Analysis and forecast of the storage needs of soybeans in Brazil

The existence of a minimum storage capacity of grains as a condition for the maintenance of regulator physical stocks has been used as a strategic factor in the agribusiness expansion. However, in Brazil the storage infrastructure has not followed the growth of the agricultural sector. This fact is evident in the case of soybeans that currently represent 49% of grain production in the country, whose volume production has been increasing significantly over the years. This study aimed to predict the future������needs of static storage capacity of soybeans from historical data to estimate the investment needed to install storage units in Brazil for the next five years. A statistic analysis of collected data allowed a forecast and identification of the number of storage units that should be installed to meet the storage needs of soybeans in the next five years. It was concluded that by 2015 the soybean storage capacity should be 87 million tons, and to store 49% of soybeans produced, 1,104 storage units should be installed at a cost of R$ 442 million.

The principle of autonomy in Brazil: one needs to discuss it ...

The principle of patient autonomy is a cornerstone of bioethics. According to this concept, patients should be given the power to make decisions related to their treatment. It is an important component of modern medical ethics, which has received much interest in current literature. However, the rate of participation of patients and their willingness to participate are variable according to the cultural, social and family environments in which they are inserted. The aim of this paper is to promote a brief descriptive review on autonomy, the preferences of patients and the use of informed consent as an instrument for the exercise of autonomy in literature, and to stress the lack of debate, as well as the pressing need for discussion of these current issues nationwide.

Brachiaria spp. poisoning of ruminants in Brazil

Brachiaria species are the most important grasses for cattle production in Brazil. However, a limiting factor for the use of Brachiaria spp. is their toxicity. Most outbreaks of hepatogenous photosensitization are caused by B. decumbens; however B. brizantha, B. humidicola and B. ruziziensis can also cause poisoning. The poisoning affects cattle, sheep, goats and buffalo. Sheep are more susceptible than other animal species and the young are more susceptible than adults. There are differences in susceptibility among animals of the same species and it has been suggested that this resistance is genetic. Also has been suggested that buffalo and probably some sheep are resilient, i.e. when poisoned these animals have histologic lesions and high GGT serum concentrations, but do not show clinical signs. In general, saponin concentrations are higher in growing plants, but outbreaks occur all over the year, probably due to unexplained rise in saponin concentration in the plant. A clinical syndrome of progressive weight loss and death, without photosensitization, has been reported in cattle poisoned by B. decumbens. Main preventive measures are based on the selection of resistant or resilient animals and on the development of Brachiaria species or varieties with low saponin concentration.

A surveillance of enteropathogens in piglets from birth to seven days of age in Brazil

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the real importance of anaerobic enteropathogens and rotavirus in contrast to more common agents as cause of diarrhea in piglets within the first week of life. Sixty 1- to 7-day-old piglets, 30 diarrheic and 30 non-diarrheic (control), from 15 different herds were selected, euthanized and necropsied. Samples of the jejunum, ileum, colon, cecum and feces were collected from the piglets and analyzed to determine the presence of the following enteropathogens: enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC), Clostridium perfringens types A and C, Clostridium difficile, rotavirus and Isospora suis. Among diarrheic piglets, 23.3% were positive for C. difficile, 70% for C. perfringens type A cpb2+, 14.3% for rotavirus and 10% for ETEC. Among non-diarrheic control piglets, 10% were positive for C. difficile, 76.7% for C. perfringens type A cpb2+, 0% for rotavirus, 3.3% for ETEC and 3.3% for I. suis. C. perfringens type C was not detected in any of the animals. Histological lesions characteristic of C. difficile, E. coli and rotavirus were observed. However, no C. perfringens type A suggestive lesions were detected. There was a positive correlation between mesocolon edema and the presence of C. difficile toxins. Although C. perfringens type A cpb2+ was the most frequently detected enteropathogen, there was no association between its presence and diarrhea or macro or microscopic changes. C. difficile and Rotavirus were the most relevant pathogens involved with neonatal diarrhea in this study, and histopathology associated with microbiological test proved to be the key to reach a final diagnosis.

Meal-feeding scheme: twenty years of research in Brazil

Naomi Shinomiya Hell was the first researcher to investigate the physiological adaptations to a meal-feeding scheme (MFS) in Brazil. Over a period of 20 years, from 1979 to 1999, Naomi's group determined the physiological and metabolic adaptations induced by this feeding scheme in rats. The group showed the persistence of such adaptations even when MFS is associated with moderate exercise training and the performance to a session of intense physical effort. The metabolic changes induced by the feeding training were discriminated from those caused by the effective fasting period. Naomi made an important contribution to the understanding of the MFS but a lot still has to be done. One crucial question still remains to be satisfactorily answered: what is the ideal control for the MFS?

Direct costs of asthma in Brazil: a comparison between controlled and uncontrolled asthmatic patients

Asthma is a common chronic illness that imposes a heavy burden on all aspects of the patient's life, including personal and health care cost expenditures. To analyze the direct cost associated to uncontrolled asthma patients, a cross-sectional study was conducted to determine costs related to patients with uncontrolled and controlled asthma. Uncontrolled patient was defined by daytime symptoms more than twice a week or nocturnal symptoms during two consecutive nights or any limitations of activities, or need for relief rescue medication more than twice a week, and an ACQ score less than 2 points. A questionnaire about direct cost stratification in health services, including emergency room visits, hospitalization, ambulatory visits, and asthma medications prescribed, was applied. Ninety asthma patients were enrolled (45 uncontrolled/45 controlled). Uncontrolled asthmatics accounted for higher health care expenditures than controlled patients, US$125.45 and US$15.58, respectively [emergency room visits (US$39.15 vs US$2.70) and hospitalization (US$86.30 vs US$12.88)], per patient over 6 months. The costs with medications in the last month for patients with mild, moderate and severe asthma were US$1.60, 9.60, and 25.00 in the uncontrolled patients, respectively, and US$6.50, 19.00 and 49.00 in the controlled patients. In view of the small proportion of uncontrolled subjects receiving regular maintenance medication (22.2%) and their lack of resources, providing free medication for uncontrolled patients might be a cost-effective strategy for the public health system.

The social context of entrepreneurship in Brazil and Spain in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries

Este trabalho teve o principal objetivo de contribuir para o entendimento do contexto social que circunda empreendedores inovadores brasileiros e espanh��is que emergem em seus pr��prios pa��ses de origem, procurando mapear e entender rela����es sociais relevantes estabelecidas durante o delicado per��odo de emerg��ncia de seus empreendimentos no final do s��culo XX e come��o do XXI. Autores alinhados com o pensamento da sociologia econ��mica foram utilizados como refer��ncia para a determina����o das perguntas de pesquisa, que provocaram a realiza����o de um estudo comparativo entre empreendedores finalistas de um mesmo pr��mio atribu��do a empreendedores inovadores brasileiros e espanh��is. No total, 19 empreendedores oriundos de setores emparelhados em ambos os pa��ses foram entrevistados e documentos sobre eles e seus empreendimentos foram levantados, possibilitando verificar, entre outras coisas, a influ��ncia relativamente homog��nea do contexto social de ambos os pa��ses no per��odo de emerg��ncia de empreendimentos fundados por empreendedores advindos de classes sociais mais elevadas destas sociedades, com especial ��nfase nas complicadas caracter��sticas do padr��o de financiamento dos empreendimentos, no aumento consistente do apoio social e p��blico ao empreendedorismo, no elevado envolvimento emocional que os empreendedores estabelecem com seus empreendimentos e no peculiar papel das rela����es de confian��a constru��dos entre os empreendedores, seus s��cios e funcion��rios

Structural analysis of the place of wine in Brazil

With the constant decrease of the wine consumption in traditional winemaking countries, more and more Brazil is seen as an appealing market. But the country also pretends to become an international player of winemaking in its own right. Both the participants of the Brazilian wine industry and the foreigners trying to get advantage of this promising market are facing new challenges to develop the consumption of wine in the world���s fifth largest country. Among all the possible actions to be taken in that sense, it also is worth taking time for a collective thought on the place of wine in the country, as well as the factors that shape it. What are these factors, which ones really make the difference, and what is their respective impact on the evolution of the place of wine in the country? After drawing the big picture of the wine market situation, this thesis tries to identify the levers of the evolution of the place of wine in Brazil. Using the tools of prospective, it aims at putting into perspective the different driving forces that influence its development, and in particular the relative influence of the political drivers. This paper also intends to be a first step of a prospective study as it constitutes a solid base for scenario planning. This paper is divided in five chapters starting with ���introduction���, followed by chapter 2 ���Theoretical framework���. Chapter 3 is ���Methodology���, followed by chapter 4 ���Description and analysis of the results���. Finally the results are discussed and concluded in the last part ���Conclusions and implications for future studies���.

Localization strategies of multinationals in Brazil which characteristics of the Brazilian market force multinational companies to localize their marketing activities?

Uma vez que as perspectivas de crescimento econ��mico nos pa��ses mais desenvolvidos, como a Europa, os EUA eo Jap��o est��o diminuindo, os mercados emergentes t��m se tornado cada vez mais importante para muitas empresas multinacionais. Brasil, R��ssia, ��ndia e China (BRICs) s��o agora os principais mercados em crescimento em todo o mundo e as empresas est��o buscando estrat��gias para explorar ao m��ximo o potencial de consumo promissor nessas regi��es. Um dos modos mais elaborados de prosseguir essa estrat��gia �� conhecida como "localiza����o" - uma adapta����o das pr��ticas de neg��cios (ao longo de toda a cadeia de suprimentos) com as prefer��ncias e condi����es locais. Este artigo �� projetado para analisar as atividades de localiza����o de empresas multinacionais no Brasil. O foco da an��lise �� o de investigar as caracter��sticas do mercado brasileiro, que induzem as multinacionais a localizar o seu marketing mix (composto de produto, pre��o, coloca����o e promo����o). Em dois estudos de casos com a empresa Sui��a Nestl�� e a empresa Alem�� Volkswagen v��rios padr��es de localiza����o foram no mercado consumidor brasileiro. Os quatro resultados mais significativos da an��lise s��o os diferentes padr��es sociais o Brasil, que for��ar as empresas a reformular certas fun����es do seu mix de marketing (por exemplo, a coloca����o no caso da Nestl��), a aceita����o dos consumidores brasileiros a pagar pre��os relativamente elevados (por exemplo, taxas de Volkswagen at�� 100% mais por seus produtos em rela����o �� Alemanha); o enorme tamanho do Brasil ea infra-estrutura deficiente, que exigem uma abordagem de distribui����o localizada; eo car��ter atualmente ainda menos exigente dos estratos de consumidores brasileiros emergentes, que permitem ��s empresas oferecer produtos menos sofisticados em compara����o aos mercados europeus.

Compliance to law and effectiveness of the rule of law in Brazil

The goal of this paper is to debate the degree of effectiveness of the rule of law in Brazil, through a survey measuring perceptions, attitudes and habits of Brazilians in regard to compliance to law. The survey conducted in Brazil is based on the study conducted by Tom R. Tyler in the United States, entitled Why People Obey the Law? (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1990). The main argument of Tyler��s study is that people obey the law when they believe it���s legitimate, and not because they fear punishment. We test the same argument in Brazil, relying on five indicators: (i) behavior, which depicts the frequency with which respondents declared to have engaged in conducts in disobedience to the law; (ii) instrumentality, measuring perception of losses associated with the violation of the law, specially fear of punishment; (iii) morality, measuring perception of how much is right or wrong to engage in certain conducts in violation of the law; (iv) social control, which measures perception of social disapproval of certain types of behavior in violation of the law, and (v) legitimacy, which measures the perception of respect to the law and to some authorities. Results indicate that fear of sanctions is not the strongest drive in compliance to law, but more than legitimacy, indicators of morality and social control are the strongest in explaining why people obey the law in Brazil.