The yield/quality trade-off and contractual choice

This paper provides an analysis of the choice of governance mechanism in agriculture using an integrated perspective based on agency theory. The main ways of organizing agriculture are compared: spot market and incentive contract. With the analytical development of both models, it is explored that the choice of the optimal mechanism depends on initial conditions such as uncertainty, the risk aversion of the agents or the number of competitors. Moreover, according to the predictions made by the economic literature on agrarian organization, the results support the coexistence of both governance alternatives.Crop Production/Industries,

Quality and governance mode choice: a transaction cost approach to the wine industry

We analyze the relationship between product quality and governance mode choice using the results of a survey of DOC Rioja wineries. Wineries that produce high-quality wines are more likely to vertically integrate than are wineries that produce low-quality wines. Consistent with Transaction Cost Economics, we find evidence that asset specificity and uncertainty are important determinants of vertical integration. Finally, the size of the winery is also an important factor that affects governance mode choice in viticulture.quality, governance mode choice, transaction cost, Industrial Organization,

On the co-existence of spot and contract markets: an analysis of quality

The possible co-existence of spot and contract market that can emerge in the presence of quality issues with a number of growers and processors in each stage is something that has largely remained an open question in the literature. This paper is an attempt to fill this void. We use a straightforward two-stage Cournot oligopoly model with specific demand and cost functions. In the first stage, processors decide simultaneously whether or not to set an incentive contract. The second stage is the stage in which growers choose their levels of quantity and quality based on the industry structure developed in the first stage. With the help of numerical simulations we conducted the study of the equilibrium structures. Our results suggest that for a wide range of number of participants in both markets, participation in both markets constitutes a Nash equilibrium for the model.Marketing,

Double Sided Moral Hazard and Share Contracts in agriculture

This paper develops a double-sided moral hazard model of share contract in agriculture, with imperfect quality measurement by the agent and the principal, who contribute to the final good quality in terms of production effort and marketing effort respectively. Using this model, we analyse the implications of the share contract for quantity and quality, often ignored in previous analysis. With the help of a simulation exercise, we prove that the outcome-conditioned share generally weakens the agent´s incentive to make effort in quality input. This finding could explain the contractual evidence in some differentiated markets such as the wine market, where bottle-price conditioned contracts are rarely used.share-contract, double moral-hazard, quality, Farm Management,

Evaluation of brain functional connectivity from electroencephalographic signals under different emotional states

The identification of the emotional states corresponding to the four quadrants of the valence/arousal space has been widely analyzed in the scientific literature by means of multiple techniques. Nevertheless, most of these methods were based on the assessment of each brain region separately, without considering the possible interactions among different areas. In order to study these interconnections, this study computes for the first time the functional connectivity metric called cross-sample entropy for the analysis of the brain synchronization in four groups of emotions from electroencephalographic signals. Outcomes reported a strong synchronization in the interconnections among central, parietal and occipital areas, while the interactions between left frontal and temporal structures with the rest of brain regions presented the lowest coordination. These differences were statistically significant for the four groups of emotions. All emotions were simultaneously classified with a 95.43% of accuracy, overcoming the results reported in previous studies. Moreover, the differences between high and low levels of valence and arousal, taking into account the state of the counterpart dimension, also provided notable findings about the degree of synchronization in the brain within different emotional conditions and the possible implications of these outcomes from a psychophysiological point of view.- This publication is part of the R&D Projects Nos. PID2020-115220RB-C21, EQC2019-006063P, funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/, and 2018/11744, funded by "ERDF A way to make Europe". This work was partially supported by Biomedical Research Networking Centre in Mental Health (CIBERSAM) of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Beatriz Garcia-Martinez holds FPU16/03740 scholarship from Spanish Ministerio de Educacion y Formacion Profesional

RNAiFold2T: Constraint Programming design of thermo-IRES switches

Motivation: RNA thermometers (RNATs) are cis-regulatory ele- ments that change secondary structure upon temperature shift. Often involved in the regulation of heat shock, cold shock and virulence genes, RNATs constitute an interesting potential resource in synthetic biology, where engineered RNATs could prove to be useful tools in biosensors and conditional gene regulation. Results: Solving the 2-temperature inverse folding problem is critical for RNAT engineering. Here we introduce RNAiFold2T, the first Constraint Programming (CP) and Large Neighborhood Search (LNS) algorithms to solve this problem. Benchmarking tests of RNAiFold2T against existent programs (adaptive walk and genetic algorithm) inverse folding show that our software generates two orders of magnitude more solutions, thus allow- ing ample exploration of the space of solutions. Subsequently, solutions can be prioritized by computing various measures, including probability of target structure in the ensemble, melting temperature, etc. Using this strategy, we rationally designed two thermosensor internal ribosome entry site (thermo-IRES) elements, whose normalized cap-independent transla- tion efficiency is approximately 50% greater at 42?C than 30?C, when tested in reticulocyte lysates. Translation efficiency is lower than that of the wild-type IRES element, which on the other hand is fully resistant to temperature shift-up. This appears to be the first purely computational design of functional RNA thermoswitches, and certainly the first purely computational design of functional thermo-IRES elements. Availability: RNAiFold2T is publicly available as as part of the new re- lease RNAiFold3.0 at https://github.com/clotelab/RNAiFold and http: //bioinformatics.bc.edu/clotelab/RNAiFold, which latter has a web server as well. The software is written in C++ and uses OR-Tools CP search engine.Comment: 24 pages, 5 figures, Intelligent Systems for Molecular Biology (ISMB 2016), to appear in journal Bioinformatics 201

Povezanost slike o vlastitu tijelu s tjelesnom aktivnošću, zadovoljstvom životom i mediteranskom prehranom španjolskih adolescenata

The aim of this study was to examine the association between physical self-concept and physical activity, the intention to be physically active, life satisfaction, and adherence to the Mediterranean diet in adolescents. A total of 1,808 Spanish adolescents (12-16 years of age) participated in this cross-sectional study. Physical Self Questionnaire, Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity Screening Measure, Intention to be Physically Active Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, and Mediterranean Diet Quality Index were administered. The boys with a lower physical self-concept showed higher odd ratios of being inactive, having low intentions of being physically active, poor life satisfaction and low adherence to the Mediterranean diet. Similarly, most of the associations were also statistically significant in girls as well. In conclusion, the study reveals that having a low level of physical self-concept increases the risk of being inactive and of having a low level of intention to be physically active, life satisfaction and adherence to the Mediterranean diet in adolescents.Cilj je ovog istraživanja bio utvrditi povezanost između samopoimanja tijela i tjelesne aktivnosti, namjere da se bude tjelesno aktivan, zadovoljstva životom i pridržavanja mediteranske prehrane kod adolescenata. U ovo transverzalno istraživanje bilo je uključeno ukupno 1.808 španjolskih adolescenata (u dobi od 12 do 16 godina). U istraživanju su korišteni sljedeći mjerni instrumenti: Physical Self Questionnaire, Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity Screening Measure, Intention to be Physically Active Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, i Mediterranean Diet Quality Index. Dječaci s nižom razinom zadovoljstva vlastitim tijelom, u bilo kojoj njegovoj dimenziji, pokazali su veću sklonost tjelesnoj neaktivnosti, nižu odlučnost da budu tjelesno aktivni, manifestirali su nisku razinu zadovoljstva životom i slabo pridržavanje načela mediteranske prehrane. Slično kao i kod dječaka, većina relacija bila je statistički značajna i kod djevojčica. Zaključno, istraživanje je ukazalo na činjenicu da niska razina samopoimanja povećava rizik za neaktivnost i za nisku razinu namjere za kasniju tjelesnu aktivnost te da je povezano sa slabijim zadovoljstvom životom i slabijim pridržavanjem načela mediteranske prehrane kod adolescenata

Electrochemical characterization of a Fe-based shape memory alloy in an alkaline medium and the behaviour in aggressive conditions

A Fe-17Mn-6Si-19Cr-4Ni-1(V,C) shape memory steel (SMS) was characterised electrochemically in its unstrained and pre-strained conditions. The work focused on analysing the passive films generated in alkaline conditions, and on the behaviour of those passive samples in various Cl /OH ratios. The passive films were developed by cyclic voltammetry and their characterisation was performed by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS); these tests were also carried out in 304 L stainless steel specimens for comparison purposes. The results indicated that the film characteristics (thickness and composition) were similar in all the samples, although higher corrosion resistance was observed in the 304 L due to the higher Cr content. In addition, the behaviour of the passive samples in aggressive conditions was assessed by potentiodynamic measurements. The results stated that the shape memory steels were more sensitive than the stainless steel to the aggressive conditions, especially when the alloy was pre-strained. It was also observed that the SMS exhibited a characteristic corrosion morphology localized at the grain boundariesAgencia Estatal de Investigación | Ref. TED2021-130605B-I00Financiado para publicación en acceso aberto: Universidade de Vigo/CISU