Brazilian battlers' housing. Histories of self-production - histories of social rise

Brazilian battlers’ housing discusses the self-production of dwellings in the circumstances of the socioeconomic rise of the so-called Brazilian new middle class, occurred on the first decade of the years 2000. Battlers are a precarious working class of about 100 million people, who have used their recently increased purchase power to informally solve their private housing demands, planning, building and renovating their homes themselves, with limited technical knowledge and almost no access to formal technicians as for example architects. The result is a mode of housing production, which spreads over the territory in micro-local self-initiatives and informal social practices of construction and management. With the support of a controversial manpower, this practice presents all sorts of technical complications, but at the same time expedient ways of affordability and creative spatial solutions for ordinary constructive problems. Such initiatives have consolidated Brazilian informal settlements and peripheral subdivisions, attending a demand poorly responded by the government. This research recognises the benefits of the self-production, but questions the conditions under which it happens and asks if it really collaborates for a true social rise of those who are engaged in it. With an empirical and qualitative approach and taking dwelling construction processes leaded by battlers as main information sources, the academic work responds if and how the socioeconomic rise of the Brazilian battlers has exactly affected the self-production of dwellings. For that, battlers’ self-production of dwellings is analysed and discussed in five main aspects: 1) acquisition of land and real state, 2) building overtime, 3) space and creative power, 4) technical complications and building materials and 5) manpower and know-how

The effectiveness of the Internal Control System as a regulatory element in Public Pension Expenses for Accountabilty

This article used theorists to reinforce data on the effectiveness of the Internal Control System as an instrument that regulates public pension expenditure for Accountabilty. This topic allows the understanding of the importance of internal control as a practice that helps in the quality and results of an organization, because Accountability represents the obligation of accountability for the performance of a work from the responsibility of a delegated authority. How much and how the Internal Control System can assist the manager in decisions? The general objective is to analyze the effectiveness of the internal control system in order to serve pension institutions more effectively. The methodology was bibliographic, exploring magazines and websites, besides the Brazilian legislation; the data collection was carried out at the Public Servants Welfare Institute of the State of Rondônia (IPERON). It was possible to conclude that it is necessary for IPERON\u27s Internal Control Sector to develop its activities according to its mission and vision so that qualitative results have priorities

Study of the Applicability of the Restriction Theory and the Value Stream Mapping in the Management of Processes of the Legal Practice Nucleus of a Law Faculty in Rondônia, Brazil

This article aims to discuss, based on the researcher’s observation during the years 2017 to 2019, about the flow of lawsuits from a Legal Practice Nucleus of a law faculty, in the city of Porto Velho, Rondônia, Brazil, highlighting the lawsuits of the family court, because these processes need urgency and usually take time in the elaboration of their pieces. This research will present a study on how the Value Stream Mapping and the Restriction Theory help to decrease or eliminate time losses in the process of this NPJ. For the development, used an analytical literature review methodology on the Restriction Theory and Value Stream Mapping. The research subjects were the agents involved in the activities of the NPJ and the data collected by the participant’s observation method

Hybrid Adaptive Computational Intelligence-based Multisensor Data Fusion applied to real-time UAV autonomous navigation

Nowadays, there is a remarkable world trend in employing UAVs and drones for diverse applications. The main reasons are that they may cost fractions of manned aircraft and avoid the exposure of human lives to risks. Nevertheless, they depend on positioning systems that may be vulnerable. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that these systems are as accurate as possible, aiming to improve the navigation. In pursuit of this end, conventional Data Fusion techniques can be employed. However, its computational cost may be prohibitive due to the low payload of some UAVs. This paper proposes a Multisensor Data Fusion application based on Hybrid Adaptive Computational Intelligence - the cascaded use of Fuzzy C-Means Clustering (FCM) and Adaptive-Network-Based Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) algorithms - that have been shown able to improve the accuracy of current positioning estimation systems for real-time UAV autonomous navigation. In addition, the proposed methodology outperformed two other Computational Intelligence techniques

Lysine-based surfactants in nanovesicle formulations: the role of cationic charge position and hydrophobicity in in vitro cytotoxicity and intracellular delivery

Understanding nanomaterial interactions within cells is of increasing importance for assessing their toxicity and cellular transport. Here, we developed nanovesicles containing bioactive cationic lysine-based amphiphiles, and assessed whether these cationic compounds increase the likelihood of intracellular delivery and modulate toxicity. We found different cytotoxic responses among the formulations, depending on surfactant, cell line and endpoint assayed. The induction of mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress and apoptosis were the general mechanisms underlying cytotoxicity. Fluorescence microscopy analysis demonstrated that nanovesicles were internalized by HeLa cells, and evidenced that their ability to release endocytosed materials into cell cytoplasm depends on the structural parameters of amphiphiles. The cationic charge position and hydrophobicity of surfactants determine the nanovesicle interactions within the cell and, thus, the resulting toxicity and intracellular behavior after cell uptake of the nanomaterial. The insights into some toxicity mechanisms of these new nanomaterials contribute to reducing the uncertainty surrounding their potential health hazards

Health promoting potential of herbal teas and tinctures from Artemisia campestris subsp maritima: from traditional remedies to prospective products

This work explored the biotechnological potential of the medicinal halophyte Artemisia campestris subsp. maritima (dune wormwood) as a source of health promoting commodities. For that purpose, infusions, decoctions and tinctures were prepared from roots and aerial-organs and evaluated for in vitro antioxidant, anti-diabetic and tyrosinase-inhibitory potential, and also for polyphenolic and mineral contents and toxicity. The dune wormwood extracts had high polyphenolic content and several phenolics were identified by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array-mass-spectrometry (UHPLC-PDA-MS). The main compounds were quinic, chlorogenic and caffeic acids, coumarin sulfates and dicaffeoylquinic acids; several of the identified phytoconstituents are here firstly reported in this A. campestris subspecies. Results obtained with this plant's extracts point to nutritional applications as mineral supplementary source, safe for human consumption, as suggested by the moderate to low toxicity of the extracts towards mammalian cell lines. The dune wormwood extracts had in general high antioxidant activity and also the capacity to inhibit a-glucosidase and tyrosinase. In summary, dune wormwood extracts are a significant source of polyphenolic and mineral constituents, antioxidants and a-glucosidase and tyrosinase inhibitors, and thus, relevant for different commercial segments like the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and/or food industries.FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology [CCMAR/Multi/04326/2013]; Portuguese National Budget; FCT [IF/00049/2012, SFRH/BD/94407/2013]; Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) [12M8315N]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The use of the Nursing Activities Score in clinical settings: an integrative review

ABSTRACT Objective analyze how studies have approached the results obtained from the application of the Nursing Activities Score (NAS) based on Donabedian’s model of healthcare organization and delivery. Method CINAHL and PubMed databases were searched for papers published between 2003 and March 2015. Results 36 articles that met the inclusion criteria were reviewed and double-coded by three independent coders and analyzed based on the three elements of Donabedian’s health care quality framework: structure, process and outcome. The most frequently addressed, but not always tested, variables were those that fell into the structure category. Conclusion variables that fell into the process category were used less frequently. Beside NAS, the most frequently used variables in the outcome category were mortality and length of stay. However, no study used a quality framework for healthcare or NAS to evaluate costs, and it is recommended that further research should explore this approach

β-alanine supplementation improves in-vivo fresh and fatigued skeletal muscle relaxation speed

Purpose: In fresh muscle, supplementation with the rate-limiting precursor of carnosine, β-alanine (BA), results in a decline in muscle half-relaxation time (HRT) potentially via alterations to calcium (Ca2+) handling. Accumulation of hydrogen cation (H+) has been shown to impact Ca2+ signalling during muscular contraction, carnosine has the potential to serve as a cytoplasmic regulator of Ca2+ and H+ coupling, since it binds to both ions. The present study examined the effect of BA supplementation on intrinsic in-vivo isometric knee extensor force production and muscle contractility in both fresh and fatigued human skeletal muscle assessed during voluntary and electrically evoked (nerve and superficial muscle stimulation) contractions. Methods: Twenty-three males completed two experimental sessions, pre- and post- 28 day supplementation with 6.4 g.day−1 of BA (n=12) or placebo (PLA; n=11). Isometric force was recorded during a series of voluntary and electrically evoked knee extensor contractions. Results: BA supplementation had no effect on voluntary or electrically  evoked isometric force production, or twitch electromechanical delay and time-to-peak tension. There was a significant decline in muscle HRT in fresh and fatigued muscle conditions  during both resting (3±13%; 19±26%) and potentiated (1±15%; 2±20%) twitch contractions. Conclusions: The mechanism for reduced HRT in fresh and fatigued skeletal muscle following BA supplementation is unclear. Due to the importance of muscle relaxation on total energy consumption, especially during short, repeated contractions, BA supplementation may prove to be beneficial in minimising contractile slowing induced by fatigue. Trial registration The trial is registered with Clinicaltrials.gov, ID number NCT02819505