Postmodernism, culture and feminism: the aesthetics of space and performance in Rock Follies and Rock Follies of '77

This article discusses the aesthetic and spatial representational strategies of the popular studio-based musical television drama serials Rock Follies and Rock Follies of ’77. It analyses how the texts’ themes relating to women and the entertainment industry are mediated through their postmodern ironic mode and representation of fantastic spaces. Rock Follies’ distinctive stylised aesthetic and mode of caricature are analysed with reference to the visual intentions and ‘voice’ of the writer, Howard Schuman. Through considering the programmes’ various spatial strategies, the article draws attention to the importance of visual and performance style in their postmodern discourse on culture, fantasy, gender and subjectivity. Analysis of the spaces of musical performance, characters’ domestic environments and simulated entertainment spaces reveals how a dialectic is established between the escapist imaginative pleasures of fantasy and the manipulative and exploitative practices of the culture industry. The shift from the optimism of the first series, when the LittleLadies first form, to the darker mood of the second series, in which they are increasingly divided by industry pressures, is traced through changes in the aesthetics of space and characterisation. As a space of artifice, performance and electronic visual manipulation that facilitates the texts’ reflexive representation of culture and feminised fantasy, the studio’s unique aesthetic strengths emerge through this case study.

From public to private : the performance of former public workers in the Brazilian labor market

This paper analyzes the placement in the private sector of a subset of Brazilian public-sector employees. This group left public employment in the mid-1990’s through a voluntary severance program. This paper contrasts their earnings before and after quitting the public sector, and compares both sets of wages to public and private sector earnings for similar workers. We find that participants in this voluntary severance program suffered a significant reduction in average earnings wage and an increase in earnings dispersion. We test whether the reduction in average earnings and the increase in earnings dispersion is the expected outcome once one controls for observed characteristics, by means of counterfactual simulations. Several methods of controlling for observed characteristics (parametric and non-parametrically) are used for robustness. The results indicate that this group of workers was paid at levels below what would be expected given their embodied observable characteristics.

Performance of constructed wetland system for public water supply

The project is being conducted in the town of Analândia, São Paulo, Brazil. The constructed wetlands system for water supply consists of a channel with floating aquatic macrophytes, HDS system (Water Decontamination with Soil - Patent PI 850.3030), chlorinating system, filtering system and distribution. The project objectives include investigating the process variables to further optimize design and operation factors, evaluating the relation of nutrients and plants development, biomass production, shoot development, nutrient cycling and total and fecal coliforms removal, comparing the treatment efficiency among the seasons of the year; and moreover to compare the average values obtained between February and June 1998 (Salati et al., 1998) with the average obtained for the same parameters between March and June 2000. Studies have been developed in order to verify during one year the drinking quality of the water for the following parameters: turbidity, color, pH, dissolved oxygen, total of dissolved solids, COD, chloride, among others, according to the Ministry of Health's Regulation 36. This system of water supply projected to treat 15 L s-1 has been in continuous operation for 2 years, it was implemented with support of the National Environment Fund (FNMA), administered by the Center of Environmental Studies (CEA-UNESP), while the technical supervision and design were performed by the Institute of Applied Ecology. The actual research project is being supported by FAPESP.

Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean 2009-2010: The distributive impact of public policies

Includes bibliography

Towards a performance evaluation methodology for public enterprises: with special reference to Pakistan

Includes bibliography

The state under scrutiny: public opinion, stateness and government performance in Latin America

Includes bibliography

The employment situation in Latin America and the Caribbean: Crisis, stabilization and reactivation: performance of the labour market in 2009

Following a five-year period during which economic and social performance in Latin America and the Caribbean surpassed anything seen in recent decades, the global economic and financial crisis not only hurt macroeconomic variables but also impacted heavily on labour markets in the region’s countries. Between 2003 and 2008 employment rates had risen considerably, especially in the formal sector, but the crisis spelled a reversal of this trend. Nevertheless, the region was better prepared than it had been in previous crises, since it had achieved a sound fiscal footing, a good level of international reserves and low rates of inflation. This meant that the authorities had the space to implement countercyclical policies on both fiscal and monetary levels. Be this as it may, faced with the worst global crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s, these measures could only attenuate the impact on the region’s economies —they could not prevent it altogether. Furthermore, the crisis struck with notable differences among subregions and countries depending on the nature of their trade integration, and not all the countries had the fiscal space to implement vigorous countercyclical policies. As discussed in this third ECLAC/ILO bulletin, the crisis did less damage to the region’s labour markets than had been feared at the beginning of last year, thanks to the implementation of public policies geared towards employment, as reviewed in the two previous bulletins. This bulletin offers an additional analysis from the perspective of gender equality. Moreover, some countries in the region, notably Brazil, managed to rapidly stabilize and revive economic growth, with positive effects on labour variables. The fact remains, however, that millions in Latin America and the Caribbean lost their jobs or were obliged to accept more poorly paid employment in more precarious conditions. The macroeconomic data indicate that recovery is under way and is stronger and occurring more rapidly than foreseen one year ago. In fact, regional growth in 2010 may well exceed the 4.1% forecast at the end of 2009. Consequently, although the unemployment rate may be expected to record a modest drop, it may not return to pre-crisis levels. The upturn is taking many different forms in the countries of the region. In some, especially in South America, recovery has benefited from the buoyancy of the Asian economies, whose demand for natural resources has driven large increases in exports, in terms of both volume and price. Countries whose economies are closely tied to the United States economy are benefiting from the recovery there, albeit more slowly and with a certain lag. Conversely, some countries are still suffering from major disequilibria, which are hampering their economic reactivation. Lastly, Chile and Haiti were both victims of devastating earthquakes early in the year and are therefore facing additional challenges associated with reconstruction, on top of their efforts to sustain an economic upturn. Despite the relatively favourable outlook for regional growth in 2010, great uncertainty still surrounds the global economy’s recovery, which affects the region’s economic prospects over the longer term. The weakness of the recovery in some regions and the doubts about its sustainability in others, as well as shocks that have occurred in international financial markets, are warning signs which authorities need to monitor continuously because of the region’s close integration with the global economy. In addition, a return to growth does not directly or automatically mean higher employment rates —still less decent working conditions. Although some labour indicators have performed reasonably favourably since the end of last year, the countries still face daunting challenges in improving the labour market integration of millions in Latin America and the Caribbean who are not seeing the fruits of renewed growth. This is why it is important to learn the lessons arising from the policies implemented during the crisis to offset its impact on labour markets. With this third joint bulletin, ECLAC and ILO continue to pursue their objective of affording the region the information and analyses needed to face these challenges, as regards both trends in the region’s labour markets and the corresponding policy options.

Space and Motion Perception and Discomfort in Air Travel

RAMOS RT, MATTOS DA, REBOUCAS ITS, RANVAUD RD. Space and motion perception and discomfort in air travel. Aviat Space Environ Med 2012; 83:1162-6. Introduction: The perception of comfort during air trips is determined by several factors. External factors like cabin design and environmental parameters (temperature, humidity, air pressure, noise, and vibration) interact with individual characteristics (anxiety traits, fear of flying, and personality) from arrival at the airport to landing at the destination. In this study, we investigated the influence of space and motion discomfort (SMD), fear of heights, and anxiety on comfort perception during all phases of air travel. Methods: We evaluated 51 frequent air travelers through a modified version of the Flight Anxiety Situations Questionnaire (FAS), in which new items were added and where the subjects were asked to report their level of discomfort or anxiety (not fear) for each phase of air travel (Chronbach's alpha = 0.974). Correlations were investigated among these scales: State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAB, Cohen's Acrophobia Questionnaire, and the Situational Characteristics Questionnaire (SitQ, designed to estimate SMD levels). Results: Scores of SitQ correlated with discomfort in situations involving space and movement perception (Pearson's rho = 0.311), while discomfort was associated with cognitive mechanisms related to scores in the anxiety scales (Pearson's rho = 0.375). Anxiety traits were important determinants of comfort perception before and after flight, while the influence of SMD was more significant during the time spent in the aircraft cabin. Discussion: SMD seems to be an important modulator of comfort perception in air travel. Its influence on physical well being and probably on cognitive performance, with possible effects on flight safety, deserves further investigation.

Updated status and performance for the cosmic origins spectrograph onboard the Hubble Space Telescope

The Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) was installed on the Hubble Space Telescope in May 2009. Although COS was initially designed to perform high-sensitivity medium- and low-resolution spectroscopy of astronomical objects in the 1150-3200 Å wavelength range, new wavelength settings have recently become available that allow medium-resolution spectroscopy down to 900 Å, at effective areas comparable to those of FUSE. Here we provide an update on the implementation of the new short wavelength settings G130M/1222, 1096, and 1055. We discuss changes to the Far-Ultraviolet (FUV) and Near-Ultraviolet (NUV) dark rates, FUV pulse height filtering, new and improved flux calibrations for FUV Lifetime Positions 1 and 2, changes in sensitivity for both the NUV and FUV channels, and give a general overview of the calibration projects undertaken in Cycles 19 and 20.

Analisi e valutazione delle performance acustiche degli aeromobili nella fase di atterraggio

Nella tesi si analizzano le principali fonti del rumore aeronautico, lo stato dell'arte dal punto di vista normativo, tecnologico e procedurale. Si analizza lo stato dell'arte anche riguardo alla classificazione degli aeromobili, proponendo un nuovo indice prestazionale in alternativa a quello indicato dalla metodologia di certificazione (AC36-ICAO) Allo scopo di diminuire l'impatto acustico degli aeromobili in fase di atterraggio, si analizzano col programma INM i benefici di procedure CDA a 3° rispetto alle procedure tradizionali e, di seguito di procedure CDA ad angoli maggiori in termini di riduzione di lunghezza e di area delle isofoniche SEL85, SEL80 e SEL75.