Solid-state NMR study of bioactive binary borosilicate glasses

A series of binary borosilicate glasses prepared by the sol-gel method are shown to be bioactive. Tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and trimethylborate (TMB) in acidic medium are used to prepare xB(2)O(3)center dot(1-x)SiO2 glass systems for x = 0.045-0.167. The formation of a layer of apatite-like mineral on the glass surface becomes apparent after soaking in simulated body fluid for 48 h. We have measured the B-11-B-11 homonuclear second moments of the borosilicate glasses and inferred that no macroscopic phase separation occurred in our glasses. The B-11 chemical shift data also show that the formation of clustered boroxol rings is negligible in our glass system. Although the bioactivity of our borosilicate glasses is less than that of CaO-SiO2 sol-gel glasses, these simple binary systems could be taken as reference glass systems for the search of new bioactive borosilicate glasses. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Professoras Negras na UERJ e Cotidianos Curriculares, a partir dos primeiros tempos do acervo fotográfico J. Vitalino

Nesta dissertação pesquiso sobre a presença de professoras negras na Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) tendo como metodologia fotografias do acervo oficial desta universidade de 1950 a 1976. Busco através de fotografias (re)contar o caminho percorrido por uma professora negra em uma instituição de ensino superior em uma sociedade marcada pelo racismo e na qual poucas mulheres negras ocupavam/ocupam cargos considerados de poder. Estabeleço os modos como esta apropriou-se do currículo como meio para trazer aqueles(as) que passaram por processos históricos de invisibilização, silenciamentos e discriminações para dentro da Universidade. Além das fotografias, através de narrativas daqueles(as) que conviveram com esta professora, discuto a formação identitária dessa mulher, suas lutas e vivências traçando como estas podem influenciar suas práticas profissionais, tendo como apoios teóricos Michel de Certeau, Nilma Gomes, Boris Kossoy, Marcelo Paixão, Stuart Hall, Moema Teixeira, Iolanda de Oliveira, Boaventura de Sousa Santos, Nilda Alves, Nei Lopes, Jerry Dávila, Antônio Guimarães, entre outros. Com essa dissertação, espero contribuir para visibilizar as mudanças ocorridas quanto ao lugar das mulheres negras no Brasil, em especial na Universidade em questão. Nessas idas e vindas, vou tecendo a história da Prof Maria José Alves de Oliveira, do Instituto de Educação Física, da UERJ, fornecendo pistas que permitam entrelaçar esta história com tantas outras de diferentes mulheres negras, em suas lutas, práticas, processos identitários e superações, buscando desnaturalizar práticas sexistas, racistas e discriminatórias

Relative pleopod length as an indicator of size at sexual maturity in slipper (Scyllarides squammosus) and spiny Hawaiian (Panulirus marginatus) lobsters

Body size at gonadal maturity is described for females of the slipper lobster (Scyllarides squammosus) (Scyllaridae) and the endemic Hawaiian spiny lobster (Panulirus marginatus) (Palinuridae) based on microscopic examination of histological preparations of ovaries. These data are used to validate several morphological metrics (relative exopodite length, ovigerous condition) of functional sexual maturity. Relative exopodite length (“pleopod length”) produced consistent estimates of size at maturity when evaluated with a newly derived statistical application for estimating size at the morphometric maturation point (MMP) for the population, identified as the midpoint of a sigmoid function spanning the estimated boundaries of overlap between the largest immature and smallest adult animals. Estimates of the MMP were related to matched (same-year) characterizations of sexual maturity based on ovigerous condition — a more conventional measure of functional maturity previously used to characterize maturity for the two lobster species. Both measures of functional maturity were similar for the respective species and were within 5% and 2% of one another for slipper and spiny lobster, respectively. The precision observed for two shipboard collection series of pleopod-length data indicated that the method is reliable and not dependent on specialized expertise. Precision of maturity estimates for S. squammosus with the pleopod-length metric was similar to that for P. marginatus with any of the other measures (including conventional evidence of ovigerous condition) and greatly exceeded the precision of estimates for S. squammosus based on ovigerous condition alone. The two measures of functional maturity averaged within 8% of the estimated size at gonadal maturity for the respective species. Appendage-to-body size proportions, such as the pleopod length metric, hold great promise, particularly for species of slipper lobsters like S. squammosus for which there exist no other reliable conventional morphological measures of sexual maturity. Morphometric proportions also should be included among the factors evaluated when assessing size at sexual maturity in spiny lobster stocks; previously, these proportions have been obtained routinely only for brachyuran crabs within the Crustacea.

A High-Speed Fish Evisceration System (FES) for Bycatch and Underutilized Fish Stocks

Development of a high-speed and high-yield water-powered fish evisceration system (FES) to efficiently preprocess small fish and bycatch for producing minced fish meat is described. The concept of the system is propelling fish in a stream of water through an arrangement of cutting blades and brushes. Eviscerated fish are separated from the viscera and water stream in a dual screen rotary sieve. The FES processed head off fish, weighing 170–500 g, at the rate of 300 fish/min when used with an automatic heading machine. Yields of mince produced from walleye pollock, Theragra chalcogramma; and Pacific whiting, Merluccius productus; processed by the FES ranged between 43% and 58%. The maximum yield of minced muscle from fish weighing over 250 g was 52%, and the yield of 250 g was 58%. Test results indicated that surimi made from minced meat recovered from fish processed with the FES was comparable in quality to commercial grade surimi from conventional systems. Redesigned for commercial operation in the Faeroe Islands (Denmark), the system effectively processed North Atlantic blue whiting, Micromesistius poutassou, with an average weight of 110 g at a constant rate of 500–600 fish/min, producing deboned mince feeding a surimi processing line at a rate of 2.0 t/h. Yields of mince ranged from 55% to 63% from round fish. Surimi made from the blue whiting mince meat produced by the FES was comparable to surimi commercially produced from blue whiting by Norway and France and sold into European markets.

An Economic Analysis of Texas Shrimp Season Closures

Management of the Texas penaeid shrimp fishery is aimed at increasing revenue from brown shrimp, Penaeus aztecus, landings and decreasing the level of discards. Since 1960 Texas has closed its territorial sea for 45-60 days during peak migration of brown shrimp to the Gulf of Mexico. In 1981 the closure was extended to 200 miles to include the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone. Simulation modeling is used in this paper to estimate the changes in landings, revenue, costs, and economic rent attributable to the Texas closure. Four additional analyses were conducted to estimate the effects of closing the Gulf 1- to 4-fathom zone for 45 and 60 days, with and without effort redirected to inshore waters. Distributional impacts are analyzed in terms of costs, revenues, and rents, by vessel class, shrimp species, vessel owner, and crew.

Simulated Economic Impact of TED Regulations on Selected Vessels in the Texas Shrimp Fishery

Shrimp fishermen trawling in the Gulf of Mexico and south Atlantic inadvertently capture and kill sea turtles which are classified as endangered species. Recent legislation requires the use of a Turtle Excluder Device(TED) which, when in place in the shrimp trawl, reduces sea turtle mortality. The impact of the TED on shrimp production is not known. This intermediate analysis of the TED regulations using an annual firm level simulation model indicated that the average Texas shrimp vessel had a low probability of being an economic success before regulations were enacted. An assumption that the TED regulations resulted in decreased production aggravated this condition and the change in Ending Net Worth and Net Present Value of Ending Net Worth before and after a TED was placed in the net was significant at the 5 percent level. However, the difference in the Internal Rate of Return for the TED and non-TED simulations was not significant unless the TED caused a substantial change in catch. This analysis did not allow for interactions between the fishermen in the shrimp industry, an assumption which could significantly alter the impact of TED use on the catch and earnings of the individual shrimp vessel.

Educação dos negros em Santa Catarina: narrativas, expectativas, experiências (1850-1889).

A problemática da educação dos negros, com toda sua complexidade, estava latente no cotidiano da província catarinense, não obstante a historiografia tê-la silenciado. O silenciamento é verificado em narrativas sobre os negros do período imperial, presentes em obras consideradas clássicas da historiografia, de escritores pertencentes a instituições culturais tradicionais. A raridade de representações sobre os negros fora da questão da escravidão, nessas obras, pode ter contribuído para a construção de premissas ainda recorrentes no imaginário social, como a de que os negros não estudavam. Além de analisar essas narrativas, esta pesquisa apresenta expectativas e experiências quanto à educação dos negros na província. As expectativas foram observadas na legislação educacional, em discursos da imprensa e de governantes catarinenses, sobretudo no período de discussões nacionais sobre a libertação do ventre, com o surgimento da figura do ingênuo. Nos jornais, muitos artigos apontavam a educação dos negros como um importante meio de preparação para o trabalho livre, garantindo a ordem social. Nos discursos dos agentes do governo, a questão foi abordada com menor frequência, defendendo a instrução dos libertos para evitar a anarquia e possibilitar o voto consciente. Já a proibição da matrícula escolar aos escravizados, em normativas da Instrução Pública, indicava outra expectativa do governo, ligada ao medo de rebeliões. Perspectivas semelhantes também foram observadas em legislações dos Estados Unidos no período escravocrata. Quanto às experiências educacionais em Santa Catarina, esta pesquisa verificou que as instituições que atendiam à infância desvalida Escola de Aprendizes Marinheiros, Asilo da Santa Casa de Misericórdia, escolas noturnas e Liceu de Artes e Ofícios, puderam cumprir o papel de escolarizar os negros, inclusive escravizados. Considerando que apenas um ingênuo foi entregue pelo senhor ao governo catarinense e que sua educação ficou a cargo do tutor, não houve a necessidade de se criar um estabelecimento próprio para a educação dos ingênuos, como o requisitado pelo Ministério da Agricultura a todas as províncias. Por fim, o trabalho discute experiências diversas de escolarização dos negros e de valorização e luta pela conquista da educação escolar. O núcleo documental foi composto por livros de história de Santa Catarina, jornais, relatórios e ofícios governamentais, legislação e atas do governo e da Irmandade dos Passos, entre outros, analisados sob a perspectiva foucaultiana da análise do discurso. A periodização abrange desde relevantes acontecimentos da década de 1850, tais como a instituição da proibição de matrícula escolar aos escravizados, o estabelecimento da Companhia de Aprendizes Marinheiros e a criação do Asilo das Desvalidas, até o último ano do período imperial. Esta investigação apresenta elementos para romper alguns silenciamentos e inserir a província no mapa de estudos da história da educação do negro no Império brasileiro, colocando em evidência questões ainda muito pouco exploradas no campo. Além disso, possibilita uma reflexão mais profunda sobre nossa história excludente, permitindo a ampliação do olhar e o entendimento de que o tratamento puramente meritocrático aos que historicamente foram tratados como desiguais não contribui para a construção de uma sociedade mais igualitária

The EBM-DPSER conceptual model: integrating ecosystem services into the DPSIR framework

There is a pressing need to integrate biophysical and human dimensions science to better inform holistic ecosystem management supporting the transition from single species or single-sector management to multi-sector ecosystem-based management. Ecosystem-based management should focus upon ecosystem services, since they reflect societal goals, values, desires, and benefits. The inclusion of ecosystem services into holistic management strategies improves management by better capturing the diversity of positive and negative human-natural interactions and making explicit the benefits to society. To facilitate this inclusion, we propose a conceptual model that merges the broadly applied Driver, Pressure, State, Impact, and Response (DPSIR) conceptual model with ecosystem services yielding a Driver, Pressure, State, Ecosystem service, and Response (EBM-DPSER) conceptual model. The impact module in traditional DPSIR models focuses attention upon negative anthropomorphic impacts on the ecosystem; by replacing impacts with ecosystem services the EBM-DPSER model incorporates not only negative, but also positive changes in the ecosystem. Responses occur as a result of changes in ecosystem services and include inter alia management actions directed at proactively altering human population or individual behavior and infrastructure to meet societal goals. The EBM-DPSER conceptual model was applied to the Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas marine ecosystem as a case study to illustrate how it can inform management decisions. This case study captures our system-level understanding and results in a more holistic representation of ecosystem and human society interactions, thus improving our ability to identify trade-offs. The EBM-DPSER model should be a useful operational tool for implementing EBM, in that it fully integrates our knowledge of all ecosystem components while focusing management attention upon those aspects of the ecosystem most important to human society and does so within a framework already familiar to resource managers.

Age and growth of Hawaiian seaturtles (Chelonia mydas): an analysis based on skeletochronology

Skeletochronological data on growth changes in humerus diameter were used to estimate the age of Hawaiian green seaturtles ranging from 28.7 to 96.0 cm straight carapace length. Two age estimation methods, correction factor and spline integration, were compared, giving age estimates ranging from 4.1 to 34.6 and from 3.3 to 49.4 yr, respectively, for the sample data. Mean growth rates of Hawaiian green seaturtles are 4–5 cm/yr in early juveniles, decline to a relatively constant rate of about 2 cm/yr by age 10 yr, then decline again to less than 1 cm/yr as turtles near age 30 yr. On average, age estimates from the two techniques differed by just a few years for juvenile turtles, but by wider margins for mature turtles. The spline-integration method models the curvilinear relationship between humerus diameter and the width of periosteal growth increments within the humerus, and offers several advantages over the correction-factor approach.

Message-Driven Processor Architecture: Verson 11

The Message-Driven Processor is a node of a large-scale multiprocessor being developed by the Concurrent VLSI Architecture Group. It is intended to support fine-grained, message passing, parallel computation. It contains several novel architectural features, such as a low-latency network interface, extensive type-checking hardware, and on-chip memory that can be used as an associative lookup table. This document is a programmer's guide to the MDP. It describes the processor's register architecture, instruction set, and the data types supported by the processor. It also details the MDP's message sending and exception handling facilities.