Vapor de Água na Atmosfera: do efeito estufa às mudanças climáticas

Uma molecula de agua interage tanto com a radiacao solar quanto com a radiacao de onda longa emitida pela superficie do nosso planeta. Se nao fosse por essa absorcao, que responde por 2/3 do efeito estufa natural e mantem a atmosfera e a superficie aquecidas, o clima nao seria como conhecemos hoje e possivelmente nao haveria vida na Terra. A presenca do vapor de agua no sistema climatico tambem possibilita um eficiente transporte vertical de energia da superficie para a troposfera, modificando o perfil de temperatura atraves das trocas de calor envolvidas nas mudancas de fase ao se formar uma nuvem. As nuvens, por sua vez, cobrem 2/3 do ceu, e sua interacao com a radiacao solar aumenta o albedo planetario de 15% para 30%, mas ao mesmo tempo tambem absorvem radiacao infravermelha que de outro modo seria perdida para o espaco. Neste artigo, iremos mostrar que, para continuar avancando no entendimento do clima e das mudancas climaticas, temos que continuar avancando nosso entendimento dos processos que envolvem o vapor de agua e as nuvens na nossa atmosfera.A water molecule interacts with both solar and longwave radiation emitted by Earth’s surface. Were it not for such absorption, which accounts for 2/3 of the natural greenhouse effect and keeps the atmosphere and surface warm, climate would not be as we know it today and possible life would not be possible on Earth. The presence of water vapor in the climate system also allows for an efficient vertical transport of energy from the surface to the troposphere, modifying the vertical profile of temperature through the heat exchanges involved in the phase changes of water to form a cloud. On their turn, clouds cover 2/3 of the sky – and their interaction with solar radiation increases the planetary albedo from 15 to 30% − whereas they also trap infrared radiation that would otherwise be lost to space. In this article we will show that if we are to keep advancing our understanding of climate and climate change, we have to keep advancing our understanding of the roles water vapor and clouds play in our atmosphere

Robotic Tankette for Intelligent BioEnergy Agriculture: Design, Development and Field Tests

In recent years, the use of robots in agriculture has been increasing mainly due to the high demand of productivity, precision and efficiency, which follow the climate change effects and world population growth. Unlike conventional agriculture, sugarcane farms are usually regions with dense vegetation, gigantic areas, and subjected to extreme weather conditions, such as intense heat, moisture and rain. TIBA - Tankette for Intelligent BioEnergy Agriculture - is the first result of an R&D project which strives to develop an autonomous mobile robotic system for carrying out a number of agricultural tasks in sugarcane fields. The proposed concept consists of a semi-autonomous, low-cost, dust and waterproof tankette-type vehicle, capable of infiltrating dense vegetation in plantation tunnels and carry several sensing systems, in order to perform mapping of hard-to-access areas and collecting samples. This paper presents an overview of the robot mechanical design, the embedded electronics and software architecture, and the construction of a first prototype. Preliminary results obtained in field tests validate the proposed conceptual design and bring about several challenges and potential applications for robot autonomous navigation, as well as to build a new prototype with additional functionality.Comment: 9 pages, 15 figure

Changes of the energetic profile in masters' swimmers over a season

The aim of this study was to track and compare the changes of performance and energetic profile of male and female masters swimmers during a season. Eleven female (age: 34.7±7.3-y) and fourteen male (age: 35.6±7.4-y) with 4.2±3.7-y and 3.9±1.6-y of experience in masters, respectively, performed an all-out 200 m freestyle to evaluate total energy expenditure (Etot), aerobic (Aer), anaerobic lactic (AnL) and alactic (AnAl) contributions. The oxygen uptake (VO2) was measured immediately after the 200 m trial and the VO2 reached during the trial was estimated through the backward extrapolation of the O2 recovery curve. Fingertip capillary blood samples were collected before the 200 m trial and 3, 5, and 7 minutes after its end. Significant differences were observed between male (TP1:177.50±30.96s; TP2:174.79±29.08s; TP3:171.21±22.38s) and female (TP1:205.18±24.47s; TP2: 197.45±20.97s; TP3: 193.45±18.12s) for 200 m freestyle performance at the three time periods (TPs). Male presented higher Etot in all TPs (TP1:230.40±48.40kJ; TP2:242.49±37.91kJ; TP3:257.94±46.32kJ) compared with that found for female swimmers (TP1:188.51±35.13kJ; TP2:193.18±20.98kJ; TP3:199.77±25.94kJ). Male presented higher AnL (TP1:33.42±6.82kJ; TP2:30.97±8.73kJ; TP3:30.66±8.27kJ) and AnAl (TP1:30.61±3.48kJ; TP2:30.61±3.48kJ; TP3:30.60±3.48kJ) than female (TP1:18.83±8.45kJ; TP2:14.98±4.17kJ; TP3:18.33±8.66kJ) and (TP1:24.32±2.22kJ; TP2:24.31±2.23kJ; TP3: 24.31±2.23kJ). Aerobic metabolism is the major contributor for Etot both in male (TP1:71.63±4.99%; TP2:74.05±5.03%; TP3:76.14±4.46%) and female swimmers (TP1:76.87±3.86%; TP2:79.40±3.63%; TP3:78.40±5.54%). The better performance obtained by male compared to female swimmers may be due to the different contributions of the energetic pathways. Aerobic metabolism was the major contributor to Etot in a 200 m race, in both genders. Partial aerobic contribution was higher in female, while partial anaerobic contribution was greater in male.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Does Warm-Up Have a Beneficial Effect on 100-m Freestyle?

To investigate the effect of warm-up on 100-m swimming performance. Twenty competitive swimmers (with a training frequency of 8.0 ± 1.0 sessions/wk) performed 2 maximal 100-m freestyle trials on separate days, with and without prior warm-up, in a counterbalanced and randomized design. The warm-up distance totaled 1000 m and replicated the swimmers' usual precompetition warm-up strategy. Performance (time), physiological (capillary blood lactate concentrations), psychophysiological (perceived exertion), and biomechanical variables (distance per stroke, stroke frequency, and stroke index) were assessed on both trials. Performance in the 100-m was fastest in the warm-up condition (67.15 ± 5.60 vs 68.10 ± 5.14 s; P = .01), although 3 swimmers swam faster without warm-up. Critical to this was the 1st 50-m lap (32.10 ± 2.59 vs 32.78 ± 2.33 s; P < .01), where the swimmers presented higher distance per stroke (2.06 ± 0.19 vs. 1.98 ± 0.16 m; P = .04) and swimming efficiency compared with the no-warm-up condition (stroke index 3.46 ± 0.53 vs 3.14 ± 0.44 m2 · c1 · s1; P < .01). Notwithstanding this better stroke-kinematic pattern, blood lactate concentrations and perceived exertion were similar between trials. These results suggest that swimmers' usual warm-up routines lead to faster 100-m freestyle swimming performance, a factor that appears to be related to better swimming efficiency in the 1st lap of the race. This study highlights the importance of performing swimming drills (for higher distance per stroke) before a maximal 100-m freestyle effort in similar groups of swimmers.UBI/FCSH/Santander/2010info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

13th FINA World Championships: analysis of swimsuits used by elite male swimmers

The purpose of this study was to describe the distribution of different swimsuits models used by male swimmers during all the finals at the 13th FINA World Championships, being held at Rome in 2009. Simultaneously, it was intended to verify the distribution of the different swimsuits used along the distances of the freestyle finals, and thus to understand the preferences of the top-level swimmers. It were used the results databases from the 13th FINA World Championships, in Rome 2009. Only the male swimmers participating at the finals were analyzed, for a total number of 17 individual swimming events. The wear swimsuit by each swimmer in a given event was observed from video recorded of the television broadcast. Male swimmers participating in the finals limited their choice to seven types of commercial swimsuits, of four different sports brands. Jaked01 Full® was the most used (47.07%), followed by the Powerskin X-Glide Full® (34.56%), the Powerskin X-Glide Pants® (7.35%) and the LZR Racer Full® (5.15%). In freestyle swimming events most of the male swimmers choose to wear full body swimsuits. Jaked01 Full® was predominant in the 50 m event, with 62.50% of swimmers choices. This value decreases to 25.00% when analyzing 100 m event, and remained similar over the longer distances swum. The Powerskin X-Glide Full® was used for 37.50% of the swimmers in 50 m swimming event, and it increases to 62.50% for the 100 m freestyle. These results seem to demonstrate that swimmers have preferences for full swimsuits, and for these two swimsuits, the Powerskin X-Glide Full® and the Jaked01 Full®

Effect of Gender, Energetics, and Biomechanics on Swimming Masters Performance

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of gender and energetics on biomechanics and performance of masters swimmers over 1 season. Twenty-five masters swimmers (14 male and 11 female) were assessed 3 times (TP1, TP2, and TP3) during a season (male personal record in 200-m freestyle event: 173.00 ± 31.41 seconds: female personal record in 200-m freestyle event: 200.73 ± 25.02 seconds). An incremental 5 × 200-m step test was selected to evaluate velocity at 4 mmol·l⁻¹ of blood lactate concentration (v4), maximal blood lactate concentration after exercise (La(peak)), maximal oxygen uptake (V̇O2max), stroke frequency, stroke length (SL), stroke index (SI), and propelling efficiency of the arm stroke (η(p)). The 200-m freestyle performance and average swimming velocity (v200) were also monitored. Significant differences were observed between males and females for the 200-m freestyle performance, SL, SI, and La(peak). Performance (205.18 ± 24.47 seconds; 197.45 ± 20.97 seconds; 193.45 ± 18.12 seconds), SL (1.69 ± 0.17 m; 1.79 ± 0.13 m; 1.78 ± 0.15 m), SI (1.68 ± 0.31 m²·c⁻¹·s⁻¹; 1.83 ± 0.27 m²·c⁻¹·s⁻¹; 1.85 ± 0.27 m²·c⁻¹·s⁻¹), η(p) (0.32 ± 0.04; 0.33 ± 0.03; 0.33 ± 0.04), and V̇O2max (38.71 ± 3.44 ml·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹; 43.43 ± 3.71 ml·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹; 43.95 ± 7.02 ml·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹) have changed significantly throughout the season (TP1, TP2, and TP3, respectively) in female swimmers. In male, significant changes were found in η(p) (0.33 ± 0.07; 0.36 ± 0.05; 0.36 ± 0.06) and V̇O2max (41.65 ± 7.30 ml·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹; 45.19 ± 6.55 ml·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹; 50.19 ± 9.65 ml·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹) over the season (TP1, TP2, and TP3, respectively). Gender presented a significant effect on SL (TP2: η(p)² = 0.29; TP3: η(p)² = 0.37), SI (TP2: η(p)² = 0.25), and La(peak) (TP3: η(p)² = 0.42). v4 (TP1: η(p)² = 0.23), SL (TP1: η(p)² = 0.46), SI (TP1: η(p)² = 0.78; TP2: η(p)² = 0.37; TP3: η(p)² = 0.32), and η(p) (TP1: η(p)² = 0.28) had a significant effect on performance. Male masters swimmers have better performance, SL, SI, and La(peak) than female counterparts. Female masters swimmers enhanced significantly the 200-m freestyle performance over the season due to the improvement in swimming technique (SL, SI, and η(p)) and energetic factors (v4 and V̇O2max). Nonsignificant improvements were observed for the males' performance. Gender has a significant effect on SL, SI, and La(peak). Therefore, performance is more dependent on technical factors than energetics.This work was supported by University of Beira Interior and Santander Totta bank (UBI/ FCSH/Santander/2010).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Optical and geometrical properties of cirrus clouds in Amazonia derived from 1 year of ground-based lidar measurements

Cirrus clouds cover a large fraction of tropical latitudes and play an important role in Earth's radiation budget. Their optical properties, altitude, vertical and horizontal coverage control their radiative forcing, and hence detailed cirrus measurements at different geographical locations are of utmost importance. Studies reporting cirrus properties over tropical rain forests like the Amazon, however, are scarce. Studies with satellite profilers do not give information on the diurnal cycle, and the satellite imagers do not report on the cloud vertical structure. At the same time, ground-based lidar studies are restricted to a few case studies. In this paper, we derive the first comprehensive statistics of optical and geometrical properties of upper-tropospheric cirrus clouds in Amazonia. We used 1 year (July 2011 to June 2012) of ground-based lidar atmospheric observations north of Manaus, Brazil. This dataset was processed by an automatic cloud detection and optical properties retrieval algorithm. Uppertropospheric cirrus clouds were observed more frequently than reported previously for tropical regions. The frequency of occurrence was found to be as high as 88% during the wet season and not lower than 50% during the dry season. The diurnal cycle shows a minimum around local noon and maximum during late afternoon, associated with the diurnal cycle of precipitation. The mean values of cirrus cloud top and base heights, cloud thickness, and cloud optical depth were 14.3 +/- 1.9 (SD) km, 12.9 +/- 2.2 km, 1.4 +/- 1.1 km, and 0.25 +/- 0.46, respectively. Cirrus clouds were found at tem-peratures down to 90 degrees C. Frequently cirrus were observed within the tropical tropopause layer (TTL), which are likely associated to slow mesoscale uplifting or to the remnants of overshooting convection. The vertical distribution was not uniform, and thin and subvisible cirrus occurred more frequently closer to the tropopause. The mean lidar ratio was 23.3 +/- 8.0 sr. However, for subvisible cirrus clouds a bimodal distribution with a secondary peak at about 44 sr was found suggesting a mixed composition. A dependence of the lidar ratio with cloud temperature (altitude) was not found, indicating that the clouds are vertically well mixed. The frequency of occurrence of cirrus clouds classified as subvisible (tau 0 : 3). Hence, in central Amazonia not only a high frequency of cirrus clouds occurs, but also a large fraction of subvisible cirrus clouds. This high frequency of subvisible cirrus clouds may contaminate aerosol optical depth measured by sun photometers and satellite sensors to an unknown extent.CNPq fellowship programCAPES project on the program Science without FrontiersSAVERNET projectFAPESP Research Program on Global Climate ChangeUniv Sao Paulo, Inst Phys, Dept Appl Phys, Sao Paulo, SP, BrazilMeteorol Inst Cuba, Atmospher Opt Grp Camaguey, Camaguey, CubaUniv Magallanes, Atmospher Res Lab, Punta Arenas, ChileLeibniz Inst Tropospher Res TROPOS, Leipzig, GermanyUniv Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Environm Sci, Diadema, SP, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Environm Sci, Diadema, SP, BrazilCAPES: A016_2013FAPESP Research Program on Global Climate Change: 2008/58100-1FAPESP Research Program on Global Climate Change: 2009/15235-8FAPESP Research Program on Global Climate Change: 2012/16100-1FAPESP Research Program on Global Climate Change: 2013/50510-5FAPESP Research Program on Global Climate Change: 2013/05014-0Web of Scienc

EPIDEMIOLOGICAL PROFILE OF ARBOVIROSIS IN THE STATE OF MARANHÃO: DENGUE FROM 2010 TO 2020

Dengue is an arbovirus considered a growing problem in relation to public health worldwide. With this, the objective of this work is to describe, in a retrospective and analytical way, the epidemiological profile and the spatial distribution of dengue cases in the state of Maranhão between the years 2010 to 2020. This quantitative and retrospective study used secondary data provided by the State Department of Health (SES-MA) of confirmed and notified cases of the disease in a time frame between 2010 and 2020. In addition, geoprocessing techniques were also used to spatialize the data. The results indicate that there were oscillations in relation to confirmed and reported cases throughout this period in the state, especially in the north and southwest regions. Thus, Maranhão reveals a critical state in relation to the occurrence of the disease, which is possibly associated with environmental factors, infrastructure and lack of public policies related to basic sanitation.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio