THE DISTRIBUTION SECTOR AND THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS: ARE THERE PATTERNS? YES

Using an increasing returns specification for distribution, an inverted U pattern between the share of distribution in gross domestic product and the level of development is shown to arise. A cross-section time-series data set is constructed and merged with one used to analyze the service sector. In contrast to the rising pattern found for services, an average time-series relation that exhibits an inverted U pattern is established. The empirical results are robust, for example, to choice of functional form and country and time period coverage. A similar pattern is found in the average cross-section (country) relation between distribution and development.     

TEACHING PROFESSIONAL WRITING TO FAMILY THERAPISTS: THREE APPROACHES

The authors present three educational approaches designed to demystify the writing process and to support better writing skills among family therapists. One framework is an academic course in professional writing, another is a writing seminar for family therapy and physician trainees within a medical school setting, and the third is a 2-hour continuing education writing workshop for family therapists. Each is replicable within a variety of settings.     

对车险改革后保险营销的浅析

在车辆保险条款费率改革之后的车险市场上,现实状况却与预计效果相差甚远。其主要原因是,对保险营销战略的忽视,没有以相应的保险营销战略为指导,使得营销战术在操作过程中显得盲目而跟从。针对以上问题,我们首先要做的是树立正确的保险营销观念,即重新审视营销战略在车辆保险中的作用,并在此基础上建立广义的产品观念;同时注重服务在车险营销中的作用;有效地进行市场细分和市场选择;最后对车险营销战略的具体实施即营销战术提出建议。     

Design optimization using ANOVA

This paper describes the design optimization of a robot sensor used for locating 3-D objects employing the Taguchi method in a computer simulation scenario. The location information from the sensor is to be utilized to control the movements of an industrial robot in a 'pick-and-place' or assembly operation. The Taguchi method, which is based on the Analysis-of-Variance (ANOVA) approach, is utilized to improve the performance of the sensor over a wider operating range. A review of the Taguchi method is presented along with step-by-step implementation details to identify and optimize the design parameters of the sensor. The method allows us to gauge the impact of various interactions present in the sensor system exclusively and permits us to single out those factors that have a dominant influence on the overall performance of the sensor. The investigation suggests that the Taguchi method is a more structured and efficient approach for achieving a robust design compared with the classical full factorial design approach.     

LOG-PERIODOGRAM ESTIMATION OF LONG MEMORY VOLATILITY DEPENDENCIES WITH CONDITIONALLY HEAVY TAILED RETURNS

Many recent papers have used semiparametric methods, especially the log-periodogram regression, to detect and estimate long memory in the volatility of asset returns. In these papers, the volatility is proxied by measures such as squared, log-squared, and absolute returns. While the evidence for the existence of long memory is strong using any of these measures, the actual long memory parameter estimates can be sensitive to which measure is used. In Monte-Carlo simulations, I find that if the data is conditionally leptokurtic, the log-periodogram regression estimator using squared returns has a large downward bias, which is avoided by using other volatility measures. In United States stock return data, I find that squared returns give much lower estimates of the long memory parameter than the alternative volatility measures, which is consistent with the simulation results. I conclude that researchers should avoid using the squared returns in the semiparametric estimation of long memory volatility dependencies.     

从国际玉米市场态势看中国玉米经济发展策略

玉米在全球粮食市场上占据非常重要的地位。文章分析了20世纪90年代以来国际玉米市场的供求变化,研究了主要玉米进出口国特别是美国的玉米发展战略,并提出了开放经济条件下中国玉米经济发展的战略选择。     

完善我国合同法应借鉴《国际商事合同通则》

1999年10月1日后正式实施的《中华人民共和国合同法》已经借鉴了当今发达国家先进的合同法立法经验和国际惯例,但与其它国家和有关国际公约的立法相比较,若干条文和规定仍然是粗线条的。文章以《国际商事合同通则》为例与我国合同法对比,探讨了我国合同立法在合同的成立、合同效力问题、精神损害赔偿、“意外条款”的效力、合同的解释等方面的一些缺陷,以期对我国合同法的完善有所借鉴。     

试析行政环境--组织理论的一个视角

行政环境是影响行政组织活动外都及内部诸因素的总和,可分为一般社会环境与工作(具体)环境。行政环境与行政组织构成行政生态系统,二者存在着互相依存、相互作用的互动关系。行政组织有效发挥作用的一个重要条件就是要具有良性的行政环境。在此基础上,本文指出了建构良性行政环境的三条有效路径,以期促进行政改革进而提升政府的公共行政能力。