Modeling Staple Food Consumption: Measuring the Trade Effect on Food Security for Chinese Grain Farmers

This paper derives a simulation model that examines the food security of the grain producing households in China in an open border model regime. We define a food inadequacy index (F.I.) to measure the change of the food security status under alternative scenarios of border liberalization for the households. We conclude that if opening the border of grain market is followed by a more variable grain price distribution, the food security status will deteriorate for the low-income households on average. However, if border liberalization is followed by a decrease in mean of the price distribution, even with a more variable distribution, the food security status improves.International Relations/Trade,

TRADE IMPACT ON FOOD SECURITY: ANALYSIS ON FARM HOUSEHOLDS IN RURAL CHINA

We simulate several alternative scenarios to access the impact of border liberalization on household food security in rural China. We find that most Chinese farmers derive most their income from sources other than grain marketing and buy a significant amount of staple grain. Opening the border to more import of grain resulting in lower the domestic price is likely to improve the general level of food security for rural farm households in China.Food Security and Poverty,

Effects of the Spin-Orbit Coupling and the Superconductivity in simple-cubic alpha-Polonium

We have investigated the mechanism of stabilizing the simple-cubic (SC) structure in polonium (alpha- Po), based on the phonon dispersion calculations using the first-principles all-electron band method. We have demonstrated that the stable SC structure results from the suppression of the Peierls instability due to the strong spin-orbit coupling (SOC) in alpha-Po. Further, we have explored the possible superconductivity in alpha-Po, and predicted that it becomes a superconductor with Tc ~ 4 K. The transverse soft phonon mode at q ~ 2/3 R, which is greatly influenced by the SOC, plays an important role both in the structural stability and the superconductivity in alpha-Po. We have discussed effects of the SOC and the volume variation on the phonon dispersions and superconducting properties of alpha-Po.Comment: 5pages, 5figure

DISTORTIONS TO INCENTIVES IN CHINA'S AGRICULTURE AND IMPLICATIONS OF WTO ACCESSION

The overall goal of our paper will be to attempt to contribute to the empirically-based literature on the effects on China's agriculture of its accession to the WTO. In general, we seek to answer some of the most basic questions about the expected effects of China's entry in the World Trade Organization (WTO). On balance, will the nation's accession to WTO help or hurt farming households? If farmers lose (gain), who in the agricultural economy will get hurt (benefit)? Are there some regions in the economy that will be insulated from the effects of WTO due to their isolation from domestic markets?International Relations/Trade,

Magnetization Plateau of Classical Ising Model on Shastry-Sutherland Lattice

We study the magnetization for the classical antiferromagnetic Ising model on the Shastry-Sutherland lattice using the tensor renormalization group approach. With this method, one can probe large spin systems with little finite-size effect. For a range of temperature and coupling constant, a single magnetization plateau at one third of the saturation value is found. We investigate the dependence of the plateau width on temperature and on the strength of magnetic frustration. Furthermore, the spin configuration of the plateau state at zero temperature is determined.Comment: 6 pages, 8 figure