890 research outputs found
The design and use of management control systems in a Chinese multinational corporation: a neo-institutional perspective
No full textThis study investigates the role of management control systems (MCS) in a Chinese multinational construction company (International GS). In particular it explores how MCS rules and mechanisms for overseas operation (e.g. budgetary control, cost control, performance measurement and incentive system and localized management) are designed in the case company’s head office in China (GSLZ), and how these formal rules and mechanisms are implemented in one of its overseas subsidiaries in Ghana (GSJN). In-depth semi-structured interviews were carried out with top and middle managers in both research sites, alongside reviews of documents. A neo-institutionalist theoretical framework, drawn from Scott’s (2013) theoretical concepts of regulative, normative and cultural-cognitive institutions, are combined with the notion of contextualization (Tsui, 2006, 2007) to interpret and analyse the case study findings.Findings from the head office show how regulative and normative institutional pressures conflictingly and simultaneously circumscribed the company’s MCS design. Whilst the MCS rules were designed in accordance to regulatory pressures and in particular as a result of the government’s pursuance of a ‘marketization’ policy, it also revealed an authoritative control mode emphasising centralization, compliance and military approaches. The study of MCS implementation further showed that although rules were imposed in the Ghanaian subsidiary, practical variations emerged as a response to the contradictions in the setting of MCS rules and mechanisms, and localized management control practices were also established to adapt to the local political and market needs. However, this study further reveals that a specific logic (i.e. ‘policy orientation’) pervaded the Chinese managers’ design and use of MCS, leading to a problematic role of MCS in practice and a failure to achieve the objectives of localized management. Informed by Scott’s idea of a cultural-cognitive institutional order, this study further contends that the Chinese managers’ specific logic arose because their cognition were shaped by, and reflected, certain intrinsic notions derived from the interactions between regulative and normative institutions. Furthermore, this study argues that the unique Chinese culture, as the fundamental institutional logic, provides the infrastructure on which not only beliefs, but norms and rules rests. Two characteristics of Chinese culture (i.e. paternalism and Guanxi) have been identified to explain the rationalities behind the problems of MCS design and use in the case company.Due to the increasing presence of Chinese multinational corporations in emerging and less-developed economies, this study aims to offer new insights in the study of MCS development and dissemination in non-western contexts. Moreover, the particular focus on a construction company brings new evidence since this sector, in spite of its size and importance in modern economies, rarely features in management accounting and control research. Lastly, this study contributes to extant cross-cultural accounting work. Whilst recent work remains influenced (and limited) by Hofstede's notions of national culture (Baskerville, 2003; Joannides, Berland and Wickramasinghe, 2010), this study highlights how the underlying facets of Chinese culture are relevant to the design and use of MCS in Chinese multinational corporations
The South China New Wave:Cinema as Xinxiang (Affective-Ideational Imagery)
No full textThis chapter focuses on a new film movement that emerged in China around 2015: the Nanfang Xin Langchao (South China New Wave). This movement depicts social phenomena in the subtropical south of China and expresses their generation’s depression and longing for rebellion. Different from the Sixth Generation, who focused on creating a sense of xianchang (on-location-ness, a sense of “being present on the scene”), the South China New Wave considers the cinema as xinxiang (roughly translated as affective-ideational imagery). These New Wave films present internal imageries of the filmmakers and characters rather than simply documenting wuxiang (images of objects, scenes, or events). The author argues that by creating an image that is indiscernible between imagination and objective reality and initiating a fragmentary-navigational investigation, the South China New Wave cinema as xinxiang enables the filmmakers, characters, and spectators to rewrite their feelings and thoughts in response to their paradoxical sense of interconnection-alienation within the internet era. Hence, the author’s research questions are concerned with how the South China New Wave creates the cinematographic image as xinxiang and how the formational process of this affective-ideational milieu is at once fragmentary and navigational. The author uses Bi Gan’s Kaili Blues (2015) as an example to address these issues.</p
An AI-based partial explainable prediction of rubber concrete strength on mobile devices
No full textRecently, there has been a growing trend in utilizing waste rubber as a partial replacement for aggregates in concrete. This approach not only promotes the reuse of waste rubber but also addresses the shortage of natural aggregates. An issue arising from various compositions between rubber and the cement matrix is the accurate prediction and control of the mechanical properties of rubber concrete, which impedes the widespread application of rubber concrete because the indispensable on-site mechanical tests are time-consuming and labor-intensive. In response to this challenge, an integrated AI-based approach that enables the real-time prediction of the compressive strength of rubber concrete through mobile devices was proposed. Firstly, a U-Net-based semantic segmentation model is employed to identify different compositions within cross-section photos of rubber concrete. Subsequently, an artificial neural network (ANN) model is adopted to promptly and precisely predict the compressive strength of rubber concrete using the proportions of the semantic segmentation compositions. The proposed approach is validated through a database based on past experimental results. The U-Net-based component recognition model achieves an accuracy of 89.31 %, while the strength prediction model attains an accuracy of 82.08 %. Overall, this method effectively identifies various compositions and establishes a correlation between their proportions and the compressive strength of rubber concrete. This provides a partially explainable and efficient approach for the widespread on-site application of rubber concrete
Neoperla furcomaculata Kong & Li 2016
No full text<i>Neoperla furcomaculata</i> Kong & Li, 2016 <p>http://lsid.speciesfile.org/urn:lsid: Plecoptera.speciesfile.org: TaxonName:492870</p> <p> <i>Neoperla furcomaculata</i> Kong & Li, 2014. In Kong, Lv & Li, 2014:433. New synonym</p> <p> <b>Type material:</b> Holotype: male, <b>China</b>: Hainan Province, Changjiang County, Bawangling, National Nature Reserve, upstream of Yajia River, 1000 m, 19.121187 N, 109.083491 E, 2006.VII.7-11, Jie Zeng, deposited in the Insect Collection of Henan Institute of Science and Technology (HIST, PLT1602) in Xinxiang.</p>Published as part of <i>Kong, Fanbin & Li, Weihai, 2016, Type Designation For Neoperla Furcomaculata Kong & Li, 2014 (Plecoptera: Perlidae), pp. 59 in Illiesia 12 (10)</i> on page 59, DOI: <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/4765418">10.5281/zenodo.4765418</a>
Experiment of Short Wave Communication and the Investigation of the Propagation Bearing Between the Great Wall Station and Xinxiang
No full textThe distance from the Great Wall Station (62.2°S, 58.9°W) to Xinxiang (35.3°N, 113.8°E) is 16981km. The path passes through the polar cap absorption region and the auroral absorption zone, and it is across the equator.
In this paper firstly the effects of short wave communication and usable time blocks and frequency ranges between the Antarctic Great Wall Station and Xinxiang from December 1985 to March 1986 are introduced. The comparison between the usable frequency ranges with the estimated MUF is made. The upper limit of frequency ranges of communication along the short great circle path basically agrees with the MUF but there is difference between them along the long great circle path.
Secondly, the result of the propagation bearings experiment in January to February 1986 is introduced in more detail, Thep propagation along the great circle path from the Great Wall Station to Xinxiang is the main propagation mode. But the propagation along non great circle paths occurs at times between Great Wall Station and Xinxiang. The non great circle path propagation varies with time because the ionospheric absorption and other conditions which support the non great circle path propagation are the function of the time. So the courses of the non great circle path propagation may be different in the different time. The mechanism of the constructing non great circle path propagation has been analysed. We preliminarily think the main cause of propagation along non great circle path is the ground scatter. The stronger radicalization of the side lobes of the antenna and the less absorption of the ionosphere contribute to forming non great circle path propagation
Impacts of floods on dysentery in Xinxiang city, China, during 2004–2010: a time-series Poisson analysis
No full textBackground: Xinxiang, a city in Henan Province, suffered from frequent floods due to persistent and heavy precipitation from 2004 to 2010. In the same period, dysentery was a common public health problem in Xinxiang, with the proportion of reported cases being the third highest among all the notified infectious diseases. Objectives: We focused on dysentery disease consequences of different degrees of floods and examined the association between floods and the morbidity of dysentery on the basis of longitudinal data during the study period. Design: A time-series Poisson regression model was conducted to examine the relationship between 10 times different degrees of floods and the monthly morbidity of dysentery from 2004 to 2010 in Xinxiang. Relative risks (RRs) of moderate and severe floods on the morbidity of dysentery were calculated in this paper. In addition, we estimated the attributable contributions of moderate and severe floods to the morbidity of dysentery. Results: A total of 7591 cases of dysentery were notified in Xinxiang during the study period. The effect of floods on dysentery was shown with a 0-month lag. Regression analysis showed that the risk of moderate and severe floods on the morbidity of dysentery was 1.55 (95% CI: 1.42–1.670) and 1.74 (95% CI: 1.56–1.94), respectively. The attributable risk proportions (ARPs) of moderate and severe floods to the morbidity of dysentery were 35.53 and 42.48%, respectively. Conclusions: This study confirms that floods have significantly increased the risk of dysentery in the study area. In addition, severe floods have a higher proportional contribution to the morbidity of dysentery than moderate floods. Public health action should be taken to avoid and control a potential risk of dysentery epidemics after floods
MOESM2 of Association of bone mineral density with lung function in a Chinese general population: the Xinxiang rural cohort study
No full textAdditional file 2: Table S2 Levels of blood, bone density and lung function parameters in adult population from Qiliying and Langgongmiao in Xinxiang (n = 1024)
Comparison of ARIMA and Bayesian Structural Time Series Models for Predicting the Trend of Syphilis Epidemic in Jiangsu Province
No full textFengquan Zhang,1,* Yanyan Li,2,* Xinxiao Li,2 Bingjie Zhang,2 Chenlu Xue,2 Yongbin Wang2 1Center for Experimental Teaching, School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan Province, 453003, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan Province, 453003, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Yongbin Wang, Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan Province, 453003, People’s Republic of China, Email [email protected]: This study sets out to explore the forecasting value in syphilis incidence of the Bayesian structural time series (BSTS) model in Jiangsu Province.Methods: The seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) and BSTS models were constructed using the series from January 2017 to December 2021, and the prediction accuracy of both models was tested using the series from January 2022 to November 2022.Results: From January 2017 to November 2022, the total number of syphilis cases in Jiangsu Province was 170629, with an average monthly notification cases of 2403. The optimal model was ARIMA (1,0,0) (0,1,1) 12 (AIC = 663.12, AICc = 664.05, and BIC = 670.60). The model coefficients were further tested: AR1 = 0.48 (t = 3.46, P < 0.001), and SMA1 =− 0.48 (t =− 2.32, P = 0.01). The mean absolute deviation, mean absolute percentage error, root mean square error, and root mean square percentage error from the BSTS model were smaller than those from the ARIMA model. The total number of syphilis cases predicted by the BSTS model from December 2022 to December 2023 in Jiangsu Province was 29902 (95% CI: 16553 ~ 42,401), with a monthly average of 2300 (95% CI: 1273 ~ 3262) cases.Conclusion: Syphilis is a seasonal disease in Jiangsu Province, and its incidence is still at a high level. The BSTS model is superior to the ARIMA model in dynamically predicting the incidence trend of syphilis in Jiangsu Province and has better application value.Keywords: syphilis, trends, forecast, BSTS model, ARIMA mode
Elucidating the Chemical Compositions and Source Apportionment of Multi-Size Atmospheric Particulate (PM10, PM2.5 and PM1) in 2019–2020 Winter in Xinxiang, North China
No full textThe pollution characteristics of multi-size atmospheric particulates in Xinxiang, which was one of the most polluted cities across China, are still unclear even through air quality in Xinxiang has been improved in recent years. PM10, PM2.5, and PM1 samples were synchronously collected from 21 December 2019 to 17 January 2020 to explore pollution levels and reveal sources of PM in Xinxiang. The average mass concentrations of PM10, PM2.5, and PM1 were as high as 155.53 μg m−3, 120.07 μg m−3, and 85.64 μg m−3 during the observation period, respectively. Almost all of the chemical compositions in PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 increased continuously and obviously with the aggravation of the pollution level. Compared with the clean period, the enhancement of sulfate (23–27%) in PM was obvious higher than nitrate (19–22%) during the pollution period, which demonstrated that sulfate was the main contributor to the high concentration of PM in this study. Similar source distributions for PM10, PM2.5, and PM1 were also found, including traffic source, combustion source, secondary aerosols, industrial source, and fugitive dust, by using the positive matrix factorization (PMF) model. Furthermore, the contributions of the combustion source and secondary aerosol were found to be higher in smaller particles (PM2.5 and PM1), while the contribution of fugitive dust was higher in PM10. Moreover, dust and sand were entrained by air masses from the northwest that increased the contribution of dust in PM at the observation site. The potential source contribution function (PSCF) analysis illustrated that regional emission sources in northern and eastern Xinxiang might be important potential contributors to PM pollution in Xinxiang
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