TAXPAYER PREFERENCES FOR USDA EXPENDITURES

Taxpayer Preferences, USDA Budget, Budget Allocation, Agricultural and Food Policy, Q18,

Effects of Country-of-Origin Labeling on Meat Producers and Consumers

Although several studies have estimated the costs of country-of-origin labeling (COOL), no previous study has documented how these costs will be distributed across the livestock sector or how producer and consumer welfare will be affected. This analysis presents an equilibrium displacement model of the farm, wholesale, and retail markets for beef, pork, and poultry that documents how producers and consumers will be affected by COOL. Findings reveal that as the costs of COOL are shifted from the producer to the processor and retailer, producers are made increasingly better off while consumers are made increasingly worse off. Further, an increase in aggregate consumer demand of 2% to 3% is likely sufficient to offset lost producer welfare due to COOL costs.beef, country of origin, equilibrium displacement model, labeling, pork, poultry, Consumer/Household Economics,

A dialectical approach to theoretical integration in developmental-contextual identity research

Future advances in identity research will depend on integration across major theoretical traditions. Developmental-contextualism has established essential criteria to guide this effort, including specifying the context of identity development, its timing over the life course, and its content. This article assesses four major traditions of identity research - identify status, eudaimonic identity, sociocultural theory, and narrative identity - in light of these criteria, and describes the contribution of each tradition to the broader enterprise of developmental-contextual research. This article proposes dialectical integration of the four traditions, for the purpose of generating new questions when the tensions and contradictions among theoretical traditions are acknowledged. We provide examples from existing literature of the kinds of research that could address these questions and consider ways of addressing the validity issues involved in developmental-contextual identity research

The Relationship Between Center of Pressure and Body Mass Index in Individuals with Chronic Ankle Instability

Objectives: To identify differences in center of pressure(COP) and body mass index(BMI) among control, coper, and CAI participants and the relationship between COP and BMI across groups. Background: Chronic ankle instability (CAI) is a frequent and serious repercussion of lateral ankle sprains. Individuals with larger mass have a higher probability of developing CAI. Those with CAI have also demonstrated differences in COP while maintaining postural stability compared to healthy controls. However, it’s unclear if BMI has an effect on the COP of individuals with CAI. Methods: 45 individuals (18male, 27female: age=22.5±2.67years, height=171.2±9.5cm, mass=72.1±12.8kg) participated in this study. Subjects were classified into three groups (CAI, coper, or control). BMI and COPrange(COP-R) in the anterior-posterior(AP) and medial-lateral(ML) directions were calculated. Differences (p≤.05) among groups were assessed with an analysis of variance(ANOVA). Pearson’s correlational coefficients were conducted (p≤.05). Results: There were no differences in BMI (Control=25.5±3.9kg/m2, Coper=23.9±2.7kg/m2, CAI=24.2±3.9kg/m2, p=0.42) or COP variables (COP-AP:Control=37.3±8.7mm, Coper=41.6±11.7mm, CAI= 42.1±13.9mm, p=0.47; COP-ML:Control=30.16±7.11mm, Coper=30.8±6.1mm, CAI=30.8±5.0, p=0.94). BMI was significantly, moderately correlated with deviations in COP-R-ML in individuals with CAI(r=0.451,p=0.05). No other correlations (p≤.05) were significant between BMI and COP variables. Conclusion: A moderate correlation existed between BMI and ML postural control in those with CAI, but was not present in the other groups. Thus, in those with CAI, higher levels of BMI may be a moderator of poor postural stability, potentially compounding deficiencies. Further research is necessary in order to explore this relationship between BMI and COP to identify if reducing BMI improves outcomes in individuals with CAI. Word Count: 250

Trains, Games, and Complexity: 0/1/2-Player Motion Planning through Input/Output Gadgets

We analyze the computational complexity of motion planning through local "input/output" gadgets with separate entrances and exits, and a subset of allowed traversals from entrances to exits, each of which changes the state of the gadget and thereby the allowed traversals. We study such gadgets in the 0-, 1-, and 2-player settings, in particular extending past motion-planning-through-gadgets work to 0-player games for the first time, by considering "branchless" connections between gadgets that route every gadget's exit to a unique gadget's entrance. Our complexity results include containment in L, NL, P, NP, and PSPACE; as well as hardness for NL, P, NP, and PSPACE. We apply these results to show PSPACE-completeness for certain mechanics in Factorio, [the Sequence], and a restricted version of Trainyard, improving prior results. This work strengthens prior results on switching graphs and reachability switching games.Comment: 37 pages, 36 figure

The Relative Importance of Preferences for Country-of-Origin in China, France, Niger and the United States

Country-of-origin (COO) is an increasingly politicized credence attribute in the globalizing food system. While international policy development in this area is geographically far-reaching, the benefits of country-of-origin labels (COOL) to producers and consumers from countries in different locations and levels of economic development are not clear. Previous work investigates the importance of COO to consumers, but is typically limited in scope to consumers in one nation. In addition, little is known about the importance of COO information relative to other credence attributes, especially in non-meat food products. This study measures the benefits of COOL to an internationally diverse set of consumers (in developed and developing countries) and estimates their priority rank in policy development. The paper draws upon research in the management literature suggesting consumer information needs are not based on quality alone, but also relate to affective (emotional) and normative (social acceptance) needs. A conjoint experiment is conducted in China, France, Niger and the United States to elicit consumer preferences for COO information, organic production, and genetic modification. The results indicate COO information is not as important as genetically modified content information (France, the United States, and Niger) or organic production information (China). Findings reveal individuals with quality and food safety information needs place higher importance on genetically modified and organic food information than COO information.country-of-origin, genetic modification, organic, conjoint, onion, information, food policy, International Relations/Trade, Q13, Q18, Q17,

IMPACT OF RISK PREFERENCES ON CROP ROTATION CHOICE

Stochastic dominance analysis of five crop rotations using twenty-one years of experimental yield data returned results consistent with Pennsylvania cropping practices. The analysis incorporated yield risk, output price risk, and rotational yield effects. A rotation of two years corn and three years alfalfa hay dominated for approximately risk neutral and risk averse preferences, as did participation in government programs under the 1990 Farm Bill. Crop rotation selection appeared to impact net revenues more than the decision to participate in government programs.Crop Production/Industries, Risk and Uncertainty,

A Multidimensional Homo Economicus: Cultural Dimensions of Economic Preferences in Four Countries

Previous work in experimental economics reveals specific differences in economic behavior, especially reciprocity and free-riding behavior, across cultures. We expand the possible pallet of cross-cultural behavioral differences that may exist. We hypothesize that different kinds of strategic interaction and individual decision-making behaviors differ across locations. The variety of experiments we use allow us to report multidimensional rather than just single dimensional differences in behavior across locations. In order to build a broad Homo Economicus we conducted economic experiments in four dissimilar locations: Hangzhou, China; Niamey, Niger; Grenoble, France; Manhattan, Kansas; and West Lafayette, Indiana. Each subject completed an ultimatum bargaining game experiment, Voluntary Contribution Mechanism experiment, time preference experiment, and risk preference experiment. Results indicate economic behavior is not independent of location. Location differences are greatest for strategic interaction behavior and less prevalent for individual decision-making behavior.Time preference, risk preference, voluntary contribution mechanism, Ultimatum bargaining game, cultural, China, France, Niger, Kansas, Indiana, US, Institutional and Behavioral Economics,

Cookie Clicker

Cookie Clicker is a popular online incremental game where the goal of the game is to generate as many cookies as possible. In the game you start with an initial cookie generation rate, and you can use cookies as currency to purchase various items that increase your cookie generation rate. In this paper, we analyze strategies for playing Cookie Clicker optimally. While simple to state, the game gives rise to interesting analysis involving ideas from NP-hardness, approximation algorithms, and dynamic programming

Underwater sound puluse generator

Thesis (M. Eng.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 1996.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 52-53).by Jayson D. Strayer.M.Eng