MODELING PRICE IMPACTS OF BACKWARD VERTICAL INTEGRATION IN THE US PORK INDUSTRY

The U.S. pork sector is evolving from an industry of small, independent firms vertically linked by spot markets to one of substantially larger firms vertically connected through contractual agreements and integration. Potential benefits to this tighter vertical arrangement include lower consumer pork prices, although the true nature of this benefit is still under debate. At the same time, there is concern of market foreclosure because highly vertically integrated industry may prevent independent hog producers from having access to open markets in which to sell their output. The objective of this paper is to develop an econometric model to estimate the extent of backward integration by pork processing firms into the upstream hog production stage, taking into account the oligopsonistic nature of the processors, and to simulate the effect of vertical integration on consumer and producer prices and welfare.backward vertical integration, oligopsony, pork, Industrial Organization, Livestock Production/Industries,

Supersymmetry of consistent massive truncations of IIB supergravity

We discuss the supersymmetry and fermionic sector of the recently obtained consistent truncations of IIB supergravity containing massive modes. In particular, we present the general form of the five-dimensional N = 4 supersymmetry transformations and equations of motion for the fermions arising in the reduction of IIB theory on T^{1,1} which contains all modes invariant under the SU(2) x SU(2) isometry group. The N = 4 reduction can be further truncated to two different N = 2 sub-sectors. For each of these, we present the N = 2 fermionic supersymmetry transformations and corresponding superpotentials. As an application, we obtain the explicit Killing spinors of the Klebanov-Strassler solution and comment on the relation to the ansatz of Papadopoulos and Tseytlin. We also demonstrate the applicability of consistent truncations on squashed Sasaki-Einstein manifolds to a class of flux compactifications, focusing on a recent solution describing the geometry of gaugino condensation on wrapped D7 branes and which possesses dynamic SU(2) structure.Comment: v2: minor typos corrected, references added, v3: significant additions to include fermion equations of motion, journal versio

Eleven Dimensional Origin of String/String Duality: A One Loop Test

Membrane/fivebrane duality in D=11 implies Type IIA string/Type IIA fivebrane duality in D=10, which in turn implies Type IIA string/heterotic string duality in D=6. To test the conjecture, we reproduce the corrections to the 3-form field equations of the D=10 Type IIA string (a mixture of tree-level and one-loop effects) starting from the Chern-Simons corrections to the 7-form Bianchi identities of the D=11 fivebrane (a purely tree-level effect). K3 compactification of the latter then yields the familiar gauge and Lorentz Chern-Simons corrections to 3-form Bianchi identities of the heterotic string. We note that the absence of a dilaton in the D=11 theory allows us to fix both the gravitational constant and the fivebrane tension in terms of the membrane tension. We also comment on an apparent conflict between fundamental and solitonic heterotic strings and on the puzzle of a fivebrane origin of S-duality.Comment: 30 pages (including 5 postscript figures included), LaTeX, Footnote 8 has been removed; the apparent disagreement with Townsend is only one of semantics, not substanc

An optimistic CoGeNT analysis

Inspired by a recently proposed model of millicharged atomic dark matter (MADM), we analyze several classes of light dark matter models with respect to CoGeNT modulated and unmodulated data, and constraints from CDMS, XENON10 and XENON100. After removing the surface contaminated events from the original CoGeNT data set, we find an acceptable fit to all these data (but with the modulating part of the signal making a statistically small contribution), using somewhat relaxed assumptions about the response of the null experiments at low recoil energies, and postulating an unknown modulating background in the CoGeNT data at recoil energies above 1.5 keVee. We compare the fits of MADM---an example of inelastic magnetic dark matter---to those of standard elastically and inelastically scattering light WIMPs (eDM and iDM). The iDM model gives the best fit, with MADM close behind. The dark matter interpretation of the DAMA annual modulation cannot be made compatible with these results however. We find that the inclusion of a tidal debris component in the dark matter phase space distribution improves the fits or helps to relieve tension with XENON constraints.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures; v2: added discussion of dipole-dipole scattering and details of matrix elements; also implications of XENON100 2012 limits. Qualitative conclusions unchanged. Published versio

Suppression of photon shot noise dephasing in a tunable coupling superconducting qubit

We demonstrate the suppression of photon shot noise dephasing in a superconducting qubit by eliminating its dispersive coupling to the readout cavity. This is achieved in a tunable coupling qubit, where the qubit frequency and coupling rate can be controlled independently. We observe that the coherence time approaches twice the relaxation time and becomes less sensitive to thermal photon noise when the dispersive coupling rate is tuned from several MHz to 22 kHz. This work provides a promising building block in circuit quantum electrodynamics that can hold high coherence and be integrated into larger systems

IMPACTS OF PST ON OPTIMAL PRODUCTION AND MARKETING DECISIONS OF A GROW-FINISH HOG FARM OPERATION

This paper examines the impact of PST on the optimal production/marketing decisions of a grow-finish hog farm operation. The analysis evaluates PST from three angles: the feed efficiency effect, the leaner meat price effect, and the aggregate-supply-induced price effect. When limited to the feed efficiency effect only, the primary response to the new technology is to increase the animal turnover rate of the operation. When the leaner meat price effect is also included, marketing weight increases while turnover rate remains relatively unchanged. Additionally, if the increased aggregate supply depressed the market price by more than 10%, the benefits from improved feed efficiency and learner meat will be completely dissipated. Aggregate price adjustments (reductions) of less than 10 percent maintained positive producer benefits resulting from improved feed efficiency and leaner meat.Livestock Production/Industries,

Quantum discontinuity between zero and infinitesimal graviton mass with a Lambda term

We show that the recently demonstrated absence of the usual discontinuity for massive spin 2 with a Lambda term is an artifact of the tree approximation, and that the discontinuity reappears at one loop.Comment: 8 pages, revtex 3.1, title changed (version to appear in Phys. Rev. Lett.

Analysis of a Modified Equivalent Circuit Model for Lithium-Ion Battery Modules in CubeSats

Failure of the electrical power system (EPS) to meet mission requirements is a common problem in nano-size satellites commonly referred to as CubeSats. The motivation for this research stems from the desire to prevent EPS failure through a process of testing and space qualification of components. Utilizing models to predict the behavior of an EPS before it is designed, built, and tested for space can provide critical insight in areas of limitation in performance and survivability. Modeling an entire EPS system is challenging because it requires extensive knowledge of all components and their behavior. This research focuses specifically on the storage component of the EPS often referred to as secondary batteries. The secondary batteries, such as Li-Ion battery cells, are modeled to predict the performance of the storage component in the space environment. Experimental test data is collected under a simulated space environment through the use of a Thermal Vacuum Chamber (TVAC). Data collected from battery testing in the space environment is used to validate a modified Thevenin Equivalent Circuit model. The experimental test data and battery model are compared and evaluated resulting in a promising model that can reasonably predict performance of a battery pack in a two-series two-parallel configuration