Managing migration: the Brazilian case

The objective of this paper is to present the Brazilian migration experience and its relationship with migration management. The article is divided into three parts. First, it reviews some basic facts regarding Brazilian immigration and emigration processes. Second, it focuses on some policy and legal issues related to migration. Finally, it addresses five issues regarding migration management in Brazil.international migration, immigration, emigration, migration management, migration policies, migration laws, Brazil

The Voltage Sensor of Excitation-Contraction Coupling in Skeletal Muscle. Ion Dependence and Selectivity

Manifestations of excitation-contraction (EC) coupling of skeletal muscle were studied in the presence of metal ions of the alkaline and alkaline-earth groups in the extracellular medium. Single cut fibers of frog skeletal muscle were voltage clamped in a double Vaseline gap apparatus, and intramembrane charge movement and myoplasmic Ca2+ transients were simultaneously measured. In metal-free extracellular media both charge movement of the charge 1 type and Ca transients were suppressed. Under metal-free conditions the nonlinear charge distribution was the same in depolarized (holding potential of 0 mV) and normally polarized fibers (holding potentials between -80 and -90 mV). The manifestations of EC coupling recovered when ions of groups Ia and IIa of the periodic table were included in the extracellular solution; the extent of recovery depended on the ion species. These results are consistent with the idea that the voltage sensor of EC coupling has a binding site for metal cations--the priming site--that is essential for function. A state model of the voltage sensor in which metal ligands bind preferentially to the priming site when the sensor is in noninactivated states accounts for the results. This theory was used to derive the relative affinities of the various ions for the priming site from the magnitude of the EC coupling response. The selectivity sequence thus constructed is: Ca greater than Sr greater than Mg greater than Ba for group IIa cations and Li greater than Na greater than K greater than Rb greater than Cs for group Ia. Ca2+, the most effective of all ions tested, was 1,500-fold more effective than Na+. This selectivity sequence is qualitatively and quantitatively similar to that of the intrapore binding sites of the L-type cardiac Ca channel. This provides further evidence of molecular similarity between the voltage sensor and Ca channels

Les trois crises du Venezuela de Nicolás Maduro

Les Etudes du CERI - n° 207-208 - Opalc - décembre 2014 9 Lors de son dernier discours prononcé le 8 décembre 2012, avant de partir se faire soigner à Cuba, Hugo Chávez avait nommé comme successeur son ministre des Affaires étrangères, Nicolás Maduro. Sa mort le 8 mars 2013 à Caracas a activé une clause constitutionnelle permettant qu’une nouvelle élection soit tenue. Le 12 avril 2013, Maduro l’a emporté d’une courte tête (50,6 % des voix) contre Henrique Capriles. Si cette victoire étriquée l’a affaibli politiquement, les élections locales du 8 décembre 2013 l’ont quelque peu conforté. Passé le cap de cette épreuve électorale, et un an après le décès du leader historique de la révolution bolivarienne, Maduro a vu ses capacités à gouverner mises à l’épreuve en 2014 par une triple crise économique, sociale et politique. Le coût social de la détérioration de la conjoncture économique a provoqué des manifestations qui ont pris de court le président et ses adversaires (dans son propre camp et dans l’opposition). Le premier a tenté de prendre des mesures d’ajustement de l’économie tandis que ses opposants en ont profité pour tenter de modifier les rapports de force en leur faveur et d’infléchir les politiques économiques..

Chronique d’une défaite annoncée : la crise économique vénézuélienne et les élections parlementaires du 6 décembre 2015

L’histoire politique récente du Venezuela peut être lue comme une composition en contrepoint entre une économie en déliquescence et un parti au pouvoir trop faible pour la réformer. Condition sine qua non à la survie électorale du Parti socialiste uni du Venezuela (PSUV), l’union des forces chavistes a été obtenue au lendemain de la mort de Chávez au prix d’un attentisme préjudiciable. La mauvaise situation économique du pays depuis 2013 a particulièrement affecté le gouvernement Chávez qui a dû faire face à un manque de liquidités en dollars à partir de janvier 2013, aggravé en 2015 par la chute du prix du pétrole. Son inaction sur le plan économique s’est traduite par la première réelle défaite électorale du PSUV aux élections parlementaires du 6 décembre 2015..

Estudo exploratório do perfil ocupacional no setor agropecuário brasileiro.

Para fins de classificação e registro de empregos e relações de trabalho, a estrutura ocupacional do setor agropecuário no Brasil distingue produtores de trabalhadores, em função da natureza das atividades executadas por cada um dos grupos de ocupações agrícolas. Entretanto, é possível que se observe um conjunto de atividades que são desenvolvidas, independente do tipo de cultura ou criação e da posição na qual o indivíduo se encontre na estrutura ocupacional. Portanto, o objetivo deste trabalho é analisar quais são as áreas de atividades que são comuns e as específicas de cada grupo ocupacional do setor agropecuário brasileiro. O estudo baseou-se no inventário de atividades de 28 grupos ocupacionais do setor agropecuário realizado no âmbito da CBO/MTE e que utilizou uma metodologia na qual os próprios trabalhadores descrevem as atividades que desenvolvem no seu dia a dia (método DACUM), construindo uma matriz detalhando grandes áreas de atividades. A análise indica que é possível elaborar uma síntese das atividades dos dois subgrupos - pecuária e agricultura. O estudo poderá iniciar uma agenda de pesquisa, com base nas informações sobre ocupações agropecuárias geradas com a atualização da CBO. Estudos mais aprofundados poderão subsidiar a formulação de políticas de qualificação profissional para o setor.estrutura ocupacional; setor agropecuário

Pobreza, migrações e pandemias

The objective of this paper is to combine three topics - international migration, poverty, and pandemics - in the context of public policy formulation at the national level. I revise the literature and put together historical evidence. First of all, I discuss international migration; second, I emphasize the role of geography, development, and poverty; and finally I argue about pandemics. The three topics are brought together at the concluding remarks. Regarding international migration, I point to the importance of internal regulation of the Brazilian emigration process and bilateral agreements. In the case of poverty, the regional perspective points to the limits of external help, the role of good institutions, and the importance of investments in health. In terms of pandemics, international cooperation helps prevent and battle epidemics.migration; poverty; pandemics

Mother's or teacher's education? Educational stratification and grade progression in Brazil.

grade progression; education; hierarchical linear model; educational achievement; Brazil

Normalisation for Dynamic Pattern Calculi

The Pure Pattern Calculus (PPC) extends the lambda-calculus, as well as the family of algebraic pattern calculi, with first-class patterns; that is, patterns can be passed as arguments, evaluated and returned as results. The notion of matching failure of the PPC not only provides a mechanism to define functions by pattern matching on cases but also supplies PPC with parallel-or-like, non-sequential behaviour. Therefore, devising normalising strategies for PPC to obtain well-behaved implementations turns out to be challenging. This paper focuses on normalising reduction strategies for PPC. We define a (multistep) strategy and show that it is normalising. The strategy generalises the leftmost-outermost strategy for lambda-calculus and is strictly finer than parallel-outermost. The normalisation proof is based on the notion of necessary set of redexes, a generalisation of the notion of needed redex encompassing non-sequential reduction systems

Demographic Change and the Structure of Wages: A Demand-Theoretic Analysis for Brazil

With rapidly declining fertility and increased longevity the age structure of the labor force in developing countries has changed rapidly. Changing relative supply of workers by age group, and by educational attainment, can have profound effects on labor costs. Their impacts on earnings have been heavily studied in the United States but have received little attention in Asia and Latin America, where supply shocks are at least as large and have often proceeded less evenly across the economy. We use data on 502 local Brazilian labor markets from Censuses 1970-2000 to examine the extent of substitution among demographic groups as relative supply has changed. The results suggest that age-education groups are imperfect substitutes, so that larger age-education cohorts see depressed wage rates, particularly among more-educated groups. The extent of substitution has increased over time, so that the decreasing size of the least-skilled labor force today is barely raising its remaining members' wages.