AGRICULTURAL TRADE RELATIONS BETWEEN CANADA AND THE UNITED STATES

International Relations/Trade,

ECONOMIC ANALYSIS IN DISPUTES OVER TRADE REMEDY AND RELATED MEASURES IN AGRICULTURE, WITH EXAMPLES FROM RECENT CASES

International Relations/Trade,

Combining Consumer Valuation Research with Sensory Science Techniques: A Laboratory Experiment

In this research, we integrated an experimental auction with sensory science techniques—namely, trained sensory panels used to analyze the sensory attributes of wines—to examine the effects of objective and sensory information in the market for California-produced Cabernet Sauvignons. The experiment permitted observation of consumer valuation for sensory attributes of wine, appellations, expert ratings, and wineries. Participants submitted bids each time they received new information about the wines. The balanced experimental design permits evaluation of the effects of consumer characteristics on attribute valuation. We had 236 people participate in the research, which consisted of nine rounds of bidding and one round of hedonic liking scores. Rounds 5-9 repeated the structure of information released in rounds 1-4, but added sensory information, yielding 472 observations for each type of information (e.g. appellation, expert rating, winery). We obtain a total of 8496 valuations, or bids and 944 hedonic “liking” ratings, as well as demographic information, wine consumption data, and a wine knowledge score for each consumer. The results of the research agree with many of the previously held notions about valuation of wine by consumers. Participants value Cabernet Sauvignons from Napa Valley and Sonoma County and their sub-appellations more than wines labeled with the California appellation. Bids for wines rated by experts such as the Wine Advocate (Robert Parker) or Wine Spectator increased as the experts’ ratings increased. However, we also find that consumer characteristics are very important in explaining WTP for wine attributes. The contributions of prestigious appellations to the value of Cabernet Sauvignons depended on consumer characteristics. Willingness to pay was highly correlated with sensory evaluation, but even after tasting the wine, appellation and expert ratings still mattered for WTP. Overall, the research describes a significant amount of heterogeneity in the preferences for sensory characteristics of wine, and that individual characteristics systematically explain many of the differences in valuation of wine attributes.Experimental Economics, Willingness to Pay, WTP, Wine, Consumer Valuation, Hedonic Pricing, Sensory Analysis, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Marketing, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Experimental investigation of liquid sloshing in a scale-model Centaur liquid-hydrogen tank

Liquid sloshing in scale model Centaur liquid hydrogen tan

The relation between hemispheric lateralisation and measures of immune competence and adherence in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1)

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited - Copyright © 2012 Sumner et al

Hormone mediated dispersal and sexual maturation in males of the social paper wasp Polistes lanio

Sex-biased dispersal is common in social species, but the dispersing sex may delay emigration if associated benefits are not immediately attainable. In the social Hymenoptera (ants, some bees and wasps), newly emerged males typically disperse from the natal nest whilst most females remain as philopatric helpers. However, little information exists on the mechanisms regulating male dispersal. Furthermore, the conservation of such mechanisms across the Hymenoptera and any role of sexual maturation are also relatively unknown. Through field observations and mark–recapture, we observed that males of the social paper wasp Polistes lanio emerge from pupation sexually immature, and delay dispersal from their natal nest for up to 7 days whilst undergoing sexual maturation. Delayed dispersal may benefit males by allowing them to mature in the safety of the nest and thus be more competitive in mating. We also demonstrate that both male dispersal and maturation are associated with juvenile hormone (JH), a key regulator of insect reproductive physiology and behaviour, which also has derived functions regulating social organisation in female Hymenoptera. Males treated with methoprene (a JH analogue) dispersed earlier and possessed significantly larger accessory glands than their age-matched controls. These results highlight the wide role of JH in social hymenopteran behaviour, with parallel ancestral functions in males and females, and raise new questions on the nature of selection for sex-biased dispersal

FeH Absorption in the Near-Infrared Spectra of Late M and L Dwarfs

We present medium-resolution z-, J-, and H-band spectra of four late-type dwarfs with spectral types ranging from M8 to L7.5. In an attempt to determine the origin of numerous weak absorption features throughout their near-infrared spectra, and motivated by the recent tentative identification of the E 4\Pi- A ^4\Pi system of FeH near 1.6 microns in umbral and cool star spectra, we have compared the dwarf spectra to a laboratory FeH emission spectrum. We have identified nearly 100 FeH absorption features in the z-, J-, and H-band spectra of the dwarfs. In particular, we have identified 34 features which dominate the appearance of the H-band spectra of the dwarfs and which appear in the laboratory FeH spectrum. Finally, all of the features are either weaker or absent in the spectrum of the L7.5 dwarf which is consistent with the weakening of the known FeH bandheads in the spectra of the latest L dwarfs.Comment: accepted by Ap

unfixed and fixed human chromosomes show different staining patterns after restriction endonuclease digestion

Restriction endonucleases (REs) have been widely used to produce banding patterns on chromosomes, but it remains uncertain to what extent the patterns are due to the sequence specificity of the enzymes, and to what extent chromatin structure influences the pattern of digestion. To throw light on this question, we have digested with restriction endonucleases unfixed chromosomes prepared in two different ways (isolated, and whole metaphase cells spread with a cytocentrifuge) and compared the results with those obtained on conventionally fixed chromosomes. Unfixed isolated chromosomes are easily destroyed by REs; after fixation with cold methanol, which produced minimal alteration to the chromatin structure, the chromosomes are resistant to the action of REs, and conventional methanol-acetic acid fixation is required to permit the induction of banding patterns by REs. Unfixed cytocentrifuge preparations, in which the chromosomes are still surrounded by cytoplasm, are much more resistant to the action of REs, and again banding patterns were only induced after methanol-acetic acid fixation. We conclude that the action of restriction endonucleases on chromosomes is strongly influenced by chromatin organisation, and that methanol-acetic acid fixation is required to permit the induction of conventional banding patterns on chromosomes