Farm Enterprise Analysis: Has It Lost Its Usefulness?

Farm enterprise analysis is a term that has traditionally been used to describe the process of determining costs associated with farm business enterprises and enterprise profitability. A key challenge to those who would know their costs has been the lack of guidance on cost accounting principles and the application of those principles to agriculture. However, that recently changed with the publication of the Farm Financial Standards Council’s Management Accounting Principles for Agricultural Producers, which has led to questions about the usefulness of enterprise analysis. The differences between the two approaches to determining costs for farm business enterprises are discussed as they relate to the usefulness of the output to managers for decision making.Productivity Analysis,

High Temperature Expansions and Dynamical Systems

We develop a resummed high-temperature expansion for lattice spin systems with long range interactions, in models where the free energy is not, in general, analytic. We establish uniqueness of the Gibbs state and exponential decay of the correlation functions. Then, we apply this expansion to the Perron-Frobenius operator of weakly coupled map lattices.Comment: 33 pages, Latex; [email protected]; [email protected]

Drum vortons in high density QCD

Recently it was shown that high density QCD supports of number of topological defects. In particular, there are U(1)_Y strings that arise due to K^0 condensation that occurs when the strange quark mass is relatively large. The unique feature of these strings is that they possess a nonzero K^+ condensate that is trapped on the core. In the following we will show that these strings (with nontrivial core structure) can form closed loops with conserved charge and currents trapped on the string worldsheet. The presence of conserved charges allows these topological defects, called vortons, to carry angular momentum, which makes them classically stable objects. We also give arguments demonstrating that vortons carry angular momentum very efficiently (in terms of energy per unit angular momentum) such that they might be the important degrees of freedom in the cores of neutron stars.Comment: 11 pages, accepted for publication in Physical Review

Characteristics of steady state fluvial topography above fault-bend folds

In steady state convergent orogens, erosion balances lateral as well as vertical bedrock motions. For simple geometrical reasons, the difference between the total steady state erosion flux and its vertical component is up to 30% for typical fluvial slopes and bedrock streamline inclinations, suggesting that lateral advection is also likely to be expressed topographically. In order to understand these geomorphologic consequences, we focus on steady state topography developed on active fault-bend folds. First, we derive an analytical solution for the slopes of detachment-limited streams that incorporates lateral advection. Next, we conduct experiments using a numerical two-dimensional landscape evolution model (Channel-Hillslope Integrated Landscape Development model (CHILD)) incorporating linear diffusion on hillslopes and detachment-limited stream channel incision above a fault-bend fold. The concavity and steepness indices of steady state long profiles are functions of bedrock velocity magnitude and direction, streamflow direction, and fluvial erosivity. Asymmetry of mountain range profiles varies as a function of fluvial erosivity or bedrock velocity only if we account for the lateral velocity component. This asymmetry is equally sensitive to this lateral component, fluvial incision, and hillslope diffusion. However, the effect of diffusion on drainage divide position is significant only at high diffusivities, short length scales, low bedrock advection rates, or relatively low fluvial erosivity. Thus in most mountain ranges and fault blocks, drainage divide migration is expected to be dictated by stream channel erosion. Model results are shown to be consistent with topography in the Siwalik Hills, Nepal, which overlie fault-bend folds produced above the frontal fault systems in the Himalayan foreland

A comparative assessment of the economics of plutonium disposition

The US Department of Energy office of Fissile Materials Disposition (DOE/MD) has been evaluating three technologies for the disposition of approximately 50 metric tons of surplus plutonium from defense-related programs: reactors, immobilization, and deep boreholes. As part of the process supporting an early CY 1997 Record of Decision (ROD), a comprehensive assessment of technical viability, cost, and schedule has been conducted by DOE/MD and its national laboratory contractors. Oak Ridge National Laboratory has managed and coordinated the life-cycle cost (LCC) assessment effort for this program. This paper discusses the economic analysis methodology and the results prior to ROD. A secondary intent of the paper is to discuss major technical and economic issues that impact cost and schedule. To evaluate the economics of these technologies on an equitable basis, a set of cost-estimating guidelines and a common cost-estimating format were utilized by all three technology teams. This paper also includes the major economic analysis assumptions and the comparative constant-dollar and discounted-dollar LCCs

Suspended particulate matter dynamics in coastal waters from ocean color: Application to the northern Gulf of Mexico

Suspended particulate matter (SPM) plays an important role in primary production, pollutant transport, and other biogeochemical processes in coastal marine environments. We present an empirical two-band ocean color remote sensing reflectance algorithm (Rrs670/ Rrs555) for SPM concentrations developed using field measurements obtained in coastal waters influenced by the Mississippi River in 2000, 2002, and 2004. The ratio algorithm was also found to be highly correlated to backscattering coefficient (bbp(555), r2 = 0.96), the backscattering ratio (bbp(555) /bp(555), r2 = 0.82) and the spectral backscattering slope (γ, r2 = 0.72) in March 2002, a period with large hydrographic variability in the study area. Strong correlations between water column bbp(555), SPM and nonalgal absorption anap(443) suggest the dominant influence of nonalgal particles on bbp. Sea WiFS derived SPM and γ distributions indicated event-based variability linked to energetic disturbances such as frontal passages, resuspension, and river discharge that with bbp/bp could reveal refractive index and particle size characteristics in the coastal environment

Determination of an Optimal Single Dose of Famphur Administered om Combination with Levamisole in a Paste Formulation for Grub Control in Beef Calves

Eighty-nine bull and heifer crossbred beef calves were utilized in five treatments t o determine the effect of famphur administered as a paste for grub control. The five treatments were (1) experimental paste-0% famphur or control (A), (2) experimental paste-14.4% famphur (B), (3) experimental paste-21.6X famphur (C), (4) experimental paste-28.8% famphur (Dl and (5) Warbex famphur pour-on plus tramisol levamisole gel (El. In all treatments in which famphur was administered (B, C, D and E) effective control of grubs was accomplished. Weight gains were 355, 360, 384, 355 and 356 lb for bulls in groups A, B, C. D and E, respectively, and 214, 212, 217, 226 and 201 lb for heifers in groups A, B, C, D and E, respectively

A comparative assessment of the economics of plutonium disposition including comparison with other nuclear fuel cycles

DOE has been evaluating three technologies for the disposition of approximately 50 metric tons of surplus plutonium from defense-related programs: reactors, immobilization, and deep boreholes. As part of the process supporting an early CY 1997 Record of Decision (ROD), a comprehensive assessment of technical viability, cost, and schedule has been conducted. Oak Ridge National Laboratory has managed and coordinated the life-cycle cost (LCC) assessment effort for this program. This paper discusses the economic analysis methodology and the results prior to ROD. Other objectives of the paper are to discuss major technical and economic issues that impact plutonium disposition cost and schedule. Also to compare the economics of a once-through weapons-derived MOX nuclear fuel cycle to other fuel cycles, such as those utilizing spent fuel reprocessing. To evaluate the economics of these technologies on an equitable basis, a set of cost estimating guidelines and a common cost-estimating format were utilized by all three technology teams. This paper also includes the major economic analysis assumptions and the comparative constant-dollar and discounted-dollar LCCs