125 research outputs found
Multiperiod Production with Forward and Option Markets
Production and hedging in both forward and options markets are analyzed for forward-looking firms that maximize expected utility. In the presence of unbiased forward and options prices, it is shown that such firms will use options as hedging instruments. This result contrasts with the conclusions from studies that assume myopic behavior, and occurs because forward looking agents care about the effect of future output prices on profits from future production cycles. Simulations support the theoretical results and show how the introduction of an options market influences the optimal forward position
Anisotropic ferromagnetism in carbon doped zinc oxide from first-principles studies
A density functional theory study of substitutional carbon impurities in ZnO
has been performed, using both the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) and
a hybrid functional (HSE06) as exchange-correlation functional. It is found
that the non-spinpolarized C impurity is under almost all
conditions thermodynamically more stable than the C impurity which
has a magnetic moment of , with the exception of very O-poor
and C-rich conditions. This explains the experimental difficulties in sample
preparation in order to realize -ferromagnetism in C-doped ZnO. From GGA
calculations with large 96-atom supercells, we conclude that two
C-C impurities in ZnO interact ferromagnetically, but
the interaction is found to be short-ranged and anisotropic, much stronger
within the hexagonal -plane of wurtzite ZnO than along the c-axis. This
layered ferromagnetism is attributed to the anisotropy of the dispersion of
carbon impurity bands near the Fermi level for C impurities in
ZnO. From the calculated results, we derive that a C
concentration between 2% and 6% should be optimal to achieve
-ferromagnetism in C-doped ZnO.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figure
Habitat fragmentation and genetic diversity in natural populations of the Bornean elephant: Implications for conservation
Ape Conservation Physiology: Fecal Glucocorticoid Responses in Wild Pongo pygmaeus morio following Human Visitation
Nature-based tourism can generate important revenue to support conservation of biodiversity. However, constant exposure to tourists and subsequent chronic activation of stress responses can produce pathological effects, including impaired cognition, growth, reproduction, and immunity in the same animals we are interested in protecting. Utilizing fecal samples (N = 53) from 2 wild habituated orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus morio) (in addition to 26 fecal samples from 4 wild unhabituated orangutans) in the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary of Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, we predicted that i) fecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations would be elevated on the day after tourist visitation (indicative of normal stress response to exposure to tourists on the previous day) compared to samples taken before or during tourist visitation in wild, habituated orangutans, and ii) that samples collected from habituated animals would have lower fecal glucocorticoid metabolites than unhabituated animals not used for tourism. Among the habituated animals used for tourism, fecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels were significantly elevated in samples collected the day after tourist visitation (indicative of elevated cortisol production on the previous day during tourist visitation). Fecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels were also lower in the habituated animals compared to their age-matched unhabituated counterparts. We conclude that the habituated animals used for this singular ecotourism project are not chronically stressed, unlike other species/populations with documented permanent alterations in stress responses. Animal temperament, species, the presence of coping/escape mechanisms, social confounders, and variation in amount of tourism may explain differences among previous experiments. Acute alterations in glucocorticoid measures in wildlife exposed to tourism must be interpreted conservatively. While permanently altered stress responses can be detrimental, preliminary results in these wild habituated orangutans suggest that low levels of predictable disturbance can likely result in low physiological impact on these animals
Chemisorbed Oxygen at Pt(111): a DFT Study of Structural and Electronic Surface Properties
Simulations based on density functional theory are used to study the electronic and electrostatic properties of a Pt(111) surface covered by a layer of chemisorbed atomic oxygen. The impact of the oxygen surface coverage and orientationally ordered interfacial water layers is explored. The oxygen adsorption energy decreases as a function of oxygen coverage due to the lateral adsorbate repulsion. The surficial dipole moment density induced by the layer of chemisorbed oxygen causes a positive shift of the work function. In simulations with interfacial water layers, ordering and orientation of water molecules strongly affect the work function. It is found that the surficial dipole moment density and charge density are roughly linearly dependent on the oxygen surface coverage. Moreover, we found that water layers exert only a small impact on the surface charging behavior of the surface
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