Relations between zero-inflated variables in trials with horticultural crops

Certain characteristics of some vegetable crops allow multiple harvests during the production cycle; however, to our knowledge, no study has described the behavior of fruit production with progression of the production cycle in vegetable crops with multiple harvests that present data overdispersion. We aimed to characterize the data overdispersion of zero-inflated variables and identify the behavior of these variables during the production cycle of several vegetable crops with multiple harvests. Data from 11 uniformity trials were used without applying treatments; these comprise the database from the Experimental Plants Group at the Federal University of Santa Maria, Brazil. The trials were conducted using four horticultural species grown during different cultivation seasons, cultivation environments, and experimental structures. Although at each harvest, a larger number of basic units with harvest fruit was observed than units without harvest fruit, the basic unit percentage without fruit was high, generating an overdispersion within each individual harvest. The variability within each harvest was high and increased with the evolution of the production cycle of Capsicum annuum, Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme, Phaseolus vulgaris, and Cucurbita pepo species. However, the correlation coefficient between the mean weight and number of harvest fruits tended to remain constant during the crop production cycle. These behaviors show that harvest management should be done individually, at each harvest, such that data overdispersion is reduced.

Contra as Secas: a engenharia e as origens de um planejamento regional no nordeste brasileiro

Droughts surfaced in 1877 as a crucial problem for the birthing Brazilian nation. Engineers, who formed the country's technical and scientific elite, took it upon themselves to study, understand and fight the problem through planned actions of intervention on space. This work, based on proposals and discussions contained in engineering magazines and reports, aims to provide elements for the comprehension of how these systematized actions against droughts, in the Iate nineteenth and early twentieth century, contributed to spatial analysis and the formation of a (then-inexistent) regional and territorial planning discipline in Brazi!. Engineers, by taking up the position of masterminds in the country's modernization, guaranteed for themselves personal economic stability, social prestige and political power. By understanding nature, either as a resource to be exploited or an adversary to national progress, they contributed to the delimitation of the region now known as the Northeast. By seeking to understand the drought phenomenon, they created knowledge about the space they sought to intervene on; by constructing their projects amid political and economical difficulty, they changed the organizational structures of cities and country in the northeast. The proposals for açudes (Iarge water reservoirs) allowed the fixation of population and the resistance against droughts; the roads - railroads and automotive roadways - connected the sertão to the capitais and the coast, speeding up help to the affected populations during droughts and allowing the circulation of goods so as to strengthen the local economies in normal rimes. The adopted practices and techniques, adapted from foreign experience and developed through trial and improvement, were consolidated as an eminently spatial intervention course, even if a theoretical body of regional or territorial planning wasn't formed in Brazil. Regional Planning proper was first applied in the country in the Northeast itself, in the 1950s, based off an economical view of reality in order to achieve development. The engineer's work prior tothat date, however, cannot be dlsconsldered. It was proved that, despite facing financial and political hurdles, engineers had a profound commitment to the problem and intended to act systematically to transform the economical and social relations in the region, in order to be victorious in their struggle against droughts

Natal qual é a sua cara?: análise do perfil edilício da avenida Eng. Roberto Freire (Natal/RN) à luz da acessibilidade

This study focuses on the building ensemble of Avenida Roberto Freire, a main road in Natal, Brazil, as a material expression of the confluence of various factors among which the following may be emphasized: high level of accessibility due to urban spatial re-structuring and the growth of the real estate market, in view of the increasing number of consumers, who arrived in Natal within the last decades. The intense urban modification process that has been going on in Natal since at least the 1980s, has engendered the formation of long axial lines which express the expansion dynamics and some of the forces subjacent to it. Avenida Roberto Freire has been an iconic example of an urban thoroughfare where architecture becomes primarily a communication support that can be perceived by fast moving passers-by, what brings it close to the venturian concept of strip (Venturi at al, 1972). The building types that line the road not only respond to the dynamics in process but also contribute to intensify it, as they house a variety of uses which attract people and generate more movement. The dynamics is further strengthened by the action of the real estate business which benefits from the increase of highly accessible locations, and from the private and public investments and incentives to tourism that aim to insert this city into the globalized world. Although the intention of reconstituting part of the history of density increase on this avenue in a diachronical perspective was attempted within the limits of the available references and documentation, the central contribution of this study is to understand the relations between topological accessibility and the typological nature of the building ensemble. By observing the synchronic morphological frame resulting from the spatial configuration analysis pertinent to this avenue (cf. Hillier and Hanson,1984) and the inventory and classification of the building ensemble there existing, this study aims to understand how architecture responds to accessibility in view of the real estate pressure, boosted by a cosmopolitanizing process brought about by the continuous flow of foreign and Brazilian arrivals as visitors, temporary or permanent residents

Drought impact on rainfed common bean production areas in Brazil.

Common bean production in Goiás, Brazil is concentrated in the same geographic area, but spread acrossthree distinct growing seasons, namely, wet, dry and winter. In the wet and dry seasons, common beansare grown under rainfed conditions, whereas the winter sowing is fully irrigated. The conventional breed-ing program performs all varietal selection stages solely in the winter season, with rainfed environmentsbeing incorporated in the breeding scheme only through the multi environment trials (METs) wherebasically only yield is recorded. As yield is the result of many interacting processes, it is challengingto determine the events (abiotic or biotic) associated with yield reduction in the rainfed environments(wet and dry seasons). To improve our understanding of rainfed dry bean production so as to produceinformation that can assist breeders in their efforts to develop stress-tolerant, high-yielding germplasm,we characterized environments by integrating weather, soil, crop and management factors using cropsimulation models. Crop simulations based on two commonly grown cultivars (Pérola and BRS Radi-ante) and statistical analyses of simulated yield suggest that both rainfed seasons, wet and dry, can bedivided in two groups of environments: highly favorable environment and favorable environment. Forthe wet and dry seasons, the highly favorable environment represents 44% and 58% of production area,respectively. Across all rainfed environment groups, terminal and/or reproductive drought stress occursin roughly one fourth of the seasons (23.9% for Pérola and 24.7% for Radiante), with drought being mostlimiting in the favorable environment group in the dry TPE. Based on our results, we argue that eventhough drought-tailoring might not be warranted, the common bean breeding program should adapttheir selection practices to the range of stresses occurring in the rainfed TPEs to select genotypes moresuitable for these environments.

Identity, ideology, and cinema: Making sense of Japan's foreign and security policies in the 1950s and 2000s

Japan is an important ally of the United States–the world’s third biggest economy, and one of the regional great powers in Asia. Making sense of Japan’s foreign and security policies is crucial for the future of peace and stability in Northeast Asia, where the possible sources of conflict such as territorial disputes or the disputes over Japan’s war legacy issues are observed.^ This dissertation explored Japan’s foreign and security policies based on Japan’s identities and unconscious ideologies. It employed an analysis of selected Japanese films from the late 1940s to the late 1950s, as well as from the late 1990s to the mid-2000s. The analysis demonstrated that Japan’s foreign and security policies could be understood in terms of a broader social narrative that was visible in Japanese popular cultural products, including films and literatures. Narratives of Japanese families from the patriarch’s point of view, for example, had constantly shaped Japan’s foreign and security policies. As a result, the world was ordered hierarchically in the eyes of the Japan Self. In the 1950s, Japan tenaciously constructed close but asymmetrical security relations with the U.S. in which Japan willingly subjugated itself to the U.S. In the 2000s, Japan again constructed close relations with the U.S. by doing its best to support American responses to the 9/11 terrorist attacks by mobilizing Japan’s SDFs in the way Japan had never done in the past.^ The concepts of identity and unconscious ideology are helpful in understanding how Japan’s own understanding of self, of others, and of the world have shaped its own behaviors. These concepts also enable Japan to reevaluate its own behaviors reflexively, which departs from existing alternative approaches. This study provided a critical analytical explanation of the dynamics at work in Japan’s sense of identity, particularly with regard to its foreign and security policies.^

Still entrenched in the conflict/cooperation dichotomy? EU–Russia relations and the Ukraine crisis

The article highlights that the traditional conflict/cooperation dichotomy which characterised the dynamic of European Union (EU)–Russia relation during the post-Cold War period has remained stable throughout the Ukraine crisis. It identifies a pattern of continuity rather than change in the main characteristics of the traditional conflict/cooperation dichotomy: the post-Cold War order on the European continent, values and worldviews, perceptions of self and other, and policies towards each other and post-Soviet space. Secondly, in tune with neoclassical realism the article aims to account for the relative persistence of the conflict/cooperation dichotomy. It argues that the dynamic of EU–Russia relations remained rather stable due to the fact that neither the EU nor Russian foreign policy has undergone major transformations (of both power, scope and organisation) that would provide incentive or constrains for a complete overhaul of the conflict/cooperation dichotomy. Moreover, the article claims that the relative stability of world politics since the start of the Ukraine crisis has not given any the EU and Russia incentives – or constrained them – to seek to change the overall dynamic of their relationship.

The influence of neoconservatism on US foreign policy debates during the Obama administration

Neoconservatism reached its zenith as a school of thought when it became associated with the Iraq War. Although the war was largely considered a failure, it raised the profile of neoconservatism as a school of thought. Many studies were completed which pointed to the influence of prominent members of the George W. Bush administration who were considered to be ideologically neoconservative. When Obama won the presidency in 2008, it was assumed that the influence of neoconservatives, or neoconservatism more broadly, would be over. However, given neoconservatism’s historical foundations and the tenacity of its adherents it seemed important to consider whether this has been the case. Therefore, this thesis set out to answer the question: To what extent have neoconservatives, and neoconservatism more broadly, influenced foreign policy debates during the Obama administration? I argue that neoconservatism has remained not only salient within foreign policy debates, but prominent in these debates, during Obama’s two terms in office. An examination of US foreign policy towards the nuclear crisis in Iran and the Syrian civil war indicates that neoconservatism had a substantive influence on the policy debates and the options considered within them, particularly in Congress. In some instances, neoconservative policy entrepreneurs contributed to legislation. Furthermore, this thesis finds that neoconservatism has been the predominant approach to foreign policy within the Republican Party on the issues of Iran and Syria during the period under review.

Intereses nacionales convergentes en una apuesta colectiva: la alianza del pacífico

Este documento indaga sobre los determinantes que hicieron posible la creación de la Alianza del Pacífico. Para ello, se describen elementos del contexto internacional y regional dentro del cual se gestó la Alianza, y que permitió la convergencia de unos intereses afines entre Chile, Colombia, Perú y México que, determinados por identidades similares, desembocaron en un proyecto colectivo: La Alianza del Pacífico. El argumento principal es que los intereses, las características y las identidades comunes configuraron unas preferencias nacionales que fueron materializadas en la creación de un proyecto de integración económica con características particulares, que sirve de plataforma para la coordinación, la articulación, la inserción y el desarrollo económico de sus miembros.

Las dos caras de la organización del mundial FIFA Brasil 2014: Entre la proyección internacional y las denuncias sociales

El orgullo brasileño estalló en el año 2007, cuando Brasil fue elegido sede del mundial FIFA 2014. Esto se debe a que Brasil en ese momento gozaba de un creciente prestigio internacional por cuenta de su condición de Potencia Emergente, miembro de los BRICS, aspirante a un puesto permanente en el Consejo de Seguridad y contar con la selección de fútbol más exitosa de la historia. No obstante, en su afán por incrementar su visibilidad y proyección internacional acudió al ejercicio del Poder Blando, a través de la Diplomacia Cultural, concretamente se decidió por la Organización de Mega Eventos deportivos, al tiempo que debía enfrentar varios problemas en el ámbito interno (desigualdad, corrupción, pobreza). Así, esta estrategia de aplicación del Poder Blando resultó de cierta manera contraproducente, debido a que la política exterior y su éxito no suele estar disociada de la realidad interna.

Small states and the promotion of their foreign policy agenda in the international scenario: Trinidad and Tobago and the Kyoto Protocol

Este estudio de caso busca identificar los elementos del portafolio de política exterior de Trinidad y Tobago que le permitieron promover exitosamente sus intereses en el Protocolo de Kioto. Al hacer esto, este texto analizará las limitaciones de Trinidad y Tobago en términos de vulnerabilidades de localización, burocracia y recursos. Posteriormente, una revisión del portafolio de política exterior de este Estado ilustrará el uso de estrategias de creación de capacidades y de organización como lo son el contacto con actores institucionales y no gubernamentales, la formación de coaliciones y estrategias argumentativas, entre otras. Finalmente, este artículo concluirá que dichas acciones permitieron la promoción de la agenda de política exterior de Trinidad y Tobago a través de la creación de hojas de ruta y la coordinación de la incertidumbre con el Protocolo de Kioto. Para hacer esto, este trabajo se concentrará en examinar conceptos como vulnerabilidad y priorización, asimismo contrastando diferentes artículos académicos en la materia junto con documentos oficiales de Trinidad y Tobago.

Approaches to assess climate change effects on plant disease: (1) impacts of rising CO2 in Brazil.

2008

Approaches to assess climate change effects on plant disease: (2) mapping risk in Brazil.

2008

Feasibility assessment of sugarcane expansion in southwest Goiás, Brazil based on the GIS technology.

The current study approaches the sugarcane culture expansion in Southwestern Goiás, especially in Mineiros, Quirinópolis and Rio Verde counties, which represent different times and responses to this process. The current logistics structure and future prospects for sugarcane and its derivatives transportation are studied at national level with emphasis to the aforementioned micro-region. Maps showing land use and land cover in three different years were generated from Landsat TM-5 satellite images and they were used to analyze the dynamics of changes in land use and in land cover. The region is marked by strong and rapid growth in the agricultural sector and its sugar-energy industry has been expanding in recent years, although with different aspects among its counties. Since it is a promising region in this sector, due to the favorable soil and weather conditions to the crop, the region requires more investment and planning in logistics to ensure production flow and to make it stronger within domestic and foreign markets.

Transaction costs in an association of organic farmers in Goiania, Brazil.

This study aimed to analyse the transaction costs of an association of organic farmers located in Goiania, Goias state, Brazil. We analysed the marketing and organisation relations based on data collected at the Association for the Development of Organic Farming in Goias state (ADAO/GO).

CULTURE AND LITERATURE IN FOREIGN LANGUAGES LEARNING

This brief article is an introduction to questions as multiculturalism, identity and prejudice, from a specific point of view: a reflection on the importance of didactics in foreign literature and culture, and the role of reading as a meaningful education form in the undergraduating study programs of "Letras Estrangeiras" in Brazil.