Cataguases
Encyclopedia
Cataguases is a city located in the southeastern part of the state of Minas Gerais
in Brazil. It is mainly an industrial centre (textile, metallurgy
, clothes) with a strong influence of coffee
plantation
in its early history (19th century). The population was estimated at about 62,000 inhabitants in 1996 and is expected to be at about 66,000 in 2001. The population is growing below the average Brazilian rate and there is slightly more women than men.
The town was somewhat famous in the 1920s because of the Brazilian cinema pioneer Humberto Mauro
and the appearance of a generation of writers around the short-lived Revista Verde. Humberto Mauro shot there some films that earned him a good reputation nationwide. He later became famous for masterpieces like Braza Dormida (Sleeping Fire) and O Descobrimento do Brasil (The Finding of Brazil) and was a reputed Tupi
language scholar.
Industrialisation changed the town quite a lot and caused some of its citizens to become very rich in the 1920s and 1930s. As a result the city centre was remodeled accordingly to the ultimate architecture styles. Oscar Niemeyer
(Architect), Cândido Portinari
, Djanira and Emeric Marcier (Painters) are some of the famous Brazilian artists who left contributions there at that time.
After three decades of wealth, the town lost its proeminence in the 1970s and 1980s. The economic crisis and the changes due to the modernisation of the industries provoked high unemployment rates and depreciation of salaries, reducing the town's wealth.
In 2003 the town became unfortunately famous throughout the country in the aftermath of an ecological accident caused by the spilling of chemical waste that affected the brook Cágado and the rivers Pomba and Paraíba do Sul
, threatening the water supply of more than 20,000,000 Brazilians (including the state of Rio de Janeiro
).
under Köppen climate classification
). Temperatures are high (above 18°C (64.4°F)) all over the year, and low temperatures lasting for a whole day are rare, and generally only occur in the dry season
. The wet season
starts in September and goes until May, while the dry season goes from May to September. Floods are not uncommon in the town, and generally there is one per year, in December, January or February. On the other side, during the dry season Rio Pomba has considerably less water than in other periods, and some people have respiratory disease
s related to low air humidity
.
Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
in Brazil. It is mainly an industrial centre (textile, metallurgy
Metallurgy
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. It is also the technology of metals: the way in which science is applied to their practical use...
, clothes) with a strong influence of coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
in its early history (19th century). The population was estimated at about 62,000 inhabitants in 1996 and is expected to be at about 66,000 in 2001. The population is growing below the average Brazilian rate and there is slightly more women than men.
The town was somewhat famous in the 1920s because of the Brazilian cinema pioneer Humberto Mauro
Humberto Mauro
Humberto Duarte Mauro was a Brazilian film director. His best known work is Ganga Bruta. He is often considered the greatest director of early Brazilian cinema.-Career:...
and the appearance of a generation of writers around the short-lived Revista Verde. Humberto Mauro shot there some films that earned him a good reputation nationwide. He later became famous for masterpieces like Braza Dormida (Sleeping Fire) and O Descobrimento do Brasil (The Finding of Brazil) and was a reputed Tupi
Tupian languages
The Tupi or Tupian language family comprises some 70 languages spoken in South America, of which the best known are Tupi proper and Guarani.-History, members and classification:...
language scholar.
Industrialisation changed the town quite a lot and caused some of its citizens to become very rich in the 1920s and 1930s. As a result the city centre was remodeled accordingly to the ultimate architecture styles. Oscar Niemeyer
Oscar Niemeyer
Oscar Ribeiro de Almeida Niemeyer Soares Filho is a Brazilian architect specializing in international modern architecture...
(Architect), Cândido Portinari
Cândido Portinari
Candido Portinari was one of the most important Brazilian painters and also a prominent and influential practitioner of the neo-realism style in painting....
, Djanira and Emeric Marcier (Painters) are some of the famous Brazilian artists who left contributions there at that time.
After three decades of wealth, the town lost its proeminence in the 1970s and 1980s. The economic crisis and the changes due to the modernisation of the industries provoked high unemployment rates and depreciation of salaries, reducing the town's wealth.
In 2003 the town became unfortunately famous throughout the country in the aftermath of an ecological accident caused by the spilling of chemical waste that affected the brook Cágado and the rivers Pomba and Paraíba do Sul
Paraíba do Sul
thumbThe Paraíba do Sul , or simply termed Paraíba, is a river in the south-east of Brazil. It flows 1,137 kilometres west to northeast from its farthest source at the source of the river Paraitinga to the sea near Campos...
, threatening the water supply of more than 20,000,000 Brazilians (including the state of Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
).
Climate
Cataguases experiences a tropical wet and dry (or savanna) climate (AwTropical savanna climate
Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a type of climate that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories "Aw" and '"As."...
under Köppen climate classification
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
). Temperatures are high (above 18°C (64.4°F)) all over the year, and low temperatures lasting for a whole day are rare, and generally only occur in the dry season
Dry season
The dry season is a term commonly used when describing the weather in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which oscillates from the northern to the southern tropics over the course of the year...
. The wet season
Wet season
The the wet season, or rainy season, is the time of year, covering one or more months, when most of the average annual rainfall in a region occurs. The term green season is also sometimes used as a euphemism by tourist authorities. Areas with wet seasons are dispersed across portions of the...
starts in September and goes until May, while the dry season goes from May to September. Floods are not uncommon in the town, and generally there is one per year, in December, January or February. On the other side, during the dry season Rio Pomba has considerably less water than in other periods, and some people have respiratory disease
Respiratory disease
Respiratory disease is a medical term that encompasses pathological conditions affecting the organs and tissues that make gas exchange possible in higher organisms, and includes conditions of the upper respiratory tract, trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, alveoli, pleura and pleural cavity, and the...
s related to low air humidity
Humidity
Humidity is a term for the amount of water vapor in the air, and can refer to any one of several measurements of humidity. Formally, humid air is not "moist air" but a mixture of water vapor and other constituents of air, and humidity is defined in terms of the water content of this mixture,...
.