SHORT-RUN INDICATORS OF FINANCIAL SUCCESS FOR SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA FARMERS

Agricultural Finance,

When Do Opponents of Gay Rights Mobilize? Explaining Political Participation in Times of Backlash against Liberalism

Existing research suggests that supporters of gay rights have outmobilized their opponents, leading to policy changes in advanced industrialized democracies. At the same time, we observe the diffusion of state-sponsored homophobia in many parts of the world. The emergence of gay rights as a salient political issue in global politics leads us to ask, “Who is empowered to be politically active in various societies?” What current research misses is a comparison of levels of participation (voting and protesting) between states that make stronger and weaker appeals to homophobia. Voters face contrasting appeals from politicians in favor of and against gay rights globally. In an analysis of survey data from Europe and Latin America, we argue that the alignment between the norms of sexuality a state promotes and an individual’s personal attitudes on sexuality increases felt political efficacy. We find that individuals who are tolerant of homosexuality are more likely to participate in states with gay-friendly policies in comparison with intolerant individuals. The reverse also holds: individuals with low education levels that are intolerant of homosexuality are more likely to participate in states espousing political homophobia

How hard is the euro area core? A wavelet analysis of growth cycles in Germany, France and Italy

Using recent advances in time-varying spectral methods, this research analyses the growth cycles of the core of the euro area in terms of frequency content and phasing of cycles. The methodology uses the continuous wavelet transform (CWT) and also Hilbert wavelet pairs in the setting of a non-decimated discrete wavelet transform in order to analyse bivariate time series in terms of conventional frequency domain measures from spectral analysis. The findings are that coherence and phasing between the three core members of the euro area (France, Germany and Italy) have increased since the launch of the euro

On higher derivative corrections to Wess-Zumino and Tachyonic actions in type II super string theory

We evaluate in detail the string scattering amplitude to compute different interactions of two massless scalars, one tachyon and one closed string Ramond-Ramond field in type II super string theory. In particular we find two scalar field and two tachyon couplings to all orders of $\alpha'$ up to on-shell ambiguity. We then obtain the momentum expansion of this amplitude and apply this infinite number of couplings to actually check that the infinite number of tachyon poles of S-matrix element of this amplitude for the $p=n$ case (where $p$ is the spatial dimension of a D$_p$-brane and $n$ is the rank of a Ramond-Ramond field strength) to all orders of $\alpha'$ is precisely equal to the infinite number of tachyon poles of the field theory. In addition to confirming the couplings of closed string Ramond-Ramond field to the world-volume gauge field and scalar fields including commutators, we also propose an extension of the Wess-Zumino action which naturally reproduces these new couplings in field theory such that they could be confirmed with direct S-matrix computations. Finally we show that the infinite number of massless poles and contact terms of this amplitude for the $p=n+1$ case can be reproduced by Chern-Simons, higher derivative corrections of the Wess-Zumino and symmetrized trace tachyon DBI actions.Comment: 51 pages, some refs and comments added, typos are removed. Almost all ambiguities in BPS and non-BPS effective actions have been addresse

What do we need for robust and quantitative health impact assessment?

Health impact assessment (HIA) aims to make the health consequences of decisions explicit. Decision-makers need to know that the conclusions of HIA are robust. Quantified estimates of potential health impacts may be more influential but there are a number of concerns. First, not everything that can be quantified is important. Second, not everything that is being quantified at present should be, if this cannot be done robustly. Finally, not everything that is important can be quantified; rigorous qualitative HIA will still be needed for a thorough assessment. This paper presents the first published attempt to provide practical guidance on what is required to perform robust, quantitative HIA. Initial steps include profiling the affected populations, obtaining evidence from for postulated impacts, and determining how differences in subgoups' exposures and suscepibilities affect impacts. Using epidemiological evidence for HIA is different from carrying out a new study. Key steps in quantifying impacts are mapping the causal pathway, selecting appropriate outcome measures and selecting or developing a statistical model. Evidence from different sources is needed. For many health impacts, evidence of an effect may be scarce and estimates of the size and nature of the relationship may be inadequate. Assumptions and uncertainties must therefore be explicit. Modelled data can sometimes be tested against empirical data but sensitivity analyses are crucial. When scientific problems occur, discontinuing the study is not an option, as HIA is usually intended to inform real decisions. Both qualitative and quantitative elements of HIA must be performed robustly to be of value

MeV Neutron Production from Thermal Neutron Capture in {6}^Li Simulated with Geant4

Various Li compounds are commonly used at neutron facilities as neutron absorbers. These compounds provide one of the highest ratios of neutron attenuation to $\gamma$-ray production. Unfortunately, the usage of these compounds can also give rise to fast neutron emission with energies up to almost 16 MeV. Historically, some details in this fast neutron production mechanism can be absent from some modeling packages under some optimization scenarios. In this work, we tested Geant4 to assess the performance of this simulation toolkit for the fast neutron generation mechanism. We compare the results of simulations performed with Geant4 to available measurements. The outcome of our study shows that results of the Geant4 simulations are in good agreement with the available measurements for $^6$Li fast neutron production, and suitable for neutron instrument background evaluation at spallation neutron sources.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, Proceeding of The Sixth European Conference on Neutron Scattering, Zaragoza Spain, August 30 to September 4 201

Longitudinal phase space manipulation in energy recovering linac-driven free-electron lasers

Energy recovering an electron beam after it has participated in a free-electron laser (FEL) interaction can be quite challenging because of the substantial FEL-induced energy spread and the energy anti-damping that occurs during deceleration. In the Jefferson Lab infrared FEL driver-accelerator, such an energy recovery scheme was implemented by properly matching the longitudinal phase space throughout the recirculation transport by employing the so-called energy compression scheme. In the present paper,after presenting a single-particle dynamics approach of the method used to energy-recover the electron beam, we report on experimental validation of the method obtained by measurements of the so-called "compression efficiency" and "momentum compaction" lattice transfer maps at different locations in the recirculation transport line. We also compare these measurements with numerical tracking simulations.Comment: 31 pages, 13 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Special Topics A&

The Physical Properties of LBGs at z>5: Outflows and the "pre-enrichment problem"

We discuss the properties of Lyman Break galaxies (LBGs) at z>5 as determined from disparate fields covering approximately 500 sq. arcmin. While the broad characteristics of the LBG population has been discussed extensively in the literature, such as luminosity functions and clustering amplitude, we focus on the detailed physical properties of the sources in this large survey (>100 with spectroscopic redshifts). Specifically, we discuss ensemble mass estimates, stellar mass surface densities, core phase space densities, star-formation intensities, characteristics of their stellar populations, etc as obtained from multi-wavelength data (rest-frame UV through optical) for a subsample of these galaxies. In particular, we focus on evidence that these galaxies drive vigorous outflows and speculate that this population may solve the so-called ``pre-enrichment problem''. The general picture that emerges from these studies is that these galaxies, observed about 1 Gyr after the Big Bang, have properties consistent with being the progenitors of the densest stellar systems in the local Universe -- the centers of old bulges and early type galaxies.Comment: 4 pages, to appear in "Pathways Through an Eclectic Universe", J. H. Knappen, T. J. Mahoney, and A. Vazedekis (Eds.), ASP Conf. Ser., 200

We haven't got a seat on the bus for you or All the seats are mine: Narratives and career transitions in professional golf

In this article we explore how the stories an athlete tells throughout life in sport affect her career transition experiences. We base our enquiry on a social constructionist conception of narrative theory which holds that storytelling is integral to the creation and maintenance of identity and sense of self. Life stories were gathered through interviews with two professional women golfers (Christiana and Kandy) over a six‐year period. Through a narrative analysis of structure and form we explored each participant’s stories of living in and withdrawing from professional golf. We suggest Christiana told monological performance‐oriented stories which, while aligning with the culture of elite sport, resulted in an exclusive athletic identity and foreclosure of alternative selves and roles. On withdrawal, Christiana experienced narrative wreckage, identity collapse, mental health difficulties and considerable psychological trauma. In contrast, Kandy told dialogical discovery‐oriented stories which, while being in tension with the dominant performance narrative, created and sustained a multidimensional identity and self. Her stories and identity remained intact, authentic and continuous on withdrawal from tournament golf and she experienced few psychological problems

More on Phase Structure of Nonlocal 2D Generalized Yang-Mills Theories (nlgYM2_2's)

We study the phase structure of nonlocal two dimensional generalized Yang - Mills theories (nlgYM$_2$) and it is shown that all order of $\phi^{2k}$ model of these theories has phase transition only on compact manifold with $g = 0$(on sphere), and the order of phase transition is 3. Also it is shown that the $\phi^2 + \frac{2\alpha}{3}\phi^3$ model of nlgYM$_2$ has third order phase transition on any compact manifold with $1 < g < 1+ \frac{\hat{A}}{|\eta_c|}$, and has no phase transition on sphere.Comment: 11 pages, no figure