Essays on the importance of access to information in developing countries

The aim of my thesis is to investigate the importance of access to information for individuals in developing countries. In the first chapter, I describe an important channel through which improved access to market information could increase the prices that producers receive from middlemen. I develop a theoretical model of trade between a farmer and a middleman which allows for the existence of different types of middlemen and I provide an empirical test of the theory from an original framed field experiment carried out with farmers and middlemen in India. In chapter 2, I investigate the relationship between the decision to produce high-quality goods and two important characteristics of the product: the degree of observability of quality and the level of intermediation in the supply chain. I present a model which demonstrates that if quality is not perfectly observable, there will be a range of values of the price difference between high-quality and low-quality goods for which production of high-quality goods will occur with vertical integration but will not occur if the stages of production are carried out by separate agents. This chapter also presents some case studies of supply chains for various products in a number of developing countries that have characteristics which are consistent with the predictions of the model. In the final chapter, I try to understand how access to information could be improved for individuals in developing countries. I investigate the relationship between rates of mobile phone and Internet use and a number of geographic, institutional and economic variables in a sample of 164 countries from 1990 to 2009. The aim of this chapter is to identify the main characteristics of countries that have had success in adopting these new technologies in order to gain some insight into the barriers which may be faced by those countries that have been less successful

An Analysis of the Community Land Trust Model

Lefebvre’s ‘right to the city’ concept involves collective ownership of the means of production, rights to information, right to difference, right to self-management, and what he refers to as ‘autogestion.’ Lefebvre’s ideas have captured the imagination of many grassroots and transnational organizations, such as the Right to the City Alliance and have been applied to various issues in the city dealing with human rights, including access to affordable housing, use of public space, and threats of displacement from gentrification. Within and across these organizations, it becomes critical to examine the contours of ‘the right to the city’ and what rights Lefebvre and activists who use this framework mean as they pursue their social justice agendas. In this study, I examine the community land trust model in the context of the ‘right to the city’ framework that Lefebvre (1996) developed and as interpreted by Purcell (2014). My analysis reveals that the grassroots CLT model more closely embodies the ideals of Lefebvre’s ‘right to the city’ through collective governance and the appropriation of urban space in contrast to other traditional CLT models that focus more narrowly on affordable housing. This study suggests the importance of the community’s voice in realizing the right to the city

Spring Meadow Management Practices: What’s a Rancher to do?

• Subirrigated meadows are a valuable forage resource to ranching operations in the Nebraska Sandhills, being used for both hay production and livestock grazing. • The water table of these meadows is within one meter of the soil surface during the growing season. • In some years, wet conditions hinder meadow utilization, resulting in a buildup of standing dead and litter plant material which can lower forage production. • Investigate if burning and mowing are effective strategies to remove dead plant material from meadows • Determine if burning or mowing interact with grazing to influence end of season forage production Burning or mowing effectively removes dead plant material from meadows with no later loss in forage production. Burning and mowing do not interact with grazing to influence later forage production. Spring grazing acted independently to significantly lower end of season forage production. Conclusions • Ranchers can use burning or mowing to effectively remove dead plant material from subirrigated meadows in the Nebraska Sandhills with no later losses in forage production (Fig.1 & Fig.2). • On the other hand, spring grazing reduces end of season forage production (Fig.3). Therefore, caution should be used with spring grazing if a rancher’s goal is to maximize hay yields from meadow forage

Beverage consumption and BMI of British schoolchildren aged 9-13 years

Objective Adequate fluid intake has been well documented as important for health but whether it has adverse effects on overall energy and sugar intakes remains under debate. Many dietary studies continue to refrain from reporting on beverage consumption, which the present study aimed to address. Design A cross-sectional survey investigated self-reported measures of dietary intake and anthropometric measurements. Setting Primary and secondary schools in south-west London, UK. Subjects Boys and girls (n 248) aged 9-13 years. Results Boys consumed 10 % and girls consumed 9 % of their daily energy intake from beverages and most children had total sugar intakes greater than recommended. Beverages contributed between a quarter and a third of all sugars consumed, with boys aged 11-13 years consuming 32 % of their total sugar from beverages. There was a strong relationship between consumption of beverages and energy intake; however, there was no relationship between beverage type and either BMI or BMI Z-score. Fruit juices and smoothies were consumed most frequently by all girls and 9-10-year-old boys; boys aged 11-13 years preferred soft drinks and consumed more of their daily energy from soft drinks. Milk and plain water as beverages were less popular. Conclusions Although current health promotion campaigns in schools merit the attention being given to improving hydration and reducing soft drinks consumption, it may be also important to educate children on the energy and sugar contents of all beverages. These include soft drinks, as well as fruit juices and smoothies, which are both popular and consumed regularly. © 2011 The Authors

Vergence fusion sustaining oscillations

Introduction:  Previous studies have shown that the slow, or fusion sustaining, component of disparity vergence contains oscillatory behavior.  Given the delays in disparity vergence control, a feedback control system would be expected to exhibit oscillations following the initial transient period.  This study extends the examination of this behavior to a wider range of frequencies and a larger number of subjects.  Methods:  Disparity vergence responses to symmetrical 4.0 deg step changes in target position were recorded in 15 subjects. Approximately three seconds of the late component of each response were isolated using interactive graphics and the frequency spectrum calculated.  Peaks in these spectra associated with oscillatory behavior were identified and examined.  Results: All subjects exhibited oscillatory behavior with primary frequencies ranging between 0.45 and 0.6 Hz; much lower than those identified in the earlier study.  All responses showed significant higher frequency components.  These higher frequency components were related in both frequency and amplitude with the primary frequency indicating that they are harmonics probably generated by nonlinearities in the neural control processes. A correlation was found across subjects between the amplitude of the primary frequency and the maximum velocity of the fusion initialing component probably due the gain of shared neural pathways. Conclusion:  Low frequency oscillatory behavior was found in all subjects adding support that the slow, or fusion sustaining, component is mediated by a feedback control. Data have clinical implications in that dysfunction in feedback control may manifest as additional vergence error which may be reflected in the frequency spectrum

Prospectus, March 17, 2010

5 TIPS TO ENSURE A PRODUCTIVE SPRING BREAK; In college dorms, a \u27post-gender world\u27; Chuck Shepherd\u27s News of the Weird; An experience unlike any other: the greatness of music festivals; 4 vital tacts about college financial aid; Prospectus Pick: Gorillaz Plastic Beach; Saudi Arabia struggles with child marriage; Medicine in the dark; The need for no-phone zones; Eating Disorders: What You Need to Know; Fun in the sun: sports and activities to keep occupied over breakhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_2010/1008/thumbnail.jp