Contractual relationships in the Hungarian milk sector

In this paper we present an empirical analysis of farmers' contracting choice in the Hungarian milk sector using 2005 milk producer survey data, employing transaction cost economics. We focus on analysing some key determinants of farmers' contracting choices: type of contracts, duration, number of contractors, incentives provided in the contract and business history of farmers and buyers. Some of the main results include the importance and effect of farm size, quantity of milk delivered, planned short and long run or contract related investment on farm, the possibility of farmer to influence prices on the contracting choices. --transaction costs,contracts,milk products,Hungary

Variációszámítás és optimális irányítás

Az első rész a lineáris rendszerek irányíthatóságát és optimalizálását tárgyalja. Csak négyzetesen integrálható irányításokra szorítkozunk, így a Pontrjagin-féle maximumelvet egy igen szemléletes absztrakt elvből, a Hilbert-terek ortogonalitási tételéből vezetjük le. A második rész nemlineáris rendszerek optimalizálásával foglalkozik. Itt a Pontrjagin-féle maximumelvet ugyancsak az ortogonalitási tételből és a Ljuszternik-tételből vezetjük le. Mindkét részben az optimalitási kritériumokat bőséges, elsődlegesen közgazdaságtanilag releváns példaanyaggal illusztráljuk

A review on sheet erosion measurements in Hungary

Soil erosion has a significant role in ecology, economy and in environmental protection therefore its quantification and prediction are very important, particul arly on a national level. Although some details can be described using physical equations, the entire soil erosion process is rather complicated and can be determined only empirically, which requires large measured datasets. Because plot measurement is the most convenient and therefore the most popular way of capturing erosion data, we used plot measurement to understand erosion in Hungary. The northern and the western parts of the country are endangered by sheet erosion, which is why the plots were carried out in those areas. Most of the plots were constructed to determin e the “K” factor of the USLE (Universal Soil Loss Equation) under permanently tilled soils without vegetation cover. Additionally the soil protection effect of various field crops and the additiona l land use types (forest, pasture) was measured in the plots. Furthermore descriptive investigations, rainfall si mulations and soil tracer detections were also used to quantify sheet erosion at different environmental conditions and scales. Despite the large amount of measured data collected, only a few of them have since been pub lished. Due to a lack of available data, national erosion research, erosion prediction, and model calibration are less precise and effective Scaling problems among the measured levels also emphasized a de finite need for a larger and more accessible national database. Finally, without the financial base of additional plot measurements , the publication of the previously gathered data is absolutely necessary to continue soil erosion studies in Hungary

Az általános egyensúlyelmélet matematikai eszközei

Az általános egyensúlyelméleti modell a közgazdaságtan egyik legjelentősebb, egyszersmind legaxiomatizáltabb eredménye, amihez a legkiválóbb matematikusok úttörő munkájára volt szükség. E modell azóta is mintául szolgál a gazdaságról való gondolkodásra minden elméleti közgazdász számára. A modell maradéktalan megértéséhez és elsajátításához nélkülözhetetlen a felhasznált meglehetősen mély matematikai eszköztár ismerete. Ennek az eszköztárnak a felépítésére vállalkozott ez a könyv. Várakozásunk szerint nagy hasznára lesz mind a graduális illetve doktori szintű közgazdászhallgatóknak, mind pedig az elméleti szakembereknek

Contractual relationships in the Hungarian milk sector

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse farmers’ contracting choice in the Hungarian milk sector, employing transaction cost economics framework. Design/methodology/approach – The authors focus on some key determinants of farmers’ contracting choices using milk producer survey data. Different semi parametric and semi non parametric discrete choice models are applied to investigate the type of contracts, duration, number of contractors, incentives provided in the contract and business history of farmers and buyers. Findings – Main results confirm that contract-specific investment is a strong predictor explaining contract choice and contract design. Although trust is an important factor, the authors’ estimations however report some counterintuitive results. Farm size is also significantly associated with contracts and contractual arrangements. Vulnerability to opportunistic behaviour also depends on partner change switching costs and farmers’ bargaining power. Originality/value – This is a recent study that investigates the role of contracts between producers and processors, significantly contributing to the limited literature on contractual relationships in transition agricultures. Keywords Transaction costs, Contracts, Agriculture, Milk, Milk products, Hungary Paper type Research pape

Cultural Initiation of Medical Doctors

Eighteen years experience of teaching medical anthropology at a Hungarian medical school offers insight into the dy- namics of interference between the rationalist epistemological tradition of biomedicine as one of the central paradigms of modernism and the cultural relativism of medical anthropology, as cultural anthropology is considered to be one of the generators of postmodern thinking. Tracing back the informal »prehistory« of our Institute, we can reveal its psychoso- matic, humanistic commitment and critical basis as having represented a kind of counterculture compared with the tech- nocrats of state-socialist Hungary’s health ideology. The historical change and socio–cultural transition in Hungary af- ter 1989 was accompanied by changes in the medical system as well as in philosophy and in the structure of the teaching of social sciences. The developing pluralism in the medical system together with the pluralism of social ideologies al- lowed the substitution of the dogmatic Marxist-Leninist framework with the more pragmatic and empiricist behavioral sciences including medical sociology and medical anthropology. The conflict between the initiation function of the hard preclinical training of the first two years, and the reflective, relativistic and critical narrative on »biomedicine as culture bound entity« constructed by medical anthropology during the second year of medical training is discussed. We also sub- mit our fieldwork data gained as a result of a two year investigation period focusing on diverse initiation types of »would be« physicians. The main proportion of our data derives from individual semi structured deep interviews together with focus group interviews carried out with medical students of upper years. Finally, the role of medical anthropology in the »rite of passage« of becoming a medical doctor is summarized, paying attention to their field work reports and the risks and gains in this process