Discovery of two distinct red clumps in NGC 419: a rare snapshot of a cluster at the onset of degeneracy

Colour-magnitude diagrams (CMDs) of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) star cluster NGC 419, derived from Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) data, reveal a well-delineated secondary clump located below the classical compact red clump typical of intermediate-age populations. We demonstrate that this feature belongs to the cluster itself, rather than to the underlying SMC field. Then, we use synthetic CMDs to show that it corresponds very well to the secondary clump predicted to appear as a result of He-ignition in stars just massive enough to avoid e(-)-degeneracy settling in their H-exhausted cores. The main red clump instead is made of the slightly less massive stars which passed through e(-) degeneracy and ignited He at the tip of the red giant branch. In other words, NGC 419 is the rare snapshot of a cluster while undergoing the fast transition from classical to degenerate H-exhausted cores. At this particular moment of a cluster`s life, the colour distance between the main-sequence turn-off and the red clump(s) depends sensitively on the amount of convective core overshooting, Lambda(c). By coupling measurements of this colour separation with fits to the red clump morphology, we are able to estimate simultaneously the cluster mean age (1.35(-0.04)(+0.11) Gyr) and overshooting efficiency (Lambda(c) = 0.47(-0.04)(+0.14)). Therefore, clusters like NGC 419 may constitute important marks in the age scale of intermediate-age populations. After eye inspection of other CMDs derived from HST/ACS data, we suggest that the same secondary clump may also be present in the Large Magellanic Cloud clusters NGC 1751, 1783, 1806, 1846, 1852 and 1917.

A further exploration of a nucleophilicity index based on the gas-phase ionization potentials

An empirical nucleophilicity index based on the gas-phase ionization potentials has been recently shown to be useful categorizing and settling the nucleophilicity power of a series of captodative ethylenes reacting in cycloaddition reactions (L.R. Domingo, E. Chamorro, P. Perez, Journal of Organic Chemistry 73 (2008) 4615-4624). In the present work, the applicability of such model is tested within a broader series of substituted alkenes, substituted aromatic compounds and simple nucleophilic molecules. This index obtained within a Koopman`s theorem framework has been evaluated here in both gas and solution phases for several well-known nucleophiles. These results are found to be linearly correlated. Finally, the feasibility of the predictive character of this index has been discussed in comparison to the available experimental nucleophilicities of some amines in water. These results further support and validate the usefulness of such approximation in the modeling of the global nucleophilicity. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Collective bargaining in Brazilian manufacturing, 1978-95

Collective bargaining, it is widely claimed, has been on the increase in Brazil since the late 1970s. This is seen as part of a broader change in Brazilian industrial relations towards a hybrid system of interest representation, in which elements of both the old state corporatism and pluralism now coexist. However, there is little or no systematic empirical evidence available to support this conclusion. This thesis addresses the question of the strengthening of collective bargaining as a method of job regulation in Brazil by providing a detailed empirical study. The questions of this study are: (a) how important has collective bargaining become in establishing provisions on the terms and conditions of the employment relationship which are not simply reproducing rules established via state regulation?; and (b) what factors accounted for changes in the content of these provisions? An analysis of 10,734 provisions in 287 collective agreements in manufacturing industries in the Metropolitan Area of Porto Alegre, the capital of the southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul, was carried out for the period of 1978-95. This analysis offers support for the thesis that the significance of collective bargaining has increased. It shows that: (a) most substantive provisions created rules that were not established in other forms of regulation; (b) provisions that replicate the contents of regulatory legislation accounted for one out of seven substantive provisions, but in spite of being a copy of the law, these provisions are not entirely neutral for job regulation; (c) collective agreements also laid down substantive provisions benefiting employers, and not simply employees; and (d) the pace of change in bargaining outcomes oscillated with changes in the economic, legal and judicial contexts. This pace of change was mostly affected by (i) the rate of unemployment, (ii) the degree of openness of the economy to foreign competition, (iii) the capacity of employers to pass on costs to costumers, (iv) stabilisation policies aimed at curbing inflation, (v) the Federal Constitution made in 1988, (vi) the official rate of minimum wages, and (vii) the conduct of the labour judicial system in settling collective disputes.

Entry strategies on an emerging market: Brazil: case studies of French cosmetics companies in Brazil

Este trabalho envolve as estrategias de entrada sobre um mercado emergente, o mercado brasileiro. Os estudos de casos que apoiam o assunto são de empresas francesas do setor de cosméticos. Uma revisão da literatura sobre o assunto sera comparada com os resultados dos estudos de caso. Isso para conduzir numa observação do estado atual das caractéristicos de instalação no mercado brasileiro deste setor para empresas estrangeiras de tamanho médio. O estudo da literatura que já existe sobre o assunto se concentra sobre varias problemáticas conectadas com a problemática geral: as razões para internacionalizar, o modo de entrada, os obstáculos encontrados, as estrategias especificais e as adaptações do marketing mix. Depois este trabalho se concentra sobre tres empresas francesas representativas das problematicas atuais do setor : Norlessi, LaboBio e Plains Cosmetics. Os estudos de caso são sustentados por entrevistas e coleção de dados de varios origens, descrevedo mas precisamente na parte de methodologia. Depois será feito uma cross-analysis tentando comparar as conclusões do estudo empirico e do estudo literário. As conclusões finais tem como objetivo de ser uma observação objetiva do raciocinio das empresas consideradas sobre as problemáticas escolhidas.

Produtividade às custas de assédio moral: a indústria bancária sob a ótica dos trabalhadores do setor

Esta pesquisa avaliou o fenômeno assédio moral no Banco Credit S.A., considerando de que maneira esta prática se revela no ambiente de trabalho, seus efeitos físicos e psicológicos e, por fim, a repercussão psicossocial do assédio moral no ambiente organizacional dessa empresa; acrescentando que a nomenclatura dada a este Banco é fictícia, uma vez que não obtivemos autorização formal desta instituição apontada como objeto de estudo da pesquisa. As conclusões são baseadas numa pesquisa etnográfica qualitativa através de entrevistas semi-estruturadas, com relatos de 10 (dez) respondentes, empregados do Banco Credit S.A., acerca do fenômeno assédio moral. Como forma de validação dos dados captados foi aplicada uma pesquisa etnográfica virtual, de cunho quantitativo a 103 (cento e três) respondentes, todos empregados dessa instituição, através do survey. Por fim, foi realizada uma entrevista com o Presidente do BancáRio - Sindicato dos Bancários do Rio de Janeiro, ator social apto a descrever o fenômeno assédio moral no setor bancário holisticamente, ajuizando assim, as análises relativas ao perfil do Banco Credit S.A., sobretudo àquelas semelhantes ou divergentes do senso comum. Os tópicos da discussão estão circunscritos a partir dos anos 80-90 quando se dá a estabilização da economia brasileira, através da implantação do plano real, no governo FHC. Nesse contexto, o setor bancário passou por um processo de reestruturação produtiva, marcado pelas privatizações e a adoção de novas formas de gestão que resultaram em conflitos no ambiente de trabalho. Essas modificações levaram a uma ruptura nos processos das transaçoes bancárias, reconfigurando o setor, se estabelendo de forma cristalizada admitindo assim, o assédio moral como uma pratica corriqueira e institucionalizada. Esta pesquisa conclui que, diante deste cenário o assédio moral revelou-se um fenômeno corriqueiro que foi incorporado à cultura organizacional desta empresa como mecanismo de punição aos empregados que não atingem as metas estabelecidas. O clima organizacional do Banco Credit S.A. é tenso e propício as práticas de assédio moral; que esse fenômeno reduz a capacidade produtiva do empregado, induzindo ao aumento de custos com improdutividade e baixa eficiência para o próprio banco. O assédio moral, nas relações entre os empregados do banco Credit S.A. se revela mais comumente de forma vertical descendente, sua prática é fortemente percebida pelos empregados desta instituição.

O Acordo Antecipado de Preços – APA como solução para reduzir a insegurança jurídica na aplicação das regras de Preço de Transferência no Brasil

O presente trabalho monográfico é baseado fundamentalmente na comparação da legislação estrangeira e nos potenciais conflitos trazido pela doutrina brasileira na instituição de outros mecanismos de solução de controvérsias administrativos, já em operação no Brasil. Objetivando verificar a possibilidade de aplicação do Acordo Antecipado de Preços no direito brasileiro. Para tanto é verificado se o APA é uma forma eficiente de solução das inseguranças trazidas pela aplicabilidade das regras de preços de transferência em virtude da natureza específica das transações operacionalizadas entre pessoas vinculadas.

Avaliação da incorporação combinada dos resíduos de cascalho de perfuração de poço de petróleo e de polimento do porcelanato em cerâmica vermelha

Among the industries, those that produce ceramic porcelain for use in construction industry and oil, during the exploration and production period, play an important role in the production of waste. Much research has been carried out both by academia and the productive sector, sometimes reintroducing them in the same production line that generated them, sometimes in areas unrelated to their generation, as in the production of concrete and mortar for the construction, for example, but each one in an isolated way. In this research, the aim is to study the combined incorporation of the waste drill cuttings of oil well and the residue of the polishing of porcelain, generated in the final stage of finishing of this product in a clay matrix, for the production of red pottery, specifically bricks, ceramic blocks and tiles. The clay comes from the municipality of São Gonçalo, RN, the drilling waste is from the Natal basin, in Rio Grande do Norte, and the residue of the polishing proceeds from a ceramic porcelain of the State of Paraíba. For this purpose, we used a mixture of a plastic clay with a non-plastic, in a ratio of 50% each, settling formulations with the addition of these two residues in this clay matrix. In the formulations, both residues were incorporated with a minimum percentage of 2.5% and maximum of 12.5%, varying from 2.5% each, in each formulation, which the sum of the waste be no more than 15%. It should be noted that the residue of the polishing of ceramic porcelain is a IIa class (not inert). The materials were characterized by XRF, XRD, TG, DTA, laser granulometry and the plasticity index. The technological properties of water absorption, apparent porosity, linear shrinkage of burning, flexural tensile strength and bulk density were evaluated after the sintering of the pieces to 850 °C, 950 °C and 1050 °C, with a burning time of 3 hr, 3 hr and 30 minutes, and 3 hr and 50 minutes, respectively, with a heating rate of 10 °C/minute, for all formulations and landing of 30 minutes. To better understand the influence of each residue and temperature on the evaluated properties, we used the factorial planning and its surfaces of response for the interpretation of the results. It was found that the temperature has no statistical significance at a 95% of reliability level in flexural tensile strength and that it decreases the water absorption and the porosity, but increases the shrinkage and the bulk density. The results showed the feasibility of the desired incorporation, but adjusting the temperature to each product and formulation, and that the temperatures of 850 °C and 950 °C were the one that responded to the largest number of formulations

A encruzilhada da vida política em assentamentos de reforma agrária no Rio Grande do Norte

The rural settlements represent a mark in the expensive historical process of fight by the land in Brazil. At first offer basic terms of survival, through the access the land and of the fundamental supports for exploration. At the same time, have stimulated organization forms politicizes of the families who manage to work with the new challenges of the everyday. The moment that follows the land conquest, and therefore, the settlements construction while life and work project, it is crossed for objective and subjective demands, with highlight for options of agricultural production and strategies of collective action. Originally formed as representation instance legitimates of the families - front to the government and social actors - the settlers associations are private spaces for political sociability, that guided by principles participative, can lead the settlers the new conquests through indeed democratic experiences. The goal of this work is to comprehend the participation forms in the scope of these associations and the way as that translates in life best terms for the group, from the settlements experiences located in the Territories of the Citizenship Mato Grande and Açu-Mossoró, in Rio Grande do Norte's State. The theoretical conceptions that guide this analysis are concentrate on discussions about democracy and participation (Patermam, Putnam, Bodernave) and in the reflections about the rural world (Medeiros, Martins, Woodman e Woodman and Bergamansco). About methodological, different point of view strategies were developed: The direct observation, the application in locate of questionnaires to the families settlers and interviews semi-structured with the internal leaderships. With that could verify that the participation forms in the associations operate in two heartfelt: Of a side, they promote assimilation opportunities of democratic abilities accompanied of notions of social rights and redefinition of political standards; Of another, it offers indeed the possibility of the settlers lead, with relative autonomy, the political organization and her changes in direction to a way of life that wish to have in the settling

Estado e sociedade civil no Acre (1970-1980)

The relation between State and civil society is not a very recent discussion, but it does not mean that debate is exhausted, since is in the historical context that the novelty is seized. Thinking like this, we may analyze how the relation between state and civil society happened in Acre during the decade of 1970. But, to understand how this relation is established in faraway Acre, we have available to the reader historical analyses, in a tireless attempt to clarify minimally aspects that characterize acreana society. To do this, we take on as a departure point, in general not differentiating of the given structure at national level, the conformation of this society was guided in a passive revolution, in another way, by high transformismo, relegating to the civil society, which is incipient, pífia a simple participation in the hegemonic policy direction. All this brings us to the thought that both state bureaucracy structure and the civil society organization, were influenced decisively for a traditional political elite. In addition, we begin the work with the lifting bibliographic reference searching and then we analyze the empirical reality, such as newspapers, official media publications and private, a few documents and last, interviews with political actors associated with the process consolidation of civil society in the 1970 decade. The interviewees were selected, firstly for their location in the region, and for their outstanding contribution to the consolidating process of recent Acre history. Thus, the interviews followed up on a semi-structured way, leading up, also, for the informations that the interviewees would have to pass on. The systematization and analysis of these surveys have shown us that, in the period before of the Acre Federal State lifting had, of course, a transformismo by high, but at 1970decade, the society with a more heterogeneous social formation, is not allowed, or at least, organize itself, to counter a systematic imposition. Thus, the hegemonic area of dispute between State and civil society occurs from the "reconciliation" with the adoption of public policies that amenizasse the dispute between both spheres, and to build up some bodies, settling a acreana civil society.

Responsabilidade social empresarial: percepções e práticas do empresariado salineiro do Rio Grande do Norte.

The debate around the thematic of Corporate Social Responsibility - CSR involves economic, social, cultural and symbolic aspects in the relations established between company and society. In Brazilian reality, the CSR, understood as enterprise actions, external and/or internal, that contributes to social and ambient improvement, gains greater visibility in 1990 decade. Although the significant increase of theoretical productions about CSR pertinent elements, it is still scarce the studies that treats about the relation company/society in the northeastern reality, and singularly, in Rio Grande do Norte. It was in this perspective, that, in being the salt industry one of most important in the potiguar economic history formation , the present work investigated practicies and perceptions of salt entrepreneurship about CSR. Considering all the Rio Grande do Norte salt industry history phases, since the period of the Brazil s settling, as well as the characteristics of the study object, was opted to the qualitative research, objectified in interviews half-structuralized realized with the salt segment entrepreneurs, as well as professionals of ambient management and human resources working in potiguar salt segment. The research main results indicated a coexistence between the mechanisms of management seated on personal and paternalists relations, typical of traditional salt industry, and the emergency of innovative elements typical of the modern management, like the CSR. In this context, a tension between continuity and rupture with the traditional mechanisms of management in salt entrepreneurship actions