Observatório da cidadania: monitorando as políticas públicas em âmbito global

As análises e discussões teóricas sobre o atual processo de globalização têm dado ênfase aos aspectos econômicos e tecnológicos e seus impactos na vida social e cultural dos indivíduos. Contudo, experiências como a do Social Watch (Observatório da Cidadania em português, Control Ciudadano em espanhol) - uma rede mundial de grupos de cidadãos e organizações civis sem fins lucrativos criada para monitorar as ações de desenvolvimento social - mostram como as informações sobre as políticas públicas dos governos e dos organismos multilaterais podem ser agenciadas e analisadas para subsidiar o processo decisório dos atores sociais, da mesma forma que o fazem as corporações transnacionais. O Observatório da Cidadania estimula a atuação em rede e o intercâmbio de idéias e de informação sobre estratégias bem-sucedidas de combate à pobreza e da discriminação de gênero. Para publicação do seu relatório anual (em inglês, português, espanhol e italiano) e de relatórios locais, nacionais e regionais, a rede coleta, analisa e debate os dados disponíveis em fontes oficiais e alternativas, estruturando seus próprios indicadores de desenvolvimento social. Toda essa informação resulta da competência técnica acumulada por centenas de contra-especialistas no chamado terceiro setor e é veiculada tanto em papel quanto via Internet.

Technology and research in a global Networked University Digital Library (NUDL)

Digital Libraries (DLs) are extremely complex information systems that support the creation, management, distribution, and preservation of complex information resources, while allowing effective and efficient interaction among the several societies that benefit from DL content and services. In this paper, we focus on our experience facing challenges of building, maintaining, and developing the Networked University Digital Library (www.nudl.org), an extension of the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (www.ndltd.org). NUDL is a worldwide initiative that addresses making the intellectual property produced in universities more accessible, stimulating international collaboration across all disciplines. We detail technological aspects of our solutions and research activities carried out to provide powerful and enriched services for the communities served by this initiative.

Acesso à informação e identidade cultural: entre o global e o local

Apresenta o quadro teórico e metodológico da pesquisa Janelas da Cultura Local, em implementação no Instituto Brasileiro de Informação em Ciência e Tecnologia com apoio do Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, que tem como objetivo promover, de forma participativa, ações de informação no sentido da inclusão digital. As premissas do projeto - a informação como força de transformação, a responsabilidade social da ciência da informação e a sua relação intrínseca com a tecnologia da informação - se manifestam na proposta de desenvolvimento de competências para produção e comunicação digital da informação, contribuindo para dotar os participantes de elementos de mediação entre a cultura local e a cultura global. Espera-se, com o projeto, trazer contribuição ao resgate e registro da memória cultural da comunidade envolvida na pesquisa, contribuindo, também, para elevação do Índice de Desenvolvimento Humano no município beneficiado.

Prospects of doubling global wheat yields

While an adequate supply of food can be achieved at present for the current global population, sustaining this into the future will be difficult in the face of a steadily increasing population, increased wealth and a diminishing availability of fertile land and water for agriculture. This problem will be compounded by the new uses of agricultural products, for example, as biofuels. Wheat alone provides ≥20% of the calories and the protein for the world's population, and the value and need to increase the production is recognized widely. Currently, the world average wheat yield is around 3 t/ha but there is considerable variation between countries, with region-specific factors limiting yield, each requiring individual solutions. Delivering increased yields in any situation is a complex challenge that is unlikely to be solved by single approaches and a multidisciplinary integrated approach to crop improvement is required. There are three specific major challenges: increasing yield potential, protecting yield potential, and increasing resource use efficiency to ensure sustainability. Since the green revolution, yields at the farm gate have stagnated in many countries, or are increasing at less than half the rate required to meet the projected demand. In some countries, large gains can still be achieved by improvements in agronomy, but in many others the yield gains will only be achieved by further genetic improvement. In this overview, the problems and potential solutions for increased wheat yields are discussed, in the context of specific geographic regions, with a particular emphasis on China. The importance and the prospects for improvement of individual traits are presented. It is concluded that there are opportunities for yield increase but a major challenge will be avoiding a simultaneous increase in resource requirements.

A global marine sedimentary response to the end-Permian mass extinction: Examples from southern Turkey and the western United States

The end-Permian mass extinction greatly diminished marine diversity and brought about a whole-scale restructuring of marine ecosystems; these ecosystem changes also profoundly affected the sedimentary record. Data presented here, attained through facies analyses of strata deposited during the immediate aftermath of the end-Permian mass extinction (southern Turkey) and at the close of the Early Triassic (southwestern United States), in combination with a literature review, show that sedimentary systems were profoundly affected by: (1) a reduction in biotic diversity and abundance and (2) long-term environmental fluctuations that resulted from the end-Permian crisis. Lower Triassic strata display widespread microbialite and carbonate seafloor fan development and contain indicators of suppressed infaunal bioturbation such as flat-pebble conglomerates and wrinkle structures (facies considered unusual in post-Cambrian subtidal deposits). Our observations suggest that depositional systems, too, respond to biotic crises, and that certain facies may act as barometers of ecologic and environmental change independent of fossil assemblage analyses. Close investigation of facies changes during other critical times in Earth history may serve as an important tool in interpreting the ecology of metazoans and their environment.

Europa, la reforma de los planes de estudio para la adaptación a los créditos Europeos, o la reforma global de calidad ecucativa. Un análisis bibliográfico

Idealmente, la educación debería proveer al estudiante de la habilidades necesarias, lasactitudes y los valores que son imprescindibles para el mundo laboral. Los cambios que deben producirse en los planes de estudio del País para incorporarnos a la Comunidad Europea, presentan serias inquietudes frente a situaciones que ya actualmente no controlamos demasiado y podrían modificarse. Para buscar soluciones previas, hemos realizado un análisis bibliográfico exhaustivo para identificar qué problemas son comunes con el resto de escuelas, específicos nuestros y si sehan encontrado soluciones, intentar aplicarlas en nuestro medio ante el cambio que se nosavecina

Maximized Utility of the Global Positioning System, HR-316, 1991

This report describes a project begun in January 1989 and completed December 1990, with the primary objective of obtaining sufficiently accurate horizontal and vertical control by using Global Positioning System (GPS) for highway applications. The ISU research group studied the operations of the Ashtech GPS receiver in static, pseudo-static, kinematic, and pseudo-kinematic modes. By using the Electronic Distance Measuring Instrument (EDMI) Calibration Baseline at ISU, the GPS receiver was tested for distance measurement accuracy. It was found that GPS measurements differed from the baseline distance by about 5.3 mm. Four projects were undertaken to further evaluate and improve the horizontal as well as the vertical accuracies of the GPS receiver -- (1) The Campus Project: with all points concentrated within a one-mile radius; (2) The Des Moines Project: a typical DOT project with all the points within a five-mile radius; (3) The Iowa Project: with all points within a 100-mile radius in the state of Iowa; and (4) The Mustang Project: an extension of the Iowa project, including a typical DOT project of about 10 miles within the inner 30 mile radius of the Iowa project.

Prevalence and Distribution of Young Driver Distraction Errors in Naturalistic Driving, TPF-5(207), 2014

Naturalistic driving studies are the latest resource for gathering data associated with driver behavior. The University of Iowa has been studying teen driving using naturalistic methods since 2006. By instrumenting teen drivers’ vehicles with event-triggered video recorders (ETVR), we are able to record a 12-second video clip every time a vehicle exceeds a pre-set g-force threshold. Each of these video clips contains valuable data regarding the frequency and types of distractions present in vehicles driven by today’s young drivers. The 16-year old drivers who participated in the study had a distraction present in nearly half of the events that were captured. While a lot of attention has been given to the distractions associated with technology in the vehicle (cell phones, navigation devices, entertainment systems, etc.), the most frequent type of distraction coded was the presence of teen passengers engaging in conversation (45%). Cognitive distractions, such as singing along with the radio, were the second most common distraction. Cell phone use was the third most common distraction, detected in only 10% of the events containing distraction.

Time invested in the global respiratory care of cystic fibrosis paediatrics patients.

INTRODUCTION: Respiratory therapy is a keystone of the treatment for cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease, but it is time consuming. OBJECTIVES: We aimed to assess the total time spent on respiratory therapy, including chest physiotherapy (CPT) and physical activity (PA), as well as inhalation therapy (IT) and maintenance of materials (MM) to rationalise and optimise treatment. METHODS: A cross-sectional prospective study in a paediatric CF cohort. A questionnaire was developed to look at the time spent on respiratory care over 3 months. Enrolled in this study are all CF patients aged from 6 to 16 years (the exclusion criterion was lung transplantation). RESULTS: Of the 40 enrolled patients, 22 participated (13 boys and 9 girls), with a mean age of 11 years. The patients spent approximately 19.46 h per week (standard deviation ± 7.53, 8.00-35.25 h) on therapy: CPT (30.58%), IT (15.11%), PA (50%) and MM (4.32%), without statistical significance between sexes. CONCLUSION: In our cohort, CF patients spent an average of nearly 20 h a week in respiratory therapy, within a wide range of between 8 h to almost 36 h a week. PA consumes almost half of the time. Physicians have to take into consideration the burden of the treatment, to optimise the therapy.

Comparing simulation methods for modelling the errors of stand inventory data

Abstract

New, low estimate for carbon stock in global forest vegetation based on inventory data

Abstract

The relationship between cognitive errors and interpersonal patterns in depressed women.

Individuals with depression process information in an overly negative or biased way (e.g., Henriques & Leitenberg, 2002) and demonstrate significant interpersonal dysfunction (e.g., Zlotnick, Kohn, Keitner, & Della Grotta, 2000). This study examined the relationship between cognitive errors (CEs) and interpersonal interactions in early psychotherapy sessions of 25 female patients with major depression. Transcripts were rated for CEs using the Cognitive Error Rating Scale (Drapeau, Perry, & Dunkley, 2008). Interpersonal patterns were assessed using the Structural Analysis of Social Behavior (Benjamin, 1974). Significant associations were found between CEs and markers of interpersonal functioning in selected contexts. The implications of these findings in bridging the gap between research and practice, enhancing treatment outcome, and improving therapist training are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).