Has the Restructuring of Chinese Central Stated-Owned Enterprises Achieved the Goal of International Expansion?

Using the difference-in-differences method, we examine the internationalization effects of the restructuring of Chinese Central State-owned Enterprises (CCSOEs) during the years 2003 and 2016. We find that restructured CCSOEs have not achieved a higher degree of internationalization. Indeed, the higher the degree of internationalization after the CCSOE restructuring, the worse the firm’s performance. Overall, the results suggest that the Chinese government’s attempt to promote CCSOE internationalization through restructuring has not achieved its goal. Rather than governmental support and intervention, accelerating market-oriented reforms, weakening or eliminating administrative monopolies in the domestic market, and reducing the monopoly profits of CCSOEs in the domestic market could be more effective approaches to promote CCSOE internationalization

Exploring Variations of Corporate Social Responsibility Across Business Sectors and Geographic Scope

The paper aims to explore variations of CSR performance/ratings across business sectors and geographic scope. Specifically, the paper examines the strategic importance and implications of CSR for three business sectors: manufacturers, merchandisers and service providers and for firms with different geographic scope. Using a sample of 2,460 firm-year observations, the ANOVA shows significant differences on CSR performance/ratings among firms operating in different business sectors and among those having different geographic scope. There is a significant interaction between business sectors and geographic scope on CSR concerns; however, such significant interaction does not exist on CSR strengths

Parallel navigation for 3-D autonomous vehicles

summary:In this paper, parallel navigation is proposed to track the target in three-dimensional space. Firstly, the polar kinematics models for the vehicle and the target are established. Secondly, parallel navigation is derived by using polar kinematics models. Thirdly, cell decomposition method is applied to implement obstacle avoidance. Fourthly, a brief study is given on the influence of uncertainties. Finally, simulations are conducted by MATLAB. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the parallel navigation

Typist Experiment: an Investigation of Human-to-Human Dictation via Role-play to Inform Voice-based Text Authoring

Voice dictation is increasingly used for text entry, especially in mobile scenarios. However, the speech-based experience gets disrupted when users must go back to a screen and keyboard to review and edit the text. While existing dictation systems focus on improving transcription and error correction, little is known about how to support speech input for the entire text creation process, including composition, reviewing and editing. We conducted an experiment in which ten pairs of participants took on the roles of authors and typists to work on a text authoring task. By analysing the natural language patterns of both authors and typists, we identified new challenges and opportunities for the design of future dictation interfaces, including the ambiguity of human dictation, the differences between audio-only and with screen, and various passive and active assistance that can potentially be provided by future systems

Pre-Peak Deformation and Damage Features of Sandstone under Cyclic Loading

In this paper, several sandstone specimens are prepared and subjected to uniaxial compression and cyclic loading. For each specimen, the loading segment of the stress-strain curve was fitted, and the peak slope of this segment was taken as the elastic modulus of the specimen in that cycle. It is learned that, under cyclic loading, the elastic modulus of each specimen increased with the growing number of load cycles, and tended to be stable; meanwhile, strain hardening was observed on all specimens. Moreover, the specimens are similar in corresponding stress, although varied in corresponding strain. In the same cycle, the tangent modulus of the loading phase was smaller than that of the unloading phase under the same stress. Finally, the damage variables of sandstone specimens under cyclic loading were defined from the angle of energy, revealing that the damage variables had logarithmic growth with the load cycles in the later stage

Water use for shale gas extraction in the Sichuan Basin, China

This study investigates the use of water for extracting shale gas in the Sichuan Basin of China. Both net water use and water intensity (i.e., water use per unit of gas produced) of shale wells are estimated by applying a process-based life cycle inventory (LCI) model. The results show that the net water use and water intensity are around 24500 m3/well and 1.9 m3 water/104m3 gas respectively, and that the fracturing and completion stage of shale gas extraction accounts for the largest share in net water use. A comparison shows that China's water use for shale gas extraction is generally higher than that of other countries. By considering the predicted annual drilling activities in the Sichuan Basin, we find that the annual water demand for shale gas development is likely to be negligible compared to total regional water supply. However, considering the water demand for shale gas extraction and the water demand from other sectors may make water availability a significant concern for China's shale gas development in the future

Attenuation of the influenza virus by microRNA response element in vivo and protective efficacy against 2009 pandemic H1N1 virus in mice

SummaryBackgroundThe 2009 influenza pandemics underscored the need for effective vaccines to block the spread of influenza virus infection. Most live attenuated vaccines utilize cold-adapted, temperature-sensitive virus. An alternative to live attenuated virus is presented here, based on microRNA-induced gene silencing.MethodsIn this study, miR-let-7b target sequences were inserted into the H1N1 genome to engineer a recombinant virus – miRT-H1N1. Female BALB/c mice were vaccinated intranasally with the miRT-H1N1 and challenged with a lethal dose of homologous virus.ResultsThis miRT-H1N1 virus was attenuated in mice, while it exhibited wild-type characteristics in chicken embryos. Mice vaccinated intranasally with the miRT-H1N1 responded with robust immunity that protected the vaccinated mice from a lethal challenge with the wild-type 2009 pandemic H1N1 virus.ConclusionsThese results indicate that the influenza virus containing microRNA response elements (MREs) is attenuated in vivo and can be used to design a live attenuated vaccine

Hysteresis Characteristics of Brittle Rock Deformation under Constant Load Cyclic Loading and Unloading

This paper mainly explores the deformation characteristics of limestone specimens under constant load cyclic loading. For limestone specimens under uniaxial compression, the stress-strain curve can be divided into three stages: compaction stage, elastic stage and sudden failure stage. Under cyclic loading, the hysteresis loop on the stress-strain curve is long and thin, taking the shape of "toothpicks". The axial strain and radial strain both change with the stress amplitude and cycle number, but in different variation patterns. There is a stress amplitude "threshold" for radial deformation, indicating that the radial deformation is more sensitive to stress amplitude than the axial deformation. It is calculated that the incremental deformation between peaks includes both plastic deformation and the deformation recoverable after unloading, and the recoverable deformation is positively correlated with the load amplitude of the cyclic loading