An Economic Study of Small Pigholders in Vietnam: Some Insights Gained and the Scope for Further Research
Some relevant background to this research project is provided by outlining selected features of Vietnam’s pig industry. Then the main findings (in the view of the author) from this ACIAR-funded research are presented. These results include (1) natural protection given to Vietnam’s pig producers from imports as a result of the nature of the preferences of Vietnamese consumers: (2) the importance of household labour, especially that provided by females, in the husbandry of pigs held by households; (3) the existence, or otherwise, of scale economies as a function of the number of pigs held by households, (4) the import dependence for pig food of Vietnam’s pig industry and the way in which it varies with the number of pigs kept by households; (5) specialization in pig production, (6) regional differences in the economics of pig production; (7) economic discrimination in the supply of inputs to household producers of pigs and in their sale of pigs; (8) the size of pig-holdings and the use of professional services, such as veterinary services and extension services; and (9) findings about miscellaneous matters, such as the genetic composition of the pig stock. Scope for future research in relation to these aspects is also highlighted, and the need is raised for considering the economics of increasing quality standards and certifying the quality of pork. The economics of increasing the scale of pig producing units is given particular attention.
Supermarkets in Vietnam: Opportunities and Obstacles
The present paper is the first study to link the perceptions of Vietnamese consumers to the barriers and prospects related to the development of supermarkets in Vietnam by applying quantitative and statistical analysis to Hanoi consumer survey data. It is found that shopping habits related to the purchase of fresh produce in traditional markets, combined with the proximity and low prices these outlets provide, act as a major deterrent to supermarket development. Supermarkets have made considerable advances in the sales of processed food and non-food products. However, without expanding their fresh food category, lowering prices and enhancing their location convenience, supermarkets cannot expand their current position. Copyright 2007 The Authors Journal compilation 2007 East Asian Economic Association and Blackwell Publishing Ltd .
Creating the Virtual Universe
Simulation software is important to our understanding of the universe. The intrinsic multiphysics aspects are spiced with a range of temporal scales and spatial scales, both of which cover more digits than are available in the standard hardware. This, together with the intrinsic chaotic nature of many physical processes, poses quite a challenge. To meet this challenge, researchers developed the Astronomical Multipurpose Environment (AMUSE). Instead of writing a suite of multiphysics solvers from scratch, AMUSE's developers coupled existing solvers for each physical ingredient. The result is a highly inhomogeneous collection of dedicated solvers with a homogeneous protocol that scales to supercomputers.