Managing object identity with less I/O operations

Non-conventional database management systems are used to achieve a better performance when dealing with complex data. One fundamental concept of these systems is object identity (OID). Two techniques can be used for the implementation of OIDs: physical or logical. A logical implementation of OIDs, based on an Indirection Table, is used by NuGeM, a multimedia data manager kernel which is described in this paper. NuGeM Indirection Table allows the relocation of all pages in a database. The proposed strategy modifies the workings of this table so that it is possible to reduce considerably the number of I/O operations during the request and release of pages containing objects and their OIDs. Tests show a reduction of 84% in reading operations and a 67% reduction in writing operations when pages are requested. Although no changes were observed in writing operations during the release of pages, a 100% of reduction in reading operations was obtained. © 2012 IEEE.

ECLAC and the sociology of development

Includes bibliography

Predation-risk effects of predator identity on the foraging behaviors of frugivorous bats

Predators directly and indirectly affect the density and the behavior of prey. These effects may potentially cascade down to lower trophic levels. In this study, we tested the effects of predator calls (playbacks of bird vocalizations: Tyto alba, Speotyto cunicularia, and Vanellus chilensis), predator visual stimuli (stuffed birds) and interactions of visual and auditory cues, on the behavior of frugivore phyllostomid bats in the field. In addition, we tested if the effects of predation risk cascade down to other trophic levels by measuring rates of seed dispersal of the tree Muntingia calabura. Using video recording, we found that bats significantly decreased the foraging frequency on trees when a visual cue of T. alba was present. However, no stimuli of potential predatory birds, including vocalization of T. alba, affected bat foraging frequency. There was a change in bat behavior during 7 min, but then their frequency of activity gradually increased. Consequently, the presence of T. alba decreased by up to ten times the rate of seed removal. These results indicate that risk sensitivity of frugivorous phyllostomid bats depends on predator identity and presence. Among the predators used in this study, only T. alba is an effective bat predator in the Neotropics. Sound stimuli of T. alba seem not to be a cue of predation risk, possibly because their vocalizations are used only for intraspecific communication. This study emphasizes the importance of evaluating different predator stimuli on the behavior of vertebrates, as well as the effects of these stimuli on trait-mediated trophic cascades. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

The right to an identity: birth registration in Latin America and the Caribbean

A disturbing token of child and adolescent vulnerability in Latin America and the Caribbean is that so many are deprived of any legal identity by failure to report their birth. This bars them from exercising basic citizen rights and can hinder their access to productive employment, social benefits and the justice system and deny them recognition as full citizens and the right to well-being, capacity development and political participation.

Discrimination of complex visual stimuli in Cebus apella: identity matching with pictures

Do capuchin monkeys respond to photos as icons? Do they discriminate photos of capuchin monkeys' faces? Looking for answers to these questions we trained three capuchin monkeys in simple and conditional discrimination tasks and tested the discriminations when comparison stimuli were partially covered. Three capuchin monkeys experienced in simultaneous simple discrimination and IDMTS were trained with repeated shifts of simple discriminations (RSSD), with four simultaneous choices, and IDMTS (1 s delay, 4 choices) with pictures of known capuchins monkeys' faces. All monkeys did discriminate the pictures in both procedures. Performances in probes with partial masks with one fourth of the stimulus hidden were consistent with baseline level. Errors occurred when a picture similar to the correct one was available among the comparison stimuli, when the covered part was the most distinct, or when pictures displayed the same monkey. Capuchin monkeys do match pictures of capuchin monkeys' faces to the sample. The monkeys treated different pictures of the same monkey as equivalent, suggesting that they respond to the pictures as icons, although this was not true to pictures of other monkeys. Subsequent studies may bring more evidence that capuchin monkeys treat pictures as depictions of real scenes.

A engenharia da história: natureza, geografia e historiografia na Amazônia

Do final do século XIX até durante as primeiras décadas do século XX, os engenheiros estiveram entre os principais nomes da produção da historiografia paraense. Esta dissertação tem como objetivo examinar a conformação de uma tradição historiográfica marcada pelo diálogo estreito com o pensamento geográfico. A proximidade entre história e geografia foi articulada tanto entorno de uma percepção datada a respeito da função social que cabia a cada uma delas, quanto entorno de um projeto político pensado para a Amazônia. Em busca de redefinir, agora sob o olhar republicano, as bases da identidade regional, cabia à história rever e reaver o passado amazônico inserindo a região numa longa tradição marcada pelo desenvolvimento progressivo da civilização. Já à geografia cumpria estabelecer as bases do conhecimento espacial necessário à identidade local, e fundamental à ação do Estado. Tomo como objeto os engenheiros João de Palma Muniz, Henrique Santa Rosa e Ignácio Baptista de Moura. Entre produção historiográfica, celebrações de efemérides cívicas e a fundação de instituições, o projeto político desses três engenheiros fez parte de um movimento mais amplo da intelectualidade paraense. Em outras palavras, os engenheiros-historiadores foram parte especial de um amplo exercício de compreensão da construção da identidade da região amazônica a partir da ótica do poder do Estado-Nação.

Media Education and Brazilian Educational Policies for the Enhancement of Learning

As media education concepts and practices have been disseminated and strengthened in European countries and Americas, the policies responsible for that expansion remain little known, particularly in countries where the achievements have been recently noted. That is the case for Brazil, where there have been new opportunities for media education, considered as a valuable resource to help accomplish goals of the educational system. This paper looks into the contribution of media education to the enhancement of teaching and learning in the context of innovations brought by recent policies of the Brazilian Ministry of Education. After educational reform programmes which brought the opportunity for emerging fields such as media education, we produced teaching material and conducted a series of workshops with students and teachers from state secondary schools. By reading and producing multimedia information about local public services available to young people, pupils learned about democracy, citizenship, civic engagement, media language, and identity. Lessons from our experiment are discussed against the backdrop of education policies being implemented to ameliorate harsh conditions resulting from the recent economic crisis. We suggest that media education can help by creating a learning environment in which the students become aware of the value of educational attainments.

On the identity of Lepismium lineare and L. warmingianum (Cactaceae, Rhipsalidae)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

On the identity of two species of Proctophyllodidae (Acari: Astigmata: Analgoidea) described by Herbert F. Berla in Brazil, with a description of Lamellodectes gen. nov and a new species

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

The importance of sensing one's movement in the world for the sense of personal identity

Within philosophy and cognitive science, the focus in relation to the problem of personal identity has been almost exclusively on the brain. We submit that the resulting neglect of the body and of bodily movements in the world has been detrimental in understanding how organisms develop a sense of identity. We examine the importance of sensing one’s own movements for the development of a basic, nonconceptual sense of self. More specifically, we argue that the origin of the sense of self stems from the sensitivity to spontaneous movements. Based on this, the organism develops a sense of “I move” and, finally, a sense of “I can move”. Proprioception and kinesthesis are essential in this development. At the same time, we argue against the traditional dichotomy between so-called external and internal senses, agreeing with Gibson that perception of the self and of the environment invariably go together. We discuss a traditional distinction between two aspects of bodily self: the body sense and the body image. We suggest that they capture different aspects of the sense of self. We argue that especially the body sense is of great importance to our nonconceptual sense of self. Finally, we attempt to draw some consequences for research in cognitive science, specifically in the area of robotics, by examining a case of missing proprioception. We make a plea for robots to be equipped not just with external perceptual and motor abilities but also with a sense of proprioception. This, we submit, would constitute one further step towards understanding creatures acting in the world with a sense of themselves.

Double-objective economic statistical design of the VP T-2 control chart: Wald's identity approach

Research has shown that applying the T-2 control chart by using a variable parameters (VP) scheme yields rapid detection of out-of-control states. In this paper, the problem of economic statistical design of the VP T-2 control chart is considered as a double-objective minimization problem with the statistical objective being the adjusted average time to signal and the economic objective being expected cost per hour. We then find the Pareto-optimal designs in which the two objectives are met simultaneously by using a multi-objective genetic algorithm. Through an illustrative example, we show that relatively large benefits can be achieved by applying the VP scheme when compared with usual schemes, and in addition, the multi-objective approach provides the user with designs that are flexible and adaptive.

The identity of Hyla leucotaenia Burmeister, 1861 (Anura: Hylidae)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

The identity of two obscure names of Violaceae from the Flora Brasiliensis context: nomenclatural novelties within Hybanthus communis

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Large distribution and high sequence identity of a Copia-type retrotransposon in angiosperm families

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

B chromosomes in species of the genus Prochilodus (Characiformes, Prochilodontidae): morphological identity and dispersion

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)