Contact-induced changes in cliticization and word order: the Cimbrian dialect of Luserna as a case study

Which properties of a cliticization system can be borrowed relatively easily and which ones are harder to adapt due to external influence? This article examines the contact situation of the Cimbrian dialect spoken in Luserna as a starting point for a discussion of this question. It presents new data on a German variety which has been exposed to intensive contact with Italian and its local varieties over several generations. The article shows that certain peculiarities of the Cimbrian cliticization system result on the one hand from word order changes and on the other hand from the imitation and integration of the model language's strategies for mapping information structure onto sentence for

Spray drying costs in low-volume milk plants

Dairy plant managers and boards of directors who contemplate installation of a skimmilk spray drying system need reasonably accurate information on the cost-volume relationships involved in spray-drying processes if they are to make economic investments. The need for this information has increased recently because of changes in dry milk production and consumption patterns. These changes have resulted in an increased demand for non-fat dry milk solids for human food. The increased demand has been reflected in a higher price and increased production;Increased production has necessitated an increase in processing facilities. In many instances the decision to install drying facilities was made without adequate information about cost-volume relationships. This has resulted in inefficient resource allocation in some plants. The objective of this study is to provide information concerning the cost-volume relationships in low-volume spray-drying plants and thereby assist entrepreneurs in investment decisions. The study is based on a budget analysis of four plants with volumes of 938,200, 1,875,600, 2,817,000 and 3,767,500 pounds of powder produced per year. These volumes of powder production correspond to annual butter volumes in plants producing one, two, three and four 1800 pound churnings per day in the peak season. Several additional cost points were budgeted in order to obtain the minimum cost point for each of three equipment combinations. In this budget analysis the physical inputs required were determined and prices were attached to these physical inputs;The analysis indicates that as volume increases, up to a volume of 3,174,700 pounds of powder per year, unit costs decrease quite rapidly. Beyond this volume costs do not decrease appreciably as volume increases. The processing costs varied from 7.64 per hundredweight in a plant producing 938,200 pounds of powder per year to 5.08 per hundredweight in a plant producing 3,174,700 pounds per year. At a volume of 3,767,500 pounds of powder per year, a volume increase of 582,800 pounds per year, processing costs only decrease .04 per hundredweight. Therefore for all practical purposes the low cost point is achieved at a volume of 3,174,700 pounds per year. In addition to unit processing costs being reduced, the distribution of costs change as volume increases. The variable costs become relatively more important and the fixed costs relatively less important as volume increases;The findings of this analysis provide information which may be used as an aid in comparing the relative profitability of each alternative operation available to the plant. In addition to providing information for comparison of the relative profitability of several alternatives, the costs derived in this study provide cost data for producer payment under a component pricing plan;The general conclusions of this analysis indicate that: (1) Processing costs decrease as volume increases, within the range of this study. Processing costs decrease rather rapidly in the lower portion of the volume range, from 7.64 per hundredweight at a volume of 938,200 pounds per year to 5.08 per hundredweight at a volume of 3,174,700 pounds per year. Beyond this volume, however, costs do not decrease appreciably as volume increases. (2) Skimmilk drying equipment is not utilized most efficiently at volumes of 938,200, 1,875,600, and 2,817,600 pounds of powder produced per year. When volume exceeds three million pounds per year resources are used efficiently and the lowest processing costs are obtained

DIFFERENTIAL PRICING OF AGRICULTURAL OPERATING LOANS BY COMMERCIAL BANKS

Differential and variable interest rate pricing strategies are used for agricultural operating loans by the majority of South Dakota commercial banks. However, the prevalence does vary by legal organization. Significant differences were found among differential interest rate pricing structures of independent banks, branch banks, and multibank holding company affiliates.Agricultural Finance,

Higher acenes by on‐surfacedehydrogenation : from heptacene to undecacene

A unified approach to the synthesis of the series of higher acenes up to previously unreported undecacene has been developed through the on‐surface dehydrogenation of partially saturated precursors. These molecules could be converted into the parent acenes by both atomic manipulation with the tip of a scanning tunneling and atomic force microscope (STM/AFM) as well as by on‐surface annealing. The structure of the generated acenes has been visualized by high‐resolution non‐contact AFM imaging and the evolution of the transport gap with the increase of the number of fused benzene rings has been determined on the basis of scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) measurements

Fermi level pinning at the Ge(001) surface - A case for non-standard explanation

To explore the origin of the Fermi level pinning in germanium we investigate the Ge(001) and Ge(001):H surfaces. The absence of relevant surface states in the case of Ge(001):H should unpin the surface Fermi level. This is not observed. For samples with donors as majority dopants the surface Fermi level appears close to the top of the valence band regardless of the surface structure. Surprisingly, for the passivated surface it is located below the top of the valence band allowing scanning tunneling microscopy imaging within the band gap. We argue that the well known electronic mechanism behind band bending does not apply and a more complicated scenario involving ionic degrees of freedom is therefore necessary. Experimental techniques involve four point probe electric current measurements, scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure