Money, Price Level and Output in the Chinese Macro Economy

After giving a brief monetary history of the Chinese macro-economy, this paper presents an error correction model to explain the inflation rate from 1954 to 2002 by its past change, the change in log (M2/real output) and the deviation in the previous period of log price level from a regression on log(M2/real output). The model passes the Chow test for parameter stability using 1979 as the breakpoint as economic reform started in 1979. A VAR for changes in log price, log M2 and log real output is constructed with the lagged levels of the three variables and their lagged changes as explanatory variables. The coefficient matrix of the lagged levels is found to have rank one, written as ab’ where b’ is the transpose of the cointegrating vector, estimated previously by regressing log price on log(M2/real output) for the single error-correction equation for inflation. The impulse responses of log price and log output to innovations in log M2 are consistent with Milton Friedman’s propositions on the effects of money as summarized by Bernanke (2003). Using the same VAR model and M1 instead of M2, we have found the above impulse responses to be similar for the United States and China.

Demand for Education in China

After discussing the sources of funding of education in China this paper offers an explanation of the quantitative changes in education spending by the framework of demand analysis, including the changes in the ratio of educational funding to GDP in the period 1991-2002. Income effect is estimated mainly by using cross-provincial data, while time series data are used to estimate the price effect. Changes in government and non-government spending through time can be satisfactorily explained by the factors of demand. Demand for education services in the three levels of primary school, secondary school and higher education and aggregate demand for education services are investigated. Implications of our finding on inequality of education opportunities are briefly stated.

Averaging approximation to singularly perturbed nonlinear stochastic wave equations

An averaging method is applied to derive effective approximation to the following singularly perturbed nonlinear stochastic damped wave equation \nu u_{tt}+u_t=\D u+f(u)+\nu^\alpha\dot{W} on an open bounded domain $D\subset\R^n$\,, $1\leq n\leq 3$\,. Here $\nu>0$ is a small parameter characterising the singular perturbation, and $\nu^\alpha$\,, $0\leq \alpha\leq 1/2$\,, parametrises the strength of the noise. Some scaling transformations and the martingale representation theorem yield the following effective approximation for small $\nu$, u_t=\D u+f(u)+\nu^\alpha\dot{W} to an error of \ord{\nu^\alpha}\,.Comment: 16 pages. Submitte

Shanghai-Hong Kong stock connect: an analysis of Chinese partial stock market liberalization impact on the local and foreign markets

Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect is a partial liberalization providing domestic and foreign investors mutual access to stock markets. This study analyzes post-liberalization short- and medium-term impacts on both local and foreign markets. Our results suggest that contrasting to the expectation of homogeneous mutual benefits, the implementation of the Connect have asymmetric impacts on mainland and Hong Kong stock markets. They are driven by the unbalanced developments of both markets. In the medium-term, we find increasing market liquidity and size but also increasing risk persistence and exposure to systematic risk, though the magnitude of changes vary between two markets

Higher-order Petri net models based on artificial neural networks

AbstractIn this paper, the properties of higher-order neural networks are exploited in a new class of Petri nets, called higher-order Petri nets (HOPN). Using the similarities between neural networks and Petri nets this paper demonstrates how the McCullock-Pitts models and the higher-order neural networks can be represented by Petri nets. A 5-tuple HOPN is defined, a theorem on the relationship between the potential firability of the goal transition and the T-invariant (HOPN) is proved and discussed. The proposed HOPN can be applied to the polynomial clause subset of first-order predicate logic. A five-clause polynomial logic program example is also included to illustrate the theoretical results

Fertilization Value of Biosolids on Nutrient Accumulation and Environmental Risks to Agricultural Plants

Amendment with treated biosolids can increase soil fertility and plant nutrition to the soil, but the fertilization value compared with other commercial soil amendments on the soil ecosystem is poorly understood. The effects of different proportions (0%, 5%, 10%, and 15%) of thermal and pH-treated biosolid applications on the growth performance, nutrient contents, and toxicity performance of carrots (Daucus carota L.) and choy sum (Brassica chinensis var. parachinensis) were studied. Different commercial organic soil amendments, such as biochar, chicken manure (CM), and food waste compost (FWC), were also used as a comparison in the experiment to determine the feasibility of biosolid application on agricultural use.All four soil amendments resulted in similar growth trends for the carrots and choy sum, and this information can be applied in selecting the appropriate species of plants. Through thermal and pH treatments, the treated biosolids decreased environmental risks and resulted in higher amounts of N and P in comparison to the other soil amendments. The results showed that 10%biosolidamended soil performed best in terms of plant growth, biomass, and nutrient content for both carrots and choy sum. Nutrient analysis (N, P, and K) and heavy metal analysis (As, Cd, and Pb) on both soil and plants were conducted. It was proven that biosolid application was as functional as CM application and could be used as organic fertilizer to replace biochar and FWC for agricultural use. No heavy metals were found in the pure biosolids, which were safe to use as fertilizers. Utilizing biosolids as fertilizers could be an effective way to address the problem of waste disposal and landfill loading for the environment

從《山公啟事》「題目」看山濤品評人物的特點

山濤任職吏部十多年間，為晉武帝選賢無數，《山公啟事》為其就官位空缺而撰寫的適合任官人選的啟文。 本文以歷史文獻為依據，以文本互證方法嘗試分析山濤品評人物的分類和其準則。由於搜集資料時發現前人多以《世說新語》、《人物志》為六朝人物品評的研究材料，而清人葉德輝輯刻整理的《山公啟事》則鮮有學者集中研究，又因山濤舉薦人才每每親自品題，可據以研究晉代政治人物品評的材料，故論文會以此為切入點主要集中考釋山濤在《山公啟事》裡面的品藻「題目」，然後分析他品評人物時的特點，以及比較山公與《世說新語》在人物品藻上的異同之處

Induction of Maternal Immune Activation in Mice at Mid-gestation Stage with Viral Mimic Poly(I:C)

Maternal immune activation (MIA) model is increasingly well appreciated as a rodent model for the environmental risk factor of various psychiatric disorders. Numerous studies have demonstrated that MIA model is able to show face, construct, and predictive validity that are relevant to autism and schizophrenia. To model MIA, investigators often use viral mimic polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C)) to activate the immune system in pregnant rodents. Generally, the offspring from immune activated dam exhibit behavioral abnormalities and physiological alterations that are associated with autism and schizophrenia. However, poly(I:C) injection with different dosages and at different time points could lead to different outcomes by perturbing brain development at different stages. Here we provide a detailed method of inducing MIA by intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of 20 mg/kg poly(I:C) at mid-gestational embryonic 12.5 days (E12.5). This method has been shown to induce acute inflammatory response in the maternal-placental-fetal axis, which ultimately results in the brain perturbations and behavioral phenotypes that are associated with autism and schizophrenia