Espécies crípticas em Pagamea coriacea sensu lato (Rubiaceae): evidências morfológicas, ecológicas e de comportamento reprodutivo em um contexto simpátrico

In this study we explore morphological and ecological variation in sympatric populations of Pagamea coriacea s.l. - a species complex from white-sand vegetation in the Amazon. A total of 147 trees were sampled and monitored at three nearby sites in Central Amazon, Brazil. Multivariate analyses of morphology indicated two distinct groups (A and B), which also differed in bark type, each containing subgroups associated with sexual dimorphism. However, a single hermaphroditic individual was observed within group B. As expected, all pistillate plants produced fruits, but 23% of the staminate plants of group B, and 5% of group A also produced fruits. This variation suggests that the sexual systems of both groups are between dioecy and gynodioecy. There was an overlap in flowering phases between the two groups, but the pattern of floral maturation differed. Ecologically, plants of group B were found in more shaded habitats and over sandstone bedrocks, while group A was prevalent in deeper sandy soils as canopy plants. The significances of morphological and environmental differences were tested by a multivariate analysis of variance, and a canonical discriminant analysis assessed the importance of variables. The coexistence in sympatry of two discrete morphological groups in the P. coriacea s.l., with different habitat preferences and reproductive behaviors, indicates they represent distinct species.O objetivo deste estudo foi testar se o complexo de espécies Pagamea coriacea inclui múltiplas espécies, usando evidências morfológicas, ecológicas e de comportamento reprodutivo. Um total de 147 árvores foram amostradas e monitoradas em três locais próximos na Amazônia Central, Brasil. Análises multivariadas de dados morfológicos indicaram dois grupos discretos (A e B), que coincidem com diferenças no tipo de casca, cada um por sua vez com subgrupos que representam dimorfismo sexual. Contudo, um indivíduo distintamente hermafrodita foi encontrado no grupo B. Todas as plantas pistiladas produziram frutos, mas também foram observados frutos para 23% das plantas estaminadas do grupo B, e para 5% das estaminadas do grupo A. Essa variação sugere que ambos grupos possuem um sistema sexual entre dioicia e ginodioicia. Houve sobreposição das fases de floração e frutificação entre os dois grupos, mas o padrão de maturação de flores foi diferente. Quanto ao hábitat, o grupo B predominou em situações de sombra e em solos arenosos rasos sobre lajes de pedra, enquanto o grupo A ocorreu em solos arenosos mais profundos e no dossel da vegetação. A coexistência de dois grupos morfológicos discretos no complexo P. coriacea s.l., com diferenças ecológicas e de comportamento reprodutivo, indica que correspondem a duas espécies distintas

Visible light communication for intelligent transportation in road safety applications

This paper discusses the implementation of a light emitting diode based visible light communication system, for intelligent transportation in road safety applications. The signal processing of both, transmitter and receiver are realized in a field programmable gate array using two Spartan-3E development kits. The implemented modulation scheme is based on direct sequence spread spectrum techniques. The performance of the overall system is evaluated and results are presented. It is found that the system is well suited for traffic broadcast at low data rate and medium range. The simulation results also show that spread spectrum modulation techniques mitigate the effect of noise produced by ambient artificial light sources. © 2011 IEEE.FCT, Government of Portugal - VIDAS, Grant (PTDC/EEATEL/ 75217/2006

Design, development and performance analysis of DSSS-based transceiver for VLC

This paper addresses and implements a Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS) transceiver for Visible Light Communication (VLC) systems based on FPGA. A transceiver was implemented including a transmitter capable of driving an array of light emitting diodes (LED) and a Pseudo-Noise (PN) matched decorrelator. The receiver architecture uses a discrete FIR correlator for data synchronization and acquisition. In this paper, a novel and simple PN code with a 10 bit sequence length is developed. This code offers a similar performance to the popular Barker code; however, it has a simple design. The used FPGA resources are presented along with a performance analysis. © 2011 IEEE

Efeitos do paclobutrazol na fertilidade de gemas e no crescimento dos ramos de videiras cv Rubi Effects of paclobutrazol on bud fertility and shoot growth of grapevine cv Rubi

A baixa fertilidade de gemas tem sido um dos fatores limitantes da produção em vinhedos do Estado de São Paulo, estando este problema relacionado, em muitos casos, ao excesso de vigor das plantas. Neste contexto, um experimento foi conduzido em vinhedo comercial da cultivar de uva de mesa Rubi, localizado no município de Palmeira D'Oeste (SP). O delineamento experimental foi em blocos casualizados, com seis tratamentos e quatro repetições. Os ramos foram pulverizados com soluções de paclobutrazol nas doses de 0; 500; 1.000; 1.500; 2.000 e 2.500 mg L-1, no estádio de 5ª folha. As variáveis avaliadas foram: porcentagem de gemas férteis, porcentagem de gemas mortas, diâmetro de internódios e massa fresca e comprimento dos ramos. Aplicações de paclobutrazol reduziram o diâmetro dos internódios e a massa e o comprimento dos ramos. A porcentagem de gemas férteis também foi diminuída, possivelmente pela redução dos níveis endógenos de giberelina necessários para o processo de formação do primórdio indiferenciado.<br>The low bud fertility has been one of the most limiting factors in vineyards at São Paulo State, and this problem has been correlated, in many cases, to the excess of plant vigor. In this context, a trial was carried out in a commercial vineyard of 'Rubi' table grape, located at Palmeira D'Oeste (SP), Brazil. The experimental design was in complete randomized blocks with six treatments and four replications. The vine shoots were sprayed with paclobutrazol at 0; 500; 1,000; 1,500; 2,000 and 2,500 mgL-1, at the fifth leaf phenological stage. The variables evaluated were: percentage of fertile buds; percentage of bud necrosis; fresh weight and length of shoots and diameter of internodes. Applications of paclobutrazol reduced the weight and the length of shoots and the internodes diameter. The percentage of fertile buds was also reduced, probably due to the decreasing in endogenous gibberellin levels necessary for uncommitted primordia formation