Issue # 171 _ May 2010

S&T Policy

Planning

São Paulo's contribution

Conference brings together researchers from the State of São Paulo to discuss the challenges in science, technology and innovation over the next 15 years

Computer Sciences

International exposure

Researchers from Microsoft Research-FAPESP Institute show their projects in the USA

Biodiversity

Running against time

Biologist Thomas Lovejoy says that part of the devastated Amazon Region has to be restored to save the forest and tackle climate change

Homage

The demographer who studied the climate

Daniel Hogan, who passed away at the age of 67, warned about the impact on urban centers caused by climate change

Science

Neurophysiology

The paths of fear

Fear due to different reasons activates different parts of the brain

Cellular biology

Unexpected effect

Adult stem cells stimulate the formation of blood vessels in the heart, but do not generate cardiac muscle

Ecology

Food with wings

Bees become more valuable for agricultural production

Animal behavior

Dedicated mothers

Females of arachnids with complex social organization allow themselves to be devoured by their offspring

Oceanography

Polluted paradise

Canal opened in 1855 has made it easier for heavy metals to spread along southern São Paulo coast

Physics

Flashing dust

Study explains why electrical discharges occur in clouds of sand or volcanic ash

Technology

New materials

Concrete made from ash

Waste from burning sugar cane bagasse may substitute part of the sand used in civil construction

New materials

Bactericidal fiber

Mixture of sugar cane pulp and chitosan results in a fiber that has medicinal properties

Nanotechnology

Squeezing electricity

Researchers develop a material that generates electricity under pressure

Electrical engineering

Plastic from light

Luminous polymers are being quoted as substitutes for LCD screens

Humanities

History

The documentary chest of the "heavy" years

Studies on the Deops-SP archive reveal how the logic of repression functioned at the time of the dictatorship

Archeology

Ancient history, the Brazilian way

Researchers from the Labeca give a broader meaning to the concept of the Greek poli

Literature

Machado de Assis on stage

More than poetry or prose, it was theater that had a great influence on the Brazilian author, new studies indicate