Conducting feeding trials in north-west Queensland using auto-draft and weighing technology

This project has further developed a demonstration site of walk-over-weighing (WOW) and auto-draft equipment to trial the economic benefit, and pinpoint the timing of dry season supplementation and marketing decisions. This demonstration was established through the Meat & Livestock Australia Limited (MLA) co-funded WOW Producer Demonstration Site (PDS) developed on Wilburra Downs Station (Richmond) in 2011. Purchasing of new WOW equipment in 2015, along with support from the Richmond Beef Challenge Producer Group (RBCPG), has enabled the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) to continue demonstrating these innovative technologies and run evidence based trials. Consultation with industry and DAF staff members has identified the need to improve liveweight data reliability by scaling up yard and paddock facilities and increasing cattle numbers at the site. Through the assistance and dedication of the RBCPG, the site has been extended and fenced to accommodate more trial cattle. Several producers have expressed an interest in adopting these demonstrated technologies and it is therefore important independent evaluation continues in a commercial environment

Behavioural Finance & Corporate Investment: M&A Success, Pre-Merger Issuance and the Media

Classical economics proposed that individuals are rational beings that undertake essential due diligence when making a financial decision so as to reduce avoidable risk when investing. Despite the intuition behind such a conclusion, it has become widely recognised that investors are driven by animal spirits. These emotions can influence an investment decision and lead to a less than optimal outcome. This thesis includes three empirical chapters, which provide compelling evidence on the importance of behavioural finance in Mergers and Acquisitions. The results herein have practical relevance for academics, practitioners and regulators alike. The prevailing literature has focussed on corporate finance decisions under the assumption of universal rationality. Moreover most empirical research to-date has focussed on the US market, and yet the UK offers attractive characteristics worthy of future research. Firstly, most M&As (circa 80.2%) within the UK are financed using cash. Secondly, a large majority (circa 91%) of UK targets are unlisted companies. Finally, the UK remains the second-most active M&A market outside of the US. This chapter offers research in pursuit of understanding the UK market deeper, while simultaneously assessing the value of established findings in different settings. In this pursuit, the first empirical chapter of this thesis relaxes universal rationality, modelling inefficiency at a firm and market level. Temporary deviations away from fundamental values can lead managers to attempt to time capital markets both in the decision to merge and in the choice over the payment method to be used. Using an intuitive methodological approach, the empirical results in Chapter Three indicate that market-timing using overvalued equity is not supported in the UK with evidence contrasting established US findings. The results suggest that undervaluation however is a stronger motive for merger activity as shareholders benefit twofold from the revaluation of the firm as well as the addition of the target’s assets. An additional weakness of previous literature lies in the failure to interact various corporate decisions together. Chapter Four combines capital structure changes with the effects on an acquirer’s abnormal return. The choice between debt and equity can give the market an indication over the beliefs of the managerial team regarding the firm’s future cash flows. The decision to issue equity can signal overvaluation while issuing debt can exert an external monitoring mechanism on managerial teams leading to better corporate investments. Chapter Four supports the view of debt as a disciplinary mechanism with significantly lower losses experienced by acquirers that issue debt in the three years before announcing a M&A. The final empirical chapter of this thesis takes note of the power of mass media to influence an investor’s decision-making process. In an attempt to undertake in-depth due diligence, individuals can utilise prestigious mass media to help decide which firms to invest within, while the mass media can also reflect public opinion of the firm. Chapter Five indicates that acquirers that are covered in the media, and thus are placed in investor’s minds, earn significantly better returns long-term than those that are not in the media. The results indicate that it is the coverage rather than the attitude of the media that influences an acquirer’s stock price. This finding supports the view that any publicity is good publicity. Overall, this thesis provides valuable evidence that challenges the assumption of universal rationality. It is recommended that if we wish to understand financial markets better, then we must seek to understand the people that make decisions within them

The power of perceptions: exploring the role of urban design in cycling behaviours and healthy ageing

Good urban design has the power to aid in the provision of inclusive journey environments, yet traditionally neglects the perspective of the cyclist. This paper starts from the premise that more can be done to understand and articulate cyclists’ experiences and perceptions of the urban environment in which they cycle, as part of a closer linking of urban design qualities with transport planning and infrastructure interventions. This approach is particularly applicable in relation to older cyclists, a group whose needs are often poorly understood and for whom perceptions can significantly influence mobile behaviours. Currently, knowledge regarding the relationship between the built environment and physical activity, including cycling, in older adults is limited. As European countries face up to the challenges associated with ageing populations, some metropolitan regions, such as Munich, Germany, are making inroads into widening cycling’s appeal across generations through a combination of urban design, policy and infrastructure initiatives. The paper provides a systematic understanding of the urban design qualities and built environment features that affect cycling participation and have the potential to contribute towards healthy ageing. Urban design features such as legibility, aesthetics, scale and open space have been shown to influence and affect other mobile behaviours (e.g. walking), but their role as a mediator in cycle behaviour remains under-explored. Many of these design ‘qualities’ are related to individual perceptions; capturing these can help build a picture of quality in the built environment that includes an individual’s relationship with their local neighbourhood and its influences on their mobility choices. Issues of accessibility, facilities, and safety in cycling remain crucial, and, when allied to these design ‘qualities‘, provides a more rounded reflection of everyday journeys and trips taken or desired. The paper sets out the role that urban design might play in mediating these critical mobility issues, and in particular, in better understanding the ‘quality of the journey’. It concludes by highlighting the need for designers, policy makers, planners and academics to consider the role that design can play in encouraging cycle participation, especially as part of a healthy ageing agenda

Uncertainty triggers overreaction: evidence from corporate takeovers

Behavioural finance models suggest that under uncertainty, investors overweight their private information and overreact to it. We test this theoretical prediction in an M&A framework. We find that under high information uncertainty, when investors are more likely to possess firm-specific information, acquiring firms generate highly positive and significant gains following the announcement of private stock and private cash acquisitions (positive news) while the market heavily punishes public stock (negative news) deals. On the other hand, under conditions of low information uncertainty, when investors do not possess private information, the market reaction is complete (i.e. zero abnormal returns) irrespective of the type of acquisition. Overall, we provide empirical evidence that shows that information uncertainty plays a significant role in explaining short-run acquirer abnormal returns

Creative Inquiry: using a Positive Feedback Loop to Develop Career Skills and Graduate Student Mentors

Undergraduate and graduate students work through an academic year in a Creative Inquiry (CI) culinary nutrition research project. A feedback loop presents the undergraduate members of the CI with the opportunity to be mentored through their investigations by a graduate student and faculty to develop new skills important for their future education and career goals

HIV positive patient with GBS-like syndrome

Introduction. Guillain–Barré Syndrome (GBS) is an acute demyelinating polyneuropathy which can occur post-infection. Criteria of diagnosis of GBS include areflexia with progressive bilateral weakness in arms and legs. GBS can lead to severe respiratory and cardiac complications. The fatality rate can be up to 5 % in patients, depending on the severity of the symptoms. HIV can cause a range of neurological disorders including, on rare occasions, GBS. GBS can occur at any stage of HIV infection, highlighting the complexity of diagnosis of GBS within HIV patients. Case presentation. A 57 year old female with lumbar back pain radiating to the legs, poor mobility and tiredness, with reports of a viral-like illness four days previously, was initially diagnosed with a lower respiratory tract infection and discharged. Seventeen days later the patient was readmitted to hospital with progressive lower and upper limb weakness, areflexia and sensory loss. She was diagnosed with GBS and was unexpectedly discovered to be HIV-positive. HIV avidity was low indicating a recently acquired HIV infection. The patient was treated with intravenous immunoglobulin for five days for the GBS and commenced antriretrovirals for HIV. The patient was discharge from hospital 53 days after admission with walking aids and regular physiotherapy follow-up. Conclusion. This case highlighted the need for all clinicians to be aware that patients with symptoms of GBS, regardless of clinical history should be offered an HIV test. GBS can be the first sign a patient is HIV-positive

Confluence and contours: reflexive management of environmental risk

Government institutions have responsibilities to distribute risk management funds meaningfully and to be accountable for their choices. We took a macro-level sociological approach to understanding the role of government in managing environmental risks, and insights from micro-level psychology to examine individual-level risk-related perceptions and beliefs. Survey data from 2,068 U.K. citizens showed that lay people's funding preferences were associated positively with beliefs about responsibility and trust, yet associations with perception varied depending on risk type. Moreover, there were risk-specific differences in the funding preferences of the lay sample and 29 policymakers. A laboratory-based study of 109 participants examined funding allocation in more detail through iterative presentation of expert information. Quantitative and qualitative data revealed a meso-level framework comprising three types of decisionmakers who varied in their willingness to change funding allocation preferences following expert information: adaptors, responders, and resistors. This research highlights the relevance of integrated theoretical approaches to understanding the policy process, and the benefits of reflexive dialogue to managing environmental risks.Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs, EPSRC, NERC, ESR

Environmental controls on the production of calcium carbonate by earthworms

Lumbricus terrestris earthworms produce calcium carbonate (CaCO3) granules with unknown physiological function. To investigate carbon sequestration potential, the influence of temperature and CO2 concentration ([CO2]) on CaCO3 production was investigated using three soils, five temperatures (3-20 C) and four atmospheric [CO2] (439-3793 ppm). Granule production rates differed between soils, but could not be related to any soil characteristics measured. Production rates increased with temperature, probably because of higher metabolic rate, and with soil CO2 concentration. Implications for carbon sequestration are discussed. CaCO3 production in earthworms is probably related to pH regulation of blood and tissue fluid in the high CO2 environment of the soil