Summary

Geology – A 7.0 Richter scale magnitude earthquake in Brazil? This was the magnitude of the seismic event that struck the state of Amazonas circa 1690, the strongest ever recorded in the country. Yet, there were others, as the one in 1955 in the Tombador Mountains, in Mato Grosso (6.2 magnitude), and in 1986 in João Câmara, in the state of Rio Grande do Norte (5.1 magnitude). Brazil is absolutely not immune to earthquakes.

Economy – The Brazilian auto industry, ranked among the planet’s top ten, suffered a setback in 2014, with output falling by 15.3%, or 3.15 million units as compared with 3.7 million units in 2013. According to the automakers, in face of the crisis that has befallen the country the 2015 supply is expected, at best, to match that of 2014.

Agriculture – The lengthy drought that is reducing water supply in the cities and affecting crop yields in the countryside also impacted the latest coffee harvest. In 2014, Brazil produced some 45.3 million 60-kilo bags of processed coffee beans, down 7.7% or 3.8 million bags in comparison with 2013 (49.1 million).

Urban Mobility – The electric vehicle is increasingly more popular abroad, yet in Brazil few have adopted it, while its cost is still very high. The national fleet is just over 3,000 units (overwhelmingly imported) and the market is growing slowly. By 2020, approximately 40,000 battery-run vehicles are expected to be circulating in the country.

Entertainment – On March 27 we celebrate Circus Day, a business that still survives despite the hardships it has been facing. Actually, the circus has changed: there are no more animals, and the old show – which often included, besides the more traditional attractions, theatrical plays and country music duo concerts – has developed into a meticulously planned production that requires capital, technology, and skilled management.

Transport – The 5,917 kilometer-long distance between São Paulo, Brazil and Lima, Peru is the longest distance covered by bus in the world. The trip starts in the Tietê Bus Terminal, in São Paulo City, and ends in the district of San Isidro, in the Peruvian capital, after an exhausting 96-hour trip – or four days and nights.

Nature – A paradise on Earth. Thus can be described the Taim Ecological Station, 33,000 hectares of land spread across the Rio Grande do Sul municipalities of Santa Vitória do Palmar and Rio Grande. Located in a vast mosaic of marshes and lagoons, grasslands, and dunes, it was formed thousands of years ago during the geologically more recent advances and retreats of the Atlantic Ocean.

Demographics – Counter to the national trend, a number of families refuse to have only one or two children, having four or five instead. Births are partly planned, but also partly unplanned. It is worth saying that Brazil’s fertility rate has been falling: in 1960 it was 6.21 children per woman, while today it is only 1.81.

Health – Damage to the optic nerve has made 900,000 Brazilians glaucoma patients, a disease whose first signs are subtle, hardly perceptible and, due to late diagnosis, causes, and has been causing, slow and irreversible loss of sight. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), worldwide 2.4 million new cases are reported each year.

Memory – Goffredo Telles Junior was 22 years old when he registered with the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB, from the Portuguese acronym), a career he would pursue all his life long, together with teaching. An unswerving advocate of the rule of law, he used to say that “A lawyer is what I have always been. A lawyer by genetic destination. But not only because of that: I love being a lawyer”.

Interview – Ivo Pitanguy, the pope of plastic surgery, about to turn 92 years of age, dwells on his life and work, allowing himself to be carried away by philosophy to explain his enviable capacity of meeting countless appointments without neglecting his other responsibilities. “Time is not measured by hours, but rather by the intensity one assigns them”, he defines.

Classical music – The routine and international acclaim of the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra (Osesp), today conducted by American Marin Alsop, its principal conductor. In 2012, upon signing a five-year contract as music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Maryland, U.S, a position she shares with that of conductor of the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, she said she would strive to “make Osesp the best in the world”.

Books – Cenografia Brasileira – Notas de um Cenógrafo, by J. C. Serroni, while honoring the author for his 35-year-long career, provides drama professionals and the public at large the opportunity to get to know his works better and in more detail. The book is, therefore, a historical analysis of the development of scenography in Brazil and its interconnectedness with the various elements of drama production.

Thematic panel – Ney Figueiredo, a consultant specializing in political marketing, spoke to the members of the Economics, Sociology and Politics Council of the São Paulo State Federation of Trade in Goods, Services and Tourism, Sesc and Senac on the 2014 elections. In his comments, which were made 20 days before the election, the speaker stated that the next president should pursue a State modernization agenda.