Perceived barriers for healthy eating by university employees at the workplace

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

An evaluation of the somatosensory profile of hemiparetic individuals

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the somatosensory profile of 18 hemiparetic spastic victims of stroke with and without blocking vision. Maximal isometric contraction test was used for flexor and extensor muscles of the hip and knee, and flexor plantar muscles. The number of cycles per minute on stationary bike was also measured with eyes opened and closed. Significant differences were found suggesting the existence of miscommunication between sensory-motor neural mechanisms responsible for voluntary motor actions in these individuals

Ametryn leaching on Red-Yellow Latosol and Red-Yellow Ultisol with different pH values

Objetivou-se com este trabalho avaliar o potencial de lixiviação do ametryn num Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo e num Latossolo Vermelho-Amarelo utilizados com pastagens no Brasil, com diferentes valores de pH. Para isso, foram avaliados 120 tratamentos (quatro solos associados a três intensidades de chuva e 10 profundidades), em parcela subdividida no delineamento inteiramente casualizado, com três repetições. Colunas de PVC de 50 cm de comprimento por 10 cm de diâmetro foram preenchidas com os solos e umedecidas; em seguida, aplicou-se o herbicida e simularam-se chuvas no topo delas, nas intensidades especificadas de acordo com o tratamento. Após 72 horas, todas as colunas foram dispostas na posição horizontal e abertas longitudinalmente, coletando-se amostras dos solos a cada intervalo de 5 cm de profundidade, para posterior extração e quantificação do herbicida e análise por cromatografia líquida de alta eficiência - CLAE. Posteriormente, no restante das amostras de solo, semeou-se ao longo de cada coluna a espécie indicadora Cucumis sativus. Concluiu-se que solos com baixo teor de matéria orgânica e/ou pH mais elevado apresentaram maiores índices de lixiviação do ametryn. Além disso, o método do bioensaio foi mais eficiente na confirmação da lixiviação do ametryn em comparação à CLAE.The objective of this work was to evaluate ametryn leaching potential in soil used for pasture in Brazil (Red-Yellow Latosol (LVA) and Red-Yellow Ultisol (PVA)) with different pH values. Thus, 120 treatments were evaluated (four soils related to three rainfall intensities and 10 soil column depths). The experiments were arranged in a completely randomized design in split-plots and three replications. PVC columns of 10 cm diameter by 50 cm length were filled with the soil samples, moistened and placed upright for 48 hours to drain the excess water. The herbicide was applied and rainfall was simulated on top of the columns at intensities specified according to the treatment. After 72 hours, the columns were opened longitudinally, placed in a horizontal position and soil samples were collected at each 5 cm interval depth for posterior herbicide extraction and quantification by liquid chromatography (HPLC). The remaining soil columns were sown with the indicator species (Cucumis sativus) in the substrate along the opening to evaluate ametryn leaching. After 21days of emergence, evaluations were conducted to verify the intoxication symptoms caused by ametryn in the plants. It was concluded that soils with low organic matter content and/or higher pH showed higher ametryn leaching rates, and that the bioassay method was more efficient in confirming ametryn leaching than liquid chromatography

Axial sampling height outperforms site as predictor of wood trait variation

Covariation amongst wood traits along the stem axis is important to maintain hydraulic integrity ensuring sufficient sap flow to the canopy. Here, we test how wood traits (co)vary along the trunk and whether two seasonally dry Brazilian habitats (cerrado and caatinga) influence this variation in two co-occurring species, Tocoyena formosa (Rubiaceae) and Tabebuia aurea (Bignoniaceae). The samples were collected at five heights along the main trunk of three individuals per species in both sites. We used light, scanning and transmission electron microscopy to observe the wood traits. Out of 13 wood traits, nine show relationships with sampling height: eight traits predict height in T. formosa and five in T. aurea. Contrastingly, only three traits show differences between sites and only for T. formosa. The intratrunk wood variation is reflected by the hydraulically weighted vessel diameter showing a curvilinear relationship, disagreeing with the prediction of a continuous vessel widening from tip to base. In both species, the largest vessels are linked to the thinnest intervessel pit membranes. Wood density increases basipetally for both species, being site-dependent and correlated with vessel traits in T. formosa, and site-independent and determined by fiber wall thickness in T. aurea. Furthermore, the functional role of rays was found to be different for each species, and may be related to the marked difference in ray composition. In conclusion, both species show a unique adaptation to deal with height-related constraints using species-specific co-variation amongst wood traits, while site does not contribute much to the wood variation.Plant science

Fuchsian convex bodies: basics of Brunn--Minkowski theory

The hyperbolic space \H^d can be defined as a pseudo-sphere in the $(d+1)$ Minkowski space-time. In this paper, a Fuchsian group $\Gamma$ is a group of linear isometries of the Minkowski space such that \H^d/\Gamma is a compact manifold. We introduce Fuchsian convex bodies, which are closed convex sets in Minkowski space, globally invariant for the action of a Fuchsian group. A volume can be associated to each Fuchsian convex body, and, if the group is fixed, Minkowski addition behaves well. Then Fuchsian convex bodies can be studied in the same manner as convex bodies of Euclidean space in the classical Brunn--Minkowski theory. For example, support functions can be defined, as functions on a compact hyperbolic manifold instead of the sphere. The main result is the convexity of the associated volume (it is log concave in the classical setting). This implies analogs of Alexandrov--Fenchel and Brunn--Minkowski inequalities. Here the inequalities are reversed

Minimal model for aeolian sand dunes

We present a minimal model for the formation and migration of aeolian sand dunes. It combines a perturbative description of the turbulent wind velocity field above the dune with a continuum saltation model that allows for saturation transients in the sand flux. The latter are shown to provide the characteristic length scale. The model can explain the origin of important features of dunes, such as the formation of a slip face, the broken scale invariance, and the existence of a minimum dune size. It also predicts the longitudinal shape and aspect ratio of dunes and heaps, their migration velocity and shape relaxation dynamics. Although the minimal model employs non-local expressions for the wind shear stress as well as for the sand flux, it is simple enough to serve as a very efficient tool for analytical and numerical investigations and to open up the way to simulations of large scale desert topographies.Comment: 19 pages, 22 figure

Objective assessment of the cryoprotective effects of dimethylformamide for freezing goat semen

AbstractThe aim of this work was to assess the cryoprotective effects of dimethylformamide (DMF) for freezing goat semen, using an objective analysis by computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA). Twenty-one ejaculates (seven per animal) were collected from three stud bucks with the aid of an artificial vagina and immediately evaluated for gross and microscopic characteristics. The semen was diluted in two steps with a Tris–egg yolk extender containing 6% glycerol or 6% DMF, frozen in 0.50-mL straws, and stored in liquid nitrogen. Samples were accessed for sperm morphology, sperm membrane structural and functional integrity, and by CASA, immediately after thawing. There were differences (P<0.05) between glycerol and DMF with regard to subjective progressive motility (23.9±2.2% vs. 16.6±2.0%), objective progressive motility (3.5±0.4% vs. 1.8±0.3%), linearity (53.9±1.6% vs. 48.1±1.4%) and amplitude of lateral head (2.3±0.1 vs. 2.9±0.1mm), which confirmed the efficiency of glycerol. In conclusion, dimethylformamide could be used as an alternative cryoprotectant for goat semen freezing. However it was showed that no benefits were derived by using dimethylformamide to replace glycerol at an equal 6% concentration

Muon-spin-relaxation study of the magnetic penetration depth in MgB2

The magnetic vortex lattice (VL) of polycrystalline MgB2 has been investigated by transverse-field muon-spin-relaxation (TF-MuSR). The evolution of TF-MuSR depolarization rate, sigma, that is proportional to the second moment of the field distribution of the VL has been studied as a function of temperature and applied magnetic field. The low temperature value s exhibits a pronounced peak near Hext = 75 mT. This behavior is characteristic of strong pinning induced distortions of the VL which put into question the interpretation of the low-field TF-MuSR data in terms of the magnetic penetration depth lambda(T). An approximately constant value of sigma, such as expected for an ideal VL in the London-limit, is observed at higher fields of Hext > 0.4 T. The TF-MuSR data at Hext = 0.6 T are analyzed in terms of a two-gap model. We obtain values for the gap size of D1 = 6.0 meV (2D1/kBTc = 3.6), D2 = 2.6 meV (2D2/kBTc = 1.6), a comparable spectral weight of the two bands and a zero temperature value for the magnetic penetration depth of lambda = 100 nm. In addition, we performed MuSR-measurements in zero external field (ZF-MuSR). We obtain evidence that the muon site (at low temperature) is located on a ring surrounding the center of the boron hexagon. Muon diffusion sets in already at rather low temperature of T > 10 K. The nuclear magnetic moments can account for the observed relaxation rate and no evidence for electronic magnetic moments has been obtained.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure