Production, perceptions and limitations of organic small grains in Iowa

Small grains, such as, barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), oat (Avena sativa L.), rye (Secale cereale L.), triticale (X Triticosecale Wittmack) and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) contribute to the proper functioning of organic row crop systems in Iowa and the upper Midwest. Besides producing grain and straw, which have value either as sold products or on-farm inputs, they are commonly used rotation crops that contribute functions such as forage legume establishment and weed suppression. Additionally, they may contribute to a suite of below ground functions that included soil quality improvement and disease suppression. However, small grains themselves are less profitable than corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.). Some of this has to do with production challenges to grain yield and grain quality, the latter being often more important than the former. Some of this may be dependent on economic considerations such as market options or a lack thereof. Additionally, these challenges and considerations are also intertwined with farmer perceptions, which can shape and be shaped by these different factors. The goal of this research was to use a variety of methodologies, specific to agronomy, sociology, and economics, to explore the present status of organic small grains in Iowa. This was achieved via a large-scale, mixed-methods study involving 41 farmers across the state, a set of three on-farm trials at seven farms, and an agronomic small-plot experiment at the Iowa State University Agricultural Engineering and Agronomy Farm. The mixed-methods study helped to highlight a range of production, economic and farmer perception-based factors and was useful in generating hypotheses for on-farm and on-station research. The latter two studies focused on oat. On-farm trials consisted of testing low-cost tactics such as oat density manipulations, physical weed control and planting oat as a monoculture followed by a mid-season cover crop vs. oat planting with a forage legume underseeding. On-station research further examined the effects of oat population density and delayed planting

Labor Market Density and Increasing Returns to Scale: How Strong is the Evidence?

Models of economic geography posit that the density of economic activity has two e¤ects that oppose each other in equilibrium: decreasing returns to productive activities due to congestion e¤ects and increasing returns that result from information spillovers and local demand externalities. In an in�uential paper, Ciccone and Hall (1996) looked at the effect of county level labor market concentration on per-worker Gross State Product in a cross section of US States, and observed that on net, the increasing returns/agglomeration effect dominates. We extend their analysis and re-examine the relationship between density and productivity across industries and over both states and time. Through careful identi�cation of the source and nature of productivity shocks, we show that the evidence for agglomeration effects is indeed quite robust, even within industries, providing evidence for the presence of Marshallian externalities. As for the balance of agglomeration and congestion e¤ects found in previous literature, what we call �net increasing returns to scale", the evidence is much weaker.

Fluoroscopic X-Ray Shoe Fitting Devices

Exposure to X-rays or other radiation over and above a certain cumulative tolerance limit can be damaging to the human body. This fact is thoroughly explained in Mr. Humphrey\u27s article on Radiation in this issue of this law review. But a person thus injured by x-ray radiation from so-called fluoroscopic fitting machines in shoe stores will find it virtually impossible to make out a cause of action in negligence against the owners and operators of the machines. Yet, use of such machines now is known to be seriously harmful, unless that use is closely controlled

Appellate Caseload: Meeting the Challenge in Rhode Island

Two of the most challenging and frustrating problems facing appellate courts in America are increasingly congested dockets and the sluggish pace of litigation. In an effort to combat these problems, the Supreme Court of Rhode Island has recently initiated several procedural techniques for screening and settling criminal and civil cases on appeal. These techniques have proven highly effective and should provide other appellate courts at least a partial answer to the burgeoning appellate caseload

Set & Drift: The Danger of Ambiguity

Remarks by The Honorable Joseph R. Weisberger, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Rhode Island, Naval War College Graduation Exercises, 25 June 198

Fluoroscopic X-Ray Shoe Fitting Devices

Exposure to X-rays or other radiation over and above a certain cumulative tolerance limit can be damaging to the human body. This fact is thoroughly explained in Mr. Humphrey\u27s article on Radiation in this issue of this law review. But a person thus injured by x-ray radiation from so-called fluoroscopic fitting machines in shoe stores will find it virtually impossible to make out a cause of action in negligence against the owners and operators of the machines. Yet, use of such machines now is known to be seriously harmful, unless that use is closely controlled