Estudo da detecção da luz de fluorescência no âmbito da colaboração Auger

Orientador: Carola Dobrigkeit ChinellatoDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Instituto de Fisica "Gleb Wataghin"Resumo: O objetivo principal do Observatório Pierre Auger é estudar a direção de chegada e o espectro de energia dos raios cósmicos acima de 1019 eV como função da sua composição. Para tanto, serão utilizados detectores ópticos de fluorescência juntamente com uma rede de detectores de superfície. O presente trabalho contribui para um melhor entendimento dos processos envolvidos na detecção da luz de fluorescência, bem como para o aprimoramento dos programas de simulação por método de Monte Carlo desenvolvidos na Unicamp (C.A.Mo.Ca.) e no CBPF (FD Sim). Apresentamos um estudo comparativo sobre a atenuação da luz de fluorescência na atmosfera tratada segundo os modelos clássicos de espalhamentos Rayleigh e Mie e segundo o MODTRAN3. Também mostramos uma comparação entre as eficiências de detecção, para o Observatório Auger, estimadas com os dois programas, onde estudamos o parâmetro de impacto médio e a distribuição dos pontos de impacto dos eventos considerados detectados. É feito ainda um estudo utilizando o programa oficial da colaboração, o FD Sim, para mostrar o efeito do modelo de atenuação utilizado sobre o resultado final da simulação, isto é, sobre a eficiência prevista para o sistema de detecção.Além disso, comparamos a eficiência de detecção para os diversos arranjos de detectores de fluorescência atualmente em pauta para o sítio sul do Observatório Pierre AugerAbstract: The goal of the Auger Observatory is to study the arrival direction, energy and primary mass composition of cosmic rays above 1019 eV . It will be a hybrid detector, employing two complementary techniques to observe extensive airshowers: a giant array of particle counters and optical air uorescence detectors. The present work contributes towards a better understanding of the detection of air fluorescence light. It also contributes to the improvement of the Monte Carlo simulation programs developed at Unicamp (C.A.Mo.Ca.) and at CBPF (FD Sim). A comparison of atmospheric uorescence light attenuation is shown as given by MODTRAN3 and by classical attenuation losses due to Rayleigh and Mie scattering only. The detection efficiency for the Auger Observatory is estimated using both programs and we show the fluorescence detectors average impact parameter and the distribution of impact points for detected events. We study the uorescence detectors performance with both atmospheric attenuation models for vertical and slanted showers. We also compare the performances of the three configurations of uorescence and ground detectors under discussion for the southern siteMestradoFísicaMestre em Físic

Cirrus clouds observation in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul during the experiment Chuva - Sul.

Cirrus clouds are an interesting point in the research of the atmosphere due their behavior and the effect on the earth radiation budget. They can affect the atmospheric radiation budget by reflecting the incoming solar radiation and absorbing the outgoing terrestrial radiation. Also, this cloud type is involved in the dehydration of the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. So, it is interesting to increment the measurements of this type of clouds from the ground. During November and December 2012, through the CHUVA-SUL campaign, measurements with lidar in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul were conducted. The system installed in Santa Maria site (29.8 °S; 53.7 °W, 100 m asl) was a single elastic-backscatter lidar using the wavelength of 532 nm. Some days with cirrus clouds lidar measurements were detected. Four days with presence of cirrus cloud are showed in the present study. These days, 7, 8, 19 and 28 November 2012, was selected due the persistence of cirrus clouds over many hours. The raw retrieval lidar signals and inverted backscatter coefficient profiles were analyzed for the selected days. Base and top height was obtained by analysis of raw signal and backscatter coefficient. Extinction coefficient profiles were obtained by the assumption of the lidar ratio. Cirrus cloud optical depth (COD) values were calculated, from the integration of the extinction coefficient between the base and top altitudes of the cirrus clouds

Divulgação do risco operacional em corporações multinacionais bancárias: comparação entre subsidiárias brasileiras e matrizes estrangeiras

This work tries to verify the congruence level between the operational risk disclosure practices adopted by nine subsidiaries of multinational bank corporations that operate in Brazil and the operational risk disclosure practices adopted by the corresponding central offices in their countries of origin. The sample was selected based on the report ‘50 Maiores Bancos’ (50 Largest Banks), of the Central Bank of Brazil, December 2004. Data was collected from annual reports and other disclosure instruments from the years of 2003 and 2004. Content analysis was used and the elements of analysis were nine categories and eighteen sub-categories based on operational risk disclosure review. The Wilcoxon Test was used. It was verified that the congruence level between the operational risk disclosure adopted by central offices and their corresponding subsidiaries was of 29.63% in 2003 and 32.72% in 2004. The test result showed that the multinational bank corporations did not show differences between the 2003 and the 2004 congruence levels. In general, the results indicate that the operational risk disclosure practices that the subsidiaries adopted were different from the disclosure practices the corresponding foreign central offices adopted.Este trabalho busca verificar o grau de congruência entre a divulgação do risco operacional adotada por nove subsidiárias de corporações multinacionais bancárias que atuam no Brasil e a divulgação desse mesmo risco adotada pelas respectivas matrizes estrangeiras. O estudo é descritivo, contemplando revisão bibliográfica e pesquisa documental. Selecionou-se a amostra segundo relatório ’50 Maiores Bancos’, do Banco Central, de dezembro de 2004. Coletaram-se dados em relatórios anuais e outros instrumentos de divulgação, datas-base 2003 e 2004. Utilizou-se análise de conteúdo, baseado em nove categorias e dezoito subcategorias obtidas da revisão bibliográfica. Empregou-se o Teste de Wilcoxon. Verificou-se que o grau de congruência entre a divulgação da matriz e respectiva subsidiária foi 29,63% em 2003, e 32,72% em 2004. Não houve diferenças significativas entre os graus de congruência dos dois anos. Segundo esses resultados a divulgação do risco operacional adotada pelas subsidiárias foi diferente da divulgação adotada pelas respectivas matrizes estrangeiras

A permanent Raman lidar station in the Amazon: description, characterization, and first results

A permanent UV Raman lidar station, designed to perform continuous measurements of aerosols and water vapor and aiming to study and monitor the atmosphere from weather to climatic time scales, became operational in the central Amazon in July 2011. the automated data acquisition and internet monitoring enabled extended hours of daily measurements when compared to a manually operated instrument. This paper gives a technical description of the system, presents its experimental characterization and the algorithms used for obtaining the aerosol optical properties and identifying the cloud layers. Data from one week of measurements during the dry season of 2011 were analyzed as a mean to assess the overall system capability and performance. Both Klett and Raman inversions were successfully applied. A comparison of the aerosol optical depth from the lidar and from a co-located Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) sun photometer showed a correlation coefficient of 0.86. By combining nighttime measurements of the aerosol lidar ratio (50-65 sr), back-trajectory calculations and fire spots observed from satellites, we showed that observed particles originated from biomass burning. Cirrus clouds were observed in 60% of our measurements. Most of the time they were distributed into three layers between 11.5 and 13.4 km a. g. l. the systematic and long-term measurements being made by this new scientific facility have the potential to significantly improve our understanding of the climatic implications of the anthropogenic changes in aerosol concentrations over the pristine Amazonia.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Instituto Nacional de Ciencia e Tecnologia (INCT) - Mudancas ClimaticasConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Univ São Paulo, Inst Fis, BR-05508090 São Paulo, BrazilInst Meteorol Cuba, Ctr Meteorol Camaguey, Matanzas, CubaUNIFESP, Dept Ciencias Exatas & Terra, Diadema, SP, BrazilInst Nacl de Pesquisas da Amazonia, Manaus, AM, BrazilUniv Estado Amazonas, Manaus, AM, BrazilInst Fed Educ Ciencia & Tecnol São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilUNIFESP, Dept Ciencias Exatas & Terra, Diadema, SP, BrazilFAPESP: 2008/58100-1FAPESP: 2009/15235-8FAPESP: 2011/50170-4FAPESP: 2012/14437-9FAPESP: 2012/16100-1CNPq: 477575/2008-0CNPq: 475735/2012-9CNPq: 457843/2013-6Web of Scienc

Comparing properties of natural biogenic with biomass burning particles in Amazonia.

The Large Scale Biosphere Atmosphere Experiment in\ud Amazonia (LBA) is a long-term (20 years) research effort\ud aimed at the understanding of the functioning of the\ud Amazonian ecosystem. The strong biosphere-atmosphere\ud interaction is a key component of the ecosystem functioning.\ud Two aerosol components are the most visible: The natural\ud biogenic emissions of particles and VOCs, and the biomass\ud burning emissions.\ud Two aerosol and trace gases monitoring stations were\ud operated for 4 years in Manaus and Porto Velho, two very\ud distinct sites, with different land use change. Manaus is a very\ud clean and pristine site and Porto Velho is representative of\ud heavy land use change in Amazonia. Aerosol composition,\ud optical properties, size distribution, vertical profiling and\ud optical depth were measured from 2008 to 2012. Aerosol\ud radiative forcing was calculated over large areas. It was\ud observed that the natural biogenic aerosol has significant\ud absorption properties. Organic aerosol dominates the aerosol\ud mass with 80 to 95%. Light scattering and light absorption\ud shows an increase by factor of 10 from Manaus to Porto\ud Velho. Very few new particle formation events were\ud observed. Strong links between aerosols and VOC emissions\ud were observed. Aerosol radiative forcing in Rondonia shows\ud a high -15 watts/m² during the dry season of 2010, showing\ud the large impacts of aerosol loading in the Amazonian\ud ecosystem. The increase in diffuse radiation changes the\ud forest carbon uptake by 20 to 35%, a large increase in this\ud important ecosystem

Multi-Objective Optimization Techniques to Solve the Economic Emission Load Dispatch Problem Using Various Heuristic and Metaheuristic Algorithms

The main objective of thermoelectric power plants is to meet the power demand with the lowest fuel cost and emission levels of pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions, considering the operational restrictions of the power plant. Optimization techniques have been widely used to solve engineering problems as in this case with the objective of minimizing the cost and the pollution damages. Heuristic and metaheuristic algorithms have been extensively studied and used to successfully solve this multi-objective problem. This chapter, several optimization techniques (simulated annealing, ant lion, dragonfly, NSGA II, and differential evolution) are analyzed and their application to economic-emission load dispatch (EELD) is also discussed. In addition, a comparison of all approaches and its results are offered through a case study

LIBERDADE ACADÊMICA EM TEMPOS DIFÍCEIS: DIÁLOGOS BRASIL E ESTADOS UNIDOS

This paper intends to discuss the academic freedom, its role and its possible limits and borders, from the paradigm of the Democratic Constitutional State, as configured in our constitutional text of October 1988. The discussion focuses on the relationship between the critical and investigative role expected of the Universities and of its members in relation to the so-called legislative proposals of the Escola Sem Partido movement. Hence, it explores if these proposals do not offend the constitutional freedom of professors, students, technicians and researchers, in addition to the higher education institutions themselves, when subjects that gravitate around their roles and responsibilities are taken into account. For this purpose, keeping in mind our own constitutional context, we decided to use Comparative Law, focusing on decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States that deal with the same issue addressed here. The analysis indicates that academic freedom has an essential and constitutionally recognized role in the Constitutional Democracy.O artigo busca trabalhar a liberdade acadêmica, seu papel e seus possíveis limites e fronteiras, a partir do paradigma do Estado Democrático de Direito, como configurado em nosso texto constitucional de outubro de 1988. O enfoque se dá na relação entre o papel crítico e investigativo esperado das Universidades e de seus membros, diante das chamadas propostas legislativas do movimento Escola Sem Partido. Isto é, perguntamos se estas propostas não ofenderiam a liberdade constitucional de professores, alunos, técnicos e pesquisadores, além das próprias instituições de ensino superior, quanto a assuntos que gravitam em torno de suas funções e responsabilidades. Para este fim, sem olvidarmos de nosso próprio contexto constitucional, decidimos dialogar com o direito comparado, principalmente com o cenário estadunidense e certas decisões da Suprema Corte dos Estados Unidos que lidam com a mesma temática aqui abordada. Conclui-se que a liberdade acadêmica tem um papel essencial, constitucionalmente reconhecido, no Estado Democrático de Direito.

Health-related quality of life in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus in the different geographical regions of Brazil : data from the Brazilian Type 1 Diabetes Study Group

Background: In type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) management, enhancing health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is as important as good metabolic control and prevention of secondary complications. This study aims to evaluate possible regional differences in HRQoL, demographic features and clinical characteristics of patients with T1DM in Brazil, a country of continental proportions, as well as investigate which variables could influence the HRQoL of these individuals and contribute to these regional disparities. Methods: This was a retrospective, cross-sectional, multicenter study performed by the Brazilian Type 1 Diabetes Study Group (BrazDiab1SG), by analyzing EuroQol scores from 3005 participants with T1DM, in 28 public clinics, among all geographical regions of Brazil. Data on demography, economic status, chronic complications, glycemic control and lipid profile were also collected. Results: We have found that the North-Northeast region presents a higher index in the assessment of the overall health status (EQ-VAS) compared to the Southeast (74.6 ± 30 and 70.4 ± 19, respectively; p < 0.05). In addition, North- Northeast presented a lower frequency of self-reported anxiety-depression compared to all regions of the country (North-Northeast: 1.53 ± 0.6; Southeast: 1.65 ± 0.7; South: 1.72 ± 0.7; Midwest: 1.67 ± 0.7; p < 0.05). These findings could not be entirely explained by the HbA1c levels or the other variables examined. Conclusions: Our study points to the existence of additional factors not yet evaluated that could be determinant in the HRQoL of people with T1DM and contribute to these regional disparities

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio