The determinants of teacher effectiveness in Portuguese schools

This work project analyses the impact of teachers on student exam scores and the determinants of teacher effectiveness in Portuguese schools. The main findings are that teachers are an important component of student achievement and that unobservable characteristics explain most differences in teacher quality. Having a master’s degree has no impact on teacher quality. Unlike their female counterparts male teachers exhibit losses in their teaching effectiveness over the years. We also find positive and significant peer effects between teachers

Assessing troglomorphic and phylogenetically informative traits in troglobionts: a new cave-dwelling centipede illuminates the evolution of a soil-dwelling lineage (Chilopoda: Geophilidae)

Cave-dwelling species are of special interest in evolutionary biology, because (i) many share particular traits associated with the cave habitat (troglomorphic traits), and (ii) some represent relict lineages that may conserve ancestral traits or possibly transitional traits, which may provide insights into the evolution of other highly derived species. However, these different kinds of characters are hard to assess thoroughly in troglobionts belonging to little known terrestrial arthropod groups. We describe a new species of centipedes from the Areias System caves, Brazil, namely, Plutogeophilus jurupariquibaba gen.n. sp.n., which adds to the few putative troglobionts known among Chilopoda Geophilomorpha. We analyzed a suite of characters in the light of a phylogenetic analysis and by direct comparison with epigean relatives, controlling for interindividual variation and its confounding sources. We found that: (i) troglomorphic traits of P. jurupariquibaba may include large body, elongate antennae, elongate legs and claws, and possibly also elongate setae and large coxal pores; (ii) the cave-dwelling Plutogeophilus is the sister lineage of the soil-dwelling Macronicophilus, whose morphology is highly derived and whose phylogenetic position remained unclear; (iii) compared with other extant geophilids, symplesiomorphic traits and apparently intermediate traits found in Plutogeophilus provide insights on the origin of the morphology of Macronicophilus, suggesting a stepwise modification of labrum, forcipular apparatus and ultimate legs, and the derivation of the unique rounded and spiny tip of the second maxillae from a pointed claw

Trickle-bed CFD studies in the catalytic wet oxidation of phenolic acids

An Euler-Euler computational fluid model was developed successfully for the hydrodynamic prediction of a trickle-bed reactor (TBR) designed for advanced wastewater treatment facilities. Catalytic wet air oxidation of phenolic acids was simulated in a TBR by means of computational fluid dynamic (CFD) in the temperature range and pressures . The hydrodynamic model validation was accomplished through the comparison of simulated pressure drop and liquid holdup with experimental data from the literature. In a broad range of gas and liquid flows studied (G=0.10-0.70 and ) at different operation conditions, CFD demonstrated the considerable effect of operating pressure in pressure drop, whereas a minor influence was detected for the liquid holdup. CFD runs were then performed for the catalytic wet air oxidation of aqueous phenolic acids solution. The reactor behaviour was analysed by means of total organic carbon profiles which reflected the influence of temperature, pressure, gas-liquid flows and initial pollutant concentration.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TFK-4PPMXS0-1/1/2dabed7df5e98dfd85f3fef6ef64782

Turbulence modelling of multiphase flow in high-pressure trickle-bed reactors

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TFK-4VB01VS-7/2/7dcce0ca6c1ed57a847371407b038f1

Occurrence of anurans in brazilian caves

Brazil has the greatest diversity of anurans and also one of the greatest speleological patrimonies in the world. However, informations about anurans in Brazilian caves including different biomes and lithologies are scarce. This study sampled 223 caves divided into different biomes (Amazon, Atlantic Forest, Caatinga, Cerrado and transition area) and lithologies (Conglomerate, Granite, Iron-ore, Limestone, Marble, Quartzite, and Sandstone) distributed in eleven Brazilian states. To determine the anuran composition (presence/absence), a single sampling event was conducted in each cave by a team of three researchers in the period 1999−2011, following acoustic and visual search methods. We recorded 54 species distributed 18 genera and 11 families. The caves in the Amazon biome had the highest number of species, followed by caves present in the Cerrado, Caatinga, transition area (Atlantic Forest and Cerrado) and the Atlantic Forest. The caves in the Iron-ore lithology had the highest number of species, followed by the Limestone, Sandstone, Quartzite, Granite, Marble and Conglomerate caves. The anurans proved to be very diverse in Brazilian caves, with this high species richness related to the large amount of biomes and lithologies sampled. The family Leiuperidae had the highest richness and the species Scinax fuscovarius the highest frequency of occurrence in the caves. Also recorded were tadpoles and immature forms inside caves suggesting that not all the species are accidental, and that some species may be using these environments for shelter, protection, food and, even reproduction

Narrativa Diaspórica em "Conversa de bois"

A novela “Conversa de bois”, de João Guimarães Rosa, se configura a partir da contação de causos por parte de diversos narradores – homens e animais do sertão. Mediante eloquente escala narrativa, a saga encenada acontece pelo entrelaçamento de retalhos dos eventos capturados aqui e ali pelos seus partícipes, que os transformam em criação literária. O presente estudo tem, pois, como objetivo demonstrar que, através da dialética entre fala, escuta e escritura, Rosa engendra um enredo cuja força motriz provém de uma técnica conhecida como “escritura de ouvido”, em que cada personagem, a seu turno, baseado em intuição e sensações, se empodera da soberania autoral ante a fala e sua subsequente transcrição, montando, assim, uma monumental diáspora mitopoética.PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Linguagem. Narrativa diaspórica. Escritura de ouvido

Novel hybrid nanofibrous membranes of Nylon 6/Yeast cell wall components for potential removal of heavy metal contaminants

Nanofibrous membranes can be obtained by the application of high electrostatic potentials, a process known as electrospinning, showing very large surface-to-volume ratio, high porosity and interconnectivity, making them very attractive for applications like filtration, enzymatic membrane reactors, tissue engineering, sensors, or delivery matrices for bioactive and pharmaceutical compounds [1]. With the aim of obtaining nanofibrous materials with improved filtration capability and adequate performance to remove heavy metals as contaminants, for example from wastewater, we have fabricated and characterized electrospun nanofibrous membranes from nylon 6 (N6) and yeast cell wall (YCW) components. Two main biopolymeric samples were obtained by sequential extraction of yeast cell by-products with water and alkaline solutions [2]: a YCW-rich extract and a mannoprotein-rich extract (MP). Membranes of N6 alone showed satisfactory mechanical properties. SEM analysis revealed arrays of randomly distributed fibers with high porosity, and average fiber diameter of 235 nm and water contact angle (WCA) of 101°. FTIR analysis confirmed the presence of the biopolymeric components in the hybrid membranes that in general increased the membrane surface hydrophobicity. N6/YCW membranes had similar overall tensile strength properties and fiber diameters but the N6/MP membranes showed higher fiber average diameter, lower stress at break point, lower stiffness and higher elongation. Based on the potential sorption ability of yeast cell wall components [3], sorption experiments were performed for cadmium and lead cations. Promising results have been obtained and further studies are underway to better characterize the effect of initial meal ion and pH and the relative ratio of the polymeric fiber components on the sorption process.publishe

Transport and consumption of organic detritus in a neotropical limestone cave

Caves are permanently aphotic environments, a fact that precludes the occurrence of photosynthetic organisms. In these systems the resource is allochthonous, coming mainly from the surrounding epigean environment, being imported by physical and biological agents. Even knowing about the importance of the organic allochthonous resources in caves, little is known of their importation and processing. The present work had as an objective, the measuring the coarse particulate organic matter processing and import rates in the subterranean environment. The cave studied was Lapa da Fazenda Extrema I, limestone cave, located in Brazilian savanna biome. Through bimonthly collections, it was observed that the organic detritus penetrated into the cave in low amounts in dry season and high amounts in rainy season. The processing of the organic plant matter in the aquatic hypogean environment was moderate (K-day=0.025), in the epigean environment the processing was predominantly slow (K-day =0.0104). The detritus commonly brought to the interior of the cave were large woods (58.18 g/day), followed by leaves and fragmented material (12.76 g/day), fruits and seeds (0.0069 g/day), animal carcasses (0.002 g/day) and roots (0.001 g/day). The highest richness and abundances of invertebrates were found in the same periods in which there were the highest rates of organic matter import to the cave.Keywords: cave, detritus processing, energy flow

Mudanças sucessionais na composição, riqueza e abundância de insetos frugivoros associados a frutos de Psidium guajava (L.)

The maintenance of species diversity is a comple xphenomenon whose determinant factors can act in many spatial scales from local habitats to the regional level. We analyzed the habitat use by frugivorous insects in three categories of Psidium guajava fruits. We found 2,140 individuals of 22 morphospecies, of which Diptera (6 spp.), Hymenoptera (6 spp.), and Coleoptera (5 spp.) were the richest orders. Diptera was the most abundant order, with 93% of the total collected individuals (1,986 ind.). The greatest richness occurred in the fruits on the litter: 19 spp., contrasting with 7 spp. in ripe fruits and 2 spp. in unripe fruits on the tree. Diversity was significantly higher in fruits on the litter. Similarity was greatest between unripe and ripe fruits on the tree (0. 50). Abundance (r2 = 0.08; r = 0.29, p = 0.00) show a positive and significant relation with total volume of the all fruit categories Abundance (Log10) in unripe fruits correlated positive and significantly with total diameter of these fruits (r2 = 0.12; r = 0.35, p = 0.04). Variations in invertebrate richness, abundance, diversity, and density in the three fruit categories suggest different community establishment restriction levels. The physical and biological change gradients in the P. guajava fruits represent a heterotrophic succession. The temporal and spatial position of the fruits promotes variations in their physical and chemical properties. This variation in resource quality creates microhabitat heterogeneity and makes the presence and co-existence of many species of frugivorous invertebrates possible.Key words: diversity, microhabitat heterogeneity, heterotrophic succession, Psidium guajavaA manutenção da diversidade de espécies é um fenômeno complexo cujos fatores determinantes podem atuar em muitas escalas espaciais, sejam elas locais ou regionais. Foram analisadas neste estudo o uso de três categorias de frutos de Psidium guajava como habitats para insetos frugívoros. Foram encontrados 2.140 indivíduos de 22 morfo-espécies. Díptera (6 spp.), Hymenoptera (6 spp.), e Coleoptera (5 spp.) foram as ordens mais ricas. Díptera foi a ordem mais abundante, contribuindo com 93% o total dos indivíduos coletados (1.986 ind.). A maior riqueza (19 spp) foi encontrada em frutos presentes no chão (serrapilheria), contrastando com frutos maduros presentes nas árvores, onde foram encontradas 7 spp. e frutos verdes 2 spp. A diversidade foi significativamente mais elevada nos frutos na serrapilheira. A similaridade foi maior entre frutos maduros e verdes presentes na árvore (0. 50). A abundância (r2 = 0.08; r = 0.29, p = 0.00) relacionou-se positiva e significativamente com o volume do conjunto de frutos. A abundância (Log10) encontrada nos frutos verdes foi correlacionada positiva e significativamente com o diâmetro total (r2 = 0.12; r = 0.35, p = 0.04). As variações na riqueza, na abundância, na diversidade, e na densidade dos insetos nas três categorias de frutos sugerem níveis diferentes de limitação ao estabelecimento destas comunidades. O gradiente de mudanças físicas e biológicas nos frutos de P. guajava. representa uma sucessão heterotrófica. A posição temporal e espacial dos frutos promove variações em suas propriedades físicas e químicas. Esta variação interfere na qualidade do recurso criando uma heterogeneidade de microhabitats que possibilita a presença e a coexistência de muitas espécies de insetos frugívoros.Palavras-chave: diversidade, heterogeinidade de microhabitats, sucessão heterotrófica, Psidium guajava