Rural Social Organization and Farmer Cooperatives Development in Russia and other Emerging Economies: Comparative Analysis

Farmer cooperatives development is an important direction of rural economic growth in developing countries which attracts serious international attention of both practitioners and scholars in the face of global “food demand”. Russia is of special interest in this regard because it occupies the biggest in the world area of farmland which is not yet incorporated in agricultural production. In spite of significant financial support from the government, farmer cooperatives development in Russia faces major difficulties. In order to better understand the perspectives for successful farmer cooperatives development in Russia, we conduct comparative analysis of emerging economies in the field of rural social organization’s influence on farmer cooperative development (the question that has not yet been given full attention in literature). We use empirical evidence from literature dealing with farmer cooperatives development in India, Vietnam, China and other emerging economies as well as results of our own empirical research in Russian Belgorod region. The main findings of our study are: 1. Local characteristics of social organization may influence development of farmer cooperatives significantly. 2. Traditional elements of rural social organization may affect farmer cooperative development both positively and negatively. 3. In the present conditions of rural social organization farmer cooperative development in emerging economies may need strong and complex governmental assistance. Keywords: social organization, rural communities, farmer cooperatives, Russi

Improving Agriculture Students' Understanding of Global Production Systems through Distance Learning

Globalization is a fundamental force currently shaping agricultural sector throughout the world. To make sound decisions in a globalised economy, agricultural producers and agribusiness managers must have a high level of understanding of the international dimensions of their industry. To address this need, we are developing a course aimed at helping agricultural students better understand the managerial environment faced by producers worldwide. This course will provide students an opportunity to learn about agricultural production, and the context in which it occurs, by analyzing real-world farm case studies in various countries on four continents in both hemispheres of the globe. Eight case studies are being developed to exemplify the production and managerial environment in five different countries (Russia, Australia, Uruguay, Brazil, and the U.S.). Each case study will include a written description of the case, as well as a video tour of the farm and surrounding region and an interview with the farm manager. The case studies will provide the principal building blocks for the comparative farm management systems course to be taught at each of the four cooperating universities. Through the comparative farm management systems course, students will: (1) obtain a better understanding of the production agriculture sectors of the world, (2) discuss regional agricultural economic issues with instructors who are experts from each country, and (3) gain real-world problems solving experience in international settings through case study analysis. The case studies and course curriculum will be made available to other universities through a project web page and distribution of case study CD-ROMs.globalization, international, comparative farm case studies, distance learning, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Effect of Ultrahigh Stiffness of Defective Graphene from Atomistic Point of View

Well-known effect of mechanical stiffness degradation under the influence of point defects in macroscopic solids can be controversially reversed in the case of low-dimensional materials. Using atomistic simulation, we showed here that a single-layered graphene film can be sufficiently stiffened by monovacancy defects at a tiny concentration. Our results correspond well with recent experimental data and suggest that the effect of mechanical stiffness augmentation is mainly originated from specific bonds distribution in the surrounded monovacancy defects regions. We showed that such unusual mechanical response is the feature of presence of specifically monovacancies, whereas other types of point defects such as divacancy, 555-777 and Stone-Wales defects, lead to the ordinary degradation of the graphene mechanical stiffness.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure

Multiterminal Nanowire Junctions of Silicon: A Theoretical Prediction of Atomic Structure and Electronic Properties

Using empirical scheme, atomic structure of a new exotic class of silicon nanoclusters was elaborated upon the central icosahedral core (Si-IC) and pentagonal petals (Si-PP) growing from Si-IC vertexes. It was shown that Si-IC/Si-PP interface formation is energetically preferable. Some experimental observations of silicon nanostructures can be explained by presence of the proposed objects. The Extended Huckel Theory electronic structure calculations demonstrate an ability of the proposed objects to act as nanoscale tunnel junctions.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl