bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Consistent poverty comparisons and inference
Authors: Arndt Channing , Simler Kenneth R. 
Published: August 2010

AbstractBuilding upon the cost of basic needs (CBN) approach, an integrated approach to making consumption‐based poverty comparisons is presented. This approach contains two principal modifications to the standard CBN approach. The first permits the development of multiple poverty bundles that are utility consistent. The second recognizes that the poverty line itself is a random variable whose variation influences the degree of confidence in poverty measures. We illustrate the empirical importance of these two methodological changes for the case of Mozambique. With utility consistency imposed, estimated poverty rates tend to be systematically higher in rural areas and lower in urban areas. We also find that the true confidence intervals on the poverty estimates—those incorporating poverty line variance—tend to be considerably larger than those that ignore poverty line variance. Finally, we show that these two methodological changes interact. Specifically, we find that imposing utility consistency on poverty bundles tends to tighten confidence intervals, sometimes dramatically, on provincial poverty estimates. We conclude that this revised approach represents an important advance in poverty analysis. The revised approach is straightforward and directly applicable in empirical work.
The long‐term impacts of orphanhood on education attainment and land inheritance among adults in rural Kenya
Authors: Yamano Takashi 
Published: August 2010

AbstractAlthough the long‐term economic impacts of the AIDS epidemic on orphans have been major concerns, few studies have investigated the impacts of orphan status into adulthood. Therefore, this article examines the education attainment and land inheritance of former orphans, who have lost at least one parent before reaching the age of 15 years, by using household surveys in Kenya. We find about a one‐year lower educational attainment among former maternal orphans compared with former nonorphans among adults who started schooling before the Free Primary Education program introduced in 1974 but not among adults who started schooling after 1974. On inherited land, we find no significant difference between households headed by former orphans and nonorphans, after controlling for land owned by parents, numbers of brothers and sisters, and birth order among brothers.
Poverty targeting, resource degradation and heterogeneous endowments—a micro‐simulation analysis of a less‐favored Ethiopian village
Authors: Kuiper Marijke , Ruben Ruerd 
Published: August 2010

AbstractPersistent and widespread poverty in less‐favored areas (LFAs) is attributed to fragile natural resources and poor markets. Limited assets may keep households outside the reach of poverty policies targeted at LFAs. We explored in a stylized manner the role of heterogeneous household assets for (1) policies aimed at poverty reduction; (2) within‐village income inequality; and (3) soil erosion. With a farm‐household micro‐simulation model we analyzed for each household in a remote Ethiopian village three sets of policies: technology improvement, infrastructure investment, and off‐farm employment through migration or cash for work (CFW) programs. Combating poverty with a single policy, migratory off‐farm employment reduces the poverty headcount most. Because of self‐selection, CFW programs performed best in terms of reaching the poorest of the poor. CFW also reduced within‐village income inequality most, while a price band reduction increased income inequality. Only technology improvements resulted in a trade‐off between poverty and soil erosion. Price band and off‐farm employment policies reduced erosion while outperforming technology improvements in terms of poverty reduction. We found that combining two policies was most helpful in assisting poorer households to overcome the limitations of their asset endowments. A CFW program combined with reduced price bands yielded most in terms of poverty reduction and income inequality. This policy complementarity is, however, less important for better‐endowed households. Reducing the reliance of households on agriculture offered a win‐win situation of reducing poverty and maintaining natural resources. Combining policies helped to overcome asset limitations, to target policies to the poorest households and to reduce income inequalities.
The dynamics of Chinese rural households' participation in labor markets
Authors: Brosig Stephan , Glauben Thomas , Herzfeld Thomas , Rozelle Scott , Wang Xiaobing 
Published: August 2010

AbstractThe work is devoted to the dynamics of labor market participation of Chinese rural households. Based on a theoretical farm household framework the choice between four distinct labor market participation states is empirically analyzed. Using household data over the period 1995–2002 from the province Zhejiang we apply a discrete time hazard approach to analyze households' labor market participation histories. In particular, we investigate the movements between autarky and participation in general and, more specifically, the shifts between part‐time and full‐time farming. Estimation results suggest significant duration dependence, more precisely, a decreasing risk of moving from one state to another with an increasing time a household occupies one of these states. Further, the likelihoods of starting any participation in labor markets and to start part‐time farming are considerably higher than to end participation or to return to full‐time farming. In addition, we find that labor market participation decisions are significantly related to several household and farm characteristics.
Rainfall or price variability: what determines rangeland management decisions? A simulation‐optimization approach to South African savannas
Authors: Börner Jan , Higgins Steven I. , Kantelhardt Jochen , Scheiter Simon 
Published: August 2010

AbstractSavannas cover the greater part of Africa and Australia and almost half of South America and contribute to the livelihoods of more than 350 million people. With the intensification of land use during the second half of the 20th century, savannas have become increasingly degraded through bush encroachment as a consequence of increased grazing pressure. Research on rangeland dynamics, however, provides contradicting answers with regard to the causes and possible remedies of bush encroachment. In this article we present results from an application of a simulation‐optimization model to the case of extensive rangeland management in South Africa. Our model differs from previous approaches in that it explicitly accounts for the influence of stochastic prices and rainfall on economically optimal management decisions. By showing the implications of neglecting price variation and stochasticity in rangeland models we provide new insights with regard to the determinants of bush encroachment and rangeland managers' economic return. We demonstrate that, in the case of South Africa, optimal rangeland management is likely to lead to bush encroachment that eventually makes livestock holding unprofitable. Yet, we identify the costs of fire management to be a limiting factor for managers to counteract bush encroachment and explore the impact of policy measures to reduce fire control costs on the ecological and economic sustainability of livestock holding.
Taking a new look at empirical models of adoption: average treatment effect estimation of adoption rates and their determinants
Authors: Diagne Aliou , Demont Matty 
Published: August 2010

AbstractThis article shows that the observed sample adoption rate does not consistently estimate the population adoption rate even if the sample is random. It is proved that instead the sample adoption rate is a consistent estimate of the population joint exposure and adoption rate, which does not inform about adoption per se. Likewise, it is shown that a model of adoption with observed adoption outcome as a dependent variable and where exposure to the technology is not observed and controlled for cannot yield consistent estimates of the determinants of adoption. The article uses the counterfactual outcomes framework to show that the true population adoption rate corresponds to what is defined in the modern policy evaluation literature as the average treatment effect (ATE), which measures the effect or impact of a “treatment” on a person randomly selected in the population. In the adoption context, a “treatment” corresponds to exposure to the technology. The article uses the ATE estimation framework to derive consistent nonparametric and parametric estimators of population adoption rates and their determinants and applies the results to consistently estimate the population adoption rates and determinants of the NERICA (New Rice for Africa) rice varieties in Côte d'Ivoire. The ATE methodological approach developed in the article has significant policy implications with respect to judging the intrinsic merit of a new technology in terms of its potential demand by the target population independently of issues related to its accessibility and in terms of the decision to invest or not in its wide‐scale dissemination.
Differentiating the consumer benefits from labeling of GM food products
Authors: Scatasta Sara , Wesseler Justus , Hobbs Jill 
Published: August 2010

AbstractAlthough recurrent evidence is found that consumers have different willingness to pay for GM and non‐GM products, there is disagreement in the scientific community about the size of consumer benefits from GM labeling. In this article we use a theoretical model based on a standard constant elasticity of substitution (CES) to explain the importance of the quality effect. It is shown that failing to consider the quality effect may yield an overestimation of benefits from GM labeling, voluntary or mandatory.
Economies of scale and market structure in international grain trade
Authors: Scoppola Margherita 
Published: August 2010

AbstractA large body of literature has examined international grain trade in imperfectly competitive models. The article develops a two‐stage duopoly model that considers a private trader and a State Trading Enterprise (STE) competing on a foreign market. The key difference between the private trader and the STE is their international organization; while the STE makes use of external agents to export, the private firm may choose to internalize international transactions. The game is solved for different modes of competition and under both assumptions of homogeneous and differentiated products, in order to assess how these assumptions affect the outcome of the game. The results of the game are examined by using numerical examples. The analysis shows that external shocks on export markets may result in a change of market structure and, consequently, of market shares. These effects depend on the initial market structure. Furthermore, the degree of product differentiation and the assumed mode of competition significantly affect the relative values of transaction and fixed costs at which the market structure changes.
Modeling differentiated quality standards in the agri‐food sector: the case of meat trade in the enlarged EU
Authors: Rau Marie‐Luise , Van Tongeren Frank 
Published: August 2010

AbstractQuality standards play an increasingly important role in international agri‐food trade, and their functioning as nontariff barriers to trade is widely discussed. We argue that food quality standards imposed by importing countries are more than just border measures and can have profound effects on the market structure of the exporting industry, thereby significantly influencing the supply response. We develop a stylized oligopoly model that accounts for compliance costs (fixed and variable) and investigate alternative policy options to explore different mechanisms an importing county may use to enhance the quality of its imports. The model explicitly recognizes the coexistence of complying and noncomplying firms, which is a situation often found in low‐income countries where a small modern export‐oriented segment invests in meeting foreign quality standards. We use the adjustment of the Polish meat sector to the tight EU food quality standards as an empirical example. The simulations show that a subsidy scheme can promote compliance with standards and can contribute to an upgrade of the industry in the exporting country, but its marginal effectiveness is diminishing.
Irrigation technology adoption and its implication for water conservation in the Texas High Plains: a real options approach
Authors: Seo Sangtaek , Segarra Eduardo , Mitchell Paul D. , Leatham David J. 
Published: August 2010

AbstractWater shortage has been a significant issue for several decades in the Texas High Plains. Agriculture has been identified as the main activity contributing to this shortage. To address this issue, many efforts have been focused on the possible adoption of sophisticated irrigation systems with high levels of water application efficiency. In this study, the entry and exit thresholds for the low‐energy precision application (LEPA) system are analyzed simultaneously in cotton farming in the Texas High Plains using a real options approach. The results show that the LEPA system is profitable only when cotton price is set above $1.59/kg. The exit (entry) threshold is consistently low (high) over a range of values for parameter changes including investment cost, exit cost, variable cost, risk‐adjusted discount rate, and volatility rate, so it is unlikely that farmers with irrigation systems in place would leave them easily. This implies that to attain the goal of saving water, Lubbock County needs to focus on convincing current farmers to replace old irrigation systems with new ones.
Agrobiodiversity conservation under an imperfect seed system:the role of Community Seed Banking schemes
Authors: Bezabih Mintewab 
Published: August 2010

AbstractThe study is an empirical investigation of agrobiodiversity conservation decisions of small farmers in the central highlands of Ethiopia. The primary objective is to measure the effectiveness of Community Seed Banking (CSB) in enhancing diversity while providing productivity incentives. Our results indicate a significant impact of participation in CSB on farm‐level agrobiodiversity. However, the level of biodiversity conservation was not found to have the expected reinforcing impact on participation, indicating no support for simultaneity. CSB participation also led to an increase in productivity, consistent with a need for such incentives in order to enhance diversity at a farm level. Our assessment of the performance of the GLS estimator yielded a significant discrepancy between the GLS and bootstrap estimates. This led to the conclusion that bootstrapping asymptotic estimations might be required for appropriate inference.
Estimation of input‐oriented technical efficiency using a nonhomogeneous stochastic production frontier model
Authors: Kumbhakar Subal C. , Tsionas Efthymios G. 
Published: August 2010

AbstractTechnical inefficiency can be modeled as either input‐oriented (IO) or output‐oriented (OO). However, in the estimation of parametric stochastic production frontier models which use maximum likelihood method only the OO measure is used. In this article we consider a simple nonhomogeneous production function and estimate it with both IO and OO specifications. A sample of 80 Spanish dairy data (1993–1998) is used to estimate both models. We consider one output (liters of milk) and four variable inputs (viz., number of cows, kilograms of concentrates, hectares of land, and labor [measured in man‐equivalent units]). We find that returns to scale (RTS) and technical efficiency results derived from these models are different because either estimated technologies are different, or they are evaluated at different points. Using a Monte Carlo analysis we show that if RTS is close to unity differences in the estimates of RTS and technical efficiency are smaller. This holds true for estimates of both RTS and technical efficiency.
Matrix vesicles in the fibrous cap of atherosclerotic plaque: possible contribution to plaque rupture
Authors: Bobryshev Y. V. , Killingsworth M. C. , Lord R. S. A. , Grabs A. J. 
Published: August 2010

AbstractPlaque rupture is the most common type of plaque complication and leads to acute ischaemic events such as myocardial infarction and stroke. Calcification has been suggested as a possible indicator of plaque instability. Although the role of matrix vesicles in the initial stages of arterial calcification has been recognized, no studies have yet been carried out to examine a possible role of matrix vesicles in plaque destabilization. Tissue specimens selected for the present study represented carotid specimens obtained from patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy. Serial frozen cross‐sections of the tissue specimens were cut and mounted on glass slides. The thickness of the fibrous cap (FCT) in each advanced atherosclerotic lesion, containing a well developed lipid/necrotic core, was measured at its narrowest sites in sets of serial sections. According to established criteria, atherosclerotic plaque specimens were histologically subdivided into two groups: vulnerable plaques with thin fibrous caps (FCT <100 μm) and presumably stable plaques, in which fibrous caps were thicker than 100 μm. Twenty‐four carotid plaques (12 vulnerable and 12 presumably stable plaques) were collected for the present analysis of matrix vesicles in fibrous caps. In order to provide a sufficient number of representative areas from each plaque, laser capture microdissection (LCM) was carried out. The quantification of matrix vesicles in ultrathin sections of vulnerable and stable plaques revealed that the numbers of matrix vesicles were significantly higher in fibrous caps of vulnerable plaques than those in stable plaques (8.908±0.544 versus 6.208±0.467 matrix vesicles per 1.92 μm2 standard area; P= 0.0002). Electron microscopy combined with X‐ray elemental microanalysis showed that some matrix vesicles in atherosclerotic plaques were undergoing calcification and were characterized by a high content of calcium and phosphorus. The percentage of calcified matrix vesicles/microcalcifications was significantly higher in fibrous caps in vulnerable plaques compared with that in stable plaques (6.705±0.436 versus 5.322±0A94; P= 0.0474). The findings reinforce a view that the texture of the extracellular matrix in the thinning fibrous cap of atherosclerotic plaque is altered and this might contribute to plaque destabilization.
Interactions between colon cancer cells and hepatocytes in rats in relation to metastasis
Authors: Mook O. R. F. , van Marie J. , Jonges R. , Vreeling‐Sindelarova H. , Frederiks W. M. , Van Noorden C. J. F. 
Published: August 2010

AbstractAdhesion of cancer cells to endothelium is considered an essential step in metastasis. However, we have shown in a previous study that when rat colon cancer cells are administered to the vena portae, they get stuck mechanically in liver sinusoids. Then, endothelial cells retract rapidly and cancer cells bind to hepatocytes. We investigated the molecular nature of these interactions between colon cancer cells and hepatocytes. Cancer cells in coculture with hepatocytes became rapidly activated with distinct morphological changes. Cancer cells formed long cytoplasmic protrusions towards hepatocytes in their close vicinity and these protrusions attached to microvilli of hepatocytes. Then, adhering membrane areas were formed by both cell types. Integrin subunits αv, α6 and β1 but not αL, β2, β3 and CD44 and CD44v6 were expressed on the cancer cells. In conclusion, colon cancer cells show an active behaviour to bind to hepatocytes, likely involving the integrin subunits av, a6 and B1, indicating that early events in colon cancer metastasis in liver are distinctly different than assumed thus far.
Frequency of acute asymptomatic myocardial infarction and an estimate of infarct age in cases of abrupt sudden death observed in a forensic autopsy material
Authors: Mortensen E. S. , Rognum T. O. , Straume B. , Jørgensen L. 
Published: August 2010

AbstractThe aim of this study is to determine the frequency of acute infarcts at autopsy in cases of unexpected abrupt deaths in persons with coronary heart disease. In addition, we want to estimate the time between onset of infarct and death based on evolving tissue changes in the infarct known to occur during the first hours. Thirty cases of unexpected, abrupt deaths were selected from a forensic autopsy material. Half of them had a preliminary diagnosis of coronary heart disease, the other half a preliminary diagnosis not involving the heart or chest area. Complete autopsies were performed. The myocardium and the coronary arteries were sampled and examined without knowledge of the gross findings or to which group the case belonged. Myocardial infarcts and acute coronary changes were found in both groups, less frequently in the non‐coronary group. The age of the myocardial and coronary lesions was estimated by observing morphological characteristics changing with time, e.g. increasing polymorphonuclear leucocytes in the infarcted myocardium, and increasing amount of fibrin in thrombi. The majority of cases in the coronary group died with an extensive asymptomatic myocardial infarction, which probably had lasted 5–6 hrs or less. Acute changes in the right coronary artery and its area of supply prevailed. Acute myocardial infarcts were observed also in a minority of the non‐coronary group, but myocardial infarction was not the cause of death in any of them. Abrupt coronary death is most often preceded by an extensive asymptomatic myocardial infarction within the last 5–6 hrs.
Impression Cytology in corneal and ocular surface pathology
Authors: DUA HS 
Published: August 2010

Abstract Purpose: Impression cytology (IC) refers to the application of a cellulose acetate filter to the ocular surface to remove the superficial layers of the ocular surface epithelium. The SIS presentation describes the technique and uses of IC. Methods: These cells can be subjected to histological, immunohistological, or molecular analysis. Periodic acid Schiff (PAS), Papanicolaou or haematoxylin stains are commonly employed to delineate goblet cells and epithelial cell morphology. Cells harvested by IC can also be released as a cell suspension and subjected to FACS (fluorescein activated cell sorting) analysis. Proper technique is essential as the number of cells sampled can vary considerably. Results: Generally two to three layers of cells are removed in one application but deeper cells can be accessed by repeat application over the same site. Applications for IC include diagnosing a wide range of ocular surface disorders, documenting sequential changes in the conjunctival and corneal surface over time, staging conjunctival squamous metaplasia, and monitoring effects of treatment. It is also a useful investigational tool for analysing ocular surface disease with immunostaining and DNA analysis. It is non‐invasive, relatively easy to perform, and yields reliable information about the area sampled with minimal discomfort to the patient. Complications such as removal of a full thickness sheet of corneal epithelium; subconjunctival haemorrhage due to rupture of vessels in patients with conjunctival laxity, or subconjunctival emphysema due to a tear in the conjunctiva have been encountered. Conclusions: Major ophthalmic centres should introduce this technique into routine clinical practice. A team approach should include the ophthalmologist, pathologist, microbiologist and immunologist.