In this paper, we examine a joint lot-sizing and process investment problem with random yield and backorders. We allow for inspection and develop stochastic models which provide the optimal inspection and lot-sizing policy as well as the optimal process investment for variance reduction. The process quality loss profile around the target is captured via a modification of the Reflected Normal lo...

This study used information about a farm in the Victorian Mallee during the period 1998 – 2005 to analyse the profitability of investing in Precision Agriculture and Site-Specific Crop Management technology and farming systems. Two equipment guidance systems were evaluated. Both guidance systems earned more than 8 percent real return p.a. on the extra capital invested. A Real-Time Kinetic (RTK)...

The study estimated the benefit and rate of returns to investment on ginger research and extension in Bangladesh. The Economic Surplus Model with ex-post analysis was used to determine the returns to investment and their distribution between production and consumption. Several discounting techniques were also used to assess the efficiency of ginger research. The adoption rate was found increasi...

Consumers have shown a willingness to pay a premium for products labeled as “Fair Trade,” and to prefer retailers that are seen as more generous to their suppliers/employees. A fair trade product is essentially a bundle of a base product and a donation to the supplier (e.g., a coffee farmer). An altruistic rational consumer will only choose this bundle if doing so is less expensive than buying ...

In many two-player games, players that invest in punishment finish with lower payoffs than those who abstain from punishing. These results question the effectiveness of punishment at promoting cooperation, especially when retaliation is possible. It has been suggested that these findings may stem from the unrealistic assumption that all players are equal in terms of power. However, a previous e...

Academia should be willing to shoulder some of the responsibility for the current dearth of new therapeutic drugs. Our research funding is predicated on the assumption that it will bring value to society, but our emphasis on scientific specialization hinders our ability to add value when a broader vision is required. A solution is the creation of an academy of science generalists motivated to b...

[0001] Today a large portion of biomedical information can be accessed electronically. However, research articles, technical reports, clinical notes, and many other sources of information are stored as free-form text not suited for quantitative analysis. As the amount of data grow everyday, it becomes increasingly difficult to make use of the wealth of valuable knowledge that is hidden in these...

Coexistence of cooperators and defectors is common in nature, yet the evolutionary origin of such social diversification is unclear. Many models have been studied on the basis of the assumption that benefits of cooperative acts only accrue to others. Here, we analyze the continuous snowdrift game, in which cooperative investments are costly but yield benefits to others as well as to the coopera...

I analyze annual returns of the S&P 500 from 1993 – 1998. Future returns of the market are predicted using current dividend yield levels, past risk free returns and a standard deviation variable over the preceding five years. Evidence from the article suggests that future returns can be predicted when combing dividend yields with recent volatility in the market. This article suggests that recen...