Letters to the editor

This article proposes that an assessment of commercial feasibility should be integrated as a prerequisite for human clinical testing to improve the quality and relevance of materials being investigated, as an ethical aspect for human subject protection, and as a means of improving accountability where clinical development is funded on promises of successful translational research. A commercial feasibility analysis is not currently required to justify human clinical testing, but is assumed to have been conducted by industry participants, and use of public funds for clinical trials should be defensible in the same manner. Plant-made vaccines (PMVs) are offered in this discussion as a model for evaluating the relevance of commercial feasibility before human clinical testing. PMVs have been proposed as a potential solution for global health, based on a vision of immunizing the world against many infectious diseases. Such a vision depends on translating current knowledge in plant science and immunology into a potent vaccine that can be readily manufactured and distributed to those in need. But new biologics such as PMVs may fail to be manufactured due to financial or logistical reasons—particularly for orphan diseases without sufficient revenue incentive for industry investment—regardless of the effectiveness which might be demonstrated in human clinical testing. Moreover, all potential instruments of global health depend on translational agents well beyond the lab in order to reach those in need. A model comprising five criteria for commercial feasibility is suggested for inclusion by regulators and ethics review boards as part of the review process prior to approval of human clinical testing. Use of this model may help to facilitate safe and appropriate translational research and bring more immediate benefits to those in need.     

Do people respond to low probability risks? Evidence from tornado risk and manufactured homes

Whether people perceive and respond to low-probability natural hazards is a research question of considerable policy relevance. We obtain evidence by considering the response of housing choice to tornado risk for manufactured homes. The vulnerability of manufactured housing, combined with its growing share of the U.S. housing market, has led to proposed mandates for community shelters in mobile home parks. Expected utility theory, however, predicts that households should account for tornado risk in their housing choice. We test for an effect of tornado risk on manufactured housing demand using cross-sectional state data, as well as counties in three tornado prone states. We find that people do respond to tornado risk; our estimates indicate that each expected annual state tornado death per million residents reduces demand for manufactured homes by about 3%. The estimated quantity effect is consistent with the market studies of the price elasticity of manufactured homes.     

中国商业银行的现状分析

国有商业银行是我国金融体系的主体,但由于长期受计划经济的影响,国有商业银行远远不能适应市场经济,特别是金融全球化发展趋势的需要。作者针对我国四大国有商业银行在机构设置、业务经营、管理手段以及金融创新等方面存在的问题,提出收缩管理半径,减员增效;实行本币与外币业务经营及管理一体化;强化商业银行市场营销;提高金融电子化水平,开展和完善网上银行业务;加强国有商业银行内部风险控制等有效对策,完善网上银行的运行机制,加强国有商业银行的竞争力。     

对中国产融结合问题的探讨

本文首先通过考察西方各国银企关系 ,得出产融结合贯穿其始终而且是现代经济发展的客观要求的结论。在此基础上 ,提出产融结合是构建我国新型银企关系的必然选择。最后从战略性和可行性的角度创建性地提出了推进我国产融结合的阶段性构想     

区域产业结构新型工业化的主观能力评价方法与实证分析

新型工业化在实际产业结构分析中存在操作性问题。新型工业化可以看做一个地区经济体能力的衡量标准,使之对区域的产业结构进行主观评价,并且尝试引入DEA模型,结合新型工业化的要求,构建专门针对地区产业结构的新型工业化评价体系。     

论全球化背景下国际私法中的国家主权观--由国家利益本位向国际社会利益趋向的转化

主权原则是国际私法中的一项基本原则。在国际私法中长期以来都存在国家利益优先的倾向,但随着全球化趋势的日益增强,传统国际私法中的主权观已越来越不适应国际民商事交往蓬勃发展的现实。全球化带来的是全球法律文明的趋同化,由此伴随着全球共同利益的产生。国际私法作为处理国际民商事法律冲突的法律部门,必须对这种国际社会利益做出反应,把对人权的尊重和保护作为追求正义价值的基本向度。     

再论构建广州十三行专题博物馆

十三行博物馆是彰显千年商都广州城市精神之魂的最好载体;十三行博物馆的内涵与外延具有历史性、国际性、现实性意义;选取十三行商馆遗址构建专题博物馆能产生良好的效果。筹建十三行博物馆并不需要大拆大建,并能更好地保护历代普遍遗产,促进历史街区的整体保护与复兴,形成具有规模效应的十三行商埠文化特色旅游区,带动相关产业的蓬勃发展,打造广州世界文化名城品牌。     

物流产业问题研究综述

目前 ,物流产业已成为继制造业和商业之后的第三利润源 ,作为一个专门的产业加以开发。现代物流产业具有大跨度性、动态性、可分性和复杂性的特征。我国物流产业尚存在观念落后、设施陈旧、发展不平衡、物流业与电子商务脱节、人才短缺、技术单一、缺乏规模效应等问题。我国要大力发展第三方物流。我国的物流产业必将朝着国际化、电子化、共同化、专业化、个性化、信息化的方向发展     

Motoring Offences as Crime: Some Priorities for Social and Action Research

This paper highlights recent trends in criminology and assesses their relevance for road safety research. It is concluded that research priorities should be in the areas of general deterrence (particularly the value of random breath testing), physical prevention and study of the criminal justice system (especially the police). In addition, close attention should be paid to the political context within which the research is carried out. Lessons for methodology include greater use of direct and self reported measures of behaviour in addition to official statistics, experimental techniques rather than ‘quasi-experimental’, where possible, and interrupted time series analyses of the effects of legislative changes. There is a great need for a close analysis of the way in which traffic crash and violation data are recorded.     

Effects of Community,Family, and Home Variables on Job Satisfaction

Research in industry has suggested that motivation and job satisfaction are influenced by various aspects of work activity and work environment. Family background and community characteristics have been thought to have some relevance. In the present research an attempt was made to find out: (1) the significance of relevant community variables, (2) the importance of family and home variables, and (3) their intra as well as interaction effects on job satisfaction in industry. Community, family and home variables were found to correlate highly with job satisfaction, particularly those latter factors dealing with the employees' personal life.     

Psychosocial factors influencing aggressive driving among commercial and private automobile drivers in Lagos metropolis

Using 300 purposively selected private and commercial automobile drivers in Lagos, Nigeria as participants, and with a combination of FGD, interview and questionnaire, the study investigated the influence of psychosocial factors such as (locus of control, age, years of driving experience, marital status and educational status) on aggressive behavior among the drivers based on the frustration – aggression hypothesis. Given the chaotic traffic situation in Lagos, premise was that the aggressive instincts in human beings would be more pronounced among the drivers thereby negatively affecting their behavior. Result showed that commercial drivers were significantly higher on aggressive driving behavior. Younger drivers were more aggressive than older ones. Aggressiveness was attributed to other factors in the environment other than the drivers themselves. The need for training of drivers in proper and acceptable way of driving within their cultural context was emphasized.     

Internal evaluation: integrating evaluation and social work practice

Internal evaluation involves the use of internal staff to evaluate programs or issues of direct relevance to an organization. The use of internal evaluation has been growing rapidly during the last decade. Nevertheless, there is a serious gap in knowledge about internal evaluation, especially for human service and non-governmental organizations. This paper begins by examining internal evaluation within the discourse of a "new vision" of evaluation that links evaluation closely to management and practice. The paper explores the unique characteristics of internal evaluation, its strengths and weaknesses, the process of internal evaluation, steps in developing internal evaluation capacity, strategies for effective internal evaluation, and positive and negative roles of internal evaluators. It concludes with a look at some recent developments in the evolution of internal evaluation.     

Service integration: something old and something new

The authors trace the definition and challenges of "service integration," variously known over time as "collaboration," "coordination," "human services integration," and "one-stop shopping." While the common use of service integration terminology currently may seem to indicate a consensus in favor of a broad systemic reform, motivations and expectations for service integration differ significantly among different players in the service system. The authors conclude that service integration cannot be defined by a particular service model or outcome, but instead should be conceived of as an ongoing reform process. This process, when well-designed and implemented with long-term vision, can reduce duplication, strengthen communities, and improve client outcomes.     

论唐代扬州为鉴真东渡提供的社会基础

唐代扬州为全国第一大都市,著名国际通商口岸,全国和东南亚物资集散地。经济繁荣,物产丰盛;商贾云集,百货丰足;水运发达,造船业兴盛;手工业发达,工匠如云;佛教兴盛,高僧辈出;文人荟萃,文化昌盛,为鉴真东渡和文化传播提供了得天独厚的社会基础。     

Critical Realism and the Limits to Critical Social Science

The paper assesses the aims and arguments of critical social science and the reconstructions of it provided by critical realist philosophy. It argues that attempts to derive normative conclusions on the basis of explanatory critiques of social phenomena are flawed in several important respects. Accounts of critical social science standardly underestimate the problems of justifying critical standpoints and finding alternative social forms which generate fewer problems than those they replace, and hence lead to net improvement. By arguing that value positions can be derived from explanatory critiques, the philosophical reconstructions make light of the normative issues raised by proposals for social change. They also ignore the question of the feasibility of alternative systems and the prevalence of structures which generate both good and bad effects. While the reconstructions succeed in defending critiques centering on straightforward cases of false beliefs or the frustration of universal human needs, in others, where culturally-specific needs and issues of social responsibilities are involved, they fail to recognise the need to address prior normative questions. It is therefore argued that the aims and claims of critical social science need to be moderated and its dependence on normative discourse properly acknowledged.     

上海发展文化产业面临的挑战、机遇及对策

发展文化产业是社会主义文化建设的重要组成部分。上海发展文化产业面临着诸如思想观念上的差距、产业的规模化程度低、现代文化与现代科技结合度低等方面的挑战。鉴于此,各级领导者和从业人员都应尽快更新发展文化产业的观念;实施“走出去”战略,培育优质文化企业集团;建立健全文化产业法律法规,促进文化法制建设。根据已经具备的优势、自身特点和区域中的地位,上海应优先发展旅游业、传媒业、视觉产业、新闻出版与版权产业、会议展览业、创意产业等文化产业,培育文化支柱产业并整体提高文化产业的核心竞争力。     

The Sufic Paradigm for Stress Management and its Contribution to a Model of Social Work Practice

This article presents Sufism as a model for helping to alleviate human miseries. As the instability, contradictions, and stress of the socioeconomic structure create a frantic search for relevant modes of treatment, the theories and methods espoused in Sufism present an alternative approach to be taken up in the interest of more effective practice; especially in the field of social work, psychology, and counseling. Sufic masters or teachers, by the nature of their work are social workers; hence, their role in helping stressed people is discussed. Existing tools of measurement that can test stress levels are used in order to present Sufism as being compatible with the mode of scientific inquiry. The article shows that sticking to traditional psychoanalytic, behavioral, transactional and analytical practices, to name a few, limits the avenues of help that can be offered to those in need. Social workers and human service agencies have to work in collaboration with religious institutions and other spiritual organizations in order to better serve the population.     

Protecting the Nation's Military May Include the Use of Investigational New Drugs

Clinician researchers have a number of roles, each of which carries specific obligations. There are times when these obligations may be in competition (up to and including conflict) with each other. Using a narrative case study that describes a group of colleagues discussing their clinical department's participation in an industry-sponsored research protocol, we illustrate a number of the obligations faced by clinician researchers, and discuss how competing interests and obligations can lead to ethical problems. The case study is followed by a discussion of the effect of university–industry relations on competing interests and obligations in both clinical research and the role of the university, and a suggested framework that could be used to determine when university involvement in commercial research is ethically acceptable.     

Strategic planning in non-profits: profit from it

Non-profit human service organizations, both public and private, face unique challenges and opportunities in the climate of the 1990s as human needs are increasing, funding is decreasing, and threats to organizational well-being are encountered. The purpose of this paper is to describe, advocate for, and illustrate a strategic planning model which facilitates a proactive, energizing, futuristic vision as services are being planned and delivered. Three case examples are used: a large state-run county social services department; a small, private, sectarian agency that provides group home services for the developmentally disabled; and a medium sized federal public health hospital.     

中韩贸易结构分析

文章从中韩两国的贸易商品构成入手,通过计算中韩产业间和产业内贸易指数指标,来分析中韩两国建交十多年来的贸易发展状况和贸易结构变化,从中发现:中韩两国的产业间贸易水平较低,而代表水平分工的产业内贸易水平则较高且增长很快,这种现象在占中韩贸易主体的工业制成品贸易中表现尤为明显;在产业内贸易中,代表相同质量产品的水平产业内贸易的份额要高于同一产业不同环节有差异产品的垂直产业内贸易。