Alternative Output Research Articles

On the aggregation problem in international comparisons of agricultural production aggregates

The major aim of this short paper is to provide an original systematic statement of the index number problem involved in obtaining internationally comparable agricultural production aggregates. Alternative output repricing and implicit exchange rates methods are expounded. The standard method of comparison based on wheat-relatives, as used in the work of Hayami and associates, is critically reviewed, and a case is made for the use of alternative procedures.

Influences of production circumstances on the economic revenue of cattle breeding programmes

ABSTRACTThe economic values of cattle production traits differ with different production circumstances. This sensitivity implies that (1) production circumstances influence the revenue of breeding programmes, and (2) losses in revenue of breeding programmes occur when circumstances used in defining breeding goals are incorrect with regard to actual production circumstances at the moments of expression of genetic superiorities. In this study, these effects are quantified for a set of genotype and index traits, including milk production traits, food intake capacity and live weight. Twenty-four situations of production circumstances were studied, including alternative output limitations, milk production levels, roughage qualities and product (milk, beef) and production-factor (food) prices.Results indicate that type of output limitation is the most important factor in determining revenue. Also, incorrect prediction of type of limitation leads to highest losses in revenue found (proportionately 0·01 to 0·06 of revenue). Losses in revenue due to incorrect prediction of production circumstances seem too low to justify complete diversification of cattle breeding goals within a breeding organization, except for different types of output limitations.

Public sector productivity: the sensitivity of productivity indexes to alternative output measures and index number formulas

Focusing on a specific government agency, the Internal Revenue Service, and using publicly available data for the years 1956–1982, this article investigates two issues. First, because government agencies produce services which, in general, are not sold in markets, the appropriate measure and weighting of outputs is not obvious. Thus, it is of interest to know how sensitive an index of labor productivity is to the way in which output is measured. Second, in computing labor productivity, an index number formula must be selected. Dispersion among the index numbers is not uncommon, making the choice among formulas an important issue. Results indicate that the choice of both the output measure and index formula are important.

The optimum size distribution of firms

An industry performance evaluation function, which is used for ranking alternative output distributions, is usually expressed as a trading-off of the total output and a ‘numbers equivalent’, an inverse index of industrial concentration. Using the Shannon entropy numbers equivalent, this paper determines the output distribution that maximises the industry performance evaluation function subject to the constraints that (i) a fixed total output is produced by the industry and (ii) the total cost of producing the output is fixed. For a simple cost function, whose marginal is linear in logarithm of output, the optimum distribution will be of the Pareto-type.

Modelling of three-dimensional warehouse systems

SUMMARY The objective of this research is the development of an optimization procedure to aid a warehouse planner in the design of selected three-dimensional, palletized storage systems. All alternatives are compared in the overall model while simultaneously considered the following factors: control procedures, handling equipment movement in an aisle, storage rules, alternative handling equipment, input and output patterns for product flow, storage rack structure, component costs and the economics of each storage system. The resultant model is more complete than any other currently available for use by a designer in this complex decision environment.

New Measures of British Service Outputs

Official statistics suggest that over the last two decades the commercial service sector has grown rapidly both in absolute terms and relative to the rest of the British economy. Given the importance of service activities, and the fact that many of them are notoriously difficult to quantify, it is desirable that the reliability of service output measures be subject to scrutiny and, where possible, improvement. Accordingly this article presents some alternative output measures which have been compiled for financial, recreational and catering services, and compares the picture which emerges, for the economy as a whole and for individual service industries, with, that portrayed by official data.

Conceptual designs of a 50 nm FEL oscillator and a 20–40 nm SASE amplifier

This paper consists of two parts; (1) the conceptual design, and optical performance characteristics, of a grazing angle of incidence ring resonator utilizing multifaceted metal mirrors for use with a 50 nm rf linac driven XUV FEL oscillator, and (2) electron beam and wiggler requirements for a self-amplified spontaneous emission (SASE) amplifier to produce high power in the 20–40 nm wavelength range. The basis for these studies is the 3-d FEL simulation code FELEX which, in part (1), is used to derive tolerances on mirror figure and thermal distortion, alignment sensitivity, and alternative output coupling methods. In part (2), the sensitivity of the output characteristics of an XUV FEL SASE amplifier to wiggler field errors is also studied.

On the separable industry performance evaluation function

It has been suggested in the literature that an industry performance evaluation function, which is used for ranking alternative output distributions, can be expressed as a trading-off of the total output and a ‘numbers equivalent’, an inverse index of industrial concentration. It is shown that if this evaluation function is to be strongly separable, then the numbers equivalents become a subclass of the Hannah–Kay family of numbers equivalents. When the performance of the industry is determined by the volume of output produced, the numbers equivalent becomes the Shannon entropy numbers equivalent.

Optimizing the preparation plans of multicomponent mixes in a large-scale filling operations

1. A mathematical cost analysis model has been developed to help optimize the plans of the production of multicomponent filler mixes by a group of mines using a common filler raw material base. 2. Optimization of the annual plans for large-scale filling operations resulted in a cost reduction of 5–7%. 3. The implications of alternative filler raw material output plan for the mix preparation programs for mines and the related operation costs have been estimated for the Norilsk Integrated Mining and Metal Works.

Supply-Side Macro-Economics

This paper tests New Classical and Keynesian explanations of output determination within an encompassing model wherein the output decision by producers is modelled as the choice of a utilization rate for employed factors. In this encompassing model, the ratio of actual to normal output (with the latter defined by a nested CES vintage production function with capital, energy and employment as factor inputs) is explained by unexpected sales (a Keynesian element), abnormal profitability (one component of which is the Lucas price surprise effect), and abnormal inventories. Results using Canadian data show that the Keynesian and New Classical elements contribute explanatory power, as does the production-function-based measure of normal output, while each of these partial models is strongly rejected in favour of the encompassing model. The highly structured factor utilization model is also seen to fit better than an unstructured VAR model. U.S. data confirm the results, and show that there are significant effects from abnormal demand, profitability and inventory levels even if the labour and capital components of normal output are defined using hours and utilized capital rather than employment and the capital stock. The results are also confirmed using alternative output (and hence input) concepts, using a translog function instead of a CES function to define normal output, and using data for several other major industrial countries.(This abstract was borrowed from another version of this item.)

Measuring the contribution of biomedical research to the production of health

Technologically induced increases in health care costs have compelled policy-makers to ask hard budgetary questions about the value of biomedical research. Specific examples can be given to illustrate the returns from biomedical research on a disease-by-disease basis, but this information does not give a comprehensive enough perspective. The purpose of this paper is to estimate the historical contribution that biomedical research has made to the prolongation of life. Using a production function approach and various statistical models of the lag process, we estimate 23–48% of the decline in mortality over the 1930–1978 period can be attributed to biomedical research efforts. The lower bound estimate translates into a net return of $83 billion for our society, illustrating the past wisdom of investment in biomedical research. In recent years, however, the year-to-year decline in mortality rates has slowed, suggesting that mortality may not be an adequate output measure to justify expansion in research expenditures. Without alternative output measures, policy-makers and planners will have a difficult time in evaluating research benefits and making decisions on the allocation of future resources.

A BEHAVIORAL MODEL FOR COMMERCIAL BANKING*

THIS DISSERTATION sets up a model for the analysis of commercial bank behavior. The approach combines some of the basic tenets of the neoclassical theory of the firm with those of the Markowitz-Tobin portfolio analysis. The commercial bank is viewed as purchasing in the form of loanable funds in a deposit market and then allocating this input to alternative credit output. For simplicity it is assumed that there are only two outputs, loans and government securities, with loans having both higher risk and yield characteristics. The problem is to determine the optimum portfolio allocation and portfolio size for the bank. It is shown that for banks operating under conditions of perfect competition in all markets, the portfolio allocation chosen is that corresponding to the maximum expected return per unit risk. It is further shown that the size of the portfolio (total deposit input purchased) varies directly with the degree of risk aversion of the bank. At the extremes, risk-neutral and risk-loving banks desire an infinite portfolio size. An investigation of the comparative static properties of the model indicates that interdependencies between the asset and liability sides of the bank's balance sheet can be explained by the theory. The results of the perfectly competitive model are qualified by introducing imperfect competition into the bank's markets. It is concluded that under conditions of imperfect competition banks no longer choose that portfolio allocation corresponding to maximum expected return per unit risk. Instead portfolio allocation is now a function of bank preferences. It is also likely that under conditions of imperfect competition risk averse banks will restrict the size of their portfolio and the amount of credit extended to the loan market relative to that which would prevail under conditions of perfect competition. It is concluded that while the portfolio approach offers interesting insights into bank behavior, the model must be used with caution because it concentrates on only one aspect of bank decision making: the risk-yield tradeoff. Its power to deal with the liquidity and customer relations aspects of banking is limited.

Programming for Argentine Agricultural Price Policy Analysis

PLANNING for agricultural development usually places primary emphasis on an efficient allocation of resources. Programming models have been used extensively for this purpose in recent years [2, 9, 11, 13]. However, for many developing countries with export oriented agricultures, the problem of agricultural policy formulation is further complicated by uncertain foreign demand. In these cases, policy makers must take into account both international demand factors, such as trade restrictions and block trading agreements, and domestic factors affecting internal resource allocation such as technological innovation and structural changes which may alter relative production costs and supply possibilities. This paper illustrates the use of a programming model as a tool for the evaluation of price policies t necessary to meet alternative hypothesized foreign demand situations for Argentina. The measurement of the resultant interrelated side effects of these policies is also presented. The inclusion of international factors in the analysis is particularly relevant for Argentina given that (1) balance of payments restrictions have been shown to be a major bottleneck to growth [4, 5]; and (2) recent developments in traditional Argentine markets, such as the formation of the European Economic Community (EEC) and the incomplete implementation of the Latin American Common Market, have raised important questions regarding alternative export strategies. If the agricultural producers are reasonably responsive to relative product prices as recent evidence suggests [4, 13, 14], general price policies may be one of the simplest and most effective tools at the disposal of government to manage production to meet expected domestic and foreign demands. But it also must be recognized that price policies have other wide and varied impacts on an agriculturally oriented export economy. Among these are the impact on farm incomes and resource use in agriculture, foreign exchange earnings and government export revenues, consumer prices and agriculture's contribution to national growth. Given these multiple effects, the policy maker is forced to examine trade-offs between the potentially undesirable as well as desirable effects of an agricultural price policy. The approach contained here gives some insights into the trade-off process. Specifically, vectors of demand quantities, representing alternative export strategies in 1975, are introduced into a spatial equilibrium programming model as quantity restraints. The r sults of the analysis are then used to investigate the following series of related questions: (1) What constellation of product prices (minimum price guarantees) would be necessary to induce an efficiently organized Argentine agriculture to produce the alternative quantities once possible technological innovations have been accounted for? (2) How much land would be required for these levels of production? (3) What would be the labor requirements for each strategy? (4) How would each strategy affect consumer food costs? (5) How would each strategy affect agriculture's contribution to national product? (6) What would be the effects on governmental export earnings? Section I of this paper describes the method of analysis and the model used. Section II presents the alternative output specifications. Section III discusses prices required to meet specified demand levels while section IV describes the resulting impact on the agricultural sector with respect to farm incomes, land use, and labor requirements, and the indirect impacts on consumer welfare, net real aggregate value of production, and government export revenues and earnings. Section V draws some tentative conclusions. The major objective of this article is to demonstrate the usefulness of this type of analytical method for the analysis * Research upon which this article is based was supported by the Agricultural Development Council and the University of California. It appeared as Giannini Foundation Research Paper No. 305. 'The use of programming analysis for output price determination has been largely restricted to the United States [9, 101.

An Electronic Stimulator for Biological Research

A fast-acting relay is energized at frequencies in the range 0.005-500 c/s by an electronic square-wave generator. The relay has change-over contacts, independent of earth, which may be used to give exponential condenser discharges in a conventional capacitor/resistance circuit. The square-wave generator triggers a pulse unit giving a square-pulse with an adjustable time-delay. The pulse duration and delay time are both in the range 50 μsec.-50 msec. Independently adjustable pulses may be obtained from two such pulse units. Circuits for monitoring the output amplitude and mark/space ratio are given: alternative output stages for both constant-current and balanced pulses are discussed.