Supply Management and Price Ceilings on Production Quota Values: Future or Folly?

Since the inception of supply management in Canada during the 1970s, milk production quota has been used to regulate output and participation in the dairy industry. In recent years, milk quota values have increased dramatically, almost tripling in value since the mid-1980s. This led to the Dairy Farmers of Ontario intervening on the milk production quota exchange on two occasions: first, in November 2006 with a progressive transfer assessment and then in July 2009, replacing the former policy with a firm price ceiling – fixing the unit price of quota at $25,000. These policies represent a significant redistribution of economic benefits within the Ontario dairy community from milk producers approaching retirement and selling their quota to those remaining in the industry. The objective of this study is to first explore the reasons for the increase in production quota values; and second, to assess the welfare and distributional effects of each of the two quota policy schemes. Our results suggest that the increase in quota values were driven by basic economic factors expected to influence asset values and that the efficiency losses from intervention in the quota exchange are non-trivial. We conclude by suggesting there are several alternative policy options that could minimize efficiency losses while moderating the escalation in quota values.milk, quota, policy, risk, supply, management, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Relations/Trade, Political Economy,

Supply Management and Price Ceilings on Production Quota Values: Future or Folly?

This paper examines and contrasts two policies instituted by the Dairy Farmers of Ontario (DFO) in reaction to the escalation of production quota values on the provincial quota exchange, which regulates the transfer of dairy production quota among producers in the province of Ontario.Supply Management, DFO, Production Quota, Provincial Quota Exchange, Price ceiling, Progressive Transfer Assessment, Agricultural and Food Policy, Livestock Production/Industries, Production Economics,

On the nature of the Herbig B[e] star binary system V921 Scorpii: Geometry and kinematics of the circumprimary disk on sub-AU scales

V921 Scorpii is a close binary system (separation 0.025") showing the B[e]-phenomenon. The system is surrounded by an enigmatic bipolar nebula, which might have been shaped by episodic mass-loss events, possibly triggered by dynamical interactions between the companion and the circumprimary disk (Kraus et al. 2012a). In this paper, we investigate the spatial structure and kinematics of the circumprimary disk, with the aim to obtain new insights into the still strongly debated evolutionary stage. For this purpose, we combine, for the first time, infrared spectro-interferometry (VLTI/AMBER, R=12,000) and spectro-astrometry (VLT/CRIRES, R=100,000), which allows us to study the AU-scale distribution of circumstellar gas and dust with an unprecedented velocity resolution of 3 km*s^-1. Using a model-independent photocenter analysis technique, we find that the Br-gamma-line emission rotates in the same plane as the dust disk. We can reproduce the wavelength-differential visibilities and phases and the double-peaked line profile using a Keplerian-rotating disk model. The derived mass of the central star is 5.4+/-0.4 M_sun*(d/1150 pc), which is considerably lower than expected from the spectral classification, suggesting that V921 Sco might be more distant (d approx 2kpc) than commonly assumed. Using the geometric information provided by our Br-gamma spectro-interferometric data and Paschen, Brackett, and Pfund line decrement measurements in 61 hydrogen recombination line transitions, we derive the density of the line-emitting gas (N_e=2...6*10^19 m^-3). Given that our measurements can be reproduced with a Keplerian velocity field without outflowing velocity component and the non-detection of age-indicating spectroscopic diagnostics, our study provides new evidence for the pre-main-sequence nature of V921 Sco.Comment: 17 pages, 11 figures, 3 tables, accepted by Ap

Haptic Noise Cancellation: Restoring Force Perception in Robotically-Assisted Beating Heart Surgery

Beating heart surgical methods have the potential to remove the need for the heart-lung machine and its attendant side effects, but must contend with the motion of the heart. Recent research in robotically-assisted surgery has produced a handheld, actuated in- strument that can track and compensate for heart motion; however, the reaction forces caused by the actuation mechanism make it dif- ficult for the surgeon to feel the heart during the operation, which can lead to unsafe tissue manipulation. This paper investigates an instrument design that negates reaction forces to the user by moving a counterweight out of phase with the moving mass of the actuator. The resulting instrument retains the tracking and motion compensa- tion abilities of the current instrument, but reduces reaction forces felt by the user by over 80%. Subjects used the new instrument in an in vitro beating heart surgical contact task and performance was compared to the previously existing instrument. The new in- strument provided a 28% increase in user force sensitivity and im- proved user reaction times by 51%, indicating that the new instru- ment greatly enhances force perception in beating heart tasks.Engineering and Applied Science

Yang-Mills instantons on cones and sine-cones over nearly K\"ahler manifolds

We present a unified eight-dimensional approach to instanton equations on several seven-dimensional manifolds associated to a six-dimensional homogeneous nearly K\"ahler manifold. The cone over the sine-cone on a nearly K\"ahler manifold has holonomy group Spin(7) and can be foliated by submanifolds with either holonomy group G_2, a nearly parallel G_2-structure or a cocalibrated G_2-structure. We show that there is a G_2-instanton on each of these seven-dimensional manifolds which gives rise to a Spin(7)-instanton in eight dimensions. The well-known octonionic instantons on R^7 and R^8 are contained in our construction as the special cases of an instanton on the cone and on the cone over the sine-cone, both over the six-sphere, respectively.Comment: 1+21 page

Randomised Comparison of the AMBU AuraOnce Laryngeal Mask and the LMA Unique Laryngeal Mask Airway in Spontaneously Breathing Adults

We conducted a randomised single-blind controlled trial comparing the LMA-Unique (LMAU) and the AMBU AuraOnce (AMBU) disposable laryngeal mask in spontaneously breathing adult patients undergoing general anaesthesia. Eighty-two adult patients (ASA status I–IV) were randomly allocated to receive the LMAU or AMBU and were blinded to device selection. Patients received a standardized anesthetic and all airway devices were inserted by trained anaesthetists. Size selection was guided by manufacturer recommendations. All data were collected by a single, unblinded observer. When compared with the LMAU, the AMBU produced significantly higher airway sealing pressures (AMBU 20 ± 6; LMAU 15 ± 7 cm H2O; P = 0.001). There was no statistical difference between the two devices for overall success rate, insertion time, number of adjustments, laryngeal alignment, blood-staining, and sore throat (P ≥ 0.05). The AMBU AuraOnce disposable laryngeal mask provided a higher oropharyngeal leak pressure compared to the LMA Unique in spontaneously breathing adult patients

Generation of GeV protons from 1 PW laser interaction with near critical density targets

The propagation of ultra intense laser pulses through matter is connected with the generation of strong moving magnetic fields in the propagation channel as well as the formation of a thin ion filament along the axis of the channel. Upon exiting the plasma the magnetic field displaces the electrons at the back of the target, generating a quasistatic electric field that accelerates and collimates ions from the filament. Two-dimensional Particle-in-Cell simulations show that a 1 PW laser pulse tightly focused on a near-critical density target is able to accelerate protons up to an energy of 1.3 GeV. Scaling laws and optimal conditions for proton acceleration are established considering the energy depletion of the laser pulse.Comment: 26 pages, 8 figure