A Non‐parametric ANOVA‐type Test for Regression Curves Based on Characteristic Functions

This article studies a new procedure to test for the equality of k regression curves in a fully non‐parametric context. The test is based on the comparison of empirical estimators of the characteristic functions of the regression residuals in each population. The asymptotic behaviour of the test statistic is studied in detail. It is shown that under the null hypothesis, the distribution of the test statistic converges to a finite combination of independent chi‐squared random variables with one degree of freedom. The coefficients in this linear combination can be consistently estimated. The proposed test is able to detect contiguous alternatives converging to the null at the rate n ^{? 1 ∕ 2}. The practical performance of the test based on the asymptotic null distribution is investigated by means of simulations.     

握好国际并购“双刃剑”

中国收购者与他们的西方竞争者相比,要赢得国际接管战役更为困难最近两年,中国公司在世界并购舞台上异军突起。其中两宗技术类并购案最引人瞩目——2004年,TCL和法国的汤姆逊联手组建了一个制造和销售电视机的合资企业; 2005年初,联想收购了IBM个人电脑业务。这些并购案清晰地表明,中国企业希望改变自身在世界经济中的角色。过去的加年中, 中国企业主要在高速增长的国内市场积累资本,同时向海外客户提供部件或最终产品。中国企业现在已经希望能在全球范围内参与竞争,而并购无疑是为达到这一目标而日益普遍被采用的方法。     

Work Psychology,Women and Stress: Silence,Identity and the Boundaries of Conventional Wisdom

It is argued that there has been a close connection between work psychologists and management which has produced a discourse about stress. In this discourse workers are positioned as victims whose suffering may be overcome through behavioural technologies. Having drawn attention to the assumptions, limitations and silences of the literature, recent debates surrounding gender and the politics of identity are considered in order to outline the possibility of a complementary approach to the study of gender and work stress. Theoretical and practical issues are addressed.     

Why textile and clothing industries are shifting to the third world

The 1970s witnessed important changes in the international division of industrial labour. Textiles and clothing were the major examples of industries where comparative advantage shifted in favour of developing countries. The present article discusses the reasons why textiles and clothing are important at the early stage of industrialization. It then examines the statistical relationship between the size of these industries and GNP per capita levels and finds this to be strongly negative. The article concludes that this points to the unrealistic nature of developed countries' attempts to maintain textile and clothing industries at their present size through protectionism, and that this will be an inadequate response to future changes in the international division of labour.     

Statistical Control for Road Pavements

Roads are assets vital to the economies of nations, particularly those with such low population density as Australia and New Zealand. The quality of road construction is of great importance. The application of statistical techniques to determining whether the construction of road pavement is being carried out to the design specification can be of great benefit to administrators and contractors. In this paper, a method is presented for obtaining control limits for a means chart when correlated observations are taken over a grid on a two‐dimensional surface. Data from a closely monitored road construction project are used to determine if the construction process can be considered ‘in control’. The nature of the correlation structure is determined using ARIMA models. The ultimate aim of the control charts and specifications is to control base course thickness. Controlling the pavement surfaces is a means to this end.