PRICE VARIABILITY AND FINANCIAL RISK FOR SUGAR BEET GROWERS

This paper develops a portfolio framework to characterize and analyze the impact of price risk faced by sugar beet growers in the Red River Valley and derives implications for capital markets. Other sources of risk incorporated in the analysis are yields and production cost. Results from stochastic simulation analysis reveal that sugar beet growers incur significant price and financial risk. The hypothesis that the loan rate for sugar truncates the distribution of net returns and protects growers against declining beets prices was not validated.Financial risk, total risk, price variability, stochastic simulation of net return, default risk, Agricultural Finance, Crop Production/Industries,

Utilization of Community Health Workers in Emergency Preparedness and Response: A Literature Review

As the frequency and magnitude of disasters worldwide continues to rise, so too does the devastation that follows. This devastation extends to the whole community. In guidance put forward by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), emergency preparedness must be represented in and reflective of the whole community, but marginalized groups or segments of the population may be left out of the conversation. Community Health Workers (CHW)s serve as a trusted liaisons and community advocates within the health care landscape. That landscape, as recent events demonstrate, includes emergency preparedness and response. This literature review is designed to assess available publications on the utilization of CHWs in emergency preparedness and/or emergency response. Four themes were identified in the literature review: response, training, political and investment. Assessments grouped by thematic type included author, title, study method, unique CHW term or phrase, and key findings. Additionally, eight articles were evaluated based on their COVID-19 focus and findings, their assessment included: CHW duties, challenges, and recommendations. A detailed narrative analysis, discussion and recommendation is provided on each theme

Time Perspective, Health Behaviors, and Wellbeing in Adults

An important component of health behavior engagement is time perspective. Previous research has demonstrated that individuals with a more expansive temporal perspective tend to engage in more positive and fewer negative health behaviors. Depression, the leading mood disorder, has diverse symptomatology and is associated with reduced positive future thinking. This study seeks to identify whether positive or negative health behaviors differentially effect the association between time perspective and depressive symptomatology. Participants (n = 106; Mage = 35.2, SD = 12.7, range 18-65; 71.7% female; 87.7% white) were drawn from a community sample recruited via digital message boards. The study took place over 8-days using experience sampling methodology to survey demographic variables, time perspective, and depressive symptomatology (i.e., CES-D total score). Daily health behaviors were assessed in the early evening for the past day. Results indicated CES-D total score was significantly, positively associated with positive future time perspective and negatively associated with positive health behavior engagement. An initial mediation was conducted to examine whether positive future time perspective influenced depression via health behaviors. Consistent with the correlation results, the a-path was not significant, thus there was not mediation. A moderation based on these initial correlations was completed to test the interaction between positive future time perspective and positive health behaviors. Results indicated a significant interaction such that, those with low positive future time perspective and low positive health behaviors endorsed the highest CES-D total score. Overall, as time perspective increased, depressive symptomatology decreased. The data suggest that positive health behavior engagement and time perspective are important to consider when developing or implementing treatments for depression. Future directions include fuller characterization of negative health behaviors, as well as investigation in clinically diagnosed populations

Differences in Sexual Delay Discounting Among In-Treatment Adults with Opioid Use Disorder

Previous research has found impulsive decision-making to be a core component of addiction (Moody, Franck, Hatz, & Bickel, 2016). One way to measure impulsive choice is through the use of a delay discounting task. The delay discounting task provides a way to measure choice of immediate, smaller rewards compared to delayed, larger rewards (Odum, 2011b). An emerging area of research in addiction science is the intersection of addiction and sexual health. Previous sexual delay discounting research has focused on whether attractiveness or STD risk can shift the likelihood of waiting until a condom was available (Johnson & Bruner, 2012). This study is among the first to include a pregnancy-risk condition, utilize shorter delays, and include individual difference variables such as gender, future time perspective, condom attitudes, and sexual arousal. The final analysis included 113 adults in treatment for Opioid Use Disorder. Two monetary discounting conditions ($10,$100) and three sexual discounting conditions (attraction, STD risk, pregnancy risk) were used to test differences in choice between and within condition. Results indicated significant differences between and within monetary and sexual domains. Next, magnitude differences were observed within each monetary and sexual condition. Lastly, individual differences indicated participants with higher views of the Future as Limited and Future as Ambiguous were less likely to wait for a delayed condom in the Low Pregnancy Risk condition. Higher condom pleasure was associated with a greater likelihood of waiting until a delayed condom was available in the High Attraction, Low STD Risk, and Low Pregnancy Risk conditions. This study advances our understanding of impulsive decision-making and addiction. First, between condition differences were observed indicating that monetary and sexual decision making are distinct concepts that can yield distinct patterns of behavior. The High Attraction condition and the Low STD Risk condition had the least likelihood of waiting until a condom was available. Interestingly, the Low Pregnancy Risk condition elicited a greater likelihood of waiting until a condom was available. This suggests that STD Risk and Pregnancy Risk are evaluated differently and could motivate decision-making. Second, within condition differences were observed indicating that magnitude or level of risk can shift responding, even with the use of hypothetical constructs. Third, individual differences variables such as future time perspective and condom attitudes are associated with delayed condom choice

Lauching Geographic Education in to the 21st Century : The View from the United States.

La géographie scolaire aux États-Unis a connu une résurgence sans précédent au cours des deux dernières décennies. Il y a plusieurs raisons à ce renouveau de la discipline, parmi lesquelles un fort taux d'« analphabétisme géographique » chez les élèves, solidement documenté, qui a soulevé le courroux des politiciens, des parents et des géographes (The Gallop Organization, 1988). Cet article examine la façon dont la réforme éducative a fait face aux difficultés auxquelles est confrontée la discipline à l'aube du nouveau millénaire. Pour parvenir à régler ces difficultés, il fallait imprimer à la géographie scolaire des modifications qui se sont déroulées en trois phases : 1) la prise de conscience des problèmes auxquels fait face la discipline; 2) l'élaboration de normes nationales en matière de contenu, afin de guider l'enseignement de la discipline; et 3) l'évaluation par État et à l'échelle nationale des résultats obtenus par les élèves et des initiatives enseignantes en géographie. Les auteurs discutent de l'importance de chacune de ces trois phases dans le contexte de la géographie scolaire aux États-Unis.Geographic education in the United States has experienced an unprecedented resurgence in the schools during the past two decades. There are several compelling reasons for a revival of the discipline, among them a thoroughly documented level of geographic illiteracy in the school age population that raised the ire of politicians, parents, and geographers alike (The Gallop Organization, 1988). This paper discusses the way that educational reform has addressed the problems facing geographic education on the eve of the new millennium. A successful approach to the issues necessitated being able to move geography education forward in three phases. They were: 1) awareness of the problems facing the discipline; 2) the development of rigorous content standards to guide geography education nationally, and 3) national and state assessments of student performance in geography and teacher preparation initiatives. The significance of each of the three phases is discussed within the context of geographic education within the United States