Model tests on single batter piles subjected to lateral soil movement

A series of laboratory tests have been carried out to investigate the lateral response of battered piles under lateral soil movement. Model tests were carried out using instrumented rigid aluminium piles. The piles were embedded in homogeneous sand soil at batter angles &beta = 0°, ±10° and ±20° were subjected to two types of lateral soil movement profile. The results obtained from the study are presented in terms of the bending moment, shear force, soil reaction, pile rotation and lateral deflections along the length of the batter pile. The results of model tests on single vertical and batter piles under horizontal loads showed that the batter angle (&beta) significantly influenced the response of the batter piles. Regardless of the value of sand density, bending moment and deflection with batter angles &beta = +10° or positive batter piles were higher compared then vertical piles and negative batter piles

A PARTIAL EQUILIBRIUM MODEL OF THE LINKAGES BETWEEN ANIMAL WELFARE, TRADE AND THE ENVIRONMENT IN SCOTLAND

This research analyses the impacts of a scientific advance that improves animal welfare, upon the environment and trade in Scotland using partial equilibrium (PE) modelling. The science improves pig neonatal survival through improved (high fibre) sow diets used before mating. Our model simulates the effects of animal welfare changes on the pig production systems (pig meat) and further on trade flows (trade in pig meat) and environment (water and air pollution). We consider two animal welfare simulation scenarios, namely the status quo – no animal welfare change as regards pig neonatal mortality (baseline scenario) and the case of improving pig neonatal survival (alternative scenario) and compare the impacts on trade and environment between the two scenarios during the simulation horizon 2008-2015. The results show that the increase in animal welfare has a lower impact on the environment in the alternative scenario compared to the baseline scenario (by about 6% at the end of the simulation horizon) and a positive impact on net trade in the alternative scenario compared to the baseline scenario (by about 13% at the end of the simulation horizon).Pig Welfare, Trade, Environment, Scotland, Partial Equilibrium Model., Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Q18, Q50,

A Structural Equation Model of the Factors Influencing British Consumers’ Behaviour towards Animal Welfare

Results of national and pan-European consumer surveys and the growth in the demand for so-called “animal friendly” food products suggest that consumers within the European Union show a high level of concern for the welfare of farm animals. This paper analyses the determinants of British consumers’ behaviour towards animal welfare using structural equation models (SEM) with observed and latent variables. SEM is a statistical technique for testing and estimating relationships amongst variables, using a combination of statistical data and qualitative causal assumptions. We used a data set collected in 2005 through face-to-face interviews of 654 consumers in England. We analysed the range of statements in existing literature on consumers’ behaviour towards animal welfare and then used SEM to test and estimate these a priori determinants of behaviour. The models include observed and latent variables representing behaviour (stated purchases of free-range and organic chicken meat) and its underlying determinants (attitudes towards animal welfare and socio-economic factors). The models have an adequate overall fit to the data. The significance tests for the structural equation model on free-range chicken meat purchasing behaviour show socioeconomic group, education, attitudes towards animal welfare, reasons for buying chicken meat, access to information on animal welfare issues, number of children and price as significant determinants. All of these (with the exception of reasons for buying chicken meat) were found significant also in the model on organic chicken meat purchasing behaviour.animal welfare, consumers’ behaviour, structural equation models., Agricultural and Food Policy,

An Analysis of the Potential Impact of the Elimination of EU Export Refunds for Developing Countries

International Development,

Measuring the economic benefits and costs of Bluetongue virus outbreak and control strategies in Scotland

This paper provides an ex-ante economic analysis, comparing six alternative control strategies for the eradication of Bluetongue virus 8 against five incursion scenarios in cattle and sheep populations. The economic analysis assumes a common baseline unavoidable cost of public and private measures that together contribute to prevention of incursion of BTV8 into Scotland. These costs continue over the five year horizon of this analysis regardless of whether a BTV8 epidemic ensues in Scotland and their total present value was found to be approximately £141m over the 5year period. The benefit of this investment is the costs of a BTV8 outbreak avoided; which depends on the time, location and nature of the incursion, on the control strategies adopted to counter each incursion, on the persistence of the incursion and on the opportunities to mitigate the damage. Specific variations in all these aspects were explored. The benefit-cost ratios were ranked within each incursion scenario to evaluate the efficiency of control outlays. Although the economic model found that benefit-cost ratios were greater than 1 for all interventions strategies examined, the control strategy option with 100% vaccination and protection zone set at Scottish Borders were economically preferable. This implies that if avoided this control option would deliver the greatest benefit from investment in baseline prevention costs. However, in terms of outbreak losses, this vaccination strategy was always most costly. On the other hand, the control strategy with 50% vaccination and all Scotland as a protection zone often provides the lowest benefits in all control options examinedbluetongue virus, epidemiology, direct and indirect costs, benefit analysis, Risk and Uncertainty,

Policy Implications of a Behavioural Economics Analysis of Land Use Determinants in Rural Scotland

The paper analyses the land use behaviour of Scottish land managers and the factors influencing it in the current context of the EU rural land use policies. The analysis employs a frequently used behavioural economics method, namely structural equation modelling (SEM). Central to the empirical analysis in this paper is a cross-section database containing data collected in May to June 2009 through telephone interviews of 600 land managers in Scotland. The model tests and estimates the relationships between land use behaviour, i.e., behavioural intentions to change the size of business/holding, and several of its a priori determinants found significant in the scientific literature. The results indicate that a stronger propensity to change size of their businesses is exhibited by younger land managers who intend to pass their land on to family, with larger land size and stronger attitudes towards increasing it, with lower percentage of their income made up from Government support, who are less likely to have perceived changes in regulation and input/output prices as having an impact on their business, who discuss and plan changes in size of business with their banks/building societies, and frequently access sources of information to help with their strategic decisions.Land use, rural policies, Scotland, structural equation modelling, Land Economics/Use,

Stacked optical antennas for plasmon propagation in a 5 nm-confined cavity

The sub-wavelength concentration and propagation of electromagnetic energy are two complementary aspects of plasmonics that are not necessarily co-present in a single nanosystem. Here we exploit the strong nanofocusing properties of stacked optical antennas in order to highly concentrate the electromagnetic energy into a 5 nm metal-insulator-metal (MIM) cavity and convert free radiation into guided modes. The proposed nano-architecture combines the concentration properties of optical nanoantennas with the propagation capability of MIM systems, paving the way to highly miniaturized on-chip plasmonic waveguiding

A novel metric for coronal MHD models

[1] In the interest of quantitatively assessing the capabilities of coronal MHD models, we have developed a metric that compares the structures of the white light corona observed with SOHO LASCO C2 to model predictions. The MAS model is compared to C2 observations from two Carrington rotations during solar cycle 23, CR1913 and CR1984, which were near the minimum and maximum of solar activity, respectively, for three radial heights, 2.5 R⊙, 3.0 R⊙, and 4.5 R⊙. In addition to simulated polarization brightness images, we create a synthetic image based on the field topology along the line of sight in the model. This open-closed brightness is also compared to LASCO C2 after renormalization. In general, the model\u27s magnetic structure is a closer match to observed coronal structures than the model\u27s density structure. This is expected from the simplified energy equations used in current global corona MHD models