bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Register variation in school EFL textbooks
Authors: Le Foll Elen
Published: November 2021

This study applies additive Multi-Dimensional Analysis (MDA) (Biber 1988) to explore the linguistic characteristics of ‘school English’ or ‘textbook English’. It seeks to find out how text registers commonly featured in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) textbooks differ from comparable registers found outside the EFL classroom. To this end, a Textbook English Corpus (TEC) of 43 coursebooks used in European schools is mobilised. The texts from six textbook register subcorpora and three target language corpora are mapped onto Biber’s (1998) ‘Involved vs. Informational’ dimension of General English. Register accounts for 63% of the variance in these dimension scores in the TEC. Additional factors such as textbook level, series and country of publication/use only play a marginal role in mediating textbook register variation. Textbook dialogues score considerably lower than the Spoken BNC2014, whereas Textbook Fiction scores closest to its corresponding reference Youth Fiction Corpus. Pedagogical and methodological implications are discussed.
Giving Succor to Extremism?
Authors: Stohler Stephan
Published: November 2021

Free speech is essential to democracy and political participation. But scholars hold competing expectations about whether courts will protect free speech in similar ways for extremism. Drawing on free speech cases from high courts in Australia, Canada, India, and South Africa, as well as from the European Court of Human Rights, I show that judges are substantially less likely to support free speech in cases involving extremist claimants or extreme speech. Moreover, I demonstrate how judges tailor arguments in response to concerns about extremism. This evidence has implications for our understanding of judicial behavior and the role that courts play in preserving democracy.
Scaling Court Decisions with Citation Networks
Authors: Arnold Christian , Engst Benjamin G. , Gschwend Thomas
Published: November 2021

To compare court decisions in a systematic way, it is typically necessary to first read these decisions and then apply legal methods to them. Measurement models that support analysts in this manual labor usually rely on judges’ voting records. Since these data are often not available, we instead propose a latent-variable model that uses the widely available references in court decisions to measure the decisions’ latent position in their common case-space. We showcase our model in the context of forum shopping and forum selling of Germany’s lower courts.
A variational non-linear constrained model for the inversion of FDEM data*
Authors: Buccini A , Díaz de Alba P
Published: November 2021

Reconstructing the structure of the soil using non-invasive techniques is a very relevant problem in many scientific fields, like geophysics and archaeology. This can be done, for instance, with the aid of frequency domain electromagnetic (FDEM) induction devices. Inverting FDEM data is a very challenging inverse problem, as the problem is extremely ill-posed, i.e. sensible to the presence of noise in the measured data, and non-linear. Regularization methods substitute the original ill-posed problem with a well-posed one whose solution is an accurate approximation of the desired one. In this paper we develop a regularization method to invert FDEM data. We propose to determine the electrical conductivity of the ground by solving a variational problem. The minimized functional is made up by the sum of two term: the data fitting term ensures that the recovered solution fits the measured data, while the regularization term enforces sparsity on the Laplacian of the solution. The trade-off between the two terms is determined by the regularization parameter. This is achieved by minimizing an ℓ
2 − ℓ

q
functional with 0 < q ⩽ 2. Since the functional we wish to minimize is non-convex, we show that the variational problem admits a solution. Moreover, we prove that, if the regularization parameter is tuned accordingly to the amount of noise present in the data, this model induces a regularization method. Some selected numerical examples on synthetic and real data show the good performances of our proposal.
Barium titanate piezoelectric-film-based beam-array airflow sensor for wearable breath-monitoring application
Authors: Feng Guo-Hua , Su Pin-Cheng
Published: November 2021

This study presents a barium titanate (BaTiO3) film-based piezoelectric airflow sensor. This sensor integrated a piezoelectric beam array with a poly(dimethylsiloxane) orifice membrane as the core sensing component. The compact size of the micromachined device fit the requirements for a wearable device. The hydrothermally grown barium titanate film exhibited an orthorhombic crystal structure with good piezoelectric properties. We propose an algorithm to determine the airflow sensor performance using data from the measured piezoelectric signal and the displacement of the piezoelectric beam. This algorithm correlates the discharge coefficient of the core sensing component, Reynold’s number, airflow velocity, pressure difference across the component, displacement of the piezoelectric beam, strain of the barium titanate film, and generated charge from the sensor, which is rarely reported in the literature. The Young’s modulus and piezoelectric constant of the barium titanate film could also be derived as 100 GPa and 8 pC N−1, respectively. Utilizing this algorithm and the generated piezoelectric signal of the sensor, important breath parameters of a young male subject at rest were monitored.
Understanding composite negative differential resistance in niobium oxide memristors
Authors: Liu Xinjun , Zhang Peng , Nath Shimul Kanti , Li Shuai , Nandi Sanjoy Kumar , Elliman Robert Glen
Published: November 2021

Volatile memristors, or threshold switching devices, exhibit a diverse range of negative differential resistance (NDR) characteristics under current-controlled operation and understanding the origin of these responses is of great importance for exploring their potential as nano-scale oscillators for neuromorphic computing. Here we use a previously developed two-zone, parallel memristor model to undertake a systematic analysis of NDR modes in two-terminal metal-oxide-metal devices. The model assumes that the non-uniform current distribution associated with filamentary conduction can be represented by a high current density core and a lower current-density shell where the core is assumed to have a memristive response due to Poole-Frenkel conduction and the shell is represented by either a fixed resistor or a second memristive region. A detailed analysis of the electrical circuits is undertaken using a lumped-element thermal model of the core-shell structure, and is shown to reproduce continuous and discontinuous NDR responses, as well as more complex compound behaviour. Finally, an interesting double-window oscillation behaviour is predicted and experimentally verified for a device with compound NDR behaviour. These results clearly identify the origin of different NDR responses and provide a strong basis for designing devices with complex NDR characteristics.
Probing topological quantum phase transitions via photonic spin Hall effects in spin-orbit coupled 2D quantum materials
Authors: Shah Muzamil
Published: November 2021

Topological photonics is an emerging field in photonics in which various topological and geometrical ideas are used to manipulate and control the behavior of light photons. The interplay between topological matter and the spin degree of freedom of photons provides new opportunities for achieving spin-based photonics applications. In this paper, the photonic spin Hall effect (PSHE) of reflected light from the surface of the topological silicene quantum systems subjected to external electric and radiation fields in the terahertz regime is theoretically investigated. By tuning the external electric and the applied laser fields, we can drive the silicenic system through different topological quantum phase transitions. We demonstrate that the in-plane and transverse spatial spin dependent shifts exhibit extreme values near Brewster’s angles and away from the optical transition frequencies. We reveal that the photonic spin Hall shifts are sensitive to the spin and valley indices as well as to the number of closed gaps. We believe that the spin and valley-resolved PSHE will greatly impact the research in spinoptics, spintronics, and valleytronics.
Molecular dynamics study of a covalent organic framework as highly-efficient and biocompatible carriers for doxorubicin delivery: the role of nanopores
Authors: Yu Jingping , Jia Xiao , Yang Yanmei , Zhang Chao , Liu Yang , Gao Da , Fan Yingcai , Li Weifeng
Published: November 2021

The development of highly-efficient loading, targeted delivery and controlled-release of drug carrier systems is of great significance in tumor treatment. Although various kinds of nano-carriers have been widely studied as potential anticancer delivery materials, the major concern of cytotoxicity is still an important issue before real medical applications. This is due to the strong interactions between nano-structure carriers and biomacromolecules. Herein, a covalent organic framework (COF), triazine triphenyl imine (TTI), is proposed as a promising candidate for efficient delivery and release of the anti-cancer drug, doxorubicin (DOX), by using molecular dynamics simulations. Our results demonstrated that despite there being huge pores in TTI, enough contact sites can be provided to attract the drug by π–π interactions between the anthracene rings of DOX and the framework of TTI. The loading capacity of DOX on the TTI monolayer even reach 743% because the nanopores exclude some invalid adsorption sites that exist in other 2D nano-carriers. Interestingly, the DOX molecules can not only spontaneously adsorb on the surface of the TTI monolayer in natural conditions, but also effectively release from the TTI carrier under acidic pH level. For the TTI multilayers, similar loading capacity had also been achieved due to the pore walls also playing a key role in adsorbing the DOX molecules. Moreover, by simulating a model protein interacting with TTI, mild biocompatibility of TTI monolayer and multilayer could also be achieved due to the periodic nanopores limiting the excessive adsorption with the protein that could maintain the native structure. Our results highlight the essential roles of the patterned nano-porous structure in the TTI sheets for both efficient DOX loading and release, with high biocompatibility, and provides valuable insight into COF-based nano-carriers in potential drug delivery applications.
Surface lattice Green’s functions for high-entropy alloys
Authors: Nöhring Wolfram G , Grießer Jan , Dondl Patrick , Pastewka Lars
Published: November 2021

We study the surface elastic response of pure Ni, the random alloy FeNiCr and an average FeNiCr alloy in terms of the surface lattice Green’s function. We propose a scheme for computing per-site Green’s function and study their per-site variations. The average FeNiCr alloys accurately reproduces the mean Green’s function of the full random alloy. Variation around this mean is largest near the edge of the surface Brillouin-zone and decays as q
−2 with wavevector q towards the Γ-point. We also present expressions for the continuum surface Green’s function of anisotropic solids of finite and infinite thickness and show that the atomistic Green’s function approaches continuum near the Γ-point. Our results are a first step towards efficient contact calculations and Peierls–Nabarro type models for dislocations in high-entropy alloys.
Highly emissive MAPbBr3 perovskite QDs by ligand-assisted reprecipitation: the antisolvent effect
Authors: Costa Wallison C , Salla Cristian A M , Ely Fernando , Bechtold Ivan H
Published: November 2021

A systematic study of the synthetic procedure to improve quantum efficiency of luminescent hybrid perovskite QDs through ligand-assisted precipitation method is presented. Particularly, the influence of the dielectric constant and dipole moment of the antisolvent on the reaction time and the photophysical properties of the QDs is highlighted. After evaluating the influence of antisolvents and optimizing experimental parameters such as reaction time and Pb excess of the precursor, colloidal crystalline MAPbBr3 QDs with exceptionally high absolute quantum yield up to 97.7% in solution and 69.1% in solid film were obtained. Finally, MAPbBr3 QDs precipitated from anisole were processed like UV-curable nanocomposite as efficient down conversion layer resulting in very narrow green emission light-emitting diode.
Recent advances in positron emission particle tracking: a comparative review
Authors: Windows-Yule C R K , Herald M T , Nicuşan A L , Wiggins C S , Pratx G , Manger S , Odo A E , Leadbeater T , Pellico J , de Rosales R T M , Renaud A , Govender I , Carasik L B , Ruggles A E , Kokalova-Wheldon Tz , Seville J P K , Parker D J
Published: November 2021

Positron emission particle tracking (PEPT) is a technique which allows the high-resolution, three-dimensional imaging of particulate and multiphase systems, including systems which are large, dense, and/or optically opaque, and thus difficult to study using other methodologies. In this work, we bring together researchers from the world’s foremost PEPT facilities not only to give a balanced and detailed overview and review of the technique but, for the first time, provide a rigorous, direct, quantitative assessment of the relative strengths and weaknesses of all contemporary PEPT methodologies. We provide detailed explanations of the methodologies explored, including also interactive code examples allowing the reader to actively explore, edit and apply the algorithms discussed. The suite of benchmarking tests performed and described within the document is made available in an open-source repository for future researchers.
Investigation of etching selectivity and microstructure of Ag-doped Sb2Te thin film for dry lithography
Authors: Wei Tao , Shen Wancheng , Chen Xingwang , Chen Lei , Hu Jing , Cheng Miao , Liu Qianqian , Li Wanfei , Ling Yun , Wei Jingsong , Liu Bo
Published: November 2021

Dry lithography is a promising micro-/nanomanufacturing method owing to its advantages of being solution-free, its absence of undercut and resistance to swelling. However, heat-mode resists suitable for dry lithography are less reported. This work reports on the use of Ag-doped Sb2Te thin film as a heat-mode resist, and its etching selectivity and microstructures are investigated in detail. It is found that Ag1.44Sb2.19Te thin film possesses high etching selectivity in CHF3/O2 mixed gases and can act as a heat-mode resist. In order to elucidate the mechanism of high etching selectivity, the microstructures of the Ag-doped Sb2Te thin films are analyzed using x-ray diffraction, Raman spectra, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy methods. The results show that the etching selectivity is attributed to the phase separation of Ag1.44Sb2.19Te film and the formation of the Sb phase after laser exposure, leading to a reduction in etching resistance in CHF3/O2 mixed gases. In addition, pattern transfers from Ag1.44Sb2.19Te to SiO2 and Si substrates are achieved successfully and the etching selectivities of Si and SiO2 to Ag1.44Sb2.19Te are both higher than 2:1. This work may provide a useful guide for the research of dry lithography without wet development.
Achieving multimodal locomotion by a crosslinked poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate)-based two-way shape memory polymer
Authors: Zhao Yao , Peng Kaiyuan , Xi Jiaxin , Shahab Shima , Mirzaeifar Reza
Published: November 2021

Locomotion is a critically important topic for soft actuators and robotics, however, the locomotion applications based on two-way shape memory polymers (SMPs) have not been well explored so far. In this work, a crosslinked poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) (cPEVA)-based two-way SMP is synthesized using dicumyl peroxide (DCP) as the crosslinker. The influence of the DCP concentration on the mechanical properties and the two-way shape memory properties is systematically studied. A Venus flytrap-inspired soft actuator is made by cPEVA, and it is shown that the actuator can efficiently perform gripping movements, indicating that the resultant cPEVA SMP is capable of producing large output force and recovering from large deformations. This polymer is also utilized to make a self-rolling pentagon-shaped device. It is shown that the structure will efficiently roll on a hot surface, proving the applicability of the material in making sophisticated actuators. With introducing an energy barrier, jumping can be accomplished when the stored energy is fast released. Finite element simulations are also conducted to further understand the underlying mechanisms in the complex behavior of actuators based on cPEVA SMP. This work provides critical insights in designing smart materials with external stimulus responsive programmable function for soft actuator applications.
Performance enhancement of an MRE-based isolator using a multi-layered electromagnetic system
Authors: Hwang Yongmoon , Lee Junghoon , Kye Seungkyung , Jung Hyung-Jo
Published: November 2021

A magnetorheological elastomer (MRE) is one of smart materials which can control the stiffness according to the magnetic field strength. Various types of MRE-based isolators have been studied. However, there was a limit to performance validation owing to the material and structural limitations. In this study, an optimal mixing ratio of the MRE was considered, and a novel electromagnetic system was proposed. A multi-layered electromagnetic system was proposed to constantly maintain a closed magnetic circuit by acting on the deformation of the MRE. As a result, numerical and experimental comparisons were performed with the conventional MRE-based isolator, and its superiority was validated. Moreover, the dynamic characteristics of the proposed MRE-based isolator under a vertical load were investigated. The results show that the proposed MRE-based isolator outperforms the conventional MRE-based isolator in improving the magnetorheological (MR) effects and the dynamic characteristics of the proposed MRE-based isolator under the vertical load were identified.
Quantum state tomography as a numerical optimization problem
Authors: Ivanova-Rohling Violeta N , Burkard Guido , Rohling Niklas
Published: November 2021

We present a framework that formulates the quest for the most efficient quantum state tomography (QST) measurement set as an optimization problem which can be solved numerically, where the optimization goal is the maximization of the information gain. This approach can be applied to a broad spectrum of relevant setups including measurements restricted to a subsystem. To illustrate the power of this method we present results for the six-dimensional Hilbert space constituted by a qubit–qutrit system, which could be realized e.g. by the 14N nuclear spin-1 and two electronic spin states of a nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond. Measurements of the qubit subsystem are expressed by projectors of rank three, i.e. projectors on half-dimensional subspaces. For systems consisting only of qubits, it was shown analytically that a set of projectors on half-dimensional subspaces can be arranged in an informationally optimal fashion for QST, thus forming so-called mutually unbiased subspaces. Our method goes beyond qubits-only systems and we find that in dimension six such a set of mutually-unbiased subspaces can be approximated with a deviation irrelevant for practical applications.
Formation of the radial electric field profile in the WEST tokamak
Authors: Vermare L. , Hennequin P. , Honoré C. , Peret M. , Dif-Pradalier G. , Garbet X. , Gunn J. , Bourdelle C. , Clairet F. , Morales J. , Dumont R. , Goniche M. , Maget P. , Varennes R. , WEST Team the
Published: November 2021

Sheared flows are known to reduce turbulent transport by decreasing the correlation length and/or intensity of turbulent structures. The transport barrier that takes place at the edge during improved regimes such as H mode, corresponds to the establishment of a large shear of the radial electric field. In this context, the radial shape of the radial electric field or more exactly of the perpendicular E × B velocity appears as a key element in accessing improved confinement regimes. In this paper, we present the radial profile of the perpendicular velocity measured using Doppler back-scattering system at the edge of the plasma, dominated by the E × B velocity, during the first campaigns of the WEST tokamak. It is found that the radial velocity profile is clearly more sheared in lower single null configuration (with the B × ∇B magnetic drift pointing toward the active X-point) than in upper single null configuration for ohmic and low current plasmas (B = 3.7 T and q
95 = 4.7), consistently with the expectation comparing respectively ‘favourable’ versus ‘unfavourable’ configuration. Interestingly, this tendency is sensitive to the plasma current and to the amount of additional heating power leading to plasma conditions in which the E × B velocity exhibits a deeper well in USN configuration. For example, while the velocity profile exhibits a clear and deep well just inside the separatrix concomitant with the formation of a density pedestal during L–H transitions observed in LSN configuration, deeper E
r wells are observed in USN configuration during similar transitions with less pronounced density pedestal.
Shattered pellet injection experiments at JET in support of the ITER disruption mitigation system design
Authors: Jachmich S. , Kruezi U. , Lehnen M. , Baruzzo M. , Baylor L.R. , Carnevale D. , Craven D. , Eidietis N.W. , Ficker O. , Gebhart T.E. , Gerasimov S. , Herfindal J.L. , Hollmann E. , Huber A. , Lomas P. , Lovell J. , Manzanares A. , Maslov M. , Mlynar J. , Pautasso G. , Paz-Soldan C. , Peacock A. , Piron L. , Plyusnin V. , Reinke M. , Reux C. , Rimini F. , Sheikh U. , Shiraki D. , Silburn S. , Sweeney R. , Wilson J. , Carvalho P. , JET Contributors the
Published: November 2021

A series of experiments have been executed at JET to assess the efficacy of the newly installed shattered pellet injection (SPI) system in mitigating the effects of disruptions. Issues, important for the ITER disruption mitigation system, such as thermal load mitigation, avoidance of runaway electron (RE) formation, radiation asymmetries during thermal quench mitigation, electromagnetic load control and RE energy dissipation have been addressed over a large parameter range. The efficiency of the mitigation has been examined for the various SPI injection strategies. The paper summarises the results from these JET SPI experiments and discusses their implications for the ITER disruption mitigation scheme.
Study on temporal and spatial differences of multi-attribute characteristics of torrential rain in different months in China
Authors: Feng Kong
Published: November 2021

Using the daily precipitation data of 545 meteorological stations in China from 1961 to 2016, the temporal and spatial characteristics of torrential rainfall and rain days in different months in China were detected from the three aspects of climatic state characteristics, change trend and interannual variations. The results showed that: (1) The torrential rainfall and rain days in different months in China from 1961 to 2016 had similar spatial differentiation characteristics in the corresponding months. The high-value areas of torrential rainfall and rain days gradually expanded from the southeast coast to the northwest inland from January to July, but mainly distributed in the east of the Hu Huanyong Line, and reduced from the northwest area to the southeast coastal area from August to December; The torrential rainfall and rain days were less distributed in the west of the Hu Huanyong Line in different months. (2) The temporal and spatial differentiation characteristics of torrential rainfall and rain days in different months in China from 1961 to 2016 were basically the same. The torrential rainfall and rain days in China had the most significant change trend from May to August, mainly distributed in the southeast monsoon region with an increasing trend. The torrential rainfall and rain days in the northwest have little changes in different months. (3) The interannual variations of the torrential rainfall and rain days in different months in China from 1961 to 2016 were similar. Thereinto, there was large fluctuation in the northern region from April to October, while the variations in the southern region fluctuated greatly from January to March and from November to December. The high-value areas of the torrential rainfall and rain days with large fluctuation gradually expanded from southeast to northwest, northeast and southwest with the development of month, with the fluctuation tending to decrease in the southeast, and then shrank from the northwest, northeast and southwest to the southeast, coupled with an increasing fluctuation in the southeast. The research has certain reference significance for flood control, disaster reduction, and the planning and utilization of water resources.
Community governance in rural villager resettlement neighborhoods in China: rural-urban divide, civic engagement, and state control
Authors: Qian Zhu , Zhang Shuping
Published: November 2021

In China, to meet the demand of expansive urbanization, the state expropriates rural land from village collectives and offers resettlement arrangement to landless villagers. The aim of this study is to advance our understanding of the community governance in government-designated resettlement neighborhoods in Chinese cities. By employing participatory observations and key informant interviews with community association staff and resettled villagers in four neighborhoods in Shanghai, this research documents and evaluates an emerging multi-scalar civic coalition formed to maximize the capacity of community governance. The study finds that the new collation is maintained through strategic networks, information exchange, resource sharing, and reciprocal collaborations. Critiques of the regime spotlight its three shortfalls: the conflicts among regime partners which threatens the stability of the coalition; the justice issue behind differentiated standards that creates divides among community members; and the lack of citizen connection and support that questions the resilience of the regime.
Analysis of agribusiness performance of top five vegetable farming in East Java
Authors: Dewi H A , Daroini P B , Ndaru R , Negoro A A , Latifah E
Published: November 2021

East Java Province is one of vegetable-producing areas; however, performance of vegetable production has not been identified. The performance will be an important indicator of regional agricultural economic development of the region. This paper aims to provide farm analyses of leading vegetable farming in East Java Province. East Java Province is one of the potential production areas for vegetables. Secondary data were collected from the Agricultural District Services of Malang, Blitar and Kediri in 2018. Five vegetables namely chilies (big and small), eggplant, yard-long bean, and tomato, which were considered leading commodities in the region, were selected for these analyses. A factor share approach, which is commonly used for financial analysis of farming systems, was employed in this study. Other financial analytical approaches were also used to alternate selection criteria. As a deterministic approach used in this study, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to determine the profitability of each vegetable commodity. The results show that chili and tomato are more labor-intensive, at which suitable for regions with an abundance of rural labor. Each vegetable has a positive profit, and thus recommended grow vegetables to increase households’ income. Big-chili is superior in terms of absolute profit, and it is recommended that big-chili can be used as the main crop. In terms of R/C-ratio and factor share, eggplant is superior, it is recommended that eggplant can be used as an alternative crop.
Quality and benefits of good agricultural practice method on choy sum cultivation in northern Cambodia
Authors: Teck V , Tann H , Meas A , Leng S , Chea R
Published: November 2021

Choy sum (Brassica chinensis var. parachinensis) is one of the important green leafy vegetable crops widely produced and consumed in Cambodia. Most of the farmers practically use chemical inputs to increase their choy sum’s yield, yet negatively affecting consumers’ health. Accordingly, assuring food safety and higher yield of choy sum are essential for sustainable economic growth and development in Cambodia. In this study, we aimed to investigate the quality and benefits of choy sum cultivation using good agricultural practice (GAP) over the organic farming systems in northern Cambodia; where growth rate, yield and economic efficiency of choy sum crop were assessed. Completely randomized design was employed on three treatments (non-treated control, organic method, and GAP), while classical statistical tests were used to examine the difference of quality and benefits between the treatments. As a result, cultivation technique-GAP method provided a better growth rate, yield, and economic profitability than other treatments. Thus, GAP method’s application is recommended for choy sum crop production and other potential green leafy crops. These findings provided more concrete evidence on financial benefits and quality of production of the GAP method on leafy plant growth (choy sum). Therefore, agricultural extension using GAP method would be a good technique to promote agricultural value chain, while improving food safety and livelihoods of Cambodian farmers.
The effect of COVID-19 outbreak on the competitive and comparative advantages of rice production in West Java, Indonesia
Authors: Sinuraya J F , Setiyanto A
Published: November 2021

Food security is one of the keys to success in overcoming problems arising impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. Attention to the paddy production in West Java is imperative. This paper aimed to discuss the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the competitiveness of rice production in West Java by using two indicators of Policy Analysis Matrix (PAM), namely Private Cost Ratio (PCR) and Domestic Resource Cost Ratio (DRC). The data used is from the National Panel of Farmers (PATANAS) survey data for wetland rice agro-ecosystem in West Java, with 144 households of rice farmer respondents. The results show that the COVID-19 outbreak harms the competitiveness of rice production, and it takes three years for recovery to be a competitive advantage and more than five years for comparative advantage. At the private and social prices of GKP at the farm level equal to the GPP 2020, rice production in West Java will lose its competitive advantage starting in 2022, while the comparative advantage of rice production in West Java continues to decline until 2024. This study has three policy implications: the first eliminating disruption of the distributions of agricultural inputs and outputs. The second is striving to increase the use of machinery and equipment to secure the risk of yield loss during cultivation, harvest time, and post-harvest handling at the farm level. The third is selecting the farmers who have high capability in competitive and comparative advantages as a model for fostering competitiveness improvement for farmers with lower abilities.
Poverty dynamics in farm and rural households: PATANAS data analysis 2007‒2018
Authors: Yofa R D , Maulana M , Ar-rozi A M , Anugerah I S , Darwis V , Simatupang P
Published: November 2021

In developing countries, the majority of the population work as farmers. Thus, the welfare realization can be achieved by increasing farmers’ welfare. Welfare is the opposite of poverty, therefore, the prevalence of poverty is seen as an indicator of welfare. This study aims to analyze the dynamics of poverty at the farm and rural household levels. The data used is from a panel data survey of the National Farmers Panel (PATANAS) on four agroecosystems from 2007 to 2018, collected by the Indonesian Centre for Agricultural Socio-Economic and Policy Studies (ICASEPS), Ministry of Agriculture. The data were analyzed statistically descriptive by making six poverty categories based on the distance between per capita income and the poverty line published by Central Bureau Statistic (CBS). The study results show that rural households still use the land as their main base of income in all types of agroecosystems. On the other hand, non-agricultural income sources have consistently increased, indicating a structural change from the dominance of agriculture to industry and services. There has been a decrease in the number of rural households categorized as almost non-poor, destitute, and suffering. The number of households categorized as non-poor and very poor is dominant in all agroecosystems. It shows that there is widening inequality. Recommendations can be given in farm upgrading through agricultural modernization, rural agro-industrialization, and even job transfer from rural farmers to the formal urban sector.
Peatland conservation strategies and carbon pricing possibilities for climate change mitigation in Indonesia: a review
Authors: Pertiwi N , Tsusaka T W , Sasaki N , Gunawan E
Published: November 2021

Humankind is digging to solve one of the world’s most complex issues at present, climate change. Many studies were conducted and initiatives were proposed as mitigation and adaptation strategies to date, such as restoration and preservation of carbon storage. Peatlands are widely recognized as the largest natural carbon storage of all terrestrial ecosystems. Peatlands can help mitigate climate change by its ability to sequestrate huge amounts of carbon and maintain water balance. This valuable yet vulnerable ecosystem needs to be managed properly to maintain the functions. This study aimed to critically review the peatland conservation strategies and possibility of carbon pricing for mitigation and adaptation of climate change, specifically for Indonesia. It was revealed that restoration strategies such as rewetting, revegetation, and revitalization could help with peatlands conservation and further reduction in emissions from land sectors. However, the funding for conservation activities would become a hindrance to the viability and sustainability. Carbon pricing could be a potentially effective approach to conservation of peatlands. Sequestrated carbon and potential additional value from ecosystem services could higher up the price that made the option for conservation more stunning. Therefore, to establish tradable carbon credits on peatland as a means to support the sustainability of Indonesia’s peatland conservation in the future, the action to well managing and standardizing the carbon credits should be started immediately. Though the process will take time and great willingness from all parties, this option could be used for long-term peatland conservation activities.
Vector error correction model relationship between three vegetable oil products
Authors: Rifin A , Nauly D
Published: November 2021

International price of palm oil fluctuated frequently. It is predicted that the international price of palm oil is affected by the other vegetable oil prices. Soybean oil, rapeseed oil and palm oil are the three most important vegetable oil in the word. These commodities compete but on the other hand the world prices are moving in the same direction. This paper analyzes the relationship of these three prices in the short-run and long-run. The method utilizes in the analysis is the vector error correction model (VECM) followed by Impulse Response and Variance Decomposition. The data used is monthly data from January 2003 until December 2020. The results indicate that in the short-run, only the lag of each vegetable oil prices affects their own price. Meanwhile, in the long-run the three prices have long-run relationship or in other words the prices are cointegrated. Using variance decomposition and impulse response shows that soybean oil price has more effect on rapeseed and palm oil prices. Therefore, it can be concluded, the fluctuation of rapeseed and palm oil prices will be affected by the price fluctuation of soybean oil price
Indonesia’s coffee and cocoa agribusiness opportunities in Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership trade cooperation
Authors: Dermoredjo S K , Pasaribu S M , Azahari D H , Yusuf E S
Published: November 2021

Following the agreement of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in 2015, it has been approved that cooperation between ASEAN and the other five partner countries, namely China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Korea, has been bound in new economic partnerships, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The main objective of RCEP is to empower economic integrity and enhance the economic development of respective member countries. Coffee and cocoa are two of Indonesia’s important estate commodities for exports. A study focusing on coffee and cocoa agribusiness development to take advantage of RCEP was conducted in several production centers of rural areas. This paper aims to analyze the role of coffee and cocoa business in RCEP trade cooperation by: (i) understanding and analyzing trade on RCEP using RCA and RO, (ii) reviewing trade development in RCEP toward Indonesia’s coffee and cocoa performance using Gereffi analysis. This study was conducted in North Sumatra and South Sulawesi provinces. The study revealed an opportunity for coffee and cocoa to increase their market in the RCEP region but only with its high quality. Coffee and cocoa should be well prepared with significant, integrative, and comprehensive improvement. The government is suggested increasing the production and productivity of coffee and cocoa through intensive extension and closely working with the farmers.
Turning point the concept of rural development in Indonesia from top-down to bottom-up strategy
Authors: Pranadji T , Wahida  , Anugrah I S
Published: November 2021

The Asian financial crisis of 1997 followed by political turmoil in 1998 has not given a significant change to agriculture and rural development in Indonesia. Throughout history, Indonesia has implemented the development of the agriculture sector under a top-down strategy. The success of this approach is marked by the achievement of rice self-sufficiency in 1984. Moreover, since the mid 1990s, Indonesia has embarked on various economic reforms that led to globalization. The Indonesian economy has become more integrated into the global economy and world market. Unfortunately, these changes were not translated properly to rural areas as there were no transition time for rural communities to adjust their economic condition to these changes. The multiplier effect that was expected as a consequence of globalization within rural economic systems was faced with difficulties such as paternalistic structure led by the elites. As a result, rural areas experienced with income gap, weak agriculture development, corruption, social problems and poverty. Meta-analysis approach is used to examine the approach that has been used in implementing program and projects. Findings from the articles showed that there is a need to do the re-orientation to the approach and increased the independency at the farmer level. The idea to develop national agriculture and rural development strategies that is based on a bottom-up approach, followed by an agrarian reform, as well as the formation of social capital and redefinition of local autonomy are the recommendation that high level decision maker could consider.
Avocado fruit supply chain management in West Java
Authors: Ar-Rozi A M , Saptana
Published: November 2021

Avocado is one of the leading fruit commodities with high competitiveness and a source of growth for farmers’ welfare in rural areas in Indonesia. This paper aims to analyze the performance of avocado supply chain management in the Garut and Bandung Districts. The analysis focused on five components of supply chain management: planning source of avocado, procurement, processing, distribution, and receiving of products. Data collection is conducted through survey methods and focus group discussion (FGD) with actors on each supply chain node according to purpose and market segment. The results showed that the lack of variety, quantity, and continuity of supply is consistent with the dynamic of market demand and domestic and global consumer preferences. The performance of supply chain implementation for avocado at the planning level was at 45%–90%, product distribution performance was at a moderate level at 25%–80%, delivery of goods was at a good level at 70%–83%, and receiving product performance was at 0%–100%. Strategies to restrain the entry of imported fruit and penetrate the avocado fruit export market are required to improve product competitiveness, quality management, and integrated product chain management.
Labor allocation dynamics, problem, and strategy for plantation development in Indonesia
Authors: Wahyuni S , Susilowati S H , Yofa R D , Azahari D H
Published: November 2021

Women have important role in farming activities they have and running their household. This paper aims to analyze gender-based working time allocation in farming plantation to support the fifth SDGs “gender equality”. The data source was from a micro panel data survey of the National Farmers Panel (PATANAS) done by the Indonesian Center for Agricultural Socio Economic and Policy Studies, Ministry of Agriculture, in 2009 and 2018. The qualitative research was adopted, data analyzed descriptively by comparing results in 2009 and 2018. The results showed that the time allocation for female workers outside the family per hectare in 2018 increased compared to 2009 for sugarcane, rubber, and cacao commodities. The allocation of labor time in women’s families also increased in sugarcane (+ 37%) and rubber (+ 33%) but decreased for cacao (-55%) and oil palm (-42%) because were replaced by labor from outside the family. The allocation of time for labor within the family and outside the family in both 2009 and 2018 was dominated by male workers. Male and female laborer have certain activity in plantation farming and in general wages of male laborers are higher than those of women. In 2009 the labor wage difference was IDR 5,163 and getting higher in 2018 ranging from IDR 6,048 (cacao) to IDR 9,302 (sugarcane). Suggested that to increase the participation of women in plantation farming, special improvement should be addressed to women’s capacities in technical, managerial, wages system and problems of women’s working on plantations which showed increasing labor.
Analyzing global competitiveness of Indonesian palm oil
Authors: Wibowo R P , Sumono  , Khaliqi M , Maryunianta Y
Published: November 2021

Indonesia is the largest producer and exporter of palm oil in the world vegetable oil market. However, Indonesia export share had decreasing trend and there is an emerging competition from South America and African palm oil producer. Another issue is a non-competitive strategy from European countries for limiting palm oil import. This study aims to seek the pricing behavior of Indonesian exporter in the world palm oil market. This study shows Indonesian exporter apply Local Currency Price Stabilization Strategy to European countries but more competitive behavior to other importing countries. The LCPS strategy to European countries might be induced by more elastic palm oil demand on that region. The opposite with India and China that might have less elastic palm oil demand schedule. However, Indonesian exporter should have more awareness of future competition in the palm oil market and its pricing strategy, especially to emerging demand from India and China.
Agricultural value chain financing: a case study in Ciamis District, West Java Province
Authors: Pasaribu S M , Sayaka B , de Braw A , Suhartini S H , Dabukke F B M
Published: November 2021

Smallholding farmers frequently deal with shortage of working capital to cover farm costs. Given the applied terms and conditions, a lot of farmers unable to access the current People’s Business Credit (KUR), while a holistic value chain financial support is required to achieve sustainable food production. Limited capacity of formal rural-based financial institutions encourages the local money lenders to take opportunity of financially support the farmers. In response to this issue, a case study was conducted in Ciamis District, West Java Province. Primary data was collected using an interview technique. Data were organized, processed, an interpreted using a descriptive type of analysis. The study revealed that the rice farmers need an inclusive credit support from pre-planting to post-harvest and marketing of their products. Farmers require working capital to continue their farm activities and to support value chain financing of the agribusiness. Although the existing local micro financial institutions showed good performance, however they lacked fund and access to formal financial institutions such as banks or CSR soft loans. Government is suggested to strengthen the existing local micro financial institutions by linking them to sources of funds and to support business to business relations for better service to smallholding farmers. Inclusive value chain financing implies that farmers, micro financial institutions, and local governments are strongly integrated to achieve better farm performance. Ministry of Agriculture has a strategic role to take initiative to strengthening an inclusive agricultural value chain financing on the existing local micro financial institutions.
Household shocks and coping mechanisms in Camiguin Province, Philippines
Authors: Lloren R
Published: November 2021

Island’s vulnerability is anchored towards stewardship to accommodate environmental conservation and economic activity. Vulnerability poses risk and uncertainty of island households. Household as an important entity plays a role for island development. This study aimed to identify the profile of rural households, evaluate the shocks as well as coping mechanisms employed by the rural households. Stratified random sampling was undertaken to identify the 377 randomly selected samples from the municipalities of Catarman and Sagay in the province of Camiguin, Philippines. The survey was conducted from February to March 2019. Household’s data collected includes age of the respondent, sex of the respondent, household size, household income in range, educational attainment of respondent, farm size, and tenurial status. Respondents were asked to rank the shocks and risks encountered as well as the coping mechanisms. Data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics. Results revealed that post-harvest losses played a significant role in agricultural shocks while could not buy food due to food price increase as economic shocks. Selling of livestock, land and other assets got the highest rank for mechanisms to cope up with shocks. Improved storage facilities and efficient transport system can be taken into consideration to improve the quality of agricultural products to be marketed inside and outside the island to minimize post-harvest losses.