Estimation of geodesic tortuosity and constrictivity in stationary random closed sets

We investigate the problem of estimating geodesic tortuosity and constrictivity as two structural characteristics of stationary random closed sets. They are of central importance for the analysis of effective transport properties in porous or composite materials. Loosely speaking, geodesic tortuosity measures the windedness of paths, whereas the notion of constrictivity captures the appearance of bottlenecks resulting from narrow passages within a given materials phase. We first provide mathematically precise definitions of these quantities and introduce appropriate estimators. Then, we show strong consistency of these estimators for unboundedly growing sampling windows. In order to apply our estimators to real data sets, the extent of edge effects needs to be controlled. This is illustrated using a model for a multiphase material that is incorporated in solid oxide fuel cells.     

基于交叉效率DEA与群体共识的区间乘性语言偏好关系群决策

针对区间乘性语言偏好关系群决策问题，提出了一种基于交叉效率DEA和群体共识的群决策方法。首先，提出乘性语言偏好关系导出函数的定义，并构建产出导向的DEA模型，证明了一致性乘性语言偏好关系的DEA效率得分与排序向量之间存在比例关系。在此基础上，建立基于理想值的交叉效率DEA模型，提出乘性语言偏好关系的通用排序方法。同时，基于群体共识建立目标规划模型来计算各语言偏好关系的权重系数。最后，利用Monte Carlo随机模拟的方法对群体语言偏好空间进行统计分析，得到群决策期望排序向量及其可信度。算例分析表明本文方法能够有效的避免信息损失，具有较强的适用性和较高的可信度。     

罗兴亚问题对缅-孟关系和地区秩序的影响

罗兴亚问题是一个多世纪前英殖民者在亚洲埋下的诸多“民族问题”之一，也是孟加拉国与缅甸之间难解的“痼疾”。2017年8月以来，罗兴亚问题的再次爆发给相关国家造成巨大冲击。缅甸在打击罗兴亚暴力活动的同时，反对国际干涉，试图牢牢把握该问题解决进程中的主导权，而孟加拉国在政治、安全、经济和社会等不同层面基于自己的利益考量，寻求将罗兴亚人遣返缅甸，立场的对立使两国关系陷入僵局。而美国和印度介入罗兴亚问题则使地区秩序进一步复杂化，并在舆论和安全等领域影响中国的利益。2020年1月17日至18日，中国国家主席习近平应邀对缅甸进行国事访问，标志着中缅经济走廊从概念规划转入实质建设阶段，也给“罗兴亚问题”的解决带来新契机。     

The Effects of Neighborhood Variables on Needs of Social Care: A Hierarchical Multiple Regression of Senior Residents in China

Community-based elder care has become a dominant model in the world. However, the role of community-level factors in helping or hindering the individuals concerned in obtaining the needed care has not received much attention. This research aims to investigate how community-level factors, including neighborhood disadvantage, residential instability, and social service environment affect the need for instrumental, medical, and emotional services of Chinese senior residents. Employing the hierarchical multiple regression analysis, the results show that instrumental activities of daily living impairment contributed significantly to the need for instrumental, medical and emotional services. Living alone was found to be associated with the need for medical and emotional services. Objective socioeconomic status was only significantly related to the need for medical care. The type of urban community was positively associated with the need for instrumental services and was negatively related to the need for medical care. Residential instability was positively associated with of the need for instrumental services and medical care. Social service environments had heterogeneous effects on the need for social services. However, neighborhood disadvantage had no significant impact on the need for social services. Implications for future research and policy reform were also discussed.     

Step by step: tenant accounts of securing and maintaining quality housing with a housing choice voucher

Previous research on renters’ experiences in the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program is robust, but much of it has been conducted in the context of mobility interventions providing added resources. In contrast, this study focuses on HCV renters’ experiences searching for housing without the support of a mobility intervention. In semistructured interviews, 34 HCV renters describe their housing search processes and outcomes. We find that renters struggle to secure housing in their preferred neighborhoods due to limited information and financial costs such as application fees and security deposits. Discussion focuses on practice and policy reforms that might support greater housing choice.     

论生态伦理及其内涵

有人认为生态伦理就是人际伦理的移用,就是把社会道德规范、原则简单移用到环境事务中来。这样来理解生态伦理是肤浅的,忽略了其质的规定性。其实,生态伦理就是指人类在关于自然环境、生态环境的实践活动中所形成的伦理关系及其调节原则,其内涵包括两个紧密联系的方面:首先,它表征的是一种客观的关系,即人与自然之间的道德关系;其次,它是用以调整相应的关系的积极手段,即生态道德。     

中美经贸关系现状及经济发展差距的基本判断

2017年以来,中美两国之间发生了激烈的经贸摩擦,对两国宏观经济和社会福利产生一定的负面影响。中国社会科学院工业经济研究所与《中国经济学人》(China Economist)杂志从中美经贸关系现状、中美经贸摩擦影响、中美两国经济发展差距、美国总统大选等角度分析中国经济学人对中美经贸关系及经济发展差距的认知和判断。调查发现,经济学人认为虽然中美经贸摩擦短时间内难以消除,但中美两国的经济互补性仍很强,贸易增长空间较大,未来发展方向一定是合作与竞争并有。经济学人预判,今后20年中美两国的经济增速分别为4.8%和2.1%,中国将于2034年追平美国经济总量,将于2043年追平美国制造业总体技术水平,将于2072年追平美国人均GDP,实现赶超。     

Relational sociology: a well-defined sociological paradigm or a challenging ‘relational turn’ in sociology?

In this paper I present and summarize the theoretical proposals of four leading scholars of the so-called ‘relational sociology’. First of all I try to contextualize its emergence and developments in the increasingly globalized scientific system. From this particular (and international) point of view, relational sociology seems to develop through a peculiar scientific path opened and charted by well-identified actors and competitors, their invisible colleges, their global connections, cleavages, and coalitions. Whatever the structuring of this field, it accomplishes the criticism of classical individualistic and collectivistic sociological theories, a task strongly facilitated by the development of new methods and techniques of empirical research, and by the increasingly powerful computing capabilities. After this brief historical reconstruction, and following very strictly the contributions of the four scholars, I try to synthetize their theoretical designs, focusing the analysis on two scientific issues of great significance for the future of relational sociology: the specific ontology of ‘social relations’ and the methodologies used to observe it adequately. Finally, I wonder if we are facing a new sociological paradigm, already well structured and internationally established, or rather a ‘relational turn’ that probably will develop into a new ‘sociological field’ internally very differentiated and articulated.     

论语言的本质

语言的本质问题是现代语言学的核心问题之一。与原子主义的观点根本不同,语言的本质是关系,这是现代语言学的一个重要结论。关系是系统的灵魂,语言系统是由组合关系和聚合关系及其联系构成的网络。语言的本质问题是讨论一切语言问题的基础,相关语言的其它问题都是由语言的本质问题派生出来并由它规定的。     

Researchers Behind Policy Development: Comparing ‘Age-Friendly Cities’ Models in Quebec and Wallonia

Based on a reflexive method, this article explores the roles of researchers behind Age-Friendly Cities and Environments. Referring to Michael Burawoy's division of sociological work (professional, critical, policy and public sociology), it is structured around the international comparison of two empirical case studies: Walloon region (Belgium) and Quebec (a province of Canada). While the first case shows some difficulties faced by a limited policy sociology perspective with little room for research, the latter presents a more developed public sociology approach with larger involvement from research. If both cases started with policy links, the latter presents a special interest for praxis, through knowledge transfer as an ongoing public dialogue. Based on this comparison, the article concludes with a twofold use of praxis: on one side – knowledge in action – a public sociology position offers an original perspective on what AFC/AFE may mean and produce to avoid a limited field of actions focusing only on some stakeholders or advocates for older people. On the other side – action in knowledge – policy and public sociology question professional and critical sociology facing AFC/AFE programmes: is a purely academic knowledge of such a programme epistemologically realistic or should it necessarily be empirically fuelled?