Coordinating a two-echelon supply chain under inflation and time value of money

In the current global economic scenario, inflation plays a vital role in deciding optimal pricing of goods in any business entity. This paper develops a two-echelon (manufacturer-buyer) supply chain model taking into account inflation and time value of money. The present value of the total cost of the supply chain is derived when the manufacturer produces a number of lots, the sum of which is equal to the buyer’s total demand over a time horizon and the manufacturer’s each production lot is delivered to the buyer in n shipments. The optimal solution of the model is obtained for a numerical example after some adjustments (required to exhibit feasibility) in the derived solution. Sensitivity analysis is also carried out in order to examine the effects of changes in model-parameters on the optimal solution

The effects of boron management on soil microbial population and enzyme activities

Boron is an essential micronutrient required for plant growth. Soil microorganisms directly influence boron content of soil as maximum boron release corresponds with the highest microbial activity. The objective of this study is to determine the effects of different levels of boron fertilizer on microbial population, microbial respiration and soil enzyme activities in different soil depths in cultivated wheat soils. A randomized block design with three replications was used in this experiment. Field experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of B levels (0, 1, 3, 6 and 9 kg ha–1 B) on soil microbial population in cultivated wheat (Triticum vulgare cultivar Dogu-88) soils. Statistical results showed a significant (p < 0.01) differences between B applications and microbial population and between B applications and microbial respiration in 0 to 30 and 30 to 60 cm soil depths. The highest population of bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes and CO2-C production were observed at 3 kg ha-1 B level in different growing periods of the plant and in different soil depths. Urease, phosphatase and dehydrogenase enzyme activities showed a significant (p < 0.01) positive correlation with B applications. The highest urease activity was observed in 6 kg ha-1 B level and the highest phosphatase and dehydrogenase enzyme activities were observed in 3 kg ha-1 B level in harvest period in both soil depths.Key words: Boron management, soil microbial population, urease activity, phosphatase activity, dehydrogenase activity

Distinguishing Motor Weakness From Impaired Spatial Awareness: A Helping Hand!

Our patient, aged 73 years, had background peripheral neuropathy of unknown cause, stable for several years, which caused some difficulty in walking on uneven ground. He attended for a teaching session but now staggered in, a new development. He had apparent weakness of his right arm, but there was difficulty in distinguishing motor weakness from impaired spatial awareness suggestive of parietal lobe dysfunction. With the patient seated, eyes closed, and left arm outstretched, S.A.R. lifted the patient’s right arm and asked him to indicate when both were level. This confirmed motor weakness. Urgent computed tomographic scan confirmed left subdural haematoma and its urgent evacuation rapidly resolved the patient’s symptoms. Intrigued by our patient’s case, we explored further and learnt that in rehabilitation medicine, the awareness of limb position is commonly viewed in terms of joint position sense. We present recent literature evidence indicating that the underlying mechanisms are more subtle

Impact of weather parameters on cotton productivity at Surat (Gujarat), India

Global warming is casting its shadow in the form of climatic changes that is affecting the local weather conditions which has its bearing on crop production and water availability, the basic necessities for survival of life on the planet. In the present study, an attempt was made to investigate the cause of poor production of cotton in 2011-12 in Surat, Gujarat as compared to 2012-13 and 2013-14. Weather data since 2000 was analyzed and compared with the data of 2011-12 and comparison was made to find the abnormality in cotton crop productivity. It was found that during 2011-12, there was delayed monsoon, as well as during squaring and flowering stage (i.e. in August 2011) there was high rainfall (595.6 mm), maximum and minimum temperatures were above normal, during development (June-August) and flowering stage of crop (October-December) which disturbed the crop physiology indirectly affecting the yield of cotton. The combined effect of rainfall and temperature was on relative humidity that created conducive atmosphere for insect and pest attacks on crops. Due to changes in temperature and relative humidity, evaporative water demands would have further aggravated the watering needs of crop. The study concludes that erratic monsoon or delayed monsoon hampers crop physiology ultimately yield due to erratic weather conditions. Further, such changes in cotton growing areas could form the basis of planning and decisions on pricing, crop insurance, export and import policies of cotton crop

Energy sustainability studies on under-construction buildings: baseline for tomorrow’s policy

In the past decade, building research in Asia has been found to have diverged into a relatively less treaded subject of embodied energy (EE) assessment of buildings across their size and construction types as has been reported by several studies. As buildings are complex entities and known to be highly energy intensive, EE contributes a major share in energy use and carbon emission over their life-cycle. While the focus of most policies remains on operational energy of buildings, the energy embodied in the building fabric has, so far, escaped critical scrutiny. However, demand of housing coupled with the pace and scale of urbanization in Asian countries have triggered an unprecedented real estate surge, which translates into accelerated energy consumption during the making of the buildings itself. Thus, the cumulative effect of the embodied energy no longer remains a benign issue in the broader context of energy sustainability and optimization in the building sector. With this in view, this paper presents a base-line study of embodied energy assessment of some real estate case-studies, comprising of multi-storied residential apartments of steel reinforced cement concrete frame structure in and around the city of Calcutta (now Kolkata) in India. The buildings selected are at different life-cycle stages and the results thus obtained appear to be potential inputs for future policy actions

Frequency-dependent (ac) Conduction in Disordered Composites: a Percolative Study

In a recent paper [Phys. Rev. B{\bf57}, 3375 (1998)], we examined in detail the nonlinear (electrical) dc response of a random resistor cum tunneling bond network ($RRTN$, introduced by us elsewhere to explain nonlinear response of metal-insulator type mixtures). In this work which is a sequel to that paper, we consider the ac response of the $RRTN$-based correlated $RC$ ($CRC$) model. Numerical solutions of the Kirchoff's laws for the $CRC$ model give a power-law exponent (= 0.7 near $p = p_c$) of the modulus of the complex ac conductance at moderately low frequencies, in conformity with experiments on various types of disordered systems. But, at very low frequencies, it gives a simple quadratic or linear dependence on the frequency depending upon whether the system is percolating or not. We do also discuss the effective medium approximation ($EMA$) of our $CRC$ and the traditional random $RC$ network model, and discuss their comparative successes and shortcomings.Comment: Revised and reduced version with 17 LaTeX pages plus 8 JPEG figure

State and Development: The Need for a Reappraisal of the Current Literature

This essay tries to bring out some of the complexities that are overlooked in the usual treatment of the state in the institutional economics literature and supplement the latter with a discussion of some alternative approaches to looking at the possible developmental role of the state. It refers to a broader range of development goals (including the structural transformation of the economy) and focuses on problems like the resolution of coordination failures and collective-action problems, the conflicting issues of commitment and accountability and the need for balancing the trade-offs they generate, some ingredients of state capacity and political coalition building usually missed in the literature, the possible importance of rent sharing in a political equilibrium, the advantages and problems of political centralization and decentralization, and the multidimensionality of state functions that may not be addressed by markets or private firms