The plant size distribution differs systematically across developed and developing countries. For example, in developing countries, less than one fifth of 1% of plants are large (employ 100 or more employees) and account for about one fifth of total employment. In sharp contrast, in developed countries, more than 1.6% of plants are large and account for more than two fifth of total employment. In this dissertation, I develop a model of plant size to account for the differences in the plant size distribution observed in the data. In the first chapter, I explore the link between plant size distribution and economic development. I also discuss the main features of the plant size distribution data. The purpose of this data set is to provide evidence of systematic differences in plant size distribution across developed and developing countries. In the second chapter, I present a dynamic employment choice model in a life cycle setting. Then I calibrate the benchmark model to match some key features of the U.S. plant size distribution. I find that my model can capture the critical features of U.S. plant size distribution, including the upper tail which accounts for the bulk of the employment and output in the U.S. economy. In the third chapter, I explore how exogenous differences in aggregate barriers to investment and technology across countries affect the plant size distribution. Results indicate that exogenous differences in aggregate barriers to investment and technology across countries can account for more than 50% of the variation in both the fraction of large plants and employment share in large plants across countries. For the same group of countries, exogenous differences in aggregate barriers also account for 36% of the variation in the mean size.

Field studies were conducted to evaluate the effect of crop rotation on annual bluegrass plant population dynamics, seed rain, and seed bank in 1996 and 1997 at two sites. Growth-chamber studies were conducted to determine the influence of the mother plant environment on annual bluegrass germination. The change in population, seed rain, seed in seed bank and germination behavior of annual bluegrass at Site 1 was different from those at Site 2. The highest population of annual bluegrass was observed in the meadowfoam-perennial ryegrass rotation and the lowest population was observed in the continuous perennial ryegrass and meadowfoam-spring wheat rotations at Site 1 in 1997, whereas continuous perennial ryegrass and winter wheat-perennial ryegrass rotations had the highest populations at Site 2 in 1997. Differences in the number of annual bluegrass seed in the seed bank occurred at both sites. The greatest reduction of annual bluegrass seed in the seed bank was observed over time in the meadowfoam-spring wheat rotation at both sites. At both sites, most of the seed was deposited on the surface to 0 to 2.5 cm soil depth and the number of seed decreased with soil depth. The mother plant environment and the date of seed maturity had an effect on annual bluegrass germination. At the seed collection date of 5/8/97, the annual bluegrass seed collected from the canopy of continuous perennial ryegrass and from the seedling perennial ryegrass following meadowfoam had the highest germination at 15/25 C at Site 1. Seed collected from continuous perennial ryegrass on 5/6/97 and 5/22/97 had the highest germination among all test temperatures regimes at Site 2. Seed collected from seedling perennial ryegrass following meadowfoam at the second collection date of 5/28/97 at Site 1 and 5/22/97 at Site 2 had the lowest germination at all temperature regimes except 5 C constant temperature. The 15/25 C was the best temperature regime for germination of annual bluegrass collected from any mother plant environment on any seed collection date at Site 1 and Site 2. / Graduation date: 1999

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2006. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Intensive management of short rotation hybrid poplar (HP) plantations on agriculture land has demonstrated good early yields and promise as an alternative crop for farmers selling fibre to the forest industry. However, multiple rotations of HP may impact the future productivity of plantations through nutrient removals. The objectives, therefore, of this study were to determine the nutrient stores and fluxes for two HP plantations with differing site quality, fertilizer applications and past land management practices and to construct a 20-year nutrient budget to examine impacts of harvesting short rotation HP on long-term productivity.<p>Heights and biomass were measured by harvesting above- and below-ground and separating biomass into tree components; measurement of atmospheric deposition, mineral weathering, litterfall, litter decomposition, and leaching for HP plantations on an Alfalfa (HPA) and Pasture (HPP) sites in 2004-05. The budget was developed by averaging fluxes over 2 years and scaling up to a 20-year rotation. <p>Unfertilized treatments in the HPA plantation showed greater tree growth than all other treatments. Fertilized and unfertilized treatments had greater biomass production and nutrient pools than treatments at the HPP plantation. The fertilizer treatments did not affect on biomass production and nutrient accumulation.<p>Nutrient additions to the HPA were greater than the HPP plantations for leaf litterfall and leaching. Nutrient resorption from senescing leaves was greater at the HPP plantation suggesting that nutrient pools were smaller and that trees responded by keeping nutrients in the biomass. Fertilization at both plantations increased nutrient flow for inputs and outputs in 2004-05. Water leachate and leaf litterfall showed increased nutrient contents in fertilized treatments at both plantations.<p>A high fertility plantation that used fertilizer and practiced whole-tree harvesting exported more nutrients (and fibre) than a plantation with marginal site quality practicing stem-only harvesting. Time to replenish nutrients from atmospheric deposition and mineral weathering would range from 6 to 50 years for Ca and N, respectively, suggesting that subsequent plantations would require fertilizers to replenish soil nutrient reserves.<p>While HP plantations in Saskatchewan can produce high yields, they require large nutrient inputs and are inefficient (sequester a large amount) in nutrient use. High site quality is important to obtain high yields but conservational techniques, such as stem-only harvesting, are important in maintaining site quality over the long-term.

Intensive management of short rotation hybrid poplar (HP) plantations on agriculture land has demonstrated good early yields and promise as an alternative crop for farmers selling fibre to the forest industry. However, multiple rotations of HP may impact the future productivity of plantations through nutrient removals. The objectives, therefore, of this study were to determine the nutrient stores and fluxes for two HP plantations with differing site quality, fertilizer applications and past land management practices and to construct a 20-year nutrient budget to examine impacts of harvesting short rotation HP on long-term productivity.<p>Heights and biomass were measured by harvesting above- and below-ground and separating biomass into tree components; measurement of atmospheric deposition, mineral weathering, litterfall, litter decomposition, and leaching for HP plantations on an Alfalfa (HPA) and Pasture (HPP) sites in 2004-05. The budget was developed by averaging fluxes over 2 years and scaling up to a 20-year rotation. <p>Unfertilized treatments in the HPA plantation showed greater tree growth than all other treatments. Fertilized and unfertilized treatments had greater biomass production and nutrient pools than treatments at the HPP plantation. The fertilizer treatments did not affect on biomass production and nutrient accumulation.<p>Nutrient additions to the HPA were greater than the HPP plantations for leaf litterfall and leaching. Nutrient resorption from senescing leaves was greater at the HPP plantation suggesting that nutrient pools were smaller and that trees responded by keeping nutrients in the biomass. Fertilization at both plantations increased nutrient flow for inputs and outputs in 2004-05. Water leachate and leaf litterfall showed increased nutrient contents in fertilized treatments at both plantations.<p>A high fertility plantation that used fertilizer and practiced whole-tree harvesting exported more nutrients (and fibre) than a plantation with marginal site quality practicing stem-only harvesting. Time to replenish nutrients from atmospheric deposition and mineral weathering would range from 6 to 50 years for Ca and N, respectively, suggesting that subsequent plantations would require fertilizers to replenish soil nutrient reserves.<p>While HP plantations in Saskatchewan can produce high yields, they require large nutrient inputs and are inefficient (sequester a large amount) in nutrient use. High site quality is important to obtain high yields but conservational techniques, such as stem-only harvesting, are important in maintaining site quality over the long-term.

Despite the abundant research regarding individual-level feedback, few studies examine team feedback, particularly the relationship between team feedback reactions and organizational performance. Through a field study and a lab study, this paper examines two reactions to team feedback, specifically blaming and strategizing, and their relationship to team performance. Study 1 showed that both blaming and strategizing occur in about 1/3 of team feedback meetings in an international sample of teams. Blaming was found to negatively correlate with productivity improvement (r = -.59), whereas strategizing was found to positively correlate with productivity improvement (r = .33). Study 2 was a lab study conducted to addresses several of the limitations from Study 1. The results from Study 2 were mixed. Although the manipulation failed to differentiate the experimental conditions in Study 2, post hoc correlational analyses showed a positive relationship between strategizing and viability, and a negative relationship between excuse making and viability. Correlational analyses also revealed a negative relationship between blaming or excuse making and team cohesion. These results suggest further research is warranted in this area.

When the reservoir pressure is decreased below dew point pressure of the gas near the wellbore, gas-condensate wells start to decrease production because condensate is separated from the gas around the wellbore causing a decrease in gas relative permeability. This effect is more dramatic if the permeability of the reservoir is low. The idea proposed for reducing this problem is to eliminate the irreducible water saturation near the wellbore to leave more space for the gas to flow and therefore increase the productivity of the well. In this research a simulation study was performed to determine the range of permeabilities where the cylinder of condensate will seriously affect the well’s productivity, and the distance the removal of water around the wellbore has to be extended in order to have acceleration of production and an increase in the final reserves. A compositional-radial reservoir was simulated with one well in the center of 109 grids. Three gas-condensate fluids with different heptanes plus compositions ( 4, 8 and 11 mole %), and two irreducible water saturations were used. The fitting of the Equation of State (EOS) was performed using the method proposed by Aguilar and McCain. Several simulations were performed with several permeabilities to determine the permeabilities for which the productivity is not affected by the presence of the cylinder of condensate. At constant permeability, various radii of a region of zero initial water saturation around the wellbore were simulated and comparisons of the effects of removal of irreducible water on productivity were made. Reservoirs with permeabilities lower than 100 mD showed a reduction in the ultimate reserves due to the cylinder of condensate. The optimal radius of water removal depends on the fluid composition and the irreducible water saturation of the reservoir. The expected increase in reserves due to water removal varies from 10 to 80 % for gas production and from 4 to 30% for condensate production.

This paper argues that a key mechanism through which greenhouse gas affects growth is via total factor productivity (TFP). We first estimate TFP based on a production function and then estimate the determinants of TFP, paying particular attention to four variables: greenhouse gas, openness of trade, inflation, saving rate ¡@¡@We major results are as follows: 1.In the fixed effect¡GThe impact of greenhouse gas and inflation on TFP to be negative, significant. The impact of openness of trade on TFP to be positive, significant. The impact of saving rate on TFP to be insignificant. 2.The relations between CO2 and TFP have in the degree change, the degree of interplay decreases progressively along with time. 3.The relationship between CO2 and TFP with the countries of OECD is lager than with the countries of Non-OECD. The impact of saving rate on TFP is significant in the countries of OECD, but insignificant in the countries of Non-OECD.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--York University, 1999. Graduate Programme in Economics. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 155-166). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pNQ56238.

All projects employ work packaging to divide the project scope into manageable portions of work for planning and execution. Enhanced work packaging, however, provides an organized and structured approach to planning through the project lifecycle in order to provide the construction work face with everything they need to successfully execute their work. This approach leads to increased field productivity and project predictability in terms of cost and schedule. Construction Industry Institute (CII) Research Team (RT) 272 developed a lifecycle execution model that encompasses recommendations for implementing enhanced work packaging throughout the project lifecycle. The model provides work packaging steps and considerations for each project phase from project definition through construction to system turnover. The model was founded upon industry practices as recorded in literature, team experiences, and through case studies and expert interviews. These recommendations were validated in conjunction with the case studies and through expert review. When properly implemented, enhanced work packaging improves field productivity, cost and schedule predictability, safety performance, and reduced rework, amongst other benefits. / text