384 research outputs found
Os significados e representações atribuídos aos cursos d'agua da bacia do Rio Criciúma (SC) desde 1880 até 2009 e suas influências na configuração da paisagem
Get PDFTese (doutorado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Geografia, Florianópolis, 2010O trabalho tem por objetivo compreender como foram construídos os significados atribuídos aos cursos d'água nas diferentes fases do processo de ocupação das terras da bacia do rio Criciúma (SC), desde o processo de colonização em 1880 até os dias atuais. O significado dos objetos norteia a relação dos indivíduos entre si e com seu meio. No caso estudado, a relação de diferentes grupos sociais que ocuparam a bacia do rio Criciúma ao longo do tempo depende do significado atribuído a este recurso, o que reflete nas formas de apropriação dos rios. O significado é uma construção mental acerca de um objeto e essa construção depende de valores, percepções, experiências e são abstratos. Quando há tentativa de comunicá-lo, perde-se alguma parte do seu conteúdo. A sua expressão dá-se por meio de diferentes linguagens, que na realidade representam este significado. As formas de apropriação do rio são também representações de significados atribuídos pelos grupos sociais apropriadores a este elemento da paisagem. A partir dos conceitos e abordagens da Geografia Cultural, faz-se um estudo das representações, incluindo as formas de apropriação, em diferentes contextos sócio-econômicos culturais pelas quais passou o processo de ocupação humana da bacia. Para compreender os significados e suas representações foram pesquisadas diferentes linguagens a partir de entrevistas, pesquisas bibliográficas, fotografias, mapas, leis e normas municipais. Três períodos históricos foram identificados durante o processo de ocupação da bacia, com distintas formas de apropriação dos cursos d'água. O primeiro período vai da colonização até 1930, quando as atividades econômicas predominantes eram a agricultura, o comércio e as pequenas manufaturas. Nessa época, o rio era um elemento referencial para as pessoas, pois se constituía no eixo norteador do processo de colonização e do traçado urbano, gerador de força motriz para os engenhos e atafonas e para abastecimento de água potável. No segundo período, de 1930 até 1950, a principal atividade econômica era a exploração de carvão, que utilizava o rio para a lavagem ou beneficiamento do desse mineral, drenagem das áreas ácidas, com consequente contaminação, assoreamento por deposição de material fino do carvão e desvios dos cursos d'água. Associada à mineração, houve a vinda de um contingente populacional acentuado para o município, e essas pessoas não tinham o rio Criciúma e seus afluentes como uma referência dos seus espaços vividos. Por isso, não havia problema em contaminá-lo com esgotos domésticos, mesmo aqueles que não estavam contaminados com carvão. O rio Criciúma passa a ter um significado negativo de sujo e mau cheiroso, por causa da apropriação para o despejo de efluentes do carvão, esgotos domésticos e resíduos sólidos. O terceiro período ocorre a partir de 1950, a bacia começa a ser intensamente urbanizada e, no final dos anos de 1960, inicia o processo de verticalização no alto e médio vale do rio Criciúma. Muitos trechos do rio e seus afluentes foram canalizados com contenção de margem e fundo e alguns até recobertos para a apropriação do espaço dos seus leitos e para resolver os problemas do cheiro exalado e das inundações. Partes dos rios desapareceram da paisagem da bacia por causa das canalizações e recobrimentos e passaram a não ter significado, pois não existem aos olhos de muitos moradores. Contudo, nos momentos de precipitações elevadas, o rio volta a se mostrar em forma de inundações, gerando na população uma sensação de medo. Nesses períodos o rio Criciúma e seus afluentes têm um significado para população, mas este significado esta ligado a sentimentos ruins. Conclui-se que, em cada período identificado, o rio Criciúma como elemento da paisagem recebeu distintos significados, traduzidos pelas representações, os quais são materializados por diferentes formas de apropriação
Ground States for NLS on Graphs: A Subtle Interplay of Metric and Topology
No full textWe review some recent results on the minimization of the energy associated to the
nonlinear Schrödinger Equation on non-compact graphs. Starting from seminal results given
by the author together with C. Cacciapuoti, D. Finco, and D. Noja for the star graphs, we
illustrate the achiements attained for general graphs and the related methods, developed
in collaboration with E. Serra and P. Tilli. We emphasize ideas and examples rather than
computations or proofs
Culture, Language and Environmental Rights: The Anthropocentrism of English
No full textThrough the methodological perspective of ecolinguistics, this paper criticizes the unecological and anthropocentric features of English in order to reveal the manipulation forces at work within language and to create awareness of the relationship between language and the environment. Through examples from United Nations documents, the author underlines how the unecological ideologies entrenched in the structures of the English language influence cultural and legal approaches to environmental rights, which are always seen from a human rights perspective rather than from a “nature rights” perspective
What’s in a click? A social semiotic framework for the multimodal analysis of website interactivity
No full textThis article presents a social semiotic framework for the multimodal analysis of website interactivity. Distinguishing it from interaction, it defines interactivity as the affordance of a text of being acted (up)on, thus including hypertextuality. The author introduces the notion of ‘interactive sites/signs’ as the loci of interactivity in digital texts; these have a two-fold nature and a two-dimensional functioning. In their two-fold nature, they are both places enabling actions producing effects and forms endowed with meanings. Notwithstanding the non-direct correspondence between forms, actions and effects (which makes any specific association between the three significant within a webpage design), and in spite of their many possible forms (encompassing still and dynamic images, shapes and writing), a small range of actions can activate them (click/click+type/hover), producing a restricted set of textual effects (access/provide/transfer text). In their two-dimensional functioning, interactive sites/signs function both syntagmatically, on the page where they are displayed, in their relation with other co-occurring elements, and paradigmatically, opening to optional text realizations, hence in their relation with these. The framework adapts Halliday’s three metafunctions to the analysis of the two-fold nature and two-dimensional functioning of interactive sites/signs. It provides a fine-grained account of the interactive meaning potentials of digital texts, distinguishing between a text’s aesthetics of interactivity – as visually communicated before it is activated, performed and experienced – and its functionality, in the configuration of interactive possibilities offered by a page. Designed to complement the extant practices of text analysis of webpages, the framework can be used comparatively, as exemplified in its application to the analysis of two blog pages, and can provide a more refined assessment of the interactive meaning potential of a webpage than traditional methodologies such as content analysis
The Pedagogical Value of Young-Adult Speculative Fiction: Teaching Environmental Justice through Julie Bertagna’s Exodus
No full textThe environmental crisis is one of the most pressing societal concerns today. Speculative fiction frequently questions current political, legal and cultural attitudes by portraying future scenarios in which some ecological disaster has changed the world order. Scottish children’s author Julie Bertagna has given her contribution to these speculations on the consequences of letting current trends in environmental behaviour continue unchallenged with her young-adult novel Exodus (2002), part of a trilogy continued in 2007 with Zenith and completed in 2011 with Aurora. This paper explores the pedagogical value of young-adult speculative fiction and examines Bertagna’s survival narrative as a questioning of environmental justice, in the light of contemporary theories on young-adult fiction, ecocriticism and human rights
Women's Reproductive Rights: a literary perspective
No full textThis paper examines the development of the concept of women’s reproductive
rights in human rights treaties and conventions since the 1948 Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, revealing how traditional human rights formulations
are often male-centered and lack a gender-sensitive approach. Since feminist
speculative fiction has anticipated many of the reproductive rights issues that we
are facing today, the author claims that literary texts such as Ursula Le Guin’s The
Left Hand of Darkness (1969), Marge Piercy’s Woman on the Edge of Time (1976),
Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), P. D. James’s The Children of Men
(1992) and Sarah Hall’s The Carhullan Army (2007) can enlighten contemporary
debates on reproductive rights and contribute to the development of a universal
ethics of human rights that takes into account the specificity of women’s rights
Plasmodium chabaudi adami: vaccine antigens and antigenic variation
Get PDFDeposited with permission of the author © 2003 Dr. Eva BucsuThere is an abundance of information available on the molecular mechanisms of antigenic variation in Plasmodium falciparum. The variant antigen PfEMP1, which mediates antigenic variation as well as cytoadherence and rosetting, has been extensively characterised. Genes coding for the antigen belong to the gene family var, and several var genes have been cloned and characterised. The rodent malaria parasite P. chabaudi is a widely studied in vivo model for P. falciparum. The P. c. chabaudi AS parasite strain has been shown to exhibit antigenic variation and the variant antigen has been detected by surface fluorescence. As with P. falciparum, there is a link between antigenic variation and cytoadherence, however genes coding for the variant antigen in P. chabaudi have not been cloned to date. Therefore, potentially useful in vivo experiments on antigenic variation are restricted. In this thesis it is shown for the first time that the P. c. adami DS parasite strain also exhibits antigenic variation.
Chapter 3 describes efforts to locate genes coding for variant antigens in P. c. adami DS. The main strategy involved a genome survey, by sequencing and analysing randomly selected clones from a P. c. adami DS genomic library. DNA sequences were compared to Plasmodium spp. sequence databases to look for similarity to var genes or other genes encoding variant antigens. Of the 297 clones analysed none had significant sequence similarity to genes coding for variant antigens. However, in a small proportion of sequences some similarity to var genes was noted. Several genes of potential interest were identified, most importantly the gene coding for the vaccine candidate rhoptry associated protein 1 (RAP1), which was subsequently cloned and characterised. Further attempts to locate var gene homologues in P. c. adami involved amplification of P. c. adami genomic DNA using degenerate oligonucleotide primers corresponding to conserved regions of var genes. This strategy proved to be unsuccessful, most likely due to lack of sequence similarity between P. falciparum and P. c. adami genes. In several vaccination studies with the apical membrane antigen 1 (AMA1) of P. c. adami DS, mice were significantly protected against homologous parasite challenge. However, some mice developed late, low-level breakthrough parasitaemias. In Chapter 4, the characterisation of two such breakthrough parasitaemias is described. The ama1 genes of the breakthrough parasites were found to be identical to the ama1 gene of the parental parasites. Similarly, no alteration in AMA1 expression was observed. However, the breakthrough parasites were found to be more resistant than the parental parasites to the effects of passive immunisation with rabbit antisera to AMA1, RAP1 and possibly also MSP119. P. chabaudi infections in mice have been previously shown to consist of a primary parasitaemia followed by a short period of subpatency, and a recrudescent parasitaemia. In surface immunofluorescence studi
Chapter 4 describes similar surface immunofluorescence assays carried out with P. c. adami infected erythrocytes, and quantitation of fluorescence by flow cytometry. As with P. c. chabaudi, the recrudescent parasites were found to be antigenically distinct from the primary parasitaemia, indicating that antigenic variation had taken place. Because breakthrough parasites from the AMA1 vaccination trial were similar to recrudescences in peak and duration, we hypothesised that breakthrough parasitaemias, like recrudescent parasitaemias, occur as a result of antigenic variation. In Chapter 4 it was shown by surface immunofluorescence and flow cytometry using hyperimmune sera raised against different parasite populations, that breakthrough parasites express antigens on the surface of late trophozoite- and schizont infected erythrocytes that differ from those expressed by the parental and recrudescent parasites. These results support the hypothesis that switching of the variant antigen on the infected erythrocyte surface enables parasites to evade protective antibody responses directed against merozoite antigens.
Chapter 5 describes the cloning and characterisation of P. c. adami RAP1 which was identified in the process of the genomic survey described in Chapter 3, as well as P. berghei RAP1. Both rodent parasite orthologues of RAP1 were found to have 30% sequence similarity to P. falciparum RAP1, and 6 of 8 cysteines were conserved in the rodent parasite orthologues. However the three polypeptides vary significantly in size. P. c. adami RAP1 and P. berghei RAP1 consist of 691 aa and 604 aa respectively, whereas P. falciparum RAP1 consists of 783 aa residues. These size differences reflect very different N-terminal sequences prior to the first cysteine, whereas the cysteine-rich C-terminal regions are more conserved. Both P. falciparum RAP1 and P. c. adami RAP1 contain N-terminal repeats, however they bear no sequence similarity to each other. P. berghei RAP1 lacks N-terminal sequence repeats that are characteristic of P. falciparum and P. c. adami RAP1. The large cysteine-rich C-terminal region P. c. adami RAP1 (PcRAP1 C3) was expressed in E. coli as a hexa-his fusion protein. Rabbit antiserum to recombinant PcRAP1 C3 was used to characterise the expression and sub-cellular localisation of the RAP1 antigen. P. c. adami RAP1 was found to have a Mr of approximately 80,000 and was shown by immunofluorescence to localise to the merozoite rhoptries. Passive immunisation of mice with rabbit anti-RAP1 serum was shown to protect against fulminant parasitaemia and mortality. In a mouse vaccination trial using the recombinant PcRAP1 C3 polypeptide partial protection was conferred against homologous parasite challenge
Bisphosphonates in prostate carcinoma
No full textThe majority of the patients with advanced prostate carcinoma have painful skeletal metastases, which are responsible for significant skeletal morbidity and disability. Most of these metastases are osteosclerotic, but it has been shown that the abnormal osteoblastic bone formation within metastases is preceded by osteoclastic activation, which appears to be associated with bone pain. This provides the rationale for using bisphosphonates, which are powerful and selective inhibitors of osteoclastic bone resorption. Several bisphosphonates have been shown to be clinically useful for the treatment of several conditions characterized by abnormal osteoclastic bone resorption, including Paget's disease, primary hyperparathyroidism, myelomatosis, and skeletal metastases. Its efficacy in relieving pain in patients with skeletal metastases due to prostate carcinoma has been confirmed in a few studies. The bisphosphonate clodronate was extensively investigated in the study unit. When infused intravenously i.v. (300 mg/day) relief of bone pain become appreciable with 3 days, sometimes preceded by a transient pain flare. These clinical results are very consistent and the residual pain usually is of extraosseous origin. Thus, Mth regard to pain of strictly bone origin, unresponsive patients are quite rare. Oral administration also is effective, but due to its limited intestinal absorption the effective dose is on the order of 1600-3200 mg/day. These doses usually are well tolerated, but they may be a problem for severely ill patients. Furthermore, the efficacy of treatment becomes apparent only after a few days. Thus, oral clodronate usually is adopted as a continuation of an i.v. course. The duration of the i.v. therapy should be individualized, but usually the more prolonged the treatment the longer the duration of the effect. For practical reasons, clodronate is infused daily for 5 days (Monday-Friday) and the treatment course is repeated at the time of any significant recurrence. The oral continuation prevents or delays the recurrence of bone pain in most patients, but in some patients this therapy has to be integrated occasionally with i.v. infusion. The duration of the effect for the same bioavailable dose is somewhat related to the degree of malignancy of the primary tumor. In an uncontrolled study, the author also evaluated the effectiveness of alendronate given either i.v. or orally. A single infusion of 5 mg alendronate i.v. produces roughly the symptomatic effect of 5 i.v. infusions of 300 mg clodronate. Alendronate, 40 mg orally/day, was effective in reducing bone pain in 11 of 12 patients with bone metastases due to prostate carcinoma but who were not confined to bed. In some patients with prostate carcinoma and a diffuse metastatic invasion of the skeleton, there is indirect biochemical and histologic evidence of osteomalacia. This can be aggravated by bisphosphonate administration because of the transient striking prevalence of osteoblastic activity over bone resorption, which also occasionally causes the appearance of symptomatic hypocalcemia. Therefore, the use of large oral supplements of calcium is recommended, particularly at the start of therapy. It is conceivable that these calcium supplements also may be able to improve the final clinical outcome of the bisphosphonate therapy. In conclusion, administration of large doses of bisphosphonates is one of the most cost-effective palliation treatments for patients with prostate carcinoma with bone metastases, both as first-line therapy and in the long term. With appropriate doses, a large proportion of patients can be maintained free of bone pain until death. Studies of the ability of lower doses to prevent skeletal morbidity in patients without metastases or with asymptomatic bone lesions are warranted
Soybean crop area estimation by Modis/Evi data
Get PDFThe objective of this work was to develop a procedure to estimate soybean crop areas in Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. Estimations were made based on the temporal profiles of the enhanced vegetation index (Evi) calculated from moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (Modis) images. The methodology developed for soybean classification was named Modis crop detection algorithm (MCDA). The MCDA provides soybean area estimates in December (first forecast), using images from the sowing period, and March (second forecast), using images from the sowing and maximum crop development periods. The results obtained by the MCDA were compared with the official estimates on soybean area of the Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística. The coefficients of determination ranged from 0.91 to 0.95, indicating good agreement between the estimates. For the 2000/2001 crop year, the MCDA soybean crop map was evaluated using a soybean crop map derived from Landsat images, and the overall map accuracy was approximately 82%, with similar commission and omission errors. The MCDA was able to estimate soybean crop areas in Rio Grande do Sul State and to generate an annual thematic map with the geographic position of the soybean fields. The soybean crop area estimates by the MCDA are in good agreement with the official agricultural statistics
An edition and study of al-Munawwar on Hanbali jurisprudence by al-Adami (d.749 A.H./A.D.1329).
Get PDFThe aim of this thesis is to present an edition of a unique and important manuscript of Hanbali jurisprudence entitled 'Al-Munawwar fi Rajih al-Muharrar' written by Ahmad b. Muhammad al-Adami (d.c.749AH/AD1329) and which has not yet been studied despite later Hanbali scholars' heavy reliance on it in their work. This edition is supplemented by an introduction designed to make the edited text more accessible. This commentary discusses the manuscript, the author and his sources. A broad discussion of Hanbali legal terminology and a comparison of Al-Muharrar with other important works of jurisprudence provides a better understanding of the text, which is presented with explanatory footnotes in the final section of the thesis. In the process of editing the manuscript every effort was made to do as accurate an edition of the work as possible, preserving the originality of the work whilst making it accessible to the modem reader. The study consists of five parts which are divided into a number of chapters. Part One: This explores the importance of Al-Munawwar, provides a biography of Al-Adami, describes the framework of Al-Munawwar, ascribes it to its author and discusses the plague of 749/1329. Part Two: This describes the sources of Al-Munawwar with particular reference to Al-Majd's Al-Muharrar of which it is an abridgement. I also discuss the methodology and terminology adopted by both Al-Adami and Al-Majd. Part Three: This gives definitions of the major legal terms used in Hanbali jurisprudence, including a history of how this terminology has been understood by different generations. Part Four: This part focuses on the methodology of editing the manuscript. Part Five: The edited and authenticated text is presented with an annotated commentary
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