Economics of organic farming (extension to OF0125)(0F0190)

This project OF0190 was an extension to OF0125 to cover completing the comparison data for 1997/98 and to extend the data collection by one further year (1998/99). The final reports for the two projects are therefore being submitted jointly. The OF0125 report covers the period 1995/96-1997/98, for which a detailed report was submitted to MAFF in July 1999, and a revised detailed report including a complete set of comparisons with conventional farms was submitted to MAFF, after revisions, in July 2000. That report has now been published at www.organic.aber.ac.uk/library/organic farm incomes.pdf. A detailed report for 1998/99 has been submitted to MAFF in March 2001, and will be published at the same internet site once accepted. The report presents results from research work carried out for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) on the financial performance of organic farms in 1998/99. The aim of the research was to assess the financial performance of organic farms differentiated by farm type, in order to inform MAFF policy-making with respect to organic farming, and to provide a basis for assessments by farmers, advisers and other interested parties of the farm-level implications of conversion to and continued organic farming. To provide an idea of the trends over time, where possible data for continuous samples of farms are presented for 1997/98 and 1998/99. The specific objectives were to extend the previous project (OF0125, covering 1995/96 to 1997/98) to collect and collate data on the financial performance of organic farms, differentiated by farm type . This was achieved through the collation of financial data collected under three different MAFF-funded research projects supplemented by data collected on other farm types. The samples of organic farms are small because of the limited number of organic holdings over 8 ESU (European Size Units) with identifiable holding numbers in 1996, when the previous study was started. As the sample is small there is limitation on how the results may be extrapolated to the wider population of organic farms, especially as the structure and objectives of those converting to organic production in the late 1990s may be different from those that converted in the 1970s and 1980s. Detailed financial input, output, income, liabilities and assets and some physical performance measures are presented for 1998/99. Where an identical sample of five farms is available, data are presented for 1997/98 and 1998/99 for the sample. The organic farm samples are so small that outliers (especially larger farms) have a large influence on the average. If the samples were larger, general trends would be more apparent and less influenced by individual farms; despite this, some explanation has been attempted of trends and changes in inputs, outputs and incomes. However, great care must be taken in extrapolating results. Of those farm types for which a continuous identical sample of five farms was available, Net Farm Incomes (NFI) increased for cropping (£281/ha) and dairy farms (£487/ha) in 1998/99 compared with 1997/98; in both cases outputs as well as inputs increased between years. Mixed farms showed an average reduction in outputs and increase in inputs, lowering the average NFI to £15/ha in 1998/99. The five lowland cattle and sheep farms improved a negative NFI of £161/ha in 1997/98 to a positive £7/ha in 1998/99 through an increase in livestock outputs with a similar level of inputs to that of 1997/98. Due to the high level of farmer and spouse labour on horticultural holdings, the average Management and Investment Income (MII) of the sample was negative, but the average NFI was £1,836/ha. On four holdings, 1998/99 average outputs were 92%, and inputs were 97% of the previous year, resulting in an average NFI in 1998/99 for that group of 75% of the 1997/98 result. The group of LFA farms, consisting of four cattle and sheep and one mixed farm, achieved an average NFI of £72/ha in 1998/99

Who is failing abused and neglected children?

This is a response to an article by Nigel Speight and Jane Wynne, ‘Is the Children Act failing severely abused and neglected children?’, published in this journal in March 2000.1 Overall, we consider the article to be polemical and inadequately argued. Many of the points made are unsubstantiated and there are errors of fact. Where does evidence based practice go if senior practitioners prefer anecdotes and personal belief to research findings? Restrictions on space preclude an exhaustive reply to all the points Speight and Wynne raise, so we have confined ourselves to addressing those considered most significant

Prediction of transonic flutter for a supercritical wing by modified strip analysis and comparison with experiment

Use of a supercritical airfoil can adversely affect wing flutter speeds in the transonic range. As adequate theories for three dimensional unsteady transonic flow are not yet available, the modified strip analysis was used to predict the transonic flutter boundary for the supercritical wing. The steady state spanwise distributions of section lift curve slope and aerodynamic center, required as input for the flutter calculations, were obtained from pressure distributions. The calculated flutter boundary is in agreement with experiment in the subsonic range. In the transonic range, a transonic bucket is calculated which closely resembles the experimental one with regard to both shape and depth, but it occurs at about 0.04 Mach number lower than the experimental one

Development of microstructure and crystallographic texture in a double-sided friction stir welded microalloyed steel

The evolution of microstructure and crystallographic texture has been investigated in double-sided friction stir welded microalloyed steel, using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). The microstructure analyses show that the centre of stirred zone reached a temperature between Ac1 – Ac3 during FSW, resulting in a dual phase austenitic/ ferritic microstructure. The temperatures in the thermo-mechanically affected zone and the overlapped area between the first and second weld pass did not exceed the Ac1. The shear generated by the rotation probe occurs in austenitic/ferritic phase field where the austenite portion of the microstructure is transformed to a bainitic ferrite, on cooling. Analysis of crystallographic textures with regard to shear flow lines generated by the probe tool, show the dominance of simple shear components across the whole weld. The austenite texture at Ac1 – Ac3 is dominated by the B{11 ̅2} and ¯B {1 ̅12 ̅ } simple shear texture components, where the bainite phase textures formed on cooling were inherited from the shear textures of the austenite phase with relatively strong variant selection. The ferrite portion of the stirred zone and the ferrites in the thermo-mechanically affected zones and the overlapped area underwent shear deformation with textures dominated by the D1{1 ̅1 ̅2} and D2{112 ̅ } simple shear texture components. The formation of ultra-fine equiaxed ferrite with submicron grain size has been observed in the overlapped area between the first and second weld pass. This is due to continuous dynamic strain-induced recrystallisation as a result of simultaneous severe shear deformation and drastic undercooling

Is Hot IT a False Economy? An Analysis of Server and Data Center Energy Efficiency as Temperatures Rise

As demand for digital services grows, there is need to improve efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of data centers. The largest energy consumer in any data center is the IT, followed by the systems dedicated to cooling. Aiming to improve efficiency, and driven by metrics like PUE, there is a trend towards running data centers hotter to reduce the cooling energy. There is little research investigating the effect this will have on the IT beyond failure rates. To ensure overall efficiency is improving, we must view the data center as a system of systems, taking a holistic view rather than focusing on individual sub-systems. In this paper we use industry standard benchmarks and a wind-tunnel to profile typical enterprise IT. We analyze the effect of environmental conditions on IT efficiency, showing minor increases in temperature or pressure impact the efficiency of servers. Using an idealized, simulated data center case study we show that the interaction between cooling systems, server behaviour and local climate are non-trivial and increasing temperatures has potential to worsen efficiency

THEMIS observes possible cave skylights on Mars

Seven possible skylight entrances into Martian caves were observed on and around the flanks of Arsia Mons by the Mars Odyssey Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS). Distinct from impact craters, collapse pits or any other surface feature on Mars, these candidates appear to be deep dark holes at visible wavelengths while infrared observations show their thermal behaviors to be consistent with subsurface materials. Diameters range from 100 m to 225 m, and derived minimum depths range between 68 m and 130 m. Most candidates seem directly related to pitcraters, and may have formed in a similar manner with overhanging ceilings that remain intact

Industrial constructions of publics and public knowledge: a qualitative investigation of practice in the UK chemicals industry

This is a post print version of the article. The official published version can be obtained from the link below - © 2007 by SAGE PublicationsWhile the rhetoric of public engagement is increasingly commonplace within industry, there has been little research that examines how lay knowledge is conceptualized and whether it is really used within companies. Using the chemicals sector as an example, this paper explores how companies conceive of publics and "public knowledge," and how this relates to modes of engagement/communication with them. Drawing on qualitative empirical research in four companies, we demonstrate that the public for industry are primarily conceived as "consumers" and "neighbours," having concerns that should be allayed rather than as groups with knowledge meriting engagement. We conclude by highlighting the dissonance between current advocacy of engagement and the discourses and practices prevalent within industry, and highlight the need for more realistic strategies for industry/public engagement.Funding was received from the ESRC Science in Society Programme

Variation in lung function as a marker of adherence to oral and inhaled medication in cystic fibrosis

Study aim: The aim of this study was to characterise adherence in an adult population with CF and to investigate if variation in lung function was a predictor of adherence to treatment. Patients and methods: Patients aged ≥ 16 years from an adult CF centre undertook adherence measures by medication possession ratio (MPR) and self-report and were assigned to one of three adherence categories (<50%, 50-<80%, 80% and above) by their composite score (MPR). Ordinal regression was used to identify predictors of adherence including coefficient variation measures for forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), weight and C-reactive protein, measured up to 6 and 12 months. Results: MPR data for 106 of 249 patients [mean age 29.8 (±9.2) years] was retrieved, indicating a mean adherence of 63%. Coefficient of variation FEV1 was inversely related to adherence and was a univariate predictor of adherence (6 months: 0.92 [0.87-0.98] p= 0.005 and 12 months: 0.94 [0.93-0.99], p=0.03]) and remained significant in the final models. The coefficient variation of weight and C-reactive protein were not predictive of adherence. Conclusions: Coefficient of variation FEV1 was identified as an objective predictor of adherence. Further evaluation of this potential marker of adherence is now required