AGRI-ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS IN THE UNITED STATES AND THE EUROPEAN UNION

Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy,

Event related potentials reveal that increasing perceptual load leads to increased responses for target stimuli and decreased responses for irrelevant stimuli

This Document is Protected by copyright and was first published by Frontiers. All rights reserved. It is reproduced with permission.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

CAUSES OF MULTIFUNCTIONALITY: EXTERNALITIES OR POLITICAL PRESSURE

Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Agri-environmental Policy in the European Union: Who's in Charge?

The EU has argued that some agricultural subsidies are needed to provide the optimal amount of externalities (both positive and negative) produced by agriculture. The argument is that agriculture is "multifunctional" and externalities such as rural development and landscape would be underproduced, while some forms of pollution (such as nitrogen runoff) would be overproduced without government intervention. Meanwhile, the United States has raised the concern that multifunctionality is primarily an argument to transfer income to producers. One way to try and determine how much of these non-commodity payments are directed to externalities and how much is intended to distribute income to producers is to analyze the variation of the programs among the different member states of the EU. We estimate the degree to which environmental characteristics, agricultural characteristics and political economy variables determine the objective and amount of funding each member states uses to address environmental externalities (both positive and negative). Results indicate that little of the variance in agri-environmental expenditure can be explained by the difference in negative externalities, neither is there clear evidence that the payments are substituting for traditional agricultural subsidies. However, demand for environmental services and political variables seem to be the driving motivators behind a country's decision to spend money on agri-environmental programs.Environmental Economics and Policy,

Agri-environmental Policy in the European Union: Who's in Charge?

European Union (EU) agri-environmental programmes (AEPs) represent a significant step in the region's efforts to decouple agricultural output from production and export subsidies. While AEPs comprise only a small share of EU agricultural support, they have two possible external impacts: 1) the composition of the EU's imports and exports may change as their producers become more market responsive; and 2) the WTO's Green Box (subsides considered minimally trade distorting and hence not disciplined) may become increasingly contentious. Our concern is with the drivers of AEPs in the EU and their implications for Canada.Environmental Economics and Policy,

Causes of Multifunctionality: Externalities or Political Pressure?

The EU has argued that some agricultural subsidies are needed to provide the optimal amount of externalities (both positive and negative) produced by agriculture. The argument is that agriculture is "multifunctional" and externalities such as rural development and landscape would be underproduced, while some forms of pollution (such as nitrogen runoff) would be overproduced without government intervention. Meanwhile, the United States has raised the concern that multifunctionality is primarily an argument to transfer income to producers. In this paper, we discuss the motivation for the EU agri-environmental measures and empirically test for those underlying causes. We find that the programs are not targeted at those regions with the highest environmental need, but neither are they purely a substitute for traditional forms of agricultural subsidies. Demand for general environmental expenditure does influence agri-environmental expenditure as well, as does political structure.Environmental Economics and Policy,

Enhanced Tactile Performance at the Destination of an Upcoming Saccade

AbstractPrevious work has demonstrated that upcoming saccades influence visual [1, 2] and auditory [3] performance even for stimuli presented before the saccade is executed. These studies suggest a close relationship between saccade generation and visual/auditory attention. Furthermore, they provide support for Rizzolatti et al.'s [4, 5] premotor model of attention, which suggests that the same circuits involved in motor programming are also responsible for shifts in covert orienting (shifting attention without moving the eyes or changing posture). In a series of experiments, we demonstrate that saccade programming also affects tactile perception. Participants made speeded saccades to the left and right side as well as tactile discriminations of up versus down. The first experiment demonstrates that participants were reliably faster at responding to tactile stimuli near the location of upcoming saccades. In our second experiment, we had the subjects cross their hands and demonstrated that the effect occurs in visual space (rather than the early representations of touch). In our third experiment, the tactile events usually occurred on the opposite side of upcoming eye movement. We found that the benefit at the saccade target location vanished, suggesting that this shift is not obligatory but that it may be vetoed on the basis of expectation

Evaluation of surface analysis methods for characterization of trace metal surface contaminants found in silicon IC manufacturing

A major topic at recent silicon-based integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing symposia is the pursuit of decreased contamination levels. The aim is to remove contamination from both processes and materials. In conjunction with this effort, characterization methods are being pushed to lower and lower detection limits. In this paper, we evaluate surface analysis methods used to determine the concentration of inorganic contamination on unpatterned Si wafers. We compare sampling depths, detection limits, and applicability of each method for use in support of Si IC manufacturing. This comparison is further limited to Fe and Cu which are transition metal contaminants associated with manufacturing yield loss. The surface analysis methods included in this evaluation are: Total Reflection X-Ray Fluorescence (TXRF or TRXRF); Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS); two post-ionization'' methods Surface Analysis by Laser Ionization (SALI) and Sputter Initiated Resonant Ionization Spectroscopy (SIRIS); Heavy Ion Backscattering Spectroscopy (HIBS); and Vapor Phase Phase Decomposition (VPD) based methods Atomic Absorption (VPD-AA) along with VPD-TXRF. Sets of 6 in. Si wafers with concentration levels between 10{sup 9} atoms/cm{sup 2} and 10{sup 12} atoms/cm{sup 2} Fe and Cu were characterized by TXRF, SIMS, SIRIS, and HIBS. This data allows estimation of detection limits (DLs) and relative method accuracy. In Section 1 we describe each surface analysis method and the circumstance under which it would be used to support Si IC manufacturing. The equipment used for this comparison and the 150 mm Si wafer set are described in Section 2. Results from each method are contrasted in Section 3. Finally, a conclusion is presented in Section 4

Prospective acceptability of digital phenotyping among pregnant and parenting people with opioid use disorder: A multisite qualitative study

BackgroundWhile medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) effectively treat OUD during pregnancy and the postpartum period, poor treatment retention is common. Digital phenotyping, or passive sensing data captured from personal mobile devices, namely smartphones, provides an opportunity to understand behaviors, psychological states, and social influences contributing to perinatal MOUD non-retention. Given this novel area of investigation, we conducted a qualitative study to determine the acceptability of digital phenotyping among pregnant and parenting people with opioid use disorder (PPP-OUD).MethodsThis study was guided by the Theoretical Framework of Acceptability (TFA). Within a clinical trial testing a behavioral health intervention for PPP-OUD, we used purposeful criterion sampling to recruit 11 participants who delivered a child in the past 12  months and received OUD treatment during pregnancy or the postpartum period. Data were collected through phone interviews using a structured interview guide based on four TFA constructs (affective attitude, burden, ethicality, self-efficacy). We used framework analysis to code, chart, and identify key patterns within the data.ResultsParticipants generally expressed positive attitudes about digital phenotyping and high self-efficacy and low anticipated burden to participate in studies that collect smartphone-based passive sensing data. Nonetheless, concerns were noted related to data privacy/security and sharing location information. Differences in participant assessments of burden were related to length of time required and level of remuneration to participate in a study. Interviewees voiced broad support for participating in a digital phenotyping study with known/trusted individuals but expressed concerns about third-party data sharing and government monitoring.ConclusionDigital phenotyping methods were acceptable to PPP-OUD. Enhancements in acceptability include allowing participants to maintain control over which data are shared, limiting frequency of research contacts, aligning compensation with participant burden, and outlining data privacy/security protections on study materials