Margin Protection Program: Educating Dairy Producers on the 2014 Farm Bill Programs

Seven meetings in northeast Iowa and one meeting in northwest Iowa were held to educate producers on the 2014 Farm Bill dairy program, Margin Protection Program (MPP). Programs were held to provide an explanation of the MPP program, analysis on how the program could impact producers, and considerations on how producers can make the decision for their operation. The eight meetings held reached 182 producers and ag professionals

The Impact of Emigration on Real Wages in Ireland, 1850-1914

[Excerpt] The chapter is organized as follows. First, we examine the growth of Irish wages and living standards in comparison with other countries. Second, we examine the hypothesis that the Irish agricultural wage was responsive to movements in the male population. Third, we attempt to estimate the effect of emigration on the population and labor force of Ireland from 1851-1911. In order to estimate the impact of faster labor force growth, we specify a computable general equilibrium model of the Irish economy. Then the effects of emigration are evaluated in a general equilibrium framework. Finally, we summarize the main findings of the chapter in a short conclusion

Key to the Past: Community Perceptions of Yup’ik Youth Interaction with Culturally Relevant Education Inspired by the Nunalleq Archaeology Project

This study qualitatively describes a) the implementation of culturally relevant education (CRE) programs for Yup’ik youth in Quinhagak, Alaska that developed from the Nunalleq Project—a nearby archaeological excavation—and b) community members’ and program facilitators’ perceptions of associated youth social and psychological outcomes. Ten semi-structured interviews (seven community members, three program facilitators) were undertaken and analyzed using constant comparative analysis. Community members and program facilitators attributed numerous outcomes to the Nunalleq-related CRE, such as imparting practical skills (e.g., wilderness survival, artistic and technological skills), teaching young people to value their heritage (e.g., educating them about the struggles their ancestors overcame), and psychological outcomes (e.g., improving self-esteem). Interviewees also offered specific recommendations for planning future local CRE programs. These results provide guidance for local program planners and a framework for researchers to directly assess CRE outcomes in Quinhagak. This project is a step towards the development of a systematic approach to CRE outcome evaluation rooted in community members’ perspectives. Educators developing archaeology-inspired CRE programs in other Indigenous communities may also draw from this study’s results

Evaluating integration in collaborative cross-disciplinary FDA new drug reviews using an input-process-output model.

Background/Objectives: The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for assessing safety (risks) and effectiveness (benefits) of new drug products using the data provided in a Sponsor\u27s new drug product marketing application before they can be marketed. The FDA forms cross-disciplinary review teams to conduct these assessments. Recently, the FDA began implementing more interdisciplinary approaches to its assessments, reducing redundancy in review processes and documentation by increasing team integration around review issues. Methods: Through a phenomenological descriptive comparative case study, the impact of FDA\u27s new interdisciplinary approach on review team integration was compared with its traditional multidisciplinary review approach. Results: We identified collaborative integration occurring in one FDA review team using the new interdisciplinary review and another team using the traditional review and then modeled and analyzed the collaborative, cross-disciplinary integration in each case using an input-process-output (IPO) model drawn from the Science-of-Team-Science (SciTS). Conclusion: This study provides a systematic method for understanding and visualizing integration in each type of review previously and presently used at FDA and illustrates how the new interdisciplinary approach can ensure more integration than more traditional approaches previously used. In addition, our study suggests that an IPO model of integration can characterize how effectively FDA review teams are integrating around issues and assist in the evaluation of differences in integration between FDA\u27s new interdisciplinary review and the existing multidisciplinary approach. The approach used here is a new application of SciTS scholarship in a unique sector, and it also serves as an example for measuring review team effectiveness

Technical and economical feasibility of on-farm fish feed production using fishmeal analogs

Ten experimental diets and one control diet were fed to 720 tilapia (20 fish × 12 cages × three replicates) in a recirculating aquaculture system to determine the economic significance of replacing fishmeal with fishmeal analogs if the fishmeal analogs were processed on-site by the producer. All experimental diets were produced at Illinois State University using an Insta-Pro Model 600 Jr. extruder plus grinding, weighing and mixing equipment commonly found on commercial livestock operations. Primary diet protein sources included corn gluten meal, corn gluten feed and distillers dried grains. All diets were balanced for amino acid requirements of the fish, and both 32 and 36% crude protein diets were fed. There was no significant difference in feed conversion ratio (FCR) between diets with fishmeal and diets without fishmeal. There was no significant difference in FCR between 32 and 36% crude protein diets. An economic engineering model which included all equipment necessary for extruding and handling pelleted feed on-site was developed. Annualized investment and operating costs were estimated to determine the total cost of processing each of the 10 experimental diets. There was a significant difference in cost of gain among the 10 experimental diets and the control diet. Cost of production was highly sensitive to volume of feed extruded

Validation of monoclonal antibody F99/97.6.1 for immunohistochemical staining of brain and tonsil in mule deer (\u3ci\u3eOdocoileus hemionus\u3c/i\u3e) with chronic wasting disease

A new monoclonal antibody (MAb), F99/97.6.1, that has been used to demonstrate scrapieassociated prion protein PrPSc in brain and lymphoid tissues of domestic sheep with scrapie was used in an immunohistochemistry assay for diagnosis of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus). The MAb F99/97.6.1 immunohistochemistry assay was evaluated in brain and tonsil tissue from 100 mule deer that had spongiform encephalopathy compatible with CWD and from 1,050 mule deer outside the CWD-endemic area. This MAb demonstrated abnormal protease-resistant prion protein (PrPres) in brains of all of the 100 mule deer and in 99 of the 100 tonsil samples. No immunostaining was seen in samples collected from deer outside the endemic area. MAb F99/97.6.1 demonstrated excellent properties for detection of PrPres in fresh, frozen, or mildly to moderately autolytic samples of brain and tonsil. This immunohistochemistry assay is a sensitive, specific, readily standardized diagnostic test for CWD in deer