Principal investigator in a box: Version 1.2 documentation

Principal Investigator (PI) in a box is a computer system designed to help optimize the scientific results of experiments that are performed in space. The system will assist the astronaut experimenters in the collection and analysis of experimental data, recognition and pursuit of 'interesting' results, optimal use of the time allocated to the experiment, and troubleshooting of the experiment apparatus. This document discusses the problems that motivate development of 'PI-in-a-box', and presents a high- level system overview and a detailed description of each of the modules that comprise the current version of the system

CARRO AUTÔNOMO

Pretende-se com este trabalho dar continuidade ao Projeto do Carro Autônomo, realizado por muitos, tais como a Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo - UFES, realizando assim neste trabalho um protótipo de um veículo autônomo, que nada mais é do que um carro que aprende com os erros e se adapta com a situação através da programação feito por nós. Com os fins de apontar este como uma solução para problemas como engarrafamentos, acidentes, ou até mesmo o fato da pessoa estar dirigindo embriagada. Está sendo realizado no Instituto Federal Catarinense a confecção de um protótipo simples que executa ações como dirigir sozinho e desviar de obstáculos. Muitas empresas já realizam testes com carros autônomos, além do Google também temos a Uber e a Lyft - empresa do ramo de transporte. O protótipo está sendo feito utilizando materiais comprados em lojas de eletrônicos como o BlackBoard (Arduino), juntamente com um carrinho de controle remoto de aproximadamente 15 centímetros movido a bateria que permite que o veículo seja autônomo. Alguns testes com os equipamentos eletrônicos já foram realizados e com estes pudemos entender o funcionamento do BlackBoard conjunto do nosso protótipo. Palavras-chave: Carro autônomo. Protótipo. Tecnologia

PROTÓTIPO DE CARRO AUTÔNOMO NO CAMPUS IFC DE BLUMENAU

Pretende-se com este trabalho dar continuidade ao Projeto do Carro Autônomo, realizado por muitos, tais como a Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo - UFES, realizando assim neste trabalho um protótipo de um veículo autônomo, que nada mais é do que um carro que aprende com os erros e se adapta com a situação através da programação feito por nós. Com os fins de apontar este como uma solução para problemas como engarrafamentos, acidentes, ou até mesmo o fato da pessoa estar dirigindo embriagada. Está sendo realizado no Instituto Federal Catarinense a construção de um protótipo simples que executa ações como dirigir sozinho e desviar de obstáculos. Muitas empresas já realizam testes com carros autônomos, além do Google também temos a Uber e a Lyft - empresa do ramo de transporte. O protótipo está sendo feito utilizando materiais comprados em lojas de eletrônicos como o BlackBoard (Arduino), juntamente com um carrinho de controle remoto de aproximadamente 15 centímetros movido a bateria que permite que o veículo seja autônomo. Para a apresentação do projeto Carro Autônomo, foi produzida uma maquete para a locomoção do protótipo e através dessa serão demonstradas as capacidades, limites e resultados do projeto. Essa maquete simula o comportamento do carrinho em uma rodovia, realizando ações como parar e fazer curvas, será realizada uma demonstração de como funcionará o protótipo, junto de uma breve explicação da execução desse. Palavras-chave: Carro autônomo. Protótipo. Tecnologia

Riparian Plant Litter Quality Increases With Latitude

Plant litter represents a major basal resource in streams, where its decomposition is partly regulated by litter traits. Litter-trait variation may determine the latitudinal gradient in decomposition in streams, which is mainly microbial in the tropics and detritivore-mediated at high latitudes. However, this hypothesis remains untested, as we lack information on large-scale trait variation for riparian litter. Variation cannot easily be inferred from existing leaf-trait databases, since nutrient resorption can cause traits of litter and green leaves to diverge. Here we present the first global-scale assessment of riparian litter quality by determining latitudinal variation (spanning 107°) in litter traits (nutrient concentrations; physical and chemical defences) of 151 species from 24 regions and their relationships with environmental factors and phylogeny. We hypothesized that litter quality would increase with latitude (despite variation within regions) and traits would be correlated to produce ‘syndromes’ resulting from phylogeny and environmental variation. We found lower litter quality and higher nitrogen:phosphorus ratios in the tropics. Traits were linked but showed no phylogenetic signal, suggesting that syndromes were environmentally determined. Poorer litter quality and greater phosphorus limitation towards the equator may restrict detritivore-mediated decomposition, contributing to the predominance of microbial decomposers in tropical streams

Riparian plant litter quality increases with latitude

Plant litter represents a major basal resource in streams, where its decomposition is partly regulated by litter traits. Litter-trait variation may determine the latitudinal gradient in decomposition in streams, which is mainly microbial in the tropics and detritivore-mediated at high latitudes. However, this hypothesis remains untested, as we lack information on large-scale trait variation for riparian litter. Variation cannot easily be inferred from existing leaf-trait databases, since nutrient resorption can cause traits of litter and green leaves to diverge. Here we present the first global-scale assessment of riparian litter quality by determining latitudinal variation (spanning 107 degrees) in litter traits (nutrient concentrations; physical and chemical defences) of 151 species from 24 regions and their relationships with environmental factors and phylogeny. We hypothesized that litter quality would increase with latitude (despite variation within regions) and traits would be correlated to produce 'syndromes' resulting from phylogeny and environmental variation. We found lower litter quality and higher nitrogen: phosphorus ratios in the tropics. Traits were linked but showed no phylogenetic signal, suggesting that syndromes were environmentally determined. Poorer litter quality and greater phosphorus limitation towards the equator may restrict detritivore-mediated decomposition, contributing to the predominance of microbial decomposers in tropical streams.We thank the many assistants who helped with field work (Ana Chara-Serna, Francisco Correa-Araneda, Juliana Franca, Lina Giraldo, Stephanie Harper, Samuel Kariuki, Sylvain Lamothe, Lily Ng, Marcus Schindler, etc.), Cristina Grela Docal for helping with leaf chemical analyses, and Fernando Hiraldo (former director of EBD-CSIC) for his support. The study was funded by start-up funds from the Donana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC, Spain) and from Ikerbasque to LB, the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (FCT) strategic project ID/MAR/04292/2013 granted to MARE (Portugal), the 'BIOFUNCTION' project (CGL2014-52779-P) from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) and FEDER to LB and J. Pozo, and Basque Government funds (IT302-10) to J. Pozo

Latitude dictates plant diversity effects on instream decomposition

Running waters contribute substantially to global carbon fluxes through decomposition of terrestrial plant litter by aquatic microorganisms and detritivores. Diversity of this litter may influence instream decomposition globally in ways that are not yet understood. We investigated latitudinal differences in decomposition of litter mixtures of low and high functional diversity in 40 streams on 6 continents and spanning 113 degrees of latitude. Despite important variability in our dataset, we found latitudinal differences in the effect of litter functional diversity on decomposition, which we explained as evolutionary adaptations of litter-consuming detritivores to resource availability. Specifically, a balanced diet effect appears to operate at lower latitudes versus a resource concentration effect at higher latitudes. The latitudinal pattern indicates that loss of plant functional diversity will have different consequences on carbon fluxes across the globe, with greater repercussions likely at low latitudes

Riparian plant litter quality increases with latitude

Plant litter represents a major basal resource in streams, where its decomposition is partly regulated by litter traits. Litter-trait variation may determine the latitudinal gradient in decomposition in streams, which is mainly microbial in the tropics and detritivore-mediated at high latitudes. However, this hypothesis remains untested, as we lack information on large-scale trait variation for riparian litter. Variation cannot easily be inferred from existing leaf-trait databases, since nutrient resorption can cause traits of litter and green leaves to diverge. Here we present the first global-scale assessment of riparian litter quality by determining latitudinal variation (spanning 107 degrees) in litter traits (nutrient concentrations; physical and chemical defences) of 151 species from 24 regions and their relationships with environmental factors and phylogeny. We hypothesized that litter quality would increase with latitude (despite variation within regions) and traits would be correlated to produce 'syndromes' resulting from phylogeny and environmental variation. We found lower litter quality and higher nitrogen: phosphorus ratios in the tropics. Traits were linked but showed no phylogenetic signal, suggesting that syndromes were environmentally determined. Poorer litter quality and greater phosphorus limitation towards the equator may restrict detritivore-mediated decomposition, contributing to the predominance of microbial decomposers in tropical streams.We thank the many assistants who helped with field work (Ana Chara-Serna, Francisco Correa-Araneda, Juliana Franca, Lina Giraldo, Stephanie Harper, Samuel Kariuki, Sylvain Lamothe, Lily Ng, Marcus Schindler, etc.), Cristina Grela Docal for helping with leaf chemical analyses, and Fernando Hiraldo (former director of EBD-CSIC) for his support. The study was funded by start-up funds from the Donana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC, Spain) and from Ikerbasque to LB, the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (FCT) strategic project ID/MAR/04292/2013 granted to MARE (Portugal), the 'BIOFUNCTION' project (CGL2014-52779-P) from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) and FEDER to LB and J. Pozo, and Basque Government funds (IT302-10) to J. Pozo

Riparian plant litter quality increases with latitude

International audiencePlant litter represents a major basal resource in streams, where its decomposition is partly regulated by litter traits. Litter-trait variation may determine the latitudinal gradient in decomposition in streams, which is mainly microbial in the tropics and detritivore-mediated at high latitudes. However, this hypothesis remains untested, as we lack information on large-scale trait variation for riparian litter. Variation cannot easily be inferred from existing leaf-trait databases, since nutrient resorption can cause traits of litter and green leaves to diverge. Here we present the first global-scale assessment of riparian litter quality by determining latitudinal variation (spanning 107°) in litter traits (nutrient concentrations; physical and chemical defences) of 151 species from 24 regions and their relationships with environmental factors and phylogeny. We hypothesized that litter quality would increase with latitude (despite variation within regions) and traits would be correlated to produce ‘syndromes’ resulting from phylogeny and environmental variation. We found lower litter quality and higher nitrogen:phosphorus ratios in the tropics. Traits were linked but showed no phylogenetic signal, suggesting that syndromes were environmentally determined. Poorer litter quality and greater phosphorus limitation towards the equator may restrict detritivore-mediated decomposition, contributing to the predominance of microbial decomposers in tropical streams

Latitude dictates plant diversity effects on instream decomposition

Abstract Running waters contribute substantially to global carbon fluxes through decomposition of terrestrial plant litter by aquatic microorganisms and detritivores. Diversity of this litter may influence instream decomposition globally in ways that are not yet understood. We investigated latitudinal differences in decomposition of litter mixtures of low and high functional diversity in 40 streams on 6 continents and spanning 113° of latitude. Despite important variability in our dataset, we found latitudinal differences in the effect of litter functional diversity on decomposition, which we explained as evolutionary adaptations of litter-consuming detritivores to resource availability. Specifically, a balanced diet effect appears to operate at lower latitudes versus a resource concentration effect at higher latitudes. The latitudinal pattern indicates that loss of plant functional diversity will have different consequences on carbon fluxes across the globe, with greater repercussions likely at low latitudes