Play JBT – Mobile Application for the Tropical Botanical Garden of Lisbon

Trabalho de projecto de mestrado, Informática, Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências, 2020Com o progresso das tecnologias de informação e comunicação (TIC), as instituições culturais diversificaram as modalidades de interação com as pessoas. TIC permite hoje as várias instituições culturais de assumir papeis diferentes perante a comunidade (por exemplo, educação dos cidadãos e das suas associações; formador de várias competências; e de perito em vários programas governamentais para desenvolvimento de comunidades). Neste documento está apresentado o trabalho de desenvolvimento de uma aplicação móvel para Jardim Botânico Tropical de Lisboa. Técnicas diversas foram utilizadas no desenvolvimento de aplicação móvel (por exemplo, entrevistas, listagem de conteúdos, prototipagem, avaliação heurística, testes de usabilidade). São apresentados detalhes das tecnologias usadas (software e hardware), procedimentos de implementação, como também sobre arquitetura final do sistema desenvolvido. A aplicação móvel permite aos visitantes de Jardim Botânico Tropical interagir de formas diferentes com os componentes de jardim (plantas, aves e edifícios). Vários recursos educativos são incluídos na aplicação de modo a ser adaptados de modo automático ao perfil do utilizador. A aplicação permite também captar e armazenar os dados produzidos por utilizadores da aplicação de modo a serem utilizados para melhoria de experiência dos visitantes do jardim. Vários serviços Web foram incluídos para melhorar apresentação dos conteúdos e para melhorar os serviços do jardim. Foram também realizados testes com peritos no jardim e recolhido feedback dos utilizadores dos quais recebemos boas críticas e sugestões que foram integradas na aplicação. Foram também realizados um conjunto de testes de desempenho do servidor.Through the progress of information and communication technologies (ICT), cultural institutions have diversified the modalities of interacting with people. Today, ICTs allow various cultural institutions to take on different roles in the community (e.g. educating citizens and their associations; shaping various skills; supporting government programs for community development). This document introduces the process of development of a mobile application, which acts mainly as a helping guide for visitors of the Lisbon Tropical Botanical Garden. This mobile application allows these visitors to interact in different ways with garden components (plants, buildings and birds), as well as to have access to the several educational resources included in it, which are to be adapted to the user's profile. The application also allows them to capture and store the data produced, data which is also used for help with improving garden services. Web services have been developed to provide content and to centrally store data on the visitor’s trajectory in the garden and demographics. Furthermore, various techniques were used in the process of development (e.g. interviews, content listing, prototyping, heuristic evaluation, usability testing). Details on the technologies used (software and hardware), implementation procedures, as well as the final architecture of the developed system will be demonstrated. Finally, a set of usability tests is presented, from which we received positive feedback from the users as well as the performance tests executed on the server

Contributions to the design of mobile applications for visitors of Botanical Gardens

Botanical Gardens are among the most visited touristic attractions, offering scientific, educational, cultural and leisure activities to preserve and enhance heritage and disseminating specialised knowledge on science and history. There are several mobile applications (apps) to support visitors of Botanical Gardens, which explore augmented reality technologies to enrich their experience. Our work aims to systematize a set of requirements that must be considered in the development of these apps. We have applied them in the development of an app for a Botanical Garden available for Android and iOS. Preliminary data analysis of the use of our app revealed some characteristics of the visitors and the preferred tours. Meanwhile we are evaluating our app by conducting a user study.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

New glomeromycotan taxa, Dominikia glomerocarpica sp. nov. and Epigeocarpum crypticum gen. nov. et sp. nov. from Brazil, and Silvaspora gen. nov. from New Caledonia

Examination of fungal specimens collected in the Atlantic rain forest ecosystems of Northeast Brazil revealed many potentially new epigeous and semihypogeous glomerocarp-producing species of the phylum Glomeromycota. Among them were two fungi that formed unorganized epigeous glomerocarps with glomoid spores of almost identical morphology. The sole structure that distinguished the two fungi was the laminate layer 2 of their three-layered spore wall, which in spores of the second fungus crushed in PVLG-based mountants contracted and, consequently, transferred into a crown-like structure. Surprisingly, phylogenetic analyses of sequences of the 18SITS- 28S nuc rDNA and the rpb1 gene indicated that these glomerocarps represent two strongly divergent undescribed species in the family Glomeraceae. The analyses placed the first in the genus Dominikia, and the second in a sister clade to the monospecific generic clade Kamienskia with Kamienskia bistrata. The first species was described here as Dominikia glomerocarpica sp. nov. Because D. glomerocarpica is the first glomerocarp-forming species in Dominikia, the generic description of this genus was emended. The very large phylogenetic distance and the fundamental morphological differences between the second species and K. bistrata suggested us to introduce a new genus, here named as Epigeocarpum gen. nov., and name the new species Epigeocarpum crypticum sp. nov. In addition, our analyses also focused on an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus originally described as Rhizophagus neocaledonicus, later transferred to the genus Rhizoglomus. The analyses indicated that this species does not belong to any of these two genera but represents a new clade at the rank of genus in the Glomeraceae, here described as Silvaspora gen. nov

Modelado 3D aplicado a las plantas del vivero de la Universidad Francisco de Paula Santander Ocaña.

The Jorge Enrique Quintero Arenas University Botanical Garden was created with the mission of conserving the dry forest ecosystem and the types of vegetation and flora present in the northeast of Colombia. From new technologies that can be integrated without affecting the environment and generate various changes in the way of learning, solutions are proposed for continuous improvement, which in the end is done in favor of sustainability, quality of life and an intelligent botanical garden. This article aims to show the aspects of 3D modeling from what was developed in a previous project on a mobile application. In order to innovate in this APP and achieve a more interactive application with the user, some functionalities were developed where augmented reality is implemented as a technology that will allow the virtual reality to be brought to reality where users will be able to expand their knowledge about the plants studied in the botanical garden with multimedia material. In the development process and based on the existing mobile application for the intelligent nursery, the functionalities are proposed under the following scheme, the image recorded by the cell phone camera is analyzed in search of a graphic pattern which for our case was used the existing QR code in each of the plants under study, by the nursery researchers, the same used for the administration of the different interventions that are made to each of the plants. Thanks to this QR code, the administrator can easily identify the résumé of each plant, speeding up day-to-day work such as pest control, follow-up of deaths, transplants, and donations that may be presented.El Jardín Botánico Universitario Jorge Enrique Quintero Arenas fue creado con la misión de conservar el ecosistema de bosque seco y, los tipos de vegetación y flora presentes del nororiente de Colombia. Desde las nuevas tecnologías que se puedan integrar sin afectar el medio ambiente y generar diversos cambios en la forma de aprendizaje, se proponen soluciones para el mejoramiento continuo, que al final se hace en pro de la sostenibilidad, calidad de vida y un jardín botánico inteligente. Este artículo, tiene como objetivo mostrar los aspectos del modelado 3D a partir de lo desarrollado en un proyecto anterior sobre una aplicación móvil. Con el ánimo de innovar en dicha APP y lograr una aplicación más interactiva con el usuario se desarrollaron unas funcionalidades donde se implementa la realidad aumentada como tecnología que permitirá llevar la virtualidad a la realidad donde los usuarios podrán ampliar los conocimientos sobre las plantas objeto de estudio del jardín botánico con material multimedia. En el proceso de desarrollo y basados en el aplicativo móvil existente para el vivero inteligente, se plantea las funcionalidades bajo el siguiente esquema, se analiza la imagen grabada por la cámara del celular en busca de un patrón gráfico el cual para nuestro caso se utilizó el código QR existente en cada una de las plantas objeto de estudio, por parte de los investigadores del vivero, el mismo utilizado para la administración de las diferentes intervenciones que se le realizan a cada una de las plantas. Gracias a ese código QR el administrador fácilmente puede identificar la hoja de vida que cada planta agilizando trabajos del día a día como control de plagas, seguimientos a muertes, trasplantes, donaciones que se pueden presentar

ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAS IN THE ROOTS OF AFZELIA AFRICANA, ENTADA AFRICANA, AND PTEROCARPUS ERINACEUS

Afzelia africana, Entada africana, and Pterocarpus erinaceus are economically important tropical tree species in Africa. In this study, we performed morphological and molecular analyses to examine the mycorrhizal status of these species in their natural habitat in Benin, West Africa. Fine roots were examined using trypan blue staining. Putative arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) were identified by extracting root DNA and sequencing the large subunit region of ribosomal DNA. Operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were positioned on a consensus phylogenetic tree produced using maximum likelihood and neighbor-joining models. Morphological analyses revealed vesicles, arbuscules, and inter- and intracellular hyphae in roots of all three tree species. Molecular analyses revealed 39 AMF OTUs, among which 18 were from roots of E. africana, 15 from P. erinaceus, and 9 from A. africana. These OTUs belonged to Glomus, Nanoglomus, Rhizoglomus, Sclerocystis, Septoglomus, and Scutellospora; two unidentified species belonged to the family Glomeraceae. This is the first study to report AMF in roots of A. africana, E. africana, and P. erinaceus in Benin, and opens new avenues for future studies.Peer reviewe

LEVANTAMENTO FLORÍSTICO COMO FERRAMENTA PARA A CRIAÇÃO DE UM JARDIM BOTÂNICO

Botanic gardens play important roles in biological conservation, botanic and environmental education worldwide. The floristic survey of the Jayme Coelho de Moraes Arboretum of the Centro de Ciências Agrárias of the Universidade Federal da Paraíba, in the city of Areia, was carried out with the objective of evaluating its floristic potential and subsidizing its recovery for the creation of a botanical garden. Random walks were carried out weekly from March to November 2017, during which botanical samples were collected to identify the species. A total of 278 species of seed plants belonging to 236 genera and 83 families were identified. The families with the highest number of species were Fabaceae, Asteraceae, Solanaceae and Araceae. The species recorded were distributed in eight habits: 84 are trees, 33 shrubs, 19 sub-shrubs, 97 herbs, 29 climbers, eight epiphytes, five hemiepiphytes and three hemiparasites. The Arboretum flora presented 103 native species shared with the flora of the Parque Estadual Mata do Pau-Ferro, possibly due to the proximity between the two areas, indicating a recolonization of native species of the region in the study area. Most (69%) of the recorded species occur in more than one Brazilian phytogeographic domain and 7% occur only in the Atlantic Forest domain. Of the species analyzed, 53 are exotic to Brazil and 27 are invasive or potentially invasive. It is suggested that exotic species be evaluated for their potential for the objectives of a botanical garden in the area and that eradication or control actions of invasive species be performed in order to maintain the integrity of the native species of the region. The Jayme Coelho de Moraes Arboretum has a high number of native species and a great diversity of habits, being an area with potential for the creation of a botanical garden, which will contribute to botanical and environmental education, research and conservation of native flora of region.Os jardins botânicos exercem funções importantes na conservação biológica, ensino e educação ambiental no mundo inteiro. O levantamento florístico do Arboreto Jayme Coelho de Moraes do Centro de Ciências Agrárias da Universidade Federal da Paraíba, no município de Areia, foi realizado com o objetivo de se avaliar o seu potencial florístico e subsidiar a sua recuperação para a criação de um jardim botânico. Foram realizadas caminhadas aleatórias semanalmente de março a novembro de 2017, durante as quais foram coletadas amostras botânicas para a identificação das espécies. Foram identificadas 278 espécies de plantas com sementes, pertencentes a 236 gêneros e 83 famílias. As famílias com maior número de espécies foram Fabaceae, Asteraceae, Solanaceae e Araceae. As espécies registradas distribuíram-se em oito hábitos: 84 são arbóreas, 33 arbustivas, 19 subarbustivas, 97 herbáceas, 29 trepadeiras, oito epífitas, cinco hemiepífitas e três hemiparasitas. A flora do Arboreto apresentou 103 espécies nativas compartilhadas com a flora do Parque Estadual Mata do Pau-Ferro, possivelmente devido à proximidade entre as duas áreas, indicando uma recolonização de espécies nativas da região na área do estudo. A maioria (69%) das espécies registradas ocorre em mais de um domínio fitogeográfico brasileiro e 7% ocorre apenas no domínio Mata Atlântica. Das espécies analisadas, 53 são exóticas ao Brasil e 27 são invasoras ou potencialmente invasoras. Sugere-se que as espécies exóticas sejam avaliadas quanto ao seu potencial para os objetivos de um jardim botânico na área e que ações de erradicação ou controle das espécies invasoras sejam realizadas, a fim de se manter a integridade das espécies nativas da região. O Arboreto Jayme Coelho de Moraes apresentou um elevado número de espécies nativas e grande diversidade de hábitos, sendo uma área com potencial para a criação de um jardim botânico, o qual contribuirá para a educação ambiental e botânica, a pesquisa e a conservação da flora nativa da região

A pecuária de corte no Paraná – desenvolvimento, caracterização e o papel das pastagens

Esta revisão procura analisar, para o caso do estado do Paraná, Brasil, o desenvolvimento  e as características da pecuária de corte, bem como a distribuição, o papel e o potencial produtivo das pastagens. As alterações nas áreas de pastagens são discutidas. A pecuária de corte no Paraná está baseada quase que no uso  exclusivo de pastagens utilizadas sob pastejo. O clima no estado é o determinante para a ampla adaptação e a maior utilização de gramíneas que crescem nas estações da primavera e verão. As gramíneas forrageiras, além de prover alimento (pasto, feno, silagem) para a indústria bovina,  apresentam importante papel paisagístico, na manutenção da flora campestre e na conservação do solo e da vida selvagem. O potencial de produção animal de forrageiras de verão e de inverno utilizadas de modo intensivo é alto. Muitas pesquisas com pastagens devem ainda ser realizadas. O reconhecimento do papel e do potencial das pastagens é de suma importância para o desenvolvimento da pecuária de corte desse estado do Brasil

ABQ Free Press, July 1, 2015

https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/abq_free_press/1030/thumbnail.jp

Brazilian Flora 2020: Leveraging the power of a collaborative scientific network

The shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiver sity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxo nomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world’s known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world’s most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend be yond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still un equally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the coun try. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora.Fil: Gomes da Silva, Janaina. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro: Rio de Janeiro, BrasilFil: Filardi, Fabiana L.R. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Barbosa, María Regina de V. Universidade Federal da Paraíba: Joao Pessoa; BrasilFil: Baumgratz, José Fernando Andrade. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: de Mattos Bicudo, Carlos Eduardo. Instituto de Botânica. Núcleo de Pesquisa em Ecologia; BrasilFil: Cavalcanti, Taciana. Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária Recursos Genéticos e Biotecnologia; BrasilFil: Coelho, Marcus. Prefeitura Municipal de Campinas; BrasilFil: Ferreira da Costa, Andrea. Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Museu Nacional. Department of Botany; BrasilFil: Costa, Denise. Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botanico do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Dalcin, Eduardo C. Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden Research Institute; BrasilFil: Labiak, Paulo. Universidade Federal do Parana; BrasilFil: Cavalcante de Lima, Haroldo. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Lohmann, Lucia. Universidade de São Paulo; BrasilFil: Maia, Leonor. Universidade Federal de Pernambuco; BrasilFil: Mansano, Vidal de Freitas. Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro; Brasil. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Menezes, Mariângela. Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Museu Nacional. Department of Botany; BrasilFil: Morim, Marli. Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Moura, Carlos Wallace do Nascimento. Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana. Department of Biological Science; BrasilFil: Lughadha, Eimear NIck. Royal Botanic Gardens; Reino UnidoFil: Peralta, Denilson. Instituto de Pesquisas Ambientais; BrazilFil: Prado, Jefferson. Instituto de Pesquisas Ambientais; BrasilFil: Roque, Nádia. Universidade Federal da Bahia; BrasilFil: Stehmann, Joao. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: da Silva Sylvestre, Lana. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Trierveiler-Pereira, Larissa. Universidade Estadual de Maringá. Departamento de Análises Clínicas e Biomedicina; BrasilFil: Walter, Bruno Machado Teles. EMBRAPA Cenargen Brasília; BrasilFil: Zimbrão, Geraldo. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Forzza, Rafaela C. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Morales, Matías. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Morón. Facultad de Agronomía y Ciencias Agroalimentarias; Argentin