THESIS AND DISSERTATIONS

Avis Rara: the trajectory of German naturalist Emilia Snethlage (1868-1929) in Brazil

Miriam Elvira Junghans. [e-mail]. Master Dissertation. Post-Graduate Program in History of Sciences and of Health / Oswaldo Cruz Foundation Rio de Janeiro (RJ) - Brazil 2009

The dissertation aims to analyze the scientific trajectory of German naturalist Emilia Snethlage (1868-1929), who has worked in Brazil since 1905. Some characteristics distinguish her professional route: the fact of being woman, of having academic formation, the great emphasis on field work, undertaken through all her life, and the fact of having developed all her path in natural history museums both in Germany and Brazil. This singular configuration stands in a contrastive way when one reflect about some of the social variables involved into the production of scientific knowledge in Brazil during the three first decades of the 20^th century. The field work and the laboratory work are presented as complementary spheres on the validation of the scientist's work, and it is from this starting point that the proposed analysis is developed.

The adaptations of the Tukano and Maku-Hup'du Indians of the Tiquié River, Brazil: distinct ecological niches or competition for resources?

Harold Martin Wright III. [e-mail]. Masters Dissertation. Post-Graduate Program in Ecology National Institute for Research in the Amazon Manaus (AM) - Brazil 2009

The Tiquié and Vaupés Rivers, flowing from Colombia into Brazil in the sparsely populated Alto Rio Negro Indian Reservation, have for centuries provided the indigenous peoples of the area with adequate protein sources in an otherwise nutrient-poor ecosystem (Moran, 1991; Milton, 1984; Jackson, 1983; Gross, 1975). As such, the riverdwelling Tukano peoples and the semi-nomadic forestdwelling Maku-hup'du have developed a complex social and commercial system that has helped to sustain these essential protein sources, based on a hierarchical structure described as anything from "slavery" (Koch-Grünberg, 2005) to "patron-client" (Chernela, 1993; Epps, 2005) to servants and workers (Gentil, 2005). Recent efforts by Catholic missionaries and government agencies have been encouraging permanent settlement of the Maku-hup'du within the region (Milton, 1984). The intent of this study was to determine the adaptations of the increasingly-sedentary Maku-hup'du populations and the permanent Tukano populations in the region, to know if they live in distinct ecological niches or are competing for resources within the ecosystem. Surveys on quantities, sizes, and varieties of food sources harvested by Tukano and Maku-hup'du indians, as well as the time spent in obtaining food, were conducted in the Desâna villages of Cucura stream, and the adjacent Maku-hup'du settlements. The data were then analyzed to determine the niche width of the respective peoples. This study documents a major subsistence pattern change among two of the three Maku-hup'du settlements away from the traditional hunting pattern towards a pattern of fishing and manioc horticulture that is virtually indistinguishable from that practiced by their Tukanoan neighbors. The study highlights an important decline in daily protein intake among all study communities when compared with historical data gathered by Milton (1984). Quantification of niche width strongly suggests that the noted decline in protein resources is associated with an increasing overlap of subsistence niche (a result of the noted acculturation) between the Maku and the Tukanoans in this nutrient-poor ecosystem. Finally, this study examines the theoretical and practical implications of cultural change and ecological adaptation (or maladaptation) in this important indigenous reserve in Brazil, representing some 10% of Brazil's overall indigenous population and cultural-linguistic diversity.

Visiting laboratories: the scientist and the preservation of records

Maria Celina Soares de Mello e Silva. [e-mail]. Doctoral Thesis. Post-Graduate Program in Social History. University of São Paulo. São Paulo (SP) - Brazil 2007

The aim of this thesis is to study the relationship between scientists and the records produced by scientific and technological laboratories, with the objective of searching elements as to contribute for the elaboration of a preservation program for SciTech archives. The methodology used was the application of a questionnaire as part of an interview, to the professional responsible for the laboratory within research institutes of the Ministry of Science and Technology in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The first chapter presents basic concepts and some initiatives from the government on the area of preservation of records. The second chapter analyses the frontiers between personal and institutional records produced by the laboratories, verifying that they are fragile and poorly defined. The third one explores the boundaries between public and private in the records derived from the intermediary's steps of a research process, verifying that their destiny is uncertain. The last chapter is dedicated to explore the opinion of scientists about the importance of the records' preservation for the scientific memory, verifying that there is very little reflection about this subject. At the end of each chapter, there are conclusions about the analysis, as well as some contributions for a preservation program of science and technology archives.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  25 Aug 2010
• Date of issue
  Aug 2009