No início do seu crescimento, os fotoassimilados foram destinados prioritariamente às folhas verdes, bainhas, parte emergente e pseudocolmos. Em fase posterior de crescimento, os fotoassimilados passaram a ser utilizados na formação dos colmos. Os resultados obtidos foram muito semelhantes para os ciclos de soca e ressoca. Os modelos ajustados para descrever a evolução da biomassa seca e de suas respectivas partições apresentaram ajustes satisfatórios, em função dos dias após o corte. O elevado rendimento industrial (133,88 ± 40,84 t ha-1) e a alta concentração de sacarose por biomassa seca (0,34 ± 0,10 g g-1) proporcionaram valores elevados de produção de açúcar (17,75 ± 4,44 t ha-1) e de álcool (12,73 ± 3,23 t ha-1), indicando alto desempenho produtivo da RB92579 para a região.

Desempenho de clones elite de batata para caracteres agronômicos e de qualidade industrial

O objetivo deste trabalho foi verificar o desempenho de clones elite de batata, em relação a caracteres agronômicos e de qualidade industrial. Os experimentos foram realizados em Pelotas, RS, Canoinhas, SC, e Londrina, PR. Foi avaliado um conjunto de clones elite, pertencentes ao Programa de Melhoramento Genético de Batata, da Embrapa. O delineamento experimental foi o de blocos casualizados, com três repetições para Pelotas e Londrina e quatro para Canoinhas. Foram avaliados os caracteres massa total de tubérculos, massa comercial de tubérculos, número de tubérculos comerciais, percentagem de massa de tubérculos comerciais, massa média de tubérculos comerciais, peso específico, cor de fritura e ciclo vegetativo. A partir dos dados obtidos foram realizadas as análises de variância para cada local e teste de agrupamento de médias para cada caráter. Para identificação de clones apropriados ao mercado 'in natura', em que é fundamental o elevado potencial produtivo e precocidade, os clones mais promissores foram F80-03-06 e CL02-05, quando comparados à cultivar testemunha Ágata. Para o processamento industrial, em que o peso específico, a cor de fritura e o rendimento de tubérculo são caracteres importantes, destacou-se o clone F81-01-06, que apesar de não apresentar os maiores rendimentos totais, apresentou tubérculos grandes, ciclo vegetativo intermediário e boa aptidão para fritura, quando comparando-se ao cultivar testemunha Asterix.