The evolution of a Pluto-like system during the migration of the ice giants

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

Searching for capture and escape trajectories around Jupiter using its Galilean satellites

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Massive spin-2 particles via embedment of the Fierz-Pauli equations of motion

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

A squeezed state holomorphic phase space representation of equations of motion

A mapping scheme is presented which takes quantum operators associated to bosonic degrees of freedom into complex phase space integral kernel representatives. The procedure consists of using the Schrödinger squeezed state as the starting point for the construction of the integral mapping kernel which, due to its inherent structure, is suited for the description of second quantized operators. Products and commutators of operators have their representatives explicitly written which reveal new details when compared to the usual q-p phase space description. The classical limit of the equations of motion for the canonical pair q-p is discussed in connection with the effect of squeezing the quantum phase space cellular structure. © 1993.

Análise da rotação ombro-quadril e co-contração muscular do tronco durante um movimento de rotação axial com manuseio de carga

Pós-graduação em Engenharia Mecânica - FEG

Preventing chaotic motion in tapping-mode atomic force microscope

During the last 30 years the Atomic Force Microscopy became the most powerful tool for surface probing in atomic scale. The Tapping-Mode Atomic Force Microscope is used to generate high quality accurate images of the samples surface. However, in this mode of operation the microcantilever frequently presents chaotic motion due to the nonlinear characteristics of the tip-sample forces interactions, degrading the image quality. This kind of irregular motion must be avoided by the control system. In this work, the tip-sample interaction is modelled considering the Lennard-Jones potentials and the two-term Galerkin aproximation. Additionally, the State Dependent Ricatti Equation and Time-Delayed Feedback Control techniques are used in order to force the Tapping-Mode Atomic Force Microscope system motion to a periodic orbit, preventing the microcantilever chaotic motion

Narrativas interativas em audiovisual panorâmico para dispositivos móveis

Pós-graduação em Comunicação - FAAC

Ressonâncias planetárias spin-órbita com perturbação de terceiro corpo

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

Biological Background on Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops spp.) in the 'Live-Capture' Trade and Specifically on the Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin, T. Aduncus

The most significant cetacean trade items until commercial whaling all but ceased in the 1990s (aside from scientific exchanges of tissues etc.) were meat and blubber from baleen whales for human consumption. Since then, live dolphins and 'small' whales for display (and to some extent for research, military use, and 'therapy') have become the most significant cetacean 'products' in international trade. Trade in live cetaceans is presently dominated by bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.), beluga whales (Debhinapterns leucas) and to a lesser extent killer whales (Orcinus orca) (Fisher and Reeves 2005). In the past, most of the dolphins in trade were common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) originating in the United States, Mexico and the Black Sea, but since the 1980s the United States has essentially stopped its capture-for-export activities and in 2001Mexico implemented a moratorium on live-captures. The source countries for dolphins in trade are now geographically diverse, but Cuba and Japan are currently major source nations for common bottlenose dolphins. Russia is the only current source for belugas. Russia and Japan have become the main potential sources for killer whales since Iceland ceased exporting them in the 1980s or early 1990s.

Estimating the number of whales entering trade using DNA profiling and capture-recapture analysis of market products

Surveys of commercial markets combined with molecular taxonomy (i.e. molecular monitoring) provide a means to detect products from illegal, unregulated and/or unreported (IUU) exploitation, including the sale of fisheries bycatch and wild meat (bushmeat). Capture-recapture analyses of market products using DNA profiling have the potential to estimate the total number of individuals entering the market. However, these analyses are not directly analogous to those of living individuals because a ‘market individual’ does not die suddenly but, instead, remains available for a time in decreasing quantities, rather like the exponential decay of a radioactive isotope. Here we use mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences and microsatellite genotypes to individually identify products from North Pacific minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata ssp.) purchased in 12 surveys of markets in the Republic of (South) Korea from 1999 to 2003. By applying a novel capture-recapture model with a decay rate parameter to the 205 unique DNA profiles found among 289 products, we estimated that the total number of whales entering trade across the five-year survey period was 827 (SE, 164; CV, 0.20) and that the average ‘half-life’ of products from an individual whale on the market was 1.82 months (SE, 0.24; CV, 0.13). Our estimate of whales in trade (reflecting the true numbers killed) was significantly greater than the officially reported bycatch of 458 whales for this period. This unregulated exploitation has serious implications for the survival of this genetically distinct coastal population. Although our capture-recapture model was developed for specific application to the Korean whale-meat markets, the exponential decay function could be modified to improve the estimates of trade in other wildmeat or fisheries markets or abundance of living populations by noninvasive genotyping.

CAPTURE FISHERY IN NORTHERN TODOS OS SANTOS BAY, TROPICAL SOUTHWESTERN ATLANTIC, BRAZIL

Information on marine and estuarine capture fishery activity in northern Todos os Santos Bay, northeastern Brazil, based on daily data collected between September 2003 and June 2005 is presented. Small-scale artisanal fishery in this area includes the use of traditional vessels both non-motorized and motorized for locomotion, being carried out mainly by canoe or on foot, and involves many different kinds of gear, including gillnet, hook and line, seine nets, and traps. A total of 113 taxa were grouped into 77 resources, including 88 fish, 10 crustaceans, and 15 mollusks. Data on nominal catches of fish, crustaceans and mollusks are presented by month and location. A total of 345.2 tonnes of fishery resources were produced (285.4 tonnes of fish, 39.2 tonnes of fresh invertebrates, and 20.6 tonnes of processed invertebrates). Temporal variation in the fish catch was associated with the life cycle of the species or with the hydrographic conditions. The first-sale value of this catch amounted to around US$ 615,000.00, fishes representing 71.3% of it. A table of the average price of each fishery resource is presented. The results produced in this study may be considered a reference for future monitoring programs of fishery resources in the area.

Influence of Prey Size on the Capture of Social Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) by the Orb-Web Spider Nephilengys cruentata

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the plasticity of the hunting behavior of the spider Nephilengys cruentata (Araneae: Nephilidae) facing different species of social wasps. Considering that wasps can consume various species of spiders and that their poison can be used as defense against many predators, the effect of the corporal size of the prey was evaluated in the behavior of N. cruentata. Predation experiments were conducted using three species of social wasps of different sizes and the data registered in this research were compiled through annotations and filming of the hunting behavior of each spider, in relation to the offered prey. The results revealed that the size of the wasp and the sequential offer of prey change the hunting behavior of the spider, and prey of large size have high influence on this behavior.

Whole genome sequencing analysis of Plasmodium vivax using whole genome capture

Background: Malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax is an experimentally neglected severe disease with a substantial burden on human health. Because of technical limitations, little is known about the biology of this important human pathogen. Whole genome analysis methods on patient-derived material are thus likely to have a substantial impact on our understanding of P. vivax pathogenesis and epidemiology. For example, it will allow study of the evolution and population biology of the parasite, allow parasite transmission patterns to be characterized, and may facilitate the identification of new drug resistance genes. Because parasitemias are typically low and the parasite cannot be readily cultured, on-site leukocyte depletion of blood samples is typically needed to remove human DNA that may be 1000X more abundant than parasite DNA. These features have precluded the analysis of archived blood samples and require the presence of laboratories in close proximity to the collection of field samples for optimal pre-cryopreservation sample preparation. Results: Here we show that in-solution hybridization capture can be used to extract P. vivax DNA from human contaminating DNA in the laboratory without the need for on-site leukocyte filtration. Using a whole genome capture method, we were able to enrich P. vivax DNA from bulk genomic DNA from less than 0.5% to a median of 55% (range 20%-80%). This level of enrichment allows for efficient analysis of the samples by whole genome sequencing and does not introduce any gross biases into the data. With this method, we obtained greater than 5X coverage across 93% of the P. vivax genome for four P. vivax strains from Iquitos, Peru, which is similar to our results using leukocyte filtration (greater than 5X coverage across 96% of the genome). Conclusion: The whole genome capture technique will enable more efficient whole genome analysis of P. vivax from a larger geographic region and from valuable archived sample collections.

Equation of Motion Governing the Dynamics of Vertically Collapsing Buildings

The present paper aims at contributing to a discussion, opened by several authors, on the proper equation of motion that governs the vertical collapse of buildings. The most striking and tragic example is that of the World Trade Center Twin Towers, in New York City, about 10 years ago. This is a very complex problem and, besides dynamics, the analysis involves several areas of knowledge in mechanics, such as structural engineering, materials sciences, and thermodynamics, among others. Therefore, the goal of this work is far from claiming to deal with the problem in its completeness, leaving aside discussions about the modeling of the resistive load to collapse, for example. However, the following analysis, restricted to the study of motion, shows that the problem in question holds great similarity to the classic falling-chain problem, very much addressed in a number of different versions as the pioneering one, by von Buquoy or the one by Cayley. Following previous works, a simple single-degree-of-freedom model was readdressed and conceptually discussed. The form of Lagrange's equation, which leads to a proper equation of motion for the collapsing building, is a general and extended dissipative form, which is proper for systems with mass varying explicitly with position. The additional dissipative generalized force term, which was present in the extended form of the Lagrange equation, was shown to be derivable from a Rayleigh-like energy function. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)EM.1943-7889.0000453. (C) 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.

Experimental Investigation of the Hydrodynamic Coefficients of a Remotely Operated Vehicle Using a Planar Motion Mechanism

The determination of hydrodynamic coefficients of full scale underwater vehicles using system identification (SI) is an extremely powerful technique. The procedure is based on experimental runs and on the analysis of on-board sensors and thrusters signals. The technique is cost effective and it has high repeatability; however, for open-frame underwater vehicles, it lacks accuracy due to the sensors' noise and the poor modeling of thruster-hull and thruster-thruster interaction effects. In this work, forced oscillation tests were undertaken with a full scale open-frame underwater vehicle. These conducted tests are unique in the sense that there are not many examples in the literature taking advantage of a PMM installation for testing a prototype and; consequently, allowing the comparison between the experimental results and the ones estimated by parameter identification. The Morison's equation inertia and drag coefficients were estimated with two parameter identification methods, that is, the weighted and the ordinary least-squares procedures. It was verified that the in-line force estimated from Morison's equation agrees well with the measured one except in the region around the motion inversion points. On the other hand, the error analysis showed that the ordinary least-squares provided better accuracy and, therefore, was used to evaluate the ratio between inertia and drag forces for a range of Keulegan-Carpenter and Reynolds numbers. It was concluded that, although both experimental and estimation techniques proved to be powerful tools for evaluation of an open-frame underwater vehicle's hydrodynamic coefficients, the research provided a rich amount of reference data for comparison with reduced models as well as for dynamic motion simulation of ROVs. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4004952]