The Role of Bio-productivity on Bio-energy Yields

The principal photosynthetic pathways convert solar energy differently depending on the environmental conditions and the plant morphotype. Partitioning of energy storage within crops will vary according to environmental and seasonal conditions as well. Highest energy concentration is found in terpens like latex and, to a lesser extent, in lipids. Ideally, we want plant ingredients with high energy content easily amenable to ready-to-use bio-fuel. Generally, these crops are adapted to drier areas and tend to save on eco-volume space. Competition with food crops could be avoided by fetching energy from cheap agricultural by-products or waste products such as bagasse in the sugar cane. This would in fact mean that reducing power of agricultural residues should be extracted from the biomass through non-photosynthetic processes like animal ingestion or industrial bio-fermentation. Conversion and transformation efficiencies in the production chain are illustrated for some relevant crops in the light of the maximum power theorem

Does online search improve the match quality of new hires?

This paper studies the effects of the high-speed internet expansion on the match quality of new hires. They combine data on internet availability at the local level with German individual register and vacancy data. Results show that internet availability has no major impact on the stability of new matches and their wages. The authors confirm these findings using vacancy data, by explicitly comparing match outcomes of online and non-online recruits. Further results show that online recruiting not only raises the number of applicants and the share of unsuitable candidates per vacancy, but also induces employers to post more vacancies

Do digital information technologies help unemployed job seekers find a job? Evidence from the broadband internet expansion in Germany

This paper studies effects of the introduction of a new digital mass medium on reemployment of unemployed job seekers. We combine data on broadband internet availability at the local level with German individual register data. We address endogeneity by exploiting technological peculiarities that affected the roll-out of broadband internet. Results show that broadband internet improves reemployment rates after the first months in unemployment for males. Complementary analyses with survey data suggest that internet access mainly changes male job seekers' search behavior by increasing online search and the number of job applications. (C) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Comparisons of Production Costs and Profit of Three Different Technology Levels of Papaya Production in Tabasco, Mexico

The survey was carried out from September 2006 to January 2007 in three papaya production sites located in main papaya production zones in Tabasco; SE Mexico. There are differences in size of the cultivated area, in the yield of the papaya as well as in production costs and profit, according to the different technology levels in the farming systems: low, medium and high technology cultivation level. The financial evaluations were carried out in three sites with different productive technologies. The comparison of the agronomic and economic traits results for low technology level in: V AN of 2359.00 USD, BCR in 1.9 and an equilibrium point of 3750.00 USD, TIR of 0.25. In order to avoid loses, a quantity of 10714 kg papaya should be sold. In medium technology VAN is 1605.10 USD, BCR is 1.7, TIR 0.20 and the equilibrium point is 12800.00 USD. 36571 kg of papaya should be yearly sold. In high technology level VAN is 11749.40, BCR is 2.73, TIR 0.43 and the equilibrium point is 12187.50 USD, 34821 kg papaya should be sold yearly. The indicators showed that all three levels are profitable and economically viable

Do digital information technologies help unemployed job seekers find a job? Evidence from the broadband internet expansion in Germany

This paper studies effects of the introduction of a new digital mass medium on reemployment of unemployed job seekers. We combine data on high-speed (broadband) internet availability at the local level with individual register data on the unemployed in Germany. We address endogeneity by exploiting technological peculiarities in the network that affected the roll-out of high-speed internet. The results show that high-speed internet improves reemployment rates after the first months of the unemployment spell. This is confirmed by complementary analysis with individual survey data suggesting that online job search leads to additional formal job interviews after a few months in unemployment

Unemployment effects of the German minimum wage in an equilibrium job search model

We structurally estimate an equilibrium search model using German administrative data and use this for counterfactual analyses of a uniform minimum wage. The model with worker and firm heterogeneity does not restrict the sign of employment effects a priori and allows for different job offer arrival rates for the employed and the unemployed. We find that unemployment is a non-monotonic function of the minimum wage level. Effects differ strongly by labour market segment. Cross-segment variation of the estimated effects is mostly driven by firm productivity levels rather than by search frictions or the opportunity cost of employment

Fruticultura orgánica en el trópico: Situación y ejemplos de Mesoamérica

La situación en la fruticultura orgánica de Mesoamérica no es fácil a cualificar y cuantificar. Indudablemente existen áreas certificadas sin embargo faltan datos exactos. En otra manera muchos campesinos cultivan frutas y vegetales sin el uso de fertilizantes inorgánicos y sin aplicaciones de pesticidazas por falta de insumos propios. Este estudio esta basado en ejemplos y practicas conocidas y trata a reflejar filosofías practicas del campesinado y las fortalezas y debilidades correspondientes. De lo mas énfasis se ha dedicado al chayote en Costa Rica y México, a la pitahaya en Nicaragua, a la papaya en el Estado Tabasco y al mango, rambutan y caña de azúcar en el estado Chiapas, México, y a las huertas familiares en Cuba. Resultados de una encuesta entre consumidores reflejan el interés para consumir productos orgánicos, establecer la interacción agricultores-consumidores como parte del proceso de desarrollo agroecológico y fortalecer la educación de los consumidores y productores en los aspectos agroecológicos y de salud

Tracking CNS and systemic sources of oxidative stress during the course of chronic neuroinflammation

The functional dynamics and cellular sources of oxidative stress are central to understanding MS pathogenesis but remain elusive, due to the lack of appropriate detection methods. Here we employ NAD(P)H fluorescence lifetime imaging to detect functional NADPH oxidases (NOX enzymes) in vivo to identify inflammatory monocytes, activated microglia, and astrocytes expressing NOX1 as major cellular sources of oxidative stress in the central nervous system of mice affected by experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). This directly affects neuronal function in vivo, indicated by sustained elevated neuronal calcium. The systemic involvement of oxidative stress is mirrored by overactivation of NOX enzymes in peripheral CD11b(+) cells in later phases of both MS and EAE. This effect is antagonized by systemic intake of the NOX inhibitor and anti-oxidant epigallocatechin-3-gallate. Together, this persistent hyper-activation of oxidative enzymes suggests an "oxidative stress memory" both in the periphery and CNS compartments, in chronic neuroinflammation