Prominences in SDO/EVE spectra: contributions from large solar structures

The EVE instrument on SDO is making accurate measurements of the solar spectral irradiance in the EUV between 30 and 1069 Å, with 1 Å spectral resolution and 10 s sampling rate. These data define solar variability in the “Sun-as-a-star” mode and reveal many interesting kinds of variation. Its high sensitivity also makes it suitable for spectroscopic diagnostics of solar features such as flares. Here we present EVE's potential contribution to the diagnostics of large-scale, slowly evolving features such as prominences and active regions, and what we can learn from this

Migrant Workers' Interactions with Welfare Benefits: A Review of Recent Evidence and its Relevance for the Tax Credits System

This literature review was conducted as part of the HMRC project "European migrant workers' understanding and experience of the tax credits system". The project aimed to identify the issues faced by migrant workers when claiming Child Tax Credit (CTC) and/or Working Tax Credit (WTC). The group of interest was migrant workers who had recently settled in the UK and resided there for less than five years. Four countries of origin were selected for the study: Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia, and Portugal

DECLINING COTTON ACREAGE IMPACTS ON U.S. COTTON GINNING INDUSTRY STRUCTURE AND COSTS

Paper prepared for 2010 Cotton Beltwide Conferences, New Orleans, Louisiana, January, 2010Agribusiness, Industrial Organization,

Industry Organization and Output Size Distribution of Cotton Gins in the U.S.

With cotton output declining by 46 percent from 2005-2008 (from 23.89 M bales in 2005 to 12.8 M bales in 2008), gins are processing less cotton. This paper examines how output size distribution of cotton gins in the U.S. has evolved and the extent to which the developments in the U.S. ethanol industry, specifically the passage of the Energy Policy Act in 2005 (and its subsequent revisions), have influenced this structural process. Markov transitional probability matrices (TPMs) are estimated for two periods: 1994-2004 and 2005-2008 to determine changes in output size distribution of gins. TPMs indicate that relative to the pre-2005 period, gins had a greater propensity to process lower outputs after 2005. It is purported that in industries constrained by declining demand, bigger firms with excess capacity operate at higher costs than smaller firms that operate closer to their minimum efficient scale.cotton, cotton gins, transitional probabilities, Markov, minimum efficient scale, Agricultural and Food Policy, Crop Production/Industries, Industrial Organization, Q10, Q12, L11,

Industry Organization and Output Size Distribution of Cotton Gins in the U.S.

Selected Paper prepared for presentation at the Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL, February 6-9, 2010Cotton, cotton gins, transitional probabilities, Markov, minimum efficient scale, Crop Production/Industries, Industrial Organization,

Partnership in Practice

This paper examines human resource management practices adopted in a group of eight case study firms and their tendencies towards versus away from partnership. The analysis is based on data collected during interviews with 124 employees (75 in organisations tending towards partnership and 49 in organisations tending away from partnership) and senior managers, conducted in 1997-1998 for the Job Insecurity and Work Intensification Survey (JIWIS). Drawing on the perspectives of senior managers and employees, we examine the tendency of firms towards and away from partnership in employment relations; and in keeping with the JIWIS methodology (Burchell et.al., 2001) we combine quantitative and qualitative evidence in our analysis. Specifically, we are interested in what partnership looks like in these different contexts, the reasons it is pursued (or not), the degree to which companies have been successful in achieving their partnership objectives (from the perspective of both management and employees), and the conditions that have either facilitated or impeded partnership in relationships with employees.industrial partnership, corporate governance, cooperation

Response of Cotton to Oil Price Shocks

This paper shows that the response of cotton prices in the U.S. to fluctuations in oil prices in the international market may differ greatly depending on whether the increase is driven by demand or supply shocks in the crude oil market. In the long-run, around 3 percent of the variability in cotton prices can be attributed to shocks to global demand for industrial commodities while none can be traced to oil supply shocks.cotton, oil price, demand shocks, supply shocks, structural vector autoregression (SVAR), Agricultural and Food Policy, Demand and Price Analysis, Q11, Q41,

Employment Retention and Advancement (ERA) demonstration: delivery, take-up, and outcomes of in-work training support for lone parents (Research report No 727)

"This report focuses on the delivery, take-up and outcomes of the in-work training support provided through the Employment Retention and Advancement (ERA) demonstration... The ERA demonstration was designed to test the effectiveness of a programme to improve the labour market prospects of low-paid workers and long-term unemployed people." - page 4

Response of Cotton to Oil Price Shocks

Selected Paper prepared for presentation at the Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL, February 6-9, 2010Cotton, oil price, demand shocks, supply shocks, structural vector autoregression, Demand and Price Analysis, Industrial Organization,

Sino-U.S. Price Transmission in Agricultural Commodities: How Important are Exchange Rate Movements?

Commodity price transmissions between China and the U.S. are examined. The results indicate that variations in Chinese cotton and soybean prices are transmitted to U.S. cotton and soybean prices while variations in Chinese wheat and rice prices do not get transmitted to U.S. wheat and rice prices. The effects of volatilities in oil prices and in the exchange rate on the price transmission are also assessed.rice, soybean, cotton, wheat, China, U.S., price transmission, exchange rate, Agricultural and Food Policy, Demand and Price Analysis, Q11, Q17,