ABSTRACTS OF SELECTED PAPERS

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Is prevention better than cure? An empirical investigation for the case of avian influenza

The new EU Animal Health Strategy suggests a shift in emphasis away from control towards prevention and surveillance activities for the management of threats to animal health. The optimal combination of these actions will differ among diseases and depend on largely unknown and uncertain costs and benefits. This paper reports an empirical investigation of this issue for the case of Avian Influenza. The results suggest that the optimal combination of actions will be dependent on the objective of the decision maker and that conflict exists between an optimal strategy which minimises costs to the government and one which maximises producer profits or minimises negative effects on human health. From the perspective of minimising the effects on human health, prevention appears preferable to cure but the case is less clear for other objectives

The adaptation continuum: groundwork for the future

The focus of the program was to understand the challenges posed by climate change and climate variability on vulnerable groups and the policies needed to support climate adaptation in developing countries. The aim of the book is to share this experience in the hope that it will be helpful to those involved in shaping and implementing climate change policy

ECONOMICS OF DETECTION AND CONTROL OF INVASIVE SPECIES: WORKSHOP HIGHLIGHTS

Invasive species are species that are not native to an ecosystem, and when introduced into the new ecosystem, they cause economic or environmental damage. Trade is one way in which these species are introduced into new regions, and as trade increases, the introduction of invasive species also rises. The Center for Agricultural Policy and Trade Studies, North Dakota State University, held a workshop on April 30, 2004 in Fargo, ND, titled ?Economics of Detection and Control of Invasive Species? to address these issues. The purpose of this workshop was to present current findings on the subject of invasive species in agricultural trade and to structure the model for an in-depth research project examining this issue. Speakers included experts from the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service and the Economic Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, as well as professors of economics from North Dakota State University and other academic institutions. Discussion included the impact of invasive species on agricultural production and trade, the tools used by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Customs and Border patrol to detect and control incoming species, and the creation of econometric models to capture and explain these processes and to analyze policy issues. This report contains abstracts from the presentations given at the workshop.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Verifying a medical protocol with temporal graphs: The case of a nosocomial disease

Objective: Our contribution focuses on the implementation of a formal verification approach for medical protocols with graphical temporal reasoning paths to facilitate the understanding of verification steps. Materials and methods: Formal medical guideline specifications and background knowledge are represented through conceptual graphs, and reasoning is based on graph homomorphism. These materials explain the underlying principles or rationale that guide the functioning of verifications. Results: An illustration of this proposal is made using a medical protocol defining guidelines for the monitoring and prevention of nosocomial infections. Such infections, which are acquired in the hospital, increasemorbidity andmortality and add noticeably to economic burden. An evaluation of the use of the graphical verification found that this method aids in the improvement of both clinical knowledge and the quality of actions made. Discussion: As conceptual graphs, representations based on diagrams can be translated into computational tree logic. However, diagrams are much more natural and explicitly human, emphasizing a theoretical and practical consistency. Conclusion: The proposed approach allows for the visualmodeling of temporal reasoning and a formalization of knowledge that can assist in the diagnosis and treatment of nosocomial infections and some clinical problems. This is the first time that one emphasizes the temporal situation modeling in conceptual graphs. It will also deliver a formal verification method for clinical guideline analyses

Is prevention better than cure? An empirical investigation for the case of Avian Influenza

The new EU Animal Health Strategy suggests a shift in emphasis away from control towards prevention and surveillance activities for the management of threats to animal health. The optimal combination of these actions will differ among diseases and depend on largely unknown and uncertain costs and benefits. This paper reports an empirical investigation of this issue for the case of Avian Influenza. The results suggest that the optimal combination of actions will be dependent on the objective of the decision maker and that conflict exists between an optimal strategy which minimises costs to the government and one which maximises producer profits or minimises negative effects on human health. From the perspective of minimising the effects on human health, prevention appears preferable to cure but the case is less clear for other objectives.avian influenza, prevention, control, Livestock Production/Industries,

Establishing National Ocean Service Priorities for Estuarine, Coastal, and Ocean Modeling: Capabilities, Gaps, and Preliminary Prioritization Factors

This report was developed to help establish National Ocean Service priorities and chart new directions for research and development of models for estuarine, coastal and ocean ecosystems based on user-driven requirements and supportive of sound coastal management, stewardship, and an ecosystem approach to management. (PDF contains 63 pages

A Gap Analysis for the Implementation of the Global Climate Observing System Programme in Africa

This report is the main output from a Gap Analysis, financed by the United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DfID) as a major contribution to a Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) workshop to address climate and development issues in sub-Saharan Africa. The requirement is to assess key gaps in the use of climate information from the perspective of the decision-making community at household, community, district, national and regional levels, for a range of sectors, with particular emphasis on health, agriculture and water. The report was prepared by a group of people with broad, deep and diverse experience with climate sensitive development problems, and with climate and development communities in Africa. It was strengthened by review by a larger community of development experts