Issue # 135 _ May 2007
S&T Policy
Financing

Consolidated budget
Ministry of Science and Technology to increase grants in strategic areas
partnership
A well-meaning law
Carlos Américo Pacheco evaluates the effects of the Innovation Law
By Claudia IziquePartnerships

Research and Innovation Inc.
Embrapa and private enterprise want to create a technology firm for ethanol
By Claudia IziqueDevelopment aid

At the cutting edge of knowledge
Partnership with Microsoft Research brings about a new support model for basic research
By Claudia IziqueScience
Etiology

With sticks and stones
Capuchin monkey uses tools to break open fruit or hunt ants
By Fabrício MarquesPhysics

Moving sculptures
Computer simulations explain how the giant dunes on Mars emerge and evolve
By Igor ZolnerkevicBotany

New model
Mutant tomato plants help unveil the genes and hormones that regulate the lives of plants
By Maria GuimarãesTechnology
Energy

Advantageous fermentation
The use of new types of yeast may reduce the production costs in sugar and alcohol refineries
By Yuri VasconcelosAgronomy

Lethal symbiosis
Biological insecticide uses a partnership between bacteria and nematodes to fight sugarcane pest
By Dinorah ErenoChemistry

Intelligent paint
Researchers use nanotechnology to create a pigment that changes color
By Iracema CorsoAerospace engineering

Hypersonic wind
A tunnel to test airplanes that are much faster than the speed of sound
By Marcos de OliveiraPlastic

Rapid decomposition
Researchers develop a recycled polymer made from PET that is not harmful to the environment
By Yuri Vasconcelos