Energy Efficient Engine Program: Technology Benefit/Cost Study, Volume II

The Benefit/Cost Study portion of the NASA-sponsored Energy Efficient Engine Component Development and Integration program was successful in achieving its objectives: identification of air transport propulsion system technology requirements for the years 2000 and 2010, and formulation of programs for developing these technologies. It is projected that the advanced technologies identified, when developed to a state of readiness, will provide future commercial and military turbofan engines with significant savings in fuel consumption and related operating costs. These benefits are significant and far from exhausted. The potential savings translate into billions of dollars in annual savings for the airlines. Analyses indicate that a significant portion of the overall savings is attributed to aerodynamic and structure advancements. Another important consideration in acquiring these benefits is developing a viable reference technology base that will permit engines to operate at substantially higher overall pressure ratios and bypass ratios. Results have pointed the direction for future research and a comprehensive program plan for achieving this was formulated. The next major step is initiating the program effort that will convert the advanced technologies into the expected benefits

Kinetics of the reduction of metalloproteins by chromous ion

The reduction of Cu(330) in Rhus vernicifera laccase by chromous ion is 30% faster than reduction of Cu(614) at room temperature [pH 4.8, µ = 0.1 (NaCl)], and two parallel first-order paths, attributed to heterogeneity of the protein, are observed at both wavelengths. The reactions of stellacyanin, spinach and French-bean plastocyanins, and cytochrome c with chromous ion under similar conditions are faster than that with laccase by factors of 102 to 104, and are first order in protein concentration. Comparison of rates and activation parameters for the reduction of "blue" copper in laccase, stellacyanin, and the two plastocyanins indicates that reduction of the Cu(614) site in laccase may occur by intramolecular electron transfer from one of the Cu(330) sites. Our value of ΔH (17.4 kcal/mol) for the chromous ion reduction of cytochrome c is consistent with a mechanism in which major conformational changes in the protein must accompany electron transfer

Economic Issues Related To Chickpea Production In The Northern Plains

Production Economics,

Farm Income Stabilization: A Central Goal for American and European Policies

The central thesis developed in this paper is that snapshot views of the global measures of agricultural support mask what is really happening in U.S. and E.U. agricultural policies. We demonstrate that American and European farmers are effectively protected from market risk by these policies. The level of PSE is largely determined by the level of world price. Most economists do not pay much attention to the role of agricultural policies in income stability. Yet farm income stability is clearly a prime objective of government policy both in the E.U. and the U.S. and probably elsewhere. We need to turn out attention to this objective if we are to produce policy analysis relevant to real world policy decisions.agricultural policy, market risks, agricultural income, U.S., E.U., agricultural and natural resource economics, Agricultural and Food Policy,

Evolution of Cooperative Thought, Theory, and Purpose

The evolution of agricultural cooperative thought, theory, and purpose in the United States is reviewed from the standpoint of the reemergence of interest in how cooperatives can provide some of the security and benefits that might be lost with gradual phasing out of federal government farm support programs. By accomplishing group action for self-help, the early development of cooperatives drew considerable attention from economists, social theorists, and politicians. Alternative schools of cooperative thought developed, but most proponents of cooperatives regarded them as having enormous potential to provide a public service role in building a more economically stable and democratic society This paper also surveys how cooperative theory was developed more rigorously in the post-WWII period. It has provided better analytical tools for understanding how and why cooperatives have changed in response to technological and economic developments, as well as to social trends, like individualism. Given the new perspectives on cooperative theory and the scope of changes in how cooperatives operate and are structured, cooperatives have even greater potential for coordinating self-help actions, but this potential needs the support of cooperative education services.Agribusiness,

A Dynamin-3 Spliced Variant Modulates the Actin/Cortactin-Dependent Morphogenesis of Dendritic Spines

Immature dendrites extend many actin-rich filopodial structures that can be replaced by synapse-containing dendritic spines as the neuron matures. The large GTPase dynamin-3 (Dyn3) is a component of the postsynapse in hippocampal neurons but its function is undefined. Here, we demonstrate that a specific Dyn3 variant (Dyn3baa) promotes the formation of immature dendritic filopodia in cultured neurons. This effect is dependent upon Dyn3 GTPase activity and a direct interaction with the F-actin-binding protein cortactin. Consistent with these findings, Dyn3baa binds to cortactin with a 200% higher affinity than Dyn3aaa, a near identical isoform that does not induce dendritic filopodia when expressed in cultured neurons. Finally, levels of Dyn3baa-encoding mRNA are tightly regulated during neuronal maturation and are markedly upregulated during synaptogenesis. Together, these findings provide the first evidence that an enhanced interaction between a specific Dyn3 splice variant and cortactin modulate actin-membrane dynamics in developing neurons to regulate the morphogenesis of dendritic spines. Supplementary material available online at http://jcs.biologists.org/cgi/content/full/118/6/1279/DC

Sustainability Strategies in U.S. Agribusiness: Understanding Key Drivers, Objectives, and Actions

sustainability, triple bottom line, strategy, stakeholders, supply chain, Agribusiness, Demand and Price Analysis, Environmental Economics and Policy, Production Economics, Productivity Analysis, Risk and Uncertainty,

Large Commercial Producer Market Segments for Agricultural Capital Equipment

Cluster Analysis, Capital Equipment, Market Segmentation, Commercial Producers, Agribusiness, Demand and Price Analysis, Financial Economics, Marketing, Productivity Analysis,