Income Related Loans for Drought Relief

There is arguably a consensus that the current approach to drought relief is in need of reform and possibly replacement with an improved government financial assistance mechanism. Grants to farmers, in the form of interest rate subsidies, have several difficulties, which in summary are as follows: i. There are typically too few financial resources to be drawn from government to address adequately and equitably the needs of farms in a dire drought situation. ii. The rationing arising from (i) means that access to assistance requires complex eligibility criteria, resulting in application and administrative processes that are complex and thus expensive for both farmers and government. iii. Grants for drought relief are financed by contributions from all taxpayers, and it is very likely to be the case that this is regressive. Average taxpayers will be less wealthy and have fewer other economic advantages than the majority of farmers assisted through drought relief. This paper outlines the potential advantages and challenges associated with the implementation of income related loan arrangements for drought relief as a possible alternative to the existing interest rate subsidy scheme. The conceptual basis of income related loans is explained, and reference is made to the application of policies of this type in other areas of government financial intervention. The paper addresses the administrative challenges associated with such a policy reform, with reference to the idiosyncrasies of agricultural financing. An illustrative example is offered of what an income related loan applied to drought assistance might mean for the time stream of both revenue for the Commonwealth budget and repayment obligations for farms differing by economic size.income related loans, drought policy, agricultural subsidies

Using infrared spectral features to probe circumstellar dust shells around cool stars

IRAS observations of cool stars provide low resolution spectra in the mid-infrared and also give fluxes at four wavelength bands from which color-color diagrams are constructed. The later have been used to study the evolution of these stars: as an O-rich star evolves to become a C-rich star and its detached dust shell moves further away, its evolution can be tracked on a color-color diagram. A major factor in determining the position of either C-rich or O-rich stars on the 12-25-60 micron color-color diagram is the presence of spectral features in the mid-IR. O-rich stars show a 9.8 micron silicate feature, while C-rich stars have a SiC feature at 11.2 microns. IRAS observations indicate that the SiC feature is quite narrow and uniform in shape showing little variation from star to star. The full width at half maximum (FWHM) is 1.6 + or - 0.15 microns. On the other hand, the shape of the silicate feature varies widely among the O-rich stars, with a FWHM ranging from 2 to 3 microns. The characteristics of circumstellar dust shells should manifest themselves both in the flux spectrum and in the details of the spectral features. To provide a coherent interpretation for these IRAS observations, models were constructed (using a radiative transfer code) of dust shells around O-rich and C-rich stars. Realistic grain opacities were used which include spectral features of varying intrinsic widths (e.g., Gaussian features at 10 microns with half width at half maximum of 0.5 and 1.0 microns)

The Experience of Unemployment in Ireland: A Thematic Analysis

This paper reports on the results of 13 semi-structured focus groups carried out with unemployed respondents across Ireland in 2010. The purpose of the research is to examine the subjective experience of unemployment across a wide range of dimensions. 15 overarching themes emerged from a detailed thematic analysis of the texts of the interviews. The themes highlight a wide range of aversive psychological states associated with unemployment. The themes examine: perceptions of the economic boom; reactions to the recession; attitudes toward media coverage; gender differences in experiences of unemployment; financial worries relating to unemployment; perceptions of the position of young people; uncertainty about the future; lack of structure and routine associated with unemployment; health issues associated with unemployment; identity challenges; the social context of unemployment; issues surrounding reentering employment; attitudes toward social protection payments; social comparison effect and perceptions of training services. This paper concludes with a brief discussion of the psychological impact of unemployment.

Circumstellar Structure around Evolved Stars in the Cygnus-X Star Formation Region

We present observations of newly discovered 24 micron circumstellar structures detected with the Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS) around three evolved stars in the Cygnus-X star forming region. One of the objects, BD+43 3710, has a bipolar nebula, possibly due to an outflow or a torus of material. A second, HBHA 4202-22, a Wolf-Rayet candidate, shows a circular shell of 24 micron emission suggestive of either a limb-brightened shell or disk seen face-on. No diffuse emission was detected around either of these two objects in the Spitzer 3.6-8 micron Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) bands. The third object is the luminous blue variable candidate G79.29+0.46. We resolved the previously known inner ring in all four IRAC bands. The 24 micron emission from the inner ring extends ~1.2 arcmin beyond the shorter wavelength emission, well beyond what can be attributed to the difference in resolutions between MIPS and IRAC. Additionally, we have discovered an outer ring of 24 micron emission, possibly due to an earlier episode of mass loss. For the two shell stars, we present the results of radiative transfer models, constraining the stellar and dust shell parameters. The shells are composed of amorphous carbon grains, plus polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the case of G79.29+0.46. Both G79.29+0.46 and HBHA 4202-22 lie behind the main Cygnus-X cloud. Although G79.29+0.46 may simply be on the far side of the cloud, HBHA 4202-22 is unrelated to the Cygnus-X star formation region.Comment: Accepted by A

Investigation of the neural control of cough and cough suppression in humans using functional brain imaging

Excessive coughing is one of the mostcommonreasons for seeking medical advice, yet the available therapies for treating cough disorders are inadequate. Humans can voluntarily cough, choose to suppress their cough, and are acutely aware of an irritation that is present in their airways. This indicates a significant level of behavioral and conscious control over the basic cough reflex pathway. However, very little is known about the neural basis for higher brain regulation of coughing. The aim of the present study was to use functional brain imaging in healthy humans to describe the supramedullary control of cough and cough suppression. Our data show that the brain circuitry activated during coughing in response to capsaicin-evoked airways irritation is not simply a function of voluntarily initiated coughing and the perception of airways irritation. Rather, activations in several brain regions, including the posterior insula and posterior cingulate cortex, define the unique attributes of an evoked cough. Furthermore, the active suppression of irritant-evoked coughing is also associated with a unique pattern of brain activity, including an involvement of the anterior insula, anterior mid-cingulate cortex, and inferior frontal gyrus. These data demonstrate for the first time that evoked cough is not solely a brainstem-mediated reflex response to irritation of the airways, but rather requires active facilitation by cortical regions, and is further regulated by distinct higher order inhibitory processes. Copyright © 2011 the authors

'A true partner around the table?' Perceptions of how to strengthen public health's contributions to the alcohol licensing process

Introduction: There are increased opportunities for public health practitioners (PHPs) in England to shape alcohol availability and reduce harms through a statutory role in licensing processes in local government. However, how public health can effectively influence alcohol licence decision-making is little understood. Methods: A mixed methods study was conducted to identify challenges faced by PHPs and mechanisms to strengthen their role. This involved a survey of practitioners across London local authorities (n = 18) and four focus group discussions with a range of licensing stakeholders (n = 36). Results: Survey results indicated a varied picture of workload, capacity to respond to licence applications and levels of influence over decision-making among PHPs in London. Practitioners described a felt lack of status within the licence process, and difficulties using and communicating public health evidence effectively, without a health licensing objective. Strategies considered supportive included engaging with other responsible authorities and developing understanding and relationships over time. Conclusions: Against political and resource constraints at local and national government levels, pragmatic approaches for strengthening public health influence over alcohol licensing are required, including promoting relationships between stakeholders and offering opportunities for PHPs to share best practice about making effective contributions to licensing

Habitat and Interspecific Interactions Affect Mesocarnivore Occupancy in the Eastern U.S.

Interspecific competition is important to carnivore communities because of the propensity of carnivores toward aggressive interactions. Interactions among members of the eastern U.S.A. mesocarnivore community have been impacted by the loss of top predators and urbanization. Changes to interspecific interactions and habitat result in changes in many populations of mesocarnivores. Interactions between these two factors further explain contrasting patterns among the members of the mesocarnivore community. These patterns have been studied at scales from the effects of microhabitat to landscape scale factors on mesocarnivore occupancy, however they have not been studied throughout multiple independent landscapes in the eastern U.S.A. Here, we used presence absence data from camera traps across the eastern U.S.A. to test the effects of habitat and interspecific interactions on members of the mesocarnivore community. We used single- and two-species occupancy models to estimate the contribution of urbanization and competition with coyotes to declines in gray fox populations. We found that increasing coyote abundance was negatively related to gray fox occupancy, but gray foxes did not respond to urban features. Additionally, we used multi-species occupancy models to investigate the effect of habitat on interspecific interactions among five mesocarnivores. We found that increased urbanization reduced the strength of potential intraguild predation on some mesocarnivores. Collectively, our results suggest that neither interspecific interactions nor habitat alone are capable of explaining patterns in the mesocarnivore guild. However, the inability of mesocarnivores to avoid competition with intraguild predators may contribute to declines in some species. While urbanization may have direct negative impacts, urban areas may be important because of reduced competition in more urbanized landscapes. Given the continued urbanization of the eastern U.S.A., these data provide valuable insight into how habitat may impact interspecific interactions, and, ultimately, how interspecific interactions may affect mesocarnivore occupancy

Wrestling Teddy Bears: Wilderness Masculinity as Invented Tradition in the Pacific Northwest

At the turn of the last century, the tale - end of the great period of invented tradition, Americanism was steeped in or preoccupied with the rediscovery of American masculinity - displaced by Civil War and the economic depression and uncertainty of the Gilded Age - the closing of the frontier, and a growing appreciation of outdoor recreation. The result was division over the expansionist tendencies of proponents for war against Spain, continued labor resentment, and a reinvigorated surge of white supremacy. This paper follows an unorthodox avenue to investigate these themes and tensions. In exploring instances of turn-of-the-last-century human encounters with bears in hand-to-hand combat in the Pacific Northwest, I mean to demonstrate that notions of the frontier and environmental determinism constructed a new, wilderness masculinity distinct from changing expressions of urban masculinity. "The wilderness masters the colonist" -Frederick Jackson Turne