A phylogeny of the tinamous (Aves: Palaeognathiformes) based on integumentary characters

A cladistic analysis of the tinamous, including the 47 currently recognized species and some distinct subspecies, was conducted based on 80 integumentary characters from adult and natal plumage, ramphoteca (corneum sheath of bill), and podoteca (horny scales of legs). For the adult plumage (50 characters), we studied feather pigmentation patterns from different pterylae (feather tracts). A criterion of overlap of basic pigmentation elements was used to assign costs to the transformation between the states in most of these characters in such a way that transformations between more similar conditions were less costly. The consensus tree was almost fully resolved, and about 50% of its groups were relatively well supported. Because the only outgroup that could be used provided a poor root, two possible rootings of the ingroup subtree were considered; in both cases, only one of the two traditional subfamilies (the steppe tinamous) was recovered, and the other (the forest tinamous) appeared as paraphyletic. The results of the present analysis are compared with those from an osteological data set, using a strict supertree technique. The combined tree has a large number of nodes, indicating a high degree of congruence between the two data sets.Fil: Bertelli, Sara Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - Tucumán. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Giannini, Norberto Pedro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - Tucumán. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Goloboff, Pablo Augusto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - Tucumán. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Instituto Superior de Entomología; Argentin

Walter Burle Marx\u27s cello concerto

Abstract Brazilian pianist, conductor, and composer Walter Burle Marx (1902-1990) is an important musical personality from Brazil whose works and contributions to the introduction of Latin American concert music throughout the world have yet to be fully recognized. In addition to providing a brief biography of Walter Burle Marx, this monograph focuses on his Violoncello Concerto. The concerto is dated 1984, and dedicated to his cellist daughter, Madalena. It was premiered in July 18th, 2006 by cellist Dennis Parker in Brasília (Brazil), with the Orquestra Sinfônica do Teatro Nacional, conducted by João Guilherme Ripper. I was introduced to this piece when the LSU Orchestra performed it in 2009 while I was in my first year at this institution as a DMA candidate. My cello Professor, Dennis Parker, played the work, and I had the privilege of being part of the orchestra on this occasion. The writing for the cello is virtuosic, the orchestration brilliant and creative; the themes and lines are based on the principles of counterpoint, and as a whole the piece has a well-founded formal organization. This monograph analyzes the piece and discusses its most important compositional and stylistic characteristics. The Violoncello Concerto is still largely unknown by audiences around the world; however, a first recording is forthcoming, with the LSU Symphony, Carlos Riazuelo conducting, and Dennis Parker as soloist

Restauração ecológica em campos invadidos por Urochloa decubens nos campos sulinos

Ecossistemas campestres encontram-se fortemente impactados por conversão de hábitat e por espécies exóticas invasoras. É necessário restaurar os ecossistemas campestres ao redor do globo. Entretanto, para os ecossistemas campestres brasileiros há poucas experiências de restauração e precisamos testar a viabilidade de técnicas normalmente empregadas em outros lugares. O objetivo deste estudo foi testar diferentes combinações de técnicas para restauração de campos invadidos por Urochloa decumbens nos Campos Sulinos, sul do Brasil. Combinaram-se duas técnicas de controle da espécie invasora (aplicação de herbicida e remoção superficial de solo) e duas técnicas de introdução de espécies nativas (transposição de feno e semeadura direta). Foram estabelecidos oito blocos em um experimento bifatorial no Morro Santana, Porto Alegre, combinando dois fatores e cada um com três tratamentos (duas técnicas mais o controle). A cobertura de vários grupos de espécies, riqueza de espécies e composição de espécies foram avaliadas por análises de variância, e então também por análise de coordenadas principais. Adicionalmente, a relação entre a cobertura da invasora e das espécies nativas foi investigada. As técnicas de controle da invasora mostraram-se eficientes tanto na redução da cobertura da espécie, como em permitir a entrada de espécies nativas na comunidade. Comparando as duas técnicas, aplicação de herbicida pareceu ser melhor do que a remoção superficial de solo, pois parcelas que tiveram a aplicação tiveram menor cobertura da invasora e maior riqueza de espécies. Já as técnicas de introdução de espécies mostraram-se insuficientes para adicionar espécies nativas na comunidade para competir com U. decumbens. Padrões de composição de espécies diferiram entre os tratamentos. Técnicas de controle do invasor diferiram grandemente do seu controle, que foi dominado por U. decumbens. Uma clara relação existe entre a cobertura da invasora e a presença e cobertura de espécies nativas. Então o controle da espécie invasora é fundamental para uma maior recuperação da vegetação. Entretanto, os resultados aqui apresentados correspondem a apenas oito meses após a finalização da implementação do experimento, e ações futuras de manejo na área deverão combinar novamente o controle da invasora com introdução de espécies nativas.Grasslands ecosystems are strongly impacted by land use and invasive species. It is necessary restore these ecosystems around the world. However, there are few experiences with ecological restoration for the Brazilian grasslands and we need to test the viability of techniques normally used in others grasslands ecosystems. The aim of this study was to test different combinations of techniques to the ecological restoration of grasslands invaded by Urochloa decumbens in Campos, Southern Brazil. We combine two techniques to control the invasive species (herbicide application and topsoil removal) and two techniques to introduce native species (hay transfer and direct sowing). We established nine blocks in a bi-factorial experiment on Morro Santana, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, combining two factors and each one with three treatments (two techniques plus the control). The coverage of various groups of species, species richness, and species composition were evaluated by variance analyses, and the later also by a principal ordination analysis. Additionally, the relation between invader coverage and native species was investigated. Both techniques to control invasive species have shown to be efficient to reduce the coverage of the invasive species, as well as to allow the arrival of native species. Specifically comparing them, the herbicide application seems to be a better treatment than the topsoil removal, once plots with herbicide had lower invasive species coverage and higher species richness. However, the species introduction techniques failed efficiently to add native species to the community composition and to compete with U. decumbens. Species composition patterns differed among the treatments. The invader control techniques greatly differed from their control, which was dominated by U. decumbens. A clear relationship exists between the invader coverage and the presence and coverage of native species. Thus, the control of the invasive species is fundamental to further vegetation recovery. Nevertheless, results here presented correspond to just eight months from the experiment implantation and future monitoring and management actions on the area should combine once more the control of the invasive species and the introduction of native species

The Terminal Value (TV) Performing in Firm Valuation: The Gap of Literature and Research Agenda

The uncertainty about the future of firms must be modeled and incorporated in the valuation of enterprises outside the explicit period of analysis, i.e., in the continuing or terminal value (TV). There is a multiplicity of factors that influence the TV of firms which are not being considered within current evaluation models. This aspect leads to the incurring of unrecoverable errors, thus leading to values of goodwill or bad will far away from the substantial value of intrinsic assets. As a consequence, the evaluation results will be presented markedly different from market values. There is no consensus in the scientific community about the method of computation of the TV as a forecast in an infinite horizon. The size of the terminal, or non-explicit period, assumed as infinite, is never called into question by scientific literature, or the probability of business bankruptcy. This paper aims to promote a study of the existing literature on the TV, to highlight the fragility of the evaluation models of companies that have been used by the academic community and by financial analysts, and to point out lines for future research to minimize these errors.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Determinants Of Firm Terminal Value: The Perspective Of North American And European Financial Analysts

Company valuation models attempt to estimate the value of a company in two stages: (1) comprising of a period of explicit analysis and (2) based on unlimited production period of cash flows obtained through a mathematical approach of perpetuity, which is the terminal value. In general, these models, whether they belong to the Dividend Discount Model (DDM), the Discount Cash Flow (DCF), or RIM (Residual Income Models) group, discount one attribute (dividends, free cash flow, or results) to a given discount rate. This discount rate, obtained in most cases by the CAPM (Capital asset pricing model) or APT (Arbitrage pricing theory) allows including in the analysis the cost of invested capital based on the risk taking of the attributes. However, one cannot ignore that the second stage of valuation that is usually 53-80% of the company value (Berkman et al., 1998) and is loaded with uncertainties. In this context, particular attention is needed to estimate the value of this portion of the company, under penalty of the assessment producing a high level of error. Mindful of this concern, this study sought to collect the perception of European and North American financial analysts on the key features of the company that they believe contribute most to its value. For this feat, we used a survey with closed answers. From the analysis of 123 valid responses using factor analysis, the authors conclude that there is great importance attached (1) to the life expectancy of the company, (2) to liquidity and operating performance, (3) to innovation and ability to allocate resources to R&D, and (4) to management capacity and capital structure, in determining the value of a company or business in long term. These results contribute to our belief that we can formulate a model for valuating companies and businesses where the results to be obtained in the evaluations are as close as possible to those found in the stock marketinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Gene expression rearrangements denoting changes in the biological state

In many situations, the gene expression signature is a unique marker of the biological state. We study the modification of the gene expression distribution function when the biological state of a system experiences a change. This change may be the result of a selective pressure, as in the Long Term Evolution Experiment with E. Coli populations, or the progression to Alzheimer disease in aged brains, or the progression from a normal tissue to the cancer state. The first two cases seem to belong to a class of transitions, where the initial and final states are relatively close to each other, and the distribution function for the differential expressions is short ranged, with a tail of only a few dozens of strongly varying genes. In the latter case, cancer, the initial and final states are far apart and separated by a low-fitness barrier. The distribution function shows a very heavy tail, with thousands of silenced and over-expressed genes. We characterize the biological states by means of their principal component representations, and the expression distribution functions by their maximal and minimal differential expression values and the exponents of the Pareto laws describing the tails

Multi-particle production in the Color Glass Condensate

In this thesis, we review the framework of multi-particle production in high energy collisions within the Color Glass Condensate effective theory. The main goal of this work is to provide a systematic basis for performing analysis on particle correlation both in proton-proton, pp, and in proton-nucleus, pA, scatterings such as those studied at the LHC or RHIC. We provide the basic aspects of the high energy, or small-x, limit of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) and we introduce the Color Glass Condensate (CGC). We provide the technical approach for studying particle production in high energy collisions at leading order in the QCD coupling constant. We review the phenomenon of particle correlation that has been seen in pp and pA collisions and we explain it from first principles within the CGC framework. On the other hand, based on [38], we generalize the usual approach for analyzing particle production at leading order within the CGC framework to the case in which an arbitrary number of particles are produced. We introduce and study the so-called Area Enhancement model which offers a simple alternative for evaluating high order Wilson lines correlators. We mimic the Gaussian ansatz of the Wigner distribution approach for studying multi-particle correlations but we break the usual factorization assumption. We compute the 4-particle cumulant, c2{4}, and we obtain a negative value which agrees qualitatively with data. Finally, based on [45,46], we introduce sub-eikonal corrections to the dilute-dilute, or Glasma Graph, limit of the CGC by including finite width effects. We study the effects of non-eikonal corrections in single, double and triple gluon production. We see that the sub-eikonal effects introduces an asymmetry in the azimuthal distribution of gluons and therefore is able to explain the appearance of odd azimuthal harmonics in data. We perform a numerical study of the non-eikonal effects and see that they are negligible at relatively high energies. We generalize our approach to the dilute-dense limit, which is more suitable for pA collisions, by introducing the dense medium propagator, analogously to the jet quenching framework. We introduce a systematic approach for computing multigluon production in proton-nucleus collisions beyond the eikonal accuracy. We study the odd azimuthal harmonics generated in this approach

Exploring the cross-cultural effect on consumer-brand relationship and engagement through social media platforms: the Kerastase example

The current dissertation aims to understand the impact of the cross-cultural effect on consumer-brand relationship and engagement through social media platforms. A netnography analysis was conducted concerning the interactions between the selected brand - the luxury brand Kérastase - and the respective online brand community on the Social Networking Site Facebook, during a specific period of time defined, in four different countries. The content gathering from this netnography methodology took place on the online brand community defined, and it allowed the compilation of a total of 1,547 interactions. Kérastase community members’ interactions were analysed considering these brand’s publications from January 2016 to August 2018. Our research findings revealed that all Kérastase Online Business Communities demonstrated a similar level of engagement towards the brand Social Network Site pages and seem to behave in an identical way. Notably, all countries consumers were shown to be particularly motivated by the brand overall posted content, thus suggesting a good digital marketing strategy. This research also shows that for a Luxury Brand such as Kérastase, information seeking, and people referral, emerge as the two most dominant reasons for the consumers to engage with the brand demonstrating a positive attachment. On the other hand, the less positive commentaries were related to some country operational aspects such as (new e-commerce channel, lack of product, etc). The results presented show that Companies using Facebook should look to increase the level of engagement by (1) preparing clear engagement strategies, (2) focusing on the delivery of relevant brand-related information, and (3) using people referrals on the comment sections to build a CRM data able to feed a VIP Club and create an affiliates. Despite the outcomes of the current research as well as the contributions it provides, there are some limitations that have to be considered such as a sample magnitude restricted, a limited number of Countries and social platform. In addition, this study did not a longitudinal evaluation. Acknowledging these limitations referred, the future studies should then consider them for the purpose of analysis.A presente dissertação tem como objetivo compreender e medir o impacto dos valores culturais e influência na relação entre o consumidor e as marcas nas redes sociais. Primeiramente foi realizada uma análise netnográfica com objetivo de avaliar as interações entre a marca selecionada - a marca de luxo Kérastase - e a respectiva comunidade na rede social Facebook, em quatro países diferentes, durante um período de tempo definido. A recolha de conteúdos incidiu no processo de netnografia, que ocorreu nas comunidades online das marca definida e permitiu compilar um total de 1.547 interações. As interações dos membros da comunidade Kérastase foram analisadas considerando as publicações de janeiro de 2016 a agosto de 2018. Os resultados do estudo revelaram que de uma forma geral os consumidores Kérastase apresentaram um nível semelhante de envolvimento e apresentaram um comportamento similar. Notavelmente, todos os consumidores mostraram estar familiarizados com o conteúdo partilhado pela marca, o que revela uma boa estratégia de marketing digital. Este estudo mostra também que os consumidores estão claramente interessados em receber conteúdo da marca e partilhar esse mesmo conteúdo. Por outro lado, os comentários menos positivos estavam relacionados com algumas questões mais operacionais do país específico (um novo canal de e-commerce, falta de produto, etc). Os resultados apresentados mostram que as empresas que usam o Facebook devem aumentar o nível de envolvimento com os seus consumidores (1) através de estratégias de conteúdo, (2) partilha de informação relevante relacionada com a marca e (3) construir uma Base de Dados dos consumidores que mais interagem com a marca de forma a criar um Clube restrito, onde se encaixam os melhores clientes e um programa de afiliados. O presente estudo apresenta algumas limitações uma vez que se baseia numa amostra de consumidores não muito extensa, tendo em conta que teve como análise alguns países e foi utilizada numa rede social. Para além disso, este estudo não considerou uma avaliação longitudinal. Assim e reconhecendo as limitações referidas, os próximos desenvolvimentos na área deverão aproveitar estas lacunas