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Number of records: 6243

Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich
About this Resource: NRI specializes in research, consultancy and education for the sustainable management of natural and human resources with much of the Institute’s work aimed at poverty reduction, economic growth and food security. The focus is on a wide range of disciplines in the natural and social sciences and a large component of NRI's work is concerned with sustainable development in developing countries and those with economies in transition. This resource gives users information about the institute and its history as well as academics through the University of Greenwich. The site also provides links to projects being done through the NRI and online publications of some of the research.

Food stamp benefits and child poverty
About this Resource: In 2000, 8.8 million children lived in households participating in the Food Stamp Program, making this assistance program a crucial component of the social safety net. Despite its importance, little research has examined food stamps' effect on children's overall well-being. Using the Current Population Survey from 1989 to 2001, we consider the impact of food stamps on three measures of poverty-the headcount, the poverty gap, and the squared poverty gap. We find that in comparison to the headcount measure, food stamp benefits lead to large reductions in the poverty gap and squared poverty gap measures.

Agricultural Communications Documentation Center
About this Resource: Faculty, engaged in agricultural communications at the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign), have developed the Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC). Housed within the Funk Library, the Center has a collection of over 25,000 documents, which underscore the human-social dimensions of agriculture. This website is home to the "Online Agricultural Communications Bibliographic Database" which identifies this collection. A tutorial for searching the "ACDC Online Database" is included as a part of the webiste. The Center also includes news, feature articles, and relevant external links to complement the website.

Prevalence of Thelohania solenopsae infected Solenopsis invicta newly mated queens within areas of differing social form distributions
About this Resource: Newly mated queens (NMQs) originating from monogyne red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta) colonies and following a mating flight, initiate new colonies by sealing themselves in a nuptial chamber and relying solely on their own fat and crop reserves, as well as no longer needed wing muscles to rear their first workers (claustral colony foundation). This method of colony-founding is rarely successful for polygyne-derived NMQs, whose low weight critically limits the number of first workers they are able to produce. However, this observation may be confounded by the parasitic microsporidium, Thelohania solenopsae, thus far found to persist only in association with polygyne colonies. Infections of this microsporidium reduce the weight of female alates and may explain why polygyne NMQs are unlikely to successfully found colonies claustrally. NMQs collected following mating flights in Gainesville and Ocala, Florida were sorted by weight, checked for insemination and T. solenopsae infection. Insemination levels were greater than 90% for all weight classes at both collection sites and were not related to infection. Infection levels were lower in Gainesville than Ocala, averaging 1.67% and 14.14%, respectively. Polygyne-derived NMQs collected in Ocala, defined here as weighing <or= 12 mg (social form correctly assigned in 85% of samples examined by PCR), had the highest infection levels, 25.37% (17/67) in 2003 and 21.43% (6/28) in 2004. We conclude that infection by T. solenopsae cannot be completely responsible for the inability of polygyne NMQs to claustrally establish colonies.

Do these eggs smell funny to you?: an experimental study of egg discrimination by hosts of the social parasite Polyergus breviceps (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
About this Resource: Social parasites exploit the behaviours of other social species. Infiltration of host systems involves a variety of mechanisms depending on the conditions within the host society and the needs of the social parasite. For many species of socially parasitic ants, colony establishment entails the usurpation of colonies of other species. This frequently involves the eviction or death of the host colony queen and the subsequent adoption of the invading queen. The social parasite queen achieves host worker acceptance by either manipulating the nest-mate recognition processes of the host or undergoing chemical modification. Little is known, however, about how host workers respond to social parasite eggs or whether host species defend against brood parasitism during parasite invasions. Host species are believed to adopt social parasite offspring because the recent common ancestry between many social parasites and their hosts may grant the sharing of certain characteristics such as chemical cues. Use of multiple host species, however, suggests other processes are needed for the social bond between host and parasite young to form. This study reports the findings of adoption bioassays in which eggs from a slave-maker ant, Polyergus breviceps, were offered to workers of two of its host species from unparasitised or newly parasitised nests to determine whether P. breviceps eggs generally elicit rearing behaviours from multiple host species. Comparisons of parasite egg survival until adulthood with conspecific egg survival reveal that workers of both host species, free-living or newly enslaved, do not typically accept slave-maker eggs. Both host species thus have sufficient discriminatory power to reject social parasite eggs although our hydrocarbon analysis indicates parasite eggs may be adapted to their local host species. Combined these results suggest that host rearing of P. breviceps eggs may reflect an evolutionary equilibrium that is maintained by probability and cost of recognition errors.

Food Research and Action Center
About this Resource: Originally established as a public interest law firm, the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) is now a nonprofit, nonpartisan research and public policy center concerned with creating an anti-hunger network of individuals and agencies throughout the United States. The FRAC website reflects the Centers' research efforts, its' watchdog activities, and its' search for program support activity; serving as a clearinghouse for functions and public information programs. This Home Page has both a search engine, a variety of links and a site map to identify material on the site.

Range research: the second generation.
About this Resource: The decade of the 1920s was somewhat of a paradox for range science. A. W. Sampson published 3 books that were widely used as text for higher education classes in range management. The United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service expanded their mandate to manage grazing on National Forest and began to apply the principles of plant ecology and physiology that were being enumerated by range scientists. At the same time millions of acres of public domain outside the National Forest remained as free range and continued to decline in productivity. Progress was made in applying animal behavior technology to improve the uniformity of range forage utilization. This was especially apparent in regard to sheep and goats which were herded on rangelands. The management tools utilized were herding techniques, salt distribution and water developments. Restoration of range productivity and the place of wildfires in range ecosystems remained very controversial subjects.

Ecological, behavioral, and biochemical aspects of insect hydrocarbons
About this Resource: This review covers selected literature from 1982 to the present on some of the ecological, behavioral, and biochemical aspects of hydrocarbon use by insects and other arthropods. Major ecological and behavioral topics are species- and gender-recognition, nestmate recognition, task-specific cues, dominance and fertility cues, chemical mimicry, and primer pheromones. Major biochemical topics include chain length regulation, mechanism of hydrocarbon formation, timing of hydrocarbon synthesis and transport, and biosynthesis of volatile hydrocarbon pheromones of Lepidoptera and Coleoptera. In addition, a section is devoted to future research needs in this rapidly growing area of science.

Use of gossypol and related terpenes for control of urban and agricultural pests
About this Resource: Low concentrations of gossypol and related phyllophage toxins from cotton improve the effectiveness of insecticidal agents against social insects, including cockroaches, and particularly termites and ants. Levels of gossypol and other cotton phyllophage toxins which are sufficiently low as to be non-biocidal to social insects alone, will significantly increase the control efficacy of other insecticidal agents. Consequently, use of these low levels of these cotton phyllophage toxins allows the levels of insecticidal agents necessary for effectively controlling the insects to be significantly reduced relative to applications without cotton phyllophage toxins. Furthermore, insecticidal agents which are normally ineffective for control of social insects when used alone, may be effective when used in conjunction with the cotton phyllophage toxins.

Postinfectious Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Long-Term Consequence of Bacterial Gastroenteritis.
About this Resource: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a commonly diagnosed disease characterized by gastrointestinal symptoms that may be associated with psychological illness and emotional problems. The prevalence rate worldwide for IBS ranges from 10 to 20% and is higher for women than for men. IBS imposes a substantial financial burden on both patients and employers because of increased medical costs and decreased work productivity. Recent studies indicate that inflammatory processes involving the gastrointestinal tract are strongly correlated with IBS. Acute bacterial gastroenteritis has been linked with the onset of symptoms in approximately 15% of patients diagnosed with IBS; these cases have been called postinfectious IBS. Organisms commonly associated with postinfectious IBS include the foodborne pathogens Campylobacter, Escherichia coli, Salmonella, and Shigella. The pathologic changes associated with postinfectious IBS are likely due to inflammatory reactions induced by the infecting organisms. Postinfectious IBS should be recognized as a potential long-term consequence of foodborne gastroenteritis.

Social Sciences in Forestry Bibliography
About this Resource: This database indexes publications in 41 subject areas relating the social sciences to forestry. Among them are: legislation, policy and planning, management, economic development, investment and finance.

Social Sciences in Forestry Bibliography
About this Resource: This database indexes publications in 41 subject areas relating the social sciences to forestry. Among them are: legislation, policy and planning, management, economic development, investment and finance.

Texas Urban Forestry Council
About this Resource: The Texas Urban Forestry Council serves as a forum for networking, education and advocacy for those interested in impacting Texas' community forests. Their site provides information about the Texans for Trees program, which helps Texans plant trees in public and residential areas in their community. There is information about the Texas Urban Forestry License Plate program and several forest facts. There are links to news and photos.

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources - Community Forestry
About this Resource: The Minnesota DNR Community Forestry website provides links to tree care advisors, tree care assistance, a Minnesota Certified Arborists list, and plant disease diagnosing tips. There are resources for communities such as finanacial assistance, tree ordinances, information about conserving wooded areas, internet reference links, and tips on starting a wood chip program. There are links to community forestry programs and to the home pages of MNSTAC, MSA, and University of Minnesota Forest Resources Extension.

Urban Habitat
About this Resource: Urban Habitat works to develop multicultural urban environmental leadership in the San Francisco area by building bridges between environmentalists, social justice advocates, government leaders, and the business community. Their website provides information about The Leadership Institute for Sustainable Communities, The Social Equity Caucus, and Community Based Regionalism. There are links to publications, policy papers, a calendar of events, and a listing of employment opportunities.

International Forestry Students Association (IFSA)
About this Resource: IFSA promotes co-operation among forestry students, and establishes links with other international organisations in areas such as forestry, environmental protection, higher education, economy and social development. The website contains news and upcoming event information including information about the annual symposium. There is also information about the organization such as membership information, structure, statutes, and history. Also found here is commission information, activity information, services, downloads, chat room and forum, and links.

Evaluation of lint cleaner louvers at a commercial gin
About this Resource: This study evaluated the Continental Eagle version of the ARS-developed louvers for saw-type lint cleaners in a commercial gin plant to determine the subsequent impact on fiber quality at the gin and mill levels. The study was conducted without regard as to whether the cotton was sufficiently clean after the gin stand to warrant a reduced number of grid bars. Sixteen bales of cotton, eight from each of two varieties, were processed through a Continental Eagle Model 24D lint cleaner equipped with eight automated louvers to allow from one to eight grid bars to be used; however, the two treatments used in this experiment were two and eight grid bars. Samples from each replication were analyzed for moisture, market classification, fiber length distribution, neps, trash, dust, foreign matter, and other factors. The fiber was spun at the Cotton Quality Research Station, Clemson, SC. The test cotton contained about 10% foreign matter before gin processing and was Low Middling color after gin processing. Mote weight at the gin averaged 6.0 and 11.5 pounds per bale for the two and eight grid bar treatments, respectively, for a savings of 5.5 pounds per bale or over $3.00. Spinning performance did not differ except for the impact of different trash levels in the bale. Thus the number of grid bars used at the gin should be selected based on the trash level in the ginned lint in order to assure optimum mill performance. In general, the number of grid bars significantly impacted only the trash-related variables at both the gin and mill.

Forestry Commission of Great Britain
About this Resource: This site provides information about the forests of Great Britain, including information separated by country. The site provides access to live webcams and videos of wildlife as well as an online guide to over 1,500 ideas on places to go and things to do in the forests of Great Britain. There are links to information on buying timber, grants and licences, plant health, sustainable forestry, educational resources, and forest research in Great Britain.

Tree Canada Foundation
About this Resource: The Tree Canada Foundation is a non-profit organization that provides education, technical assistance, resources and financial support to encourage Canadians to plant and care for trees in an effort to help reduce the harmful effects of carbon dioxide emissions. Their website provides information about the environment and urban forests. There are also links to carbon neutral companies.

Ensiling of potato vines
About this Resource: Potato vines are a potential feed for cattle if the vines can be preserved. The objectives of this study were primarily to study alternative methods to preserve potato vines by ensiling and determine the effects of soil contamination on ensiling. In experiment 1, vines from four potato varieties were harvested individually with a flail chopper set at three heights to vary soil contamination. The chopped vines were ensiled in minisilos alone or amended (3:1, vines to amendment, wet basis) with either chopped alfalfa hay or barley grain. Silos were opened after 90 d for analysis. In experiment 2, vines of one variety were hand-harvested and ensiled fresh or after wilting one day in a greenhouse, alone or in combination with chopped whole plant corn at one of four levels. Silos were opened for analysis after 1, 2, 6, 14 and 90 d ensiling. The vines in both experiments were of high nutritive value with high crude protein contents [194-261 g kg(-1) dry matter (DM)] and low neutral detergent fiber contents (286-359 g kg(-1) DM). However, ash contents were relatively high even with low soil contamination (220-307 g kg(-1) DM) and hand-harvested vines (169 g kg(-1) DM). In both experiments, unamended vines were poorly preserved, underwent a secondary fermentation, and were unstable aerobically. Little or no lactic acid was present in these silages, acetic acid was the predominant fermentation product, and butyric acid was detected in some silages. In contrast, all three amendments produced well-preserved silages. Barley-amended silages yielded the lowest pHs (4.06 average); alfalfa-amended silages yielded the highest (4.97 average). In a 5-d aerobic stability test, some barley-amended replicates heated while none of the alfalfa- or corn-amended silages heated. Level of soil contamination had no consistent negative effect on fermentation, but the added soil substantially diluted vine dry matter in the high contamination treatments.

International Forestry Resources and Institutions
About this Resource: The website focuses on determining how to change processes leading to deforestation in many countries of the world; assessing what types of institutions are associated with sustainable forest practices; and helping policymakers and forest users to design more effective forest policies. IFRI provides a way for members to collect, store, and analyze data over time about forests and the communities that use forests. Both environmental and social science variables are stored in the same IFRI database. The website offers online publications and the ability to order free publications. The collaborating forestry resources and institutions are discussed and information is provided as to how to become a member.

Iwokrama: International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development
About this Resource: Iwokrama manages the nearly one million acre Iwokrama Forest in central Guyana to show how tropical forests can be conserved and sustainably used to provide ecological, social and economic benefits to local, national and international communities. This webpage gives news of the Center, information about what the center does, offers products and merchandise to buy, provides a newsletter, and lists job oppurtunities. The site also gives information about the canopy walkway, forest research, people of the forest, business in the forest, and forest management. The site includes information about partnerships and offers users a mammal guide to the Iwokrama Forest.

Efficiency effects of agricultural economics research in the United States
About this Resource: Allocations of research funds across programs are often made for efficiency reasons. Social science research is shown to have small, lagged but significant effects on U.S. agricultural efficiency when public agricultural R&D and extension are simultaneously taken into account. Farm management and marketing research variables are used to explain variations in estimates of allocative and technical efficiency using a Bayesian approach that incorporates stylized facts concerning lagged research impacts in a way that is less restrictive than popular polynomial distributed lags. Results are reported in terms of means and standard deviations of estimated probability distributions of parameters and long-run total multipliers. Extension is estimated to have a greater impact on both allocative and technical efficiency than either R&D or social science research.

TreeLink
About this Resource: TreeLink provides internet-based information, tools and inspiration that can be used to improve urban and community forests. The site provides forestry related links organized by state, a list of tree quotes, and a kids corner where games, books, activities, and quizzes can be found. There is a resource center with links to information about urban and community forestry, research and technology transfer, care and maintenance, management, a learning center, and weather. There is a news desk area with news from TreeLink and Urban Forestry Coordinator's News. The tree guide area provides links to a zone map, plant database, flash cards, and an online tree guide. There is access to related publications, including Wood Notes quarterly and several downloadable how-to-posters and news and magazine ads.

North Central Research Station: Social and Economic Dimensions of Ecosystem Management
About this Resource: The site explains the Research Station's research mission and program objectives. There are links to research highlights and NEPA documentation. There is also a list of staff and a link to the NCRS homepage.

Microfinance and Environment: Does the Participation in the Microcredit Based Social Forestry of Proshika in Bangladesh Improve Environmental Literacy?
About this Resource: The study intends to assess the impact of the participation in the microcredit based social forestry program of Proshika in Bangladesh on the environmental literacy of participating households. The analysis is based on a household-level survey of 450 households. Considering the endogeneity in program participation, the instrumental variable (IV) technique has been used to achieve the objective of the paper. The results indicate that the participation in the social forestry program of Proshika significantly enhances the environmental literacy of participating households.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
About this Resource: A link to the homepage URL for the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Published by the National Academy of Sciences of the United States, the publication is a highly cited multidisciplinary scientific serial, exploring the physcial, biological and social sciences. PNAS Online was launched in 1997 offering full-text access, maintaining articles back to 1990. The link is designed so that commentaries, inaugrual articles can be identified - as well as colloquim papers and classic PNAS papers. A search engine assists those interested in performing advanced searches.

Publications : Insects, Pests & Plant Diseases | University of Tennessee Extension
About this Resource: A large number of PDF files covering many pests on many plants and in the home. Orgnaized under multiple subject headings: plant diseases; field crop insects, pests and diseases; commercial fruit and vegetable insects, pests and diseases; turfgrass pests.Includes pesticide safety and regulations.

Farm Management Publications : Nebraska Extension Service
About this Resource: HTML publications are available on many aspects of farm management: leases, futures trading, estate planning, marketing, recordkeeping and analysis, income taxes, budgeting, government programs, farm law, retirement, insurance and social security. Accessible through the University of Nebraska (Lincoln).

Center for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment (CSERGE)
About this Resource: CSERGE is the leading interdisciplinary research center in the field of environmental and sustainable development, linking natural and social science theories, tools and methods. The website gives information about the Center including its people, publications, partners, projects, and events.

Development of a canopy opener to improve spray deposition and coverage inside soybean canopies. 1. Mathematical models to assist opener development
About this Resource: A mechanical device, the "canopy opener," is being designed to bend tops of soybean plants, creating a pathway for sprayed pest control agents into the lower crop canopy. Mathematical models were developed to aid opener design and placement to maximize spray penetration and coverage with minimum crop damage. The models established relationships among plant deflection, opener depth inside the canopy, and plant height, enabling determination of opening width based on calculations of plant-recovery motion after release from the opener and time available for droplet travel from the nozzle to the lower canopy. To provide parameters to support the developed model, natural frequencies and damping coefficients of soybean plants were determined experimentally. Additionally, times required for droplet travel from specific nozzles to the lower canopy were determined using a laser velocimetry system. The models predicted that for XR8004 nozzles at 276 kPa the maximal opener depth would be 0.14 m and the opener width should range from 0.04 to 0.47 m for 1.06 m tall soybean plants. Experimental measurement of maximal deflection and plant motion agreed with mathematical models.

Global Development Network: Generating, sharing and applying knowledge for development
About this Resource: The Global Development Network (GDN) is a global network of research and policy institutes working together to address the problems of national and regional development. GDN: supports multidisciplinary research in the social sciences, promotes the generation of local knowledge in developing and transitional countries, produces policy relevant knowledge on a global scale, builds research capacity to advance development and alleviate poverty, facilitates knowledge sharing among researchers and policymakers, and disseminates development knowledge to the public and policymakers. The site offers a host of details about: partnership arrangements; research projects and online services. The knowledge base is freely accessible, it offers: researcher profiles, a portal into developmental research - produced in developing countries, profiles on over 250 research centers and a library of papers that relate to GDN activities. GDN's Journal Services offers its' partners, working in developing countries, free access to a range of journals from this site.

National Arbor Day Foundation
About this Resource: The National Arbor Day site provides information about what the Arbor Day foundation does, what and when is Arbor Day, how to plant and care for trees, how to identify trees and which ones to plant in certain areas. The site also provides an online ordering form for trees, a tree forum, and resources about trees. There are sections about teaching youth about trees, including games and activities, conferences and workshops, information about Tree City USA and Rainforest Rescue, and the Arbor Day Farm.

Preparation and Use of Voucher Specimens for Documenting Research in Weed Science
About this Resource: Voucher specimens and herbarium collections provide the foundation for many aspects of research in the plant sciences. Available for study and verification by contemporary and future workers, voucher specimens promote reproducibility in scientific method because permanent records document identification, distribution, and interspecific and intraspecific variation of species. The utility and importance of voucher specimens and herbarium collections in supporting research in weed science are discussed, and the collection, preparation, documentation, storage, and shipment of voucher specimens are detailed.

American Forests
About this Resource: American Forests is the nation’s oldest nonprofit citizens’ conservation organization. The website provides information about how people can donate money to plant trees. The site also discusses trees, cities & sprawl, how to fight climate change with trees & forests, information about famous & historic trees, and America's biggest & oldest trees. The site gives information about programs such as Global Releaf and Forest Policy as well as news & publications.

Toxicity Responses of Herbaceous and Woody Ornamental Plants to Chlorine and Hydrogen Dioxides
About this Resource: Regular and excessive rates of chlorine dioxide (ClO2) and hydrogen dioxide (H2O2) were sprayed five times at 3-day intervals on eight bedding plant and nine shrub species to determine if plant damage would result. Marketability was judged to be reduced if >4% surface area of leaves and/or flowers were adversely affected. Rates of 5 and 50 ppm ClO2 and 900 and 2700 ppm H2O2 did not damage most plants tested and will likely control most common pathogen propagules. Rates of 100 ppm ClO2 and 5400 ppm H2O2 did not damage most plants tested if sprayed less than four consecutive times and should control some of the more chemical-tolerant pathogens.

COVER AND CONTENTS PAGES
About this Resource: Includes: Cover Page, Contents Page, Letter from President (Eric C. Oesterle), Forward, General Features of the Science Information Exchange, General Significance of SIE Compilations, Some General Information, Research Project Information Exchange, How to Use This Listing and the Science Information Exchange, Submission Forms

PRICE DISCOVERY IN THE FUTURES AND CASH MARKET FOR SUGAR
About this Resource: Pricing function using world sugar futures (WSF) has received limited research interest. Findings indicate that WSF and cash prices for the Dominican Republic appears cointegrated with changing relationships. Previous work suggests that futures markets price the cheapest quality of commodities deliverable on contracts. Cointegration results are consistent with this argument.

National Community Forestry Center - Northern Forest Region
About this Resource: In 1997, the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a call for proposals to develop regional centers providing technical services for rural communities. The National Network of Forest Practitioners (NNFP) - whose members share a commitment to rural community development based on sustainable forestry and a conviction that healthy communities and healthy ecosystems are interdependent - responded. The NNFP proposed a center to support community-based, participatory research addressing a wide range of economic, environmental, and social concerns among communities with forest land. Their proposal was selected from among hundreds of others, one of only six to receive funds to cover startup and operation for a four-year period. The National Community Forestry Center, Northern Forest Region, serves the States of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Central & Northeastern New York. The Centers' core purpose is to help rural people conduct and use research to make informed decisions about forest resources. The Centers' goal is to add value to the work of individuals and organizations fostering healthy communities and working forests that are both dynamic and diverse. The other three centers are located in the Pacific West; Southwest and Appalachian areas. The web site supports the Centers' goals.

The effect of outside ambient air conditions on the interstitial relative humidity of linear low density polyethylene film wrapped cotton bales
About this Resource: The J. G. Boswell Company operates a unique, proprietary designed, warehousing facility for baled Pima cotton. An integral part of this storage facility is the bale packaging material'-a specially formulated linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) film bagging. After the cotton is ginned on a roller gin, the naked bale is inserted into the LLDPE film bag and hermetically sealed. The protected bales are then placed in open storage. The recommended storage conditions state that relative humidity in excess of 50% should be avoided, since high humidity conditions have been documented to have an adverse effect on the maintenance of cotton fiber quality during storage. Limited published research information is available concerning the effects of long term storage on cotton fiber, and no published information exists on the relative humidity of the interstitial area of hermetically sealed LLDPE film wrapped cotton bales. Research was conducted to determine the relative humidity of the interstitial space of a cotton bale wrapped with LLDPE film bagging, and to determine if a constant low relative humidity is maintained regardless of outside ambient air conditions. This research demonstrated that even though the ambient temperature (43 F to 74 F) and relative humidity 44% to 93%) varied significantly, the relative humidity of the interstitial environment remained constant and low (10% or less relative humidity). In addition, anecdotal evidence collected to date by the J. G. Boswell Company indicates that no fiber damage has been incurred when the hermetically sealed, specially formulated LLDPE film bagging is utilized. Therefore, this design and operation for cotton warehousing is as protective of baled cotton as other cotton warehouse storage facilities currently insured in CCC licensed warehouses.

Effects of pepper trash on fiber quality and spinning performance
About this Resource: Material accumulation in the rotor groove causing the yarn to break is a serious spinning efficiency problem for the open-end spinning industry. Fine trash, sometimes called pepper trash, is blamed for this rotor buildup and subsequent ends down. The origin of this pepper trash has been blamed on various foreign materials from soil to small-leaf particles and other plant materials. There is currently some indication that the origin of the material building up in the spinning rotor groove may derive from broken pieces of hull. Specially processed test cotton was produced at the Southwestern Cotton Ginning Research Laboratory that contained known high quantities of soil particles, and small leaf and hull fragments. This cotton was provided to the Cotton Quality Research Station to be processed through their open-end spinning line. Material was collected from rotor grooves for further analysis to determine its origin. Once the origin of the problem material is determined, then the problem of removal can be addressed during the ginning process.

COMPLEXITY AND INNOVATION IN BUSINESS SYSTEMS WITH FOCUS ON TRANSITIONAL COUNTRIES
About this Resource: This paper is a review from a business analyst's perspective of innovation and complexity concept and their impact upon the paths of business systems and organisations as wholes. Its task is also to catalyse a broader discussion on innovation segment that is by itself complex and its importance to business in a growing complex environment. The argument is that innovations should be the main driving force of business and other social systems due to their path-dependent and positive feedback features that provide for faster growth. Innovation is not limited solely to businesses and should also be viewed in respect to other social (public) systems whose segment often lack innovative approach. Innovation may be found to possess emergent properties like other events that appear in social systems that influence their change and adaptation. It determines path-dependency of such systems because it is considered an event arising early in the history of the system that determines its ultimate end state. Thus, understanding, managing and accepting innovations and its importance is crucial for recognition of complex processes of path-creation, dependence and emergence of forces that drive social systems. Viewed from aspect of transitional countries, it is crucial for judging the future stability of their social entities striving for development and recognised change.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
About this Resource: The OECD groups of 30 member countries share a commitment to democratic government and market economics. With active relationships in some 70 other countries, the Organisation has a global reach. Best known for its publications and its statistics, OECD's work often covers economic and social issues (from macroeconomics, to trade, education, development and science and innovation). The OECD produces internationally agreed upon instruments, decisions and recommendations; promoting the "rules of the game" for areas where multilateral agreement is necessary for individual countries to make progress in a globalised economy.

FAO Forestry
About this Resource: This organization focuses on "how to use trees, forests and related resources to improve people's economic, environmental, social and cultural conditions while ensuring that the resource is conserved to meet the needs of future generations." The website provides information about the organization and also about forest management, forest products and services, forest and the environment, people and forests, policy and institutions, sector studies, assessment and monitoring, and interdisciplinary issues. The site also contains forestry department country profiles, an events calendar, a database and library, publication information, and processes information.

Botany & Plant Pathology Publications : Indiana Extension Service
About this Resource: A collecton of publications relating to plant pathology are organized into categories: field crop diseases; fruit diseases; ornamental diseases; pesticide programs; vegetable diseases; weeds and weed management; and miscellaneous.

Principles of integrated agricultural systems: Introduction to processes and definition
About this Resource: Agriculture has been very successful in addressing the food and fiber needs of today's world population. However, there are increasing concerns about the economic, environmental and social costs of this success. Integrated agricultural systems may provide a means to address these concerns while increasing sustainability. This paper reviews the potential for and challenges to integrated agricultural systems, evaluates different agricultural systems in a hierarchical systems framework, and provides definitions and examples for each of the systems. This paper also describes the concept of dynamic-integrated agricultural systems and calls for the development of principles to use in developing and researching integrated agricultural systems. The concepts in this paper have arisen from the first in a series of planned workshops to organize common principles, criteria and indicators across physiographic regions in integrated agricultural systems. Integrated agricultural systems have multiple enterprises that interact in space and time, resulting in a synergistic resource transfer among enterprises. Dynamic-integrated agricultural systems have multiple enterprises managed in a dynamic manner. The key difference between dynamic-integrated agricultural systems and integrated agricultural systems is in management philosophy. In an integrated agricultural system, management decisions, such as type and amount of commodities to produce, are predetermined. In a dynamic-integrated system, decisions are made at the most opportune time using the best available knowledge. We developed a hierarchical scheme for agricultural systems ranging from basic agricultural production systems, which are the simplest system with no resource flow between enterprises, to dynamic-integrated agricultural systems. As agricultural systems move up in the hierarchy, their complexity, amount of management needed, and sustainability also increases. A key aspect of sustainability is the ability to adapt to future challenges. We argue that sustainable systems need built-in flexibility to achieve this goal.

Determining the Influence of Spray Quality, Nozzle Type, Spray Volume, and Air-Assisted Application Strategies on Deposition of Pesticides in Soybean Canopy
About this Resource: Many insect and disease problems occur in specific plant canopy locations and cannot be managed with systemic pesticides. Diseases such as Asian soybean rust (ASR) ( Phakopsora pachyrhizi ) infect plant material deep inside a canopy that is difficult to target. Field studies were established in north central Ohio to determine the effect of different application strategies on targeting of foliar pesticide in narrow-row (18 cm) soybean plantings. Several different application factors were tested, including spray quality, nozzle type, air-assistance, and spray volume. In 2005, the spray mix included a fungicide used for ARS management. In 2006, in addition to the fungicide, an insecticide for soybean aphid management was included. Plant samples were removed from each test plot, and stems and leaves from the bottom third and middle third of the plant were separated for individual analysis. Overall, there was significantly less active ingredient found in the lower third of the canopies than the middle third, and significantly less pesticide residue was found on stems than leaves from the same canopy location. Significantly more fungicide residue was found on lower leaves treated by the medium-quality XR8004 flat-fan nozzle in 2005 than the coarse-quality XR8005 flat-fan nozzle. There were no differences in fungicide residue found on middle canopy leaves between the fine, medium, and coarse quality flat-fan nozzles. The twin-fan pattern nozzles (Turbo Duo and TwinJet) produced the lowest amounts of fungicide residue on the lower leaves in 2005. The mechanical canopy opener produced significantly higher fungicide residues on middle canopy leaves than all other treatments. The Jacto air-assist sprayer using JA3 hollow-cone nozzles produced the highest fungicide residues on lower canopy leaves in 2005. There were some statistical differences between the amounts of fungicide and insecticide residue found on plant tissue in 2006 because of the high amount of variability in the sample data. Overall in 2006, the higher volume XR8004 treatment (187 L ha -1 ) and the twin-fan TTJ60-11003 treatment at 145 L ha -1 performed similar to the Jacto sprayer making applications at 145 L ha -1 using either flat-fan or hollow-cone nozzles. In general, higher volume applications produced higher amounts of fungicide and insecticide residue on leaves from the middle of the canopy for conventional flat-fan and air-assist applications. Spray volume had less affect on residues measured on leaves from the lower canopy area. Across two years of different canopies at the same spray volume (145 L ha -1 ), the Jacto sprayer using JA3 hollow-cone nozzles produced more fungicide residue on middle canopy stems and lower canopy leaves than the medium-quality XR8004 flat-fan nozzle.

University of Florida, Environmental Horticulture
About this Resource: Environmental horticulture deals with breeding, propagating, installing, and maintaining plants to improve the human environment. The website describes research done by the department in the areas of floriculture production, foliage production, horticultural taxonomy, plant restoration conservation biology, plant molecular biology, and turfgrass. There are links to classes, programs, and plant information databases and information about children's gardening, floriculture, foliage, home gardening, turfgrass, and trees and shrubs. There are also links to related publications.

Tree Trust
About this Resource: Tree Trust's goal is to improve the community environment by educating people about the importance of trees and offering employment training to plant community trees. They also have an outreach program which emphasizes hands-on projects to help communities and schools improve their community's natural environment. Their site provides information about their tree programs and training programs. There are links to a photo gallery and information about staff openings. There is also information on how to plant a tree.

Some useful methods for measuring the benefits of social science research
About this Resource: What are the “returns” to policy-oriented research in the social sciences? One presumes that the positive net benefits to society, or at least a certain segment of society, would be treated as returns, but how does one determine what these benefits are? Clearly benefits to some social science research are available because society continued to fund it, albeit at different levels in different locations and times. This paper cannot fully answer the questions of what it is we seek to measure in any empirical sense, although it will discuss this issue. The returns in the marketplace for social science research are those that exist in the eye of the customer who bears the cost of the research. This paper's primary goal is to offer the client some ways of measuring these returns. It does this with particular emphasis on methods that are often overlooked, even though some of them have been available to the analyst for decades. It also explains some of the costs and benefits of each method and explains how some of them may be used together in order to achieve a higher level of efficacy in measurement.