AN ANALYSIS OF ANTICIPATORY SHORT HEDGING USING PREDICTED HARVEST BASIS

Crop Production/Industries,

Technology, Innovation and Latecomer Strategies: Evidence from the Mobile Handset Manufacturing Sector in China

Since the entry of Chinese domestic mobile handset manufacturers in 1998, Chinese domestic suppliers have successfully surpassed the market share of joint ventures (JVs) while direct imports have been largely phased out. By examining China’s mobile handset manufacturing sector as a whole and through case studies, we found several factors that contributed to the success of China’s domestic handset manufacturers which can be classified into three categories: market conditions, competition, and government’s support.

Class Warrior

In October 1890, Eugene T. Kingsley’s life changed irrevocably when he was injured in a fall between two rail cars while working as a brakeman on the Northern Pacific Railway. Following the amputation of both his legs, Kingsley became radicalized and joined the Socialist Labor Party in San Francisco. His activism eventually brought him to Vancouver, B.C. where he founded the Socialist Party of Canada. A self-described “uncompromising enemy of class rule and class robbery,” Kingsley wrote prolifically on the exploitation of wage slaves by the capitalist class. Also known as a passionate orator, he went on to become one of the most prominent socialist intellectuals of his day. Class Warrior is a collection of Kingsley’s writing and speeches that underscores his tremendous impact on Canadian political discourse.Publishe

Iran, America and Iranian American Community in Firoozeh Jazayeri Dumas\u27 Funny in Farsi

Post 9/11 the United States of America concerns the reconstruction of already demonized identities of Arabs and Middle-eastern cultures. Postcolonial works reside in their rendering a tragic or serious image of Middle Easterners to bring the Western (American) audience into sympathizing with the Middle Eastern ethnicities. Could it be the case that a fundamentally humorous (not derogatory) depiction might contribute to easing such cultural tensions? Firoozeh Jazayeri Dumas\u27 works stand out as critically acclaimed and successful works familiarizing the American audience with the more humane, likeable, sweet and funny aspects of the Iranians and Iranian culture, and the hardships of being an Iranian immigrant and becoming a hybrid individual. This article explores the already-hybridized self and psyche of Firoozeh as an Iranian American. She writes about her mother land and her residence country and comparing the way she has written about them can help readers understand how one can make peace between different parts of her identity

Simulation of a Large Scale Data Reduction System

Over the next few years, one of the great challenges mankind will be facing is the design and management of increasingly complex systems. Simulation models of these systems will play a major role in meeting this challenge expeditiously and economically. As an example of the use of such techniques this paper describes briefly a Monte Carlo simulation of the Air Force Eastern Test Range data reduction computer system. This system included an IBM 7094/7044/1301 configuration called POD for Process on Demand. It was installed in mid-1964 replacing a 7094/1401 computer system. Additional components of the system included two remaining 1401 systems and a keypunch operation. The purpose was to analyze and predict the behavior of this system under a variety of conditions without interfering with its operation. Indeed, experiments and analyses of the real system were prohibitive at that time, yet, data on the probable response of the system to increasing demands were vitally needed. Thus, some of the conditions explored with the model included: (1) increase or decrease in workload (2) changes in timing schedule of workload input (3) changes in balance of kinds of workload (4) addition or deletion or substitution of hardware (5) software changes which will produce known changes in system parameters (6) internal priority system change

Platelet-derived growth factor modulates rat vascular smooth muscle cell responses on laminin-5 via mitogen-activated protein kinase-sensitive pathways

BACKGROUND: A treatment to remove vascular blockages, angioplasty, can cause damage to the vessel wall and a subsequent abnormal wound healing response, known as restenosis. Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) lining the vessel wall respond to growth factors and other stimuli released by injured cells. However, the extracellular matrix (ECM) may differentially modulate VSMC responses to these growth factors, such as proliferation, migration and adhesion. Our previous reports of low-level expression of one ECM molecule, laminin-5, in normal and injured vessels suggest that laminin-5, in addition to growth factors, may mediate VSMC response following vascular injury. To elucidate VSMC response on laminin-5 we investigated-the role of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF-BB) in activating the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling cascade as a possible link between growth-factor initiated phenotypic changes in vitro and the ECM. RESULTS: Using a system of in vitro assays we assessed rat vascular smooth muscle cell (rVSMC) responses plated on laminin-5 to the addition of exogenous, soluble PDGF-BB. Our results indicate that although laminin-5 induces haptotactic migration of rVSMC, the addition of PDGF-BB significantly increases rVSMC migration on laminin-5, which is inhibited in a dose-dependent manner by the MAPK inhibitor, PD98059, and transforming growth factor (TGF-β1). In addition, PDGF-BB greatly reduces rVSMC adhesion to laminin-5, an effect that is reversible by MAPK inhibition or the addition of TGF-β1. In addition, this reduction in adhesion is less significant on another ECM substrate, fibronectin and is reversible using TGF-β1 but not MAPK inhibition. PDGF-BB also strongly increased rVSMC proliferation on laminin-5, but had no effect on rVSMC plated on fibronectin. Finally, plating rVSMC on laminin-5 did not induce an increase in MAPK activation, while plating on fibronectin or the addition of soluble PDGF-BB did. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that rVSMC binding to laminin-5 activates integrin-dependent intracellular signaling cascades that are different from those of fibronectin or PDGF-BB, causing rVSMC to respond more acutely to the inhibition of MAPK. In contrast, our results suggest that fibronectin and PDGF-BB may activate parallel, reinforcing intracellular signaling cascades that converge in the activation of MAPK and are therefore less sensitive to MAPK inhibition. These results suggest a partial mechanism to explain the regulation of rVSMC behaviors, including migration, adhesion, and proliferation that may be responsible for the progression of restenosis

Panel Data Models of New Firm Formation in New England

This study examines the impact of the determinants of new firm formation in New England at the county level from 1999 to 2009. Based on the Spatial Durbin panel model that accounts for spillover effects, it is found that population density and human capital positively affect single-unit firm births within a county and its neighbors. Population growth rate also exerts a significant positive impact on new firm formation, but most of the effect is from spatial spillovers. On the contrary, the ratio of large to small firm in terms of employment size and unemployment rate negatively influence single-unit firm births both within counties and among neighbors. However, there is no significant impact of local financial capital and personal income growth on new firm formation

Incubation Push or Business Pull? Investigating the Geography of US Business Incubators

The primary purposes of this paper are to present the geographic distribution of US business incubators and to explore geographically bounded factors that influence the location of business incubators. Our data show that US business incubators are unevenly distributed across the urban/rural division, states, as well as counties. Factor analysis identifies three common factors from 27 demographic, social, and economic variables drawn from publicly available data at the county level. These factors include agglomeration, welfare, and business/entrepreneurship. The results of binominal logistic regressions suggest that incubators are more likely to be found in counties with high levels of agglomeration but low levels of existing business development. Our findings support the “incubation push” model over the “business pull” model on the location of business incubators, which reflects the policy strategy of incubator creation

TEMPERATURE AND RAINFALL VARIABILITY STUDIES WITHIN SOUTH-SOUTH REGION OF NIGERIA

The annual rainfall and temperature variables from 1978-2017 for the South-South region of Nigeria were retrieved from the records of NiMet in order to ascertain the recent extent of the variation in the climatic conditions of the region. The methods used for the analyses are simple approach, coefficient of variability (CV), anomaly approach, trend evaluation using parametric and non-parametric methods, and the data homogeneity test. The results show that the differences between 1978-1997 and 1998-2017 revealed variability of; -7.0 mm, -0.3oC, and -0.3oC for rainfall, maximum and minimum temperatures respectively. The overall CV of the maximum temperature, minimum temperature and annual rainfall is 0.026, 0.036, and 0.145 respectively. From the anomaly results it was unveiled that 21 years recorded higher rainfall whereas 19 years recorded lower rainfall. Moreover, 24 years were warmer than normal, 13 years were less warm than normal while 3 years were having a normal temperature. The Sen’s estimator slope of the annual rainfall recorded a downward trend of -94.0 mm/yr during 1978-1987 decade with a slope of -3. There were upward trends of 90.0 mm/yr with a slope of 1, 30 mm/yr with a slope of 1 and 118.0 mm/yr with a slope of 1 for 1988-1997, 1998-2007, and 2008-2017 decades respectively. While the maximum temperature recorded a downward trend of -0.1℃/yr with a slope of -1 in 1978-1987 decade. It recorded a rising trend of 0.1℃/yr with a slope of 0 in the 1998-2007 decade. The remaining two decades recorded no trend in the maximum temperature with a slope of 1 and 0 respectively. Similarly, the minimum temperature recorded upward trend of 0.1℃/yr with a slope of 0 in 1988-1997 periods, while 1978-1987, 1998-2007, and 2008-2017 decades recorded no trend with a slope of 2, 0, and 1 respectively. This study has again unveiled the fact that there is variation in the climate. Accordingly, there is a conceptual need to keep the general public on alert due to its vicious impacts so as to take the appropriate measures and adaptation opportunities for its mitigation