Conformational studies of various hemoglobins by natural-abundance 13C NMR spectroscopy

Studies of variously liganded hemoglobins (both from human and rabbit) by natural-abundance 13C NMR spectroscopy have revealed apparent conformational differences that have been interpreted on the basis of two quaternary structures for the α2ß2 tetramer, and variable tertiary structures for the individual α and ß subunits. In solution, rabbit hemoglobins appear to have somewhat more flexibility than human hemoglobins

Method for detecting pollutants

A method is described for detecting and measuring trace amounts of pollutants of the group consisting of ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and carbon monoxide in a gaseous environment. A sample organic solid material that will undergo a chemical reaction with the test pollutant is exposed to the test environment and thereafter, when heated in the temperature range of 100-200 C., undergoes chemiluminescence that is measured and recorded as a function of concentration of the test pollutant. The chemiluminescence of the solid organic material is specific to the pollutant being tested

Hydrostatic pressure transducers of carbon and ytterbium Final report

Hydrostatic pressure coefficients of electrical resistivity for carbon and ytterbium pressure transducer

Infrequent Shocks and Rating Revenue Insurance: A Contingent Claims Approach

Revenue insurance represents an important new risk management tool for agricultural producers. While there are many farm-level products, Group Risk Income Protection (GRIP) is an area-based alternative. Insurers set premium rates for GRIP on the assumption of a continuous revenue distribution, but discrete events may cause the actual value of insurance to differ by a significant amount. This study develops a contingent claims approach to determining the error inherent in ignoring these infrequent events in rating GRIP insurance. An empirical example from the California grape industry demonstrates the significance of this error and suggests an alternative method of determining revenue insurance premiums.Black-Scholes, contingent claim, grapes, insurance, jump-diffusion, option pricing, Risk and Uncertainty,

Post Merger Performance of Agricultural Cooperatives

Agricultural cooperatives are participating in mergers, acquisitions, strategic alliances, and joint ventures at a record pace. While post-post merger performance has been examined extensively for investor owned firms, this has not been the case for agricultural cooperatives since these firms do not have an explicit profit motive nor publicly traded stock. Results from a three-stage econometric model reveal that a major motivation for cooperatives to engage in these activities is to circumvent unique capital constraints, thus resulting in improved profitability. Furthermore, the decision to merge and financial performance are jointly endogenous, with profitability positively influenced and sales growth negatively influenced by the likelihood of merger.acquisitions, capital constraints, cooperatives, financial performance, joint ventures, mergers, probit modeling, strategic alliances, Agribusiness,

Cooperative Mergers and Acquisitions: The Role of Capital Constraints

Several explanations for merger activity exist for publicly traded firms, but none consider the unique aspects of cooperatives. This study develops a test for the hypothesis that cooperative consolidation occurs primarily in response to capital constraints associated with a lack of access to external equity capital. An empirical model estimates the shadow value of long-term investment capital within a multinomial logit model of transaction choice in a panel data set of the 100 largest U.S. cooperatives. The results substantially confirm the capital-constraint hypothesis. Thus, the primary implication is that internal growth may be a more viable alternative to consolidation if new forms of cooperative financing are developed.capital structure, cooperative, discrete choice, joint ventures, mergers, multinomial logit, strategic alliances, Agribusiness,

Photosynthetic Gas Exchange in the Closed Ecosystem for Space. Phase II, Part III. Screening for Thermophilic Algae and Mutation Studies

An algal screening and mutation study was undertaken to obtain algae superior to Chlorella 71105 for use in a photosynthetic gas exchanger. Of the forty-four thermophilic algae studied, eighteen appeared to have growth rates as great as Chlorella 71105. Optimization of the physical and chemical environments of these strains is recommended as a way to further improve growth rates and concomitant oxygen production. The mutation study revealed that Chlorella 71105 is relatively resistant to germicidal ultraviolet radiation. No high temperature mutants of Chlorella 71105 were found

Cost and Efficiency in Alberta Dairy Production

This study investigates the relationships between farm size, milk yield, cost of production, and technical efficiency in the Alberta dairy industry. Estimates of a stochastic production frontier are obtained with two alternative methods; an iterative "average frontier: (AF) procedure and a maximum-likelihood composed error (CE) term method. An index of technical efficiency is calculated for every herd in the sample, with the AF method resulting in an average efficiency ratio of 85 percent, and the CE method producing an average efficiency ratio of 83 percent. Regressions of production cost on milk output, herd size, and efficiency are used to test for the effects of size economies, yield economies, and technical efficiency on production cost. These results suggest that herd expansion, on average, would lower the average cost of production throughout the province. Romain and Lambert use a similar method in a study of Quebec and Ontario dairy farmers which shows a limited potential to exploit economies of herd size. While not a formal test of the similarity of the two industries, the results of this study indicate a significant difference between the optimal structure of dairy production in Alberta and Quebec. Such regional differences will have important implications for the possible reapportionment of the national milk market, whether by regulatory or free-market mechanisms.Livestock Production/Industries,

Economic Performance in Alberta Dairy: An Application of the Mimic Model

Dairy production at the farm-level is undergoing a rapid transformation in preparation for more open competition in the future. However, the means by which dairy farms can best improve their economic performance is of some question. Using measures of allocative, technical, and overall efficiency as indicators of a latent "performance" variable, this study specifies and estimates a multiple-indicator, multiple-cause (MIMIC) model of Alberta dairy production. Variables thought to "cause" performance include herd size, milk yield, breeding and veterinary expense, capital-to-labour ratio, concentrate-to-forage ratio, and operator experience. The results show that gains in performance may be made through increased capital intensity, greater spending on breeding and herd health, and, albeit marginally, through increased milk yields. Despite current trends toward larger dairy herds, this may not be a fruitful avenue for future improvements in dairy efficiency.Livestock Production/Industries,

Cooperative Risk Management: Rationale and Effectiveness

Agricultural cooperatives tend to be riskier than investor-oriented firms, both in a business and financial sense. However, cooperative managers are often reluctant to actively manage risk. Although the risk management irrelevance proposition suggests that cooperative managers should be unable to add shareholder value through risk management activities, this study argues that there are several reasons why this is not likely to be the case for cooperatives. Several empirical examples are provided through numerical simulation of pro-forma financial statements from representative agricultural cooperatives. Using mean variance, expected utility and value-at-risk metrics, the results of these simulations show that various risk management strategies can improve the risk-return profile of a typical cooperative. Keywords: cooperative, expected utility, futures, option, risk management, value at risk.cooperative, expected utility, futures, option, risk management, value at risk., Risk and Uncertainty,