Issue # 252 _ February 2017

S&T Policy

Gender

Narrow corridor

Study shows how the proportion of women in the field of philosophy declines over the course of their academic careers

University

Gears in motion

New assessment system at USP mandates performance by professors and ties individual goals to those of departments and units

ENVIRONMENT

Pact in transformation

Movement to restore the Atlantic Forest reorganizes to meet proposed targets

COSMOLOGY

Waves of material from the early Universe

Radio telescope to be built in Uruguay will examine the effects of interactions between hydrogen and electromagnetic radiation

Science

PHYSIOLOGY

Weight across generations

Among rats, effects of excessive or insufficient feeding can be transmitted to children and grandchildren

Virology

Microcephaly in vitro

The Zika virus replicates inside neural stem cells, disrupting brain development

Neuroscience

The hunting circuits

Two neural pathways that originate in the brain’s amygdala control the aggressive behavior of predators

Zoology

A tree with unusual branches

Broad genetic sampling reveals kinship and evolutionary events in the diversification of the rodent family

PALEONTOLOGY

Shelter for giants

Extinct for 10,000 years, ground sloths and giant armadillos may have built the largest paleoburrows ever discovered on Earth

PHYSICS

Pocket Laboratory

Increased random laser efficiency opens the door for the manufacture of low-cost microchips for medical exams

Technology

VIRTUAL REALITY

The past revealed through cyberarcheology

Digital tools are used to study ancient sites and reconstruct historical heritage

Bioengineering

Warnings against drowsiness

Designed to prevent accidents, special seat vibrates, ventilates, and warns drivers when they are tired

Humanities

ARCHEOLOGY

Sedentary farmers

Ancestors of the Jê group lived in pit houses and cultivated cassava and beans in the Santa Catarina highlands a thousand years ago

HISTORY

Light and Power

Small companies established in the 19th century, largely by businessmen associated with coffee, later formed the São Paulo electric power industry