Investigating annual and monthly trends in precipitation structure: an overview across Portugal

This work investigates recent changes in precipitation patterns manifested in long annual and monthly precipitation time series recorded in Portugal. The dataset comprises records from 14 meteorological stations scattered over mainland Portugal and the Portuguese North Atlantic Islands of Madeira and Azores; some of the time series date back to the 19th century. The data were tested for trends using the Mann-Kendall non-parametric test and Sen's non-parametric method, searching both for full monotonic trends over the record period and for partial trends. Results provide no evidence for rejecting the null hypothesis of no trend in annual precipitation, when a monotonic linear model was used. Nevertheless, the analyses of 50 years' moving averages showed an increase over time, in the recent past, for many of the series in mainland Portugal and the Islands. For the longest time series this behaviour was preceded by a decrease over time. The analyses of partial trends in the time series suggested a sequence of alternately decreasing and increasing trends in annual and monthly precipitation, which are sometimes statistically significant. The trend changing points were identified

Numerical modeling of surface runoff and erosion due to moving rainstorms at the drainage basin scale

A physically-based distributed erosion model (MEFIDIS) was applied to evaluate the consequences of storm movement on runoff and erosion from the Alenquer basin in Portugal. Controlled soil flume laboratory experiments were also used to test the model. Nine synthetic circular storms were used, combining three storm diameters (0.5, 1 and 2 times the Alenquer basin's axial length) with three speeds of storm movement (0.5, 1 and 2 m/s); storm intensities were synthesized in order to maintain a constant rainfall depth of 50 mm. The model was applied to storms moving downstream as well as upstream along the basin's axis. In all tests, downstream-moving storms caused significantly higher peak runoff (56.5%) and net erosion (9.1%) than did upstream-moving storms. The consequences for peak runoff were amplified as the storm intensity increased. The hydrograph shapes were also different: for downstream-moving storms, runoff started later and the rising limb was steeper, whereas for upstream moving storms, runoff started early and the rising limb was less steep. Both laboratory and model simulations on the Alenquer basin showed that the direction of storm movement, especially in case of extreme rainfall events, significantly affected runoff and soil loss.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V6C-4K7WTYF-3/1/05f00859098982a6ae43cfee9cc48fe

Sociabilidade das especies florestais da caatinga em Santa Maria da Boa Vista,PE.

O trabalho foi executado na Fazenda Canaa, municipio de Santa Maria da Boa Vista, PE, com o objetivo de determinar o grau de afinidade entre as especies da caatinga e a importancia das mesmas, para fornecer subsidios tecnicos e eventuais programas de manejo, de formacao de povoamentos heterogeneos e de enriquecimento da comunidade vegetal com essencias de maior valor economico madeireiro. Avaliou-se a composicao floristica quanto a frequencia, densidade e dominancia. A similaridade entre as parcelas e a associacao de especies foram analisadas pelo Coeficiente de Jaccard. Os resultados obtidos permitiram concluir que a vegetacao e caracterizada pela presenca do angico (Anademanthera macrocarpa), jurema-preta (Mimosa hostilis), jurema-vermelha (Mimosa sp), manicoba-brava (Manihot sp) e pau-piranha (Pisonia sp), sendo essas especies mais frequents; o angico e a especie dominante, sendo a mais explorada. Rama-de-boi (Acacia piauhiensis) e espinheiro (Pithecellobium viridiflorium) apresentam alto indice de associacao, permitindo portanto aventar a possiblidade do seu uso em consorcio

Investigating the multifractality of point precipitation in the Madeira archipelago

The purpose of this work is to contribute to a better understanding of the variability of precipitation in the Madeira archipelago. This archipelago is located in the Atlantic subtropical belt under the direct influence of the Azores high pressure system. It is formed by Madeira Island (728 km<sup>2</sup>) and Porto Santo Island (42 km<sup>2</sup>) and by two other groups of very small inhabited islands. The complex topography of the islands in the Madeira archipelago and their small size play a crucial role in the local precipitation regime, which is marked by high spatial variability. <br></br> This paper explores the invariance of properties manifested across scales and determines the fractal and multifractal behaviour observed in the temporal structure of precipitation using daily and 10-min time series from several locations scattered over the main islands. The period covered by the precipitation records is 34 years for the daily data and almost 4 months for the 10-min data. The results show that the temporal structure of precipitation in the Madeira Archipelago exhibits scale-invariant and multifractal properties. The empirical exponent functions describing the scaling statistical properties of the precipitation intensity were characterized using multifractal parameters; these parameters are increasing our awareness of the dynamics of this process in these islands

Desempenho de cultivares de girassol (Helianthus annuus. L.) no Estado do Rio Grande do Norte.

Este trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar o comportamento produtivo de diversas cultivares de girassol. O ensaio foi instalado no Município de Canguaretama/RN no ano agrícola de 2007( 6º22 ? S, 35º 07? W, altitude de 5m, temperatura média anual de 25 ºC O solo é classificado como latossolo amarelo de textura arenosa. A precipitação ocorrida durante a condução do ensaio foi de 904,6 mm. O delineamento experimental foi blocos ao acaso, com quatro repetições. Fez-se uma adubação utilizando-se a fórmula: 60-80-60 kg/ha mais 2 kg/ha de boro.Os materiais avaliados mostraram-se precoces, com uma média de 39 dias para atingir o florescimento inicial. Os rendimentos médios de grãos das cultivares ficaram entre 1.356 kg/ha e 2.581 kg/ha, com média geral de 1.829 kg/ha.Três cultivares apresentaram rendimentos médios de grãos acima de 2.200 kg/ha, sobressaindo-se os materiais M 734, HLA 863 e GIRA 19 e com o teor de óleo superior a 42 %

Laboratory assessment of the influence of rice straw mulch size on soil loss

Application of crop residues (mulch) over the soil surface is a common practice to control soil erosion and promote infiltration. This laboratory study aimed at investigating the effect of different rice straw mulch sizes on runoff and sediment transport. The experimental runs were conducted using a soil flume of adjustable slope and a rainfall simulator, considering bare soil and three different soil covers: 1, 2 and 5&thinsp;t ha−1 application rates, for three sizes of rice straw mulch (10, 30 and 200&thinsp;mm). The experimental results showed that for the same mulch application rate (by weight), the smaller mulch sizes (i.e. high surface coverage percentage) presented less soil loss. For example, 90&thinsp;% soil loss reduction was achieved for smaller sizes of rice straw mulch and 80&thinsp;% for the bigger size. The results of this study are an important contribution to the understanding of the soil loss process in small basins and to the definition of relevant soil conservation measures, at the plot/field scale.</p

Pesos ao nascimento, a desmama e ao sobreano de animais Nelores e cruzados Canchim X Nelore.

Com o objetivo de avaliar o potencial da raça Canchim em cruzamentos, estudaram-se os pesos ao nascimento, a desmama e ao sobreano de bezerros Nelores e cruzados Canchim X Nelore, nascidos durante o período de 1987 a 1990 e criados em regime de pastagens na região Oeste do Estado de São Paulo.Resumo

Purificação de DNA plasmidial de Bacillus thuringiensis por ultracentrifugação em gradiente de cloreto de césio.

DNA plasmid. Bacillus thuringiensis e seus plasmídeos. Purificação de DNA plasmidial por ultracentrifugação em gradiente de cloreto de césio (CsCl). Estirpes utilizadas neste trabalho. Condições de crescimento e extração de DNA plasmidial. Preparo do DNA plasmidial e ultracentrifugação gradiente de CsCl. Identificação e coleta das bandas de interesse. Análise eletroforética. Bacillus thuringiensis é uma bacteria que sintetiza delta-endotoxinas letais para diferentes grupos de insetos, sendo a maior responsável pelo mercado ,mundial de bioinseticidas. As proteínas tóxicas são codificadas por genes denomonados cry, presentes em plasmídeos conjugativos com mais de 30 Mda, e que geralmente, são difíceis de serem purificados pelos métodos rotineiros de extração e purificação. O objetivo deste trabalho foi ajustar um metodologia para obtenção dos plasmídeos presentes nas estirpes de B. thuringiensis, a partir da técnica de ultracentrifugação em gradiente de cloreto de césio. Neste caso, foram usados como modelo as estirpes HD-1 e S76 da subespécies kurstaki. O método de lise alcalina e purificação em gradiente de cloreto de césio empregado, permitiu a obtenção de grandes quantidades de DNA plasmidial com alto grau de pureza. Foram realizadas adaptações no protocolo original que tornaram o protocolo utilizado para as estirpes HD-1 e S76 uma técnica menos laboriosa e mais rápida. Ainda houve redução significativa na quantidade de brometo de etídeo empregada e na quantidade de resíduos químicos sólidos contaminados com essa substância, extremamente tóxica, que foram usados no processo. O procedimento de purificação descrito fio um método adaptado para purificação dos pequenos e grandes plasmídeos de B. thuringiensis e foi usado com sucesso para as estirpes HD-2 e S76. Bacillus thuringiensis is a Gram positive bacterium that synthesizes delta-endotoxinas lethal to different groups of insects therefore has been the largest responsible for the worlf market of bioinseticidas. The toxic proteins are coded by genes denominated cry, persents in conjugatives plasmids with more than 30 Mda and that generally are difficult to be purified by the routine methods of extraction and purification. The objective of this work was to adjust the ultracentrifugation methodology in gradient of cesium chloride to obtain purified plasmids in HD-1 and S76 strains of B. thuringiensis subsp. Kurstaki. The procedure allwed to obtain great amounts of plasmids DNA from HD-1 and S76 strains with high degree of purity. In addition, it was less laborious and much faster. Besides, there was significant reduction in the amounts of ethidium bromide and of solid chemical residues contaminated with the toxic substance. The described protocol is a modification of a purification method for small and big plasmids of B. huringiensis strains and could be applied with sucess for strains the HD-1 and S76.bitstream/CNPAB-2010/32963/1/bot008.pdfPlasmid DNA purification of Bacillus thuringiensis by ultracentrifugation in cesium chloride gradient

Assessment on nutrient levels in the aerial biomass of irrigated guava in São Francisco Valley, Brazil.

A aplicação de fertilizantes em culturas perenes baseia-se na reposição das quantidades de nutrientes removidas pelos frutos, mas a imobilização de nutrientes deve ser também considerada. Assim, foram determinadas as concentrações de nutrientes nas folhas e nos frutos da goiabeira cv.Paluma, irrigada, em Petrolina-PE, bem como as quantidades de nutrientes removidas pelos frutos e pela poda de frutificação do ciclo seguinte. Entre os macronutrientes, o N e o K foram os mais removidos pelos frutos, enquanto o Fe , o Zn e Mn apresentaram maiores valores entre os micronutrientes. No mínimo, 60% das quantidades totais de N,P,K,Fe e B removidas pela poda estavam imobilizadas na folha e no fruto não-comerciável