Background: COVID-19 is a rapidly transmissible pneumonia-like illness caused by SARS-CoV-2 that out broke in China in 2019 and is currently circulating worldwide. In the current context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, co...Background: COVID-19 is a rapidly transmissible pneumonia-like illness caused by SARS-CoV-2 that out broke in China in 2019 and is currently circulating worldwide. In the current context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, complications are observed in clinical settings for the treatment of severe COVID-19 disease in nosocomial settings, due to cases of fungal co-infections. Objective: To carry out a review on fungal infections associated with respiratory infections caused by COVID-19 (Sars-Cov-2) and their aggravation. Methodology: The purpose of this study is to inform the reader about the characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 and the main fungal species that are affecting patients undergoing treatment for severe COVID-19, provoking discussion of the importance of the proposed topic, in relation to co-infections by different fungal microorganisms. Result: 80 scientific studies were selected, resulting from patients with COVID-19 and most commonly observed in patients with a history of comorbidities such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, kidney disease, severe liver disease, oncological diseases, obesity and with severe COVID-19. These data do not represent the total number of records of the disease in the world, but cases reported by researchers in their series, showing the overlapping of fungal co-infection through the compromised immune status due to the use of therapeutic drugs, dysregulation of the microbiota, age of patients and the severity itself of the severe inflammation caused by COVID-19. Conclusion: The immunosuppression caused by the infection of COVID-19 concomitant with its therapy through corticosteroid therapy and comorbidities of the patients made fungal infections more susceptible, and these interfere in the evolution of the case and in the treatment of COVID-19, being relevant to distinguish secondary infections to therapy and the best possible reconstitution of the clinical picture.展开更多
Identifying underground utilities and predicting their depth are fundamental when it comes to civil engineering excavations, for example, to install or repair water, sewer, gas, electric systems and others. The accide...Identifying underground utilities and predicting their depth are fundamental when it comes to civil engineering excavations, for example, to install or repair water, sewer, gas, electric systems and others. The accidental rupture of these systems can lead to unplanned repair costs, delays in completing the service, and risk injury or death of workers. One way to detect underground utilities is using the GPR-Ground Penetrating Radar geophysical method. To estimate depth, the travel time (two-way travel time) information provided by a radargram is used in conjunction with ground wave velocity, which depends on the dielectric constant of materials, where it is usually assumed to be constant for the area under investigation. This procedure provides satisfactory results in most cases. However, wrong depth estimates can result in damage to public utilities, rupturing pipes, cutting lines and so on. These cases occur mainly in areas that have a marked variation of water content and/or soil lithology, thus greater care is required to determine the depth of the targets. The present work demonstrates how the interval velocity of Dix (1955) can be applied in radargram to estimate the depth of underground utilities compared to the conventional technique of constant velocity applied to the same data set. To accomplish this, synthetic and real GPR data were used to verify the applicability of the interval velocity technique and to determine the accuracy of the depth estimates obtained. The studies were carried out at the IAG/USP test site, a controlled environment, where metallic drums are buried in known positions and depths allowing the comparison of real to estimated depths. Numerical studies were also carried out aiming to simulate the real environment with variation of dielectric constant in depth and to validate the results with real data. The results showed that the depths of the targets were estimated more accurately by means of the interval velocity technique in contrast to the constant velocity technique, minimizing the risks of accidents during excavation.展开更多
Aims: to analyze the presence and simultaneity of behavioral risk factors for chronic non-communicable disease (NCD) in adults and the elderly. Methods: quantitative, cross-sectional and observational study. Healthy a...Aims: to analyze the presence and simultaneity of behavioral risk factors for chronic non-communicable disease (NCD) in adults and the elderly. Methods: quantitative, cross-sectional and observational study. Healthy and unhealthy eating are classified according to the frequency of food consumption. Smoking is expressed by the percentage of smokers. Harmful alcohol consumption by the percentage of individuals who consumed alcoholic beverages at least once in the last 30 days. Classification of the level of physical inactivity required to practice at least 150 minutes of physical activity. Results: the sample constituted 719 people, 535 adults and 184 elderly. The behavioral risk factor reported by most adults 499 (93.3%) and elderly 156 (84.8%) was unhealthy eating. Frequency 72% higher of smoking, four times higher of harmful alcohol consumption and 10% higher of unhealthy food among adults when compared to the elderly. The simultaneity between risk factors was 39% greater in adults than in the elderly. Discussion: risk factors evaluated in this study are key aspects of the development of NCDs. Adults have 2.43 times the chance of presenting two risk factors and 7.73 times the chance of presenting three in relation to the elderly. Conclusion: To achieve more effective and differentiated results, knowing and directing measures to control behavioral risk factors, whether isolated or concurrent, requires specific knowledge.展开更多
This research applies Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) and Time Domain Electromagnetic Method (TDEM) to study the hydrogeology of the Taubaté basin, which is characterized by half-grabens with about 850 m ...This research applies Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) and Time Domain Electromagnetic Method (TDEM) to study the hydrogeology of the Taubaté basin, which is characterized by half-grabens with about 850 m of maximum sediments thickness. The study area is in Taubaté city, São Paulo State, Brazil, where the Taubaté aquifer is an important water source. The Taubaté Group is the main sedimentary package of the basin;it is formed mainly by shales that form aquicludes, and thin layers of sandstones that form the aquifer. There are 40 groundwater exploration wells in Taubaté city that provide important information. The study purpose is to characterize the geoelectrical stratigraphy of the subsurface to locate the contact between the Quaternary and Tertiary sediments and to identify the Taubaté aquifer. The ERT is used for shallow investigations (tens of meters) and the TDEM can reach a great investigation depth (hundreds of meters). Therefore, these geophysical methods are complementary. The ERT data were acquired with the pole-dipole array with 20 m of electrodes spacing and 400 m length, and the TDEM data with the central-loop array with a 200 × 200 m transmitter loop. The results permit to define the contact between the Quaternary and Tertiary sediments around 15 m depth, the Pindamonhangaba Formation between 15 m and 30 m depth and the Taubate Group between 30 m and 300 m depth. The TDEM method defined the Taubaté Group as a single geoelectric layer because the shale and the sandstone layers are all very conductive. The basement is formed by gneiss, which is a very resistive rock. The TDEM method is not able to identify a high conductor/resistor contrast. Overall, the results are consistent with the known geology and the wells information.展开更多
Determining the levels of heavy metals in honey is a measure to control its quality. The objective of this study was to determine the contents of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in honey of stingless bee. The differential pulse ano...Determining the levels of heavy metals in honey is a measure to control its quality. The objective of this study was to determine the contents of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in honey of stingless bee. The differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry (DPASV) was used to determine the trace elements in honey samples. Pb was detected in 100% of the samples, Cu and Zn in 98.15%, and Cd only in 33.33%. The trace elements analyzed detected in the samples remained within tolerable levels in foods for human consumption.展开更多
This work uses 2D TEM (Transient Electromagnetic) modeling for a hydrogeological study in the Paraná sedimentary basin. The study area is located at the northern region of the state of S?o Paulo, Brazil, where gr...This work uses 2D TEM (Transient Electromagnetic) modeling for a hydrogeological study in the Paraná sedimentary basin. The study area is located at the northern region of the state of S?o Paulo, Brazil, where groundwater is exploited from two aquifer systems: one sedimentary, shallow, and the other crystalline, deep. The interest in applying the TEM method in this area owes to the high exploitation rates of groundwater from the crystalline aquifer system for irrigation, which is triggering considerable seismic activity locally. This aquifer system is composed of fractured basalt within the Serra Geral Formation and is about 120 m deep. Eighty-six TEM soundings were acquired at this location, but in nine cases the data did not fit the modelled curve for 1D geoelectrical models due to the geological complexity of the area. This paper shows 2D geoelectrical modeling results based on the FDTD (Finite Differences in Time Domain) method to explain the lateral resistivity variation within the geological setting. A 2D model was generated for each sounding and compared with 1D inversion models as well as with direct information from wells. The results show some vertical variations of about 10 to 30 meters on the upper interface of the basalt layer from Serra Geral Formation. They are located at approximately 60 meters from the center of the soundings. The existence of these 2D structures in the subsurface can be related to the drainage system in the study area. The presence of these structures may indicate a connection between the shallow and deep aquifer systems, acting like a conduit that may contribute to the seismic activity reported.展开更多
Nitrogen (N) is an element absorbed in larger quantities by plants due to the vast number of chemical and biological reactions. Despite the high nutritional need of this element by the plants, it is not a constituent ...Nitrogen (N) is an element absorbed in larger quantities by plants due to the vast number of chemical and biological reactions. Despite the high nutritional need of this element by the plants, it is not a constituent of any terrestrial rock. To avoid high production costs of N, there is an increasing interest in the use of organic fertilizers in Brazil, including the use of humic substances (HS). In this work we evaluated the chelating properties of HS, when used together with a source of N. The nitrogen source used in this experiment was the ammonia. We checked the optimum conditions for interaction between the HS and ammonia such as: the ratio of reaction of each compound;minimum incorporation time between these compounds and the amount of ammonia that can be adsorbed by HS (income). The best ratio of ammonia/HS was 1/50 (v/v). Higher amounts of ammonia added to 50 mL of HS caused a greater loss of N. We also concluded that the application of ammonia/HS in the soil can be made immediately after their mixing, without the need of higher contact time between these substances in order to have the adsorption. No loss of ammonia was detected after 72 hours of its application together with HS. Finally, by using a factorial design, the best working area was found by settling the time of incorporation and volatilization in 24 h, and the volumes of HS and NH3 in 100 and 2 mL, respectively.展开更多
Objective: To observe the accuracy and the advantages and disadvantages of the femoral tunnels made by the two techniques. Materials and Methods: We randomly summoned nineteen patients undergoing anatomic ACL reconstr...Objective: To observe the accuracy and the advantages and disadvantages of the femoral tunnels made by the two techniques. Materials and Methods: We randomly summoned nineteen patients undergoing anatomic ACL reconstruction in a single band technique by the same surgeon: Ten by group II (GII) and nine by Group I (GI). GI: drilling in the technical in-out. GII: drilling the technique out-in. The patients underwent a CT scan with three-dimensional reconstruction of the distal femur. Was applied the technique of quadrants described by Bernard and Hertel and optimized for position by Forsythe and observed in the femoral tunnel: the accuracy of the joint entry;posterior cortical thickness in that point;emergency lateral distance to the lateral epicondyle and the overall length. Results: The coordinates of the distances obtained average was very close, with no statistical difference comparable to that obtained by Bernard and Hertel and Forsythe. The distance from the tunnel exit to the lateral epicondyle obtained average 1.46 cm in GI and 0.47 cm in GII, with a significant statistical difference. The thickness of the posterior cortex was 3.9 mm in GI and 5.4 mm in GII, with no statistical difference. The length averaged was 3.07 cm in GI and GII in 2.94 cm, with no statistical difference. Conclusions: Both techniques allow well placed tunnels, with no statistical difference. In the technique in-out the tunnel exit is closer to the lateral epicondyle. The thickness of the posterior cortex is similar. The length of the femoral tunnel is similar and around 3 cm.展开更多
Brazil has introduced a referendum regarding the prohibition of firearm commerce and propaganda arguments have invoked socially and personally driven issues in the promotion of voting in favor of and against firearm c...Brazil has introduced a referendum regarding the prohibition of firearm commerce and propaganda arguments have invoked socially and personally driven issues in the promotion of voting in favor of and against firearm control, respectively. Here, we used different techniques to study the brain activity associated with a voter’s perception of the truthfulness of these arguments and their influence on voting decisions. Low-resolution tomography was used to identify the possible different sets of neurons activated in the analysis of the different types of propaganda. Linear correlation was used to calculate the amount information H(ei) provided to different electrodes about how these sets of neurons enroll themselves to carry out this cognitive analysis. The results clearly showed that vote decision was not influenced by arguments that were introduced by propaganda, which was typically driven by specific social or self-interest motives. However, different neural circuits were identified in the analysis of each type of propaganda argument, independently of the declared vote (for or against the control) intention.展开更多
Dengue is one of the most prominent tropical epidemic diseases present in the Rio de Janeiro city and Southeast part of Brazil, due to the widespread conditions of occurrence of the dengue vector, the mosquito Aedesae...Dengue is one of the most prominent tropical epidemic diseases present in the Rio de Janeiro city and Southeast part of Brazil, due to the widespread conditions of occurrence of the dengue vector, the mosquito Aedesaegypti, such as high-temperature days interlaced with afternoon or nocturnal rainstorms in summer. This work has the objective of investigating the relationships between variabilities of the El Ni?o-South Oscillation (ENSO) and greater epidemics of dengue in Rio de Janeiro city. To accomplish this goal, the analysis and signal decomposition by cross-wavelet transform (WT) was applied to obtain the cross variability associated with variations of power and phase of both signals by characteristic periods and along with the time series. Data considered in the analysis are (the decimal logarithm of normalized value) of the monthly available notifications of dengue worsening, provided by the public health system of Brazil, and the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) Ni?o 3.4 data, provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), in the period 2000-2017. A maximum cross-wavelet power close to 0.45 was obtained for the representative period of 1 year and also to periods between 3 and 4 years, associated with the positive phase of the SOI index (i.e. , La Ni?a) or with a transition to the positive phase. The evolution of the combined variability of SOI and dengue can be expressed by progressive differences in phase along the time, eventually resulting in yielding phases (i.e., La Niña-Dengue epidemic).展开更多
Background: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a highly complex and effective surgery even though its perioperative bleeding may increase the need for blood transfusion and its associated infection risk, cardiovascular ...Background: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a highly complex and effective surgery even though its perioperative bleeding may increase the need for blood transfusion and its associated infection risk, cardiovascular overload, increased costs, and mortality. As the tourniquet reduces intraoperative bleeding, it may be associated with postoperative bleeding, venous thrombosis, and distal ischemia. The reperfusion may trigger a local and systemic inflammatory response. Anesthetic preconditioning (APC) with sevoflurane minimizes ischemia-reperfusion syndrome (IRS). This study evaluated the effects of APC with sevoflurane on perioperative bleeding in TKA. Methods: We allocated 30 patients into two groups: a sevo group (sevoflurane 2% for 15 minutes before the tourniquet) and a control group (propofol infusion). Laboratory tests were collected right before the tourniquet (LAB PRE, in the operating room) and after its release at four moments: LAB POST (immediately after), LAB 2 (two hours after), LAB 12 (12 hours after), and LAB 24 (24 hours after). The volume of the suction drain was measured at one, two, 12, and 24 hours after the end of the surgery. Antifibrinolytics were not administered. Results: There was no statistically significant difference in bleeding-related variables, such as drained volume and hemoglobin and hematocrit measurements. Drainage volume was higher in the first two hours after the procedure, while hematocrit decreased pre- to postoperatively and between two and 12 hours post-procedure. Conclusion: Sevoflurane as an anesthetic preconditioning did not reduce postoperative bleeding in TKA surgery.展开更多
Erosive processes play an important role in environmental degradation. Rain is the main erosive agent in the Metropolitan Region of Sao Paulo. This study characterized the erosion events caused by precipitation levera...Erosive processes play an important role in environmental degradation. Rain is the main erosive agent in the Metropolitan Region of Sao Paulo. This study characterized the erosion events caused by precipitation leveraging the accumulated daily precipitation estimate generated by the Climate Prediction Center Morphing Method (CMORPH) and integrating the surface telemetric network using the Statistical Objective Analysis method (SOAS). From the Civil Defense database, 400 events were identified in the Metropolitan region of Sao Paulo (MRSP) area between 2000 and 2013 and, of these, 3 were chosen to carry out meteorological and climatological analyses. In an initial observation, 58% of them were found to occur in summer. Two regions with the highest number of erosion events were observed, in the Serra do Mar and Serra da Cantareira. In the Serra do Mar core, the municipality of São Bernardo do Campo was the one with the greatest amount of erosion. Precipitation volumes were estimated for accumulations of 30 minutes, 1 day, 1 month, and 1 year. The results, from the 3 events, indicate accumulated precipitation in 30 minutes from 10 mm to 19.8 mm, daily from 30.8 mm to 69.5 mm, and 1 month from 369.7 mm to 742.5 mm, and 1 year (2010) from 1712.9 mm to 1961.8 mm. In these events, it was noted that there were heavy rains in December 2009 and January 2010. It was also noted that the CMORPH and SOAS identify the rain events found by the São Paulo meteorological radar. The meteorological analyzes of the events based on images from the São Paulo meteorological radar and the Meteosat-9 satellite indicate that the active precipitation systems are associated with cold fronts, instability lines, and isolated convection.展开更多
This work presents a new application for the Hierarchical Function Expansion Method for the solution of the Navier-Stokes equations for compressible fluids in two dimensions and in high velocity. This method is based ...This work presents a new application for the Hierarchical Function Expansion Method for the solution of the Navier-Stokes equations for compressible fluids in two dimensions and in high velocity. This method is based on the finite elements method using the Petrov-Galerkin formulation, know as SUPG (Streamline Upwind Petrov-Galerkin), applied with the expansion of the variables into hierarchical functions. To test and validate the numerical method proposed as well as the computational program developed simulations are performed for some cases whose theoretical solutions are known. These cases are the following: continuity test, stability and convergence test, temperature step problem, and several oblique shocks. The objective of the last cases is basically to verify the capture of the shock wave by the method developed. The results obtained in the simulations with the proposed method were good both qualitatively and quantitatively when compared with the theoretical solutions. This allows concluding that the objectives of this work are reached.展开更多
In this paper, the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) method was used to characterize concrete tubes and steel/plastic tanks buried in IAG/USP test site. The microwave tomography was used to improve the GPR images, aiming...In this paper, the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) method was used to characterize concrete tubes and steel/plastic tanks buried in IAG/USP test site. The microwave tomography was used to improve the GPR images, aiming to retrieve the geometry of the targets. The numerical modeling studies also were done in order to predict the GPR results of the buried targets and to give more reliability to the results interpretation. The targets were installed in the first shallow geophysical test site of the Brazil located at Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics, and Atmospheric Science (IAG) of the University of S?o Paulo (USP). GPR profiles of 200 MHz (shielded bistatic antennas) were acquired along three lines containing concrete tubes and steel/plastic tanks buried in subsoil. The concrete tubes show a hyperbolic reflector for the top, and the vertical tube also presented a reflection on its bottom. The horizontal steel tanks were characterized by a strong GPR reflection on their top. The empty plastic tank shows a strong reflector for the top with normal polarity. On the other hand, the plastic tank filled with water shows a weaker reflector for its top characterized by the inverted polarity of GPR signal when compared with empty plastic tank. The plastic tank filled with water also went characterized by the strong reflection to its bottom, being a good indicative to interpret GPR data on target in subsoil with some types of fluid inside of tank. The results of polarity difference for the top of tank can be used as guide pattern to identify buried tank empty or filled with water. The application of microwave tomography to the GPR data permitted to determine the position and get a good identification of the edges of the targets studied. The numeric modeling presented a good accordance with real data reducing the ambiguities in interpretation of results. These results can be used as a reference, and they can be extrapolated for areas where there is no subsurface information.展开更多
A constant reproduction of environmental injustices and health iniquities has demanded the employment of participatory/dialectic approaches to research and to intervene in the reality making possible the involvement o...A constant reproduction of environmental injustices and health iniquities has demanded the employment of participatory/dialectic approaches to research and to intervene in the reality making possible the involvement of social actors in healthy public policies. On this framework, the aim of this paper is to analyse scientific production with dialectic approaches associated with public policies in the context of social, environmental and health problems, considering territorial scales of intervention and the correspondence with some relevant strategies of health promotion. A systematic bibliographic review was applied on a wide pan-disciplinary scientific data base and 36 papers were analysed and classified by their territorial scales of approach. The amount of papers found and their spread through a variety of journals showed a modest, but increasing production which has been dispersed in terms of knowledge areas. Within the classification of territorial approaches, 14 papers were classified as local, 5 as expanded and 17 as a multi-level. Although the papers classified as local approaches were in a good structure of stakeholders’ participation, they are limited to dealing with the global driving forces that reproduce the environmental injustices. Regarding this limitation, the multilevel approaches were identified as more opportune to jointly deal with social, environmental and health problems by means of allowing interaction through multiple territorial scales, fomenting the strengthening of community action, creating supportive environments, and building healthy public policies.展开更多
Graves’ disease, as known today, is an autoimmune, diffuse, chronic disease of thyroid gland, as described by Robert Graves in 1835. It presents genetic predisposition and unknown etiology evidence, which is influenc...Graves’ disease, as known today, is an autoimmune, diffuse, chronic disease of thyroid gland, as described by Robert Graves in 1835. It presents genetic predisposition and unknown etiology evidence, which is influenced in its development by several factors, including environment (dietary iodine intake, stress, drugs and infections). The disease is characterized by one or more changes: hyperthyroidism, goiter, ophthalmopathy, skin changes and pretibial myxedema, around 5% less common, and other symptoms 90% to 95%. One of the most relevant clinical practice aspects in Graves’ disease patients management is to distinguish Graves’ disease in initial phase, from other types of destructive thyrotoxicosis, in addition to evaluate therapeutic methods and efficient follow up, as well as predict early recurrence or remission of disease. Scintigraphy with pertechnetate (99 mTc) and TSH levels dosage are considered the choice for this purpose. However, they present some technical difficulties, as they are not widely available and have contraindications. In this scenario, thyroid color-flow doppler ultrasonography (US Doppler) presents a viable alternative, as a widely available, low cost, non-invasive and radiation free method, providing initial diagnosis and patients with Graves’ disease follow up. In adittion, this method is used in differential diagnosis with other causes of thyrotoxicosis in the early stage.展开更多
We present here a series of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey carried out in different areas of the Dardanelos 1 archaeological site in order to generate information about subsurface anomalies associated with arch...We present here a series of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey carried out in different areas of the Dardanelos 1 archaeological site in order to generate information about subsurface anomalies associated with archaeological material that could be use in decision making within the environmental licensing process of the Dardanelos Hydroelectric Power Plant, located near of the Aripuan? city, Mato Grosso State, northwest region of Brazil. GPR surveys with 200 MHz antenna were carried out in two blocks aiming to locate archaeological resources and features. The analysis of GPR 2D and 3D results allowed detecting anomalous regions characterized by hyperbolic reflections, shallow elongated continuous targets with high amplitudes, as well as sub-horizontal reflectors. Microwave tomography allowed estimating the geometry of the GPR anomalies sources. Excavations were done by archaeologists at the locations where hyperbolic anomalies were found, revealing interesting structures related to urns in the middle of a rich in organic matter consisting of black and ceramic materials up to about 1 m deep. The first sub-horizontal reflector at approximately 1 m depth is related to the base of the black soil layer rich in organic matter and the second sub-horizontal reflector between 2 and 3 m deep suggests a lithological change or may be related to presence of the water table. The continuous elongated shallow targets observed in the depth slices are related to tree roots in the middle of the archaeological strata. The GPR results guided archaeological excavations, reduced the time and costs involved in research, and contributed to the preservation of Brazilian historical heritage.展开更多
The industrial importance and the high cost of the commercial amylase require the study of microorganisms that produce these enzymes. For this reason, the objective of this work was to isolate filamentous fungi from a...The industrial importance and the high cost of the commercial amylase require the study of microorganisms that produce these enzymes. For this reason, the objective of this work was to isolate filamentous fungi from a region of the caatinga and evaluate their potential for the production of amylase. Four soil samples were collected from a deactivated dump located in the city of Diamantina, MG, in a region of the caatinga. The analysis of amylolytic production in a submerged medium at the ideal temperature of each microorganism was performed using the saccharification method, and the reducing sugars formed were quantified by DNS. Fourteen filamentous fungi were isolated, which had different morphological aspects. Regarding amylase production, a mean activity of 0.477 U<span style="white-space:nowrap;">·</span>mL<sup>-1</sup> was obtained with the isolates I 1.2.1 and I 4.4.1. These results bring important information regarding the biodiversity of the caatinga, in addition to the isolation of microorganisms that can be used as biological machinery to obtain metabolites with high biotechnological and industrial potential.展开更多
The effects of land use and cover changes and the application of the Urbanity Index were analyzed to identify critical or non-critical naturalness scenery in the Northern Region of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil), over a p...The effects of land use and cover changes and the application of the Urbanity Index were analyzed to identify critical or non-critical naturalness scenery in the Northern Region of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil), over a period of 30 years. Between 1986 and 2016, the main significant land use change was the reduction of the agricultural anthropic and the increase of the natural vegetation land use areas. About 90% - 80% of the total study areas were characterized by anthropic pattern features, with a predominantly agricultural matrix. The conversion of agricultural anthropic into natural areas resulted in increased naturalness landscape and a gain in the stock of natural capital. The increase in the natural vegetation area, mainly to the north and east of the region, set in a steep relief, became remarkable after 1990. The Urbanity Index values evidenced a highest naturalness condition (natural vegetation areas) to the northern and eastern, while a smaller naturalness condition (agricultural and non-agricultural areas) to the southern and western and central of the Northern Region of Rio Grande do Sul. These changes are related to a non-impaired (northern and eastern) and a impaired scenery (southern, western and central portion) of the ecological sustainability of the Northern Region of Rio Grande do Sul, after a 30-year period (1986-2016). These results pointed out that land use transitions resulted in a consolidated farming scenario in which agricultural intensification coincided with the reduction of farming area and increased naturalness as a reverse trend to the agricultural frontier dynamics.展开更多
This paper uses a methodology based in Fuzzy Sets Theory in order to describe the interaction between the prey, Aphis glycines (Hemiptera: Aphididae)—the soybean aphid, and its predator, Orius insidiosus (Hemiptera: ...This paper uses a methodology based in Fuzzy Sets Theory in order to describe the interaction between the prey, Aphis glycines (Hemiptera: Aphididae)—the soybean aphid, and its predator, Orius insidiosus (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae) and to propose a biological control to soybean aphid. Economic thresholds were already developed for this pest. The model includes biotic (predator) and abiotic (temperature) factors, which affect the soybean aphid population dynamics. The dynamic model results in a fuzzy model that preserves the biological meaning and nature of the predator-prey model. The paper also includes a comparison between the fuzzy model and real data reported in the literature. Subsequently, we propose a biological control to soybean aphid by another fuzzy rule-based system. This model has allowed to predict timing and releasing number of predators for soybean aphid biological control. On the one hand, the soybean aphid has still not found in Brazil. Therefore, before any eventual invasion, a predictive model to enhance biological control program is desirable. On the other hand, the soybean aphid has become the most devastating insect pest of soybeans in the United States. Brazil is the second largest exporter of soybean at present, after the USA and before Argentina. According to the Bureau of Agriculture of the USA, it has been estimated that Brazil will be the largest soybean exporter in 2023.展开更多
文摘Background: COVID-19 is a rapidly transmissible pneumonia-like illness caused by SARS-CoV-2 that out broke in China in 2019 and is currently circulating worldwide. In the current context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, complications are observed in clinical settings for the treatment of severe COVID-19 disease in nosocomial settings, due to cases of fungal co-infections. Objective: To carry out a review on fungal infections associated with respiratory infections caused by COVID-19 (Sars-Cov-2) and their aggravation. Methodology: The purpose of this study is to inform the reader about the characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 and the main fungal species that are affecting patients undergoing treatment for severe COVID-19, provoking discussion of the importance of the proposed topic, in relation to co-infections by different fungal microorganisms. Result: 80 scientific studies were selected, resulting from patients with COVID-19 and most commonly observed in patients with a history of comorbidities such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, kidney disease, severe liver disease, oncological diseases, obesity and with severe COVID-19. These data do not represent the total number of records of the disease in the world, but cases reported by researchers in their series, showing the overlapping of fungal co-infection through the compromised immune status due to the use of therapeutic drugs, dysregulation of the microbiota, age of patients and the severity itself of the severe inflammation caused by COVID-19. Conclusion: The immunosuppression caused by the infection of COVID-19 concomitant with its therapy through corticosteroid therapy and comorbidities of the patients made fungal infections more susceptible, and these interfere in the evolution of the case and in the treatment of COVID-19, being relevant to distinguish secondary infections to therapy and the best possible reconstitution of the clinical picture.
文摘Identifying underground utilities and predicting their depth are fundamental when it comes to civil engineering excavations, for example, to install or repair water, sewer, gas, electric systems and others. The accidental rupture of these systems can lead to unplanned repair costs, delays in completing the service, and risk injury or death of workers. One way to detect underground utilities is using the GPR-Ground Penetrating Radar geophysical method. To estimate depth, the travel time (two-way travel time) information provided by a radargram is used in conjunction with ground wave velocity, which depends on the dielectric constant of materials, where it is usually assumed to be constant for the area under investigation. This procedure provides satisfactory results in most cases. However, wrong depth estimates can result in damage to public utilities, rupturing pipes, cutting lines and so on. These cases occur mainly in areas that have a marked variation of water content and/or soil lithology, thus greater care is required to determine the depth of the targets. The present work demonstrates how the interval velocity of Dix (1955) can be applied in radargram to estimate the depth of underground utilities compared to the conventional technique of constant velocity applied to the same data set. To accomplish this, synthetic and real GPR data were used to verify the applicability of the interval velocity technique and to determine the accuracy of the depth estimates obtained. The studies were carried out at the IAG/USP test site, a controlled environment, where metallic drums are buried in known positions and depths allowing the comparison of real to estimated depths. Numerical studies were also carried out aiming to simulate the real environment with variation of dielectric constant in depth and to validate the results with real data. The results showed that the depths of the targets were estimated more accurately by means of the interval velocity technique in contrast to the constant velocity technique, minimizing the risks of accidents during excavation.
文摘Aims: to analyze the presence and simultaneity of behavioral risk factors for chronic non-communicable disease (NCD) in adults and the elderly. Methods: quantitative, cross-sectional and observational study. Healthy and unhealthy eating are classified according to the frequency of food consumption. Smoking is expressed by the percentage of smokers. Harmful alcohol consumption by the percentage of individuals who consumed alcoholic beverages at least once in the last 30 days. Classification of the level of physical inactivity required to practice at least 150 minutes of physical activity. Results: the sample constituted 719 people, 535 adults and 184 elderly. The behavioral risk factor reported by most adults 499 (93.3%) and elderly 156 (84.8%) was unhealthy eating. Frequency 72% higher of smoking, four times higher of harmful alcohol consumption and 10% higher of unhealthy food among adults when compared to the elderly. The simultaneity between risk factors was 39% greater in adults than in the elderly. Discussion: risk factors evaluated in this study are key aspects of the development of NCDs. Adults have 2.43 times the chance of presenting two risk factors and 7.73 times the chance of presenting three in relation to the elderly. Conclusion: To achieve more effective and differentiated results, knowing and directing measures to control behavioral risk factors, whether isolated or concurrent, requires specific knowledge.
文摘This research applies Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) and Time Domain Electromagnetic Method (TDEM) to study the hydrogeology of the Taubaté basin, which is characterized by half-grabens with about 850 m of maximum sediments thickness. The study area is in Taubaté city, São Paulo State, Brazil, where the Taubaté aquifer is an important water source. The Taubaté Group is the main sedimentary package of the basin;it is formed mainly by shales that form aquicludes, and thin layers of sandstones that form the aquifer. There are 40 groundwater exploration wells in Taubaté city that provide important information. The study purpose is to characterize the geoelectrical stratigraphy of the subsurface to locate the contact between the Quaternary and Tertiary sediments and to identify the Taubaté aquifer. The ERT is used for shallow investigations (tens of meters) and the TDEM can reach a great investigation depth (hundreds of meters). Therefore, these geophysical methods are complementary. The ERT data were acquired with the pole-dipole array with 20 m of electrodes spacing and 400 m length, and the TDEM data with the central-loop array with a 200 × 200 m transmitter loop. The results permit to define the contact between the Quaternary and Tertiary sediments around 15 m depth, the Pindamonhangaba Formation between 15 m and 30 m depth and the Taubate Group between 30 m and 300 m depth. The TDEM method defined the Taubaté Group as a single geoelectric layer because the shale and the sandstone layers are all very conductive. The basement is formed by gneiss, which is a very resistive rock. The TDEM method is not able to identify a high conductor/resistor contrast. Overall, the results are consistent with the known geology and the wells information.
文摘Determining the levels of heavy metals in honey is a measure to control its quality. The objective of this study was to determine the contents of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in honey of stingless bee. The differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry (DPASV) was used to determine the trace elements in honey samples. Pb was detected in 100% of the samples, Cu and Zn in 98.15%, and Cd only in 33.33%. The trace elements analyzed detected in the samples remained within tolerable levels in foods for human consumption.
文摘This work uses 2D TEM (Transient Electromagnetic) modeling for a hydrogeological study in the Paraná sedimentary basin. The study area is located at the northern region of the state of S?o Paulo, Brazil, where groundwater is exploited from two aquifer systems: one sedimentary, shallow, and the other crystalline, deep. The interest in applying the TEM method in this area owes to the high exploitation rates of groundwater from the crystalline aquifer system for irrigation, which is triggering considerable seismic activity locally. This aquifer system is composed of fractured basalt within the Serra Geral Formation and is about 120 m deep. Eighty-six TEM soundings were acquired at this location, but in nine cases the data did not fit the modelled curve for 1D geoelectrical models due to the geological complexity of the area. This paper shows 2D geoelectrical modeling results based on the FDTD (Finite Differences in Time Domain) method to explain the lateral resistivity variation within the geological setting. A 2D model was generated for each sounding and compared with 1D inversion models as well as with direct information from wells. The results show some vertical variations of about 10 to 30 meters on the upper interface of the basalt layer from Serra Geral Formation. They are located at approximately 60 meters from the center of the soundings. The existence of these 2D structures in the subsurface can be related to the drainage system in the study area. The presence of these structures may indicate a connection between the shallow and deep aquifer systems, acting like a conduit that may contribute to the seismic activity reported.
文摘Nitrogen (N) is an element absorbed in larger quantities by plants due to the vast number of chemical and biological reactions. Despite the high nutritional need of this element by the plants, it is not a constituent of any terrestrial rock. To avoid high production costs of N, there is an increasing interest in the use of organic fertilizers in Brazil, including the use of humic substances (HS). In this work we evaluated the chelating properties of HS, when used together with a source of N. The nitrogen source used in this experiment was the ammonia. We checked the optimum conditions for interaction between the HS and ammonia such as: the ratio of reaction of each compound;minimum incorporation time between these compounds and the amount of ammonia that can be adsorbed by HS (income). The best ratio of ammonia/HS was 1/50 (v/v). Higher amounts of ammonia added to 50 mL of HS caused a greater loss of N. We also concluded that the application of ammonia/HS in the soil can be made immediately after their mixing, without the need of higher contact time between these substances in order to have the adsorption. No loss of ammonia was detected after 72 hours of its application together with HS. Finally, by using a factorial design, the best working area was found by settling the time of incorporation and volatilization in 24 h, and the volumes of HS and NH3 in 100 and 2 mL, respectively.
文摘Objective: To observe the accuracy and the advantages and disadvantages of the femoral tunnels made by the two techniques. Materials and Methods: We randomly summoned nineteen patients undergoing anatomic ACL reconstruction in a single band technique by the same surgeon: Ten by group II (GII) and nine by Group I (GI). GI: drilling in the technical in-out. GII: drilling the technique out-in. The patients underwent a CT scan with three-dimensional reconstruction of the distal femur. Was applied the technique of quadrants described by Bernard and Hertel and optimized for position by Forsythe and observed in the femoral tunnel: the accuracy of the joint entry;posterior cortical thickness in that point;emergency lateral distance to the lateral epicondyle and the overall length. Results: The coordinates of the distances obtained average was very close, with no statistical difference comparable to that obtained by Bernard and Hertel and Forsythe. The distance from the tunnel exit to the lateral epicondyle obtained average 1.46 cm in GI and 0.47 cm in GII, with a significant statistical difference. The thickness of the posterior cortex was 3.9 mm in GI and 5.4 mm in GII, with no statistical difference. The length averaged was 3.07 cm in GI and GII in 2.94 cm, with no statistical difference. Conclusions: Both techniques allow well placed tunnels, with no statistical difference. In the technique in-out the tunnel exit is closer to the lateral epicondyle. The thickness of the posterior cortex is similar. The length of the femoral tunnel is similar and around 3 cm.
文摘Brazil has introduced a referendum regarding the prohibition of firearm commerce and propaganda arguments have invoked socially and personally driven issues in the promotion of voting in favor of and against firearm control, respectively. Here, we used different techniques to study the brain activity associated with a voter’s perception of the truthfulness of these arguments and their influence on voting decisions. Low-resolution tomography was used to identify the possible different sets of neurons activated in the analysis of the different types of propaganda. Linear correlation was used to calculate the amount information H(ei) provided to different electrodes about how these sets of neurons enroll themselves to carry out this cognitive analysis. The results clearly showed that vote decision was not influenced by arguments that were introduced by propaganda, which was typically driven by specific social or self-interest motives. However, different neural circuits were identified in the analysis of each type of propaganda argument, independently of the declared vote (for or against the control) intention.
文摘Dengue is one of the most prominent tropical epidemic diseases present in the Rio de Janeiro city and Southeast part of Brazil, due to the widespread conditions of occurrence of the dengue vector, the mosquito Aedesaegypti, such as high-temperature days interlaced with afternoon or nocturnal rainstorms in summer. This work has the objective of investigating the relationships between variabilities of the El Ni?o-South Oscillation (ENSO) and greater epidemics of dengue in Rio de Janeiro city. To accomplish this goal, the analysis and signal decomposition by cross-wavelet transform (WT) was applied to obtain the cross variability associated with variations of power and phase of both signals by characteristic periods and along with the time series. Data considered in the analysis are (the decimal logarithm of normalized value) of the monthly available notifications of dengue worsening, provided by the public health system of Brazil, and the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) Ni?o 3.4 data, provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), in the period 2000-2017. A maximum cross-wavelet power close to 0.45 was obtained for the representative period of 1 year and also to periods between 3 and 4 years, associated with the positive phase of the SOI index (i.e. , La Ni?a) or with a transition to the positive phase. The evolution of the combined variability of SOI and dengue can be expressed by progressive differences in phase along the time, eventually resulting in yielding phases (i.e., La Niña-Dengue epidemic).
文摘Background: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a highly complex and effective surgery even though its perioperative bleeding may increase the need for blood transfusion and its associated infection risk, cardiovascular overload, increased costs, and mortality. As the tourniquet reduces intraoperative bleeding, it may be associated with postoperative bleeding, venous thrombosis, and distal ischemia. The reperfusion may trigger a local and systemic inflammatory response. Anesthetic preconditioning (APC) with sevoflurane minimizes ischemia-reperfusion syndrome (IRS). This study evaluated the effects of APC with sevoflurane on perioperative bleeding in TKA. Methods: We allocated 30 patients into two groups: a sevo group (sevoflurane 2% for 15 minutes before the tourniquet) and a control group (propofol infusion). Laboratory tests were collected right before the tourniquet (LAB PRE, in the operating room) and after its release at four moments: LAB POST (immediately after), LAB 2 (two hours after), LAB 12 (12 hours after), and LAB 24 (24 hours after). The volume of the suction drain was measured at one, two, 12, and 24 hours after the end of the surgery. Antifibrinolytics were not administered. Results: There was no statistically significant difference in bleeding-related variables, such as drained volume and hemoglobin and hematocrit measurements. Drainage volume was higher in the first two hours after the procedure, while hematocrit decreased pre- to postoperatively and between two and 12 hours post-procedure. Conclusion: Sevoflurane as an anesthetic preconditioning did not reduce postoperative bleeding in TKA surgery.
文摘Erosive processes play an important role in environmental degradation. Rain is the main erosive agent in the Metropolitan Region of Sao Paulo. This study characterized the erosion events caused by precipitation leveraging the accumulated daily precipitation estimate generated by the Climate Prediction Center Morphing Method (CMORPH) and integrating the surface telemetric network using the Statistical Objective Analysis method (SOAS). From the Civil Defense database, 400 events were identified in the Metropolitan region of Sao Paulo (MRSP) area between 2000 and 2013 and, of these, 3 were chosen to carry out meteorological and climatological analyses. In an initial observation, 58% of them were found to occur in summer. Two regions with the highest number of erosion events were observed, in the Serra do Mar and Serra da Cantareira. In the Serra do Mar core, the municipality of São Bernardo do Campo was the one with the greatest amount of erosion. Precipitation volumes were estimated for accumulations of 30 minutes, 1 day, 1 month, and 1 year. The results, from the 3 events, indicate accumulated precipitation in 30 minutes from 10 mm to 19.8 mm, daily from 30.8 mm to 69.5 mm, and 1 month from 369.7 mm to 742.5 mm, and 1 year (2010) from 1712.9 mm to 1961.8 mm. In these events, it was noted that there were heavy rains in December 2009 and January 2010. It was also noted that the CMORPH and SOAS identify the rain events found by the São Paulo meteorological radar. The meteorological analyzes of the events based on images from the São Paulo meteorological radar and the Meteosat-9 satellite indicate that the active precipitation systems are associated with cold fronts, instability lines, and isolated convection.
文摘This work presents a new application for the Hierarchical Function Expansion Method for the solution of the Navier-Stokes equations for compressible fluids in two dimensions and in high velocity. This method is based on the finite elements method using the Petrov-Galerkin formulation, know as SUPG (Streamline Upwind Petrov-Galerkin), applied with the expansion of the variables into hierarchical functions. To test and validate the numerical method proposed as well as the computational program developed simulations are performed for some cases whose theoretical solutions are known. These cases are the following: continuity test, stability and convergence test, temperature step problem, and several oblique shocks. The objective of the last cases is basically to verify the capture of the shock wave by the method developed. The results obtained in the simulations with the proposed method were good both qualitatively and quantitatively when compared with the theoretical solutions. This allows concluding that the objectives of this work are reached.
文摘In this paper, the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) method was used to characterize concrete tubes and steel/plastic tanks buried in IAG/USP test site. The microwave tomography was used to improve the GPR images, aiming to retrieve the geometry of the targets. The numerical modeling studies also were done in order to predict the GPR results of the buried targets and to give more reliability to the results interpretation. The targets were installed in the first shallow geophysical test site of the Brazil located at Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics, and Atmospheric Science (IAG) of the University of S?o Paulo (USP). GPR profiles of 200 MHz (shielded bistatic antennas) were acquired along three lines containing concrete tubes and steel/plastic tanks buried in subsoil. The concrete tubes show a hyperbolic reflector for the top, and the vertical tube also presented a reflection on its bottom. The horizontal steel tanks were characterized by a strong GPR reflection on their top. The empty plastic tank shows a strong reflector for the top with normal polarity. On the other hand, the plastic tank filled with water shows a weaker reflector for its top characterized by the inverted polarity of GPR signal when compared with empty plastic tank. The plastic tank filled with water also went characterized by the strong reflection to its bottom, being a good indicative to interpret GPR data on target in subsoil with some types of fluid inside of tank. The results of polarity difference for the top of tank can be used as guide pattern to identify buried tank empty or filled with water. The application of microwave tomography to the GPR data permitted to determine the position and get a good identification of the edges of the targets studied. The numeric modeling presented a good accordance with real data reducing the ambiguities in interpretation of results. These results can be used as a reference, and they can be extrapolated for areas where there is no subsurface information.
文摘A constant reproduction of environmental injustices and health iniquities has demanded the employment of participatory/dialectic approaches to research and to intervene in the reality making possible the involvement of social actors in healthy public policies. On this framework, the aim of this paper is to analyse scientific production with dialectic approaches associated with public policies in the context of social, environmental and health problems, considering territorial scales of intervention and the correspondence with some relevant strategies of health promotion. A systematic bibliographic review was applied on a wide pan-disciplinary scientific data base and 36 papers were analysed and classified by their territorial scales of approach. The amount of papers found and their spread through a variety of journals showed a modest, but increasing production which has been dispersed in terms of knowledge areas. Within the classification of territorial approaches, 14 papers were classified as local, 5 as expanded and 17 as a multi-level. Although the papers classified as local approaches were in a good structure of stakeholders’ participation, they are limited to dealing with the global driving forces that reproduce the environmental injustices. Regarding this limitation, the multilevel approaches were identified as more opportune to jointly deal with social, environmental and health problems by means of allowing interaction through multiple territorial scales, fomenting the strengthening of community action, creating supportive environments, and building healthy public policies.
文摘Graves’ disease, as known today, is an autoimmune, diffuse, chronic disease of thyroid gland, as described by Robert Graves in 1835. It presents genetic predisposition and unknown etiology evidence, which is influenced in its development by several factors, including environment (dietary iodine intake, stress, drugs and infections). The disease is characterized by one or more changes: hyperthyroidism, goiter, ophthalmopathy, skin changes and pretibial myxedema, around 5% less common, and other symptoms 90% to 95%. One of the most relevant clinical practice aspects in Graves’ disease patients management is to distinguish Graves’ disease in initial phase, from other types of destructive thyrotoxicosis, in addition to evaluate therapeutic methods and efficient follow up, as well as predict early recurrence or remission of disease. Scintigraphy with pertechnetate (99 mTc) and TSH levels dosage are considered the choice for this purpose. However, they present some technical difficulties, as they are not widely available and have contraindications. In this scenario, thyroid color-flow doppler ultrasonography (US Doppler) presents a viable alternative, as a widely available, low cost, non-invasive and radiation free method, providing initial diagnosis and patients with Graves’ disease follow up. In adittion, this method is used in differential diagnosis with other causes of thyrotoxicosis in the early stage.
文摘We present here a series of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey carried out in different areas of the Dardanelos 1 archaeological site in order to generate information about subsurface anomalies associated with archaeological material that could be use in decision making within the environmental licensing process of the Dardanelos Hydroelectric Power Plant, located near of the Aripuan? city, Mato Grosso State, northwest region of Brazil. GPR surveys with 200 MHz antenna were carried out in two blocks aiming to locate archaeological resources and features. The analysis of GPR 2D and 3D results allowed detecting anomalous regions characterized by hyperbolic reflections, shallow elongated continuous targets with high amplitudes, as well as sub-horizontal reflectors. Microwave tomography allowed estimating the geometry of the GPR anomalies sources. Excavations were done by archaeologists at the locations where hyperbolic anomalies were found, revealing interesting structures related to urns in the middle of a rich in organic matter consisting of black and ceramic materials up to about 1 m deep. The first sub-horizontal reflector at approximately 1 m depth is related to the base of the black soil layer rich in organic matter and the second sub-horizontal reflector between 2 and 3 m deep suggests a lithological change or may be related to presence of the water table. The continuous elongated shallow targets observed in the depth slices are related to tree roots in the middle of the archaeological strata. The GPR results guided archaeological excavations, reduced the time and costs involved in research, and contributed to the preservation of Brazilian historical heritage.
文摘The industrial importance and the high cost of the commercial amylase require the study of microorganisms that produce these enzymes. For this reason, the objective of this work was to isolate filamentous fungi from a region of the caatinga and evaluate their potential for the production of amylase. Four soil samples were collected from a deactivated dump located in the city of Diamantina, MG, in a region of the caatinga. The analysis of amylolytic production in a submerged medium at the ideal temperature of each microorganism was performed using the saccharification method, and the reducing sugars formed were quantified by DNS. Fourteen filamentous fungi were isolated, which had different morphological aspects. Regarding amylase production, a mean activity of 0.477 U<span style="white-space:nowrap;">·</span>mL<sup>-1</sup> was obtained with the isolates I 1.2.1 and I 4.4.1. These results bring important information regarding the biodiversity of the caatinga, in addition to the isolation of microorganisms that can be used as biological machinery to obtain metabolites with high biotechnological and industrial potential.
文摘The effects of land use and cover changes and the application of the Urbanity Index were analyzed to identify critical or non-critical naturalness scenery in the Northern Region of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil), over a period of 30 years. Between 1986 and 2016, the main significant land use change was the reduction of the agricultural anthropic and the increase of the natural vegetation land use areas. About 90% - 80% of the total study areas were characterized by anthropic pattern features, with a predominantly agricultural matrix. The conversion of agricultural anthropic into natural areas resulted in increased naturalness landscape and a gain in the stock of natural capital. The increase in the natural vegetation area, mainly to the north and east of the region, set in a steep relief, became remarkable after 1990. The Urbanity Index values evidenced a highest naturalness condition (natural vegetation areas) to the northern and eastern, while a smaller naturalness condition (agricultural and non-agricultural areas) to the southern and western and central of the Northern Region of Rio Grande do Sul. These changes are related to a non-impaired (northern and eastern) and a impaired scenery (southern, western and central portion) of the ecological sustainability of the Northern Region of Rio Grande do Sul, after a 30-year period (1986-2016). These results pointed out that land use transitions resulted in a consolidated farming scenario in which agricultural intensification coincided with the reduction of farming area and increased naturalness as a reverse trend to the agricultural frontier dynamics.
文摘This paper uses a methodology based in Fuzzy Sets Theory in order to describe the interaction between the prey, Aphis glycines (Hemiptera: Aphididae)—the soybean aphid, and its predator, Orius insidiosus (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae) and to propose a biological control to soybean aphid. Economic thresholds were already developed for this pest. The model includes biotic (predator) and abiotic (temperature) factors, which affect the soybean aphid population dynamics. The dynamic model results in a fuzzy model that preserves the biological meaning and nature of the predator-prey model. The paper also includes a comparison between the fuzzy model and real data reported in the literature. Subsequently, we propose a biological control to soybean aphid by another fuzzy rule-based system. This model has allowed to predict timing and releasing number of predators for soybean aphid biological control. On the one hand, the soybean aphid has still not found in Brazil. Therefore, before any eventual invasion, a predictive model to enhance biological control program is desirable. On the other hand, the soybean aphid has become the most devastating insect pest of soybeans in the United States. Brazil is the second largest exporter of soybean at present, after the USA and before Argentina. According to the Bureau of Agriculture of the USA, it has been estimated that Brazil will be the largest soybean exporter in 2023.