Greater Economic Returns Research Articles

Effect of crude protein content and undegraded intake protein level on productivity, blood metabolites, carcass characteristics, and production economics of Hanwoo steers

ObjectiveThis study was designed to determine how feeding diets differing in crude protein (CP) and undegraded intake protein (UIP) levels affected productivity, blood metabolites, carcass characteristics, and the production economics of Hanwoo steers.MethodsThirty-six Hanwoo steers (age = 8.2±0.5 mo; body weight = 254±16.1 kg) were assigned at random to one of three treatments (4 steers/pen; 3 pens/treatment): i) a low-CP diet (LP; control) containing 12.1% CP with 35.1% UIP, 12.0% CP with 36.8% UIP, and 12.9% CP with 48.8% UIP, in the growing, fattening, and finishing periods, respectively; ii) a high-CP, low-UIP diet (HPLU) containing 15.0% CP with 33.7% UIP, 14.0% CP with 35.7% UIP, and 13.1% CP with 46.7% UIP, respectively; and iii) a high-CP, high-UIP diet (HPHU) containing 15.0% CP with 45.8% UIP, 14.0% CP with 44.6% UIP, and 13.0% CP with 51.1% UIP, respectively.ResultsThe treatments did not affect feed intake and growth performance, except for average daily gain during the fattening period that tended to be the lowest (p = 0.08) in the HPLU-fed steers. The feed CP conversion ratio over the entire feeding period was higher with high-CP diets. The treatments did not affect most blood metabolites; however, blood cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein concentrations during the fattening and finishing periods were the lowest in steers fed a HPLU diet. The treatments had negligible effects on cold carcass weight, yield traits including longissimus muscle area, backfat thickness, yield index, and yield grade, plus quality traits including meat color, fat color, texture, and maturity. However, marbling score and frequency of carcass quality grade 1++ were greater in HPHU-fed steers.ConclusionFeeding diets with higher CP and UIP levels did not affect growth performance but tended to improve the carcass quality of Hanwoo steers, resulting in greater economic return.

Cesárea ¿Alternativa al parto vaginal? Consideraciones éticas

En los últimos años los nacimientos por cesárea se han incrementado de manera global, incluso en ausencia de indicaciones terapéuticas claras. Este aumento se debe a un sin número de circunstancias entre las que se destacan el mayor acceso a intervenciones en salud, el nivel de educación o cultural de las madres y mayores réditos económicos al personal sanitario. El profesional de la salud que decide realizar una intervención por petición de la paciente se debe enfrentar a varias consideraciones éticas y de juicio clínico, social y económico.

Phenology and agronomic components of first and second-cycle strawberry

ABSTRACT Several strawberry growers have cultivated the same plants for two consecutive cycles aiming a greater economic return after seedling transplant. However, the phenological development and the agronomic potential of second-cycle strawberry have to be estimated. This research was installed to estimate the thermal need, leaf appearance rate, phyllochron and yield of strawberry cultivars in two consecutive crop cycles in the region of the Third Planalto Paranaense. Cultivars Camarosa, Camino Real, Albion, Aromas, Monterrey and San Andreas were evaluated in the first and second growing cycles using completely randomized blocks and four replications. Leaf appearance rate was estimated by linear regression coefficient between the number of leaves and the accumulated thermal sum. Phyllochron was estimated by the inverse of regression coefficient. Aromas was the only cultivar with an increased fruit production in the second cycle. On the contrary, there was a considerable reduction of production for ‘Camino Real’, ‘Albion’, ‘Monterrey’ and ‘San Andreas’ in that same cycle. The highest number and mass of marketable fruits of the second and first cycles were observed for ‘Camarosa’ and ‘Camino Real’, respectively. In the second crop cycle, strawberry cultivars required a lower thermal sum to begin flowering and fruit harvest. The plants presented a higher leaf appearance rate and low phyllochron values.

Identifying Advantages and Disadvantages of Variable Rate Irrigation: An Updated Review

Abstract. Variable rate irrigation (VRI) sprinklers on mechanical move irrigation systems (center pivot or lateral move) have been commercially available since 2004. Although the number of VRI, zone or individual sprinkler, systems adopted to date is lower than expected there is a continued interest to harness this technology, especially when climate variability, regulatory nutrient management, water conservation policies, and declining water for agriculture compound the challenges involved for irrigated crop production. This article reviews the potential advantages and potential disadvantages of VRI technology for moving sprinklers, provides updated examples on such aspects, suggests a protocol for designing and implementing VRI technology and reports on the recent advancements. The advantages of VRI technology are demonstrated in the areas of agronomic improvement, greater economic returns, environmental protection and risk management, while the main drawbacks to VRI technology include the complexity to successfully implement the technology and the lack of evidence that it assures better performance in net profit or water savings. Although advances have been made in VRI technologies, its penetration into the market will continue to depend on tangible and perceived benefits by producers. Keywords: Center pivots, Crop water use efficiency, Irrigation, Management zones, Moving sprinkler irrigation systems, Precision irrigation, Sensor based systems.

Morphological characterization and selection of castor bean accessions for mechanized production1

ABSTRACT Castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) is an oilseed found in different regions worldwide, due to its easy propagation and adaptability. Cropping more productive disease-resistant genotypes that enable a mechanized production ensures greater economic returns for farmers. This study aimed to morphologically characterize and select promising castor bean accessions for mechanized cropping, mainly as a source of genetic variability for breeding programs with this purpose. Fifty accessions were assessed. Analysis of variance, dissimilarity clustering via the unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) and principal component analysis were used to analyze the collected data. The dissimilarity analysis based on the Gower distance for qualitative and quantitative variables revealed three groups of accessions and the principal component analysis enabled the selection of those with desirable traits. The accessions BOC1, PRAT1 and SM2 exhibited morpho-agronomic characteristics of interest to the mechanized production, such as ideal plant height, diameter, seed weight and oil content. Such genotypes show a potential for use as genitors in genetic breeding programs of castor bean.

Towards a \u2018smart\u2019 cost\u2013benefit tool: using machine learning to predict the costs of criminal justice policy interventions

BackgroundThe Manning Cost–Benefit Tool (MCBT) was developed to assist criminal justice policymakers, policing organisations and crime prevention practitioners to assess the benefits of different interventions for reducing crime and to select those strategies that represent the greatest economic return on investment.DiscussionA challenge with the MCBT and other cost–benefit tools is that users need to input, manually, a considerable amount of point-in-time data, a process that is time consuming, relies on subjective expert opinion, and introduces the potential for data-input error. In this paper, we present and discuss a conceptual model for a ‘smart’ MCBT that utilises machine learning techniques.SummaryWe argue that the Smart MCBT outlined in this paper will overcome the shortcomings of existing cost–benefit tools. It does this by reintegrating individual cost–benefit analysis (CBA) projects using a database system that securely stores and de-identifies project data, and redeploys it using a range of machine learning and data science techniques. In addition, the question of what works is respecified by the Smart MCBT tool as a data science pipeline, which serves to enhance CBA and reconfigure the policy making process in the paradigm of open data and data analytics.

Relationships of Selected Endogenous Factors Associated with Direct Somatic Embryogenesis of Coffee (Coffea arabica L.)

Coffee is one of the most important cash crops produced in the world with great economic returns to growers and national gross domestic product. Somatic embryogenesis is a morphogenetic processes leading to plantlet regeneration and these processes are coupled with changes in the levels of primary metabolites. The present experiment established relationships of endogenous substances with direct somatic embryogenesis of coffee ‘Ruiru 11’. Laboratory experiments were set up at Coffee Research Institute, Ruiru-Kenya between 2014 and 2017. The set up was in a completely randomised design, replicated three times and repeated once. Third leaf pair explants were excised from 8-month-old greenhouse-grown mother plants and cultured in half strength Murashige and Skoog basal salts augmented with Thidiazuron. Once embryos had developed, the cultures were analysed for endogenous substances using HPLC and GCMS. Sucrose, phenolics, alkaloids, amino acids, fatty acids and their derivatives correlated positively, whereas fructose and glucose correlated negatively with the other biochemical components. Endogenous sucrose, chlorogenic acid, caffeine amino acid, fatty acids and their derivatives are potential biomarkers for coffee somatic embryogenesis, whereas endogenous fructose and glucose are inhibitors of the same. Further studies regarding the status of the biochemical components, especially in particular stages of embryo development should be conducted to establish treatments that can improve coffee direct somatic embryo development.

Yield, Nutritive Value, and Profitability of Direct‐Seeded Annual Forages following Spring‐Terminated Alfalfa

Core Ideas Forage yield increased with fertilizer N only when conditions were cool and wet. Weed biomass was frequently increased with the addition of fertilizer N. Fertilizer N did not increase economic net return in 2 of 3 site‐years. Annual ryegrass often resulted in consistent establishment and greatest economic return. Winter‐kill of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) causes substantial yield losses in northern environments, requiring alternative forages to meet livestock needs. This study explores the forage yield, nutritive value, and N response of seven annual forage species and one grass–legume biculture, no‐till planted into spring‐terminated alfalfa. Forages were planted in late May at Rosemount, MN, in 2014 and 2015 and at Waseca, MN, in 2015 with split‐plot factors of three N fertilizer rates (0, 56, and 112 kg N ha−1) and were harvested on approximately 30‐d intervals. When successfully established, teff [Eragrotis tef (Zuccagni) ‘Summer Lovegrass’] and sudangrass [Sorghum bicolor (L.) subsp. drummondii (Nees ex Steud.) ‘PCS 3010’] were among the highest‐yielding species, with yields ranging from 4.2 to 9.9 Mg DM ha−1 and 6.8 to 8.9 Mg DM ha−1, respectively. Fertilizer N increased yields of all species at Rosemount in 2014; however, N needs were met by terminated alfalfa at both locations in 2015. Weed biomass increased with added fertilizer N in site‐years when weeds were present. Nitrogen fertilization improved forage nutritive value through decreased neutral detergent fiber concentration and increased crude protein concentration and neutral detergent fiber digestibility (48‐h in‐vitro) in all site‐years. However, N fertilization had no effect on economic net return in 2 of 3 site‐years. Annual ryegrass [Lolium multiflorum (Lam.) ‘Jumbo’] most consistently resulted in the greatest net return. No‐till planting annual forages into terminated alfalfa can provide forage to offset losses and utilize alfalfa N in situations of alfalfa winter‐kill.

ECONOMIC IMPACT OF USE OF HEAT STRESS ALLEVIATION IMPOSED ON CATTLE UNDER EGYPTIAN CONDITIONS

Food security is the main objective of all countries that seek through their various economic policies to try to achieve their social and economic security and stability. The agricultural sector is one of the leading sectors of the national economy and one of the main pillars of economic development. The agricultural production in Egypt includes three main activities: plamt production Livestock production fish production, and the value of animal production in Egypt is about 36.5% of the total value of agricultural production. Undoubtedly, the heat stress on livestock under Egyptian conditions is one of the most important constraints for the production of milk In Egypt at various levels of cattle breeding in general and at the level of commercial farms in particular, which requires studying the economic return of the use of this technique and study the impact on the economics of dairy production. the objectives of the study were to study the current status of the development of the number of cattle producing milk in Egypt, as well as the development of the production quantities of dairy cows, the relative importance of each dairy production and the numbers of warheads, and to see the impact of the use of technology has been studying the statistical estimate of the production functions of milk sample study, as well as the statistical estimate of the terms of use of these costs Technology study sample. The most important results of what has resulted in the following: there is a growing trend year for the number of cows wholesale heads in Egypt during the study period, as they have increased by amounted to 104.24 thousand head annually, has been estimated coefficient of determination about 0.266, meaning that 26.6% of the changes occurring to the number due to Factors that reflect the effects of time. It may be shown that the increase in the number of dairy cattle heads in Egypt during the study period as an average is due mainly to the number of mixed cattle heads due to the apparent stability in the numbers of domestic and foreign cattle. It also shows that there is an increasing general trend of milk production for cows Wholesale in Egypt during that For a period, increasing by about 84.597 thousand tons per year. The R2 is estimated to be about 0.324, which means that 32.4% of the changes occurring in the milk production of cows are due to the factors that reflect the time component. Egypt. Scenarios for the statistical estimation of the cow dairy production function were carried out in the sample of 100 cows before using the technique and 100 cows after using the technology. The elasticity of production prior to the use of the technology was about 0.24, after the use of 0.22 technology. Finally, return m Milk production for dairy cows increased by 27.7 kg / day after the use of the technology at an increase rate of about 18.7% with an expected yield of about 97.7 pounds per cow per day for 87.4 pounds per cow before using the technology. the impact of the use of clear technical and increase the expected return of the cows used our farms under study, which requires dissemination of the use of the technology on the rest of the cattle farms in all parts of the country because of its great economic returns.

A CASE STUDY TO COMPARE THE COSTS AND RETURNS OF BOTH NORMAL ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION AND SEXED ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION IN COWS

Achieving food security is one of the main objectives of the national strategy to promote national production. The Egyptian food basket suffers from a lack of protein content. Animal production is an integral part of agricultural and national activity as a whole. The average value of Egypt's production of red meat (livestock and slaughtered animals) during the period (2000-2015) was estimated at about 24.7 billion Egyptian pounds, representing about 38.9% the value of animal production of about 63.4 billion Egyptian pounds on average, Of the value of agricultural production of about LE 179.4 billion for the same period. In the light of the results of the case study carried out in the Dina farms in 2015, it can be said that if this method is circulated using the seminal fluid at the level of the Republic 2015 for female cattle in the age group more than two years at the level of the Republic in 2015 it is expected that the number of males about 43,450 thousand head and number Females were 266,9 thousand, 13.9% and 86.1% respectively. The net realized revenues were estimated at LE 129 million for male production, while the net return on females was LE 7.87 billion, which resulted in increased female production of meat and milk, for livestock breeders in Egypt and then increase Agricultural, livestock and national agricultural income as a whole. While in the case of 2015, at the level of the Republic of the same number of cattle in the age group more than two years (at the age of the first vaccination) in the case of artificial insemination and the application of the costs and revenues of the output obtained, it is clear that the net expected return of male production in this year is about 517 million pounds While the net return on female output was LE 5.12 billion, which showed that there was a significant difference between the percentage of profits obtained. The higher the number of female herds through artificial insemination and the consequent increase in female output and the increase in meat and dairy production. Thus, the application of the method of natural vaccination of livestock in Egypt on all females expected for 2020, which is about 603.72 thousand head, the rate of milk production will be about 9100 kg per head during the production season, noting that the average milk production for the head a day about 35 kg and the number The dairy production season is about 260 days average depending on the state of the animal and the environmental and climatic conditions and the method of nutrition and care. Thus, it is expected that the total value of milk production for livestock is about 27.5 billion pounds in 2020, indicating that the increase in milk production in this way than the following method of vaccination The average value of dairy production in this case was estimated at 17.4 billion pounds for the year 2020, an increase of about 10.1 billion pounds by about 63.3%. This is in favor of the method of artificial insemination, resulting in great economic returns for individual farms, commercial farms and the national level as a whole. In the case of artificial insemination, the number of females in 2020 was estimated at 381.6 thousand. The difference is in favor of artificial insemination, with an increase of about 222.1 thousand females. In the case of artificial insemination, the number of males increases by 304,641 thousand head. And fattening of calves due to inheritance of genetic factors affecting the rate of food conversion. Since the average live weight of a live animal at slaughter is about 400 kg for females, about 450 kg for males, it is expected that the amount of meat for females in the case of artificial insemination is about 249.1 million kg in 2020 while the male meat is about 34.6 million kg. Of males in this way, and this is in favor of dairy farms. The expected amount of meat expected for females in the case of IVF is about 152.6 million kg for the year 2020, while the amount of meat from males is about 171.7 million kg. Milk production is noted in this way and is more important for meat farms So as to increase the number of males. In both cases, there is a clear difference between the profits achieved by these two techniques compared to natural vaccination, where there was a significant difference in the rate of net profit, which proves the effectiveness of artificial insemination in the achievement of self-sufficiency of meat and dairy and the promotion of the livestock sector.

English

Several trials has been conducted by poultry nutritionist in evaluating effects of soybean processing on its nutritive value and the performance of broilers without clearly declaring the best processing method to be adopted by farmers that will give them on the average a cumulative best result output. A qualitative selection approach was thus adopted in the evaluation of different processing methods of soya beans (Glycine max) on its nutritive value and the performance of broilers using published results from the same authors who conducted an experiment using four thermal processing methods (extrusion, cooking, toasting and roasting -dry heating); four fermentation processing methods (fermentation with culture organisms, cooking and fermentation, daddawa, cooking and fermentation + potash) and four alkaline processes methods (soaking in water, sodium carbonate (Na2CO3), potassium carbonate (K2CO3) and sodium hydroxide -NaOH) A quantitative evaluation of both nutritive values and performance of experimental birds were undertaken as basis for selection of best means from each processing method after the selected best from each of the processing methods were compared to select the overall best. Cooking, cook and ferment and 1% potassium carbonate respectively emerged as the representative best for thermal, fermentation and alkaline processing. The comparative evaluation of the representative best processing methods showed that cook and ferment from fermentation group was the overall best. This processing method showed the best potentials for essential nutrients preservation, better performance of broilers and greater economic returns on investment. This confirmed the superiority of fermentation process in increasing the viability of soya beans utilization in broiler feeds resulting from microbial organisms activities. Key words: Broilers, farmers, qualitative selection, soybeans, processing.

PLANT SHOOTS AND ROOTS BIOMASS OF BRACHIARIA GRASSES AND THEIR EFFECTS ON SOIL CARBON IN THE SEMI-ARID TROPICS OF KENYA

<p>Grassland management practices that improve carbon uptake by increasing productivity or reducing carbon losses can lead to net accumulation of carbon in soils. A study was conducted to quantify the amounts of shoots and roots biomass of Brachiaria grass cultivars and their effects on soil carbon in two sites, Ithookwe and Katumani in semi-arid tropical Kenya. The grass cultivars were<em> Brachiaria decumbens </em>cv. Basilisk, <em>B. brizantha</em> cvs. Marandu, MG4, Piatã and Xaraes, <em>B. humidicola</em> cv. Llanero and <em>B. hybrid</em> cv. Mulato II. These were compared with two locally cultivated grasses (<em>Chloris gayana</em> cv<em>. </em>KAT R3 and <em>Pennisetum purpureum </em>cv<em>. </em>Kakamega 1). The grass treatments were evaluated with fertilizer application (40 kg P applied at sowing and 50 kg N ha<sup>-1</sup> in each wet season) and with no fertilizer application. Shoots biomass of the Brachiaria cultivars ranged from 3.0 to 11.3 t ha<sup>-1</sup> and 5.5 to 8.3 t ha<sup>-1</sup> at Ithookwe and Katumani sites respectively in year 1. The highest shoots biomass recorded at Ithookwe was from cv. Piata while cv. MG4 gave the highest biomass at Katumani. Similar trends were recorded in year 2 of growth though the shoots biomass was lower at Katumani. However, the yields were significantly lower than those recorded from control, Napier grass in both years. The cv. Marandu, Xaraes, Basilisk and Piata had higher roots biomass than the controls (Rhodes grass and Napier grass) indicating greater potential for the Brachiaria grasses to sequester more carbon in the soil. The results of this study indicate that introduction of Brachiaria grasses in the semi-arid tropics of Kenya and in other similar environments can help increase soil carbon stocks that would mitigate the adverse effects of climate change and have greater economic returns. </p>

Technology selection—the impact of economic risk on decision making

ABSTRACTDeveloping an understanding of economic variance (risk) is critical when evaluating alternative aquaculture production technologies. This article assesses the efficacy of employing a quantitative stochastic analysis technique to support technology selection decision making by undertaking a case study investment assessment of three alternative production expansion strategies (offshore sea-pens, land-based RAS growout and larger post-smolt) for the Tasmanian salmon industry. Results demonstrate that salmon aquaculture is undertaken with considerable underlying levels of economic risk, expansion offshore probably represents the lowest initial capital investment and greatest economic return, and that levels of financial uncertainty increase with land-based RAS production. The study highlights stochastic modeling provides significant “added-value” over single-point deterministic analysis and that developing an appreciation of the input variability is a key component in critically evaluating alternative production technologies.

The Unnerving Frontier: Human Gene Patenting in Canada

The biotechnology industry is one of the world's fastest growing markets and contributes an estimated $87 billion per year. There is an escalating trend of an increasing reliance by biotech companies, even universities, in developing patent portfolios with potential for great economic returns. In 2002 the Canadian Intellectual Property Office granted approximately 2,100 gene patents, which was a rate similar to the number of gene patents granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office on a per capita basis. Gene patenting is highly contentious within the scientific and legal communities. The purpose of this paper is to provide a legal analysis of whether or not patenting human genes can even be valid under under Canada's current legal framework.

An analysis of climatic and human induced determinants of agricultural land use changes in Shupiyan area of Jammu and Kashmir state, India

The economy of the Jammu and Kashmir state depends mostly on traditional forms of occupation. Unaffected and unaltered by modern day industrial developments and changing times, the indigenous traditional occupations of farming, animal husbandry and horticulture forms the backbone of the state economy. But in the last few decades, Agriculture in the state as well as the study area is receiving a set back and Horticulture is flourishing leaps and bounds. The present study aims to analyze various determinants responsible for this change. Climatic as well as field data was thoroughly analyzed to comprehend the situation. A Mann–Kendall test was done on the climatic data to support the hypotheses. It was observed that initially changing climatic trends proved to be the triggering factor supporting this change, but in due course of time, the determinants took an economic and psychological turn. The perusal of Indian Meteorological Data reveals an increasing trend of annual mean maximum temperature from 16.78 °C in 1985 to 17.58 °C in 1995 and an increase from 5.30 °C to 7.00 °C in the annual mean minimum temperature, and as such acting as a triggering factor for the land use conversion. Further, the mean annual rainfall shows a decrease from 100.75 mm in 1981 to 79.43 mm in 1991. The greater economic returns from horticulture as well as the changing behavioral patterns of people over the time further cemented its growth. The farmers have since persisted with the horticulture activity as it has proven to be an economically a much better lucrative enterprise.

Entrepreneurial Intention: Triggers and Barriers to Small Business Venturing in Khulna City

Entrepreneurship is a complex social behavior involving different endogenous and exogenous factors in its genesis. Importance of entrepreneurship in regional development has been highlighted both in classical and modern literature e.g. 'Marshallian agglomeration' and 'industrial cluster'. The research focuses on exploring the triggers and barriers for setting up small business in Khulna city, a city in the southern part of Bangladesh, which is struggling for its economic revival. It has been found that greater economic return, working on the location of choice, propensity to investment own savings and desire for autonomy are among the highly ranked motives to start small venture. 'Need for a job' was ranked as the lowest among the statically qualifies motivation factors. Government regulations, scarcity of venture capital, high tax rate and difficulty in accessing formal financial institutions have been found as the high ranking barriers. Interestingly, lack of managerial skills, availability of qualified employees and role of the family have been reported as lowly ranked barriers to start new venture. Finding of this research suggests that the popular perception 'small business in developing country is a 'non or minimal growth sector' is more a stereotype. Small businesses have enough possibility to grow as a 'growth focused sector', as the small business possesses significant amount of managerial abilities and have positive frame of mind for taking risk, invest and grow.

Retorno econômico de vacas primíparas suplementadas em pastagem nativa dominada por Eragrostis planna Nees

The experiment evaluated the economic return of the protein and mineral supplementation of primiparous cows pre and postpartum on natural pasture dominated by South African lovegrass (Eragrostis plana Ness). Production costs, animal production and gross margin were evaluated. Cows were supplemented with: common salt, mineral sal, protein salt and reproduction salt. The nutritional of the rangeland was evaluated by crude protein (CP) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) percentages. The lowest body weights were observed on cows grazing on natural pastures and supplemented with common salt and mineral sal at parturition (321 and 329 kg), followed by those supplemented with protein salt and reproduction salt (358 and 360 kg). The body weight and pregnancy rates at the end of mating were from 288 to 339 kg and from 50 to 62.5% between supplements. The total cost and the net earnings were 11.79/175.6; 20.72/188.0; 39.98/170.0 e 28.13/186.3 R$ ha-1 for supplements common salt, mineral salt, protein salt and reproduction salt, respectively. The higher gross margin was obtained with supplementation reproduction salt 214.47 R$ ha-1. The use of reproduction salt supplement for primiparous cows pre and postpartum on natural pasture dominated by South African lovegrass resulted in greater economic return.

Nitrogen Source and Rate Effects on Irrigated Corn Yields and Nitrogen‐Use Efficiency

Nitrogen rate studies were conducted under furrow‐irrigated corn (Zea mays L.) production on a silty clay soil to compare granular urea with polymer‐coated urea (PCU) and stabilized urea (SU, contains urease and nitrification inhibitors) effects on corn yields, plant N uptake, and N use efficiency. Polymer‐coated urea had a yield advantage over urea 2 (continuous corn) of 3 yr at N rates below maximum yield, which resulted in greater economic returns with PCU (4–14%) at N rates from 168 to 280 kg N ha−1. The SU fertilizer had no yield or economic advantage over urea. Grain and stover yields and N uptake increased with increasing N rate for all N sources. Expressing grain yields from all N sources as a linear‐plateau function of N rate showed that yields were maximized at 14.3 Mg ha−1 at an N rate of 254 kg N ha−1 or available N level (soil NO3–N plus fertilizer N) of 295 kg N ha−1. Nitrogen recovery efficiency (RE) tended not to vary with N rate, with no differences between SU and urea but greater RE (19%) with PCU than urea under continuous corn. Fertilizer N use efficiency did not vary with N rate but was greater for PCU (36%) than for urea (32%) under continuous corn. In contrast to SU, PCU provided grain yield and potential economic advantages over urea under continuous corn production at N rates below those needed with urea for maximum grain yield.

Scale, Scope, Efficiency and Equity in Public Service Provision: How Might We Analyse the 1898 Consolidation of New York City?

In 1898, the five counties of Richmond, New York, Bronx, Queens, and Kings came together in a consolidation which created the five boroughs of New York City. Staten Island went from being an independent county in the State of New York to a interdependent borough of the new City of New York, as did the other counties. The consolidation offered a lot of promises, and a lot of promises were made to get it to happen. Which raises a basic question: has this merger resulted in more efficient provision of public services and greater economic returns than would have been the case had the five counties remained independent entities? From an equity perspective, what have the residents of the outer boroughs gained and what have they lost, especially in relation to Manhattan? This paper reviews some very preliminary data assessing the efficiency and equity gains and losses of the largest municipal consolidation in American history. The existing literature on public choice, optimal public scale and fiscal federalism is examined to provide a framework for the initial findings.

Viabilidade agroeconômica de rotação de culturas e manejo do solo em áreas irrigadas por aspersão

No-tillage (NT ) , crop rotation is an essential requirement . However , there are still questions about the economic viability of the system , especially in irrigated agricultural areas . The objective of this study was to determine the effect of crop rotations and soil management on grain yield of maize and common bean and economic efficiency of the system . The experimental design was a randomized block design in split plots with six replications . Treatments included three systems of land management (plots ) : P1 = tillage in summer followed annually from a preparation with plow in winter ; P2 = tillage followed biennially preparation with a plow in the winter ; P3 = continuous tillage ; include it was also three crop rotations ( subplots ) : R1 = corn / beans / corn / beans , R2 = millet / beans / corn / beans , R3 = Soybean / beans / corn / beans . At the end of the rotation, the same were repeated rotations in the same area , thus having two cycles of rotation . The tillage gave the lowest grain yield for crops of maize and common bean . Pearl millet provides the highest grain yield of common bean in the SPD . All rotations tested provide positive economic returns , ie , are economically viable . Among the tested , crop rotation millet / dry bean / maize / common bean , the SPD , is the one that provides the greatest economic return .