Educação transformadora em espaços não formais: Trilha sensorial e ambiental como estratégia de re-sensibilização para idosos

This article aims to report the experience of Biological Sciences students of the University Federal de Santa Maria during the extension project "Transforming education in non - formal spaces: sensorial and environmental track as a strategy for resensitization of the elderly”, held at the Institution Home of the Elderly São Vicente de Paulo, during the Curricular Internship of the Biological Sciences in Educational Spaces, in the first half of 2018. The project worked on the elderly’s sensory system through touch, vision, hearing and smell, in a dynamic way and concerned to restore the elderly's individuality in order to work their perception and memory, and motivate them through environmental elements. After the implementation of the project, the interviews carried out revealed that the experience was significant among the elderly, achieving the objectives, as well as providing the students with new insights about teaching and learning in non-formal educational settings.O artigo tem como objetivo relatar a experiência vivenciada pelos alunos do curso de Ciências Biológicas da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, durante a realização do projeto extensionista “Educação transformadora em espaços não formais: trilha sensorial e ambiental como estratégia de re-sensibilização para idosos”, realizado na Instituição Lar dos Idosos São Vicente de Paulo, durante o Estágio Curricular das Ciências Biológicas em Espaços Educativos, no primeiro semestre de 2018. O projeto trabalhou com os idosos o sistema sensorial através do tato, visão, audição e olfativo, de forma dinâmica e preocupada em restabelecer o lado individual do idoso de forma a trabalhar a percepção e a memória, além da motivação pelos elementos ambientais. Após a aplicação do projeto, foram realizadas entrevistas que revelaram que a experiência foi significativa para os participantes, atendendo aos objetivos, além de proporcionar aos acadêmicos novos olhares sobre o ensino-aprendizagem em espaços educativos não formais

Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved

Brazilian Flora 2020: Leveraging the power of a collaborative scientific network

International audienceThe shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiversity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxonomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world's known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world's most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend beyond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still unequally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the country. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora