MODELLING THE DYNAMICS OF PRODUCTION ADJUSTMENT TO SHORT-TERM MARKET SHOCKS

Models of agricultural economics typically operate at an annual basis or in a static equilibrium framework where inputs, outputs and their prices may change considerably. Production dynamics, however, imply that models relying on spatial and temporal aggregation do not capture the effects of biological constraints in the short run. This paper examines short and long-term impacts of demand and production cost shocks in the pig sector. The analysis is carried out with a dynamic programming model which takes into account changes in export and domestic demand and market clearing price. It optimizes the supply of piglets on a monthly basis. Econometric techniques are used to estimate demand functions. Short-term negative market shocks can already have significant income effects to agricultural producers. We simulated effects of pig meat export bans of different degrees due to livestock epidemics. Full closure of export markets for six months cost pig sector €21 million.pig, demand, dynamic programming, export, livestock epidemics, price, supply, Demand and Price Analysis, Livestock Production/Industries, Production Economics, Risk and Uncertainty,

Market implications of FMD epidemics in the Finnish pig sector: Does market structure matter?

This paper examines the role of market coordination and market distortions caused by a hypothetical FMD outbreak in the Finnish pig sector. By using stochastic dynamic programming, it simulates the consequences of two outbreak scenarios (large vs. small) under two distinct market regimes (competitive market vs. monopoly in the domestic supply). Simulated losses depend on the magnitude of outbreak and expected duration of possible turndown of meat exports, whereas market regime has a limited impact.Foreign trade, livestock epidemics, dynamic programming, Livestock Production/Industries,

Additive decomposability of functions over abelian groups

Abelian groups are classified by the existence of certain additive decompositions of group-valued functions of several variables with arity gap 2.Comment: 17 page

Multi-level responses of Macoma balthica to recurring hypoxic disturbance

The frequency of seasonal and short-term hypoxia is increasing in coastal seas. How such repeated disturbances affect key species that have important roles for ecosystem processes and functions remains, however, unknown. By performing a field experiment we explored if the bivalve Macoma balthica can cope with short-term, recurring hypoxic stress, and investigated how hypoxia affects the condition of surviving bivalves. By combining data on different levels of biological organization, i.e., on physiology (biomarker response), behaviour and demography, we identified stress responses before the population declined. One pulse of hypoxic disturbance (3 days) resulted in behavioural alterations, as adult M. balthica extended their siphons, emerged towards the sediment surface and expressed decreased reburial rates. However, the demographic structure of the population remained unaltered. Several pulses of recurring hypoxic stress resulted in physiological response with changes in glutathione reductase and acetylcholinesterase enzyme activities. The recurring hypoxic disturbance was observed to affect juvenile bivalves before adults, while pro-longed hypoxia reduced the entire bivalve population. Our results clearly show that hypoxic stress changes the behaviour and physiology of M. balthica before demographic changes occur, which is likely to have severe implications for the contribution of this key species to ecosystem functioning. That a combination of measures at different levels of organization can detect disturbances at an early stage suggests that such an approach would be useful for assessing the effects of disturbances on marine ecosystems that are increasingly affected by anthropogenic change.peerReviewe

Contaminated by war : A brief history of sea-dumping of munitions

Munitions introduced to the sea during military activities, including naval combat and mine warfare represent only a fraction of military material present in seas and oceans. Huge amounts of obsolete conventional munitions and chemical munitions were dumped to the sea until 1975, when London convention put a stop of sea dumping. Such munitions are a threat for maritime workers, but also for environment. Corroding shells release toxic degradation products to sediments and bottom water, and unlike other contaminants, they cannot be reduced by land measures. Only removal of source can reduce the contamination. Much work has been done in the last decade, and mechanisms of toxicity and bioaccumulation are being recognized, as well as transport and spreading mechanisms. The full assessment of the risk associated with munitions now depends on broad application of developed techniques

Ympäristökasvatusta antroposentrismin ja syväekologian välissä

Tiivistelmä. Tämän kandidaatintutkielman tarkoitus on pureutua ympäristökasvatukseen ja sen tavoittelemaan luontosuhteeseen kahden vastakkaisen ympäristösuuntauksen näkökulmasta. Työn tutkimuskysymys onkin seuraavanlainen: Millaiseen luontosuhteeseen ympäristökasvatuksella pyritään antroposentrismin ja syväekologian näkökulmasta? Valitsin nämä ympäristösuuntaukset, koska ne ovat laajoja ja merkittäviä, mutta myös vastakkaisia, jolloin niiden avulla toivoin löytäväni ympäristökasvatuksesta paremmin erilaisia sävyjä. Huomio työssä kohdistuu nimenomaan luontosuhteeseen, koska myönteinen ja vahva luontosuhde nostetaan monissa yhteyksissä merkittäväksi tekijäksi suhteessa ympäristövastuulliseen käyttäytymiseen. Luontosuhteen merkitys luonnon kannalta on minulle ilmeinen, sillä ajattelen ihmisen toiminnan perustuvan paljolti arvostuksille ja käsityksille. Aloitan työni perehtymällä näihin ympäristösuuntauksiin. Käsittelen antroposentrismiä työssäni laajemmin, koska se on nähdäkseni ympäristöhistorialliselta vaikuttavuudeltaan merkittävämpi suuntaus. Antroposentrismi on ihmiskeskeisyyttä, jossa ihminen on luontoa hallitsevassa asemassa käyttäessään luontoa hyväkseen omia tarpeitaan ja päämääriään varten, mikä nähdään täysin oikeutettuna. Syväekologiassa sen sijaan korostetaan luonnon itseisarvoa ja sitä, miten ihminen olisi nähtävä muiden lajien kanssa samanarvoisena. Syväekologia kritisoi suuntauksena antroposentristä maailmankuvaa ja pyrkii sen vaikutusten minimoimiseen. Suuntausten käsittelyn jälkeen siirryn ympäristökasvatuksen kentälle. Tällainen käsittelyjärjestys mahdollistaa luontevan teemojen yhdistämisen. Ympäristökasvatuksen tarpeellisuus on tunnustettu ympäristöongelmien tunnistamisen ja ympäristöhuolen myötä. Ympäristökasvatuksella tavoitellaan ympäristötietoisia, ympäristövastuullisesti toimivia ja luontoon empaattisesti suhtautuvia ihmisiä. Tavoitteet ovat äkkiseltään kaikki hyvinkin syväekologisia, mutta tarkempi tarkastelu osoittaa niiden antroposentrisiä arvoperusteita. Työn yhtenä tarkoituksena on korostaa kasvatuksen mahdollisuuksia antroposentrismin kukistamiseksi, miksi työni istuu kasvatustieteen kentällä parhaiten kasvatusfilosofian alueelle, jossa keskeistä on sivistyneemmän tulevaisuuden pohtiminen

Differential Expression Of Gap Junction mRNAs And Proteins In The Developing Murine Kidney And In Experimentally Induced Nephric Mesenchymes

The expression of three gap junction (GJ) proteins, alpha-1 (Cx43), beta-1 (Cx32), and beta-2 (Cx26), and their transcripts were examined during the ontogeny of the mouse and rat kidney. These proteins were expressed in two non-overlapping patterns. The alpha-1 GJ protein was first observed in mesenchymal cells in the 12-day mouse kidney. By day 14 and thereafter, the ai protein was detected in the transient S-shaped bodies, but not in the podocytes of the maturing glomeruli. After birth the antigen was retained in a small subset of secretory tubules.The beta-1 and beta-2 GJ proteins were similar in their developmental patterns. They were first detected in a small subset of secretory tubules in the subcortical zone of day 17 embryos. These tubules were identified by immunohistochemical markers to be proximal. At birth, practically all proximal tubules expressed the two antigens.This analysis of GJ proteins was consistent with the results of S1 nuclease protection assays showing that, while the alpha-1 mRNA appeared early during kidney development and declined around birth, the two beta mRNAs appeared later and became intensified during the last days of intrauterine development.In experimentally induced metanephric mesenchymes, a transient expression of the alpha-1 GJ protein was seen during the segregation of the tubular anlagen. beta-1 and beta-2 GJ proteins were not detected in such induced mesenchymes cultivated up to 7 days.These observations provide evidence for the cell-specific utilization of different GJ genes during different stages of kidney organogenesis. The alpha-1 gene is activated during the early segregation of the secretory tubule and might contribute to its compartmentalization, while the beta-1 and beta-2 gene products are not detected until advanced stages of development. The latter gene products might be correlated with the physiological activity of the proximal tubules in vivo, as they are not expressed in experimentally induced tubules detectable with markers for proximal tubules

Patient injuries in operative rhinology during a ten-year period : Review of national patient insurance charts

Objectives: To assess factors contributing to patient injuries in operative rhinology. Design: Data of the accepted patient injury claims involving operative rhinology, between the years 2001 and 2011, were obtained from the Finnish Patient Insurance Centre registry. Two senior otolaryngologists analysed and evaluated the injury mechanisms. Main outcome measures: Analysis and classification of factors contributing to patient injuries. Results: During the ten-year study period, there were 67 patient injuries in operative rhinology, comprising 36% of all patient injuries in otorhinolaryngologic surgery. The majority (78%) of patients were treated in university or central hospitals and almost all (90%) by fully trained otolaryngology specialists. The factors contributing to the injuries were errors in surgical technique, like lesions to the orbit, skull base and meninges, and adjacent nerves, as well as mistakes with removable packings left in situ. Nearly half of the patients had undergone endoscopic sinus surgery. One patient died because of bleeding from the intracranial artery. Fourteen patients (21%) needed a re-operation due to the injury. Conclusions: Patient injuries in rhinology were caused by typical complications of common operations performed by otorhinolaryngology specialists. The increased volume of endoscopic sinus surgery was evident also in patient injuries.Peer reviewe

Spatial and temporal patterns of nest distribution influence sexual selection in a marine fish

In many species, the natural distribution of material resources important for reproduction can profoundly impact reproductive success among individuals and, hence, the opportunity and intensity of sexual selection. Here, we report on a field-based experiment investigating the effects of nest aggregation on sexual selection in a fish, the sand goby Pomatoschistus minutus. We found that the distribution of potential nests (sparse versus aggregated nest treatments) affected patterns of nest colonization and reproductive success. Specifically, in the treatment with aggregated nesting resources, a greater proportion of nests remained unoccupied by sand goby males. Although the size of nesting males did not differ between treatments, eggs accumulated more rapidly when nests were sparsely distributed. We found that the opportunity for selection decreased over time with the accumulation of eggs in the nests in both the aggregated and sparse treatments. Moreover, the effect of male size on reproductive success was influenced by an interaction between nest distribution and time, with the selection gradient being highest right after nest colonization when nests were aggregated, while the opposite pattern was observed in the sparse nest treatment. Such findings highlight the vital role that environmental and social factors can play in determining the importance of male phenotypic traits (in this case, male size). More broadly, our results also underscore how the natural distribution of resources, both in space and time, can impact the strength of sexual selection acting on wild animal populations.Peer reviewe