bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of Bifidobacterium administration on very‐low‐birthweight infants
Authors: Yamasaki Chika , Totsu Satsuki , Uchiyama Atushi , Nakanishi Hidehiko , Masumoto Kenichi , Washio Yosuke , Shuri Kyoko , Ishida Shuji , Imai Ken , Kusuda Satoshi
Published: April 2012

Background:  The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of early administration of Bifidobacterium bifidum OLB6378 (B. bifidum) on accelerating enteral feeding and bacterial colonization in very‐low‐birthweight (VLBW) infants.

Methods:  We conducted a single‐center prospective pilot study. Thirty‐six VLBW infants were randomly divided into two groups: group E, wherein B. bifidum was supplemented within 48 h of birth, and group L, wherein it was supplemented more than 48 h after birth.

Results:  Group E and group L reached a total feeding volume of 100 mL/(kg/day) after 10 [7–13] days and 11 [10–15] days, respectively (median [quartile]). The daily bodyweight gain in group E was significantly higher (21.4 ± 3.2 g/day vs 18.3 ± 4.0 g/day, P < 0.02; 11.1 ± 1.5 g/kg/day vs 10.4 ± 1.2 g/kg/day, P < 0.04). No significant differences were found in the fecal Bifidobacterium level between the groups quantitated with a real‐time polymerase chain reaction assay at 1 and 4 weeks of age. However, the highest colonization rate of Bifidobacterium was observed when the supplementation started between 24 and 48 h after birth. The incidence of morbidities between the groups was similar.

Conclusion:  The early administration of B. bifidum to VLBW infants seems effective in promoting growth during the stay in the neonatal intensive care unit without increasing the incidence of morbidity. Furthermore, the preferable timing of starting the probiotic supplementation for VLBW infants is at latest less than 48 h after birth.
Increasing productivity, reducing cost and improving quality in elective surgery in New Zealand: the Waitemata District Health Board joint arthroplasty pilot
Authors: Cullen J. , Bramley D. , Armstrong D. , Butler L. , Rouse P. , Ashton T.
Published: April 2012

Background:  In 2010, Waitemata District Health Board piloted a new model of care for total hip and knee arthroplasties. The pilot was incentive based and clinically led. The participating surgeons and anaesthetists were responsible for increasing surgical throughput. The pilot aimed to increase productivity, reduce cost and increase quality for patients.

Aim:  To compare costs and outcomes for elective hip and knee arthroplasties carried out at the pilot site (Waitakere Hospital) compared with the main District Health Board hospital site (North Shore Hospital (NSH)).

Methods:  A retrospective matched cohort study of hip and knee replacements discharged between 1 July 2010 and 31 March 2011, comparing costs and outcomes at the pilot site compared with the NSH site. Only non‐complex procedures were included, and routinely collected data were used.

Results:  One hundred and seventy‐seven hip replacements (77 NSH, 100 pilot) and 158 knee replacements (88 NSH, 70 pilot) were analysed. Total inpatient event costs were 12% and 17% lower for hip and knee replacements, respectively, at the pilot site compared with NSH. Significant reduction in operation length (39% hip, 36% knee) and length of stay (38% hip, 39% knee) were found in the pilot groups compared with NSH.

Conclusion:  Implementation of an innovative new model in a public hospital setting has produced significant increases in productivity and reduced overall costs. This model could potentially be used in other public healthcare settings for non‐complex elective surgery.
Circadian waves of cytosolic calcium concentration and long‐range network connections in rat suprachiasmatic nucleus
Authors: Hong Jin Hee , Jeong Byeongha , Min Cheol Hong , Lee Kyoung J.
Published: April 2012

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) is the master clock in mammals governing the daily physiological and behavioral rhythms. It is composed of thousands of clock cells with their own intrinsic periods varying over a wide range (20–28 h). Despite this heterogeneity, an intact SCN maintains a coherent 24 h periodic rhythm through some cell‐to‐cell coupling mechanisms. This study examined how the clock cells are connected to each other and how their phases are organized in space by monitoring the cytosolic free calcium ion concentration ([Ca2+]c) of clock cells using the calcium‐binding fluorescent protein, cameleon. Extensive analysis of 18 different organotypic slice cultures of the SCN showed that the SCN calcium dynamics is coordinated by phase‐synchronizing networks of long‐range neurites as well as by diffusively propagating phase waves. The networks appear quite extensive and far‐reaching, and the clock cells connected by them exhibit heterogeneous responses in their amplitudes and periods of oscillation to tetrodotoxin treatments. Taken together, our study suggests that the network of long‐range cellular connectivity has an important role for the SCN in achieving its phase and period coherence.
Perioperative management of the pediatric patient with traumatic brain injury
Authors: Bhalla Tarun , Dewhirst Elisabeth , Sawardekar Amod , Dairo Olamide , Tobias Joseph D.
Published: April 2012

TBI and its sequelae remain a major healthcare issue throughout the world. With an improved understanding of the pathophysiology of TBI, refinements of monitoring technology, and ongoing research to determine optimal care, the prognosis of TBI continues to improve. In 2003, the Society of Critical Care Medicine published guidelines for the acute management of severe TBI in infants, children, and adolescents. As pediatric anesthesiologists are frequently involved in the perioperative management of such patients including their stabilization in the emergency department, familiarity with these guidelines is necessary to limit preventable secondary damage related to physiologic disturbances. This manuscript reviews the current evidence‐based medicine regarding the care of pediatric patients with TBI as it relates to the perioperative care of such patients. The issues reviewed include those related to initial stabilization, airway management, intra‐operative mechanical ventilation, hemodynamic support, administration of blood and blood products, positioning, and choice of anesthetic technique. The literature is reviewed regarding fluid management, glucose control, hyperosmolar therapy, therapeutic hypothermia, and corticosteroids. Whenever possible, management recommendations are provided.
The structure of the von Willebrand factor is not altered in patients with colorectal carcinoma
Authors: Weiss D. R. , Eiche C. , Hupke C. , Schellerer V. S. , Keller A. K. , Strasser E. F. , Ringwald J. , Zimmermann R. , Eckstein R.
Published: April 2012

Aim  Elevated levels of von Willebrand factor (VWF) are often observed in many diseases including colorectal cancer, but this finding is not definite. The aim of our study was to examine the change in VWF multimer distribution in patients with colorectal cancer.

Method  We randomly selected nine patients from each of the four Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) stages of colon cancer. VWF antigen (VWF:Ag), VWF‐cleaving protease ADAMTS‐13 level and factor VIII activity (FVIII:C) were determined. The multimer distribution of VWF was visualized using electrophoretic multimer analysis.

Results  The VWF multimer structure was normal with no difference between the four UICC stages. There was no significant increase in VWF:Ag and FVIII:C levels in the more advanced UICC stages. There was no significant difference in the ADAMTS‐13 level according to the UICC stage.

Conclusion  There was no change in the VWF multimer distribution to indicate acquired von Willebrand disease.
Immunohistochemical alterations in invasive adenocarcinoma in endoscopically resected adenoma and factors associated with risk of residual or recurrent disease
Authors: Cubiella J. , Arias M. D. , Penin M. C. , Quintas P. , Couto I. , Cobian C. , Bujanda L. , Fernández‐Seara J.
Published: April 2012

Aim  We determined the pattern of immunohistochemical expression in invasive adenocarcinoma in endoscopically resected adenoma, its relationship with the risk of residual or recurrent disease and the related factors.

Method  We included individuals with malignant polyps resected endoscopically in the period 1999–2009. Clinical and endoscopic data were collected. All histological specimens were re‐analysed. CD44, matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP‐9), vascular endothelial growth factor‐β (VEGF‐β), β‐catenin, laminin and cyclooxygenase 2 (COX‐2) expression were determined by immunohistochemistry. A multivariate logistic regression was performed to determine variables independently associated with the risk of residual or recurrent disease.

Results  One‐hundred and fifty‐one malignant polyps (114 pedunculated; mean size ± SD = 22.61 ± 10.86 mm) were resected endoscopically. Resection was fragmented and incomplete in 26.5% and 8.6% of patients, respectively. Surgical resection was performed on 71 (47%) patients. After a median follow‐up of 44 months, residual (n = 12) or recurrent (n = 6) disease was detected in 17 patients. Conventional histology showed that 32.1% met high‐risk histological criteria. Immunohistochemical expression was positive for CD44, MMP‐9, VEGF‐β, β‐catenin, laminin and COX‐2 in 63.3%, 25.3%, 45%, 38.8%, 79% and 34.5% of specimens, respectively, with no differences between both groups. Variables associated with residual or recurrent disease in the univariate analysis were: nonpedunculated morphology (P = 0.07); fragmented (P < 0.001) or incomplete resection (P < 0.001); margin infiltration (P = 0.04); and histological high‐risk lesion (P = 0.003). Finally, incomplete resection (OR = 12.16, 95% CI = 3.15–46.98; P < 0.001) and histological high risk (OR = 4.73, 95% CI = 1.33–16.74; P = 0.002) were independently associated with the risk of residual or recurrent disease.

Conclusion  Immunohistochemistry could not predict residual or recurrent disease. Only incomplete excision and histological high risk did so. The factors independently associated were histological high‐risk lesion and incomplete resection.
Increased risk of severe acute pancreatitis in patients with diabetes
Authors: Shen H.‐N. , Chang Y.‐H. , Chen H.‐F. , Lu C.‐L. , Li C.‐Y.
Published: April 2012

Aims  We prospectively assessed the age‐ and sex‐specific incidence rates and relative risks of overall and severe acute pancreatitis in Taiwanese with diabetes.

Methods  The study cohort included age‐ and‐sex‐matched groups of patients with (n = 547 554) and without (n = 584 373) diabetes. Incidence rate was estimated under Poisson assumption and relative risks of acute pancreatitis and severe acute pancreatitis, based on modified Atlanta criteria, were indicated by hazard ratios estimated from Cox proportional hazard regression models.

Results  Over an 8‐year follow‐up period, the incidence of acute pancreatitis was 2.98 and 1.68 per 1000 person‐years for patients with and without diabetes, respectively, representing a covariate adjusted hazard ratio of 1.53 (95% confidence interval 1.49–1.58). Diabetes was associated with a significantly elevated risk of acute pancreatitis in all sex and age stratifications, with the highest hazard ratio noted for study subjects aged < 45 years (men 2.37; women 2.95). Diabetes was also significantly associated with an increased hazard ratio of severe acute pancreatitis [1.46 (1.36–1.57)], and especially of acute pancreatitis with local complications [1.65 (1.14–2.39)].

Conclusions  Diabetes is associated with an increased risk of overall and severe acute pancreatitis, and the relation is stronger in women and young patients.
Multiple complications and frequent severe hypoglycaemia in ‘elderly’ and ‘old’ patients with Type 1 diabetes
Authors: Schütt M. , Fach E.‐M. , Seufert J. , Kerner W. , Lang W. , Zeyfang A. , Welp R. , Holl R. W. ,   for the DPV Initiative and the German BMBF Competence Network Diabetes Mellitus
Published: April 2012

Diabet. Med. 29, e176–e179 (2012)

Aim  Elderly and old patients with Type 1 diabetes represent a growing population that requires thorough diabetes care. The increasing relevance of this subgroup, however, plays only a minor role in the literature. Here, we describe elderly patients with Type 1 diabetes on the basis of a large multi‐centre database in order to point out special features of this population.

Method  Data of 64 609 patients with Type 1 diabetes treated by 350 qualified diabetes treatment centres were assessed and analysed by age group.

Results  Compared with the age group ≤ 60 years, patients aged > 60 years (n = 3610 61–80 years and n = 377 > 80 years old) were characterized by a longer diabetes duration (27.7 vs. 7.7 years), an almost double risk for severe hypoglycaemia (40.1 vs. 24.3/100 patient‐years), a lower level of HbA1c [60 vs. 67 mmol/mol (7.6 vs. 8.3%)] and higher percentages of microalbuminuria (34.5 vs. 15.6%), diabetic retinopathy (45.2 vs. 8.3%), myocardial infarction (9.0 vs. 0.4%) or stroke (6.8 vs. 0.3%). Elderly patients used insulin pumps less frequently (12.2 vs. 23.8%), but more often used conventional premixed insulin treatment (10.8 vs. 3.8%). Differences between elderly and younger patient groups were significant, respectively.

Conclusion  Diabetes care of elderly patients with Type 1 diabetes involves individualized treatment concepts. Increased hypoglycaemia risk and functional impairment attributable to diabetes‐associated and/or age‐related disorders must be taken into account.
Type 1 diabetes in pre‐school children – long‐term metabolic control, associated autoimmunity and complications
Authors: Levy‐Shraga Y. , Lerner‐Geva L. , Boyko V. , Graph‐Barel C. , Mazor‐Aronovitch K. , Modan‐Moses D. , Pinhas‐Hamiel O.
Published: April 2012

Diabet. Med. 29, 1291–1296 (2012)

Aims  To identify clinical characteristics and co‐morbidity rates of children diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes mellitus at younger than 6 years of age.

Methods  Data were obtained from a retrospective chart review of 103 patients diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at younger than 6 years (study group) and 220 patients at older than 6 years (comparison group). Measures of glycaemic control and occurrence of co‐morbidities (coeliac disease, autoimmune thyroid disease, hypertension, nephropathy and retinopathy) were compared.

Results  The mean follow‐up period was more than 8 years. For the study group, mean HbA1c levels ranged from 64 mmol/mol to 66 mmol/mol (8.0–8.2%) until age 10 years, and then rose to 73 mmol/mol (8.8%). The HbA1c levels were higher in the study than in the comparison group for comparable ages (P = 0.003). After adjustment for duration of diabetes this difference was not significant. The overall rate of severe hypoglycaemic events was greater in the study group than in the comparison group (P = 0.03). Kaplan–Meier diagnosis rates of celiac disease, 10 years after Type 1 diabetes diagnosis, were 14.4% and 4.2% in the study and comparison groups, respectively (P log‐rank = 0.03). There were no differences in rates of autoimmune thyroid disease, hypertension, nephropathy or retinopathy.

Conclusions  Children diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes before the age of 6 years were in greater risk of developing celiac disease, compared with children diagnosed after the age of 6 years. For children diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes aged under 6 years, good metabolic control was achievable until age 10 years, after which it deteriorated. Higher HbA1c levels observed in children diagnosed before the age of 6 years were associated with longer duration of disease.
Long‐term clinical effects of epalrestat, an aldose reductase inhibitor, on progression of diabetic neuropathy and other microvascular complications: multivariate epidemiological analysis based on patient background factors and severity of diabetic neuropathy
Authors: Hotta N. , Kawamori R. , Fukuda M. , Shigeta Y. ,   The Aldose Reductase Inhibitor–Diabetes Complications Trial Study Group
Published: April 2012

Diabet. Med. 29, 1529–1533 (2012)

Aims  The goal of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of epalrestat, an aldose reductase inhibitor, on diabetic retinopathy and diabetic nephropathy, based on analysis of the results of the Aldose Reductase Inhibitor–Diabetes Complications Trial, a 3‐year multicentre comparative clinical trial of conventional therapy (control group) and epalrestat therapy (epalrestat group) in Japanese patients with mild diabetic neuropathy.

Methods  The subjects of the study were patients enrolled in the Aldose Reductase Inhibitor–Diabetes Complications Trial for whom data for major patient characteristics, severity of diabetic neuropathy at the end of the study and time‐courses of diabetic retinopathy and diabetic nephropathy were available (57 and 52 patients from the control and epalrestat groups, respectively). Progression of diabetic retinopathy/nephropathy (a primary endpoint) in relation to major patient characteristics, severity of diabetic neuropathy at the end of the study (assessed from the mean of z‐scores in four neurological function tests) and epalrestat treatment were analysed using univariate analysis and multiple logistic regression analysis.

Results  Progression of diabetic retinopathy/nephropathy was significantly inhibited in the epalrestat group compared with the control group (odds ratio = 0.323, P = 0.014) and was dependent on the severity of diabetic neuropathy at the end of the study (odds ratio = 2.131, P = 0.025).

Conclusions  Epalrestat prevented progression of diabetic neuropathy and retinopathy/nephropathy. The effect on diabetic retinopathy/nephropathy may have occurred indirectly because of the prevention of progression of diabetic neuropathy, in addition to the inhibitory action of epalrestat on aldose reductase.
An interactive 1‐h educational programme for junior doctors, increases their confidence and improves inpatient diabetes care
Authors: Taylor C. G. , Morris C. , Rayman G.
Published: April 2012

Diabet. Med. 29, 1574–1578 (2012)

Aim  To evaluated whether a 1 hour, interactive, case‐based programme could improve the quality of care and juniors’ confidence.

Methods  We designed an educational programme using a patient’s journey from admission to discharge in order to teach avoidance of common errors, while enhancing familiarity with local charts and protocols. The intervention was delivered in four hospitals, to doctors within 4 years of training following graduation. Feedback was received. The quality of care provided and the confidence of juniors’ in its provision was evaluated before and after the intervention.

Results  Of the 242 trainees taught, 205 (85%) provided feedback. The programme was rated ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ easy to understand by 94.1%. The format was thought to improve attention and participation, ‘quite a lot’ or ‘extremely’ by 94.1% and was ‘highly’ or ‘extremely highly’ recommended for other areas of teaching by 93.1%. The mean confidence score increased from 17.6 (SD 4) to 24.9 (SD 2.7) (P < 0.001), with Cronbach α coefficients of 0.81 and 0.86 for the questionnaires before and after the programme. Insulin prescription errors were reduced by 49% (15.4% before and 7.8% after, P < 0.05).

Conclusion  The inpatient diabetes education programme, which is deliverable within 1 h, was liked by juniors, increased their confidence and improved the quality of inpatient diabetes care.
A retrospective database study of insulin initiation in patients with Type 2 diabetes in UK primary care
Authors: Blak B. T. , Smith H. T. , Hards M. , Maguire A. , Gimeno V.
Published: April 2012

Diabet. Med. 29, e191–e198 (2012)

Aims  This study characterized UK primary care patients with Type 2 diabetes who initiated insulin treatment, and described the initial insulin regimens used, overall metabolic changes and health‐care resource usage.

Methods  A retrospective cohort study was performed using quality‐checked patient data from The Health Improvement Network database. Eligible patients who initiated insulin for the first time between 2004 and 2006 were grouped into four cohorts according to the type of insulin regimen initiated. Data on patient characteristics, metabolic and clinical outcomes and health‐care resource use were collected at baseline and during 6 months of follow‐up.

Results  In total, 4045 eligible adults [2269 male, 1776 female; mean age 62.6 ± 13.3 years; mean baseline HbA1c 82 ± 22 mmol/mol (9.6% ± 2.0%)] initiated insulin. Approximately half (52.4%) initiated insulin as basal insulin only, 41.6% as premixed only, 4.0% as basal‐bolus and 2.1% as prandial insulin only. Among patients with ≥ 180 days follow‐up (n = 3815), the initial insulin regimen was not changed during follow‐up in 75.1% of patients, while 13.7% discontinued, 7.0% switched and 4.7% intensified insulin therapy. The mean change in HbA1c was −14 mmol/mol (−1.3%, n = 2881), with 17.3% of patients achieving an HbA1c of < 53 mmol/mol (7%, n = 3024). The mean weight change was +0.9 kg (n = 2345).

Conclusions  Basal and premixed insulin were the most common types of insulin initiated and in most patients no changes were made to the initial regimen over 6 months. However, few patients achieved glycemic control targets.
Bond pricing with a surface of zero coupon yields
Authors: Murik Vijay A.
Published: April 2012

We present a new method for consistent cross‐sectional pricing of all traded bonds in the fixed income market. By applying thin plate regression splines (Wood, 2003) to bootstrapped zero coupon bond yields (Hagan and West, 2006), the method decomposes traded yields into a risk‐free component plus premia for credit and liquidity risks, where the decomposition is consistent with the market valuations and underlying cash flows of the bonds. We apply the framework to end of quarter yield data from 2008 to 2011 on Australian dollar denominated semi‐government, supranational and agency (SSA) bonds, and find that the surface provides an excellent fit to the underlying zero coupon yield curves. Further, the decomposition of selected yield time series and cross‐sections demonstrates how credit premia increased for Australian SSA bonds through the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), but were counterbalanced by liquidity discounts as investors sought safe haven securities.
Is prior director experience valuable?
Authors: Gray Stephen , Nowland John
Published: April 2012

Previous studies have investigated the effectiveness of directors in performing their monitoring and advising functions by examining characteristics such as independence, qualifications and professional expertise. In this study, we propose a more direct measure of director effectiveness – prior experience as a director. Using hand‐collected data from Australia, we find that both the depth (number of prior years) and breadth (number of current directorships) of a new appointee’s director experience is valued by shareholders at appointment. In particular, the market reaction is highest for appointees with the most prior director experience (two or more other current directorships in listed companies and four or more years of director experience) and when experienced appointees join less‐experienced boards.
The Impact of Aid for Trade Facilitation on the Costs of Trading
Authors: Busse Matthias , Hoekstra Ruth , Königer Jens
Published: April 2012

There have been ongoing discussions within the WTO Doha Round on Trade Facilitation and the wider Aid for Trade agenda to assist developing countries in reducing behind‐the‐border restrictions and to help them benefit from trade reform. Our paper contributes to this debate by analyzing the impact of foreign aid spent on Aid for Trade and Trade Facilitation on the costs of trading. In our empirical investigation, we conduct a panel data estimation for a sample of 99 developing countries for the period 2004–2009. Overall, we find that our aid measures are negatively associated with the costs of trading.
Biology, Immigration, and Public Policy
Authors: Christainsen Gregory B.
Published: April 2012

This paper discusses recent scientific research that has shifted the terms of the debate about the respective roles of nature and nurture in shaping behavior. The research includes literature in the areas of biology, psychometrics, evolutionary psychology, and behavioral genetics. The paper then shows the relevance of this literature for ongoing concerns about mass immigration in developed countries. The literature has implications not only for the personal success of the immigrants, but rates of social dependency and the outlook for political and social cooperation in increasingly diverse societies. Efforts to remediate IQ deficits or behavioral problems in some immigrant groups are seen to be problematic.
Pursuing Happiness
Authors: Schubert Christian
Published: April 2012

While positive research on the determinants of happiness (or ‘subjective well‐being’) abounds, comparatively little thought has been given to its practical policy implications. Two approaches to derive policy advice seem to emerge in the literature: The first, most prominent one, is organized in terms of the idea to maximize a hedonic social welfare function. The second focuses on the design of constitutional rules to facilitate the individuals' self‐determined ‘pursuit’ of happiness. We suggest to substantiate what it means to ‘pursue’ (rather than merely ‘enjoy’) happiness in order to provide the constitutional approach to happiness politics with deeper psychological foundations and a more refined policy focus. Specifically, the pursuit of happiness is seen as being constituted not only by the satisfaction of innate needs for self‐determination (generating procedural utility), but also by (i) the enjoyable anticipation of hedonically valuable outcomes, and (ii) the use of these outcomes within the context of an overarching process of preference learning. If extended in this direction, a notion of the pursuit of happiness has interesting conceptual and policy implications. The latter are exemplified by suggestions on how to re‐focus public decision‐making mechanisms.
How to Measure the Rule of Law
Authors: Voigt Stefan
Published: April 2012

I argue that the rule of law consists of many dimensions and that much information is lost when variables proxying for these dimensions are simply aggregated. I draw on the most important innovations from various legal traditions to propose a concept of the rule of law likely to find general support. To make the concept measurable, an ideal approach is contrasted with a pragmatic one. The pragmatic approach consists of eight different dimensions. I show that the bivariate correlations between them are usually very low, evidence that more fine‐grained indicators of the rule of law, rather than a single hard‐to‐interpret one, are necessary for its measurement. The paper presents a list of desirable variables that could improve the measurement of various aspects of the rule of law.
Gender Inequality in Asset Ownership in Latin America: Female Owners vs Household Heads
Authors: Diana Deere Carmen , Alvarado Gina E. , Twyman Jennifer
Published: April 2012

Most studies that incorporate a gender dimension into the study of poverty or other development outcomes focus on the sex of the household head. This article argues that a headship analysis gives only a partial view of gender inequality since it does not take into account the position of women within male‐headed households. Drawing primarily on the Living Standard Measurement Studies for Latin America and the Caribbean, the authors present baseline indicators of the degree of gender inequality in asset ownership for the eleven countries in the region that have collected individual‐level data on asset ownership. Disaggregated data on asset ownership within households suggest that the distribution of property by gender is more equitable than a headship analysis alone would imply. But the degree of gender inequality also varies according to the specific asset and among countries. Further comparative work on asset ownership requires attention to the marital regimes governing property rights in marriage. Finally, the authors suggest how household surveys could be improved by standardizing the collection of individual‐level asset data across countries.
Hope Movements: Naming Mobilization in a Post‐development World
Authors: Cecilia Dinerstein Ana , Deneulin Séverine
Published: April 2012

Social mobilizations that are devoted to contesting development and creating alternative economic arrangements conducive to the pursuit of a dignified life have recently sprung up. Not only do they criticize the current state of affairs but they actively seek and experience new ways of living, inspired by what Bloch calls the anticipatory consciousness of the ‘not‐yet‐become’, that is, another reality not yet materialized but which can be already experienced. This article argues that these mobilizations are not adequately captured by the term ‘social movements’. The uniqueness of these mobilizations requires a conceptual and epistemological turn that is able to accommodate the post‐development critique of development as well as their emancipatory dimension. We propose to name them ‘hope movements’ to account for the collective action directed to anticipate, imperfectly, alternative realities that arise from the openness of the present one. We conclude by discussing the political relevance of hope movements for the pursuit of the good life as an alternative to development.
Development Strategy of the MAS in Bolivia: Characterization and an Early Assessment
Authors: Molero Simarro Ricardo , José Paz Antolín María
Published: April 2012

The aim of this article is to describe and evaluate the development strategy launched by the Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) in Bolivia when it came to power in 2006. The origin of this strategy can be found in the desire to tackle the economic and political transformations caused by the structural adjustment programme launched in 1985. The main economic measures taken by MAS are analysed in the context of the new development plans implemented in Latin America. This allows us to focus on the results achieved in Bolivia in two areas of major importance in the MAS strategy: productive transformation and income distribution. It is argued that, despite the progress achieved, the government of Evo Morales has so far been unable to alter the primary export model and the associated distribution pattern that have characterized the Bolivian economy.
Developing Climate Adaptation: The Intersection of Climate Research and Development Programmes in Index Insurance
Authors: Peterson Nicole D.
Published: April 2012

Using a case study from Ethiopia, this article examines the ways in which climate information and economic development interact in climate adaptation programmes. Microinsurance programmes have become very popular as an adaptation strategy but there has been little attention paid to the social, economic and political aspects of implementation. Examining one case in relation to the broader literature on climate adaptation projects suggests that greater attention needs to be paid to existing coping strategies, introduction of additional market risks, local capacity building and the socio‐political context of implementation. Climate change cannot be viewed as a technical problem only; it has a social dimension as well.
Building Cross‐Sector Careers in India's New Service Economy? Tracking Former Call Centre Agents in the National Capital Region
Authors: Vira Bhaskar , James Al
Published: April 2012

This article presents findings from a labour mobility survey of 250 former call centre agents in India's National Capital Region (September 2008) exploring individuals’ employment before, during and immediately after leaving India's high‐profile call centre ‘industry’. These data are combined with forty‐two in‐depth interviews conducted in India's NCR (July 2006 to August 2008) with call centre agents, managers, ex‐call centre agents, labour organizers and economic development officials, as well as representatives from different labour market intermediaries. The study gives a cautiously optimistic account about the call centre work and employment opportunities on offer in India's ‘IT Enabled Services – Business Processing Outsourcing’ (or ITES‐BPO) industry, and their implications for young urban middle class graduates based on: (i) the movement of around one fifth of the ex‐call centre agent sample into further study, facilitated by relatively high call centre salaries; (ii) the movement of ex‐call centre agents into higher paying job roles in a wide range of sectors including banking, IT, insurance, marketing, real estate and telecommunications; and (iii) the development of transferable skills in Indian call centres that are recognized by ex‐call centre agents and their subsequent employers as conferring a labour market advantage in other sectors of India's new service economy relative to colleagues without prior call centre work experience.
In Search of an Innovative State: The Development of the Biopharmaceutical Industry in Taiwan, South Korea and China
Authors: hwan Wang Jenn , Chen Tsung‐Yuan , Tsai Ching‐Jung
Published: April 2012

Recent developments in the biopharmaceutical industry in Taiwan, South Korea and China bear witness to the transformation of these states in nurturing an innovation‐based industry. This article argues that the segmentation of the value chain of the biopharmaceutical industry has provided industrializing countries with a window of opportunity. These East Asian states have modified their former catching‐up approaches by establishing a more effective institutional platform that can attract knowledge‐creation players to the industry. Through case studies, the authors show that the Taiwan state's promotion of the biopharmaceutical industry has been based on an incremental approach; existing state policies have been modified to cope with the demands of the industry, which has resulted in the continuation of its SME‐based industrial structure. The methods of the Korean state have been more radical, in that the policies that previously favoured the chaebols have gradually been reoriented toward the promotion of smaller, science‐based firms that now co‐exist alongside the chaebols. Finally, the Chinese state and local governments have sought to promote this innovation‐based industry by building biotech parks. This approach has resulted in a boom in new science firms, which have become increasingly isolated from the flourishing domestic SOE‐led market.
RESOURCE PRODUCTIVITIES FROM A SAMPLE OF LIGHT PLAINS FARMS — CANTERBURY, NEW ZEALAND
Authors: Mason George
Published: April 2012

The study described in this article is concerned with the derivation of an average production function for 50 sheep farms on an area of light land in the Malvern County, Canterbury Plains, New Zealand.

It is based on farm survey data for the 1955/6 season. The locality of the survey was chosen chiefly because it contained 51,000 acres of essentially similar soils, the Lismore series, and an adequate number of farms exhibiting a fairly high degree of homogeneity in their management.

Although there are variations in farm management in the area, the predominant pattern consists of the maintenance of half bred, threequarter bred, or Romney‐cross ewe flocks for the production of Downcross fat lambs. Most of the replacements for ewe flocks are purchased from other areas but some of the larger properties breed their own.

The average winter carrying capacity of the sheep farms in the area was 1.7 ewe equivalents per acre for 1956.

The system of farming is practically confined to a pastoral one due to the desiccating effect of the north west Fohn type winds which prevail during the summer. These conditions, combined with a shallow shingly soil, result in unreliable yields of cash crops and small seeds.
AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURE AND THE COST‐PRICE SQUEEZE*
Authors: Gruen Fred H.G.
Published: April 2012

I shall attempt to cover three topics in this paper. Firstly, I want to present some of the data available on the current economic position of the Australian farming community, coupled with comparisons for earlier years. This will be followed by a discussion of future prospects and finally I want to examine the possible courses of action which we can take to counter unfavourable export price movements.
SOME HIDDEN GAINS AND LOSSES OF A WOOL RESERVE SCHEME
Authors: Gruen Fred H.G.
Published: April 2012

“Through the influence of Alfred Marshall economists have developed a fondness for certain dimensionless expressions called efasticify coefficients. On the whole it appears that their importance is not very great except possibly as a mental exercise for beginning students … Not only are elasticity expressions more or less useless but in more compficated systems they become an actual nuisance converting symmetrical expressions into asymmetrical ones…”
BOOK REVIEW
Authors: Mathews R.
Published: April 2012

Book reviewed in this article:

State and Regional Income Estimation. By Alex Kerr.
SOME ASPECTS OF THE RURAL CREDIT MARKET
Authors: Jarrett Frank G. , Dillon John L.
Published: April 2012

It is argued in this article that over the period from 1948 to 1963, lending to the rural sector by both trading banks and pastoral houses was characterized by an unsatisfied fringe of potential borrowers. Estimates are presented of the effects on rural lending by these agencies of changes in interest rate, bank liquidity, the relative profitability of wool growing and certain other variables.
PRODUCTION IN RELATION TO RAINFALL, SUPERPHOSPHATE AND EROSION*
Authors: Molnar I.
Published: April 2012

Using regression analysis, this paper studies the influence of rainfall, superphosphate and erosion on wool and wheat production in parts of Victoria. It shows that quantitative account can be taken of erosion, as well as of rainfall and superphosphate; and that the impact of erosion is much more significant relative to grain production than to wool production.
RURAL EXTENSION AND THE AGRICULTURAL ECONOMIST*
Authors: Druce P.C.
Published: April 2012

The role of the agricultural economist in rural extension is discussed with particular reference to the changing structure of extension, exemplified by the development of private consulting services and the changing orientation of extension from purely technical considerations to problems of management. The status of the agriculturist generally, and of the extension worker in particular, is also examined and it is concluded that the status of extension as a profession must be raised if the results of technical and economic research in agriculture are to be utilised effectively.
ASPECTS OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN PAPUA AND NEW GUINEA
Authors: Gutman G.O.
Published: April 2012

In Papua and New Guinea today a rapidly growing market economy, and a primitive subsistence economy exist side by side. Australian policy calls for more economic development and quicker advancement of the indigenous people. This means that tribal subsistence society must be drawn increasingly into the development of the market economy. Broad strategies for reaching these objectives are considered along with a closer examination of problems of land tenure, wage policy and planning machinery.
OPTIMAL WOOL FLOWS FOR MINIMIZATION OF TRANSPORT COSTS*
Authors: Dent W.
Published: April 2012

Movements of wool from grower to wool store in Queensland, N.S.W., Victoria, and South Australia are affected by differing State legislation and Section 92 of the Australian Constitution. Taking various arrangements within each State into account, average wool transport costs from wool production areas to selling centres are found. A linear programming technique is then applied to produce an optimal pattern of wool flows minimizing transport costs for all growers.
EFFECTS OF PRICING DECISIONS OF A STATUTORY MARKETING BOARD: A CASE STUDY
Authors: Banks E.L. , Mauldon R.G.
Published: April 2012

Applying econometric analysis to a model recently used by Parish, this article examines the short‐run implications for consumers and producers of the pricing decisions of the Western Australian Egg Board over the period 1953‐54 to 1962‐63.
SUPPLY RESPONSES IN THE SOUTH AUSTRALIAN POTATO INDUSTRY
Authors: Mules T.J. , Jarrett Frank G.
Published: April 2012

The potato industry in South Australia is characterised by very unstable prices. One hypothesis for this instability is that potato growers' acreage responses follow a cobweb pattern, that is, a one year lag of acreage to price. This hypothesis is tested, together with a two year lag and a distributed lag. The distributed lag model seems the most satisfactory and gives a short‐run elasticity of acreage to price of 0.36 and a long‐run elasticity of 1.09. An alternative to the lagged price hypothesis is the "constant cash return" hypothesis which postulates that potatoes are grown to provide a certain cash income to permit farm development. This explanation of acreage response only seems relevant in the dairying and fat lamb areas of the State.
THE INFLUENCE OF WORKING CAPITAL ON FARM ORGANIZATION — HOW APPROPRIATE IS A LINEAR PROGRAMMING ANALYSIS?*
Authors: Taplin J.H.E.
Published: April 2012

Effective limitations on farm working capital are not easily identified but behaviour consistent with such limitations is observed. Using a linear programming analysis, the results of having limited working capital are shown. It is also shown that the value of the working capital resource is so high that farmers make every endeavour to keep it free from limitation.
DEVELOPMENT AND ANALYSIS OF INPUT‐OUTPUT RELATIONS FOR IRRIGATION WATER
Authors: Flinn J.C. , Musgrave Warren F.
Published: April 2012

Recent developments in climatology mean that economists now have a highly acceptable physical theory which can underlie their analysis of the economic aspects of water as an input to the production process, as a source of production instability, and as a major component of error in their estimated crop production functions. This paper presents a model and a procedure for synthesising and analysing irrigation water crop input output relations based on this theory. The importance of time of application of water as well as quantity is shown. Different frequencies of irrigation are optimal at different times of the growing season.
THE STABILIZATION AND DISTRIBUTION EFFECTS OF THE AUSTRALIAN WHEAT INDUSTRY STABILIZATION SCHEME
Authors: Longworth John W.
Published: April 2012

The wheat stabilisation scheme has been operating for almost two decades. In this article quantitative estimates are made of the effects of the scheme upon the stability of prices and incomes and the distribution of income over the period 1948‐49 to 1965‐66.
INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND MATHEMATICAL PROGRAMMING
Authors: Takayama T.
Published: April 2012

In this paper an attempt is made to formulate one type of international trade problem within a class of mathematical programming models. A new approach–from the dual side–to the proofs of existence and characteristics of the solution of the Koopmans‐Hitchcock transportation cost minimization linear programming problem is presented, and the same approach is applied to the quadratic programming formulation of the problem.
THE WOOL BOARD'S SECOND REPORT ON MARKETING: A REVIEW ARTICLE
Authors: Sturgess Ian M.
Published: April 2012

The second report on Wool Marketing by the Australian Wool Board is critically appraised. Particular attention is given to the proposals for elimination of small lots, price averaging and supply management. The presumption that price stabilization is good and the conclusion that private buying is bad are also discussed in detail.
EXPECTED VALUES OF COSTS AND REVENUES DEPENDENT ON DROUGHT†
Authors: Verhagen A.M.W. , Hirst F. , Lloyd Alan G.
Published: April 2012

In earlier papers on drought, sequences of wet and dry months were treated as realisations of binomial trials with periodic probabilities of failure (dry months), and the cost‐revenue outcomes of alternative drought strategies were handled probabilistically. When costs and revenues may be represented by a set of second degree polynomials over a set of adjacent subranges of the time scale, their expectation may be expressed as a simple closed formula in the twelve probabilities of dry months. As an illustration of the use of these new formulae, means and standard deviations of drought duration calculated in this manner are presented for three typical localities in Queensland. Previously known closed formulae for the mean and the variance in the case where all calendar months have equal probability of being dry emerge as special cases and are verified.
PRODUCTION ECONOMICS AND THE MODERNIZATION OF TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURES
Authors: Mellor John W.
Published: April 2012

A traditional agriculture operates in a relatively static physical, economic and cultural environment and as a consequence becomes relatively well adjusted to that environment. Modernization of agriculture occurs when substantial and continuing change in the decision‐making environment provides incentives to make new farming decisions. Farming then becomes dynamic as farmers attempt to reach constantly shifting points of equilibrium. Agricultural production economics in low income countries has been too much applied to a search for disequilibria within the given static environment and not enough to the possibilities and results of deliberately changing that environment.
CAPITAL BUDGETING, INTERTEMPORAL PROGRAMMING MODELS, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO AGRICULTURE
Authors: Rae Allan N.
Published: April 2012

Investment decision processes typically involve the selection of projects, the timing of their initiation and the determination of the amount to be invested in each time period. A linear programming model considered appropriate for solving such models is described, in which the multi‐dimensional criterion function is expressed as a linear combination of the appropriately‐weighted objectives. An empirical application is then discussed, the objectives of the firm being the maximization of tax‐free cash and assets on hand at the end of the planning period. Finally, the appropriate length of the planning horizon, and some approaches to capital budgeting under non‐certainty, are discussed.
ELASTICITY OF SUPPLY AND THE INCENTIVE FOR COLLUSIVE BUYING
Authors: Piggott R. R.
Published: April 2012

A model is developed to show how changes in the elasticity of the supply function at the farm level offset increased levels of buyer (processor) concentration such that given percentage increases in demand by large buyers result in the same, or smaller, percentage price changes than do increases in demand on the part of small buyers. Since the incentive for collusive buying is a function of the potential price increases which follow demand increases, there may be little incentive for buyers to collude even if they are highly concentrated.
RISK, UTILITY AND STOCKING RATE*
Authors: McArthur I.D. , Dillon John L.
Published: April 2012

A simple utility‐based model of risky wool production is presented. Evaluation of the model indicates the effect on optimal stocking rate of changes in the degree of risk aversion, farm area, variable cost, fixed cost, wool cut, wool price, variance of wool price, climatic variability and tax rate. It is shown that the utility hypothesis implies a lower optimal stocking rate than does expected profit maximization and hence implies a discrepancy between private and public optimal resource use which it is suggested, might be mitigated by a progressive bounty on wool production.
RISK AND FARM SIZE IN THE PASTORAL ZONE
Authors: Anderson Jock R.
Published: April 2012

Variable performance over time is an important feature of wool growing in the eastern pastoral zone of Australia. An analysis of time series data from the Australian Sheep Industry Survey indicates that standard deviation of net farm income is related more or less linearly to size of firm and increases with size at about the same rate as does average net income. A tentative conclusion is drawn that large farms have had a slight tendency to experience less variable rates of return than small farms. However, it is found that farms that have experienced relatively variable returns have tended to enjoy average rates of return above those of other farms of similar size.