The development of modern accounting and the changing position of shareholders 1864 - 2000

This dissertation consists of a set of four sole-authored, reviewed and published papers which develop the theme that company accounting policies, particularly those relating to asset valuation, depreciation and dividend policy, developed in response to a change in the general perception of the nature of the property rights of the original owners. The original owners of commercial and industrial concerns in the early nineteenth century were the partners. After incorporation they and others became the shareholders of the company. The origin of commercial and industrial companies as partnerships influenced the British government and legal thinking for nearly a century from 1856 to 1945, the date of the Cohen Committee. It was the age of laissez-faire and has been much discussed: Parliament was less keen to intervene in connection with the generality of companies, where the view expressed in 1856 by Robert Lowe, then President of the Board of Trade, that `having given [companies] a pattern the State leaves then to manage their own affairs ... (quoted in Hein, 1978, p. 149) provided a rationalization of the widespread belief that it was no business of the state to interfere in what were seen as private contracts between shareholders (Sugarman and-Rubin, 1984, p. 12). Moreover, a laissez-faire approach on the part of the courts, where `formalist' views were at their height (Atiyah, 1979, pp. 388-97), seems also to have affected the attitude to accounts on the part of the courts. This may be observed in the series of `dividend' cases in the nineteenth century (French, 1977) where judges on the whole were loath to go beyond the companies' Articles of Association and the latter of the Companies' Acts (unless they could adduce fraudulent or improper behaviour on the part of directors) in assessing matters of valuation, income measurement and profit determination. (Napier and Noke, 1992, p. 38, emphasis added). These issues `matters of valuation, income measurement and profit determination' form the basis for much of this dissertation. There is one further paper extending the work of Jefferys (1938) and Cottrell (1980) on the format of share issues from 1914 (Pitts 2000)

Constrained Dynamics of Universally Coupled Massive Spin 2-spin 0 Gravities

The 2-parameter family of massive variants of Einstein's gravity (on a Minkowski background) found by Ogievetsky and Polubarinov by excluding lower spins can also be derived using universal coupling. A Dirac-Bergmann constrained dynamics analysis seems not to have been presented for these theories, the Freund-Maheshwari-Schonberg special case, or any other massive gravity beyond the linear level treated by Marzban, Whiting and van Dam. Here the Dirac-Bergmann apparatus is applied to these theories. A few remarks are made on the question of positive energy. Being bimetric, massive gravities have a causality puzzle, but it appears soluble by the introduction and judicious use of gauge freedom.Comment: 6 pages; Talk given at QG05, Cala Gonone (Italy), September 200

Universally Coupled Massive Gravity

We derive Einstein's equations from a linear theory in flat space-time using free-field gauge invariance and universal coupling. The gravitational potential can be either covariant or contravariant and of almost any density weight. We adapt these results to yield universally coupled massive variants of Einstein's equations, yielding two one-parameter families of distinct theories with spin 2 and spin 0. The Freund-Maheshwari-Schonberg theory is therefore not the unique universally coupled massive generalization of Einstein's theory, although it is privileged in some respects. The theories we derive are a subset of those found by Ogievetsky and Polubarinov by other means. The question of positive energy, which continues to be discussed, might be addressed numerically in spherical symmetry. We briefly comment on the issue of causality with two observable metrics and the need for gauge freedom and address some criticisms by Padmanabhan of field derivations of Einstein-like equations along the way.Comment: Introduction notes resemblance between Einstein's discovery process and later field/spin 2 project; matches journal versio

A Laboratory Evaluation of Leachate from the Jim Bridger Power Plant Scrubber Wastes

Introduction: Scrubber wastes obtained in an affort to limit air pollution generated by coal-fired pwoer plants may contribute to another possible sources of pollution. To date, scrubber wastse have been in a liquid phase which causes disposal problems partially due to the liquid characteristics. The use of solid scrubber wastes and the land deposition of such wastes is proposed. The feasibility of solid scrubber wastes disposal in landfills is under question. The primary area of concern is the effect that water percolation through such wastes would have on groundwater quality parameters. Contamination could result either as precipitation travels downward through the wastes and into the water table or as the water table rises into the scrubber wastes and then retreats. Groundwater contamination is a key concern because it is largely irreversible and has long term consequences. Objective: Disposal methods for coal-fired power plant fly ask and scrubber wastes present a potential for the contamination of groundwater aquifers. In this study the general objective was to evaluate the physical and chemical characteristics of the leachates of scrubber weastes and associated disposal materials separately and in appropriate combinations using laboratory bench scale techniques. Two appraoches, namely column leaching and batch elutriation, were developed and used to provide indicators characterisitic of the materials tested

The Field Theory of Gravitation and The Rest Mass of Particles

It is shown in this work that all free physical fields should have a nonzero rest mass according to the field theory of gravitation.Comment: 4 page

Ecology and economics of using native managed bees for almond pollination

Native managed bees can improve crop pollination, but a general framework for evaluating the associated economic costs and benefits has not been developed. We conducted a cost–benefit analysis to assess how managing blue orchard bees (Osmia lignaria Say [Hymenoptera: Megachildae]) alongside honey bees (Apis mellifera Linnaeus [Hymenoptera: Apidae]) can affect profits for almond growers in California. Specifically, we studied how adjusting three strategies can influence profits: (1) number of released O. lignaria bees, (2) density of artificial nest boxes, and (3) number of nest cavities (tubes) per box. We developed an ecological model for the effects of pollinator activity on almond yields, validated the model with published data, and then estimated changes in profits for different management strategies. Our model shows that almond yields increase with O. lignaria foraging density, even where honey bees are already in use. Our cost–benefit analysis shows that profit ranged from −US$1,800 to US$2,800/ acre given different combinations of the three strategies. Adding nest boxes had the greatest effect; we predict an increase in profit between low and high nest box density strategies (2.5 and 10 boxes/acre). In fact, the number of released bees and the availability of nest tubes had relatively small effects in the high nest box density strategies. This suggests that growers could improve profits by simply adding more nest boxes with moderate number of tubes in each. Our approach can support grower decisions regarding integrated crop pollination and highlight the importance of a comprehensive ecological economic framework for assessing these decisions

Specificity of the Minimal Clinically Important Difference of the Quick Disabilities of the Arm Shoulder and Hand (QDASH) for Distal Upper Extremity Conditions

Retrospective cohort design. The minimal clinically important difference (MCID) for the quick Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (QDASH) has been established using a pool of multiple conditions, and only exclusively for the shoulder. Understanding diagnoses-specific threshold change values can enhance the clinical decision-making process. Before and after QDASH scores for 406 participants with conditions of surgical distal radius fracture, non-surgical lateral epicondylitis, and surgical carpal tunnel release were obtained. The external anchor administered at each fourth visit was a 15-point global rating of change scale. The test-retest reliability of the QDASH was moderate for all diagnoses: intraclass correlation coefficient model 2, 1, for surgical distal radius = 0.71; non-surgical lateral epicondylitis = 0.69; and surgical carpal tunnel = 0.69. The minimum detectable change at the 90% confidence level was 25.28; 22.49; and 27.63 points respectively; and the MCID values were 25.8; 15.8 and 18.7, respectively. For these three distal upper extremity conditions, a QDASH MCID of 16-26 points could represent the estimate of change in score that is important to the patient and guide clinicians through the decision-making process