The Competitiveness of Farm Credit Markets in a Deregulated Environment

Despite the proliferation of banking offices occurring since banking deregulation, about one-third of all counties in the US were still considered to have little competition with respect to agricultural credit. Counties considered less competitive were located in regions where farming is less prevalent; Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Appalachia, and Southeast. There was no evidence that farm interest rates charged by commercial banks were higher regions with less competition. Higher FCS interest rates in counties with less competitive suggested that full-time commercial-size farms may be disadvantaged by a lack of credit market competition.Agricultural Finance,

Explaining Regional Demand for Federal Farm Credit Programs: An Ordinal Probit Approach

Demand for federally subsidized farm credit varies regionally, with farm borrowers in some regions very dependent on USDA credit programs. Counties are grouped based on their level of demand for Farm Service Agency (FSA) direct farm ownership (FO) and farm operating loans (OL). Ordinal probit techniques are applied to analyze factors influencing county-level variation in the use of the loan programs. Results suggest that counties with the highest level of demand are more likely to have a Farm Credit System branch office, are more likely to be dependent on farming, have a greater share of farms owing debt, and have fewer guaranteed FSA borrowers and racial and ethnic minorities.Agricultural Finance, Demand and Price Analysis,

DOES FCS ASSOCIATION SIZE AFFECT CREDIT AVAILABILITY?

An analysis of the characteristics of farm businesses by size of FCS direct lending association suggests that further consolidation of FCS lending should have limited negative impacts on credit availability. Commercial-sized farm businesses with FCS real estate debt appeared similar to those who obtained credit from competing lenders, but smaller associations and those with fewer stockholders per branch appeared to serve larger and more wealthy commercial-sized farms.credit availability, direct lending association, Agricultural Finance,

Risk Rating of FSA’s Guaranteed Loan Portfolio

Risk and Uncertainty,

The Financial and Professional Impact of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries in National Football League Athletes.

BACKGROUND: Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries can have negative consequences on the careers of National Football League (NFL) players, however no study has ever analyzed the financial impact of these injuries in this population. PURPOSE: To quantify the impact of ACL injuries on salary and career length in NFL athletes. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. METHODS: Any player in the NFL suffering an ACL injury from 2010 to 2013 was identified using a comprehensive online search. A database of NFL player salaries was used to conduct a matched cohort analysis comparing ACL-injured players with the rest of the NFL. The main outcomes were the percentage of players remaining in the NFL and mean salary at 1, 2, 3, and 4 years after injury. Cohorts were subdivided based on initial salary: group A,$2,000,000. Mean cumulative earnings were calculated by multiplying the percentage of players remaining in the league by their mean salaries and compounding this each season. RESULTS: NFL athletes suffered 219 ACL injuries from 2010 to 2013. The 7504 other player seasons in the NFL during this time were used as controls. Significantly fewer ACL-injured players than controls remained in the NFL at each time point (P \u3c .05). In group A, significantly less ACL-injured players remained in the NFL at 1 to 3 seasons after injury (P \u3c .05), and in group B, significantly less ACL-injured players remained in the NFL at 1 and 2 seasons after injury (P \u3c .05). There was no significant decrease in group C. Players in groups A and B remaining in the NFL also had a lower mean salary than controls (P \u3c .05 in season 1). The mean cumulative earnings over 4 years for ACL-injured players was$2,070,521 less per player than uninjured controls. CONCLUSION: On average, ACL-injured players earned $2,070,521 less than salary-matched controls over the 4 years after injury. Players initially earning less than$2 million per year have lower mean salaries and are less likely to remain in the league than uninjured controls. The careers of players initially earning over $2 million per year, meanwhile, are not negatively affected. This demonstrates the degree of negative impact these injuries have on the careers of NFL players. It also indicates that a player\u27s standing within the league before injury strongly influences how much an ACL injury will affect his career

Determining Default Probabilities for FSA Direct Loans

A binomial logit model was used to analyze relationships between financial characteristics and loan performance for FSA direct borrowers receiving direct FO or OL loans in fiscal 2005. Not surprisingly, the results indicate a strong and direct relationship between many key financial variables and probability of default. Production specialization, however, was indicated to have just as important an impact on probability of default as many financial variables. Other strong indicators included farm size, membership in a targeted group, and the ability to obtain credit from commercial lenders.FSA credit programs, loan defaults, credit risk models, risk rating, Agricultural Finance, Financial Economics,

Sequential Sectioning of the Ulnar Collateral Ligament of the Elbow in Cadaveric Arms with Ulnohumeral Laxity Assessed by Dynamic Ultrasonography

Objectives: Injury of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL), whether acute or chronic, is potentially career-threatening for elite overhead throwing athletes. Dynamic ultrasound (DUS) allows for rapid, cost-effective, non-invasive, and non-radiating evaluation of the UCL and elbow joint both at rest and with applied stress. The purpose of this study was to determine the amount of cadaveric elbow valgus laxity with sequential UCL sectioning using DUS. Our objective was to quantify which portions of the UCL must be injured to cause the varying levels of laxity seen clinically on DUS testing. No prior study has used DUS to quantify valgus joint laxity with sequential cadaveric UCL sectioning. It was hypothesized that the change in laxity due to release of the anterior band of the UCL would be greater than that seen when the posterior and transverse bands were cut. Methods: Twelve cadaveric elbows were dissected free of skin and subcutaneous tissue by an experienced orthopaedic surgeon. Baseline DUS at rest and with applied valgus stress was then performed by an experienced ultrasonographer. Sequential sectioning of the medial elbow soft-tissue stabilizing structures was then carried out with valgus stress applied to the joint at each sectioning interval utilizing a standardized device (Telos, Marburg, Germany). First the transverse band of the UCL was released, followed by the posterior band, then the anterior bundle of the anterior band, the remaining posterior bundle of the anterior band, and finally the complete flexor pronator mass. Results: Mean ulnohumeral laxity in millimeters with 95% CIs was calculated for each step of the sequence. The deltas between each step of the dissection were also calculated with means and 95% CIs. Mean baseline laxity of the unstressed ulnohumeral joint at rest was 3.2 mm (CI, 2.2-4.2); with the addition of valgus stress, mean laxity was 4.7 mm (CI, 3.5-6.0). When the transverse band was cut, ulnohumeral laxity increased to a mean of 5.5 mm (CI, 4.0-7.0). With release of the posterior band, mean laxity was 6.4 mm (CI, 4.3-8.5). When the anterior bundle of the anterior band of the UCL was cut, mean ulnohumeral laxity was 8.4 mm (CI, 5.7-11.0) and when the entire anterior band was released, mean laxity was 10.9 mm (CI, 7.8-14.0). Complete release of the flexor pronator muscle mass resulted in mean ulnohumeral laxity of 15.5 mm (CI, 12.9-18.1). The largest deltas were observed with release of the anterior bundle of the anterior band (2.0 mm; CI, 1.0-3.0), the entire anterior band (2.6 mm; CI, 1.3-3.8), and flexor pronator mass (4.6 mm; CI, 1.3-3.8). Release of the transverse and posterior bands of the UCL resulted in deltas of 0.74 mm (CI, 0.1-1.3) and 0.9 mm (CI, 0.3-1.5) respectively. Conclusion: DUS allows for rapid, cost-effective, non-invasive, non-radiating evaluation of the elbow joint and UCL both at rest and with applied valgus stress. Previous studies have indicated that DUS can identify abnormalities of the UCL associated with chronic degeneration and ligamentous injury including thickening of the anterior band of the UCL as well as hypoechoic foci/calcifications. The results of the current cadaveric study suggest that different changes in clinical laxity are seen on DUS with injury of particular bands of the UCL. Early identification and localization of injury to a particular band of the UCL may allow more appropriate selection of patients who will benefit from operative treatment. © The Author(s) 2013

Covariability in the Monthly Mean Convective and Radiative Diurnal Cycles in the Amazon

The diurnal cycle of convective clouds greatly influences the radiative energy balance in convectively active regions of Earth, through both direct presence, and the production of anvil and stratiform clouds. Previous studies show that the frequency and properties of convective clouds can vary on monthly timescales as a result of variability in the monthly mean atmospheric state. Furthermore, the radiative budget in convectively active regions also varies by up to 7 Wm-2 in convectively active regions. These facts suggest that convective clouds connect atmospheric state variability and radiation variability beyond clear sky effects alone. Previous research has identified monthly covariability between the diurnal cycle of CERES-observed top-of-atmosphere radiative fluxes and multiple atmospheric state variables from reanalysis over the Amazon region. ASVs that enhance (reduce) deep convection, such as CAPE (LTS), tend to shift the daily OLR and cloud albedo maxima earlier (later) in the day by 2-3 hr. We first test the analysis method using multiple reanalysis products for both the dry and wet seasons to further investigate the robustness of the preliminary results. We then use CloudSat data as an independent cloud observing system to further evaluate the relationships of cloud properties to variability in radiation and atmospheric states. While CERES can decompose OLR variability into clear sky and cloud effects, it cannot determine what variability in cloud properties lead to variability in the radiative cloud effects. Cloud frequency, cloud top height, and cloud microphysics all contribute to the cloud radiative effect, all of which are observable by CloudSat. In addition, CloudSat can also observe the presence and variability of deep convective cores responsible for the production of anvil clouds. We use these capabilities to determine the covariability of convective cloud properties and the radiative diurnal cycle

ANALYSIS OF BORROWER AND LENDER USE OF INTEREST ASSISTANCE ON FSA GUARANTEED FARM LOANS

The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 made permanent the interest assistance program for the Farm Service Agency's guaranteed loans, authorized a significant increase in funding for the program, and targeted funding for beginning farmers and ranchers. The research presented here provides a basic descriptive analysis of past use. In particular, borrower data for Federal fiscal years 1985 through 2002 are examined in several dimensions. These dimensions include geographic, borrower type, lender type, interest rate differentials, percent guarantee, and the status of the loan as to whether a loss claim was paid or the loan remained active. Even though the program has been in existence for more than 15 years, little is known about its impact and utilization. This research is an initial step in documenting usage of the program.Agricultural and Food Policy, Agricultural Finance,

Comparison of research framing preferences and information use of state legislators and advocates involved in cancer control, United States, 2012–2013

INTRODUCTION: Evidence-based policy plays an important role in prevention of cancer and other chronic diseases. The needs of actors involved in policy decision-making should inform knowledge translation strategies. This study examines the differences between state legislators and advocates in how they seek and use information and what their preferences are for how research information is framed. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional comparison of survey responses by US advocates (n = 77) and state legislators (n = 265) working on issues related to cancer control. RESULTS: Advocates differed significantly from legislators on all demographic characteristics. Advocates reported seeking and using information more frequently than legislators, though legislators used legislative research bureaus more often (0.45 point difference, P = .004). Both legislators and advocates prioritized the presentation and timeliness of research information similarly but reported different preferences for source (information bias, information relevance, delivery of information by trusted person) of research information. Several differences between advocates and legislators were modified by participant age. CONCLUSION: Our study provides insights for development of knowledge translation strategies to enhance evidence-based policy making for cancer control that are tailored to state-level legislators and advocates. Additional research efforts should evaluate the effectiveness of such knowledge translation strategies, particularly among advocates