Search

The costs associated with using different crop rotation patterns designed to reduce the use of nitrogen fertilizer under alternative agricultural policy options are measured. The policy options considered include those incorporated in the Food Security Act of 1985, a No Farm Program option, a Nitrogen Fertilizer Tax option, a Corn Sales Tax option, and a Limiting Nitrogen Fertilizer Use option. To achieve an objective of reducing the nitrogen available for potential leaching into ground water, crop rotation patterns associated with limiting nitrogen fertilizer use appears to have the lowest cost to the farmer while a corn sales tax has the highest cost. The costs are computed based on data from the Iowa State Universiy experiment farm at Kanawha, Iowa.

Labor requirements, production costs, yields, and economic returns were evaluated for conventional and reduced-chemical cropping systems in northeast Iowa from 1978 to 1989. Continuous corn (C-C) and corn-soybean (C-Sb) rotations represented the conventional system; a corn-oat-meadow (C-O-M) rotation represented the reducedchemical system. The C-C and C-Sb rotations used both commercial pesticides and fertilizers. The C-O-M rotation used manure for fertilization and applied pesticides only in emergencies. Operations for all systems were implemented by one farm manager. The C-Sb rotation had the highest corn yield over the 12-year period, and the C-O-M rotation the lowest. The corn within the C-O-M rotation, however, produced the second highest average return to land, labor, and management. With costs of production substantially lower than the conventional systems, the C-O-M corn crop had competitive returns despite lower yield. The C-Sb average return to land, labor, and management was significantly higher than for the other systems. Hourly labor charges of $4, $10, $20, and $50 had little effect on the rankings of economic returns. Because of unusually high alfalfa reseeding costs and low average oat yields, returns to the C-O-M rotation were significantly lower than C-Sb but comparable to C-C. With better alfalfa establishment and higher average oat yields, the reduced-chemical system might have been competitive with the C-Sb conventional system.

Phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) fertilization costs, yields, and economic returns associated with various P and K fertilization levels were evaluated on corn and soybeans in rotation in northeastern Iowa from 1979 to 1989. The treatments were 0, 20, and 40 lb P/acre and 0, 60, and 120 lb K/acre, in all nine combinations, plus the high rate (40+120) applied on alternate years. (The latter treatment applied, respectively, in odd or even years was averaged into one treatment.) The initial soil test levels averaged 57 pounds of P and 355 pounds ofK. The P-K treatments did not significantly explain the variation in corn or soybean yields. Net returns were found directly related to the cost of the treatment, so that the control treatment (0+0) achieved the highest returns. The cost of using the 20+60 treatment to maintain soil test levels in the high to very high range was $24/acre per year. Annual application of 40+120 cost $45/acre. A sufficiency approach to applying P and K could drastically reduce fertilizer costs for high-testing soils. Further research is needed to determine if recommendations from this approach can be lowered in some cases. Extension workers must continue to develop ways to aid farmers in realizing the usefulness of soil testing. Farmers must carefully evaluate their fertilization needs in conjunction with soil test results. Together, a more sustainable approach to P and K fertilization for corn and soybeans may be attained.

Shareholder agreements reflect a reassertion of contractualism in corporate law at a time when statutory regulation is more extensive than ever. Though not displacing the s140 statutory contract between members, shareholder agreements have a role to play both in direct contract between parties but also in setting reasonable expectations that may play a role in oppression actions or winding up on the just and equitable basis. As contracts they are prima facie enforceable but also subject to statutory overlays in the form of the laws of misleading and deceptive conduct and unconscionable conduct. Finally they are subject to some limitation in that the common law suggests that a company cannot in a shareholder agreement deprive itself of its power to alter its own constitution. There is also some doubt about the extent to which directors’ duties can be attenuated by shareholder agreement and whether shareholder disputes can be made the subject exclusively of commercial arbitration and kept out of the courts. This article is available in Bond Law Review: http://epublications.bond.edu.au/blr/vol20/iss2/1 SHAREHOLDERS AGREEMENTS AND SHAREHOLDERS’ REMEDIES CONTRACT VERSUS STATUTE?

The present study examined patterns of serious mental illness (SMI), specific mental health syndromes, and service use among older (65) and younger (18‐64) adults throughout the United States, and the extent to which various factors predict SMI and the use and magnitude of mental health treatment. Despite recent developments designed to improve mental healthcare access and treatment for older adults, older individuals were found to receive outpatient mental healthcare at very low rates. Compared to younger adults, older adults were three times less likely to report receiving treatment. Although prevalence estimates for SMI and specific syndromes were markedly lower among older than younger adults, older individuals most in need of care were highly unlikely to report receiving treatment. Findings point to the importance of perceived need in mental healthcare use. Significantly, however, those older adults that made it into services typically reported benefiting considerably from treatment, at least as much as all other age groups. Several predisposing, enabling, and need factors related to mental illness and service use were identified that have important implications for how we plan for, design, and deliver mental health services to older and younger Americans.

and Implications Hog production has historically been a significant, value-adding industry in Iowa. Sales of finishing hogs can result in gross income in the range of $2.5 billion annually. The economic activity would be greater as there are impacts on upstream and downstream sectors of the economy. Accounting for these impacts leads to a generation of more than $3 billion of annual gross product in Iowa. Throughout the past three decades, the swine breeding herd in Iowa has experienced a decreasing trend, with relatively sharp declines coming since the early 1990’s. Producers have increasingly looked to other parts of North America for a supply of feeder pigs. This reflects a lost opportunity for the Iowa pork production industry. This study evaluates the viability and economic impact of expanding the number of sows farrowed in Iowa. We estimate the impacts to the aggregate state economy from a revival of pig farrowing. Our estimates of costs and returns to farrowing show the potential to generate much value added profit. These profits would benefit farm owners, managers, input suppliers, and processors, etc. These impacts will ripple throughout the economy including rural communities. A 5 million head increase in SEW pig production would require approximately 238,000 additional sows. The feed bill would be about $30 million while the labor bill would be about $35 million. The income earned by employees and to those that sold the feed etc. goes toward buying other goods and services, multiplying the overall economic impact. In aggregate the addition of 5 million feeder/SEW pigs would produce $270 million of economic activity. A large part of this would occur in rural communities.

Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of cognitive therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder related to terrorism and other civil conflict in Northern Ireland. Design Randomised controlled trial. Setting Community treatment centre, Northern Ireland. Participants 58 consecutive patients with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (median 5.2 years, range 3 months to 32 years) mostly resulting from multiple traumas linked to terrorism and other civil conflict. Interventions Immediate cognitive therapy compared with a waiting list control condition for 12 weeks followed by treatment. Treatment comprised a mean of 5.9 sessions during 12 weeks and 2.0 sessions thereafter. Main outcome measures Primary outcome measures were patients' scores for post-traumatic stress disorder (post-traumatic stress diagnostic scale) and depression (Beck depression inventory). The secondary outcome measure was scores for occupational and social functioning (work related disability, social disability, and family related disability) on the Sheehan disability scale. Results At 12 weeks after randomisation, immediate cognitive therapy was associated with significantly greater improvement than the waiting list control group in the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (mean difference 9.6, 95% confidence interval 3.6 to 15.6), depression (mean difference 10.1, 4.8 to 15.3), and self reported occupational and social functioning (mean difference 1.3, 0.3 to 2.5). Effect sizes from before to after treatment were large: post-traumatic stress disorder 1.25, depression 1.05, and occupational and social functioning 1.17. No change was observed in the control group. Conclusion Cognitive therapy is an effective treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder related to terrorism and other civil conflict. Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN16228473.

and Implications Iowa has led the U.S. in swine production and pig inventory since the 1880s. Pig production has been a reliable value-added enterprise on many Iowa farms for generations. In spite of this 120-year national leadership, Iowa’s swine industry has been changing profoundly within the state. Iowa agriculture from 1978 to 2002 endured many changes. During the 1980s, Iowa endured the Farm (debt) Crisis. In the 1990s industrialization of the swine industry became widespread in the U.S. and Iowa. In 1997 and 1998, hog prices plummeted to historic lows. In the face of all of these changes, Iowa has continued to lead the U.S. in pig production, but major changes in the industry’s structure have caused remarkable shifts in the location of Iowa’s pigs and the numbers of people involved in pig production. For example, in 25 years, the number of Iowa farms with pigs declined 83% from 59,134 farms in 1978 to 10,205 farms in 2002. Using Census of Agriculture data and U.S. Hogs and Pigs Report data, hog inventories were plotted by county in Iowa. The results are dramatic. Maps of Iowa’s counties with numbers of hogs per county are shown for 2002, 1987 (15 years earlier) and 1980 or 1978 (depending on the data source). In 1980 and prior to that time, every Iowa county had significant numbers of pigs. Some counties – Delaware, Washington, Mahaska, Crawford, Carroll, Plymouth, and Sioux – had larger numbers of pigs than other counties. In 1978, Iowa’s 14.7 million pigs were significant in every county. Even populous counties like Linn and Scott had notable inventories of pigs. But in 2002, the most recent Census of Agriculture, Iowa’s 15.5 million pigs have shifted location and are much less evenly distributed. North central Iowa – Hamilton, Hardin, Wright, and Franklin counties, western Iowa – Audubon, Carroll, and Sac counties, and northwest Iowa – Lyon, Osceola, Sioux, Plymouth, O’Brien, Emmet, and Palo Alto counties have more pigs than prior years. Except for the Washington/Mahaska county and the Union/Ringgold county areas, southern and eastern Iowa generally have fewer pigs. One way to look at the data is to look at the total inventory of pigs per county. In 1978, there were two Iowa counties with less than 50,000 pigs. Twenty-five years later in 2002 there were 24 counties with less than 50,000 pigs. In 1978, there were no Iowa counties with more than 400,000 pigs but in 2002 there were nine Iowa counties with more than 400,000 pigs. Two of those counties – Hardin and Sioux – had more than 800,000 pigs. The pig inventory of Iowa has become increasingly concentrated into a few areas. When the data is presented as pigs per square mile or pig density, the shifts are even more pronounced. In 1987, the entire state of Iowa was a relatively pig dense state with density somewhat evenly distributed across the state. In 2002, Iowa is a state with very high and also low pig densities. There are about 25 counties that have a high density of pigs. However, some counties have few pigs per square mile. In fact, Fremont and Clarke counties in southern Iowa have less than one pig per square mile.

For automatic target detection in maritime environments using optical imaging systems, it may be critical to have a valid a priori knowledge of the elevation of the border between sea and sky backgrounds. In operational conditions, this border, called the horizon, is predicted to move up and down depending on the refractivity conditions. Predictions of horizon elevation can be made from ray-tracing using bulk estimates of refractivity profiles based on the Monin-Obhukov similarity theory. In this paper, predictions of horizon elevations obtained with IRBLEM, a DRDC Valcartier computer model, are compared with observations made in the North Sea in two different meteorological environments: in Katwijk (The Netherlands, October 1993) and Sylt (Germany, June 1992). Good agreement is shown between observations and model calculations. The expected variation of horizon elevation with changing refractivity conditions is discussed.

At the beginning of the new millennium, the life expectancy in the United States, was about 74 years, a truly remarkable increase from the previous century, where, at its beginning, life expectancy was about 55 years. Improving working and living conditions, enforced public health practices, advances in preventive medicine, and health education have all contributed to this increase, to mention some of the more prominent ones. At the same time the increase in longevity presents enormous problems and challenges to the behavioral and health sciences as well as public policy practices and formulations.

This article compares the service quality expectations of residents, family, and administrators within a long-term-care context. Expectations for service quality are measured using the SERVQUAL scale. The results support the reliability of the SERVQUAL instrument for nursing home residents. Resident expectations were significantly different from administrators' expectations on all dimensions of quality. The findings are interpreted in terms of expectation formation and the nature of service encounters.

This inventory of the vascular flora of Fort Greely in interior Alaska was conducted sporadically during summer 1996, 1997, and 1998. Fort Greely covers 0.66 million acres (267,763 ha) and is composed of five major subdivisions: 1) the large floodplains of Jarvis Creek, the Delta River, Delta Creek, and Little Delta River; 2) the surrounding lowlands associated with these rivers; 3) several glacial moraines; 4) two highland areas (Molybdenum Ridge and Dinosaur Ridge); and 5) the higher mountains of the Alaska Range (up to 2000 m in elevation) along the southern edge of the base. Habitats range from very dry south-facing slopes to forest, floodplains, wetlands, and alpine tundra. About 100 sites were visited and 723 collections made, which represented 497 taxa of vascular plants from 64 families and 198 genera. A species list for the Fort Greely survey was compiled and is presented here. It is estimated that the vascular plant inventory is relatively complete. The inventory includes 21 rare species being tracked by the Alaska Natural Heritage Program and 11 species representing significant range extensions (>150 km). The relationship of the Fort Greely flora to that inventoried on Fort Wainwright is discussed.

Laboratory data, which relate the liquefaction resistance of two sandy soils to shear wave velocity, are presented and compared to liquefaction criteria derived from seismic field measurements. Recent studies using field case history data have lead to new criteria for assessing liquefaction potential in saturated, granular deposits based on in-site, stress-corrected shear wave velocity. However, the relatively small number of case histories and the limited rage of site conditions represented in the data catalog hinder this approach. Additional data are needed to more reliably define liquefaction resistance as a function of shear wave velocity. Because shear wave velocity can be measured in-situ in the laboratory, laboratory testing can be used to augment the available field data. In the work described herein, cyclic triaxial and resonant column tests were conducted on specimens of clean uniform sand and a silty sand. Cyclic undrained strength and small-strain shear wave velocity were determined for identical specimens formed by water sedimentation. The data from these tests were found to be consistent with published field performance criteria, even with the uncertainties of relating laboratory data to field response. This study demonstrates the link between field and laboratory measurements that are possible with shear wave velocities. This link creates the opportunity to extend this approach to study other materials, such as silty sands and gravelly soils, and to study the influence of other parameters, such as high confining pressure, where little to no field performance data are available.

An analysis is presented showing the effects of refraction, aerosol extinction, and molecular extinction on transmission measurements obtained during the EO Propagation Assessment in Coastal Environments (EOPACE) campaign carried out in San Diego during March and April 1996. Infrared transmission measurements were made over both a 7 km path (mid IR) and a 15 km path (mid JR and far IR) at heights below 10 m above sea level. The average difference between all the measured transmissions and aerosol transmittances over the two paths with results obtained using the JR Boundary Layer Effects Model (IRBLEM) were found to be relatively small, even though the difference for individual measurements can be significant. The effect of molecular transmittance, as calculated using MODTRAN, is found to reduce the transmission by about 35% forthe 7 km path, 72% for the mid JR over the 15 km path, and between 70% and 90% for the far JR over the 15 km path.The effect of aerosol transmittance, as calculated using a variation of the Navy Aerosol Model (NAM), is found to reduce the transmission from 10% to 90% for the mid JR over both the 7 and 15 km paths, and from 10% to 60% for the far JR over the 15 km path. The effect of refractance, the focussing and defocussing of radiation due to atmospheric refraction, on the predicted transmissions is found to account for gains and losses up to 20% for the 7 km path, and gains and losses up to 100% for the 15 km path. Consequently, any JR transmission model for the marine boundary layer (MBL) must properly take into account the effects on the transmission due to molecular extinction, aerosol extinction, and refractance. ©2005 Copyright SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering.

To study the impact of the overall treatment time of fractionated irradiation on the tumor control probability (TCP) of a human soft tissue sarcoma xenograft growing in nude mice, as well as to compare the pretreatment potential doubling time (Tpot) of this tumor to the effective doubling time (Teff) derived from three different schedules of irradiation using the same total number of fractions with different overall treatment times.The TCP was assessed using the TCD50 value (the 50% tumor control dose) as an end point. A total of 240 male nude mice, 7-8 weeks old were used in three experimental groups that received the same total number of fractions (30 fractions) with different overall treatment times. In group 1, the animals received three equal fractions/day for 10 consecutive days, in group 2 they received two equal fractions/day for 15 consecutive days, and in group 3 one fraction/day for 30 consecutive days. All irradiations were given under normal blood flow conditions to air breathing animals. The mean tumor diameter at the start of irradiation was 7-8 mm. The mean interfraction intervals were from 8-24 h. The Tpot was measured using Iododeoxyuridine (IudR) labeling and flow cytometry and was compared to Teff.The TCD50 values of the three different treatment schedules were 58.8 Gy, 63.2 Gy, and 75.6 Gy for groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. This difference in TCD50 values was significant (p0.05) between groups 1 and 2 (30 fractions/10 days and 30 fractions/15 days) vs. group 3 (30 fractions/30 days). The loss in TCP due to the prolongation of the overall treatment time from 10 days to 30 days was found to be 1.35-1.4 Gy/day. The pretreatment Tpot (2.4 days) was longer than the calculated Teff in groups 2 and 3 (1.35 days).Our data show a significant loss in TCP with prolongation of the overall treatment time. This is most probably due to an accelerated repopulation of tumor clonogens. The pretreatment Tpot of this tumor model does not reflect the actual doubling of the clonogens in a protracted regimen.

The purpose of this study was to test the hypotheses that (1) surgical wounding can enhance the xenotransplantability of a human soft tissue sarcoma (HSTS26T) into subcutaneous (s.c.) tissue of nude mice, and (2) Indomethacin may reduce the xenotransplantability of this human tumor in the surgical wounding animal model by suppressing angiogenesis. The experimental method was to employ the quantitative transplantation assays (TD50, the number of tumor cells that, on average, would be expected to induce a tumor in 50% of the recipients). After an incisional wound (1.0-1.2 cm long) was made on the right leg of each experimental mouse, tumor cells were inoculated into the surgical wound, or into the contralateral leg at 24 and 72 hr postincision, and in another group tumor cells were inoculated into the wound at 72 hr postincision, plus daily s.c. injection of indomethacin, 2 mg/kg body weight for 8 consecutive days in a separate experiment. Nonincisional mice received the same inoculation as the control groups. The TD50s of surgically wounded groups were 3.5-10.7 times lower than that of the control groups. Significantly lower TD50 values were found in groups of cells inoculated into the surgical wound at 72 hr postincision (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01) and into the contralateral leg at 24 hr postincision (P=0.05). No significant difference was found between the TD50 values in mice that received cells inoculated at 72 hr postincision plus indomethacin treatment, and those with no wound controls. Our conclusion is that the surgical wound can enhance the xenotransplantability of HSTS26T in nude mice. Indomethacin can decrease this enhancing effect level similar to that in no-wound controls and may prevent tumor recurrence in a surgical wound. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

IN 1989, English Today published an article by Sangsup Lee entitled “The subversion of Korean” (ET20 Oct 89). Dr. Lee was concerned with the importation from English into written Korean of hitherto unmarked grammatical distinctions like singular/plural, past/past perfect and active/passive. More recently, Korean scholars and commentators have become concerned over what they see as a different kind of subversion, this time lexical rather than grammatical, with the widespread adoption of English words into the Korean language.

Scientific studies across the US have demonstrated the economic viability of organic cropping systems. Of particular interest to farmers contemplating organic production is the economic viability of the farm during the transition-to-organic period, which is defined as 36 months from the last application of a prohibited synthetic fertilizer or pesticide. This period generally refers to two transition years (T-1 and T-2) and a third year where organic prices can be obtained once certification has been secured. Due to the increased interest in non-transgenic food ingredients, organic transition prices have recently been offered for specific non-transgenic organic crops during the two-year transition period. Here we report the results of an economic analysis of two rotations accepted under organic regulations: corn-soybean-oat/alfalfa (C-S-O/A) and corn-soybean-oat/alfalfa-alfalfa (C-S-O/A-A) during T-1 and T-2 compared with a conventional corn-soybean (C-S) rotation. Average production costs for the conventional C-S rotation were $48/acre higher than the average organic rotation ($160 versus $112/acre) during the transition. Returns from individual crops varied, depending upon variety and year, with the organic returns to land, labor and management less than conventional in the T-1 year, but greater than conventional returns in the T-2 year. The 2-year average returns over both transitional organic rotations ($114/acre) were similar to the conventional C-S returns ($117/acre). Transitional organic soybean returns were greater than transitional corn, oat, and alfalfa because the demand for non-transgenic soybean in T-1 and T-2 supported higher than conventional farm gate pricing. Soybean and corn returns in the transitional organic rotations were also greater than conventional corn and soybean returns in T-1 and T-2, whereas organic alfalfa returns competed favorably with conventional corn and soybean returns in T-2 only. The transitional organic oat crop generated the lowest revenue of all crops in both transition years. Transitional average returns from the organic soybean crops at $213/acre were greater than the $133/acre soybean returns from the C-S rotation. Assuming equivalent conventional and organic yields and organic prices in the first certified organic year (O-1), an even greater return would be obtained for organic crops following transition.

MICHAEL DUFFY looks at the double negative in English and parallel constructions in some East Asian languages