ECONOMICS OF WHEAT-FALLOW CROPPING SYSTEMS IN WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA

Income and risk aspects of wheat-fallow cropping systems are analyzed in western North Dakota. A wheat yield trend estimation model based on county yields (1950-77) is developed using independent variables of year, annual precipitation, acres of nonfallowed wheat and a dummy variable for fallow and nonfallow practices. The year-to-year change in wheat yields on fallowed and nonfallowed land indicates that summer fallow is becoming less desirable economically. Based on 1980 costs and yields, summer fallow maximizes returns to land at low yields, low wheat prices, and high nitrogen prices. Income variability is reduced under summer fallow.Crop Production/Industries,

Underwater optical wireless communications : depth dependent variations in attenuation

Depth variations in the attenuation coefficient for light in the ocean were calculated using a one-parameter model based on the chlorophyll-a concentration Cc and experimentally-determined Gaussian chlorophyll-depth profiles. The depth profiles were related to surface chlorophyll levels for the range 0–4  mg/m2, representing clear, open ocean. The depth where Cc became negligible was calculated to be shallower for places of high surface chlorophyll; 111.5 m for surface chlorophyll 0.8<Cc<2.2  mg/m3 compared with 415.5 m for surface Cc<0.04  mg/m3. Below this depth is the absolute minimum attenuation for underwater ocean communication links, calculated to be 0.0092  m−1 at a wavelength of 430 nm. By combining this with satellite surface-chlorophyll data, it is possible to quantify the attenuation between any two locations in the ocean, with applications for low-noise or secure underwater communications and vertical links from the ocean surface

Market Potential for Northern Plains Farm Equipment in Brazil

International Relations/Trade,

EVALUATION OF NORTH DAKOTA FARM BUSINESS MANAGEMENT EDUCATION PROGRAM

Net farm income of participants in the North Dakota Farm Business Management Education Program increased with years of enrollment both in absolute terms and compared to peer group benchmarks. Median net farm income increased $7,829 and$14,191 between the first and fifth year of enrollment for all farms in the program and a subset of farms with five consecutive years of records starting with the first year of enrollment, respectively. Net farm income by year of program participation was compared to a benchmark median net farm income for the same geographic region, calendar year, and farm type in an attempt to isolate the affects of management from weather and other exogenous factors. Net farm income as a percent of benchmark increased 17.5 percentage points from first year participation farms to fifth year farms and 28 percentage points for farms for which there were five consecutive years of records starting with the first year of enrollment. Increased net farm income for both groups was accompanied by improved efficiency, increased farm size, and greater net worth. Note: Figures 1 is not included in the machine readable copy--contact the authors for more information.Farm Management, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Growing your business by selling to the government

Twenty-three percent of all prime contracts are set aside for small business. This has resulted in more than $83 billion dollars of revenue for small businesses. This is a lot of opportunity you could be missing out on for your business

Washington Monsoon

I spent my summer working for Kern\u27s Furniture in Hoquiam, Washington. Hoquiam · is about 40· miles west of Olympia and lies on the shore of Gray\u27s Harbor, about 15miles inland from the Pacific Coast. I spent most of my time putting wood putty in knot holes, and asawhole, thejobwasaboutas exciting as a Botany 310 lab, but the entire area surrounding the harbor was dependent upon the forest for its economic livelihood and was an excellent place for an Iowa forester to become acquainted with Northwest forestxy. Hoquiam lies in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mo~ntains and gets about 80- 90 inches of rain per year, mostly in the winter. I arrived in Hoquiam June 1, and didn\u27t even see the sun for about a month, evexyday looked just like the one before it-overcast and rainy-really had to get used to

Lamb Carcass Quality Grade Revisions

The grading of lamb, yearling mutton and mutton carcasses is a voluntary service designed to facilitate the marketing of livestock and meat. When graded by a Federal meat grader, the grade of an ovine carcass may consist of a quality grade, a yield grade or a combination of the two

Everyting changed in Egypt

A year’s Fulbright appointment at the University in Alexandria, Egypt, brought me, a relatively unknown scholar, and my family into a situation of great joy and gain, tempered with sorrow. It was the most profound experience of my professional career to date in 1982/83, the year after the murder of Sadat and the year of massacres in Sabra and Shatila. Teaching was, at first, difficult. The unacknowledged assumptions of Egyptian students and my own unacknowledged assumptions about truth and knowledge erected barriers to understanding; but each side learned from the other, a gratifying result. For my family, the year in Alexandria was life changing. We learned to cope with the absence of amenities we had taken for granted, and we learned that there was a world different from ours but one that deserved respect and accommodation. We learned to face daily life with more humor and flexibility, admiring a level of generosity we had never before experienced. We also learned about mental equilibrium, a recognition that some acceptance of fate seems healthy. We learned to value and cultivate calm in the midst of chaos.Uma nomeação de um ano como Fulbright, na Universidade de Alexandria, no Egipto proporcionou a mim, um estudioso relativamente desconhecido, e a minha família, uma situação de grande alegria e aprendizagem, misturada com tristeza. Até hoje, esta foi a experiência mais profunda da minha carreira profissional, entre 1982 a1983, o ano após o assassinato de Sadat e dos massacres em Sabra e Shatila. Leccionar, a princípio, foi difícil. As presunções não reconhecidas dos estudantes egípcios, e minhas próprias presunções sobre a verdade e o conhecimento, ergueram barreiras para a compreensão mútua; porém cada lado aprendeu com o outro, proporcionando um resultado gratificante. O ano em Alexandria foi uma mudança de vida para mim e minha família; aprendemos a lidar com a ausência do conforto que tínhamos e descobrimos que havia um mundo diferente do nosso, mas que merecia respeito e adaptação. Aprendemos a encarar a vida quotidiana com mais humor e flexibilidade, admirando um nível de generosidade que jamais havíamos desfrutado anteriormente. Além disso, aprendemos sobre o equilíbrio mental, um reconhecimento de que aceitar o imprevisível pode ser saudável. Aprendemos a valorizar e manter a calma no meio do caos