GRID PRICING FOR FED CATTLE: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS

Weekly grid premium and discount price date for fed cattle have been collected over a 3-year period. The grid price data are combined with carcass data (2590 South Dakota slaughter steers) to investigate the variability in the average weekly carcass premium is affected by changes in packer-determined grid premiums and discounts on a weekly basis. The three-stage recursive model is then estimated using an autoregressive procedure. The results of the empirical analysis indicated that among all grid premiums and discounts, it is the choice-select discount that plays the dominant role in determining weekly changes in the average weekly carcass premium (discount).slaughter cattle, grid pricing, average pricing, value-based-marketing, Marketing,

Single aggressive interactions increase urinary glucocorticoid levels in wild male chimpanzees

Financial support was provided by British Academy [http://www.britac.ac.uk/] (CC), Leakey Foundation [http://www.leakeyfoundation.org/] (CC, RMW, TD), Leverhulm Trust [http://www.leverhulme.ac.uk/] (KZ), Max Planck Society [http://www.eva.mpg.de/] (AW, CC, RMW, TD) and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland [http://www.rzss.org.uk/], in providing core funding for Budongo Conservation Field Station. This project has received additional funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Program for research, technological development and demonstration [http://ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/index_e​n.cfm] under grant agreement no 283871.A basic premise in behavioural ecology is the cost-benefit arithmetic, which determines both behavioural decisions and evolutionary processes. Aggressive interactions can be costly on an energetic level, demanding increased energy or causing injuries, and on a psychological level, in the form of increased anxiety and damaged relationships between opponents. Here we used urinary glucocorticoid (uGC) levels to assess the costs of aggression in wild chimpanzees of Budongo Forest, Uganda. We collected 169 urine samples from nine adult male chimpanzees following 14 aggressive interactions (test condition) and 10 resting events (control condition). Subjects showed significantly higher uGC levels after single aggressive interactions compared to control conditions, likely for aggressors as well as victims. Higher ranking males had greater increases of uGC levels after aggression than lower ranking males. In contrast, uGC levels showed no significant change in relation to aggression length or intensity, indicating that psychological factors might have played a larger role than mere energetic expenditure. We concluded that aggressive behaviour is costly for both aggressors and victims and that costs seem poorly explained by energetic demands of the interaction. Our findings are relevant for studies of post-conflict interactions, since we provide evidence that both aggressors and victims experience a stress response to conflict.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Numerical simulation of heavy fermions in an SU(2)_L x SU(2)_R symmetric Yukawa model

An exploratory numerical study of the influence of heavy fermion doublets on the mass of the Higgs boson is performed in the decoupling limit of a chiral $\rm SU(2)_L \otimes SU(2)_R$ symmetric Yukawa model with mirror fermions. The behaviour of fermion and boson masses is investigated at infinite bare quartic coupling on $4^3 \cdot 8$, $6^3 \cdot 12$ and $8^3 \cdot 16$ lattices. A first estimate of the upper bound on the renormalized quartic coupling as a function of the renormalized Yukawa-coupling is given.Comment: 15 pp + 11 Figures appended as Postscript file

Endogenous peripheral oxytocin measures can give insight into the dynamics of social relationships: A review

The neuropeptide, oxytocin, receives increasing attention due to its role in stress regulation and promoting affiliative social behavior. Research across mammals points to a complex pattern whereby social context and individual differences moderate the central release of oxytocin as well as moderate the effects that exogenous administration of oxytocin has on social behavior. In addition, it is becoming evident that measuring endogenous peripheral oxytocin levels is an informative tool. This is particularly so when oxytocin can be measured from non-invasively collected samples, such as in urine. Although it is still debated as to whether peripheral measures of oxytocin relate to central measures of oxytocin, anatomical and functional evidence indicate a link between the two. We argue that non-invasive measures of peripheral oxytocin hold several research and potential therapeutic advantages. Principally, study subjects can be sampled repeatedly in different social contexts where social history between interaction partners can be taken into account. Several hormones can be measured simultaneously allowing examination of the influence of oxytocin interactions with other hormones on motivational states. Valence of relationships as well as changes in relationship quality over time can be measured through endocrine responses. Also, the approach of identifying natural social contexts that are associated with endogenous oxytocin release offers the potential of behavioral therapy as an addition or alternative to chemical therapy in the field of mental health

Characterization of new hybrid pixel module concepts for the ATLAS Insertable B-Layer upgrade

The ATLAS Insertable B-Layer (IBL) collaboration plans to insert a fourth pixel layer inside the present Pixel Detector to recover from eventual failures in the current pixel system, especially the b-layer. Additionally the IBL will ensure excellent tracking, vertexing and b-tagging performance during the LHC phase I and add robustness in tracking with high luminosity pile-up. The expected peak luminosity for IBL is 2 to 3centerdot1034 cm-2s-1 and IBL is designed for an integrated luminosity of 700 fb-1. This corresponds to an expected fluence of 5centerdot1015 1 MeV neqcm-2 and a total ionizing dose of 250 MRad. In order to cope with these requirements, two new module concepts are under investigation, both based on a new front end IC, called FE-I4. This IC was designed as readout chip for future ATLAS Pixel Detectors and its first application will be the IBL. The planar pixel sensor (PPS) based module concept benefits from its well understood design, which is kept as similar as possible to the design of the current ATLAS Pixel Detector sensor. The second approach of the new three dimensional (3D) silicon sensor technology benefits from the shorter charge carrier drift distance to the electrodes, which completely penetrate the sensor bulk. Prototype modules of both sensor concepts have been build and tested in laboratory and test beam environment before and after irradiation. Both concepts show very high performance even after irradiation to 5centerdot1015 1 MeV neqcm-2 and meet the IBL specifications in terms of hit efficiency being larger than 97%. Lowest operational threshold studies have been effected and prove independent of the used sensor concept the excellent performance of FE-I4 based module concepts in terms of noise hit occupancy at low thresholds.Comment: Part of 9th International Conference on Position Sensitive Detectors (PSD9

Unter Mordverdacht: Differenzialdiagnose einer Arsenvergiftung

Zusammenfassung: Es wird ein Fall vorgestellt, der auf den ersten Blick an spektakuläre Arsenmorde der Vergangenheit anzuknüpfen scheint. Im Rahmen von Scheidungsstreitigkeiten zwischen einem 70-jährigen Mann und seiner knapp 30Jahre jüngeren Frau war es beim Betroffenen zu Symptomen einer Arsenvergiftung gekommen. Nach dem unerwarteten Tod seines Hundes hatte der Mann seinen Hausarzt aufgesucht, der bei einer Blutuntersuchung einen erhöhten Arsenspiegel feststellte. Bei chemisch-toxikologischen Analysen von Probenmaterial, das im Rahmen rechtsmedizinischer Untersuchungen der Betroffenen sowie einer Exhumierung des Hundes gewonnen wurde, fanden sich bei dem Mann und seiner Frau auffällig erhöhte Arsenspiegel. Die vorliegende Kasuistik unterstreicht eindrücklich die Wichtigkeit der Arsenspezifizierung in einem qualifizierten Labor im Fall einer erhöhten Arsenkonzentration in Probenmateria

A precise determination of the charm quark's mass in quenched QCD

We present a lattice determination of the charm quark's mass, using the mass of the D_s meson as experimental input. All errors are under control with the exception of the quenched approximation. Setting the scale with F_K=160 MeV, our final result for the renormalization group invariant (RGI) quark mass is M_c = 1.654(45) GeV, which translates to m_c(m_c) =1.301(34) GeV for the running mass in the MSbar scheme. A 6 percent increase of the RGI quark mass is observed when the scale is set by the nucleon mass. This is a typical quenched scale ambiguity, which is reduced to about 3 percent for m_c(m_c), and to 4 percent for the mass ratio M_c/M_s. In contrast, the mass splitting m(Dstar_s)-m(D_s) changes from 117(11) MeV to 94(11) MeV, which is significantly smaller than the experimental value of 144 MeV.Comment: 27 pages, 5 figure

Mechanical properties of three-dimensional interconnected alumina/steel metal matrix composites

Three-dimensional interconnected alumina/steel metal matrix composites (MMCs) were produced by pressureless Ti-activated melt infiltration method using three types of Al2O3 powder with different sizes and shapes. By partial sintering during infiltration an interpenetrating ceramic network was realised. The effect of the ceramic particle size and shape on the resulting ceramic network, volume % fraction and the MMC properties is presented. The MMCs were characterised for mechanical properties at room temperature and elevated temperature. An increase in flexural strength and Young's modulus with decreasing particle size has been observed. In addition, the effect of the volume of ceramic content and the surface finish of the MMCs on the wear behaviour is show

Mass Spectrum and Bounds on the Couplings in Yukawa Models With Mirror-Fermions

The $\rm SU(2)_L\otimes SU(2)_R$ symmetric Yukawa model with mirror-fermions in the limit where the mirror-fermion is decoupled is studied both analytically and numerically. The bare scalar self-coupling $\lambda$ is fixed at zero and infinity. The phase structure is explored and the relevant phase transition is found to be consistent with a second order one. The fermionic mass spectrum close to that transition is discussed and a first non-perturbative estimate of the influence of fermions on the upper and lower bounds on the renormalized scalar self-coupling is given. Numerical results are confronted with perturbative predictions.Comment: 7 (Latex) page