AN ADAPTATION OF THE COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING APPROACH FOR AN ENGLISH CONVERSATION COURSE IN BRAZIL

A abordagem comunicativa é popularmente utilizada em salas de aula do mundo inteiro no ensino de língua inglesa. Este artigo tem como objetivo avaliar criticamente a abordagem comunicativa no ensino de inglês como segunda língua, além de proporcionar uma apresentação de como é possível pôr em prática tal abordagem, mais especificamente em um curso de conversação no Brasil. Foi conduzido um estudo da literatura sobre as teorias que influenciaram o desenvolvimento desta abordagem. As principais características da abordagem comunicativa, suas vantagens e desvantagens, aplicabilidade em diferentes contextos e algumas de suas críticas foram discutidas, juntamente com as diferentes formas que ela pode se manifestar: forma ‘forte’ ou ‘fraca’. Associado ao estudo teórico, também foi analisado como a abordagem comunicativa foi utilizada em um curso específico de conversação e quais possíveis modificações futuras poderiam ser aplicadas para aumentar sua eficácia de acordo com o contexto e as necessidades dos alunos.PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Abordagem comunicativa. Ensino de inglês. Curso de conversação. DOI: https://doi.org/10.47295/mgren.v9i1.218

Short-range interaction vs long-range correlation in bird flocks

Bird flocks are a paradigmatic example of collective motion. One of the prominent experimental traits discovered about flocks is the presence of long range velocity correlations between individuals, which allow them to influence each other over the large scales, keeping a high level of group coordination. A crucial question is to understand what is the mutual interaction between birds generating such nontrivial correlations. Here we use the Maximum Entropy (ME) approach to infer from experimental data of natural flocks the effective interactions between birds. Compared to previous studies, we make a significant step forward as we retrieve the full functional dependence of the interaction on distance and find that it decays exponentially over a range of a few individuals. The fact that ME gives a short-range interaction even though its experimental input is the long-range correlation function, shows that the method is able to discriminate the relevant information encoded in such correlations and single out a minimal number of effective parameters. Finally, we show how the method can be used to capture the degree of anisotropy of mutual interactions.Comment: 21 pages, 7 figures, 1 tabl

Nonsymmetric Interactions Trigger Collective Swings in Globally Ordered Systems

Many systems in nature, from ferromagnets to flocks of birds, exhibit ordering phenomena on the large scale. In condensed matter systems, order is statistically robust for large enough dimensions, with relative fluctuations due to noise vanishing with system size. Several biological systems, however, are less stable and spontaneously change their global state on relatively short time scales. Here we show that there are two crucial ingredients in these systems that enhance the effect of noise, leading to collective changes of state on finite time scales and off-equilibrium behavior: the nonsymmetric nature of interactions between individuals, and the presence of local heterogeneities in the topology of the network. Our results might explain what is observed in several living systems and are consistent with recent experimental data on bird flocks and other animal groups

Non glassy ground-state in a long-range antiferromagnetic frustrated model in the hypercubic cell

We analize the statistical mechanics of a long-range antiferromagnetic model defined on a D-dimensional hypercube, both at zero and finite temperatures. The associated Hamiltonian is derived from a recently proposed complexity measure of Boolean functions, in the context of neural networks learning processes. We show that, depending of the value of D, the system either presents a low temperature antiferromagnetic stable phase or the global antiferromagnetic order disappears at any temperature. In the last case the ground state is an infinitely degenerated non-glassy one, composed by two equal size anti-aligned antiferromagnetic domains. We also present some results for the ferromagnetic version of the model.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure

Contribution of microreactor technology and flow chemistry to the development of green and sustainable synthesis

Microreactor technology and flow chemistry could play an important role in the development of green and sustainable synthetic processes. In this review, some recent relevant examples in the field of flash chemistry, catalysis, hazardous chemistry and continuous flow processing are described. Selected examples highlight the role that flow chemistry could play in the near future for a sustainable development

The use of film-based maTerial for an adulT english language course in brazil * o uso de maTeriais baseados em filmes para um curso de inglês no brasil

AbstrAct Advances in technology and accessibility to films motivated the research and writing of this paper. Its main goal was to design a set of criteria to develop film-based materials that can be used to improve the experience of learning English on an adult conversation course in Brazil. Given that the purpose of this adult course is to enhance participants' speaking skills, an investigation was conducted into the theories related to the teaching of speaking. A literature review suggests why films should be used through an investigation into the advantages they offer. Principles related to language learning, material development, and current studies on the use of film provide insights on how films might be used. Drawing on these principles, a set of criteria was created as a resourceful guide for material development. Finally, I suggest there should be further study on how films are being used in class and a possible research study on the effectiveness of film-based materials. Keywords: films; language learning; material development. resumo Avanços em tecnologia e acessibilidade à filmes motivaram a pesquisa e a composição desse artigo. O objetivo principal foi desenvolver um conjunto de critérios para criação de materiais baseados em filmes com o fim de aperfeiçoar a aprendizagem de inglês em um curso de conversação no Brasil. Dado que o propósito deste curso para adultos é aprimorar as habilidades de fala dos alunos, uma investigação foi conduzida sobre o ensino da fala. A discussão da literatura sugere porque filmes devem ser usados através de uma investigação sobre as vantagens que eles oferecem. Princípios relacionados à aprendizagem de línguas, desenvolvimento de material didático, e estudos atuais sobre o uso de filmes proporcionaram maior conhecimento sobre como filmes podem ser usados. A partir desses princípios, critérios foram criados para guiar o desenvolvimento de materiais didáticos. Finalmente, eu sugiro futuros estudos sobre como filmes estão sendo usados em sala de aula e uma possível pesquisa sobre a eficácia de materiais didáticos baseados em filmes. Palavras-chave: filmes; aprendizagem de idiomas; desenvolvimento de material

A commercial macroalgae extract in a plant-protein rich diet diminished saturated fatty acids of Oncorhynchus mykiss Walbaum fillets

Seaweeds are considered novel feed ingredients, nutraceutical compounds and source of pigments and proteins. They appear to possess bioactive properties, such as hypolipidemic, antioxidant and immune-stimulative actions; furthermore, their proteins are considered just as nutritious as terrestrial vegetables. In the present work, rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss Walbaum) was fed for 95 days with three diets: a fishmeal-based positive control diet (C+), a vegetable protein-based negative control diet (C−) and a diet similar to C − where 5% of soybean concentrate was replaced by a commercial blend of seaweeds (T). The monitored parameters were fish performance, physical and marketable characteristics, fillet oxidative status and fatty acid content. The estimated indices of enzyme activities involved in lipid metabolism were calculated. Fish performances were reduced in C − and T fish; C − and T fillet fatty acid (FA) profiles globally showed the same pattern and were distinct from C+, i.e. with a lower content of polyunsaturated FAs and a higher content of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated n6 FAs; contrarywise, saturated FAs were significantly lower in T group in comparison to the other two groups (p <.01). The estimated indices of enzyme activity highlighted differences between dietary groups; desaturase activities of C18 and n3 FAs were higher in T in comparison to C− (p <.001). A slight impoverishment of antioxidant activity was found in T compared to C + group. Dietary seaweeds seemed to be capable of influencing fillet FA composition as well as the activity of enzymes related to lipid metabolism. Further studies in this regard are encouraged.Highlights Seaweeds are novel feed ingredients with nutraceutical properties Saturated fatty acids of rainbow trout fillets were lowered by seaweed inclusion in the diet Estimated desaturase activities of C18 and n3 fatty acids were higher in seaweed-fed trout

Emergence of collective changes in travel direction of starling flocks from individual birds fluctuations

One of the most impressive features of moving animal groups is their ability to perform sudden coherent changes in travel direction. While this collective decision can be a response to an external perturbation, such as the presence of a predator, recent studies show that such directional switching can also emerge from the intrinsic fluctuations in the individual behaviour. However, the cause and the mechanism by which such collective changes of direction occur are not fully understood yet. Here, we present an experimental study of spontaneous collective turns in natural flocks of starlings. We employ a recently developed tracking algorithm to reconstruct three-dimensional trajectories of each individual bird in the flock for the whole duration of a turning event. Our approach enables us to analyze changes in the individual behavior of every group member and reveal the emergent dynamics of turning. We show that spontaneous turns start from individuals located at the elongated edges of the flocks, and then propagate through the group. We find that birds on the edges deviate from the mean direction of motion much more frequently than other individuals, indicating that persistent localized fluctuations are the crucial ingredient for triggering a collective directional change. Finally, we quantitatively show that birds follow equal radius paths during turning allowing the flock to change orientation and redistribute risky locations among group members. The whole process of turning is a remarkable example of how a self-organized system can sustain collective changes and reorganize, while retaining coherence.Comment: 18 pages, 2 Videos adde