50 research outputs found
Some Simpler Methods of Accounting for the Effects of Changing Prices
The complexities of accounting for the effects of changing prices on financial statements could be lessened with the use of simpler accounting methods. Because of existing complexities, even industrialized countries require only their larger business entities to provide inflation-adjusted information. Such information is prepared by making numerous adjustments to the traditional, historical cost-based data. For example, in the United Kingdom, inflation-adjusted income is calculated in two stages: operating profit and profit attributable to shareholders. These calculations are based on the concept of value to the business and require complicated adjustments with respect to cost of goods sold, depreciation, monetary working capital, and financial leverage. In the United States, requirements are even more extensive; selected items must be reported under two different methods: current cost and restatement of historical cost in constant dollars. Absence of sophisticated accounting systems to produce the inflation-adjusted information and fear of excessive costs to develop new accounting systems are the main reasons smaller corporations in industrialized nations and business entities in most developing countries are not being asked to report inflation-related information.
Furthermore, it is often observed that when inflation rates are rather low, the interest in inflation accounting declines to a low level. The distorting effect of inflation, whether high or low, on the financial statements of all kinds of businesses, large or small, in all countries, creates the necessity for financial statement users to assess the impact of inflation. It is essential, therefore, that business entities in developing nations, as well as in industrialized countries, possess techniques that allow the reporting of the effects of changing prices on their financial statements to be both feasible and accurate, regardless of the extent of such changes. In the accounting literature, several simple methods based on one-line adjustments of net income and owner’s equity have been proposed.
Although such methods are claimed to be quite effective, they have received little exposure or attention. In his dissent to Statement of Financial Accounting Standards (SFAS) No. 33, David Mosso refers to one such method as deserving more support than it has thus far received. Similarly, in his dissent to Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts (SFAC) No.5, John March suggests that “income must first deduct a provision for maintenance of capital in real terms” and further states that “complex implementation should not be necessary to provide for the erosion of capital caused by the effects of inflation.”
This paper explores and evaluates one-line adjustments as a possible alternative to the more complex methods used previously. The primary purpose of inflation accounting is discussed first, followed by an attempt to develop criteria for the evaluation of inflation accounting methods. Three one-line adjustment methods are then explained, and each is evaluated in terms of these criteria
Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017
A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4% (62.3 (55.1–70.8) million) to 6.4% (58.3 (47.6–70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target of <5% in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2% (30 (22.8–38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0% (55.5 (44.8–67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic
New tectonic discrimination diagrams for basic and ultrabasic volcanic rocks through log-transformed ratios of high field strength elements and implications for petrogenetic processes
The statistically correct handling of compositional data requires log-ratio transformation whereas
the multivariate technique of linear discriminant analysis (LDA) assumes a normal distribution of the
transformed variables. In addition to other requirements, both these aspects were considered for proposing
five new discriminant function diagrams based on log-ratios of five high-field strength elements � (TiO2)adj,
Nb, V, Y, and Zr. A representative world database of 1877 analyses of basic and ultrabasic magmas from
four tectonic settings of island arc, continental rift, ocean-island, and mid-ocean ridge, was used. After
identifying discordant outliers in log-transformed ratios using single outlier tests, 1793 analyses proved
to be normally distributed in terms of the following four variables: ln(Nb/(TiO2)adj), ln(V/(TiO2)adj),
ln(Y/(TiO2)adj), and ln(Zr/(TiO2)adj). Use of LDA of the complete dataset of 1877 analyses divided into
1477 analyses for training set and 400 for testing set provided high success rates of 78.5�92.2% and
81.7�93.0% for the discrimination of the four tectonic settings based on the training and testing sets,
respectively. However, using LDA of the normally distributed 1793 analyses divided into 1393 for training
set and 400 for testing set, we obtained new diagrams that showed still higher success rates of 80.2�93.5%
and 84.0�94.0%, respectively. The advantage of fulfilling the requirement of normal distributions of
log-ratio variables resides in the observation that an overall net gain in success rates of 0.5�3.3%
was achieved when the LDA was correctly applied to discordant-outlier-free log-transformed ratios
(1793 analyses) than to the complete data set (1877 analyses). The application of these discrimination
diagrams to ophiolites from Taitao Peninsula (southern Chile), Gabal Gerf complex (northeastern
Africa), Jormua (northeastern Finland) and Macquarie Island (southwest Pacific) indicated tectonic
setting of mid-ocean ridge, transitional between island arc and mid-ocean ridge, mid-ocean ridge and
continental rift, respectively. Although only a few rock samples from a study of south-central Sweden
could be identified as mafic, the present diagrams indicated an arc setting for this area. The application
to three case studies from Turkey, being a country with highly complex geological history, suggested
continental rift setting for Kula Quaternary basic volcanic rocks, inconclusive evidence for Jurassic
volcanic rocks from eastern Pontides, arc setting for Tauride belt ophiolite, and continental rift setting for
East Anatolian and Dead Sea fault zones, the latter application being based on probability calculations
for each sample without any need to plot the samples in the discrimination diagrams. The use of normal
discordant outlier-free samples of log-transformed ratios from each area in our new discrimination
diagrams reinforced these conclusions for all areas, providing somewhat better discrimination in those
cases in which such discordant observations were observed. We suggest that the new diagrams be used
for tectonic discrimination of basic and ultrabasic rock samples that are confirmed to have discordant
outlier-free normally distributed log-transformed variables. Basic and ultrabasic character of the rock samples could be determined from computer program SINCLAS and the discordant outliers of logtransformed
variables identified from DODESSYS, whereas the use of new diagrams proposed during
2004-2011 would be facilitated from program TecD.El manejo estadísticamente correcto de datos composicionales requiere transformaciones
logarítmicas de relaciones de composiciones, mientras que la técnica multivariable de análisis
discriminante lineal (LDA) supone una distribución normal de las variables transformadas. Adicionalmente
a otros requerimientos, ambos aspectos fueron tomados en cuenta para proponer cinco nuevos diagramas
de funciones discriminantes basados en relaciones-log de cinco elementos de alta fuerza de campo
� (TiO2)adj, Nb, V, Y y Zr. Una base mundial representativa de datos de 1877 análisis de magmas básicos
y ultrabásicos de cuatro ambientes tectónicos de arco de isla, rift continental, isla oceánica y cresta midoceánica,
fue empleada. Después de identificar valores discordantes en las relaciones log-transformadas
mediante pruebas de discordancia de tipo sencillo, 1793 análisis demostraron ser distribuidos en forma
normal en términos de las cuatro variables siguientes: ln(Nb/(TiO2)adj), ln(V/(TiO2)adj), ln(Y/(TiO2)adj) y
ln(Zr/(TiO2)adj). El uso de LDA con el conjunto de datos completos de 1877 análisis divididos entre 1477
análisis para el entrenamiento y 400 para la prueba proporcionó altos valores de éxito de 78.5�92.2%
y 81.7�93.0% para la discriminación de los cuatro ambientes tectónicos basados en los conjuntos de
entrenamiento y prueba, respectivamente. Sin embargo, usando LDA de los 1793 análisis distribuidos
normalmente divididos entre 1393 análisis para el entrenamiento y 400 para el de prueba, obtuvimos
diagramas nuevos que demostraron aún más altos valores de éxito de 80.2�93.5% y 84.0�94.0%,
respectivamente. La ventaja de cumplir con el requerimiento de distribuciones normales de las variables
log-transformadas reside en la observación de que se obtuvo una ganancia neta de 0.5�3.3% en los
valores de éxito cuando el LDA fue aplicado correctamente a relaciones log-transformadas libres de
valores discordantes (1793 análisis) en comparación con el conjunto completo de datos (1877 análisis).
La aplicación de estos diagramas discriminantes a ofiolitas de la Península de Taitao (sur de Chile),
complejo Gabal Gerf (noreste de África), Jormua (noreste de Finlandia) e Isla Macquarie (suroeste
del Pacífico), indicó el ambiente tectónico de cresta mid-oceánica, transicional entre el arco de isla y
cresta mid-oceánica, cresta mid-oceánica y rift continental, respectivamente. Aunque solamente pocas
muestras de rocas de un estudio sobre Suecia sur-central pudieron ser identificadas como máficas, los
diagramas propuestos indicaron un ambiente de arco para esta área. La aplicación a tres estudios de
Turquía, siendo un país con un historial geológico sumamente complejo, sugirieron el ambiente de rift
continental para las rocas volcánicas cuaternarias de Kula, evidencia inconclusa para rocas volcánicas
jurásicas de Pontides oriental, ambiente de arco para ofiolitas de cinturón de Tauride y rift continental
para zonas de este de Anatolia y las fallas del Mar Muerto, la última aplicación se basó en los cálculos
de las probabilidades para cada muestra sin la necesidad de graficar los resultados en los diagramas de
discriminación. El uso de las muestras de relaciones log-transformadas libres de valores discordantes
de cada área en nuestros nuevos diagramas discriminantes confirman estas conclusiones para todas
las áreas, proporcionando una discriminación mejor en todos aquellos casos en donde se observaron
estos valores discordantes. Sugerimos que los diagramas nuevos sean usados para la discriminación
tectónica de muestras de rocas básicas y ultrabásicas con una distribución normal de las variables
log-transformadas, libres de valores discordantes. La naturaleza básica y ultrabásica de las muestras a
utilizar deberá ser determinada con el programa computacional SINCLAS y los valores discordantes de
las variables log-transformadas identificadas con el programa DODESSYS, mientras que el uso de los
nuevos diagramas propuestos entre 2004 y 2011 podría ser facilitado por el programa TecD