Modelling the Impact of Decoupling on Structural Change in Farming: Integrating Econometric Estimation and Optimisation

Implementation of the Mid Term Review of the Common Agricultural Policy on farming in Europe is expected, and intended, to initiate structural changes in European agriculture. This impact of the agricultural policy reform will be triggered at the farm level with both up- and down-stream effects for agriculture in Europe. Modelling such a phenomenon is challenging. An integrated modelling approach, involving farm level optimisation models and exogenously estimated econometric models of farmer behaviour, is developed for Ireland; this framework is a general one and is applicable elsewhere. Entry and exit from farming, postulated as the main consequences of the policy reform, are estimated exogenously to determine their role in the allocation of farm labour. The results for Ireland show that farm numbers will decline more rapidly under decoupling relative to a baseline situation. Further, decoupling is likely to favour beef farming but, an increasing number of beef farmers will have to rely on outside income to sustain that system of farming. Dairy farmers will face a price cost squeeze and structural change in this sector will be accelerated.Common Agricultural Policy, Decoupling, Farm Level Modelling, Linear Programming, Succession, Labour Allocation, Agricultural and Food Policy, C6, Q12, Q15, Q58,

Snake-Bite Gangrene in Children: A Report of Two Cases

Snake-bite can be both life and limb threatening, especially when there is envenomation. Early intervention in a fairly equipped health facility can go a long way in preventing the morbidity and mortality that can result from delay in initiating treatment. In this paper we report two cases of snakebite to the lower limbs in children that were both complicated by gangrene which led to major limb amputation in both. These are avoidable complications that should have been averted by appropriate care immediately after the snake-bite. Key words:Snake-bite, Gangrene, Childre

Lineaments Analysis to Identify Favourable Areas for Groundwater in Kano City, Northwestern Nigeria

This work was carried out to investigate groundwater potentials of Kano city using lineament analysis, and to study the relationship between the characteristics and occurrence of groundwater in aquifers of about 200m deep in crystalline basement rocks of the area by examining the possibility of groundwater occurrence at such depths; despite the general understanding that fractures closes with depth. It shows the use of LANDSAT ETM+ imagery and geological map to investigate areas favorable for groundwater development.  This was achieved by plotting the lineament trends, and lineament density to know the groundwater potentials. Rose (azimuth-frequency) diagram of the lineaments delineated on the imagery shows trends in the directions of N-S, E-W, NE-SW, and NW-SE. The dominant trend is NW-SE. The analyses have shown that the study area has numerous fractures whose major trends are mainly in north-south and northwestern-southeastern directions. Lineament density map shows the cross-cutting lineaments are relatively high in areas around the north-eastern and south-western parts of the study area but low in the other areas. The zones of high lineament intersection density are feasible zones for groundwater prospecting.  The positions of deep boreholes on the map of the area do not coincide with the cross cutting lineaments, and are therefore the yields of the deep boreholes are not sustainable. Keywords: Lineaments, groundwater, boreholes, aquifer, fracture

Ab Initio Evidence for the Formation of Impurity d(3z^2-r^2) Holes in Doped La_{2-x}Sr_xCuO_4

Using the spin unrestricted Becke-3-Lee-Yang-Parr density functional, we computed the electronic structure of explicitly doped La_{2-x}Sr_xCuO_4 (x = 0.125, 0.25, and 0.5). At each doping level, an impurity hole band is formed within the undoped insulating gap. This band is well-localized to CuO_6 octahedra adjacent to the Sr impurities. The nature of the impurity hole is A_{1g} in symmetry, formed primarily from the z^2 orbital on the Cu and p_z orbitals on the apical O's. There is a strong triplet coupling of this hole with the intrinsic B_{1g} Cu x^2-y^2/O1 p_{sigma} hole on the same site. Optimization of the c coordinate of the apical O's in the doped CuO_6 octahedron lead to an asymmetric anti-Jahn-Teller distortion of the O2 atoms toward the central Cu. In particular, the O2 atom between the Cu and Sr is displaced 0.26 A while the O2 atom between the Cu and La is displaced 0.10 A. Contrary to expectations, investigation of a 0.1 A enhanced Jahn-Teller distortion of this octahedron does not force formation of an x^2-y^2 hole, but instead leads to migration of the z^2 hole to the four other CuO_6 octahedra surrounding the Sr impurity. This latter observation offers a simple explanation for the bifurcation of the Sr-O2 distance revealed in x-ray absorption fine structure data.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev. B. See http://www.firstprinciples.com for more informatio

Post-16 Curriculum and Qualifications Reform in England and Scotland: lessons from home international comparisons

In this article we compare Curriculum 2000 and Higher Still, recent reforms of post-16 education in England and Scotland respectively. We draw on current and earlier research on the unification of academic and vocational learning in England, Scotland and other European countries in order to suggest areas for mutual learning to inform future curriculum and qualifications reform north and south of the Border. We highlight five of these - the conduct of the policy process, issues of progression, assessment, approaches to vocational education and key/core skills. In our conclusion we speculate on the possibility of either convergence or divergence of the English and Scottish upper secondary education systems as both evolve

Electron Correlation and the c-axis Dispersion of Cu d_z^2: a New Band Structure for High Temperature Superconductors

Previously we showed the major effect of electron correlation in the cuprate superconductors is to lower the energy of the Cu d_x^2-y^2/O p_sigma (x^2-y^2) band with respect to the Cu d_z^2/O' p_z (z^2) band. In our 2D Hubbard model for La_1.85Sr_0.15CuO_4 (LaSCO), the z^2 band is narrow and crosses the standard x^2-y^2 band just below the Fermi level. In this work, we introduce c-axis dispersion to the model and find the z^2 band to have considerable anisotropic 3D character. An additional hole-like surface opens up in the z^2 band at (0,0,2pi/c) which expands with doping. At sufficient doping levels, a symmetry allowed x^2-y^2/z^2 band crossing along the (0,0)-(pi,pi) direction of the Brillouin zone appears at the Fermi level. At this point, Cooper pairs between the two bands (e.g. (k uparrow x^2-y^2/k downarrow z^2)) can form, providing the basis for the Interband Pairing Theory of superconductivity in these materials.Comment: submitted to Phys. Rev. Lett. Related publications: Phys. Rev. B 58, 12303 (1998); Phys. Rev. B 58, 12323 (1998); cond-mat/9903088; cond-mat/990310

Occultation Mapping of the Central Engine in the Active Galaxy MCG -6-30-15

The colossal power output of active galactic nuclei (AGN) is believed to be fueled by the accretion of matter onto a supermassive black hole. This central accreting region of AGN has hitherto been spatially unresolved and its structure therefore unknown. Here we propose that a previously reported `deep minimum' in the X-ray intensity of the AGN MCG-6-30-15, was due to a unique X-ray occultation event and that it probes structure of the central engine on scales < 1e14 cm, or 1.4e-7 arcseconds. The data are consistent with a bright central source surrounded by a less intense ring, which we identify with the inner edge of an accretion disk. These may be the first direct measurements of the spatial structure and geometry of the accreting black-hole system in an active galaxy.If the ring of X-ray emission is identified with the inner edge of an accretion disk, upper limits on the BH mass can be derived. Our occultation interpretation is controversial in the sense that X-ray variability in AGNs is normally attributed to intrinsic physical changes in the X-ray emission region, such as disk or coronal instabilities.Comment: 15 pages, 2 Figures. Latex with separate postscript figure files. Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter