亚东商埠史话

文章追溯当年西藏亚东商埠开市的起因、背景、过程及其后果,论述了亚东曾是中国近代史上英帝国主义侵略西藏而产生的边境贸易市场的历史,认为在当今国家昌盛、对外开放取得巨大成就的同时,更要牢记历史,增强时代感和责任感,坚定不移地维护祖国统一和西藏的稳定与发展。     

Cultural change,knowledge change

This article examines the use of genealogy in the politics of colonial Bunyoro, a kingdom within the modern state of Uganda. In particular, the article focuses on Bunyoro's attempt to have territory that had been transferred to a neighbouring kingdom at the time of conquest, known as the ‘lost counties’, restored to their homeland. Such ethnic, irredentist political activity in Africa has often been regarded as retrogressive and anti-modern. In Bunyoro, early attempts to win back the lost counties did emphasise the ruling dynasty's genealogical claim for regional pre-eminence on the grounds that Bunyoro was the oldest and formerly the largest of the Great Lakes kingdoms. What is significant is that when Bunyoro's leaders realised that this concentration on the ancient past was counterproductive, they revised their strategy. The Banyoro began to use imperial ideology against local colonial policy, by turning the rhetoric of indirect rule, anti-slavery and ultimately self-determination against their British over-rulers. Similarly, the royal government employed petitions based on archival research, effective lobbying of nationalist politicians, British Queen's Counsels, and finally low-level terrorism in an increasingly modern and sophisticated campaign.     

On Testing Exponentiality against NBAFR Alternatives

In this article, we propose an interesting approach for testing exponentiality against NBAFR alternatives. A measure of deviation from exponentiality has been derived on the basis of an inequality which we have proved. A test statistic has been constructed using density estimators and its asymptotic normality established. The consistency of the said test is also proved.     

On the adoption of lean manufacturing principles in process industries

Traditionally, the lean paradigm has been applied to discrete manufacturing of items that can be easily put together and taken apart. The process industry, on the other hand, transforms raw materials into cohesive units that are basically blended into a final product with parts that cannot be disassembled and then reassembled. The current lean literature provides numerous commendable examples of theory and practices of lean principles in discrete manufacturing. However, its application in process industry is limited. Furthermore, there is no systematic accounting of the lean literature in this sector, which may have contributed to lesser awareness in the industry. This paper provides a state-of-the-art review of lean manufacturing literature with respect to its applications in process industry. It contributes to the classification of literature in a manner which helps to identify strategies suitable for the adoption of lean concepts in process industry. The paper seeks to synthesise the literature with an emphasis on identifying the scope for lean in process industry and associated benefits. The review also presents an analysis of the lean tools and techniques that have been applied or have potential application in the process industry and the challenges to implement lean. We believe that such a comprehensive review will not only facilitate the adoption of lean in process industry but will also provide agenda for further research by exposing voids in the knowledge base.