Measuring and Achieving Equity in Multiperiod Emergency Material Allocation

Emergency material allocation is an important part of postdisaster emergency logistics that is significant for improving rescue effectiveness and reducing disaster losses. However, the traditional single‐period allocation model often causes local surpluses or shortages and high cost, and prevents the system from achieving an equitable or optimal multiperiod allocation. To achieve equitable allocation of emergency materials in the case of serious shortages relative to the demand by victims, this article introduces a multiperiod model for allocation of emergency materials to multiple affected locations (using an exponential utility function to reflect the disutility loss due to material shortfalls), and illustrates the relationship between equity of allocations and the cost of emergency response. Finally, numerical examples are presented to demonstrate both the feasibility and the usefulness of the proposed model for achieving multiperiod equitable allocation of emergency material among multiple disaster locations. The results indicate that the introduction of a nonlinear utility function to reflect the disutility of large shortfalls can make the material allocation fairer, and minimize large losses due to shortfalls. We found that achieving equity has a significant but not unreasonable impact on emergency costs. We also illustrate that using differing utility functions for different types of materials adds an important dimension of flexibility.     

Does a universal non-contributory social pension make sense for rural China?

China’s pension reform during the past three decades has allowed a majority of China’s population to be covered by a pension scheme. Of particular note has been the New Rural Pension Scheme (NRPS), a voluntary programme introduced starting in 2009. One goal of our analysis is to assess that pension scheme, using a variety of sources of information including data drawn from recent (2013 and 2015) nationwide China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Surveys (CHARLS). Our analysis involves an exploration of differences between the generosity and structure of the NRPS and other pension schemes currently in place. We also explore the feasibility of reforming the current “quasi-social pension” component of the NRPS by substituting a universal non-contributory social pension pillar. In connection with our assessment of the NRPS, we note the unusually low benefit levels for rural China.     

Estimation of the marginal expected shortfall under asymptotic independence

We study the asymptotic behavior of the marginal expected shortfall when the two random variables are asymptotic independent but positively associated, which is modeled by the so-called tail dependent coefficient. We construct an estimator of the marginal expected shortfall, which is shown to be asymptotically normal. The finite sample performance of the estimator is investigated in a small simulation study. The method is also applied to estimate the expected amount of rainfall at a weather station given that there is a once every 100 years rainfall at another weather station nearby.     

试论佛山企业境外投资

企业境外投资应该成为佛山市发展外向型经济的战略任务之一。佛山市企业境外投资,具备着所有权、内部化和区位等方面的相对优势。境外投资是佛山市企业占领国外市场、扩大出口的有力手段;可享受国内外双重的优惠政策和待遇;是增加外汇收入、利用外资的新型方式。九十年代,佛山市企业应注重对东南亚国家的直接投资,对国外高科技,新产品、新服务部门和行业的直接投资。     

区域经济运行中资源地域空间配置研究 --一个数理经济学的理论分析框架

在一定假设条件下,利用数理经济学方法对区域经济运行中的纯粹交换经济系统、纯粹生产经济系统、生产--交换经济系统中的资源地域空间配置优化进行一般均衡及其均衡扩展比较研究,发现并证明无论何种类型的区域经济体系或多区域经济体系,资源地域空间配置优化的宏观经济效益与微观经济效益并不总是一致的,存在着差异与负相关的可能性.     

地方高等教育收益的若干问题探讨

地方高等教育的收益与本地区经济水平的发展成正比；高等教育的受益者首先是受教育者个人；可以从高等教育提高劳动生产率中来计算高等教育的收益；应该以科技为中介来研究高等教育的收益；可以从受高等教育者的职业优势上来发现高等教育的收益；可以从人才的流动或者人才市场的变化中发现高等教育的收益。     

Book Reviews

Books reviewed:
M Hollander and D Wolfe, Nonparametric Statistical Methods
T Leonard and J.S.J Hsu, Bayesian Methods     

Measuring agreement between two statistics with applications to age standardization

Summary.  We detail a general method for measuring agreement between two statistics. An application is two ratios of directly standardized rates which differ only by the choice of the standard. If the statistics have a high value for the coefficient of agreement then the expected squared difference between the statistics is small relative to the variance of the average of the two statistics, and inferences vary little by changing statistics. The estimation of a coefficient of agreement between two statistics is not straightforward because there is only one pair of observed values, each statistic calculated from the data. We introduce estimators of the coefficient of agreement for two statistics and discuss their use, especially as applied to functions of standardized rates.     

林业投资均衡性的理论分析

我国林业投资体制的改革面临着许多新的课题,研究市场经济条件下林业投资状况十分必要。首先,从均衡理论出发,在分析宏观经济政策对林业的影响和林业投资现状基础上,对形成这种状况的主要原因进行了探讨;其次,以林业投资对象为主体,对其微观经济行为的成本与收益问题进行了分析;最后,提出深化林业投资体制改革要促进投资主体多元化,给予林业更多的政策扶持,进一步完善林业法律法规,以促进我国林业持续稳定地发展。     

价值新概念与资源配置和利用

经济运行从开始到达稳定状态一般经过七个阶段。传统劳动价值论认为 ,商品价值由物质生产部门的劳动者在社会生产的第二阶段实际耗费的劳动者支出量加上生产资料转移的价值决定。新价值论认为 ,现代产品价值由产品基本价值、生产资料价值和自然资源价值三部分构成 ,产品基本价值由社会各部门应该耗费的社会必要劳动能力量在生产的前提阶段内在地决定并在第七阶段成为现实。由此决定了传统的价值概念不能包含资源配置和利用。新价值概念本身就蕴涵着资源配置和利用。