Collective versus Individual Effects in Survival Analysis of Multiple Failures

In survival analysis, we sometimes encounter data with multiple censored outcomes. Under certain scenarios, partial or even all covariates have ‘similar’ relative risks on the multiple outcomes in the Cox regression analysis. The similarity in covariate effects can be quantified using the proportionality of regression coefficients. Identifying the proportionality structure, or equivalently whether covariates have individual or collective effects, may have important scientific implications. In addition, it can lead to a smaller set of unknown parameters, which in turn results in more accurate estimation. In this article, we develop a novel approach for identifying the proportionality structure. Simulation shows the satisfactory performance of the proposed approach and its advantage over estimation under no assumed structure. We analyse three datasets to demonstrate the practical application of the proposed approach.     

改革开放对中国民族主义话语体系变迁影响研究

改革开放四十多年来,全球化和民族国家发展之间的张力是中国民族主义话语体系变迁的主要动力,一方面中国要融入世界,应对来自国际社会的挑战,另一方面中国也要关注现代国家建构过程中国内的社会、民族矛盾,这种双重压力促使中国民族主义的话语体系和研究范式发生了转变,即从民族主义到人类命运共同体。中国民族主义的话语体系是新时代中国特色社会主义话语体系的重要组成部分,它部分回应了国际社会对中国发展道路的关切和中国在全球化治理中对自身的定位和国际担当。实践证明,人类命运共同体理论在思维方式、价值观、文明观、国际秩序观等多个方面实现了对原有的民族主义话语体系和研究范式的超越和重构,成功回应了全球化和民族国家发展之间的张力关系。     

曹雪芹的无神论思想——兼论高鹗的神权观

曹雪芹的无神论思想在《红楼梦》前八十回中有大量体现,其中虽然写了许多神仙的故事,但是这些神仙的名字都叫茫茫大士,渺渺真人,空空道人,警幻仙姑;而地名则叫大荒山,无稽压,太虚幻境等等.曹的用意十分明确:这些不过是渺、茫、空、幻,荒诞的无稽之谈,属于"贾(假)语村言",和此书不记何年何代,地点可南可北一样,都是为了给此书蒙上一层虚无飘渺的色彩,以掩盖其现实严肃的政治内容.曹雪芹虽写了一系列神话故事,但一写到现实的和尚,尼姑,道士,道婆一类人物,大都采取揭露和批判的态度.与高鹗在后四十回中大量传播神权和因果报应得封建迷信思想,形成鲜明的对比.     

文化差异对国际商务交流活动的影响

通过讨论在不同文化环境下,国际商务活动呈现的差异,从微观的角度分析文化差异在人际交流、商务洽谈、管理风格、商务决策和企业结构等方面对国际商务交流的影响。     

对广东省流动人口婚育问题的初探

:广东是我国流动人口最多的省份,流动人口的婚育问题也成为研究的热点之一。本文首先对流动人口作了界定,并分析了广东流动人口的特征及其对婚育行为产生的正面和负面影响,这使计划生育管理面临巨大的压力。文章最后提出一些措施以图化解流动人口的婚育问题带给城市的压力     

关于专利行政执法问题的探讨

专利行政执法在专利制度中具有重要的不可替代的作用。专利管理机关对专利纠纷的调处行为不是具体行政行为而属于居间仲裁。本文在进行理论和实务论证的基础上 ,提出以下立法建议 :当事人不服专利管理机关就专利纠纷所作处理决定向法院起诉时 ,仍应以纠纷的相对人为诉讼当事人 ;增加专利管理机关的执法手段 ;加大专利管理机关的处罚力度 ;对专利复审委员会就实用新型、外观设计的复审决定 ,当事人应有权启动司法程序 ;实用新型专利侵权诉讼中 ,专利权人应提交专利局就争议专利技术的专利性出具的检索报告 ,法院依据检索报告进行专利侵权的判定 ,不中止侵权诉讼。     

Uniform consistency rate of kNN regression estimation for functional time series data

In this paper, we investigate the k-nearest neighbours (kNN) estimation of nonparametric regression model for strong mixing functional time series data. More precisely, we establish the uniform almost complete convergence rate of the kNN estimator under some mild conditions. Furthermore, a simulation study and an empirical application to the real data analysis of sea surface temperature (SST) are carried out to illustrate the finite sample performances and the usefulness of the kNN approach.     

The significance of meaning. Why IPBES needs the social sciences and humanities

The term “biodiversity” is often used to describe phenomena of nature, which can be studied without a reference to the socially constructed, evaluative, or indeed normative contexts. In our paper, we challenge this conception by focusing particularly on methodological aspects of biodiversity research. We thereby engage with the idea of interdisciplinary biodiversity research as a scientific approach directed at the recognition and management of contemporary society in its ecological embedding. By doing this, we explore how research on and assessments of biodiversity can be enhanced if meaning, aspiration, desires, and related aspects of agency are methodically taken into account. In six sections, we substantiate our claim that the discourse on biodiversity (including the IPBES (Intergovernmental science-policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) debate) is incomplete without contributions from the social sciences and humanities. In the introduction, a brief overview of biodiversity’s conceptual history is provided showing that “biodiversity” is a lexical invention intended to create a strong political momentum. However, that does not impede its usability as a research concept. Section 2 examines the origins of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) by way of sociological discourse analysis. Subsequently, it proposes a matrix as a means to structure the ambiguities and tensions inherent in the CBD. The matrix reemphasizes our main thesis regarding the need to bring social and ethical expertise to the biodiversity discourse. In Section 3, we offer a brief sketch of the different methods of the natural and social sciences as well as ethics. This lays the groundwork for our Section 4, which explains and illustrates what social sciences and ethics can contribute to biodiversity research. Section 5 turns from research to politics and argues that biodiversity governance necessitates deliberative discourses in which participation of lay people plays an important role. Section 6 provides our conclusions.     

The influence of acculturation level and family relationships on quality of life among U.S. Chinese older adults

ABSTRACT

The present study examined the influence of acculturation level and family relationships (i.e., positive family support and negative family strain) on quality of life (QOL), using the data from the Population Study of ChINese Elderly (PINE) in Chicago (N = 3159). Controlling for sociodemographic variables and health status, it was found that individuals’ acculturation level and positive family support were positively related to QOL, whereas negative family strain was negatively associated with QOL. More importantly, higher acculturation levels were associated with increased protective effects of positive family support and reduced risk effects of negative family strain on QOL among U.S. Chinese older adults.     

Intergenerational relationships in Chinese transnational families: A typology study

ABSTRACT

Using latent class analysis, this study examined the overall patterns of multifaceted intergenerational relationships of 604 parent-child dyads in 292 transnational families in Beijing, China. Three family relation types emerged: local obligatory (27%, with reciprocal support and ambivalent feelings), distant discordant (27%, with weak associations and high conflict), and distant intimate (46%, with highest filial ratings and emotional quality). Parents’ health and children’s marital status, socioeconomic status, childcare responsibilities, and sibling numbers were associated with different relation types. The findings are helpful for social workers to identify subgroups of older adults in transnational families who are at risk of having inadequate support.