Italienischer Faschismus und deutscher Nationalsozialismus im italienischen Genrefilm

The project analyzes how popular Italian genres offered an Italian mass audience a collective process of dealing with the fascist past. Paying special attention to the representation of national socialism, the popularity of these Italian genres in Germany is discussed in terms of offering also a German audience a highly alienated but challenging confrontation with the national socialist past. Making genre theory productive for cultural studies, the main focus of the analytical method is the importance of serial production, cultural hybridity and genre hybridity for this discourse. The following genres are discussed: peplum, gothic horror, italowestern, giallo, poliziesco, and nazi exploitation

On relevant deformations in Open String Field Theory

String field theory takes string perturbation theory off-shell and since the different vacua of string theory are described by conformal field theories, it is tempting to use string field theory to describe conformal perturbation theory. We use open string field theory to reproduce the known leading order results of boundary conformal perturbation theory and we also perform the next-to-leading order calculation of the boundary degeneracy g for a generic theory. This is achieved by finding perturbative solutions to the classical equations of motion of open string field theory corresponding to weakly relevant deformations. The observables of conformal perturbation theory are then given by calculating the on-shell action or by invoking the Kudrna-Maccaferri-Schnabl correspondence. We also lay the groundwork for the investigation of the shift in the boundary spectrum. This work is largely based on the collaboration with Martin Schnabl [1].Strunová teorie pole umožňuje rozšířit strunovou poruchovou teorii off- shell a díky tomu, že různá vakua v teorii strun jsou popsaná konformními teoriemi pole, tak je lákavé použít strunovou teorii pole k popisu konformní poruchové teorie. Skrze teorii pole otevřených strun reprodukujeme známé výsledky z konformní poruchové teorie s hranicí v prvním netriviálním řádu a dále počítáme degeneraci hranice g do druhého netriviálního řádu pro gen- erickou teorii. Tyto výpočty provádíme skrze hledání poruchových řešení kla- sických pohybových rovnic teorie pole otevřených strun odpovídajících rel- evantním deformacím. Pozorovatelné konformní poruchové teorie jsou poté vypočteny z hodnoty on-shell akce či skrze Kudrna-Maccaferri-Schnabl ko- respondenci. Také pokládáme základy pro zkoumání změn ve spektru operá- torů na hranici. Tato práce je z velké části založena na kolaboraci s Martinem Schnablem [1].Ústav částicové a jaderné fyzikyInstitute of Particle and Nuclear PhysicsFaculty of Mathematics and PhysicsMatematicko-fyzikální fakult

Cenários climáticos futuros para ocorrência da ferrugem do eucalipto na região sul do Brasil

Orientador : Prof. Dr. Celso Garcia AuerCoorientadores : Prof. Dr. Marcos Silveira Wrege, Prof. Dr. Álvaro Figueredo dos SantosDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor de Ciências Agrárias, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Engenharia Florestal. Defesa: Curitiba, 27/08/2013Inclui referênciasÁrea de concentração : SilviculturaResumo: A cultura do eucalipto no Brasil tem se desenvolvido rapidamente nos últimos anos, chegando a uma área de aproximadamente cinco milhões de hectares, destinados à produção de celulose, carvão, moirões de cerca e madeira serrada. Dentre as principais doenças fúngicas na cultura do eucalipto destaca-se a ferrugem, causada pelo fungo Puccinia psidii. Uma medida que pode ser usada no controle desta doença é a realização de mapeamentos baseados em dados climáticos favoráveis à ferrugem, possibilitando identificar áreas consideradas sem risco para os plantios. Contudo, os cenários das mudanças climáticas projetados pelo IPCC poderão alterar o padrão de distribuição de patógenos e doenças. Sendo assim, o objetivo deste estudo foi analisar os futuros cenários de ocorrência da doença na região Sul do Brasil, identificando sua distribuição geográfica e temporal, com base nas variáveis climáticas favoráveis para a infecção por Puccinia psidii. A partir de estudos epidemiológicos já publicados, foram coletados dados das variáveis climáticas que influenciam o processo de infecção por Puccinia psidii em eucaliptos (temperatura média e período de molhamento foliar noturno). Para a montagem dos mapas, foram escolhidos modelos climáticos futuros baseados nos cenários A2 e B1 do IPCC, nos períodos de 2011 a 2040, 2041 a 2070 e 2071 a 2100. Com base nos limites bioclimáticos de desenvolvimento de Puccinia psidii, foram classificadas quatro classes de risco de ocorrência da doença (Alto Risco, Médio Risco, Baixo Risco e Sem Risco), sendo que a área de cada uma destas classes foi medida e convertida em porcentagem, para verificar possíveis tendências de acréscimo ou decréscimo das áreas de risco. Primeiramente foi criado um cenário com as condições atuais do clima e, a partir deste, foram criados os cenários futuros. Os índices climáticos foram estabelecidos na escala temporal mensal. Após a confecção dos mapas verificou-se que, no cenário atual o verão é a estação mais favorável ao desenvolvimento da ferrugem, com grandes áreas de alto risco, enquanto o inverno é a estação mais desfavorável, com grande parte da área classificada como sem risco. Com o passar das décadas, em ambos os cenários futuros as classes de baixo risco e sem risco da doença tendem a diminuir, devido principalmente ao aumento das temperaturas mínimas. Também foi observada a tendência de inversão do padrão atual, ou seja, no decorrer dos anos o verão tende a tornar-se menos favorável, enquanto o inverno passa a ser mais favorável. Observou-se também que o molhamento foliar sofre poucas alterações com o passar dos anos, de modo que a maioria das mudanças será devida às alterações de temperatura.Abstract: The eucalyptus cultivation in Brazil has quickly developed in recent years, reaching an area near five million hectares, for pulp, coal, fence posts and sawlogs production. One of the major fungal diseases in eucalyptus cultivation is rust, caused by Puccinia psidii. A way to control this disease is to perform mappings based on climate data favorable to rust, identifying free rust areas to plant. However, climate change scenarios projected by the IPCC can change the standard of pathogens distribution and their diseases. The objective of this study was to analyze future scenarios of disease occurrence in southern Brazil, identifying geographical and temporal distribution, based on climatic favorable variables for Puccinia psidii infection. From epidemiological studies already published, were collected climatic variables favorable to the infection process of Puccinia psidii in eucalyptus (average temperature and leaf wetness night).To assemble the maps, models were chosen based on future climate scenarios A2 and B1 from IPCC, the periods 2011-2040, 2041-2070 and 2071- 2100. According to the bioclimatic limits of Puccinia psidii development were classified four favorable disease zones (High Risk, Medium Risk, Low Risk and No Risk), and each zone areas was measured and converted into percentage, to identify possible trends of increasing or decreasing the risk areas. First we created a scenario with the current climate conditions, and from this, future scenarios were created. After maps preparation showed that, in the current scenario the summer is the most favorable season to rust development, with large high risk areas, while the winter is the less favorable season, with much of the area classified as no risk. Over the decades, in both future scenarios areas classified as low risk and no risk of the disease tend to decrease, mainly due to the increase in minimum temperatures. It was also a tendency for inversion of the current pattern, that is, over the years summer tends to be less favorable, and the winter be more favorable. It was also observed that the leaf wetness varies little over the years, so that most of the changes are due to temperature changes

Effects of more natural housing conditions on the muscular and skeletal characteristics of female C57BL/6J mice

Background Enrichment of home cages in laboratory experiments offers clear advantages, but has been criticized in some respects. First, there is a lack of definition, which makes methodological uniformity difficult. Second, there is concern that the enrichment of home cages may increase the variance of results in experiments. Here, the influence of more natural housing conditions on physiological parameters of female C57BL/6J mice was investigated from an animal welfare point of view. For this purpose, the animals were kept in three different housing conditions: conventional cage housing, enriched housing and the semi naturalistic environment. The focus was on musculoskeletal changes after long-term environmental enrichment. Results The housing conditions had a long-term effect on the body weight of the test animals. The more complex and natural the home cage, the heavier the animals. This was associated with increased adipose deposits in the animals. There were no significant changes in muscle and bone characteristics except for single clues (femur diameter, bone resorption marker CTX-1). Additionally, the animals in the semi naturalistic environment (SNE) were found to have the fewest bone anomalies. Housing in the SNE appears to have the least effect on stress hormone concentrations. The lowest oxygen uptake was observed in enriched cage housing. Conclusions Despite increasing values, observed body weights were in the normal and strain-typical range. Overall, musculoskeletal parameters were slightly improved and age-related effects appear to have been attenuated. The variances in the results were not increased by more natural housing. This confirms the suitability of the applied housing conditions to ensure and increase animal welfare in laboratory experiments

In vitro performance and in vivo fertility of antibiotic-free preserved boar semen stored at 5 °C

Background: Hypothermic preservation of boar semen is considered a potential method for omitting antibiotics from insemination doses, thereby contributing to the global antibiotic resistance defence strategy. The main challenges are chilling injury to spermatozoa and bacterial growth during semen storage leading to reduced fertility. Objectives: To examine chilling injury and the number and type of bacteria in boar semen stored at 5 °C in the absence of antibiotics, and to assess the applicability of hypothermic semen storage under field conditions. Material and methods: Boar ejaculates were extended with AndroStar® Premium, stored at 17 °C with and at 5 °C without antibiotics and tested for functional sperm parameters by flow cytometry. Raw semen and extended samples were investigated bacteriologically. Fertility was evaluated after once-daily inseminations of 194 sows in a field study. Results: Lethal sperm damage assessed by motility and membrane integrity was low throughout storage in both experimental groups. Sublethal chilling effects based on the decrease of viable spermatozoa with low membrane fluidity were higher (P 0.05) between sow groups inseminated with semen stored antibiotic-free at 5 °C and semen stored at 17 °C with antibiotics. Conclusion: Despite subtle chilling effects and low bacterial numbers, antibiotic-free hypothermic storage of boar semen offers the possibility to reduce the use of antibiotics in pig insemination. However, strict sanitary guidelines must be maintained and further evidence of efficiency under field conditions is considered desirable

Tuning of Ranvier node and internode properties in myelinated axons to adjust action potential timing

Action potential timing is fundamental to information processing;however, its determinants are not fully understood. Here we report unexpected structural specializations in the Ranvier nodes and internodes of auditory brainstem axons involved in sound localization. Myelination properties deviated significantly from the traditionally assumed structure. Axons responding best to low-frequency sounds had a larger diameter than high-frequency axons but, surprisingly, shorter internodes. Simulations predicted that this geometry helps to adjust the conduction velocity and timing of action potentials within the circuit. Electrophysiological recordings in vitro and in vivo confirmed higher conduction velocities in low-frequency axons. Moreover, internode length decreased and Ranvier node diameter increased progressively along the distal axon segments, which simulations show was essential to ensure precisely timed depolarization of the giant calyx of Held presynaptic terminal. Thus, individual anatomical parameters of myelinated axons can be tuned to optimize pathways involved in temporal processing

FAVORABILIDADE CLIMÁTICA PARA CANCRO BASAL (Botryosphaeria) EM Eucalyptus benthamii NO PARANÁ E SANTA CATARINA, BRASIL

Eucalyptus benthamii é uma espécie florestal plantada na região Sul do Brasil para produção de madeira, em áreas com geadas leves. Um fator limitante é a presença de cancros basais (Botryosphaeria sp.) e morte de árvores, que pode ser minimizado pelo plantio em locais com condições ambientais desfavoráveis à doença. Este estudo analisou os fatores climáticos em áreas com cancros basais para estabelecer mapas de favorabilidade climática para a doença. O estudo foi focado em plantios nos estados do Paraná e Santa Catarina, onde foram coletados dados da doença e de temperatura média anual e precipitação pluviométrica acumulada anual. Mapas de risco de ocorrência de cancro foram gerados em sistemas de informações geográficas (SIG). As médias das temperaturas máximas anuais, variaram entre 23,3 a 24,2 oC e a precipitação média anual variou de 1.620 a 1.910 mm. A título de comparação, tais condições são ótimas para o cancro do eucalipto (Chrysoporthe cubensis), que são temperatura média anual acima de 23 °C e volume total de precipitação média anual acima de 1200 mm. No Paraná, as zonas mais favoráveis ao cancro basal estão localizadas na faixa oeste e algumas áreas do litoral, enquanto em Santa Catarina, nas faixas leste e oeste. A região central desses estados tem condições desfavoráveis, em função de maior altitude e menores temperaturas máximas. Assim, recomenda-se o plantio em áreas agrícolas que estejam dentro das zonas climáticas desfavoráveis ao surgimento do cancro basal, com condições de geadas fracas para permitir o desenvolvimento do E. benthamii

Alternative substrates and containers for Ilex paraguariensis seedlings

Yerba mate is a Brazilian native species; its importance is due to cultural, environment, and economic factors. Species seedlings production needs to be improved, evaluating alternative substrates and containers. Therefore, we evaluated growth and quality of yerba mate seedlings produced on organic waste-based substrates in biodegradable and non-biodegradable containers. Commercial substrates based on pine bark (CS) and components based on sewage sludge (SS) and coal residue (granulometry from 1 to 3 mm - CR) were used. For each container, were prepared treatments with different substrate components: 75CS/25CR, 50CS/50CR, 25CS/75CR, 75CS/25SS, 50CS/50SS, 25CS/75SS, and CS. Substrates were submitted to physical and chemical analysis. The containers used were 110 cm³ polypropylene tubes, 500 cm³ polyethylene plastic bags, 460 cm³ paperpot®, and 460 cm³ TNT (non-woven fabric). Total height, stem diameter, shoot, and root dry biomass at the end of the seedlings production period were measured and total dry mass, Dickson quality index and height/diameter ratio were calculated. All containers used with commercial substrate provided satisfactory seedlings growth. The substrates showed distinct physical and chemical characteristics due to the addition of sewage sludge and coal residue, which resulted in higher pH and lower seedlings growth. Physical and chemical characteristics of substrates influenced growth and quality of yerba mate seedlings and the alternative substrates used in this study are not suitable to produce seedlings of the species on these conditions. The containers did not influence the variables used in this study

Reliability of Synaptic Transmission at the Synapses of Held In Vivo under Acoustic Stimulation

BACKGROUND:The giant synapses of Held play an important role in high-fidelity auditory processing and provide a model system for synaptic transmission at central synapses. Whether transmission of action potentials can fail at these synapses has been investigated in recent studies. At the endbulbs of Held in the anteroventral cochlear nucleus (AVCN) a consistent picture emerged, whereas at the calyx of Held in the medial nucleus of the trapezoid body (MNTB) results on the reliability of transmission remain inconsistent. In vivo this discrepancy could be due to the difficulty in identifying failures of transmission. METHODS/FINDINGS:We introduce a novel method for detecting unreliable transmission in vivo. Based on the temporal relationship between a cells' waveform and other potentials in the recordings, a statistical test is developed that provides a balanced decision between the presence and the absence of failures. Its performance is quantified using simulated voltage recordings and found to exhibit a high level of accuracy. The method was applied to extracellular recordings from the synapses of Held in vivo. At the calyces of Held failures of transmission were found only rarely. By contrast, at the endbulbs of Held in the AVCN failures were found under spontaneous, excited, and suppressed conditions. In accordance with previous studies, failures occurred most abundantly in the suppressed condition, suggesting a role for inhibition. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:Under the investigated activity conditions/anesthesia, transmission seems to remain largely unimpeded in the MNTB, whereas in the AVCN the occurrence of failures is related to inhibition and could be the basis/result of computational mechanisms for temporal processing. More generally, our approach provides a formal tool for studying the reliability of transmission with high statistical accuracy under typical in vivo recording conditions