New SAFE “Round Trip Investment” Circular Lightens the Regulatory Burden on Venture Capital Investments in China

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), China’s foreign exchange regulatory authority, recently clarified the PRC’s overall attitude with respect to offshore VC investments by setting out clearer registration procedures and expressly permitting VC transactions involving offshore SPV structures, subject to compliance with foreign exchange registration requirements. This clarification was set forth in the Circular on Issues Relating to Financing through Offshore Special Purpose Vehicles by Domestic Residents and Round Trip Investment (Circular No. 75), promulgated on October 21, 2005, with effect from November 1, 2005. Circular No. 75 supersedes two SAFE circulars promulgated earlier this year, Circular No. 11 (January 24, 2005) and Circular No. 29 (April 8, 2005), which were widely regarded as a major roadblock to most VC transactions involving PRC domestic assets and residents. Circular No. 75 retains the core element of the two earlier circulars, i.e., SAFE’s authority to review the establishment or acquisition of offshore entities by PRC domestic residents or entities for the purpose of foreign exchange control and indirectly to prevent tax evasion and for other purposes. It nevertheless clarifies some key vague or ambiguous provisions and alleviates concerns aroused by the earlier circulars

Late 19th- and Early 20th-Century Manufacture of Drawn Glass Tubing for Glass Beads

Late 19th- and early 20th-century archaeological sites often contain machine-made drawn glass beads with unique shapes and perforations. Little information exists documenting when these beads were initially manufactured. Through an examination of hundreds of U.S. patents, it appears that the mechanized production of drawn beads could have occurred as early as the late 19th-century, but more likely, they were not mass produced until the end of World War I, after the invention of the Danner process for mechanically drawing glass tubing. Machine-made drawn beads with multiple sides and/or shaped perforations also appear to have been produced by the late-19th century, but again, mass production probably did not occur until around the end of World War I

The Archaeology of Canadian Potteries: An Evaluation of Production Technology

Archaeological investigations of Canadian potteries have been initiated at no fewer than twenty sites. From these investigations a body of historical and technical knowledge has been developed for specific potteries and regions. One objective of this research has been the documentation of production techniques. At present, knowledge of techniques derived from archaeological research is unstructured, resulting in the identification of isolated production steps, rather than the inference of relatively complete production sequences. U sing a generalized account of a typical nineteenth-century Ontario procurement and manufacturing sequence for the production of common wares, prepared by David Newlands, a hypothetical ceramic production structure has been developed. On this heuristic model are based generalizations for an entire in-dustry, and future research should attempt to refine the basic model as well as postulate characteristic structures for individual potteries and other regions. Examinations of research conducted at ceramic kiln sites in England and the United States suggest various methods and problem orientations which could be adapted for such investigations of Canadian sites: 1) Geographic and temporal studies to address regional technology and adaptive change. 2) Material studies into kiln construction. 3) Chemical and physical studies of fabrics, glazes, decorations, and wares to deduce manufacturing techniques. 4) Material studies on manufacturing errors, accidents, and repairs. 5) Historical and material studies into tool and machinery usage. 6) Replicative experimentation to evaluate previous manufacturing inferences of pottery manufacturing. Résumé Des recherches archéologiques sur la poterie canadienne ont été entreprises sur au moins vingt sites. Ces fouilles ont permis d'accumuler des connaissances d'ordre historique et technique sur des poteries et sur des régions particulières. L'un des objectifs de ces recherches était de se renseigner sur les techniques de production de la céramique. A l'heure actuelle, les connaissances acquises par les recherches archéologiques au sujet des anciennes techniques ne sont toujours pas structurées; c'est pourquoi nous n'avons pu établir que des étapes de production isolées, insuffisantes pour permettre de reconstituer le véritable processus de fabrication. Un système hypothétique de production a pu être élaboré à l'aide d'une description générale, faite par David Newlands, d'une chaîne de fabrication typique du XIXe siècle en Ontario. Pour l'instant, ce modèle heuristique est appliqué à l'ensemble de l'industrie de la céramique. Les chercheurs auraient maintenant avantage à préciser le modèle de base et à émettre des hypothèses sur les modes d'organisation caractéristiques à chaque poterie et aux autres régions. L'examen des recherches menées sur les fours à céramique en Angleterre et aux Etats-Unis suggère diverses méthodes et orientations qui pourraient être adaptées en vue d'études analogues sur les sites canadiens: 1) Etudes géographiques et temporelles pour analyser les techniques régionales et les changements de fabrication. 2) Etudes des artefacts afin d'examiner la construction des fours. 3) Études chimiques et physiques des matériaux, des vernis, décors et articles afin de déterminer les techniques de fabrication. 4) Études des vices de fabrication, des accidents et des réparations à l'aide des artefacts. 5) Recherches historiques et recherches sur les artefacts afin de connaître les machines et les instruments utilisés. 6) Fabrication de répliques selon les techniques présumées de l'époque afin de corroborer les hypothèses

Bohemian Glass Beadmaking: Translation and Discussion of a 1913 German Technical Article

This report provides an English translation of a German technical article on late 19th-century and early 20th-century Bohemian glass-bead manufacturing, published in 1913 in the journal Sprechsaal. The article emphasizes the description of techiques for the manufacture of mould-pressed beads, secondarily describing methods for wound, blown and drawn-bead manufacturing

Trade Beads From Hudson\u27s Bay Company Fort Vancouver (1829-1860), Vancouver, Washington

Archaeological excavations conducted at Hudson\u27s Bay Company Fort Vancouver recovered 100,000+ trade beads of 152 varieties, including 80 varieties of drawn, 57 varieties of wound, 10 varieties of mold-pressed and 3 varieties of blown glass beads, as well as one variety each of Prosser-molded ceramic and cut-stone beads. An additional 6000+ beads recovered from excavations at the HBC Kanaka village and riverside complex sites may include 39 additional varieties possibly associated with the HBC occupation: 17 varieties of drawn, 12 varieties of wound, and 5 varieties of mold-pressed glass beads, as well as one variety each of stone, bone, wood, metal, and shell beads. The bead assemblage has contributed to the initial definition of a complex temporal and cultural horizon marker dating from 1829 to 1860 for the Pacific Northwest, and provides insights into mid-19th-century Native-American and EuroAmerican bead preferences. Analysis of the assemblage demonstrates difficulties inherent in the existing archaeological bead classification system, and suggestions for revisions are discussed

Bohemian Faceted-Spheroidal Mold-Pressed Glass Bead Attributes: Hypothesized \u3cem\u3eTerminus Post Quem\u3c/em\u3e Dates for the 19th Century

Faceted-spheroidal mold-pressed beads have been manufactured in Bohemia since the 18th century. Evolution of manufacturing technology has resulted in the creation of bead attributes that can readily be observed on beads from archaeological contexts. Many North American archaeological sites contain examples of this bead type; but few reports have identified the attributes, much less recognized these beads as mold-pressed. Enough evidence now exists to suggest that some of these attributes have temporal significance for dating archaeological bead assemblages. Terminus post quem dates for faceted-spheroidal mold-pressed bead attributes are hypothesized, and a strategy for future research is suggested so that a more precise temporal sequence can be constructed

Trading and Distribution in China

Trading and distribution rights were major issues in the negotiation of China’s entry to the World Trade Organisation, a process which took 14 years before concluding in late 2001. Trading rights, i.e. the right to import and export goods, had historically been mainly restricted to a small number of largely sector-specific state-owned monopoly trading enterprises. Trading rights were modestly liberalised in the years preceding China’s entry, but generally remained tightly restricted

The transporter-like protein inebriated mediates hyperosmotic stimuli through intracellular signaling

We cloned the inebriated homologue MasIne from Manduca sexta and expressed it in Xenopus laevis oocytes. MasIne is homologous to neurotransmitter transporters but no transport was observed with a number of putative substrates. Oocytes expressing MasIne respond to hyperosmotic stimulation by releasing intracellular Ca(2+), as revealed by activation of the endogenous Ca(2+)-activated Cl(-) current. This Ca(2+) release requires the N-terminal 108 amino acid residues of MasIne and occurs via the inositol trisphosphate pathway. Fusion of the N terminus to the rat gamma-aminobutyric acid transporter (rGAT1) also renders rGAT1 responsive to hyperosmotic stimulation. Immunohistochemical analyses show that MasIne and Drosophila Ine have similar tissue distribution patterns, suggesting functional identity. Inebriated is expressed in tissues and cells actively involved in K(+) transport, which suggests that it may have a role in ion transport, particularly of K(+). We propose that stimulation of MasIne releases intracellular Ca(2+) in native tissues, activating Ca(2+)-dependent K(+) channels, and leading to K(+) transport

China

The mere notion of bankruptcy, liquidation or reorganisation of industrial enterprises was long considered anathema in the People\u27s Republic of China (PRC or China), and directly contrary to the underlying logic of a centrally planned, state-owned economy and industrial system. The state\u27s reluctance to allow bankruptcies was rooted in the ideology of the governing Communist Party but also reflects fiscal constraints with respect to payments to unemployed workers and the recapitalisation of state-owned commercial banks forced to write off loans as bad debts. However, such notions have gained wider acceptance concurrent with: China\u27s ongoing transformation to a socialist market economy; reform of the \u27state-owned enterprise\u27 (SOE) system; corporatisation and the gradual removal of the state from control and ownership of enterprises; and the requirement that industrial enterprises survive as independent economic entities without government allocations of capital