Distinct Scaling Regimes of Energy Release Dynamics in the Nighttime Magnetosphere

Based on a spatiotemporal analysis of POLAR UVI images, we show that the auroral emission events that initiate equatorward of the isotropic boundary (IB) obtained from a time-dependent empirical model, have systematically steeper power-law slopes of energy, power, area and lifetime probability distributions compared to the events that initiate poleward of the IB. The low-latitude group of events contains a distinct subpopulation of substorm-scale disturbances violating the power-law behavior, while the high latitude group is described by nearly perfect power-law statistics over the entire range of scales studied. The results obtained indicate that the inner and outer portions of the plasma sheet are characterized by substantially different scaling regimes of bursty energy dissipation suggestive of different physics in these regions.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures, 2 table

Empirical modeling of the quiet time nightside magnetosphere

Empirical modeling of plasma pressure and magnetic field for the quiet time nightside magnetosphere is investigated. Two models are constructed for this study. One model, referred to here as T89R, is basically the magnetic field model of Tsyganenko (1989) but is modified by the addition of an inner eastward ring current at a radial distance of ∼3 RE as suggested by observation. The other is a combination of the T89R model and the long version of the magnetic field model of Tsyganenko (1987) such that the former dominates the magnetic field in the inner magnetosphere, whereas the latter prevails in the distant tail. The distribution of plasma pressure, which is required to balance the magnetic force for each of these two field models, is computed along the tail axis in the midnight meridian. The occurrence of pressure anisotropy in the inner magnetospheric region is also taken into account by determining an empirical fit to the observed plasma pressure anisotropy. This effort is the first attempt to obtain the plasma pressure distribution in force equilibrium with magnetic stresses from an empirical field model with the inclusion of pressure anisotropy. The inclusion of pressure anisotropy alters the plasma pressure by as much as a factor of ∼3 in the inner magnetosphere. The deduced plasma pressure profile along the tail axis is found to be in good agreement with the observed quiet time plasma pressure for geocentric distances between ∼2 and ∼35 RE

Single or twin? the UK financial regulatory landscape after the financial crisis of 2007-2009

The author aims to analyse the weaknesses of the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Bank of England during the financial crisis of 2007-2009. She aims to discover whether the coalition government's proposal to a twin-peaks model is a better alternative to the single regulator. The focus of this article is on micro-prudential regulatory failures in the United Kingdom. A comparison will be made with the twin-peaks regulatory model in Australia where there were no bank failures. The article is based on an analysis of recent papers and reports. Descriptive statistics are used to provide an insight into the financial ratios of the top banks in the United Kingdom and Australia. A comparative legal analysis between the United Kingdom and Australia is used to reflect the common law system used by both. The structure of the UK regulator was only a minor contributory factor to the financial crisis. The main regulatory and supervisory failures are due to organisational and management problems. There needs to be better information flow, coordination, cooperation, engagement with banks and stricter internal controls. The new UK regulator also needs to be prepared for the changes on the European dimension, following the de Larosiere report. This article will have policy implications for practitioners and policymakers on national, European and international dimensions. Changes in the European regulatory structure will see an emphasis on vertical regulatory cooperation. By first reviewing the weaknesses of the FSA in the light of Northern Rockand HBOS and then comparing the FSA with the Australian regulatory model, this article provides a new insight into financial regulation

Multiple principal-agent problems in securitisation

Every crisis presents opportunities. The financial crisis of 2007-2009 provides a valuable opportunity to study the corporate governance and regulatory aspects of the banking sector, a hinge point in the development of corporate governance in banks. There is a tremendous amount of academic literature on corporate governance of corporations generally, but not of banks. Banks share many characteristics in common with other corporations but differ in respect of the social costs involved. Banks play a fundamental role in a country’s economy and problems within the banking sector will have an impact on the wider community. The author argues that corporate governance played an important contributing factor to the financial crisis. In particular, the financial crisis has highlighted multiple principal-agent problems within the ‘originate-to-distribute’ model of banking. Multiple principal-agent problems are the direct consequence of financial innovation and regulatory dialectic. The ‘originate-to-distribute’ model relies on securitisation. Academic literature has revealed that securitisation is opaque and complex (Buiter, 2007; Berndt and Gupta, 2008; Fender and Mitchell 2009a). Little research however, has been conducted into why securitisation is opaque and complex from a principal-agent angle. This paper thus provides a new perspective to the literature on principal-agent theory and banking corporate governance

Cross-border voting chains and the case for improving the quality of shareholder engagement

The purpose of this paper is to explore current difficulties with shareholder engagement in the 21st century in light of complex cross-border voting chains. To improve the quality of shareholder engagement, the study recommends that cooperation between countries needs to be strengthened by improving information flow and transparency. Better disclosure is a fundamental step to improving information flow and cross-border voting. There are a number of legal and practical hurdles in relation to cross-border voting. As it is unlikely that the length of the voting chains will be reduced owing to the inherent structure of the ownership model, a combination of legislative modifications and improved voting facilities with reduced costs are necessary. The initial strong compliance to the concept of 'stewardship' in the UK is difficult to sustain owing to the inherent structure of the complex, equity chain model

Protecting whistle-blowers in the UK financial industry

The author aims to investigate the current status of legal protection of whistle-blowers. She will focus on the treatment of the ex-Head of Regulatory Risk at HBOS before the financial crisis of 2007. The author then reviews the whistle-blowing policies and Codes of Conduct of five UK banks and compares them with the policies in the health industry. The article first utilises the black letter law approach to review the current status of legal protection to whistle-blowers. The author then undertakes empirical research into the whistle-blowing policies and Codes of Conduct of five major UK banks. She also adopts a comparative socio-legal analysis, studying the law in both the United States and the United Kingdom. Whistle-blowers play an important role in increasing transparency and informing regulators to stay ahead of malpractice. Legislation alone cannot protect whistle-blowers fully. Corporate governance measures and a tripartite gatekeeping model between the regulator, Chief Risk Officer and auditors are required to give whistle-blowers more protection. This article will have policy implications for practitioners and policymakers on national and international dimensions. Whistle-blowing in the financial industry has been neglected in the major corporate governance and banking regulation reports. The author combines empirical research with her own model of tripartite gatekeeping to protect whistle-blowers in the financial world. This article is thus original and valuable to both academics and practitioners. © 2014 Macmillan Publishers Ltd

Macro and micro prudential regulatory failures amongst financial institutions in the United Kingdom: Lessons from Australia

Purpose – This paper compares the performance of the big four UK banks and four Australian banks between 2004-2009. The banks are chosen according to the total assets as listed in The Banker magazine 2009. The purpose is to analyse why UK banks were more vulnerable to the financial crisis of 2007-2009 than Australian banks. The consequence of this study is what improvements can be made in relation to liquidity, leverage, loan to deposit, asset quality and capital ratios. Design/methodology/approach – The author adopts an empirical approach and gathers data from the annual reports of the big four UK banks and Australian banks and the database ‘Factiva’ and the Financial Times. The data contains liquidity, debt, capital, asset quality and profitability ratios during 2004-2009. Findings –The author’s data show UK banks had on average higher cash ratios, higher leverage ratios, higher loan to deposit ratios, higher capital ratios, lower asset quality, lower ROA but higher ROE than the Australian banks. Research implications- The results support the findings in the Financial Development Index 2011 of the World Economic Forum. UK banks should ameliorate its ranking on financial stability by improving the quality of loans and capital. Practical implications- The analysis is of use to regulators who are contemplating the need for reforms aimed at improving financial ratios of banks. Basel III Accord has introduced some recommendations but has its limitations. Originality/value – This paper's value lies in providing analysis of the top four UK and Australian banks’ performances during 2004-2009. There is room for improvement in providing a more stable financial environment in the UK

Evaluation on the analogy between the dynamic magnetosphere and a forced and/or self-organized critical system

International audienceThe dissipation power and size of auroral blobs are investigated in detail to examine the possible analogy between the dynamic magnetosphere and a forced and/or self-organized critical system. The distributions of these auroral parameters are sorted in terms of different levels of activity, namely substorms, pseudo-breakups, and quiet conditions. A power law (scale-free) component is seen in all these distributions. In addition, a peak distribution is found for substorm intervals and a hump for pseudo-breakup intervals. The peak distribution is present prominently during magnetic storms, i.e. when the magnetosphere is strongly driven by the solar wind. It is interpreted that the scale-free component is associated with the activity of the diffuse aurora, corresponding to disturbances at all permissible scales within the plasma sheet. Ionospheric feedback appears to be essential for the presence of two components in the distribution for auroral dissipation power. These results are consistent with the concept that the magnetosphere is in a forced and/or self-organized critical state, although they do not constitute conclusive evidence for the analogy

Search and Seizure of Journalistic Material: the Sing Tao Daily Case

AnalysisThe constitutional guarantee of a free press has been almost taken for granted by all in Hong Kong. In safeguarding press freedom, the protection of journalistic sources is of particular importance to ensure that the press can properly perform its role as society's watchdog. However, in So Wing Keung v Sing Tao Limited and Hsu Hiu Yee, the Hong Kong Court of Appeal has taken quite a different view on the matter. This could have a long-term impact on the development of press freedom and the use of journalistic material in Hong Kong. This article seeks to look at the subtle, but significant change in the landscape on press freedom resulting from the Court's decision.published_or_final_versio

Simultaneous structural and control optimization via linear quadratic regulator eigenstructure assignment

A method for simultaneous structural and control design of large flexible space structures (LFSS) to reduce vibration generated by disturbances is presented. Desired natural frequencies and damping ratios for the closed loop system are achieved by using a combination of linear quadratic regulator (LQR) synthesis and numerical optimization techniques. The state and control weighing matrices (Q and R) are expressed in terms of structural parameters such as mass and stiffness. The design parameters are selected by numerical optimization so as to minimize the weight of the structure and to achieve the desired closed-loop eigenvalues. An illustrative example of the design of a two bar truss is presented