Representational Approaches Matter

This paper raises the question of how ethical issues arising out of social inequities involving international business in developing countries can be represented, and articulates a conceptual framework that identifies and maps four different approaches to representing or making sense of such issues. A fieldwork-based case study on the child labor issue in Pakistan’s soccer ball industry illustrates the argument that representational practices do matter, and that when representational approaches go awry, they end up savaging the well-being of the poor in the developing world. Farzad Rafi Khan holds a Ph.D. in Management from McGill University. He is currently an Assistant Professor at the Suleman Dawood School of Business, Lahore University of Management Sciences, Pakistan.     

分块自适应图像稀疏分解

针对图像稀疏分解的计算时间复杂度非常高这个问题，提出了分块自适应图像稀疏分解算法。该算法根据稀疏分解计算时间复杂度和待分解图像大小之间的关系。把待分解图像分成互不重叠的小块。然后对每个小块图像进行稀疏分解。根据每一块的复杂程度。自适应地决定稀疏分解的结束。实验结果表明。在分解原子个数相近或相同的条件下。新算法对稀疏分解后重建图像比在整幅图像上进行稀疏分解重建的图像质量下降0．5dB。但计算速度提高了约15倍。     

基于2DPCA和稀疏表示的目标跟踪算法

针对现有的目标跟踪算法难以适应由光照、遮挡以及姿态变化引起的目标外观变化的问题,提出了一种基于二维主成分分析（2DPCA）和稀疏表示的目标跟踪算法。该算法采用2DPCA方法和稀疏表示建立目标外观模型,降低了目标模板的维数,并通过引入增量子空间更新方法对目标模板进行在线更新,降低了算法对存储空间的要求,提高了目标外观描述的准确性。仿真实验表明,在目标出现较大形变、部分遮挡和光照变化的情况下,该算法仍能保持较高的跟踪精度,具有较强的鲁棒性。     

Working the skies: Changing representations of gendered work in the airline industry, 1930–2011

The influence of the media, whether print, celluloid or contemporary electronic, on life and career choices, particularly from a gender perspective is well documented. Indeed, the power of today’s e-media imagery has, arguably, a more ubiquitous influence on such decisions than was in the case for previous generations. However, both traditional print and more contemporary media influencers remain important and, therefore, gaining an understanding of their role in the representation of gendered work, both historically and in a modern context, is of considerable value. Working in the sky, whether as a pilot or member of the cabin crew, continues to hold a fascination and attraction for potential entrants that far exceeds the technical demands or financial rewards of the reality of such work. Perceived as ‘glamorous’ work since the early days of commercial flight in the 1930s, this tag has largely remained, despite major changes to the business and workplace environment in the intervening years. Commercial aviation is an area of work that has inspired a genre of influential romantic literature and numerous ‘real-life’ recollections alongside serious academic analysis. This paper charts the representation of, in particular, female flight attendant work from its ‘golden era’ through to the present context where the influence of the low-cost airline model has radically impacted upon the working environment within the sector. The discussion focuses on the broad ‘genre’ of airline-related employment literature, drawing on romantic, comic and biographical accounts alongside sources that address this theme from academic/research perspectives, in order to ask whether contemporary representation is any more a true reflection of this work than that during previous generations. In undertaking this analysis, this paper draws upon the role and career representation literature, particularly with respect to embodied and gendered work.     

The correlation coefficient and problems of inference in recreation research

Correlation analysis frequently has been used for the investigation of leisure research questions. This paper illustrates the problem of “unequal weighting of cases” which is present in the use of correlation analysis. It further illustrates how this problem can mislead researchers when they make substantive inferences about leisure.     

知识表达、知识互补性、知识产权均衡

基于知识的“代数格”表达方式和知识的互补性原理 ,这篇文章讨论知识产权的博弈均衡问题。每个人都拥有“局部知识” ,显然 ,如果法律对每个人的局部知识设立产权并由政府全面加以保护的话 ,人类知识将无法获得任何发展。另一方面 ,如果法律不承认任何知识的产权且政府对任何知识产权都不加以保护的话 ,人类知识也难以获得发展的激励。这里将证明 ,N个具有局部知识的社会成员在社会整体知识构成的代数格上关于各自的“局部知识”的价格的博弈存在至少一个纳什均衡———此即该社会内部自恰的和最优的知识产权配置。由周林 ( 1 994) ,这类均衡点构成一完备格。又由MilgromandShannon( 1 994) ,博弈的每一参与者最佳对应集内的最大策略和最小策略在社会知识的代数格上 (按集合强序 )单调非减 ,这意味着当社会成员的初始知识水平有所提高时 ,由产权博弈均衡所决定的各个局部知识的知识产权价格将相应有所上升。所有上述结果都不需要通常的凸性假设 ,因此在以“知识”为核心要素的经济分析中 (包括收益递增经济学 )具有独特重要的意义     

Product Touch and Consumers’ Online and Offline Buying: The Role of Mental Representation

As offline retailers struggle to compete with online ones, the importance of a consumer’s ability to touch a product prior to purchase becomes important to study. Prior research has found inconsistent results on whether product touch facilitates consumers’ product-related decision making. Some studies report a positive effect, whereas others do not. The current research reconciles this inconsistency and draws retailing implications. Across three experiments, we show that the effect of product touch on consumers’ purchase intentions and willingness to pay for a product being evaluated is evident when consumers’ mental representation of the product is concrete, but not when abstract. We further show that perceived risk and perceived ownership simultaneously mediate this moderating effect of mental representation. Implications are drawn for both offline and online retailers.     

Error analysis of finite difference and Markov chain approximations for option pricing

Mijatovi? and Pistorius proposed an efficient Markov chain approximation method for pricing European and barrier options in general one‐dimensional Markovian models. However, sharp convergence rates of this method for realistic financial payoffs, which are nonsmooth, are rarely available. In this paper, we solve this problem for general one‐dimensional diffusion models, which play a fundamental role in financial applications. For such models, the Markov chain approximation method is equivalent to the method of lines using the central difference. Our analysis is based on the spectral representation of the exact solution and the approximate solution. By establishing the convergence rate for the eigenvalues and the eigenfunctions, we obtain sharp convergence rates for the transition density and the price of options with nonsmooth payoffs. In particular, we show that for call‐/put‐type payoffs, convergence is second order, while for digital‐type payoffs, convergence is generally only first order. Furthermore, we provide theoretical justification for two well‐known smoothing techniques that can restore second‐order convergence for digital‐type payoffs and explain oscillations observed in the convergence for options with nonsmooth payoffs. As an extension, we also establish sharp convergence rates for European options for a rich class of Markovian jump models constructed from diffusions via subordination. The theoretical estimates are confirmed using numerical examples.     

The effect of diplomatic representation on trade: A panel data analysis

This study addresses current gaps in the empirical literature regarding the effect of diplomatic representation on trade using a panel data set for 100 countries with 5‐year interval data from 1985 to 2005 and four‐digit level industry data. The results indicate that the effect of diplomatic representation on exports in differentiated goods is positive and significant and larger than on exports in homogeneous goods on average, but not statistically different from it. Furthermore, diplomatic representation only increases trade along the extensive margin and not along the intensive margin. The results indicate that diplomatic representation is effective in performing its function as a network search intermediary and that it is a useful policy tool to alleviate market failure.     

The concept of near money in loyalty programmes

Loyalty reward schemes often have their own currency, for example, frequent flyer miles, which is a form of near money or quasi money. In a variation of earlier work by Snelders et al. (1992), when examining both New Zealand (Study 1) and Hong Kong (Study 2) residents, respondents provided typicality ratings, similarity ratings, and answers and reaction times to the question “Is X a type of money?” for examples of money, near money and objects of value. The results from both studies showed that near money is conceptualised in a way that is like but distinct from legal tender. Two further studies investigated implications of this conceptualisation. Study 3 found that preferences for spending near money were influenced by the ostensible purpose of the currency, and Study 4 showed that near money seemed to be placed outside of regular legal tender mental accounts.