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A better understanding of the relationship between public investments in agricultural R&D and the productivity enhancing benefits they produce is critical to informing the public funding of agricultural R&D and insuring future increases in agricultural productivity. This paper describes a method of estimating the relationship between research investments, productivity growth, and the resulting economic benefits generated. The data requirements include indexes of multi-factor productivity, investments in R&D, and the value of agricultural output. The real rate of return to public investments in agricultural R&D in the United States is estimated to be 10.5% per annum; however, a reduction in the growth of spending on public agricultural R&D in recent decades raises concerns about productivity growth in coming decades, which is required to insure an adequate supply of food to meet increasing demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between economic outcome and international public relations investment by other countries in the U.S. Based on country-level data analysis, this study found that the number of international public relations contracts by other countries in the U.S. was positively related to (1) U.S. imports from those countries, (2) U.S. direct investment to those countries, and (3) the number of U.S. tourists visiting those countries, after controlling for economic size. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: At present, photovoltaic grid-connected systems (PVGCS) are experiencing a formidable market growth. This is mainly due to a continuous downward trend in PV cost together with some government support programmes launched by many developed countries. However, government bodies and prospective owners/investors are concerned with how changes in existing economic factors – financial incentives and main economic parameters of the PVGCS – that configure a given scenario may affect the profitability of the investment in these systems. Consequently, not only is a mere estimate of the economic profitability in a specific moment required, but also how this profitability may vary according to changes in the existing scenario. In order to enlighten decision-makers and prospective owners/investors of PVGCS, a sensitivity analysis of the internal rate of return (IRR) to some economic factors has been carried out. Three different scenarios have been assumed to represent the three top geographical markets for PV: the Euro area, the USA and Japan. The results obtained in this analysis provide clear evidence that annual loan interest, normalised initial investment subsidy, normalised annual PV electricity yield, PV electricity unitary price and normalised initial investment are ordered from the lowest to the highest impact on the IRR. A short and broad analysis concerning the taxation impact is also provided. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Economic assumptions and other factors affecting the economics of nurse anesthesia education are presented in Part 2 of this 2-part column. In Part 1, published in the October 2004 issue of the AANA Journal, general economic principles and healthcare economic principles in particular were described, explained, and related to the current US health- care system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perennial grass pastures provide the basis for beef production systems across the Southeast United States. One common management practice that is widely recommended among agronomists is interseeding cool-season legumes. Legumes can serve as a complementary resource for filling in production gaps, reducing supplemental feedstuffs, reducing the need for nitrogen fertilization, increasing the nutritional quality of forage available, increase biomass production, improve animal performance, and can reduce the toxic effects of endophyte-infected tall fescue through dilution. A simulated economic analysis was developed to further the economic understanding of the cost of implementation, the subsequent animal and forage performance benefits, and net returns from the inclusion of legumes over many research trials and years. Data from 15 peer-reviewed papers was used to simulate the economic benefits of implementing this production practice. Cost of production and revenue for each paper were calculated using the 10-year average from 2010 to 2019. This analysis provides users with a further understanding of the net returns, critical breakeven areas, and return on investment that is necessary in order to successfully implement the inclusion of cool-season legumes in perennial grass-based systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the key questions arising from the estimated social rates of return from agricultural research and education in the United States. How social rates of return are calculated; Key issues involved in the procedures for estimating research payoffs; Refinements in the methods for evaluating research payoffs.