Traceability Adoption by Specialty Crop Producers in California

Surveys were sent to specialty crop producers in California, predominantly grower-packer-shippers, during the first half of 2006 to better understand the motives for traceability adoption. The questions in our survey allowed respondents to consider the benefits of tracing. A representative tracing system for melons was developed and costs for the system were collected from industry sources. Values were assigned to the benefits of traceability based on the cost of the representative system, responses collected in our survey, and using Borda’s rule. Results suggest that litigation concerns and firm reputation are the key drivers for maintaining traceability.Borda’s rule, California, partial budget, specialty crops, survey, traceability, Agribusiness, Crop Production/Industries,

Motion‐Compensated Transform Coding

Interframe Hybrid Transform/dpcm Coders Encode Television Signals by Taking a Spatial Transform of a Block of Picture Elements in a Frame and Predictively Coding the Resulting Coefficients using the Corresponding Coefficients of the Spatial Block at the Same Location in the Previous Frame. These Coders Can Be Made More Efficient for Scenes Containing Objects in Translational Motion by First Estimating the Translational Displacement of Objects and Then using Coefficients of a Spatially Displaced Block in the Previous Frame for Prediction. This Paper Presents Simulation Results for Such Motion‐compensated Transform Coders using Two Algorithms for Estimating Displacements. the First Algorithm, Which is Developed in a Companion Paper, Recursively Estimates the Displacements from the Previously Transmitted Transform Coefficients, Thereby Eliminating the Need to Transmit the Displacement Estimates. the Second Algorithm, Due to Limb and Murphy, Estimates Displacements by Taking Ratios of Accumulated Frame Difference and Spatial Difference Signals in a Block. in This Scheme, the Displacement Estimates Are Transmitted to the Receiver. Computer Simulations on Two Typical Real‐life Sequences of Frames Show that Motion‐compensated Coefficient Prediction Results in Coder Bit Rates that Are 20 to 40 Percent Lower Than Conventional Interframe Transform Coders using Frame Difference of Coefficients. Comparisons of Bit Rates for Approximately the Same Picture Quality Show that the Two Methods of Displacement Estimation Are Quite Similar in Performance with a Slight Preference for the Scheme with Recursive Displacement Estimation. © 1979 the Bell System Technical Journa

The Effect of Channel Errors in the Differential Pulse-Code-Modulation Transmission of Sampled Imagery

This Paper Presents an Analysis, Simulation, and Discussion of the Effects of Communication Errors on Four-Bit Differential Pulse-Code Modulation (DPCM) Sampled Imagery. Simulations Are Presented that Describe the Effects of Inserting Periodic PCM Updates in Order to Correct Communication Errors in the DPCM Transmission of Photographic Scenes that Have Been Scanned and Sampled at the Nyquist Rate. Copyright © 1971 by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc

Academic freedom in Europe: time for a Magna Charta?

This paper is a preliminary attempt to establish a working definition of academic freedom for the European Union states. The paper details why such a definition is required for the European Union and then examines some of the difficulties of defining academic freedom. By drawing upon experience of the legal difficulties beset by the concept in the USA and building on previous analyses of constitutional and legislative protection for academic freedom, and of legal regulations concerning institutional governance and academic tenure, a working definition of academic freedom is then derived. The resultant definition which, it is suggested, could form the basis for a European Magna Charta Libertatis Academicae, goes beyond traditional discussions of academic freedom by specifying not only the rights inherent in the concept but also its accompanying duties, necessary limitations and safeguards. The paper concludes with proposals for how the definition might be tested and carried forward

Infrared Behaviour of the Gluon Propagator: Confining or Confined?

The possible infrared behaviour of the gluon propagator is studied analytically, using the Schwinger-Dyson equations, in both the axial and the Landau gauge. The possibility of a gluon propagator less singular than $1/k^{2}$ when $k^{2} \rightarrow 0$ is investigated and found to be inconsistent, despite claims to the contrary, whereas an infrared enhanced one is consistent. The implications for confinement are discussed.Comment: 20 pages, latex, 2 figure

Academic freedom in Europe: a preliminary comparative analysis

Using comparative data from 23 states within the European Union, this paper is a preliminary assessment of the protection for, and (by extension) the health of, academic freedom in the universities of the nations of the European Union. The paper examines constitutional and legislative protection for academic freedom, along with legal regulations concerning institutional governance, the appointment of the Rector and the existence of academic tenure, in order to create a composite picture of the health of academic freedom in the universities within the European Union nations. Additionally the paper considers how this preliminary analysis could be extended through possible further research to aid refinement of the results, and what policy steps could usefully be adopted at European level to protect and strengthen academic freedom

Fatal alcohol intoxication in women: A forensic autopsy study from Slovakia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Plenty of information related to alcoholism can be found in the literature, however, the studies have mostly dealt with the predominance of male alcoholism and data related to addiction in women are desperately scarce and difficult to find. Basic demographic data focusing on the impact of acute alcohol intoxication on the circumstances of death and social behaviour in the alcohol addicted female population are needed especially in the prevention of alcohol related mortality.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A retrospective forensic autopsy study of all accidental deaths due to alcohol intoxication over a 12-year period was performed in order to evaluate the locations, circumstances, mechanisms and causes of death.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A sample of 171 cases of intoxicated women who died due to blood alcohol concentration (BAC) equal to or higher than 2 g/kg was selected. Among them 36.26% (62/171) of women died due to acute alcohol intoxication (AAI). We noted an increase in the number of deaths in women due to AAI from 2 in 1994 up to 5 in 2005 (an elevation of 150% between the years 1994-2005). The age structure of deaths in women due to BAC and AAI followed the Gaussian distribution with a dominant group of women aged 41-50 years (45.16% and 35.09% respectively). The most frequent place of death (98%) among women intoxicated by alcohol was their own home. The study suggests a close connection between AAI and violence against women.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The increasing number of cases of death of women suffering from AAI has drawn attention to the serious problem of alcoholism in women in the Slovak Republic during the process of integration into "western" lifestyle and culture.</p

Structure at Work: Organizational Forms and the Division of Labor in U.S. Wineries

We show how organizational forms shape job structures, specifically the variety and types of jobs employees hold, extending previous research on job structures in four ways. First, the social codes associated with wineries' generalist and specialist forms constrain the number of jobs and functional areas delineated by job titles. Second, form-based constraints are weakened by institutional rules that impose categorical distinctions on organizations. Third, these constraints are stronger when there is more consensus around forms. Fourth, these constraints are contingent on the legitimacy and resources of organizations of varying ages and sizes