RESUMO Objetivou-se avaliar o desempenho produtivo-econômico da consorciação palma forrageira e sorgo em relação ao sistema de plantio exclusivo da palma forrageira sob diferentes lâminas de irrigação com água salina. A pesquisa foi conduzida em Serra Talhada, PE, com delineamento em blocos ao acaso, arranjo fatorial com parcelas subdivididas (5×2), quatro repetições, sendo considerada como parcelas as lâminas de irrigação complementar com base na evapotranspiração de referência (0; 8,75; 17,5; 26,25 e 35% ETo), e as subparcelas, os sistemas de plantio: palma exclusiva e consórcio palma-sorgo. O experimento foi conduzido por um ano, sendo um ciclo de palma e dois ciclos do sorgo. Ao final foram obtidas as produtividades de matéria fresca e seca. A rentabilidade econômica foi analisada por meio da receita líquida (RL) e da relação benefício/custo (B/C) da palma destinada à venda tanto para forragem como “semente” para o plantio, e do sorgo para produção de forragem. Simulações de RL e B/C foram feitas ao longo da vida útil de oito anos do sistema de irrigação. As lâminas de água aumentaram a produtividade de matéria seca do consórcio, devido ao benefício gerado ao sorgo. Com base na RL e B/C, verificou-se que a palma e o sorgo destinados à venda como forragem mostraram mais vantagem quando consorciadas e maior rentabilidade a partir do 2º ano de implantação do sistema de irrigação. Conclui-se que, o consórcio palma forrageira e sorgo irrigado com água salina deve ser recomendado para a produção de forragem no Semiárido brasileiro.

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to evaluate the productive and economic performance of a forage cactus and sorghum intercropping system in relation to a forage cactus single cropping system under different irrigation blades with saline water. The study was conducted in Serra Talhada, State of Pernambuco, in a randomized block design, consisting of a factorial arrangement with split-plot parcels (5×2) and four replications. The five plots were the irrigation depths based on the reference evapotranspiration (ETo) (0, 8.75, 17.5, 26.25, and 35% ETo) and the two cropping systems were single forage cactus cropping and cactus intercropped with sorghum. The experiment was conducted for one year, with one forage cactus cycle and two cycles of sorghum. Yields were obtained at the end of the cycles. Economic profitability was analyzed by means of net revenue (NR) and the benefit/cost ratio (B/C), with cactus forage sold as forage or as "seed" and sorghum as forage. Net revenue and B/C simulations were carried out over an eight-year useful life span of the irrigation system. Increasing irrigation depth increased the dry matter yield of the intercropping system because of higher sorghum yield. Based on the NR and B/C ratio values, forage cactus and sorghum produced as forage produced higher economic outcomes in the intercropping system and showed a higher profitability from the 2nd year of implementation of the irrigation system. Forage cactus and sorghum intercropping irrigated with saline water is therefore recommended for forage production in the Brazilian semi-arid region.

Reinforcement Learning is carried out on-line, through trial-and-error interactions of the agent with the environment, which can be very time consuming when considering robots. In this paper we contribute a new learning algorithm, CFQ-Learning, which uses macro-states, a low-resolution discretisation of the state space, and a partial-policy to get around obstacles, both of them based on the complexity of the environment structure. The use of macro-states avoids convergence of algorithms, but can accelerate the learning process. In the other hand, partial-policies can guarantee that an agent fulfils its task, even through macro-state. Experiments show that the CFQ-Learning performs a good balance between policy quality and learning rate.

The aim of this study was to evaluate associations between seropositivity for IgG and IgM anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies and socio-economic and environmental variables in pregnant women of Londrina, state of Paraná, Brazil. We interviewed 492 pregnant women, each of whom answered an epidemiological questionnaire, and collected blood samples for measurement of IgG and IgM anti-T. gondii antibodies by chemiluminescence. A confirmatory diagnosis of acute infection was made by an IgG avidity test. Titres of specific IgG anti-T. gondii were obtained by IFAT. Seropositivity for IgG anti-T. gondii antibodies was observed in 242 women (49.2%) and, of these, six pregnant women (1.2%) showed seropositivity for IgM. Age group, level of education, per capita income, presence of a cat in the house and a habit of eating green vegetables were all factors associated with a greater chance of infection with T. gondii. This study showed that 250 (50.8%) pregnant women were susceptible to T. gondii and considered to be at high risk for toxoplasmosis during pregnancy. Based on the results obtained, is critical to establish a program of health surveillance for toxoplasmosis, in order to contribute to diagnosis and early treatment during the prenatal period. It is also necessary to introduce measures to prevent the Toxoplasma infection in seronegative pregnant women.