Contemporary trends in Brazilian human resource management studies over the last decade (2001–2010)

In seeking to detail what is new in the lesser-known field of Brazilian Human Resource Management (HRM) research, this study analyzes 136 recent Brazilian HRM articles over the last decade from 2001 until 2010. Findings reveal that contemporary Brazilian HRM research contains: a wide range of HRM topics; the isomorphic use of some Western HRM themes; and case-based, descriptive methodologies using non-probability sampling. While the number of recently published Brazilian HRM studies has increased, such research seems ripe for further empirical and theoretical development. Our contributions to knowledge lie in: surfacing and classifying recent Brazilian HRM research trends and identifying potentially fruitful areas for future research. Implications for practitioners include the need to attract and retain expert staff, to use more localized pay and reward systems, and to assess the usefulness of HR interventions in the public sector

Multiple rearrangements in cryptic species of electric knifefish, Gymnotus carapo (Gymnotidae, Gymnotiformes) revealed by chromosome painting.

BACKGROUND: Gymnotus (Gymnotidae, Gymnotiformes) is the Neotropical electric fish genus with the largest geographic distribution and the largest number of species, 33 of which have been validated. The diploid number varies from 2n = 39-40 to 2n = 54. Recently we studied the karyotype of morphologically indistinguishable samples from five populations of G. carapo sensu stricto from the Eastern Amazon of Brazil. We found two cytotypes, 2n = 42 (30 M/SM + 12 ST/A) and 2n = 40 (34 M/SM + 6 ST/A) and we concluded that the differences between the two cryptic species are due to pericentric inversions and one tandem fusion. RESULTS: In this study we use for the first time, whole chromosome probes prepared by FACS of the Gymnotus carapo sensu strictu species, cytotype with 2n = 42. Using two color hybridizations we were able to distinguish pairs 1, 2, 3, 7, 9, 14, 16, 18, 19, 20 and 21. It was not possible to separate by FACS and distinguish each of the following chromosome pairs even with dual color FISH: {4,8}; {10,11}; {5,6,17}; {12,13,15}. The FISH probes were then used in chromosome painting experiments on metaphases of the 2n = 40 cytotype. While some chromosomes show conserved synteny, others are rearranged in different chromosomes. Eight syntenic associations were found. CONCLUSIONS: These results show that the karyotype differences between these cryptic species are greater than assumed by classical cytogenetics. These data reinforce the previous supposition that these two cytotypes are different species, despite the absence of morphological differences. Additionally, the homology of repetitive DNA between the two provides evidence of recent speciation.RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are

Innovative Metallic Microfluidic Device for Intensified Biodiesel Production

We present a strategy for intensified biodiesel production in a novel metallic microdevice. Additive manufacturing using Selective Laser Melting (SLM) was employed to build the metallic device consisting of multiple micro reactors monolithically integrated with multiple micro heat exchangers. This device allows high conversion rate of biodiesel production with concomitant use of the rejected heat from external source to enhance the reaction temperature and, thereby, its output. The biodiesel production was carried out using soybean oil, ethanol and NaOH as the catalyst. The influences of the reaction temperature and the residence time in the biodiesel production was examined. Biodiesel yield increased with the reaction temperature and a rate of conversion of 99.6% was achieved with a reactor residence time of less than 35 seconds. The work opens up a pathway to exploit waste heat to intensify biodiesel production and contribute significantly to global sustainability

Defining and quantifying frustration in the energy landscape: Applications to atomic and molecular clusters, biomolecules, jammed and glassy systems

The emergence of observable properties from the organisation of the underlying potential energy landscape is analysed, spanning a full range of complexity from self-organising to glassy and jammed systems. The examples include atomic and molecular clusters, a β-barrel protein, the GNNQQNY peptide dimer, and models of condensed matter that exhibit structural glass formation and jamming. We have considered measures based on several different properties, namely, the Shannon entropy, an equilibrium thermodynamic measure that uses a sample of local minima, and indices that require additional information about the connections between local minima in the form of transition states. A frustration index is defined that correlates directly with key properties that distinguish relaxation behaviour within this diverse set. The index uses the ratio of the energy barrier to the energy difference with reference to the global minimum. The contributions for each local minimum are weighted by the equilibrium occupation probabilities. Hence we obtain fundamental insight into the connections and distinctions between systems that cover the continuum from efficient structure-seekers to landscapes that exhibit broken ergodicity and rare event dynamics.We acknowledge the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, UK (EPSRC) for funding under Programme Grant No. EP/I001352/1 and the European Research Council (ERC)

Confiabilidad de un instrumento para clasificar al recién nacido de acuerdo con la complejidad de la atención

Na maioria das maternidades, a classificação, a avaliação e a definição da unidade a encaminhar o recém-nascido (RN) após o nascimento são realizadas pelo médico. A\ud avaliação ocorre na sala de parto considerando: peso ao nascer; idade gestacional;\ud condutas que definem quadro clínico e doença. Este estudo observacional teve\ud como objetivo avaliar a confiabilidade de um instrumento de classificação de RN. A pesquisa foi realizada no berçário de um hospital público, São Paulo. Nove enfermeiras\ud aplicaram o instrumento a 63 RN, sendo duas simultaneamente em cada um dos\ud cinco setores do berçário. Verificou-se que o nível de concordância Kappa entre as enfermeiras foi excelente para a maioria das áreas de cuidado (69,0%). Concluiu-se que houve consenso e concordância das enfermeiras quanto ao instrumento ser completo, de fácil entendimento e aplicável, porém despende muito tempo. As enfermeiras reconhecem a importância do instrumento para o dimensionamento dos profissionais, organização e planejamento do cuidado.In most maternity units, the physician classifies, evaluates, and determines which unit will receive the newborn (NB) after birth. Evaluation occurs in the delivery room, taking into consideration the following factors: birth weight, gestational age, and behaviors that define the clinical picture and disease. This observational study evaluates the reliability of an NB classification instrument. The study was conducted at the nursery of a public hospital in São Paulo. Nine nurses applied the instrument to 63 NB, with two of the nurses working simultaneously in each of the nursery’s fi ve sectors. The Kappa level of agreement among the nurses was found to be excellent for most care areas\ud (69.0%). It was concluded that there was a consensus and agreement among the\ud nurses that the instrument was complete, easy to understand and applicable, but was\ud very time consuming. The nurses recognize the instrument’s importance for the allocation of professionals, organization, and care planning.En la mayoría de las maternidades la clasificación, la evaluación y la definición de la unidad para referir el recién nacido (RN), son realizadas por el médico. La evaluación se realiza en la sala de parto, considerando: peso al nacer, edad gestacional y conductas que definen el cuadro clínico y la enfermedad. Este estudio observacional tuvo como objetivo evaluar la confiabilidad de un instrumento de clasificación del RN. Fue realizada en el servicio de neonatología de un hospital público en Sao Paulo. Nueve enfermeras\ud aplicaron el instrumento a 63 RN, siendo aplicados dos de forma simultánea en los cinco sectores de la unidad neonatal. El nivel de concordancia Kappa fue excelente para la mayoría de las áreas de atención (69,0%). Se concluyó que hubo consenso y\ud concordancia entre las enfermeras, quienes expresaron que el instrumento es completo, fácil de entender y de aplicar, pero se necesita mucho tempo. Las enfermeras reconocen la importancia de este instrumento para dimensionar el número de profesionales, la organización y la planificación de la atención

Acoustic signals in the sand fly Lutzomyia (Nyssomyia) intermedia (Diptera: Psychodidae)

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Acoustic signals are part of the courtship of many insects and they often act as species-specific signals that are important in the reproductive isolation of closely related species. Here we report the courtship songs of the sand fly <it>Lutzomyia (Nyssomyia) intermedia</it>, one of the main vectors of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Brazil.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>Recordings were performed using insects from three localities from Eastern Brazil: Posse and Jacarepaguá in Rio de Janeiro State and Corte de Pedra in Bahia State. The three areas have remnants of the Brazilian Atlantic forest, they are endemic for cutaneous leishmaniasis and <it>L. intermedia </it>is the predominant sand fly species. We observed that during courtship <it>L. intermedia </it>males from all populations produced pulse songs consisting of short trains. No significant differences in song parameters were observed between the males of the three localities.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p><it>L. intermedia </it>males produce acoustic signals as reported for some other sand flies such as the sibling species of the <it>Lutzomyia longipalpis </it>complex. The lack of differences between the males from the three localities is consistent with previous molecular studies of the <it>period </it>gene carried out in the same populations, reinforcing the idea that <it>L. intermedia </it>is not a species complex in the studied areas and that the three populations are likely to have similar vectorial capacities.</p

Bayesian inference in genetic parameter estimation of visual scores in Nellore beef-cattle

The aim of this study was to estimate the components of variance and genetic parameters for the visual scores which constitute the Morphological Evaluation System (MES), such as body structure (S), precocity (P) and musculature (M) in Nellore beef-cattle at the weaning and yearling stages, by using threshold Bayesian models. The information used for this was gleaned from visual scores of 5,407 animals evaluated at the weaning and 2,649 at the yearling stages. The genetic parameters for visual score traits were estimated through two-trait analysis, using the threshold animal model, with Bayesian statistics methodology and MTGSAM (Multiple Trait Gibbs Sampler for Animal Models) threshold software. Heritability estimates for S, P and M were 0.68, 0.65 and 0.62 (at weaning) and 0.44, 0.38 and 0.32 (at the yearling stage), respectively. Heritability estimates for S, P and M were found to be high, and so it is expected that these traits should respond favorably to direct selection. The visual scores evaluated at the weaning and yearling stages might be used in the composition of new selection indexes, as they presented sufficient genetic variability to promote genetic progress in such morphological traits