Operation of the PL480 program in Brazil

"Literature cited": p. 26-28.

Biomechanical aspects of the anterior segment in human myopia

The thesis investigates the relationship between the biomechanical properties of the anterior human sclera and cornea in vivo using Schiotz tonometry (ST), rebound tonometry (RBT, iCare) and the Ocular Response Analyser (ORA, Reichert). Significant differences in properties were found to occur between scleral quadrants. Structural correlates for the differences were examined using Partial Coherent Interferometry (IOLMaster, Zeiss), Optical Coherent tomography (Visante OCT), rotating Scheimpflug photography (Pentacam, Oculus) and 3-D Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). Subject groups were employed that allowed investigation of variation pertaining to ethnicity and refractive error. One hundred thirty-five young adult subjects were drawn from three ethnic groups: British-White (BW), British-South-Asian (BSA) and Hong-Kong-Chinese (HKC) comprising non-myopes and myopes. Principal observations: ST demonstrated significant regional variation in scleral resistance a) with lowest levels at quadrant superior-temporal and highest at inferior-nasal; b) with distance from the limbus, anterior locations showing greater resistance. Variations in resistance using RBT were similar to those found with ST; however the predominantly myopic HKC group had a greater overall mean resistance when compared to the BW-BSA group. OCT-derived scleral thickness measurements indicated the sclera to be thinner superiorly than inferiorly. Thickness varied with distance from the corneolimbal junction, with a decline from 1 to 2 mm followed by a successive increase from 3 to 7 mm. ORA data varied with ethnicity and refractive status; whilst axial length (AL) was associated with corneal biometrics for BW-BSA individuals it was associated with IOP in the HKC individuals. Complex interrelationships were found between ORA Additional-Waveform-Parameters and biometric data provided by the Pentacam. OCT indicated ciliary muscle thickness to be greater in myopia and more directly linked to posterior ocular volume (from MRI) than AL. Temporal surface areas (SAs, from MRI) were significantly smaller than nasal SAs in myopic eyes; globe bulbosity (from MRI) was constant across quadrants.

Long-term outcomes of an Australian universal prevention trial of anxiety and depression symptoms in children and youth: An evaluation of the friends program

This study evaluated the long-term effectiveness of the FRIENDS Program in reducing anxiety and depression in a sample of children from Grade 6 and Grade 9 in comparison to a control condition. Longitudinal data for Lock and Barrett's (2003) universal prevention trial is presented, along with data from 12-month follow-up to 24- and 36-month follow-up. Results of this study indicate that intervention reductions in anxiety reported in Lock and Barrett were maintained for students in Grade 6, with the intervention group reporting significantly lower ratings of anxiety at long-term follow-up. A significant Time times Intervention Group times Gender Effect on Anxiety was found, with girls in the intervention group reporting significantly lower anxiety at 12-month and 24-month follow-up but not at 36-month follow-up in comparison to the control condition. Results demonstrated a prevention effect with significantly fewer high-risk students at 36-month follow-up in the intervention condition than in the control condition. Results are discussed within the context of prevention research.

A Comparative Study on the Homeroom Teachers’ Perception of the School guidance in Korea and Finland

This study has four major purposes. First, it compares school guidance of homeroom teachers in Korea and Finland, in order to understand the reality of education, based on the teachers’ perceptions. Secondly, it also considers the topic within its historical, social, and cultural backgrounds, from a critical standpoint. Thirdly, it investigates the direction of the improvement of school guidance, based on the analysis of similarities and differences between Korea and Finland, with regards to the meaning, practice, and environmental factors of the school guidance. Lastly, the influential factors surrounding the school guidance are noted by analysing empirical data from a microscopic approach, and extending the understanding of it into a social context. As for the methods, it employs thematic analysis approach through 10 homeroom teacher interviews in the lower secondary schools. As a result, firstly, the teachers in both countries assumed similarly, that the role of the teacher was not only to teach the subject, but also to care about every aspects of the students’ development in their school life. In addition, they accepted the fact that school guidance became more significant. However, the school guidance became the top priority for the Korean teachers, while teaching subject is the main task for the Finnish teachers. Secondly, the homeroom teachers in both countries hoped to have a better working environment, to perform school guidance concerning education budget for the resources of school guidance, tight curriculum, and increasing the teachers’ tasks. Thirdly, the school guidance in Korea seemed to be influenced by social expectation and government demand, whereas, the Finnish teachers considered school guidance in more aspects of adjustment and academic motivation, rather than resolving the social problems. Fourthly, the Korean teachers perceived that the trust and respect from the society and home became weakened, also expressing doubts about the educational policies and the attitude of the government with regards to school guidance. On the other hand, the Finnish teachers believed that they were trusted and respected by the society. However, blurred lines in the roles and accountability between the homeroom teachers, home, and the society were also controversial among the teachers in both countries. To sum up, Finland needs to ameliorate the system and conditions for school guidance of the homeroom teachers. The consensus on the role and tasks of Finnish homeroom teachers for school guidance seem to be also necessary. Meanwhile, Korea should improve the social system and social consciousness of the teacher, school guidance, and schooling, preceding the reform of the education system or conditions.

A morphometric study on the longitudinal and lateral symmetry of the sural nerve in mature and aging female rats

Aging affects peripheral nerve function and regeneration in experimental models but few literature reports deal with animals aged more than one year. We investigated morphological and morphometric aspects of the sural nerve in aging rats. Female Wistar rats 360, 640 and 720 days old were killed, proximal and distal segments of the right and left sural nerves were prepared for light microscopy and computerized morphometry. No morphometric differences between proximal and distal segments or between right and left sides at the same levels were found in all experimental groups. No increase in fiber and axon sizes was observed from 360 to 720 days. Likewise, no difference in total myelinated fiber number was observed between groups. Myelinated fiber population distribution was bimodal, being the 720-days old animals` distribution shifted to the left, indicating a reduction of the fiber diameters. The 9 ratio distribution of the 720-days old animals` myelinated fiber was also shifted to the left, which suggests axonal atrophy. Morphological alterations due to aging were observed, mainly related to the myelin sheath, which suggests demyelination. Large fibers were more affected than the smaller ones. Axon abnormalities were not as common or as obvious as the myelin changes and Wallerian degeneration was rarely found. These alterations were observed in all experimental groups but were much less pronounced in rats 360 days old and their severity increased with aging. in conclusion, the present study indicates that the aging neuropathy present in the sural nerve of female rats is both axonal and demyelinating. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Climatic aspects of the Amazonian Tropical Forest

The purpose of this study is to analyse the climatic aspects of the data collected in a forest site in comparison with conventional data obtained at different sites, such as clearing, rural an urban areas. The results showed that diverse climatic conditions do exist among the sites: the urban site showed higher temperature and lower relative humidity. In addition, evapotranspiration (potential and actual rates) was computed from the forest data set, using the classical Penman-Monteith's equation. The actual evapotranspiration is 30% of the potential value during dry period and seems to be almost constant during the whole year (tipically 2.0 to 2.5 mm day-1).

Predictable climate impacts of the decadal changes in the ocean in the 1990s

During the 1990s there was a major change in the state of the world's oceans. In particular, the North Atlantic underwent a rapid warming, with sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the subpolar gyre region increasing by 1°C in just a few years. Associated with the changes in SST patterns were changes in the surface climate, in particular, a tendency for warm and dry conditions over areas of North America in all seasons, and warm springs and wet summers over areas of Europe. Here, the extent to which a climate prediction system initialized using observations of the ocean state is able to capture the observed changes in seasonal mean surface climate is investigated. Rather than examining predictions of the mid-1990s North Atlantic warming event itself, this study compares hindcasts started before and after the warming, relative to hindcasts that do not assimilate information. It is demonstrated that the hindcasts capture many aspects of the observed changes in seasonal mean surface climate, especially in North, South, and Central America and in Europe. Furthermore, the prediction system retains skill beyond the first year. Finally, it is shown that, in addition to memory of Atlantic SSTs, successfully predicting Pacific SSTs was likely important for the hindcasts to predict surface climate over North America.

Morphological characterization of the nasopalatine region in human fetuses and its association to pathologies

The nasopalatine region is composed of structures such as the vomeronasal organ and nasopalatine duct. The nasopalatine duct may provide the communication of the mouth to the nasal cavity in human fetuses and can be obliterated in an adult human. Knowledge on the development of the nasopalatine region and nasopalatine duct in humans is necessary for understanding the morphology and etiopathogenesis of lesions that occur in this region. Objective: The aim of the present study was to describe the morphological aspects of the nasopalatine region in human fetuses and correlate these aspects with the development of pathologies in this region. Material and Methods: Five human fetuses with no facial or palatine abnormalities were used for the acquisition of specimens from the nasopalatine region. After demineralization, the specimens were histologically processed. Histological cuts were stained with methylene blue to orient the cutting plane and hematoxylin-eosin for the descriptive histological analysis. Results: The age of the fetuses was 8.00, 8.25, 9.00 and 9.25 weeks, and it was not possible to determine the age in the last one. The incisive canal was observed in all specimens as an opening delimited laterally by the periosteum and connecting oral and nasal cavity. The nasopalatine duct is an epithelial structure with the greatest morphological variation, with either unilateral or bilateral occurrence and total patent, partial patent and islet forms. The vomeronasal organ is a bilateral epithelized structure located alongside the nasal septum above the incisive canal in all the fetuses. Conclusions: The incisive canal, nasopalatine duct and vomeronasal organ are distinct anatomic structures. The development of nasopalatine duct cysts may occur in all forms of the nasopalatine duct.

Programa de licenciatura internacional na Universidade Federal de Uberlândia : limites e possibilidades

This research is the result of research at the level of Master of the Graduate Program in Education of the Federal University of Uberlândia – PPGED/UFU, inserted in the line of research "State Policy and Management in Education." Its object of study International Degree Programme – PLI established officially in 2010, the Higher Education Personnel Improvement Coordination – Capes, in particular the PLI at UFU. The overall objective is to describe and analyze the implications, while limits and possibilities of its implementation in UFU in the 2010-2012 period, from the context of the internationalization of higher education and educational policies in this area. They were used as data collection instruments, bibliographical, documentary research and semi-structured interview applied to the former rector of the UFU, managers, engineers, teachers and students participating in the PLI/UFU 2010-2012. For the data analysis, the theoretical and political aspects influencing policies for teacher training, as well as the legal PLI documents were considered. As a result, on the one hand, it was found that the PLI, in the context of UFU, gives opportunity to the participants the possibility of holding courses abroad, contributes to their personal and cultural background. On the other hand, the PLI would not be, in fact, academically contributing to improve vocational training as its main objective, but rather, for what happened in Portugal over the three issues considered, it would have contributed to reaffirm, among the students, political will to not act as teachers in the context of basic education.

Educação Ambiental e água: concepções e práticas educativas em escolas municipais

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Currículos de formação de professores de educação física no estado do Pará: conteúdos curriculares, concepções pedagógicas e modelos de profissionalidade

O estudo se insere no Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação da Universidade Federal do Pará, na linha de “Currículo e Formação de Professores”, como parte das produções do grupo de pesquisa “Includere”. Tem como objeto de estudo as propostas curriculares adotadas pelos cursos de formação de professores de Educação Física do Estado do Pará, de 2000 a 2010. Possui o seguinte problema: que concepções de Educação Física e modelos de profissionalidade docentes orientam os currículos prescritos adotados pelos cursos de licenciatura em Educação Física do Estado do Pará? Fundamenta-se metodologicamente no materialismo histórico e dialético, na pesquisa do tipo qualitativa e documental. Realiza análise de conteúdo (TRIVIÑOS, 1987; FRANCO, 2008) dos Projetos Políticos Pedagógicos (PPP) de seis cursos de licenciatura em Educação Física do Estado do Pará. Discute questões teóricas e conceituais sobre currículo, seleção curricular, concepções pedagógicas da Educação Física, profissão, profissionalidade e proletarização docente ao longo das seções. Constata que as Diretrizes Curriculares acionais dos Cursos de Graduação em Educação Física (DCNEF) adotam a concepção pedagógica da Aptidão Física e o modelo de profissionalidade técnico-racionalizante. Nos seis currículos de Educação Física investigados, observa que as concepções pedagógicas predominante são a Saúde renovada e a Fenomenológica, com a presença da Desenvolvimentista, Competitivista e Crítico-Superadora, porém, estas se apresentam hibridizadas nos currículos. Identifica que o modelo de profissionalidade docente adotado nos cursos investigados é técnicoracionalizante, apesar do uso de terminologias progressistas e de contradições entre os textos dos PPP e a estrutura curricular. Conclui que os currículos investigados reproduzem as determinações gerais do capital no projeto de formação, porém que é possível resistir às normatizações oficiais, como demonstra o currículo do Curso de Educação Física da Universidade do Estado do Pará, ainda que este se apresente com limitações em relação ao projeto formativo almejado.

Análise das produções bibliográficas sobre trabalho infantil e educação no período de 2002 a 2012

Pós-graduação em Educação - FCT

Lei de responsabilidade educacional: direito fundamental à educação, regime jurídico administrativo e responsabilização dos agentes públicos

Pós-graduação em Educação - FCT

The teaching of certain aspects of child development in the homemaking program in the secondary school: a complilation of materials from states. Home economics education.

"Prepared by Rua Van Horn."--p. iii.