Ocorrência e danos do negrito da batata-doce Typophorus nigritus no Distrito Federal.

Além de informar a ocorrência de T. nigritus no Distrito Federal, este comunicado visa, também, fornecer subsídios para ajudar o produtor a identificar corretamente o inseto, com base na descrição das características morfológicas e de seus danos na planta. Além disso, são fornecidas informações básicas para o manejo correto de T. nigritus na cultura da batata-doce.

Trigo Embrapa 41: nova cultivar para Minas Gerais, Goiás e Distrito Federal.

1997

Manejo do ácaro-rajado e de tripes em morangueiro no Distrito Federal.

Este Comunicado Técnico tem por finalidade, portanto, apresentar uma descrição dessas pragas, bem como dos danos causados à cultura do morangueiro no Distrito Federal e fornecer informações sobre as medidas que devem ser implementadas, para minimizar as perdas na produção.

Severidade de mancha de alternaria em genótipos de girassol no Cerrado do Distrito Federal.

RESUMO: Este trabalho teve como objetivo comparar a severidade da mancha de Alternaria de genótipos de girassol em ambientes do Cerrado do Distrito Federal. Três experimentos foram avaliados, dois na Embrapa Cerrados (Planaltina, DF) e um localizado na Embrapa Produtos e Mercado (Recanto das Emas, DF). Foram feitas análises ao longo do ciclo da cultura com um intervalo de 15 dias, sendo a primeira aos 35 dias após emergência. Cada planta foi analisada em três partes: terço inferior, terço médio e terço superior. Ao final de cada experimento, a área abaixo da curva de progresso da doença (AACPD) foi calculada para cada genótipo. De acordo com os resultados observados, o ambiente de sequeiro na Embrapa Cerrados, que deteve a maior média da severidade da doença, entre os ambientes avaliados. Dentre os genótipos avaliados, MG 360 mostrou menor severidade da doença no sequeiro e AGUARA 06 no irrigado da Embrapa Cerrados. O genótipo BSG 42 na Embrapa Produtos e Mercado, se destacou pela menor severidade do fungo. Houve influência significativa do ambiente nos resultados de severidade da doença, que está estreitamente relacionada com os fatores climáticos como temperatura e umidade relativa do ar. A compreensão dessas condições favoráveis ao desenvolvimento do fungo é essencial quando se avalia a resistência em genótipos de girassol. ABSTRACT: This study had the purpose of comparing the severity of Alternaria leaf spot on genotypes of sunflower in the Brazilian Cerrado. Three field trials were established, two at Embrapa Cerrados (Planaltina, DF) and one at Embrapa Produtos e Mercados (Recanto das Emas, DF). Evaluations were made during the crop cycle every 15 days, the first one happening 35 days after crop emergency. Each plant was analyzed in three parts: lower, middle and upper thirds. At the end of each trial the average area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC), for each third, was calculated for all genotypes. According to the observed results, the dryland environment at Embrapa Cerrados had the highest mean disease severity, among the studied environments. Between the evaluated genotypes, MG360 showed less severity in dryland and AGUARA 06 in the irrigated environment at Embrapa Cerrados. At Embrapa Produtos e Mercado the genotype that presented the best performance was BRS G42. Environmental conditions deeply affected the trials, mainly temperature and relative humidity. Their influence on Alternaria leaf spot epidemics in the Cerrado region must be studied in more detail, to avoid misinterpreting data when evaluating sunflower genotypes for resistance to this important fungal disease.

Avaliação de genótipos de girassol em ambiente de sequeiro e irrigado no Distrito Federal.

RESUMO: O presente trabalho tem por objetivo caracterizar o comportamento de 16 genótipos de girassol em ambiente de sequeiro e ambiente irrigado do Cerrado do Distrito Federal visando aumentar disponibilidade de cultivares mais produtivas e adaptadas. Os ensaios foram conduzidos na área experimental da Embrapa Cerrados, Planaltina, DF. Os ensaios foram arranjados experimentalmente em blocos ao acaso, com quatro repetições. Os genótipos avaliados foram: CF 101, ADV 5504, BRS G42, BRS 323, HELIO 250, HELIO 251, SYN 045, SYN 3950HO, MG 305, MG 360, AGUARÁ 04, AGUARÁ 06, PARAÍSO 20, GNZ NEON, HLA 2012 e M734. Os caracteres avaliados foram rendimento estimado de grãos, tamanho do capítulo, peso de mil aquênios, altura de plantas, teor de óleo e dias para floração inicial. Houve diferenças significativas entre os genótipos para todas as características avaliadas. Dos 16 genótipos avaliados, os híbridos SYN 045 (3.786,2 kg ha-1) e MG 305 (4.987,2 kg ha-1) se sobressaíram quanto ao rendimento estimado de grãos. Quanto ao teor de óleo, os híbridos MG 306 (53,95%) e SYN 3950HO (49,49%) se destacaram. Foram identificados os genótipos mais promissores dentre os avaliados, podendo ser explorados em programas de melhoramento que visam o desenvolvimento de cultivares mais adaptadas.

Caracterização morfoagronômica e avaliação de parâmetros genéticos de girassol em três núcleos rurais do Distrito Federal.

RESUMO: O objetivo deste trabalho foi estimar caracteres genéticos, fenotípicos e ambientais relacionados aos componentes de produção e caracteres agromorfológicos de girassol em três núcleos rurais do Distrito Federal. Os experimentos foram conduzidos nas áreas experimentais da Embrapa Cerrados, Planaltina, DF, Embrapa Produtos e Mercado, Recanto das Emas, DF e na Fazenda Agua Limpa, da Universidade de Brasília. Através dos resultados obtidos, foram verificadas diferenças significativas entre os genótipos de girassol nos três núcleos rurais do Cerrado para todas as características agronômicas avaliadas. Ainda, baixos coeficientes de variação ambiental para quase todas as características, exceto para o tamanho de capitulo, indicaram boa precisão experimental e altos valores de herdabilidade, coeficientes de variação genéticos e acurácia evidenciaram condições favoráveis à seleção dos materiais para as características agronômicas avaliadas. ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to assess genetic, phenotypic and environmental characteristics related to agro-morphological traits of sunflower in three rural centers of Distrito Federal. The experiments were conducted at the experimental areas of Embrapa Cerrados, Planaltina, DF, Embrapa Produtos e Mercado, Recanto das Emas, DF e na Fazenda Agua Limpa, da Universidade de Brasília. Through the obtained results, were verified significate genotypic differences of sunflower at the three rural centers of Brazilian Savannah for all traits evaluated. In addition, low coefficients of environmental variation for almost all trait, except the head size, indicate good experimental precision and high values of heritability, genetic variation and accuracy showed favorable conditions to selecting materials for the agronomic traits evaluated.

Comportamento temporal de genótipos de girassol no Cerrado do Distrito Federal em safrinha de 2014 e 2015.

RESUMO:Com o objetivo de avaliar o comportamento agronômico de genótipos de girassol no Cerrado do Distrito Federal, foram conduzidos ensaios na safrinha dos anos de 2014 e 2015, na estação experimental da Embrapa Cerrados, Planaltina, DF. O delineamento experimental foi de blocos ao acaso com quatro repetições, e foram avaliados 12 genótipos de girassol: HLA 2015, NTC 90, SYN 065, M734, BRS G44, HLA 2014, BRS G45, BRS G43, HLA 2013, HLA 2017, BRS G46, HLA 2016. As características avaliadas foram rendimento de grãos, tamanho do capitulo, peso de mil aquênios, altura de plantas e dias de floração inicial. Diferenças significativas foram encontradas para as características avaliadas. Os genótipos que se destacaram em relação ao rendimento de grãos foram HLA 2014 (3.161 kg ha-1) e a testemunha M743 (3.212 kg ha-1). Além disso, o ensaio do ano 2014 apresentou uma média de rendimento maior (2.829 kg ha-1) e mais precoces (63,10 dias) em relação a 2015. O trabalho permitiu a identificação de materiais promissores para exploração em programas de melhoramento genético. ABSTRACT: Aiming the evaluation on agronomic behavior of sunflower genotypes in the Brazilian savannah, experiments were carried on in the second crop of 2014 and 2015 at Centro de Pesquisa Agropecuária dos Cerrados (Embrapa), Planaltina, DF. A complete randomized block design was used with four replications and 12 genotypes of sunflower were analyzed: HLA 2015, NTC 90, SYN 065, M734, BRS G44, HLA 2014, BRS G45, BRS G43, HLA 2013, HLA 2017, BRS G46, HLA 2016.The evaluated characteristics were grain yield, head, weight thousand achenes, plant height, and flowering time. Significant differences were found in all evaluated characteristics. The genotypes that stood out in seed yield were HLA 2014 (3161 kg ha-1) and M743 (3212 kg ha-1). Besides, the 2014 experiment presented a seed yield average higher (2829 kg ha-1), and earlier flowering (63,10 days) when compared to 2015 experiment. This study allowed the identification of promising materials to explore in breeding programs.

Bottom-up modelling of energy demand and technical energy savings potential in the Irish residential sector

The International Energy Agency has repeatedly identified increased end-use energy efficiency as the quickest, least costly method of green house gas mitigation, most recently in the 2012 World Energy Outlook, and urges all governing bodies to increase efforts to promote energy efficiency policies and technologies. The residential sector is recognised as a major potential source of cost effective energy efficiency gains. Within the EU this relative importance can be seen from a review of the National Energy Efficiency Action Plans (NEEAP) submitted by member states, which in all cases place a large emphasis on the residential sector. This is particularly true for Ireland whose residential sector has historically had higher energy consumption and CO2 emissions than the EU average and whose first NEEAP targeted 44% of the energy savings to be achieved in 2020 from this sector. This thesis develops a bottom-up engineering archetype modelling approach to analyse the Irish residential sector and to estimate the technical energy savings potential of a number of policy measures. First, a model of space and water heating energy demand for new dwellings is built and used to estimate the technical energy savings potential due to the introduction of the 2008 and 2010 changes to part L of the building regulations governing energy efficiency in new dwellings. Next, the author makes use of a valuable new dataset of Building Energy Rating (BER) survey results to first characterise the highly heterogeneous stock of existing dwellings, and then to estimate the technical energy savings potential of an ambitious national retrofit programme targeting up to 1 million residential dwellings. This thesis also presents work carried out by the author as part of a collaboration to produce a bottom-up, multi-sector LEAP model for Ireland. Overall this work highlights the challenges faced in successfully implementing both sets of policy measures. It points to the wide potential range of final savings possible from particular policy measures and the resulting high degree of uncertainty as to whether particular targets will be met and identifies the key factors on which the success of these policies will depend. It makes recommendations on further modelling work and on the improvements necessary in the data available to researchers and policy makers alike in order to develop increasingly sophisticated residential energy demand models and better inform policy.

Cost savings from relaxation of operational constraints on a power system with high wind penetration

Wind energy is predominantly a nonsynchronous generation source. Large-scale integration of wind generation with existing electricity systems, therefore, presents challenges in maintaining system frequency stability and local voltage stability. Transmission system operators have implemented system operational constraints (SOCs) in order to maintain stability with high wind generation, but imposition of these constraints results in higher operating costs. A mixed integer programming tool was used to simulate generator dispatch in order to assess the impact of various SOCs on generation costs. Interleaved day-ahead scheduling and real-time dispatch models were developed to allow accurate representation of forced outages and wind forecast errors, and were applied to the proposed Irish power system of 2020 with a wind penetration of 32%. Savings of at least 7.8% in generation costs and reductions in wind curtailment of 50% were identified when the most influential SOCs were relaxed. The results also illustrate the need to relax local SOCs together with the system-wide nonsynchronous penetration limit SOC, as savings from increasing the nonsynchronous limit beyond 70% were restricted without relaxation of local SOCs. The methodology and results allow for quantification of the costs of SOCs, allowing the optimal upgrade path for generation and transmission infrastructure to be determined.

An EORTC phase I study of epirubicin in combination with fixed doses of cyclophosphamide and infusional 5-fu (CEF-infu) as primary treatment of large operable or locally advanced/inflammatory breast cancer.

PURPOSE: The association of continuous infusion 5-fluorouracil, epirubicin (50 mg/m2 q 3 weeks) and a platinum compound (cisplatin or carboplatin) was found to be very active in patients with either locally advanced/inflammatory (LA/I) [1, 2] or large operable (LO) breast cancer (BC) [3]. The same rate of activity in terms of response rate (RR) and response duration was observed in LA/I BC patients when cisplatin was replaced by cyclophosphamide [4]. The dose of epirubicin was either 50 mg/m2 [ 1, 2, 3] or 60 mg/m2/cycle [4]. The main objective of this study was to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of epirubicin when given in combination with fixed doses of cyclophosphamide and infusional 5-fluorouracil (CEF-infu) as neoadjuvant therapy in patients with LO or LA/I BC for a maximum of 6 cycles. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Eligible patients had LO or LA/I BC, a performance status 0-1, adequate organ function and were <65 years old. Cyclophosphamide was administered at the dose of 400 mg/m2 day 1 and 8, q 4 weeks and infusional 5-fluorouracil 200 mg/m2/day was given day 1-28, q 4 weeks. Epirubicin was escalated from 30 to 45 and to 60 mg/m2 day 1 and 8; dose escalation was permitted if 0/3 or 1/6 patients experienced dose limiting toxicity (DLT) during the first 2 cycles of therapy. DLT for epirubicin was defined as febrile neutropenia, grade 4 neutropenia lasting for >7 days, grade 4 thrombocytopenia, or any non-haematological toxicity of CTC grade > or =3, excluding alopecia and plantar-palmar erythrodysesthesia (this toxicity was attributable to infusional 5-fluorouracil and was not considered a DLT of epirubicin). RESULTS: A total of 21 patients, median age 44 years (range 29-63) have been treated. 107 courses have been delivered, with a median number of 5 cycles per patient (range 4-6). DLTs on cycles I and 2 on level 1, 2, 3: grade 3 (G3) mucositis occurred in 1/10 patients treated at the third dose level. An interim analysis showed that G3 PPE occurred in 5/16 pts treated with the 28-day infusional 5-FU schedule at the 3 dose levels. The protocol was subsequently amended to limit the duration of infusional 5-fluorouracil infusion from 4 to 3 weeks. No G3 PPE was detected in 5 patients treated with this new schedule. CONCLUSIONS: This study establishes that epirubicin 60mg/m2 day 1 and 8, cyclophosphamide 400mg/m2 day 1 and 8 and infusional 5-fluorouracil 200 mg/m2/day day 1-21. q 4 weeks is the recommended dose level. Given the encouraging activity of this regimen (15/21 clinical responses) we have replaced infusional 5-fluorouracil by oral capecitabine in a recently activated study.

Cost Heterogeneity and the Potential Savings from Market-Based Policies

Policy makers and analysts are often faced with situations where it is unclear whether market-based instruments hold real promise of reducing costs, relative to conventional uniform standards. We develop analytic expressions that can be employed with modest amounts of information to estimate the potential cost savings associated with market-based policies, with an application to the environmental policy realm. These simple formulae can identify instruments that merit more detailed investigation. We illustrate the use of these results with an application to nitrogen oxides control by electric utilities in the United States.

Using Behavioral Insights For a Better Understanding of Economic Decisions (Regarding Savings, Inequality and Dishonesty)

This dissertation consists of three essays on behavioral economics, with a general aim of enriching our understanding of economic decisions using behavioral insights and experimental methodology. Each essay takes on one particular topic with this general aim.

The first chapter studies savings behavior of the poor. In this project, partnering with a savings product provider in Kenya, we tested the extent to which behavioral interventions and financial incentives can increase the saving rate of individuals with low and irregular income. Our experiment lasted for six months and included a total of twelve conditions. The control condition received weekly reminders and balance reporting via text messages. The treatment conditions received in addition one of the following interventions: (1) reminder text messages framed as if they came from the participant’s kid (2) a golden colored coin with numbers for each week of the trial, on which participants were asked to keep track of their weekly deposits (3) a match of weekly savings: The match was either 10% or 20% up to a certain amount per week. The match was either deposited at the end of each week or the highest possible match was deposited at the start of each week and was adjusted at the end. Among these interventions, by far the most effective was the coin: Those in the coin condition saved on average the highest amount and more than twice as those in the control condition. We hypothesize that being a tangible track-keeping object; the coin made subjects remember to save more often. Our results support the line of literature suggesting that saving decisions involve psychological aspects and that policy makers and product designers should take these influences into account.

The second chapter is related to views towards inequality. In this project, we investigate how the perceived fairness of income distributions depends on the beliefs about the process that generated the inequality. Specifically, we examine how two crucial features of this process affect fairness views: (1) Procedural justice - equal treatment of all, (2) Agency - one's ability to determine his/her income. We do this in a lab experiment by varying the equality of opportunity (procedural justice), and one's ability to make choices, which consequently influence subjects’ ability to influence their income (agency). We then elicit ex-post redistribution decisions of the earnings as a function of these two elements. Our results suggest both agency and procedural justice matter for fairness. Our main findings can be summarized as follows: (1) Highlighting the importance of agency, we find that inequality resulting from risk is considered to be fair only when risk is chosen freely; (2) Highlighting the importance of procedural justice, we find that introducing inequality of opportunity significantly increases redistribution, however the share of subjects redistributing none remain close to the share of subjects redistributing fully revealing an underlying heterogeneity in the population about how fairness views should account for inequality of opportunity.

The third chapter is on morality. In this project, we study whether religious rituals act as an internal reminder for basic moral principles and thus affect moral judgments. To this end, we conducted two survey experiments in Turkey and Israel to specifically test the effect of Ramadan and Yom Kippur. The results from the Turkish sample how that Ramadan has a significant effect on moral judgments to some extent for those who report to believe in God. Those who believe in God judged the moral acceptability of ten out of sixty one actions significantly differently in Ramadan, whereas those who reported not to believe in God significantly changed their judgments only for one action in Ramadan. Our results extends the hypothesis established by lab experiments that religious reminders have a significant effect on morality, by testing it in the field in the natural environment of religious rituals.

This thesis is part of a broader collaborative research agenda with both colleagues and advisors. The programming, analyses, and writing, as well as any errors in this work, are my own.

Federal Nutrition Assistance at Farmers’ Markets: Evaluating Self-Efficacy and the Home Nutrition Environment

SNAP and WIC help alleviate food insecurity among low-income families; however, some still struggle with fruit and vegetable accessibility. Farmers' markets present the opportunity to purchase fresher foods than other food retailers; therefore, we chose this environment to conduct our research. A survey of 70 WIC/SNAP shoppers at three D.C. metropolitan area farmers' markets assessed the correlation between parental self-efficacy and the home nutrition environment (composed of family health behavior, perceived barriers, and fruit and vegetable offerings in the home) and found a significant relationship. Interviews were used to evaluate market accessibility, SNAP/WIC benefit redemption, and the feasibility of accepting these benefits. Both market participants and coordinators mentioned the greater variety and superior quality of farmers' market produce but also suggested several improvements. Findings suggest that SNAP incentive programs may increase fruit and vegetable purchases. Programs targeting consumer self efficacy may also produce positive outcomes.

Modelling induction melting energy savings

Electromagnetic processing of liquid metals involves dynamic change of the fluid volume interfacing with a melting solid material, gas or vacuum, and possibly a different liquid. Electromagnetic field and the associated force field are strongly coupled to the free surface dynamics and the heat-mass transfer. We present practical modelling examples of the flow and heat transfer using an accurate pseudo-spectral code and the k-omega turbulence model suitable for complex and transitional flows with free surfaces. The 'cold crucible' melting is modelled dynamically including the melting front gradual propagation and the magnetically confined free surrounding interface. Intermittent contact with the water-cooled segmented wall and the radiation heat losses are parts of the complex problem.