2008 began with uncertainty, and the raise was finally postponed this month. Post-doc students are not happy, just as researchers from the institutions that had their predicted budgets significantly reduced after the deliberation of the legislative. Some projects received more money tough: mostly projects for digital inclusion.

There is already an on-line petition asking for the promised raise…

The “PAC”, or “Growth Acceleration Program”, is a set of government resolutions that the president says will receive special attention, meaning that any other resolutions by the government are not to be taken seriously… Basically, they collected what they should be doing anyway, and gave it an special name, pretending that they are making an special effort instead of a “simple” government. (sorry this is not an unbiased post)

Since the first large PAC, smaller PACs directed to specific areas started to come. This maximizes the propagandistic effect, since every few weeks the population hears about some important actions the government is making in some specific areas. Today it was released the science and technology PAC. It predicts investments of R$ 41,2×10^9 until 2010.

In his speech, Lula said there is no way to compensate the delay in which the country got into 30 years ago (I can’t think of anything special about 1977 other then the acceleration of the growth of punk rock around the world). Among the announces, the president promised an increase of 20% in the Capes and CNPq grants.

The text of the law starts with a very interesting list of examples of what beings are understood as being animals. (!!?... Go figure law making…)

I wonder how will scientists be able to determine accurately the toxicity of substances in order to follow the law rigorously!...

It’s only strange that the mayor has accepted this quite controversial law, and vetoed a previous one regarding vivissection

Their argument for the end of experiments with animals is that “nowdays we already have alternatives”...

Don’t miss the cute picture of his holding a kitten... I’m not quite sure he is handling the animal properly. (Neither of the three, including the human one, not protected by his law)

Today (2007-11-07) it was found out that the law was approved by mistake. A modified version was accepted, but it came out of the Constitution and Justice Committee with the old text…

The federal government even started to study some form to turn the municipal law ineffective by creating a federal regulation for the use of animals in research.

The ranking is based on reviews by readers who work in each country and institution. There is a page about the methodology , and also about the the newcomers, Mexico and Brazil .

“Os EUA apertaram o cerco à China e aos seus parceiros.”
(Folha de SP, 22/10)

(“USA close the siege to China and their partners”)

”””
The USA has been imposing restrictions to the satellite program that Brazil maintains with China. National companies that manufacture components to the ships CBERS (China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite) 3 and 4 are having problems to acquire components from the USA.

(...) Representatives form the American government said to directors from the INPE (National Space Research Institute) that they wouldn’t like the 100% Brazilian produced satellite Amazônia-1 to be launched in 2010 on board of a Chinese rocket.

The restrictions are not aimed to Brazil, but to its partner, a military and now also spacial power.
(...)
””“

The number of doctorate thesis presented in 2000 to 2003 period in the state was 212.