DECOMPOSITION OF INCOME DISTRIBUTION AMONG FARM FAMILIES

The greater reliance of U.S. farm families on off-farm income has implications for the structure of agriculture and the distribution of income within agriculture. Using annual data on farm households from the Current Population Survey, the degree of income inequality for the U.S. and by region is assessed for 1984. The distribution of income among farm families is decomposed by income source. Off-farm income is shown to contribute to higher average incomes and reduce income inequality at the margin, but only in regions where full-time farming predominates. In the Northeast and South, increases in off-farm income increase regional income inequality.Consumer/Household Economics,

X-ray properties of UV-selected star forming galaxies at z~1 in the Hubble Deep Field North

We present an analysis of the X-ray emission from a large sample of ultraviolet (UV) selected, star forming galaxies with 0.74<z<1.32 in the Hubble Deep Field North (HDF-N) region. By excluding all sources with significant detected X-ray emission in the 2 Ms Chandra observation we are able to examine the properties of galaxies for which the emission in both UV and X-ray is expected to be predominantly due to star formation. Stacking the X-ray flux from 216 galaxies in the soft and hard bands produces significant detections. The derived mean 2-10 keV rest-frame luminosity is 2.97+/-0.26x10^(40) erg/s, corresponding to an X-ray derived star formation rate (SFR) of 6.0+/-0.6 Msolar/yr. Comparing the X-ray value with the mean UV derived SFR, uncorrected for attenuation, we find that the average UV attenuation correction factor is \~3. By binning the galaxy sample according to UV magnitude and colour, correlations between UV and X-ray emission are also examined. We find a strong positive correlation between X-ray emission and rest-frame UV emission. A correlation between the ratio of X-ray-to-UV emission and UV colour is also seen, such that L(X)/L(UV) increases for redder galaxies. Given that X-ray emission offers a view of star formation regions that is relatively unaffected by extinction, results such as these can be used to evaluate the effects of dust on the UV emission from high-z galaxies. For instance we derive a relationship for estimating UV attenuation corrections as a function of colour excess. The observed relation is inconsistent with the Calzetti et al. (2000) reddening law which over predicts the range in UV attenuation corrections by a factor of ~100 for the UV selected z~1 galaxies in this sample (abridged).Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

Composition of Jupiter irregular satellites sheds light on their origin

Irregular satellites of Jupiter with their highly eccentric, inclined and distant orbits suggest that their capture took place just before the giant planet migration. We aim to improve our understanding of the surface composition of irregular satellites of Jupiter to gain insight into a narrow time window when our Solar System was forming. We observed three Jovian irregular satellites, Himalia, Elara, and Carme, using a medium-resolution 0.8-5.5 micro m spectrograph on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF). Using a linear spectral unmixing model we have constrained the major mineral phases on the surface of these three bodies. Our results confirm that the surface of Himalia, Elara, and Carme are dominated by opaque materials such as those seen in carbonaceous chondrite meteorites. Our spectral modeling of NIR spectra of Himalia and Elara confirm that their surface composition is the same and magnetite is the dominant mineral. A comparison of the spectral shape of Himalia with the two large main C-type asteroids, Themis (D 176 km) and Europa (D 352 km), suggests surface composition similar to Europa. The NIR spectrum of Carme exhibits blue slope up to 1.5 microm and is spectrally distinct from those of Himalia and Elara. Our model suggests that it is compositionally similar to amorphous carbon. Himalia and Elara are compositionally similar but differ significantly from Carme. These results support the hypotheses that the Jupiter irregular satellites are captured bodies that were subject to further breakup events and clustered as families based on their similar physical and surface compositions

EFFICIENCY AND PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH IN INDIAN BANKING

This paper attempts to examine technical efficiency and productivity performance of Indian scheduled commercial banks, for the period 1979-2008. We model a multiple output/multiple input technology production frontier using semiparametric estimation methods. The endogenity of multiple outputs is addressed by semi parametric estimates in part by introducing multivariate kernel estimators for the joint distribution of the multiple outputs and correlated random effects. Output is measured as the rupee value of total loans and total investments at the end of the year. The estimates provide robust inferences of the productivity and efficiency gains due to economic reforms.Banking, Frontier efficiency, Productivity

Association of Breakfast Intake with Obesity, Dietary and Physical Activity Behavior Among Urban School-Aged Adolescents in Delhi, India: Results of a Cross-Sectional Study

In developed countries, regular breakfast consumption is inversely associated with excess weight and directly associated with better dietary and improved physical activity behaviors. Our objective was to describe the frequency of breakfast consumption among school-going adolescents in Delhi and evaluate its association with overweight and obesity as well as other dietary, physical activity, and sedentary behaviors. Methods: Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Eight schools (Private and Government) of Delhi in the year 2006. Participants: 1814 students from 8th and 10th grades; response rate was 87.2%; 55% were 8th graders, 60% were boys and 52% attended Private schools. Main outcome measures: Body mass index, self-reported breakfast consumption, diet and physical activity related behaviors, and psychosocial factors. Data analysis: Mixed effects regression models were employed, adjusting for age, gender, grade level and school type (SES). Results: Significantly more Government school (lower SES) students consumed breakfast daily as compared to Private school (higher SES) students (73.8% vs. 66.3%; p<0.01). More 8th graders consumed breakfast daily vs. 10th graders (72.3% vs. 67.0%; p<0.05). A dose-response relationship was observed such that overall prevalence of overweight and obesity among adolescents who consumed breakfast daily (14.6%) was significantly lower vs. those who only sometimes (15.2%) or never (22.9%) consumed breakfast (p<0.05 for trend). This relationship was statistically significant for boys (15.4 % vs. 16.5% vs. 26.0; p<0.05 for trend) but not for girls. Intake of dairy products, fruits and vegetables was 5.5 (95% CI 2.4-12.5), 1.7 (95% CI 1.1-2.5) and 2.2 (95% CI 1.3-3.5) times higher among those who consumed breakfast daily vs. those who never consumed breakfast. Breakfast consumption was associated with greater physical activity vs. those who never consumed breakfast. Positive values and beliefs about healthy eating; body image satisfaction; and positive peer and parental influence were positively associated with daily breakfast consumption, while depression was negatively associated. Conclusion: Daily breakfast consumption is associated with less overweight and obesity and with healthier dietary-and physical activity-related behaviors among urban Indian students. Although prospective studies should confirm the present results, intervention programs to prevent or treat childhood obesity in India should consider emphasizing regular breakfast consumption.Obesity Prevention Center, University of MinnesotaPRIME program of the University of Texas, School of Public Health (Stigler, PI)Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research in Underserved Population

INVESTIGATION OF CHEMICAL AND PHARMACOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF ESSENTIAL OILS FROM TWO SYZYGIUM SPECIES OF ANDHRA PRADESH, INDIA

Objective: The present investigation is carried out to study the chemical composition, antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of essential oils of two Syzygium species i.e. Syzygium alternifolium (SA) and S. samarangense (SS) leaves.Methods: The essential oils from S. alternifolium (SA) and S. samarangense (SS) leaves were obtained by hydro-distillation and analyzed by GC and GC-MS. The oils were subjected to antimicrobial and antioxidant activities by using in vitro methods.Results: Essential oils (EOs) obtained by hydro distillation were analyzed through GC and GC-MS and resulted 25 compounds from each sample. SA leaf oil was dominated by monoterpene hydrocarbons (53.53%) of which, β-mercene (24.04%), β-pinene (9.23%), β-trans-ocimene (9.2%), cyclofenchene (7.21%) and β-cis-ocimene (2.1%). Whereas SS leaf oil was dominated by sesquiterpene components i.e. viridiflorol (15.05%) α-cubebene (7.71%) and monoterpenes, i.e. β-pinene (11.64%), α-pinene (9.61%) and α-terpineol (5.19%). Both essential oils exhibited strong and broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity. The antimicrobial results showed that SA-leaf oil strongly inhibited Candida rugosa (CR), Bacillus subtilis (BS) and Staphyloccus aureus (ST), whereas SS-leaf oil strongly inhibited CR and Escherichia coli (EC). Among the test organisms, CR was strongly inhibited by both oils by expression of the lowest minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC). Further, both the test EOs exhibited concentration dependent DPPH scavenging activity indicating the significant antioxidant property.Conclusion: Syzygium alternifolium and S. samarangense leaf essential oils are the good source of natural antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds, which can be used as natural therapeutic agents against human pathogenic organisms.Â

Photocatalytic performance of silver TiO2: Role of electronic energy levels

Nano-sized silver deposits on the surface of Degussa P25 TiO2 (Ag-DP25) particles act as sites of electron accumulation where the reduction of adsorbed species takes place. Electrons can be transferred from Degussa P25 TiO2 (DP25) to Ag particles because of the difference in the work functions of the two materials. The efficiency of the electron transfer depends on the size and the distribution of metal deposits. A significant photocatalytic oxidation enhancement by metal deposit will only be observed if the metal deposits play a more dominant role than just increasing the life time of charge carriers. The properties of metal deposits like, loaded amount, oxidation state of the deposit and its size will influence the performance. Further, a decrease in band-gap in DP25 and Ag-DP25 was observed due to the carbide ion substitution for the oxide ion in TiO2. Such unintentional carbon incorporation is expected mostly in combustion synthesized materials. Silver metal deposits and unintentional incorporation of the carbon shows the beneficial effect by specific mechanism in the photocatalytic degradation of Congo Red (CR). © 2011 Elsevier B.V. 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Enhanced photocatalytic activity of silver metallized TiO2 particles in the degradation of an azo dye methyl orange: Characterization and activity at different pH values

The photocatalytic activity of silver deposited Degussa P25 titanium dioxide (Ag-DP25) in the photodegradation of methyl orange (MO) was investigated. The photocatalysts were characterized using PXRD, SEM, EDX, FTIR and UV-vis spectrophotometer. The obtained results show that the silver (Ag0) deposited TiO2 exhibited visible light plasmon absorption band. The degradation experiment reveals that the catalytic property of Ag-DP25 in the degradation of MO is more efficient than that of commercially available Degussa P25 TiO2 (DP25) samples. The improvement of Ag-DP25 catalyst efficiency strongly depends on the content of silver (Ag) deposits. The present study shows that the degradation process is dominated by Ag-TiO2 photocatalytic system, complying with pseudo-first order rate law. The higher rate of photodegradation observed on Ag-DP25 at pH 6.6 can be correlated to the ratios of the concentrations of the ionized to the neutral dye molecules and also to the higher concentration of hydroxylated surface, which are able to effectively scavenge photogenerated valence band holes. Accumulation of the holes in the semiconductor particles increases the probability of formation of excited oxygen atom which is a reactive species readily oxidizing the organic dye molecule. The reduction of pH during the course of the reaction is attributed to the complete mineralization of the dye. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved