THE SOCIAL VALUE OF PUBLIC INVESTMENT IN CANADIAN WHEAT BREEDING RESEARCH

The level and distribution of the social benefits from public investment in Canadian wheat breeding research and extension activities are examined for the period 1946 to 1979. In addition, average and marginal rates of return are calculated. The results reveal that society has benefited substantially from such public investments, with producers receiving the greatest share of the benefits.Crop Production/Industries, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

Prairie Crop Diversification

The Canadian prairies traditionally have been dominated by spring wheat production. Crop diversification is now being advocated to enhance farm-level risk management, ecological benefits, nutrient cycling, and pest and disease control, and to reduce the farm economy’s reliance on income from a single crop. There has always been interest in diversifying away from wheat, but until recently, economically feasible alternatives have been limited, and government policies may have constrained the shift to other crops. Knowing the impact of prices and policies on crop diversification is essential to understanding producer response and to determining strategies to enhance cropping diversity.Marketing,

ORDINARY AND GENERALIZED STOCHASTIC DOMINANCE: A PRIMER

Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

From the Spider Leg to a Hydraulic Device

Workspace and control of multibody systems in nature and engineering are to a large extent determined by the properties of the connecting joints. In contrast to technical joints the natural systems are less stiff incorporating viscoelastic properties and even a simple hinge joint allows for movement and limited control in directions perpendicular to its main plane. Joints of spiders are of special interest as they are driven by hydraulic pressure which mayfacilitate the construction of micro-devices. In a first step structure and function of a spider‘s leg has been investigated simulating movements observed in nature. Following the example from nature a multibody system was developed. Important properties are a) continuity of the material, b) local change of material properties, c) active control of local material properties, and d) hydraulic or pneumatic actuation. The joints can be cascaded thus allowing for the construction of branched multijointed systems driven by a single pressure source. Each joint can be controlled independently. The nonactivated joints remain as stiff as the connected bodies. Thus implementation of such joints do not increase the compliance of the total structure.In order to facilitate the design we develop a suitable mathematical model including structure, material properties, and control. The model is based on the theory of curved beams with large displacements

Tag Type and Location-Dependent Retention Impart Varied Levels of Bias on Mark–Recapture Parameter Estimates

Population parameter estimates from mark–recapture studies are dependent on individuals retaining marks or tags. Therefore, tag retention estimates are needed for different tag types and anatomical tagging locations. Few studies have empirically quantified the bias from tag retention on fish population parameters that are derived from mark–recapture studies. We examined differences in retention between T-bar anchor tags and PIT tags as well as among four anatomical locations for PIT tags in Brown Trout Salmo trutta in a tailwater fishery in Arkansas, USA. We also estimated the relative bias of tag type and PIT tag location on apparent survival estimates from Cormack–Jolly–-Seber models. Tag retention for the anchor tags was 15.1% lower than that for the PIT tags after 1 year and 46.1% lower after 4 years. Greater PIT tag retention resulted in less biased estimates of apparent survival for PIT tags (average −7.1%) than for anchor tags (average −37.8%). However, PIT tags that were placed in different anatomical locations had varying retention rates, so the degree of relative bias that was associated with their apparent survival estimates also varied. Inserting the PIT tags in the cheek or dorsal musculature provided the greatest retention for Brown Trout and may provide the least biased apparent survival estimates from future mark–recapture studies

Spring wheat rotations in north-central Saskatchewan

Non-Peer ReviewedEffects of rotation length, crop sequence, and fertilization on yields and economic performance of 10 spring wheat-based rotations are examined over a 27-year period (1960-86) on an Orthic Black Chernozem at Melfort, Saskatchewan. The silty clay loam soil had an initial organic N content of about 0.55 % (0-15 cm depth). During 1960-71, fertilized plots received N and P based on general recommendations for the region; thereafter, fertilizer was applied based on soil tests. Yields of wheat grown on fertilized fallow were similar for F-W, F-W-W and a 6-yr fallow-wheat-legume hay (F-W-W-H-H-W) rotation (avg 2519 kg ha-1 in 1960-71 and 3036 kg ha-1 in the wetter 1972-86 period). Fertilized stubble wheat yields in a F-W-W rotation averaged 88 % of comparable fallow wheat yields, while continuous wheat averaged only 66 % due to greater weed and disease problems. Inclusion of grass-legume hay or legume green manure crops in the rotations provided no yield benefit for subsequent wheat crops in this fertile soil. Results of the economic analysis showed that at wheat prices greater than $147 t-1, fertilized F-W-W, F-C-W and F-W-W-H-H-W generally provided the best overall economic return. At lower wheat prices unfertilized F-W-W and F-W-W-H-H-W, and fertilized F-W often provided the highest net income. It was profitable to substitute canola for wheat grown on conventional fallow or on partial fallow after grass-legume hay when the ratio of canola to wheat price was greater than about 2.0. Similarly, it was profitable to include grass-legume hay in wheat rotations when the hay price was greater than about one-half that of wheat. Continuous wheat and legume green manure rotation were not economically competitive with the best rotations at any of the price options examined. Fertilizer application was profitable in the F-W-W and continuous wheat rotations when the ratio of fertilizer N cost to wheat price was less than about 5.0; it was profitable in F-W-W-H-H-W when this ratio was less than 3.5. The cost of producing wheat, income variability, and the frequency of economic losses increased with cropping intensity

CTCF mediates chromatin looping via N-terminal domain-dependent cohesin retention

The DNA-binding protein CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) and the cohesin complex function together to shape chromatin architecture in mammalian cells, but the molecular details of this process remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that a 79-aa region within the CTCF N terminus is essential for cohesin positioning at CTCF binding sites and chromatin loop formation. However, the N terminus of CTCF fused to artificial zinc fingers was not sufficient to redirect cohesin to non-CTCF binding sites, indicating a lack of an autonomously functioning domain in CTCF responsible for cohesin positioning. BORIS (CTCFL), a germline-specific paralog of CTCF, was unable to anchor cohesin to CTCF DNA binding sites. Furthermore, CTCF-BORIS chimeric constructs provided evidence that, besides the N terminus of CTCF, the first two CTCF zinc fingers, and likely the 3D geometry of CTCF-DNA complexes, are also involved in cohesin retention. Based on this knowledge, we were able to convert BORIS into CTCF with respect to cohesin positioning, thus providing additional molecular details of the ability of CTCF to retain cohesin. Taken together, our data provide insight into the process by which DNA-bound CTCF constrains cohesin movement to shape spatiotemporal genome organization