Effects of Agricultural Policy Measures on Gross Transfers to Farmers: Intertemporal and Interregional Evidence from the CAP

This paper analyses the effects of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) on gross transfers over time and across regions. Depending on the type of instrumentation to support agriculture, the volatility of gross transfers differs. While assistance arising from market price supports, regarded as independent from the world market levels, fluctuates intertemporally, direct payments are constant. Empirical findings for the CAP show a reduction of the transfer volatility on grain markets. For beef and veal this effect is not significant, because price support is still large in these markets. If agricultural support is biased in favour of specific commodities, territorial heterogeneity leads to an uneven distribution. By applying a regionalised concept of producer support estimates (PSEs) for the German Federal States, results indicate significant interregional variation of CAP support.CAP, gross transfers, temporal impacts, regional distribution, PSE, Agricultural and Food Policy, Q11, Q18,

ÖKONOMISCHE BEWERTUNG VON LEBENSMITTELSKANDALEN: THEORETISCHE ÜBERLEGUNGEN UND ERSTE EMPIRISCHE BEFUNDE AM BEISPIEL DES DIOXIN-VORFALLS 2011

Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Agricultural Finance, Financial Economics, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, Industrial Organization,

Policy Impacts in the Dairy Supply Chain: The Case of German Whole Milk Powder

The dairy sector is one of the most important agro-food markets in the European Union (EU). In addition to the fresh dairy products, cheese and butter considerable amounts of other dairy products with long sell-by dates are produced like skimmed milk, semi skimmed milk and whole milk powder. These products have some advantages in longer storage periods and easy transportation and thus they are often designated not only for domestic storage but also for international markets. As other internationally traded dairy products milk powders depict remarkable price variations in the last years which do find good matches in the domestic markets. Despite these variations the German industry regards milk powder as an interesting product for further investments driven by luminous international demand prospects. So the likely impacts between the international and the domestic prices movements are an important topic for the German dairy industry as well as German milk producers.In the past, the EU dairy market has been highly supported by the Common Market Organization (CMO) while, at the same time, milk supply has been restricted by the milk quota regime. High administrative price for dairy products were protected by significant import tariffs isolating the EU dairy sector from international trade. In addition, exports subsidies allowed successful competition with exports from third countries, not only for intervention products but also for other dairy products like whole milk powder. However, with the restructuring of the support starting with the Agenda 2000, the coupled market price support in form of intervention prices of butter and skimmed milk powder were stepwise reduced in favour of decoupled payments. Also invention purchases were restricted and the abolition of the milk quota regime was announced for 2014/15 and phased in by yearly increases of the national quotas. At the same time applied export refunds were suspended for most dairy products

Impactos Do Engajamento Das Empresas Com Seus Stakeholders [The Impacts of Stakeholder Engagement]

This empirical paper explores mechanisms by which stakeholders are granted a voice in corporate decision-making processes. A systematic analysis of stakeholder engagement of 51 companies participating in UK’s Business in the Community’s Corporate Responsibility Index is presented, showing the type of stakeholders companies engage with, by which means, as well as the impact of such engagement. We found that leading firms are moving from risk- to opportunity-based engagement using open and long-term engagement mechanisms to align their decisions with their stakeholders’ views and concerns. As results indicate that companies are granting stakeholder views to shape important governance aspects such as policies as well as monitoring and measuring progress, we propagate the term stakeholder governance for advanced forms of stakeholder engagement

Gemeinsam entscheiden in Unternehmen

Stakeholder-Dialoge helfen Unternehmen, Risiken zu minimieren und Marktchancen zu nutzen. Zentral für einen effektiven Dialog ist die Einbindung von Stakeholdern in strategische Entscheidungsprozesse. Eine Analyse führender Unternehmen im Corporate Responsibility Index zeigt einen neuen Trend zur Nutzung von „ Joint Management Stakeholder Committees“

Kernel learning for ligand-based virtual screening: discovery of a new PPARgamma agonist

Poster presentation at 5th German Conference on Cheminformatics: 23. CIC-Workshop Goslar, Germany. 8-10 November 2009 We demonstrate the theoretical and practical application of modern kernel-based machine learning methods to ligand-based virtual screening by successful prospective screening for novel agonists of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) [1]. PPARgamma is a nuclear receptor involved in lipid and glucose metabolism, and related to type-2 diabetes and dyslipidemia. Applied methods included a graph kernel designed for molecular similarity analysis [2], kernel principle component analysis [3], multiple kernel learning [4], and, Gaussian process regression [5]. In the machine learning approach to ligand-based virtual screening, one uses the similarity principle [6] to identify potentially active compounds based on their similarity to known reference ligands. Kernel-based machine learning [7] uses the "kernel trick", a systematic approach to the derivation of non-linear versions of linear algorithms like separating hyperplanes and regression. Prerequisites for kernel learning are similarity measures with the mathematical property of positive semidefiniteness (kernels). The iterative similarity optimal assignment graph kernel (ISOAK) [2] is defined directly on the annotated structure graph, and was designed specifically for the comparison of small molecules. In our virtual screening study, its use improved results, e.g., in principle component analysis-based visualization and Gaussian process regression. Following a thorough retrospective validation using a data set of 176 published PPARgamma agonists [8], we screened a vendor library for novel agonists. Subsequent testing of 15 compounds in a cell-based transactivation assay [9] yielded four active compounds. The most interesting hit, a natural product derivative with cyclobutane scaffold, is a full selective PPARgamma agonist (EC50 = 10 ± 0.2 microM, inactive on PPARalpha and PPARbeta/delta at 10 microM). We demonstrate how the interplay of several modern kernel-based machine learning approaches can successfully improve ligand-based virtual screening results

Deterministic assembly of linear gold nanorod chains as a platform for nanoscale applications

We demonstrate a method to assemble gold nanorods highly deterministically into a chain formation by means of directed capillary assembly. This way we achieved straight chains consisting of end-to-end aligned gold nanorods assembled in one specific direction with well-controlled gaps of [similar]6 nm between the individual constituents. We determined the conditions for optimum quality and yield of nanorod chain assembly by investigating the influence of template dimensions and assembly temperature. In addition, we transferred the gold nanorod chains from the assembly template onto a Si/SiO2 target substrate, thus establishing a platform for a variety of nanoscale electronic and optical applications ranging from molecular electronics to optical and plasmonic devices. As a first example, electrical measurements are performed on contacted gold nanorod chains before and after their immersion in a solution of thiol end-capped oligophenylenevinylene molecules showing an increase in the conductance by three orders of magnitude, indicating molecular-mediated transport

Mapping forest cover and forest cover change with airborne S-band radar

Assessments of forest cover, forest carbon stocks and carbon emissions from deforestation and degradation are increasingly important components of sustainable resource management, for combating biodiversity loss and in climate mitigation policies. Satellite remote sensing provides the only means for mapping global forest cover regularly. However, forest classification with optical data is limited by its insensitivity to three-dimensional canopy structure and cloud cover obscuring many forest regions. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) sensors are increasingly being used to mitigate these problems, mainly in the L-, C- and X-band domains of the electromagnetic spectrum. S-band has not been systematically studied for this purpose. In anticipation of the British built NovaSAR-S satellite mission, this study evaluates the benefits of polarimetric S-band SAR for forest characterisation. The Michigan Microwave Canopy Scattering (MIMICS-I) radiative transfer model is utilised to understand the scattering mechanisms in forest canopies at S-band. The MIMICS-I model reveals strong S-band backscatter sensitivity to the forest canopy in comparison to soil characteristics across all polarisations and incidence angles. Airborne S-band SAR imagery over the temperate mixed forest of Savernake Forest in southern England is analysed for its information content. Based on the modelling results, S-band HH- and VV-polarisation radar backscatter and the Radar Forest Degradation Index (RFDI) are used in a forest/non-forest Maximum Likelihood classification at a spatial resolution of 6 m (70% overall accuracy, κ = 0.41) and 20 m (63% overall accuracy, κ = 0.27). The conclusion is that S-band SAR such as from NovaSAR-S is likely to be suitable for monitoring forest cover and its change

Technology Probes: Inspiring Design for and with Families

We describe a new methodology for designing technologies for and with families called technology probes. Technology probes are simple, flexible, adaptable technologies introduced into families' homes with three interdisciplinary goals: the social science goal of collecting data about the use of the technology in a real-world setting, the engineering goal of field-testing the technology, and the design goal of inspiring users and designers to think about new technologies. We present the results of designing and deploying two technology probes, the MessageProbe and the VideoProbe, with families in France, Sweden, and the U.S. We conclude with our plans for creating new technologies based on our experiences. Keywords Design Methods, Computer Mediated Communication, Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), Home, Ethnography, Participatory Design and Cooperative Design, User Studies and Fieldwork (UMIACS-TR-2002-87) (HCIL-TR-2002-16