Nearly a decade after the Federal Circuit decision in State Street, patents on computerimplemented methods of doing business have become commonplace. To date, there is little evidence of any effect on the rate of innovation or R&D among firms in financial services. Indeed, measuring such effects presents difficult problems for researchers. We do know that some of these patents are successfully ...

Techniques for controlling California ground squirrels (Spermophilus beecheyi) include trapping, shooting, acute toxicants, anticoagulants, and fumigants. These techniques are described and compared and the available information on their efficacy and economics is discussed. This kind of analysis is essential if growers are to make logical decisions regarding the various control options.

Behavioral science data included in an amicus brief has been introduced into a recent Supreme Court decision (Thompson v. Oklahoma) involving the juvenile death penalty. However, a close examination of the data fails to provide support for either the pro- or antijuvenile death penalty position.

Over the past 50 years, the scale and intensity of livestock farming have increased significantly. At the same time, Western societies have become more urbanised and fewer people have close relatives involved in farming. As a result, most citizens have little knowledge or direct experience of what farming entails. In addition, more people are expressing concerns over issues such as farm animal ...

This paper focuses on the potential role of policy in influencing the poverty and land degradation problems facing Africa. This is done through exploring a few case studies, chosen from a broad spectrum of African countries — Sudan, Malawi, Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya. The first case study examines the comparative returns to the gum arabic agroforestry system cultivated by poor farmers in Northern...

Land use and land cover patterns are shaped by the interplay of human and ecological processes. Thus, heterogeneous cultural landscapes have developed, delivering multiple ecosystem services. To guarantee human well-being, the development of land use types has to be evaluated. Scenario development and land use and land cover change models are well-known tools for assessing future landscape chan...

This paper describes how the social capital of rice farmers of the Mekong Delta of Vietnam, as manifested in the tradition of collective farming practice, has changed. Collective rice farming persisted for decades, irrespective of critical events that challenged its continuation, due to two key factors: the high need for collective farming to ensure subsistence, and the availability of a closel...

Economic viability of small farms and farming businesses depends on multiple factors. These have limited production financial resources to maintain their operation. Therefore, sustain farming, adopting appropriate risk management strategies is a pivotal decision for farmers. We surveyed Tennessee’s utilized multivariate probit models study factors influencing the adoption various strategies. Ou...

This study presents an econometric examination of the joint decisions of farmers on the adoption of a microcomputer and (or) purchased computers services. The characteristics of a farmer-schooling, age, off-farm work-are shown to be important variables for explaining the odds of adopting purchased computers services only, a microcomputer only, and both computer technologies. Adoption of compute...