The relationship between plants used to sustain finches (Fringillidae) and uses for human medicine in southeast Spain

We analyzed plants that are traditionally used by wild bird hunters and breeders to capture and promote captive breeding of Fringillidae (finches or songbirds) in the province of Alicante, Spain. The majority of plants used in songbird breeding have medicinal properties in traditional human medicine (48 different uses); thus, another main goal was to show their relationships with human medical uses. We compiled a list of 97 plant species from 31 botanical families that are used to attract finches and identified 11 different use categories for these plants in finch keeping. The most common uses were for trapping birds and as a source of food for birds in captivity. Cannabis sativa has the greatest cultural importance index (CI = 1.158), and Phalaris canariensis (annual canary grass or alpist) was the most common species used to attract Fringillidae and was used by all informants (n = 158). Most of the 97 species are wild plants and mainly belong to the families Compositae, Gramineae, Cruciferae, and Rosaceae and also have medicinal properties for humans. In the study area, the intensification of agriculture and abandonment of traditional management practices have caused the population of many songbirds to decline, as well as the loss of popular ethnographic knowledge.

Traditional knowledge of medicinal plants in the Serra de Mariola Natural Park, South-eastern Spain

The present study aims to inventory and analyse the ethnobotanical knowledge about medicinal plants in the Serra de Mariola Natural Park. In respect to traditional uses, 93 species reported by local informants were therapeutic, 27 food, 4 natural dyes and 13 handcrafts. We developed a methodology that allowed the location of individuals or vegetation communities with a specific popular use. We prepared a geographic information system (GIS) that included gender, family, scientific nomenclature and common names in Spanish and Catalan for each species. We also made a classification of 39 medicinal uses from ATC (Anatomical, Therapeutic, Chemical classification system). Labiatae (n=19), Compositae (n=9) and Leguminosae (n=6) were the families most represented among the plants used to different purposes in humans. Species with the most elevated cultural importance index (CI) values were Thymus vulgaris (CI=1.431), Rosmarinus officinalis (CI=1.415), Eryngium campestre (CI=1.325), Verbascum sinuatum (CI=1.106) and Sideritis angustifolia (CI=1.041). Thus, the collected plants with more therapeutic uses were: Lippia triphylla (12), Thymus vulgaris and Allium roseum (9) and Erygium campestre (8). The most repeated ATC uses were: G04 (urological use), D03 (treatment of wounds and ulcers) and R02 (throat diseases). These results were in a geographic map where each point represented an individual of any species. A database was created with the corresponding therapeutic uses. This application is useful for the identification of individuals and the selection of species for specific medicinal properties. In the end, knowledge of these useful plants may be interesting to revive the local economy and in some cases promote their cultivation.

Terahertz analysis of stratified wall plaster at buildings of cultural importance across Europe

Terahertz (THz) radiation is being developed as a tool for the analysis of cultural heritage, and due to recent advances in technology is now available commercially in systems which can be deployed for field analysis. The radiation is capable of penetrating up to one centimetre of wall plaster and is delivered in ultrafast pulses which are reflected from layers within this region. The technique is non-contact, non-invasive and non-destructive. While sub-surface radar is able to penetrate over a metre of wall plaster, producing details of internal structures, infrared and ultraviolet techniques produce information about the surface layers of wall plaster. THz radiation is able to provide information about the interim region of up to approximately one centimetre into the wall surface. Data from Chartres Cathedral, France, Riga Dome Cathedral, Latvia, and Chartreuse du Val de Bénédiction, France is presented each with different research questions. The presence of sub-surface paint layers was expected from documentary evidence, dating to the 13th Century, at Chartres Cathedral. In contrast, at the Riga Dome Cathedral surface painting had been obscured as recently as 1941 during the Russian occupation of Latvia using white lead-based paint. In the 13th Century, wall paintings at the Chapel of the Frescos, Chartreuse du Val de Benediction in Villeneuve les Avignon were constructed using sinopia under-painting on plaster covering uneven stonework.. This paper compares and contrasts the ability of THz radiation to provide information about sub-surface features in churches and Cathedrals across Europe by analysing depth based profiles gained from the reflected signal. © (2013) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).

Holland; list of monuments and objects of cultural importance

Mimeographed.

Measuring complexity for building projects : a Delphi study

Purpose---The aim of this study is to identify complexity measures for building projects in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Design/Methodology/Approach---A three-round of Delphi questionnaire survey was conducted to identify the key parameters that measure the degree of project complexity. A complexity index (CI) was developed based on the identified measures and their relative importance. Findings---Six key measures of project complexity have been identified, which include, namely (1) building structure & function; (2) construction method; (3) the urgency of the project schedule; (4) project size/scale; (5) geological condition; and (6) neighboring environment. Practical implications---These complexity measures help stakeholders assess degrees of project complexity and better manage the potential risks that might be induced to different levels of project complexity. Originality/Value---The findings provide insightful perspectives to define and understand project complexity. For stakeholders, understanding and addressing the complexity help to improve project planning and implementation.

Portuguese newspapers’ front-page and the coverage of European Cultural Capital: Porto 2001 and Guimarães 2012

Portugal hosted in the last thirteen years, two editions of the event European Cultural Capital; this paper intends to illustrate the coverage that Portuguese newspapers (daily newspapers Público, Diário de Notícias, Correio da Manhã and Jornal de Notícias, a weekly newsmagazine Visão and a weekly newspaper Expresso) made, through referrals in front-page and respective developments within the editions, to each of the events and that allows us to define the main moments that marked each of them, patterns of action, the major players, planning and programming types. The European Cultural Capital project elects, from year to year, cities of different EU member states with the main goal of “contributing to bring together the Europe´s people" (words of Mélina Mercouri, Greek Minister of Culture who, in 1985, proposed the launch of this initiative) and encouraging the elected urban space to present new cultural paradigms. In the genesis of this model is the cultural decentralization’s vector, a possibility to medium-sized cities of funding public works, restoring heritage and promoting themselves in touristic terms, of giving visibility to cities away from cultural and creative industries’ major distribution centers. A crucial factor to achieve this goal is media coverage. This paper outline the information that the Portuguese press ran over the two years that elapsed the latest editions of the European Cultural Capital in Portugal, namely that media coverage have deviated from the disclosure of the events’ schedule to suggest itineraries of visit and little or not even question the role that cities, promoting such initiatives, have as places of innovation in terms of cultural policies, artistic production and innovation, in urban and environmental regeneration, in economic revitalization, in training and creating new artists and new audiences and in boosting the confidence of local communities. The content analysis performed to articles shows how press is essential to the promotion of cities as cultural/touristic destinations as it stimulates consumption among residents and attracts visitors, with the possible dire consequence of turning the cultural journalist into an agent of touristic instead of cultural promotion.

Importance of lateral lagoons for the ichthyofauna in a large tropical reservoir

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

A importância político-cultural do Levante das Estátuas nas Homilias sobre as Estátuas de João Crisóstomo

A sociedade romana produziu estátuas abundantemente, como argumenta Stewart (2003:118). As suas funções eram diversas e vários os seus propósitos. Neste artigo, buscaremos apresentar a importância político-cultural das estátuas imperiais na sociedade romana do século IV d.C. a partir da compreensão da gravidade dos acontecimentos ocorridos durante a deflagração de um levante que ficou conhecido, na historiografia, como Levante das Estátuas. Neste levante, estátuas imperiais foram destruídas. Para tanto, utilizaremos a documentação legada por um presbítero, João Crisóstomo, que pronunciou, tradicionalmente, 21 homilias que a historiografia vinculou ao Levante das Estátuas.

Effects of isoflurane on Tei-index of myocardial performance in healthy dogs

Recently, the Tei-index, a noninvasive index that combines systolic and diastolic time intervals, has been proposed to assess global cardiac performance. However, the effects of isoflurane on the Tei-index have not been characterized. This study aimed at studying the effects of 1.0 minimal alveolar concentration isoflurane anesthesia on the pre-ejection period (PEP), left ventricular ejection time (LVET), PEP/LVET ratio, isovolumic relaxation time (IVRT), stroke index (SI), cardiac index (CI), heart rate (HR), and the Tei-index in healthy unpremedicated dogs. We observed significant increases in PEP, PEP/LVET ratio, IVRT, and TEI, whose maximal increases obtained throughout the study were 47%, 48%, 78%, and 56%, respectively. The LVET and HR did not change significantly, whereas the SI and CI decreased during anesthesia (29% and 26%, respectively). In conclusion, isoflurane produced direct effects on the Tei-index. The changes in systolic and diastolic parameters were supportive of this finding and were consistent with an overall impairment of left ventricular function during anesthesia.

Plantas medicinais utilizadas por seringueiros do projeto de assentamento extrativista São Luiz do Remanso - Acre

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Horticultura) - FCA

Metodologia de gestão do ciclo de vida de reatores

Nos sistemas elétricos de potência, os reatores em derivação são os equipamentos responsáveis pela redução ou mesmo anulação dos efeitos capacitivos indesejáveis na operação das linhas. Percebe-se, então, a importância desses equipamentos e a necessidade de mantê-los em perfeito funcionamento, pois uma falha grave gera um elevado custo de manutenção corretiva, queda nos indicadores de desempenho, além de multas por parte da agência reguladora - Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica - ANEEL. O ciclo de vida de um reator em derivação envolve oito etapas - Planejamento, Especificação, Aquisição, Fabricação, Instalação, Comissionamento, Exploração e Desclassificação. Neste trabalho serão abordados apenas aspectos relativos à gestão da fase de exploração, que contempla o conjunto de processos de operação e manutenção de acordo com as perspectivas da empresa onde este estudo foi realizado. O processo de envelhecimento do reator pode ocorrer de diversas maneiras, no entanto o tempo de vida útil de um reator é condicionado essencialmente por dois fatores: a velocidade de envelhecimento e perda de robustez dos seus materiais e componentes e, as condições de funcionamento a que está sujeito ao longo do tempo. Para evitar danos aos reatores, as empresas de energia elétrica têm adotado procedimentos de manutenção preventivo e preditivo, que quando baseados em diagnósticos de diferentes métodos de avaliação tem um impacto fundamental na vida útil e confiabilidade dos reatores. Sendo a condição de degradação de um reator um processo contínuo no tempo, este pode ser classificado em cinco estágios: Novo, Normal, Anormal, Defeituoso e Falhado. Um índice de condição (IC) pode ser atribuído a cada um destes estágios de degradação, de acordo com os resultados de um conjunto de testes de diagnósticos para análise do estado de operação do reator e estimação da sua posição atual em relação ao seu ciclo de vida. Esta dissertação trata do desenvolvimento de uma metodologia para sistematizar a análise com a combinação de catorze diferentes métodos de diagnósticos e mapear os resultados em um modelo de condição que oriente o ciclo de vida do reator. A metodologia foi aplicada em dez reatores de 500 kV em duas subestações da Eletrobras-Eletronorte no Sistema de Transmissão do Pará, empresa na qual foi realizado este estudo.

Etnobotânica de Leguminosae entre agricultores agroecológicos na Floresta Atlântica, Araponga, Minas Gerais, Brasil

This study describes the richness of Leguminosae used by 21 traditional farmers in coffee agroforestry systems (AFS) and forest fragments of the Atlantic Forest, in the municipality of Araponga, Minas Gerais, Brazil. It also presents the use categories, relative importance and the species similarity between the AFSs. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and participant observation, between August 2005 and November 2006, directed during random walks in seven AFSs and forest fragments surrounding the State Park of Serra do Brigadeiro. The farmers cited 59 species of Leguminosae, of which 86% are native to the Atlantic Forest and used in ancient cultural practices, such as to make bullock carts. Twelve categories of use were established, among them the most important were fertilizer and firewood (21 spp each); in the AFSs, species used for soil fertilization (18 spp) are the most utilized, and in the forest, the species for firewood and technology (17 spp.) The relative importance index showed that in the forest, Piptadenia gonoacantha showed 83% of agreement for the use as wood for fencing pastures, while in the AFSs, Inga edulis scored 100% as food. The AFSs studied show little similarity of species (0.42 of the Sorensen scale), due to the selection promoted by the farmers, thus, providing room for the conservation of useful species of Leguminosae.

The effects of different inspired oxygen fractions on gas exchange and Tei-index of myocardial performance in propofol-anesthetized dogs

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Análise quali-qualitativa e por meio de sistema de informações geográficas da arborização do quadrilátero central de Ribeirão Preto, SP

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Produção Vegetal) - FCAV

Efeito do teor de água na avaliação da compactação do solo causada pelo tráfego agrícola e seu reflexo nos atributos físicos do solo

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Energia na Agricultura) - FCA