Development and application of I_SUM : an index of sustainable urban mobility

This work describes the construction process of an Index of Sustainable Urban Mobility (I_SUM). Important aspects regarding its application as a mobility planning and management supporting tool are also discussed. The index is based on a hierarchy of criteria built essentially with data obtained from planners and technicians of eleven cities, what resulted in eighty-seven Indicators forming thirty-seven Themes, under nine Domains. Weights for the Themes and Domains were obtained through a panel of experts. A viability analysis of the index application was carried out in a city with around 220,000 inhabitants located in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The analysis of the results has shown that a significant number of indicators could be calculated in the short term and with good quality data in the studied city. The main conclusion drawn from the application was the confirmation that I_SUM is flexible enough to be applied not only in a developing country medium-sized city, but also in cities with diverse characteristics. It is important to highlight the fact that the tool also gives the opportunity to assess the relative contribution of any specific aspects of mobility to the Social, Economic, and Environmental dimensions of sustainability. That I_SUM feature can be used to help in the formulation of either integrated or stand-alone policies per sector aiming at the development of the sustainable urban mobility. Moreover, it can help in the public participation process due to the possibility of building up scenarios based on hypothetical changes of the indicator values

Sustainable urban mobility: a comparative study and the bases for a management system in Brazil and Portugal

There is a clear need for the implementation of sustainability principles and guidelines in urban areas, as well as for strategies for controlling the elements that shape the urban environment. As a consequence, indicators become essential tools in providing the knowledge and information required for understanding particular aspects and problems of the cities. Therefore, the main objective of this work was to identify indicators that are suitable for monitoring the urban mobility conditions of selected cities in Brazil and Portugal. The first step taken in order to reach that objective was the selection and analysis of mobility indicators extracted from several national and international experiences of sustainability indicators. Those indicators were organized under a framework of Categories and Themes and also submitted to the evaluation of groups of experts in both countries, in order to determine their relative importance for monitoring urban mobility conditions. The final outcome of the analysis was a common set of mobility indicators for Brazilian and Portuguese cities, in addition to a more complete list of indicators that could better serve each country in particular. © 2005 WIT Press.(undefined

Higher Order Asymptotics of Decaying Solutions of some Generalized Burgers Equations

We study the large-time behavior of solutions to a generalized Burgers Equation, with initial zero mass data. Our main purpose is to present a modified version of the Renormalization Group map, which is able to provide the higher order asymptotic properties of the solution to the Cauchy problem of a class of nonlinear time-evolution problems.Comment: 25 page

Development and characterization of an active chitosan-based film containing quercetin

This work aims at developing an active chitosan film through the incorporation of quercetin and the evaluation of physical and functional properties of the films made thereof. The addition of quercetin showed to influence films properties in terms of surface morphology, tensile strength, and opacity while elongation-at-break, thickness, water vapor, and oxygen permeability were not significantly affected with incorporation of quercetin. The color parameters of chitosan films were affected by quercetin incorporation with a decrease of the values of L* and a*. The film exhibited a high free-radical scavenging activity, showing antioxidant activity. The film-forming solutions of chitosan with or without quercetin showed antibacterial activity against four Gram-negative and three Gram-positive bacteria. These results showed that quercetin incorporation in chitosan-based films has potential to be used as a solution for active food packaging.Author Marthyna Pessoa de Souza thanks the Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES/PDEE-Brazil) and Fundacao de Amparo a Ciencia e Tecnologia do Estado de Pernambuco (FACEPE, Brazil) for fellowships. Miguel A. Cerqueira and Helder D. Silva (SFRH/BPD/72753/2010 and SFRH/BD/81288/2011, respectively) are recipients of a fellowship from the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (FCT, POPH-QREN and FSE Portugal). This research was financially supported by research grants and fellowships from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq), as well as the Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES) and Fundacao de Amparo a Ciencia e Tecnologia do Estado de Pernambuco (FACEPE). The authors also thank the FCT Strategic Project of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit, the project RECI/BBB-EBI/0179/2012 (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462), and the project "BioInd - Biotechnology and Bioengineering for improved Industrial and Agro-Food processes," REF. NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000028 Co-funded by the Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON. 2-O Novo Norte), QREN, FEDE

Schwinger multichannel method: A study of a Feshbach resonance in e-H_2 collisions

We present results of the application of the Schwinger multichannel method to study the role of Feshbach resonances on the elastic and electronic excitation cross sections in e-H_2 collisions. Using a ^2Σ_g^+2 resonance associated with the a ^3Σ^+_g and E^1Σ^+_g states of H_2 as an example, we quantitatively illustrate the dramatic influence of open channels on the decay of such Feshbach resonances in electron-molecule collisions

Impact of percentage and particle size of sugarcane biochar on the sorption behavior of clomazone in Red Latosol

Biochar is a carbonaceous material that has excellent potential as a fertilizer and soil conditioner. However, there is a lack of information concerning the effects of the amount and particle size of this pyrogenic material on the soil sorption capacity. In this work, evaluation was made of changes in clomazone (CMZ) sorption in a Red Latosol following soil conditioning using different percentages (0.25, 0.5, and 1% w/w) of sugarcane biochar in three particle sizes (<106, 106-508, and 508-610 μm). The conditioned soils presented apparent sorption coefficients (Kd) up to 1300 times higher than that of pure soil, besides changes in the behavior of CMZ sorption. The biochar particle size and percentage influenced sorption of the herbicide as well as its retention in the amended soil during desorption processes. Both sorption and desorption Freundlich constants were linearly correlated with the external surface area of the biochar present in the soil

The amygdala lesioning due to status epilepticus – Changes in mechanisms controlling chloride homeostasis

Objective: Amygdala has been demonstrated as one of the brain sites involved in the control of cardiorespiratory functioning. The structural and physiological alterations induced by epileptic activity are also present in the amygdala and reflect functional changes that may be directly associated with a sudden unexpected death. Seizures are always associated with neuronal damage and changes in the expression of cation-chloride cotransporters and Na/K pumps. In this study, the authors aimed to investigate if these changes are present in the amygdala after induction of status epilepticus with pilocarpine, which may be directly correlated with Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP). Methods: Pilocarpine-treated wistar rats&nbsp;60&nbsp;days after Status Epilepticus (SE) were compared with control rats. Amygdala nuclei of brain slices immunostained for NKCC1, KCC2 and α1-Na+/K+-ATPase, were quantified by optical densitometry. Results: The amygdaloid complex of the animals submitted to SE had no significant difference in the NKCC1 immunoreactivity, but KCC2 immunoreactivity reduced drastically in the peri-somatic sites and in the dendritic-like processes. The α1-Na+/K+-ATPase peri-somatic immunoreactivity was intense in the rats submitted to pilocarpine SE when compared with control rats. The pilocarpine SE also promoted intense GFAP staining, specifically in the basolateral and baso-medial nuclei with astrogliosis and cellular debris deposition. Interpretation: The findings revealed that SE induces lesion changes in the expression of KCC2 and α1-Na+/K+-ATPase meaning intense change in the chloride regulation in the amygdaloid complex. These changes may contribute to cardiorespiratory dysfunction leading to SUDEP

The Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire: Validity evidence from the Brazilian version.

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