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Copyright of Iheringia. Série Zoologia is the property of Fundacao Zoobotanica do Rio Grande do Sul and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista FAMECOS - Mídia, Cultura e Tecnologia is the property of EDIPUCRS - Editora Universitaria da PUCRS and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of URVIO - Revista Latinoamericana de Seguridad Ciudadana is the property of FLACSO - Ecuador (Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista CESUMAR: Ciências Humanas e Sociais Aplicadas is the property of Revista Cesumar - Ciencias Humanas e Sociais Aplicadas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Fish-borne heterophyid trematodes are known to have a zoonotic potential, since at least 30 species are able to infect humans worldwide, with a global infection of around 7 million people. In this paper, a 'state-of-the-art' review of the South American heterophyid species is provided, including classical and molecular taxonomy, parasite ecology, hostparasite interaction studies and a list of species and their hosts. There is still a lack of information on human infections in South America with undetected or unreported infections probably due to the information shortage and little attention by physicians to these small intestinal flukes. Molecular tools for specific diagnoses of South American heterophyid species are still to be defined. Additional new sequences of Pygidiopsis macrostomum, Ascocotyle pindoramensis and Ascocotyle longa from Brazil are also provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of URVIO - Revista Latinoamericana de Seguridad Ciudadana is the property of FLACSO - Ecuador (Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Gerdau Ouro Branco ́s plate mill started operation in 2016 with high-level technology and production capacity of 1.2 million tons per year. The plant has the capacity to produce different thicknesses in a single plate, therefore is able to supply special requirements of sectors such as building structures, bridges, shipbuilding and mechanical applications. This paper presents the first results obtained in this innovative product in South America market. Some slabs of EN10025-2 S355JR+AR steel were rolled and were evaluated for dimensional tolerances, mechanical properties uniformity, grain size, surface and internal qualities. In addition, a correlation was observed between slab and plate thickness reduction and internal plate quality. The results show that this technology can be used with adequate performance for steel grades in the current market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to evaluate accountability using a newly constructed multivariate accountability index based on the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), as well as on the accessibility of government disclosure for each country in the South America context. That will allow to analyse and compare the accountability disclosure issues among the South American countries. This study uses the statistical dimensional structure of data to identify the number of (dominant) dimensions. The findings were eight dimensions defined as Environmental, Expenditure, Social, Strategic, Economic, Information, Macroeconomic and Organizational perspectives. Scores are recorded for the twelve countries in South America that are classified accordingly. The contributions of this research represent an advance in the theoretical and empirical framework by creating an accountability index that takes into account the principles of good governance to improve the South America Central Governments' transparency performance. This index could be used both by academics and practitioners to classify countries and their web site accountability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indigenous peoples have been quite useful to political elites in Latin America almost since the time of the conquests by Spanish and Portuguese adventurers in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, indigenous people supplied the foundations for a trope, both literary and political, essential for the construction of cultural, ethnic, racial, and political identities distinct from the traditional colonial masters of emerging Latin American states, as well as from that great power to the north. This paper looks at one aspect of this rich development by focusing on the "noble savage," the construction of Caribbean (and principally Cuban) political identity, and the formation of governance ideals. The focus will be on three people, separated by hundreds of years but all connected by the parallels of their lives and their place within Caribbean literary and political thought. I will start with the great archetypical figure of Cuban history--a Taíno Indian from the island of Hispaniola--el indio Hatuey. The heart of the paper examines essays of José Martí in the broader context of Latin indigenismo. Martí, like the Spanish before him, confronts the Indian in Cuban life. But unlike the Spanish, Martí deploys the Indian in the service of the construction of Cuban national indigenismo. The last great figure considered in the development of Cuban indigenismo is Fidel Castro Ruz. Castro served as the leader of Cuba from the successful conclusion of the Cuban Revolution of 1959 until early 2008 when illness forced his retirement. The indigenismo of Martí finds rich embellishment in the great speeches of Fidel Castro. With Fidel Castro we witness the maturation of the process of denaturing the Indian from indigenismo. The essay ends with a consideration of the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples from the perspective of this constructed Cuban indigenismo without Indians. In a Cuba without Indians, but where the memory of the Indian is revered, Cuba can seek to assert the rights of indigenous peoples everywhere without having to confront the issue of its own Indians. In a construction of a social and ethnic order in which the Indian has disappeared, to assert the right of indigenous people in Cuba is to assert the rights of the Cuban nation as a singular but blended mass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Co-herencia is the property of Universidad EAFIT and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Highlights • El Nino impacts on six socio-ecological systems are described. • Diverse experiences of 2015–16 El Nino event across these systems. • System resilience shaped by interaction of short and long term processes. • El Nino experiences provide window for analysing long term resilience. Abstract In a context of both long-term climatic changes and short-term climatic shocks, temporal dynamics profoundly influence ecosystems and societies. In low income contexts in the Tropics, where both exposure and vulnerability to climatic fluctuations is high, the frequency, duration, and trends in these fluctuations are important determinants of socio-ecological resilience. In this paper, the dynamics of six diverse socio-ecological systems (SES) across the Tropics – ranging from agricultural and horticultural systems in Africa and Oceania to managed forests in South East Asia and coastal systems in South America – are examined in relation to the 2015–16 El Niño, and the longer context of climatic variability in which this short-term 'event' occurred. In each case, details of the socio-ecological characteristics of the systems and the climate phenomena experienced during the El Niño event are described and reflections on the observed impacts of, and responses to it are presented. Drawing on these cases, we argue that SES resilience (or lack of) is, in part, a product of both long-term historical trends, as well as short-term shocks within this history. Political and economic lock-ins and dependencies, and the memory and social learning that originates from past experience, all contribute to contemporary system resilience. We propose that the experiences of climate shocks can provide a window of insight into future ecosystem responses and, when combined with historical perspectives and learning from multiple contexts and cases, can be an important foundation for efforts to build appropriate long-term resilience strategies to mediate impacts of changing and uncertain climates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Co-herencia is the property of Universidad EAFIT and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Uruguaya de Ciencia Política is the property of Instituto de Ciencia Politica (Universidad de la Republica de Uruguay) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Uruguaya de Ciencia Política is the property of Instituto de Ciencia Politica (Universidad de la Republica de Uruguay) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

THE EUROPEAN UNION IS SERVING FOR OVER 60 YEARS AS A MODEL OF UNIFICATION ON ALL LEVELS, BEING AROSE IN A SPACE WHERE THE IDEA OF NATIONAL STATE AND NATIONALISM ARE BASED ON WELL ROOTED HISTORICAL FACTS. OUR PAPER WILL CAST A GLANCE OVER THE RISE AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE UNION OF SOUTH AMERICAN NATIONS OR THE SOUTH AMERICAN UNION AND ON THE EURASIAN UNION, POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS THAT BUILT UP IN CONTINENTAL AREAS WHERE COLONIALISM AND IMPERIALISM CREATED THE CONSCIOUSNESS OF LIVING UNDER ONE FLAG. THE CURRENT DIRECTIONS ARE POINTING TOWARDS COMPLETE CONTINENTAL UNIONS, THUS BRINGING CLOSER THE PERSPECTIVE OF A WORLD GOVERNMENT. AS SCHOLARS, UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF DIFFERENT HISTORIGRAHIC APPROACHES, TEND TO NEGLECT RECENT HISTORICAL FACTS, THIS PAPER IS ALSO CONSTITUTED AS A HISTORIOGRAPHICAL EFFORT IN THE TERMS OF LATE CONTEMPORARY TIMES, BY OUR USE OF TREATIES, OFFICIAL STATEMENTS, POLITICAL ANALYSIS AND INTERNATIONAL PRESS AS REFERENCE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Since its introduction in 2009, the Strengthening Laboratory Management Toward Accreditation (SLMTA) programme has been implemented widely throughout Africa, as well as in the Caribbean, Central and South America, and Southeast Asia. Objective: We compiled results from local, national and global studies to provide a broad view of the programme and identify directions for the future. The review consists of two companion papers; this paper focuses on content analysis, examining various thematic components of the SLMTA programme and future priorities. Methods: A systematic literature search identified 28 published articles about implementing the SLMTA programme. Results for various components of the SLMTA programme were reviewed and summarised. Results: Local and national studies provide substantial information on previous experiences with quality management systems; variations on SLMTA implementation; building human resource capacity for trainers, mentors and auditors; the benefits and effectiveness of various types of mentorship; the importance of management buy-in to ensure country ownership; the need to instill a culture of quality in the laboratory; success factors and challenges; and future directions for the programme. Conclusions: Local, national and global results suggest that the SLMTA programme has been overwhelmingly successful in transforming laboratory quality management. There is an urgent need to move forward in four strategic directions: progression (continued improvement in SLMTA laboratories), saturation (additional laboratories within countries that have implemented SLMTA), expansion (implementation in additional countries), and extension (adapting SLMTA for implementation beyond the laboratory), to lead to transformation of overall health systems and patient care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Araucaria is the property of Araucaria-Revista Iberoamericana de Filosofia, Politica y Humanidades and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Estudios Atacameños is the property of Estudios Atacamenos and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper aims to contribute new insights globally and regionally on how carbon forest mitigation contributes to sustainable development in South America. Carbon finance has emerged as a potential policy option to tackling global climate change, degradation of forests, and social development in poor countries. This paper focuses on evaluating the socioeconomic impacts of a set of forest based mitigation pilot projects that emerged under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The paper reviews research conducted in 2001–2002, drawing from empirical data from four pilot projects, derived from qualitative stakeholder interviews, and complemented by policy documents and literature. Of the four projects studied three are located in frontier areas, where there are considerable pressures for conversion of standing forest to agriculture. In this sense, forest mitigation projects have a substantial role to play in the region. Findings suggest however, that all four projects have experienced cumbersome implementation processes specifically, due to weak social objectives, poor communication, as well as time constraints. In three out of four cases, stakeholders highlighted limited local acceptance at the implementation stages. In the light of these findings, we discuss opportunities for implementation of future forest based mitigation projects in the land use sector. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Between 2003 and 2012, South American economies experienced a period of relatively high growth rates. That performance was accompanied by considerable improvements in income distribution and poverty indicators. Nonetheless, structural heterogeneity remained one of the central characteristics of these economies. The aim of this paper is to analyze the role income distribution and the productive structure played in the economic growth of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, for the period between 1990 and 2012. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microplastics (MPs) are an emerging pollutant and a worldwide issue. A wide variety of MPs and tyre wear particles (TWPs) are entering and spreading in the environment. TWPs can reach waterbodies through runoff, where main contributing particulate matter comes from impervious areas. In this paper, TWPs and other types of MPs that were transported with the runoff of a high populated-impervious urban area were characterised. Briefly, MPs were sampled from sediments in a stormwater detention reservoir (SDR) used for flood control of a catchment area of ∼36 km2, of which 73% was impervious. The sampled SDR is located in São Paulo, the most populated city in South America. TWPs were the most common type of MPs in this SDR, accounting for 53% of the total MPs; followed by fragments (30%), fibres (9%), films (4%) and pellets (4%). In particular, MPs in the size range 0.1 mm–0.5 mm were mostly TWPs. Such a profile of MPs in the SDR is unlike what is reported in environmental compartments elsewhere. TWPs were found at levels of 2160 units/(kg sediment·km2 of impervious area) and 87.8 units/(kg sediment·km street length); MP and TWP loadings are introduced here for the first time. The annual flux of MPs and TWPs were 7.8 × 1011 and 4.1 × 1011 units/(km2·year), respectively, and TWP emissions varied from 43.3 to 205.5 kg/day. SDRs can be sites to intercept MP pollution in urban areas. This study suggests that future research on MP monitoring in urban areas and design should consider both imperviousness and street length as important factors to normalize TWP contribution to urban pollution. [Display omitted] • Tyres are important urban source of MPs (São Paulo study site: 4.1 × 1011 MP/km2∙year). • TWPs were 57% of the MPs in a storm detention reservoir (SDR) from impervious area. • The impervious study area in São Paulo had 2160 TWPs/(kg sediment·km2). • Eighty-Eight TWPs/(kg sediment·street km) were counted in the impervious study area. • Imperviousness and street length are important when quantifying TWP/MP urban pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Asclepio is the property of Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The use of Local Environmental Knowledge has been considered as an important strategy for adaptive management in the face of Global Environmental Change. However, the unprecedented rates at which global change occurs may pose a challenge to the adaptive capacity of local knowledge systems. In this paper, we use the concept of the shifting baseline syndrome to examine the limits in the adaptive capacity of the local knowledge of an indigenous society facing rapid ecosystem change. We conducted semi-structured interviews regarding perceptions of change in wildlife populations and in intergenerational transmission of knowledge amongst the Tsimane’, a group of hunter-gatherers of Bolivian Amazonia ( n = 300 adults in 13 villages). We found that the natural baseline against which the Tsimane’ measure ecosystem changes might be shifting with every generation as a result of (a) age-related differences in the perception of change and (b) a decrease in the intergenerational sharing of environmental knowledge. Such findings suggest that local knowledge systems might not change at a rate quick enough to adapt to conditions of rapid ecosystem change, hence potentially compromising the adaptive success of the entire social-ecological system. With the current pace of Global Environmental Change, widening the gap between the temporal rates of on-going ecosystem change and the timescale needed for local knowledge systems to adjust to change, efforts to tackle the shifting baseline syndrome are urgent and critical for those who aim to use Local Environmental Knowledge as a tool for adaptive management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scenarios help build a shared understanding of potential futures and allow us to engage with how interventions or activities may impact on people and the environment. There are many scenario sets that have been developed at the global and regional level, but to a lesser extent at the national and local levels. Yet fewer studies have explicitly linked imagined futures at different social–ecological scales. In this paper, we discuss how scenario analysis was used with indigenous communities and national level stakeholders in Guyana, South America, to explore context specific futures in relation to linked social-ecological systems. These futures were then analysed against published regional (Amazonian) and international scenarios using a qualitative coding approach and supported by quantitative factorial analysis. This allowed us to develop a matrix of multi-scalar scenarios, showing how scenarios at all scales interact. From this, we were able to identify virtuous and vicious cycles amongst the different scales where developments produced feedbacks to make situations worse, better or counteract change at other levels. Our results show that there is considerable mismatch between the different scales of analysis, with the national scale playing a key role as mediator. In addition, we highlight the importance of focusing on the root causes shaping futures as well as participatory forms of scenario development in order to provide better policy and decision support, and stimulate engagement at all levels of organisation in the process of change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change represents one of the biggest threats to agriculture today. The aim of this paper is to analyze the decision and intensity of adaptation to this phenomenon among farmers in Central Chile and to identify the factors that influence the adoption of adaptation measures. The list of adaptation practices was created with the assistance of a panel of experts. A two-part hurdle model was used to identify the adoption and intensity of adoption. The decision to adapt is strongly influenced by land tenure security and access to weather information, which increase the probability of adaptation by 13% and 30%, respectively. The intensity of adaptation is highly influenced by affiliation to a farm organization or association, which tends to boost intensity by 72.2%. Land tenure also increases intensity by 44.5%. Years of experience in agriculture and the income obtained from crops in the previous season also have a positive impact. Empirical results reveal that the most effective way to reduce barriers to adaptation is to improve access to information, while a highly relevant mode to increase the intensity of adaptation is to encourage social networking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biodiversity in Latin America is at risk today due to habitat loss, land conversion to agriculture and urbanization. To grow their economies the developing countries of Latin America have begun to invest heavily in new road construction. An assessment of research on the impacts of roads on wildlife in Latin America will help define science-based conservation strategies aimed at mitigating road expansion. The aim of this review was to qualitatively and quantitatively assess scientific research papers addressing road impacts on vertebrate species in Latin America. We searched for scientific papers published as early as 1990 to 2017. We reviewed a total of 197 papers. Published research showed an increasing trend in the last decade with a strong geographic bias with a majority of papers from Brazil. Mammals were the most studied taxa followed by birds, reptiles and amphibians. The majority of studies focused on road mortality and at the individual species level. Studies documented an increase in deforestation rates, in land conversion to agriculture, illegal activities (hunting, logging) and the establishment of human settlements. The effects of roads on species richness and populations abundance varied among taxa with no apparent pattern within taxa. Forest-dependent species tended to avoid crossing roads. Amphibians had the highest median road-kill rate, followed by reptiles, mammals and birds. Our results suggest that there is an urgent need for more research, particularly in Central America and to employ predictive tools for difficult-to-sample or understudied species and critical conservation areas. We recommend a two-speed approach to guide future research: one focusing on quantifying individual species responses towards roads and their implications on population viability; a second consisting of regional or continental-scale analyses and modelling of road risks to species and populations to inform road planning immediately. • Planned roads in Latin America are a threat to biodiversity conservation. • Published research has grown in the last decade with a geographic bias for Brazil. • Studies are focused on road mortality, especially on medium-large mammals. • There is a need for more research, particularly on the impacts of roads at level of genes and populations. • Quantifying individual species responses towards roads and predictive analyses are needed to inform road mitigation [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tackling global health challenges demands the appropriate use of available technologies. Although digital health could significantly improve health care access, use, quality, and outcomes, realizing this possibility requires personnel trained in digital health. There is growing evidence of the benefits of digital health for improving the performance of health systems and outcomes in developed countries. However, significant gaps remain in resource-constrained settings. Technological and socio-cultural disparities between different regions or between provinces within the same country are prevalent. Rural areas, where the promise and need are highest, are particularly deprived. In Latin America, there is an unmet need for training and building the capacity of professionals in digital health. This viewpoint paper aims to present a selection of experiences in building digital health capacity in Latin America to illustrate a series of challenges and opportunities for strengthening digital health training programs in resource-constrained environments. These describe how a successful digital health ecosystem for Latin America requires culturally relevant and collaborative research and training programs in digital health. These programs should be responsive to the needs of all relevant regional stakeholders, including government agencies, non-governmental organizations, industry, academic or research entities, professional societies, and communities. This paper highlights the role that collaborative partnerships can play in sharing resources, experiences, and lessons learned between countries to optimize training and research opportunities in Latin America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scenarios help build a shared understanding of potential futures and allow us to engage with how interventions or activities may impact on people and the environment. There are many scenario sets that have been developed at the global and regional level, but to a lesser extent at the national and local levels. Yet fewer studies have explicitly linked imagined futures at different social-ecological scales. In this paper, we discuss how scenario analysis was used with indigenous communities and national level stakeholders in Guyana, South America, to explore context specific futures in relation to linked social-ecological systems. These futures were then analysed against published regional (Amazonian) and international scenarios using a qualitative coding approach and supported by quantitative factorial analysis. This allowed us to develop a matrix of multi-scalar scenarios, showing how scenarios at all scales interact. From this, we were able to identify virtuous and vicious cycles amongst the different scales where developments produced feedbacks to make situations worse, better or counteract change at other levels. Our results show that there is considerable mismatch between the different scales of analysis, with the national scale playing a key role as mediator. In addition, we highlight the importance of focusing on the root causes shaping futures as well as participatory forms of scenario development in order to provide better policy and decision support, and stimulate engagement at all levels of organisation in the process of change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Mediacoes is the property of Universidade Estadual de Londrina and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Economic History Research / Investigaciones de Historia Económica is the property of Asociacion Espanola de Historia Economica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article a study that presents seven new species of Latongena and describes males of Latonigena. The type species of Latonigena is the target of a specific redescription and ecological paper to be published by Uruguayan taxonomists. The material studied were deposited in the arachnological collections of the Museu de Ciécas Naturas, Fundacão Zoobotânica do Rio Grande do Sul, South America. These species include the Latonigena Simon, the Latonigena beni sp. nov. and the Latonigena colombo sp. nov. It cites suggestions for the African species of said genus be transferred based on the constant morphological patterns found at Latonigena species.

The genus Calibrachoa (Solanaceae) comprises approximately 27 species that are found in open areas of southern South America, with the exception of C. parviflora, which also occurs in North America and Europe, probably as a result of introduction from South America and subsequent naturalization. The genus is closely related to Petunia, but differs in characteristics such as chromosome number, corolla aestivation, seed morphology, and leaf anatomy. Previous publications have shown that C. parviflora and C. pygmaea have morphological, ecological, and molecular features that differ from those of the other species of Calibrachoa, which had also been shown in a phylogenetic study using cpDNA RFLPs. In this paper, we present phylogenies based on chloroplast sequence data from psbB-psbH, trnS-trnG, and trnL-trnF intergenic spacers and the trnL intron, which corroborate the segregation of Calibrachoa species in two highly supported clades. On the basis of these results and the morphological and ecological evidence, we propose that each Calibrachoa dade be recognized at the subgeneric level. A new subgenus, Calibrachoa subg. Stitnomphis, is recognized, which includes 25 species, whereas C. parviflora and C. pygmaea are in C. subg. Calibrachoa. A list of species that belong to each subgenus is provided, and lectotypes, neotypes, or epitypes are designated for eight names in Calibrachoa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Interuniversitaria de Formación del Profesorado is the property of Asociacion Universitaria de Formacion del Profesorado (AUFOP) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Sociologija: Mintis ir Veiksmas is the property of Vilnius University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista de Estudos Constitucionais, Hermenêutica e Teoria do Direito is the property of Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Economía del Caribe is the property of Fundacion Universidad del Norte and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper reports the reconstruction of the contamination history of a large South American industrial coastal area (Santos Estuary, Brazil) using linear alkylbenzenes (LABs). Three sediment cores were dated by 137Cs. Concentrations in surficial layers were comparable to the midrange concentrations reported for coastal sediments worldwide. LAB concentrations increased towards the surface, indicating increased waste discharges into the estuary in recent decades. The highest concentration values occurred in the early 1970s, a time of intense industrial activity and marked population growth. The decreased LAB concentration, in the late 1970s was assumed to be the result of the world oil crisis. Treatment of industrial effluents, which began in 1984, was represented by decreased LAB levels. Microbial degradation of LABs may be more intense in the industrial area sediments. The results show that industrial and domestic waste discharges are a historical problem in the area. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Several regions of the world have developed capability in providing services on climate information for risk management, but there are still gaps in service delivery due to inadequate information regarding the needs within the regions. This paper highlights the role of Regional Climate Outlook Forums, assesses the needs for some regions and extracts examples of how regional associations could benefit through the provision of better climate services. Problems are given for Africa, South-East Asia, South America, the Pacific and Europe. Different geographical climate features lead to different climate phenomena and in turn determine the type of climate delivery needs for risk management. Short discussions of regional socio-economic factors that shape the needs for climate information provide further context for the unique character of delivery services. Recommendations and future plans follow this assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most of the arborescent Croton species in the New World were treated by Webster as belonging either to C. sect. Cyclostigma Griseb. or C. sect. Lunlia (Neck. ex Raf.) G.L. Webster. The circumscription of C. sect. Cyclostigma has been treated recently. In this paper we focus on C. sect. Luntia, which was subdivided by Webster into two subsections, C. subsect. Matourenses and subsect. Cuneati. Using chloroplast trnL-F and nuclear ITS DNA sequence data, morphology and a broader sampling of additional Croton lineages, we found that the two subsections are not closely related and form distinct monophyletic groups. Substantial morphological differences support the molecular data. A taxonomic recircumscription ofthe two subsections, elevated to sectional level, is proposed. A key and taxonomic revision, with new synonyms, is provided for C. sect. Cuneati; together with the description of a new species from the coastal mountains of Venezuela, Croton dornat i/er. The new species is the only one in the genus known to possess leaf domatia. We infer that species in the Cuneati dade have lost the typical Croton caruncle, and some of them have evolved a different, specialized type of aril. We hypothesize that the arillate seeds are an adaptation to dispersal by fish in the Orinoco and Amazon river basins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper describes the first results of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and spheroidal carbonaceous particles (SCPs) in sediment cores of Admiralty Bay, Antarctica. These markers were used to assess the local input of anthropogenic materials (particulate and organic compounds) as a result of the influence of human occupation in a sub-Antarctic region and a possible long-range atmospheric transport of combustion products from sources in South America. The highest SCPs and PAHs concentrations were observed during the last 30 years, when three research stations were built in the area and industrial activities in South America increased. The concentrations of SCPs and PAHs were much lower than those of other regions in the northern hemisphere and other reported data for the southern hemisphere. The PAH isomer ratios showed that the major sources of PAHs are fossil fuels/petroleum, biomass combustion and sewage contribution generally close to the Brazilian scientific station. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A limited amount of research has been done on the body mass index values of 19th century Americans. This paper uses Texas prison records to demonstrate that, in contrast to today''s distributions, most BMI values were in the normal range. Only 21.5% and 1.2% of the population was overweight or obese, while today comparable figures are 36% and 23%. There was also little change in BMI values between 1876 and 1919. Farmers were consistently heavier than non-farmers, while Southwestern men had lower BMI values than their counterparts from other regions of the US. BMI values indicate that 19th century African-Americans, and whites populations were well fed in spite of large expenditures on energy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Juan Isern collected ca. 25,000 plant specimens during the Pacific Scientific Commission to South America between 1862 and 1866, but unfortunately he died the same year the expedition returned to Spain. In Chile, lsern exchanged specimens with Philippi, who later described three new species based on those collections which are all deposited at SGO. In the early 1930s, José Cuatrecasas worked intensively with the Isern collections at MA, where most of Isern's South American specimens are deposited. Cuatrecasas, Trelease, Sleumer, Standley and Yuncker described several new species and other taxa using Isern collections as type material. A total of 47 species, 21 varieties and 7 forms were described in 9 families, principally in the Asleraceae, Piperaceae and Gesneriaceae based on Isern collections. Here, the nomenclature of all Isern type specimens is studied for these 75 names. Lectotype specimens for the names of four species, three varieties and five forms described by Cuatrecasas and one species described by Trelease are designated in the present paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Revista Uruguaya de Ciencia Política is the property of Instituto de Ciencia Politica (Universidad de la Republica de Uruguay) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Many Native American settlements in lowland South America are physical models of the cosmos. Social behavior, relations of power, and activity organization are structured by how the participants interact with and interpret cosmology. Culture change in the Amazon Basin and the West Indies is rooted in increasingly asymmetrical power relationships and control over ideology. In this paper, I explore linkages between the archaeological record at the community level and ideology to discuss culture change in the West Indies. Anthropological theory, ethnohistorical documents, ethnographic observations, and archaeological data all were employed in this analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensive earthworks in the form of fields, canals, mounds, and causeways have been reported for the tropical savannas in many areas of South America, but few such earthworks are known from the tropical forest habitat outside of these grasslands. This paper reports on the ditch-like earthworks at a remote site in the tropical forest of extreme NE Bolivia. In contrast to most earthworks reported elsewhere in South America, those described here are identified, based on ethnographic parallels, as canals and moats and lie on the edge of the active floodplain on the Beni River in a tropical forest environment. While such earthworks occur in the forested "islands" of the Llanos de Mojos further south, earthworks of this size and extent are unusual in the tropical forest of South America because much of this environment cannot support sedentary populations of the size and density necessary for their construction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Air Quality Standards for Particulate Matter (PM) at high altitude urban areas in different countries, must consider the pressure and temperature due to the effect that these parameters have on the breath volume. This paper shows the importance to correct Air Quality Standards for PM considering pressure and temperature at different altitudes. Specific factors were suggested to convert the information concerning PM, from local to standard conditions, and adjust the Air Quality Standards for different high altitudes cities. The correction factors ranged from: 1.03 for Santiago de Chile to 1.47 for El Alto Bolivia. Other cities in this study include: Mexico City, México; La Paz, Bolivia; Bogota, Cali and Medellin, Colombia; Quito, Ecuador and Cuzco, Peru. If these corrections are not considered, the atmospheric concentrations will be underestimated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]