The costs and benefits of retirement policies at U.S. audit firms

The mandatory retirement age within U.S. Big 4 audit firms ranges from 55 to 62, which has attracted controversy and legal scrutiny. The potential costs of an earlier retirement age include the loss of established networks, experience, and expertise. However, studies in non-U.S. jurisdictions conclude that partners nearing retirement disengage from their work, which manifests in lower audit quality. Using intensive hand-collected data on the age of 3,148 U.S. audit partners, we provide the first evidence of the costs and benefits of mandatory retirement policies at U.S. audit firms. We find that audit quality does not vary, but that fees are significantly higher for U.S. partners approaching retirement. These findings suggest that U.S. mandatory retirement policies are forcing out experienced revenue earners that are producing audit quality equivalent to younger partners. Additional analysis reveal that partner retirements are mechanisms to promote and grow the client portfolios of younger and female audit partners, and therefore increase partner diversity. Our additional analysis of non-U.S. audit partners leading audits of U.S. listed companies shows that partners approaching retirement are associated with lower audit quality across certain measures. This suggests that the audit quality of older U.S. partners is superior to their non-U.S. counterparts.     

基于改进谱聚类算法在图像分割中的应用

为解决谱聚类算法应用于图像分割时,相似矩阵内存占用较大甚至满溢以及后续计算量大的问题,利用Nystrom方法随机获取一部分样本点,根据样本点和样本点、样本点和非样本点2种相似关系近似表征所有像素点的相似性,得到原图像的近似相似矩阵。在构建上述所需2种相似关系的相似矩阵时,距离度量采用余弦函数。结果表明,采用近邻传播聚类算法代替k-means算法对得到的低维向量子空间聚类,克服了聚类过程对初始值的敏感性,得到的分割结果较稳定,4幅真实图片也验证了研究算法的优越性。改进的谱聚类算法为图像分割的稳定性研究提供了依据。     

The Use and Characteristics of Foreign Component Auditors in U.S. Multinational Audits: Insights from Form AP Disclosures*

This paper investigates the common, yet previously opaque, practice of using foreign audit firms (component auditors) to conduct portions of audit work for U.S. public companies. U.S. regulators have expressed concern for the transparency and quality of audits using component auditors. Employing data disclosed in the newly mandated PCAOB Form AP, we find that component auditor use is largely structural, determined by the size and complexity of clients' multinational operations. We do not find that the mere use of component auditors is detrimental to audit outcomes, but rather the amount of work conducted by component auditors is associated with lower audit quality (i.e., higher likelihood of misstatement), higher likelihood of nontimely reporting, and higher audit fees, which collectively suggest that component auditor engagements are associated with adverse outcomes. Furthermore, we find that only the work performed by less competent component auditors and those facing geographic and cultural/language barriers, including significant geographic and cultural distance, weak rule of law, and low English language proficiency, is associated with adverse audit outcomes. Overall, these findings provide initial archival evidence that the use of certain component auditors on U.S. multinational audits is associated with audit coordination issues, which suggests that PCAOB Form AP disclosures provide relevant information.     

CPR1000机组临停期间通过APG冷却一回路分析

文章应用传热学基本原理对CPR1000机组临停期间一二回路传热进行了分析,从理论上对APG冷却一回路的运行方式进行了模型建立及理论计算,证明了该种运行方式的可行性。由于定量计算选用的是CPR1000机组的通用参数,因此具备推广应用的可行性,为后续同类机组临停期间保持该种运行方式提供了参考。     

AP1000常规岛电气设备纳入DCS系统配置方案分析

本文对国内目前常规火电厂普遍采用的电气系统纳八DCS监控系统的几种方式进行了阐述,并进行了技术、经济分析比较,推荐常规岛电气设备纳入DCS监控采用半通信方案.     

S1000D标准和SCORM标准的集成技术研究

文章通过分析了S1000D和SCORM两个标准的发展历程和发展战略,阐述了对这两个标准进行集成的必要性和技术可行性。对两个标准之间的差异性进行了分析,提出了在共享公共资源数据库（CSDB）的基础上,应用S1000D的数据格式与聚合模型和SCORM的学习内容包,设计连接学习内容的开发工具与CSDB的数据接口,实现了两个标准的集成。     

谈无线局域网在冶金系统的应用

文章通过对无线局域网组网原理、无线网络与有线网络比较、案例分析,论述了无线局域网在冶金系统中应用的优势。     

校园信息网络实施方案的探讨

校园网的建设对于高校的教学、科研及管理水平的提高有着重大的意义,文章通过对校园信息网络系统的总体目标及具体要求、建网原则和系统选型等方面进行探讨,提出了构建一个高性能的、有实用价值的校园网的设计方案。     

新世纪全球银行业发展:新特征、新风险——2008年1000家大银行排行榜评析

2008年7月,英国《The Banker》杂志公布了本年度全球1000家大银行排名,展示了次贷危机后国际银行业新的变化形势。本文结合1000家大银行历史数据,分析进入新世纪以来全球银行业的重要发展特征、风险因素及其内在逻辑,并分析新兴市场特别是中国银行业的地位变化。当前,中国银行业发展迅速,地位仍有上升空间,若措施得当,可望在未来实现更高的崛起目标。