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Effectively implementing any dimension of a company’s strategy requires a careful balance between ensuring a sufficient number of opportunities have been explored and the execution has taken place in a timely manner for a specific initiative. Naturally, the importance of specific characteristics of an initiative will vary according to the strategic objective. Alternatives vary in their likelihood of success, how sensitive their value is to time, and the resources required to explore additional options. Extant research has established optimal rules for what constitutes a sufficient degree of exploration, and how to go about exploring alternatives. Yet, how individuals vary their behavior according to the characteristics of an initiative is not well understood. We use a controlled experiment to study how individuals’ decisions are impacted by these characteristics. As expected, individuals perform significantly worse than optimal behavior would predict. However, the underlying drivers of this performance deviation critically depend on the characteristics of the initiative. Individuals who face simple initiatives that lack sensitivity to time tend to evaluate far too many options. In contrast, when a simple initiative’s value is sensitive to time, individuals tend to evaluate far too few options. When the individuals face more difficult initiatives, they do not exhibit such extreme tendencies in terms of how many alternatives they evaluate. Rather, for the most challenging initiatives, individuals exhibit near optimal behavior in terms of how many alternatives they evaluate. Our findings help to provide insight to managers on where they should focus their attention in terms of pushing for more or less exploration.

Purpose:Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) aberrations are a promising target for patients with neuroblastoma. We assessed the activity of first-generation ALK inhibitor crizotinib in patients with no known curative treatments and whose tumors harbored an activating ALK alteration.Patients and Methods:Twenty patients with relapsed/refractory ALK-positive neuroblastoma received crizotinib at the recommended phase II dose of 280 mg/m2/dose. A Simon two-stage design was used to evaluate the antitumor activity of crizotinib monotherapy. Response evaluation occurred after cycles 1, 3, 5, 7, and then every 3 cycles. Correlation of ALK status and response was a secondary aim of the study.Results:The objective response rate for patients with neuroblastoma was 15% [95% confidence interval (CI): 3.3%–34.3%]: two with partial responses and 1 with a complete response. All three patients had a somatic ALK Arg1275Gln mutation, the most common ALK hotspot mutation observed in neuroblastoma and the only mutation predicted to be sensitive to ALK inhibition with crizotinib. Two patients had prolonged stable disease (10 and 13 cycles, respectively); both harbored an ALK Arg1275Gln mutation. Three patients with ALK Phe1174Leu mutations progressed during cycle 1 of therapy, and one patient with an ALK Phe1174Val received three cycles before disease progression. The two patients with ALK amplification had no response. The most common adverse event was a decrease in neutrophil count.Conclusions:Despite limited activity seen in this trial, we conclude that this is more likely due to an inability to reach the higher concentrations of crizotinib needed to overcome the competing ATP affinity.See related commentary by Schulte and Eggert, p. 3507

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Non-conforming food products that reach consumers create potential for consumer harm and negative financial consequences for recalling firms. Food quality management systems are therefore of critical importance to consumers, policy-makers, and firms. In addition to implementing a Food Safety Management System (FSMS) for regulatory compliance, a firm may invest in a certified FSMS that enables downstream traceability. Downstream traceability is the ability to follow a product through the supply chain from production to point of sale. We use information processing theory (IPT) and supply chain coordination theory (SCCT) to hypothesize that downstream traceability improves integration and coordination, and hence, outcomes, of a product recall. Evaluating the role of downstream traceability systems in enabling firms to manage quality failures and associated outcomes is relevant because managers and policy-makers need to understand incentives for making such investments. We empirically investigate the effect of downstream traceability on the length of time unsafe product is in distribution, number of products recalled, incidence of product harm, and shareholder value using event study and regression methods in a sample of 211 food recalls announced in the United States (U.S.) from 2007–2013. We find downstream traceability enhances food safety by reducing time in distribution and number of products, but is not significant with respect to product harm. Furthermore, this capability mitigates negative shareholder value impacts. These findings suggest that downstream traceability is both fiscally and socially responsible. These results contribute to the extant academic literature and offer new insights to both practitioners and policy-makers.

The effects of the number of frozen-thawed ram sperm per single and double intra-cervical artificial insemination (AI) on fertility in ewes were studied. A total of 89 non-pregnant ewes were synchronized for oestrus with two doses of 100 µg PGF2α (Cloprostenol) 9 days apart. The ewes were randomly assigned to one of four groups; D200 (n = 23; double AI with 200 × 106 sperm), S200 (n = 24; single AI with 200 × 106 sperm), D100 (n = 24; double AI with 100 × 106 sperm) and S100 (n = 18; single AI with 100 × 106 sperm). Ewes were inseminated within 12 to 18 h for single AI and, within 10 to 12 h and 16 to 18 h for double AI after the onset of oestrus. The onset of oestrus ranged from 28 to 76 h (54.33 ± 1.28 h). The high percentage (29.2%) of ewes showed oestrus between 51 to 60 h. The non-return rates were highest in group D200 (56.5%) and differed significantly (p < 0.05) from group S100 (11.1%). No ewes were pregnant in group S100, and the pregnancy rates among the remaining groups did not differ. The mean gestation period was 152.8 ± 0.5 days and no difference was observed among the groups. The lambing and multiple birth rates were 100% in group D200. The single and twin lambing was highest in group D100 (33.3%) and group D200 (83.3%), respectively. Only one triplet lambing and the highest lambing size (2.2 ± 0.2) was recorded in group D200. In conclusion, double AI with 200 × 106 sperm showed comparatively most practical for achieving high pregnancy rates and lambing performances in Bangladeshi ewes under field conditions.

Approximately 238,000 to 450,000 Albertans rely on private water wells for their water needs. In Canada, private well owners are responsible for monitoring and maintaining the quality of their wate...

Water wells are important in providing water for rural populations that are far removed from municipal water supplies. Over 400,000 rural Albertans use water wells for domestic purposes. Th...

This study develops and tests a novel product quality framework for food supply chains (FSCs) that addresses sustainability. Issues including climate change, population growth, and the resources required by industrialized agriculture, as well as changing consumer preferences contribute to concerns about the social, ecological, and economic sustainability of FSCs. FSCs, therefore, need to be adapted to address changing supply and demand characteristics. We integrate the natural resource-based view (NRBV) with convention theory (CT) to develop a new set of quality dimensions. Placing social and ecological considerations within the domain of quality management advances theory in two ways. First, while social and ecological considerations are typically peripheral to business models, this framework allows social responsibility and the natural environment to occupy a central place within FSC operations. Second, the framework reflects the fundamentally socially embedded nature of FSCs, including the geographic, historical, and cultural associations of food quality. We then construct a typology of quality conventions and FSCs. We empirically test the typology using a case study methodology with cases from the United States of America (USA). The analysis explores how firms bundle quality conventions across FSCs for competitive advantage. We also find a set of paths through which FSCs transition via exploitation, exploration and organizational ambidexterity to generate competitive advantage, highlighting tradeoffs that may arise as FSCs evolve. These tradeoffs, which relate to maintaining or adapting quality conventions, are practically important because, if not managed appropriately, may result in lower performance and less sustainable FSCs.

BACKGROUND In Southeast Asia from 2004 to 2006, highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) resulted in culling 45 million birds and jeopardizing sustainable agricultural production. HPAI is highly virulent; small-scale farms present a high-risk environment for disease transmission between animals and humans. We investigated how attitudes toward HPAI influence water-related biosecurity mitigation behaviors on small-scale farms in Vietnam using the conceptual framework Social Cognitive Theory. METHOD We analyzed a secondary cross-sectional data set from northern (Thai Binh) and southern (An Giang) provinces in Vietnam, describing a stratified randomized selection of 600 small-scale farmers who were interviewed using questionnaires and in-person interviews. Logistic regression analysis and odds ratios were used to examine relationships between factors influencing HPAI attitudes, social norms, perceived importance, and behaviors (α = 0.10) RESULTS: Concern about the severity of HPAI was significantly associated with increased perceived importance for all water management biosecurity methods (p < 0.01). Media and/or peer influence had negative effects on perceived importance to practice water-related biosecurity (p < 0.10). High importance of practice water-related biosecurity resulted in high uptake (p < 0.05). Past experiences with HPAI were significant in predicting perceived importance; none were significant in describing behavior uptake. DISCUSSION Biosecurity guidelines may not be consistent with management styles of Vietnamese small-scale farms; perceived importance of a behavior may be an important mediating variable. Gaps exist in uptake of water management practices as biosecurity for HPAI, potentially negatively affected by peer and media influence. Our results should be of interest to public health and policy authorities addressing HPAI mitigation.

Johne’s disease (JD), or paratuberculosis, is an infectious disorder primarily associated with cattle and sheep and resulting in significant economic losses for dairy producers. The dairy cattle herd-level prevalence in Canada has recently been estimated to be greater than 40%, but the willingness to pay for JD control practices such as testing-and-culling and vaccination among Canadian dairy producers is unknown. This study used confidential cost-of-production data from the Canadian Dairy Commission to develop a Canadian dairy production model incorporating feed, land, labor, and machinery. A second dataset from a nationally distributed questionnaire (closed in March 2020) was used to estimate individual dairy producer valuations of the reduced per-cow cost of milk production that would result from JD control. This is a novel application of compensating variation and equivalent variation (CV and EV), with dairy producers framed as consumers of production inputs and milk output as a proxy for utility. Assuming a within-herd prevalence of 12.5% and a 50% reduction of that prevalence over 10 years, it was estimated JD control has an annual value of CA$28 per cow for the average Canadian dairy producer. Within-herd prevalence, the effectiveness of control at reducing within-herd prevalence, and the time required to achieve that reduction were identified as important factors. With the same assumption of 12.5% within-herd prevalence but with 100% reductions in that prevalence, estimated values ranged from over CA$55 to over CA$90 per cow per year depending on the timeframe of the control program. When assuming a 10-year period required to achieve control, the estimated values exceeded CA$90 per cow per year in various scenarios for herds with higher within-herd prevalence (greater than 20%).

Johne's disease (JD), or paratuberculosis, is an infectious inflammatory disorder of the intestines primarily associated with domestic and wild ruminants including dairy cattle. The disease, caused by an infection with Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) bacteria, burdens both animals and producers through reduced milk production, premature culling, and reduced salvage values among MAP-infected animals. The economic losses associated with these burdens have been measured before, but not across a comprehensive selection of major dairy-producing regions within a single methodological framework. This study uses a Markov chain Monte Carlo approach to estimate the annual losses per cow within MAP-infected herds and the total regional losses due to JD by simulating the spread and economic impact of the disease with region-specific economic variables. It was estimated that approximately 1% of gross milk revenue, equivalent to US$33 per cow, is lost annually in MAP-infected dairy herds, with those losses primarily driven by reduced production and being higher in regions characterized by above-average farm-gate milk prices and production per cow. An estimated US$198 million is lost due to JD in dairy cattle in the United States annually, US$75 million in Germany, US$56 million in France, US$54 million in New Zealand, and between US$17 million and US$28 million in Canada, one of the smallest dairy-producing regions modeled.

In Bhutan, dog-mediated rabies has been successfully eliminated from most regions of the country but remains endemic in the Southern region and sporadic incursions are also reported in the East. Elimination of rabies from the southern part of Bhutan is challenged by the porous border with the neighboring states of India which facilitates free and unregulated movement of animals. Around 17 outbreaks of rabies are reported annually in dogs and other domestic animals, posing continuous public health risks and economic losses. Furthermore, due to anthropogenic factors, such as increasing human settlements along highways, increased animal transportation, and the complex and changing human-pet relationship, there is potential to reintroduce rabies from rabies high-risk zone to rabies low-risk zone. This study was undertaken to estimate the risk of rabies re-introduction to the rabies low-risk zone by performing a qualitative risk assessment. The assessment was conducted for three risk pathways (stray dog-pathway, pet dog-pathway and cattle-pathway) under two scenarios: (1) no risk mitigation measures in place and (2) current risk mitigation measures in place. The current control measures include Government led programs, such as mass dog vaccination and dog population management, regulation of the movment of animals through pre-travel check-up and health certification, regular awareness education and rabies surveillance in the rabies endemic areas. The probability of an event occurring was assigned using the data from the available literature. Where gaps in knowledge existed, expert opinion, elicited through modified Delphi method, was used. Under the scenario in which no risk mitigation measures were in place, the risk of rabies re-introduction was estimated to be medium for the stray-dog pathway with a low level of uncertainty, low for pet-dog pathway with a low level of uncertainty, and very low for the cattle-pathway with a medium level of uncertainty. When current risk-mitigation measures were included, the risk of rabies reintroduction was estimated to be very low for the stray-dog pathway with a medium level of uncertainty, low for the pet dog-pathway with a low level of uncertainty, and extremely low for the cattle-pathway with a medium level of uncertainty. The risk of rabies re-introduction through all the pathways was greater than negligible. These findings highlight the importance of maintaining and enhancing current risk mitigation measures to prevent re-introduction of rabies into rabies low-risk zone.

A product recall is an observable external quality failure and a source of significant potential loss to firms as well as a threat to public safety. While such failures can be a motivation for organizational learning, little is known about the extent to which recalls can be a source of learning experience. Using econometric modeling, we investigate to what extent firms learn from conformance quality failures using a panel sample of U.S. food product recalls conducted by 125 publically traded firms between 2004 and 2013. We differentiate between direct (i.e., internal locus of failure) and indirect (i.e., supplier locus of failure and industry recalls) sources of experience and examine the main and interaction effects on the likelihood of future recalls. The results indicate that experience derived from internal and supplier failures reduces the potential for future recalls, while industry recalls have no significant main effect. We also find evidence of substitution effects between internal and supplier failures, suggesting that there are diminishing learning effects at higher levels of both of these types of failures. This finding suggests that the variety and volume of information as well as uncertainty regarding outcomes can overwhelm firm information processing capabilities at higher levels of these failure types and that additional resources should be allocated to encourage adequate learning. Finally, internal failures and industry recalls act as learning complements, which may indicate that internal quality failures become more relevant when industry peers also experience quality failures.

Background More than 70 million Vietnamese rely on small-scale farming for some form of household income. Water on many of those farms is contaminated with waste, including animal manure, partly due to non-sustainable waste management. This increases the risk of water-related zoonotic disease transmission. The purpose of this research was to examine the impact of various demographic and management factors on the likelihood of finding Escherichia coli in drinking water sourced from wells and rainwater on farms in Vietnam. Methods A Bayesian Belief Network (BBN) was designed to describe association between various deterministic and probabilistic variables gathered from 600 small-scale integrated (SSI) farmers in Vietnam. The variables relate to E. coli content of their drinking water sourced on-farm from wells and rainwater, and stored in on-farm large vessels, including concrete water tanks. The BBN was developed using the Netica software tool; the model was calibrated and goodness of fit examined using concordance of predictability. Results Sensitivity analysis of the model revealed that choice variables, including engagement in mitigation of water contamination and livestock management activities, were particularly likely to influence endpoint values, reflecting the highly variable and impactful nature of preferences, attitudes and beliefs relating to mitigation strategies. Quantitative variables including numbers of livestock (particularly chickens) and income also had a high impact. The highest concordance (62%) was achieved with the BBN reported in this paper. Conclusions This BBN model of SSI farming in Vietnam is helpful in understanding the complexity of small-scale agriculture and how various factors work in concert to influence contamination of on-farm drinking water as indicated by the presence of E. coli. The model will also be useful for identifying and estimating the impact of policy options such as improved delivery of clean water management training for rural areas, particularly where such analysis is combined with other analytical and policy tools. With appropriate knowledge translation, the model results will be particularly useful in helping SSI farmers understand their options for engaging in public health mitigation strategies addressing clean water that do not significantly disrupt their agriculture-based livelihoods.

Background An estimated four million and 43 million people in Canada and the USA use private water supplies. Private water supplies are vulnerable to waterborne disease outbreaks. Private water supplies in Canada and the USA are often unregulated and private water management is often a choice left to the owner. Perceptions of water quality become important in influencing the adoption of private water stewardship practices, therefore safeguarding public health. Methods We conducted a systematic literature review to understand factors that shape perceptions of water quality among private water users. We searched six computer databases (Web of science, Medline, Scopus, EBSCO, PubMed and Agricola). The search was limited to primary peer-reviewed publications, grey literature and excluded conference proceedings, review articles, and non-peer review articles. We restricted the search to papers published in English and to articles which published data on surveys of private water users within Canada and the USA. The search was also restricted to publications from 1986 to 2017. The literature search generated 36,478 records. Two hundred and four full text were reviewed. Results Fifty-two articles were included in the final review. Several factors were found to influence perceptions of water quality including organoleptic preferences, chemical and microbiological contaminants, perceived risks, water well infrastructure, past experience with water quality, external information, demographics, in addition to the values, attitudes, and beliefs held by well owners. Conclusions Understanding the factors that shape perceptions of water quality among private water users is an important step in developing private water management policies to increase compliance towards water testing and treatment in Canada and the USA. As many jurisdictions in Canada and the USA do not have mandatory private water testing or treatment guidelines, delineating these factors is an important step in informing future research and guiding policy on the public health of private water systems. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s13643-019-1013-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background An outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) between 2004 and 2006 resulted in the culling of 45 million birds, and has jeopardised sustainable agricultural production in southeast Asia. HPAI is highly virulent, and small-scale farms present a high-risk environment for disease transmission between animals and humans. The purpose of this study was to investigate how attitudes towards HPAI influence biosecurity mitigation behaviours such as water source management and sanitation on small-scale farms in Vietnam. Methods We used a participatory approach that included representation from farmers, government, academia, and industry. We collected cross-sectional data on demographics, farm level production, and attitudes and preferences with respect to HPAI and mitigation strategies in north and south Vietnam (Thai Binh and An Giang Provinces, respectively). A stratified randomised selection of 600 small-scale mixed livestock, crop, and fish farmers were interviewed using questionnaires and in-person interviews. We calculated participant numbers using standard epidemiological sample size formulae with α=0·05. The study was approved by Canadian and Vietnamese ethics boards and participants provided verbal informed consent. Logit regression analysis was used to examine the relation between factors influencing HPAI attitudes and behaviours. Further correlation analysis is under investigation, including Pearson correlation and principal component analysis. Findings Preliminary results show that half the farmers (51%, n=306) did not treat their water according to UN Food and Agriculture Organization guidelines, and fewer than 7% (n=40) said they would report a suspected HPAI case because of the cost and inconvenience of doing so. However, those farmers who expressed concern about HPAI were more likely to practise mitigation behaviours (p=0·034). Interpretation These preliminary analyses indicate that biosecurity guidelines may not be consistent with management styles of small-scale farms in Vietnam, but also indicate cause for concern for controlling HPAI on such farms. These results should be of interest to public health and policy authorities addressing HPAI mitigation. Our results may not be generalisable to all small-scale farmers in Vietnam because water sources and farming strategies vary across communes. Funding Grand Challenges Canada (Grant Number 0231-01 Stars in Global Health Round 4) and IDRC, Ottawa.

An increasing emphasis on social responsibility from consumers, media, and government agencies has expanded the discourse around product recalls from what can be done to prevent a product recall to also include what can be done to make a product recall more effective to reduce harm to consumers. Surprisingly, little research has addressed the latter, leaving a gap in our understanding, while a substantive body of research has investigated the former. As a result of this gap, managers face a dilemma regarding what recall strategy to adopt in order to conduct an effective recall and reduce harm to consumers. To address this dilemma, we empirically examine how recall strategy affects two measures of recall effectiveness, recall completion time and recalled product recovered, using secondary data from recalls regulated by the United States Department of Agriculture from 2005 to 2015. We further investigate how the difficulty or complexity associated with the recall task may moderate the relationship between recall strategies and recall effectiveness. Our results provide managers with actionable guidance regarding the influence of different recall strategies, and indicate that the effect of recall strategy on performance may depend on the complexity of the recall recovery task.

Paratuberculosis or Johne's disease (JD) prevalence in Australia is low at the cow-level with varying herd-level prevalence. Control strategies incorporating vaccination are limited, suggesting opportunities for changes in regulatory oversight. In order to study this further, we examined the economic benefits of participation in JD control programmes in Australia with and without vaccination as well as knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) relating to JD. We used an online questionnaire to gather information describing demographics and KAP from 71 Australian dairy farms. Data from fully completed questionnaires from 32 farms in Victoria, Australia combined with cost and revenue data averaged from several years of the Dairy Farm Monitor Project were used to then simulate a larger robust dataset. These production data informed the simulation model to establish farm profitability. A partial farm budget was then developed to estimate the benefits of engaging in JD control activities. Respondents who stated they participated in JD control programmes gained an additional $43.80/cow/year net income (profit) compared to non-participants. Respondents also using a JD vaccine gained an additional $35.84/cow/year over non-users; this represents $10.56/cow/year over and above the average producer in the industry. However, we also noted that there clearly exists a barrier between farmers stated intentions to participate and actual participation in JD control activities. These significant differences in net income realized by farms using different approaches to JD control (in this case, adoption of vaccination) offer a starting point from which to explore questions of how much farmers would be willing to pay for control activities, why they are willing to pay, and the likelihood of participating. Communication of the benefits of participation needs to improve to bridge this gap between farmers stated intentions and their actions. Simulation modelling suggests increased profitability from participation in JD control programs and vaccination in Australia. The JD regulatory policies of other countries may benefit from the Australian experience with JD control.

Rabies remains a disease of significant zoonotic and economic concern in rabies endemic areas of Bhutan. Rabies outbreaks in livestock threaten the livelihoods of subsistence farming communities and pose a potential public health threat. As a part of identifying approaches to prevent rabies in cattle, a Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) survey was conducted among cattle owners in selected rural areas of the southern rabies high-risk zone and low-risk zone in eastern Bhutan. Between March and April 2017, 562 cattle owners (281 in the east and 281 in the south) were interviewed using a questionnaire. Eighty-eight percent of the participants had heard of rabies but only 39% of the participants who had heard of rabies had adequate knowledge about rabies. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that residing in the south [OR = 9.25 (95% CI: 6.01-14.53)] and having seen a rabies case [OR = 2.46 (95% CI: 1.6-3.82)] were significantly associated with having adequate knowledge about rabies. Based on our scoring criteria, 65% of the total participants who had heard of rabies had a favorable attitude towards rabies control and prevention programs. The participants residing in the east were two times more likely to have a favourable attitude than their counterparts in the south [OR = 2.08 (95% CI: 1.43-3.05)]. More than 70% of the participants reported engaging in farm activities such as examining the oral cavity of sick cattle and assisting cattle during parturition. Only 25% of the participants reported using personal protective equipment while undertaking these activities. Despite a high level of rabies awareness, we observed that there is a lack of comprehensive knowledge about rabies regarding susceptible hosts, transmission routes, the health outcome of rabies infection in humans, and appropriate health-seeking behaviours. This study highlights the need to strengthen rabies education programs in rural communities to address the knowledge gaps that have been identified.

The integrated livestock, crops, and fish (VAC) model of integrated small scale agriculture has been important to economic and ecological sustainability in Vietnam for many centuries. Recently, emerging waterborne diseases including avian influenza as well as the potential for zoonotic disease arising from small scale farms have jeopardized the VAC model. In order to promote mitigation of the risk of waterborne and other diseases in the VAC system, there needs to be recognition of the significant predictors of such behavior, particularly with respect to water sources including well and rain water. We report primarily quantitative results of research generated from 300 farms in each of North and South Vietnam that indicate the small scale farmers who are more likely to engage in mitigation of waterborne disease are those who raise pigs, perceive themselves to be more at risk of HPAI infection from well water, report they are good livestock managers, value the advice of health care workers, and where a female household member is the decision maker for family health. These results bear importance to water and health policy formulators in rural Vietnam. (JEL I130, I180, O130, Q180, Q570). JEL CLASSIFICATIONS: I130: Health and economic developmentI180: Public healthO130: Economic Development: Agriculture; EnvironmentQ180: Agricultural policy; Food policyQ570: Ecological economics: biodiversity conservation.

We report on monitoring and evaluation (M&E) methods research for One Health projects, based on a project (Building EcoHealth Capacity in Asia) in Southeast Asia. Methods for M&E included development of progress markers, use of pre- and post-workshop and on-line questionnaires, interviews, small group discussions, gap analysis, performance indicators, and SWOT analysis. While most methods were useful for eliciting answers to specific questions, more valuable information regarding usefulness of methods for capacity building (e.g., what changed, how did partners agree to collaborate, how were boundary partners engaged) required a synthesis of information gathered from both quantitative and qualitative methods.

We present a simple and reliable optical setup for active stabilization of a diode laser. The method combines Doppler-free spectroscopy and magnetically induced dichroism in atomic vapor. The long- and short-term stability is achieved using a simplified optical and laser setup. We apply the setup to stabilize an external-cavity diode laser to the D2 atomic resonance in potassium vapor. With the laser locked we attain long-term stabilization to the atomic line with the reduction of laser frequency jitter down to 0.5 MHz on a 50 ms timescale.

In this study, the effect of information sharing on on-time delivery rate and total cost in a supply chain is investigated via simulation. The experimental factors include capacity tightness, resource reliability, and information sharing modes, which are sharing of resource reliability information, customer demand, and inventory level. The simulation results show that all three experimental factors are statistically significant. Yet, the information sharing modes perform uniquely when the main and interaction effects are analyzed. This study demonstrates that the level of interaction between capacity tightness, resource reliability, and information sharing modes depend on the operational parameters, as well as the flexibility available in a supply chain. Therefore, it may be more feasible to introduce additional flexibility instead of solely focusing on information sharing capability as a coordination tool.

Many of the objections to implementing Risk Management and acting upon risk results hinge on the subjectivity of the risk assessment system. This subjectivity makes it difficult to make risk assessments justifiable, repeatable, and comparable over an entire project, program, or organization. One cannot easily justify assigning a 30% likelihood to a risk occurring when others with more, the same, or less experience are ascribing a 60% likelihood of occurrence to a similar risk. How to get all (or most) risk assessments, regardless of type (software, hardware, integration, programmatic, external, etc.), justifiable, repeatable, and comparable has been one of the holy grails of Risk Management for years. The methodology outlined in this paper meets at least some of this requirement. The methodology requires incorporating the Likelihood of Occurrence into a set of specifically defined sublevels under each risk category rather than using it as a separate multiplication factor. Basically, the assumption behind this methodology is that the more mature the process, the more experience available, the more detailed the design, etc., the lower the likelihood of occurrence of a specific risk becomes. Making this assumption, incorporating the likelihood into each specific sublevel and requiring justification for each choice then allows the establishment of more representative scores for project risks and allows risk information to be presented in a justifiable, repeatable, and comparable fashion. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Syst Eng 14: 173–179, 2011 © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Primary central nervous system tumors with signet-ring morphology are exceedingly rare. We report an unusual case of glioblastoma with signet-ring cell features in an 81-year-old woman. Microscopic examination revealed a highly anaplastic tumor, with a prominent proportion of tumor cells exhibiting signet-ring appearance characterized by classic round cytoplasmic inclusions and eccentrically positioned nuclei. The tumor cells were immunoreactive for glial fibrillary acidic protein and S100, and negative for cytokeratins, confirming their glial origin. Ultrastructurally, the tumor cells were noted to contain intermediate filaments, and by fluorescence in-situ hybridization analysis, they demonstrated intact 1p/19q. The presence of signet-ring cells in the central nervous system should immediately raise the suspicion of metastatic carcinoma, particularly from the upper gastrointestinal tract. In the present case, however, the morphological and immunohistochemical features were diagnostic of a malignant primary glial neoplasm (glioblastoma). This case highlights the diagnostic difficulties that can arise in such instances, given the rarity of signet-ring morphology in primary central nervous system tumors.

This article presents the study of melt compounding of polystyrene (PS) with various types of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles and surfactants, using a corotating twin screw extruder with multiple screw element configurations. It was found that a properly designed high shear screw configuration and the copolymer of silicone, ethylene oxide, and propylene oxide-based surfactant produced the greatest degree of nanoparticle dispersion in PS/TiO2 nanocomposites, whereas a silane-based surfactant and silicon dioxide (SiO2) or aluminum oxide (Al2O3) coated TiO2 nanoparticles yielded nanocomposites with the least photocatalytic degradation effects and the best retention of tensile and impact properties. POLYM. COMPOS., 28:241–250, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastic Engineers

The safety and efficacy of early, low-dose, prolonged therapy with inhaled nitric oxide in premature newborns with respiratory failure are uncertain.We performed a multicenter, randomized trial involving 793 newborns who were 34 weeks of gestational age or less and had respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation. Newborns were randomly assigned to receive either inhaled nitric oxide (5 ppm) or placebo gas for 21 days or until extubation, with stratification according to birth weight (500 to 749 g, 750 to 999 g, or 1000 to 1250 g). The primary efficacy outcome was a composite of death or bronchopulmonary dysplasia at 36 weeks of postmenstrual age. Secondary safety outcomes included severe intracranial hemorrhage, periventricular leukomalacia, and ventriculomegaly.Overall, there was no significant difference in the incidence of death or bronchopulmonary dysplasia between patients receiving inhaled nitric oxide and those receiving placebo (71.6 percent vs. 75.3 percent, P=0.24). However, for infants with a birth weight between 1000 and 1250 g, as compared with placebo, inhaled nitric oxide therapy reduced the incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (29.8 percent vs. 59.6 percent); for the cohort overall, such treatment reduced the combined end point of intracranial hemorrhage, periventricular leukomalacia, or ventriculomegaly (17.5 percent vs. 23.9 percent, P=0.03) and of periventricular leukomalacia alone (5.2 percent vs. 9.0 percent, P=0.048). Inhaled nitric oxide therapy did not increase the incidence of pulmonary hemorrhage or other adverse events.Among premature newborns with respiratory failure, low-dose inhaled nitric oxide did not reduce the overall incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia, except among infants with a birth weight of at least 1000 g, but it did reduce the overall risk of brain injury. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00006401 [ClinicalTrials.gov].).

The economic impact of adopting herd health programs for mastitis and reproduction by small-scale dairy producers of Central Thailand was assessed using a policy analysis matrix (PAM). Following a reduction in the incidence of bovine disease on adopter farms, an increase in private net profits is observed. More importantly the social costs of supporting dairy farmers is reduced; the PAM effective protection coefficient was reduced by 35% for mastitis program adopters and by 44% for reproductive program adopters, indicating improved social efficiency of dairy policy. Other indicators of efficiency and policy implications are discussed.

Global consumption, production, and trade of livestock products have increased rapidly in the last two decades and are expected to continue. At the same time, safety concerns regarding human and animal disease associated with livestock products are increasing. Efforts to increase public health safety standards aimed at legitimately reducing the risks of human and animal disease have focused internationally on standards to regulate the movement of livestock products. There is concern, though, that measures to regulate these standards internationally, such as the WTO SPS measures that in part aim to open international markets, may marginalize small-scale poor producers. The cycle of poverty they are trying to escape through livestock production may, in fact, widen, leading to increased global poverty, malnutrition, and disease. Developing and developed nations alike should be concerned with public and private efforts to address appropriate food safety policies to reduce the likelihood of this effect. Analysis of the impact on small-scale livestock farmers is needed, as well as solutions that consider joint public and private sector initiatives. Costly farm to table tracking systems are not an option, but locally orchestrated vertically integrated systems may have merit in reducing food safety risks and in providing small-scale farmers with increased access to markets, locally and internationally. Increased scientific and technical capacity, and training of WTO officials from developing nations is also needed.

Beef cattle producers were surveyed in Texas and Nebraska to investigate perceptions of sources of risk, the effectiveness of risk management strategies, and interest in further risk management education, particularly production risk, using probit analysis. Important decision variables identified are age, prior use of risk management tools, previous attendances of risk management education, and risk aversion. Severe drought and cattle price variability are identified as primary risk factors with potential to affect farm income. Extremely cold weather and disease are of less importance. Understocking pasture and storing hay are perceived most effective as risk management options. Copyright 2003, Oxford University Press.

4Sedgwick County Zoo, Wichita, Kansas Captive breeding programs for the rhinoceros can be enhanced by studying their reproductive physiology. To do so requires repetitive manipulations under physically controlled circumstances. To facilitate these procedures, zoos throughout the world have constructed restraint devices, or chutes. Chute designs are usually determined by the space in which they are to be situated and the budget available for their construction. In this study, eight chute designs at seven institutions were compared for efficiency in controlling rhinoceroses during ultrasonography, semen collection, and blood sampling. Procedures were conducted on 16 rhinoceroses of four species: the white rhinoceros ( Ceratotherium simum simum), the black (Diceros bicornis), the greater one-horned Asian ( Rhinoceros unicornis), and the Sumatran (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis). Chutes were evaluated for dimensions, fabricating materials, procedures to be attempted, and structural features such as shoulder restraints. Permanent, indoor, side-adjustable, passthrough chutes were determined to be the most efficient and convenient type because they saved time and reduced stress on the animals. Zoo Biol 17:343‐ 359, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

A new application of an optimization tool, dynamic programming (DP), is described to model the economics of animal health control programs. To demonstrate the value of this technique, a model is applied to determine optimal net benefits of controlling East Coast fever (ECF) in Malawi Zebu cattle in the Lilongwe plateau. The objective function was the present value of net benefits due to treatment, defined as mortality savings minus treatment costs. Mortality savings were based on decreased mortality from ECF following treatment. Model constraints included herd size, animal (herd) nutritional requirements, and program budget. Treatment options were tank dipping in acaricide, and vaccination. Secondary data from a dipping trial of 1800 Malawi Zebu cattle conducted from 1991 to 1994 were used to determine probabilities of mortality. Total optimal net benefits of long-term treatment (25 years, i = 10%) from vaccination (Malawi Kwacha (MK) 21 069) exceeded benefits for treatment with chlorfenvinphos acaricide (MK15 203).

This work investigates the management and veterinary health interventions for dairy cattle in an integrated agricultural system practiced by 1,500 poor villagers living in 300 households in the Jamuna River Chars (Bogra, Jamalpur and Sirajganj Districts) of Bangladesh. The average production after one lactation for indigenous cattle was 2.53 L/cow/day (229 day lactation) and for cross-bred cattle was 7.72 L/cow/day (270 day lactation) respectively. The services per conception were 1.38 and 1.97 respectively. The dairy profit per lactation (Taka/cow) in Bogra, Jamalpur and Sirajganj respectively was 2320, 3582, and 2076; ratio of milk revenue to feed costs was 1.76, 2.83, and 1.60; returns on investment was 1.06, 0.92 and 1.07. The strong economic equity as well as the land holdings of the studied households may have been a factor that determined which households were able to select dairy cattle. The participants in this research requested for further management training, delivery of health services and market development. The research reflects five of the six pillars of ecohealth (transdisciplinarity, community participation, gender and economic equity, sustainability, and knowledge for action), but failed to assess complexity and systems thinking. Further research is needed to support the suggestion that dairy production provides more than enough economic support to the Chars community since it sustains resilience in a vulnerable ecosystem. Key words: Bangladesh, ecohealth, food security, dairy, complexity

Our research collaboration has begun a project to develop an Ideal Project Law (IPL). What we are trying to accomplish is the development of some equation with a mathematical underpinning that can usefully relate Functionality, Cost, Schedule and Risk which can then be graphed, and this graph then becomes a decision making and communications aid. For some of us, the current contention is that a possible IPL is analogous to the Ideal Gas Law (IGL), which relates Pressure (P), Volume (V) and Temperature (T) for reasonably well-behaved gases. (P*V)/T = Constant (where the constant has very much to do with the nature of the gas under discussion). This is due to our belief that the IPL will represent some form of a relationship (inverse or direct) between Cost (C), Schedule (S), Functionality (F) and Risk (R) much like the IGL represents relationships between P, V and T for a given gas. We also expect that at least some of the factors will change based on the type of project, so we might have to develop a range of factors and constants. The Ideal Gas Law informs us, for example, that if you keep V fixed and increase P, then you can expect T to also increase. So “keep this one factor fixed, and change that other factor and then watch the third factor move one way or the other” relationships can be described via the Ideal Gas Law. We believe that this “push on one factor and see what happens to the other factors” feature of the Ideal Gas Law seems to be very analogous to project and operation Cost, Schedule, Functionality and Risk relationships. This law, or some such function, is absolutely essential. Having such a Law that is proven valid will introduce (or rather tactfully enforce) some systematic thinking in the project and operational management set-up. Otherwise, no matter how elaborate a case is made for project or operational risks, the risk decisions will be left to the whims, fancies and moods of the key decision-making person(s) in the organization or project — we are working towards reducing this subjectivity in decision-making. We may determine that it is impossible to have a 100% scientific outlook on project or operational factors simply because human beings are involved, but if that is the case, we may be able to be at least 80% scientific about it.Copyright © 2003 by ASME

This study was designed to test the hypothesis that administration of immune globulin to human neonates with early-onset bacterial sepsis would (1) facilitate neutrophil egress from the marrow, (2) improve serum opsonic capacity, and (3) facilitate recovery from the infectious illness. Twenty-two newborn infants with clinical signs of early-onset sepsis were given an intravenous infusion of either 750 mg of immune globulin (IVIG) per kilogram of body weight or the same volume of a vehicle control (albumin). All 22 infants survived, but significant hematologic, immunologic, and respiratory differences were observed after the IVIG and not after the control infusion. Eleven of the patients had neutropenia; 24 hours after the infusions, the neutropenia had resolved in all six IVIG recipients but persisted in all five control recipients (p less than 0.001). Ten patients had I/T neutrophil ratios (a measure of immature neutrophils to total neutrophils on the leukocyte differential count) of less than 0.2. One hour after completion of the infusions, all five IVIG recipients had elevated I/T ratios (mean +/- SEM:0.10 +/- 0.05 before vs 0.43 +/- 0.03 after infusion; p less than 0.001), suggesting a prompt release of neutrophils from the marrow neutrophil storage pool into the circulation; no increase in the I/T ratio was observed in the control recipients. Six hours after the IVIG infusions, the ratio of arterial oxygen tension to fraction of inspired oxygen increased; no increase was observed after control infusions. Serum concentrations of IgG, IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, and total hemolytic complement and the capacity of serum to support opsonophagocytosis of type II and type III group B streptococci increased markedly in the IVIG recipients but not in the control subjects. We conclude that administration of 750 mg IVIG per kilogram to neonates with clinical signs of early-onset sepsis was associated with immunologic, hematologic, and physiologic improvement.