Search results

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a technique for reconstructing the conductivity distribution by injecting currents at the boundary of a subject and measuring the resulting changes in voltage. Image reconstruction for EIT is a nonlinear problem. A generalized inverse operator is usually ill-posed and ill-conditioned. Therefore, the solutions for EIT are not unique and highly sensitive to the measurement noise.

This paper develops a novel image reconstruction algorithm for EIT based on patch-based sparse representation. The sparsifying dictionary optimization and image reconstruction are performed alternately. Two patch-based sparsity, namely, square-patch sparsity and column-patch sparsity, are discussed and compared with the global sparsity.

Both simulation and experimental results indicate that the patch based sparsity method can improve the quality of image reconstruction and tolerate a relatively high level of noise in the measured voltages.

EIT image is reconstructed based on patch-based sparse representation. Square-patch sparsity and column-patch sparsity are proposed and compared. Sparse dictionary optimization and image reconstruction are performed alternately. The new method tolerates a relatively high level of noise in measured voltages.

The purpose of this study is to measure the financial reporting quality of 38 main countries (regions) in the world from 2000 to 2014.

This paper uses six accounting and auditing indicators to construct a comprehensive index for the measurement of country-level financial reporting quality. To test the validity of the methodology, the index to test institutional impacts on national financial reporting quality is used.

It was found that the results are consistent with the predictions and previous studies. The evidence suggests that the quality measure in this paper is innovative and appropriate and can provide a useful tool for researchers who are concerned with financial reporting quality at the country level.

The study is the first in the literature to use both accounting and auditing data to construct financial reporting quality indicators. The study should help international investors assess investment risks in foreign financial markets so as to make an informed decision. In addition, the diversity of financial reporting practices documented in the paper should prompt market regulators, accounting standard setters and professional accounting bodies to reinforce the efforts on international convergence of accounting and financial reporting standards and practices.

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether a country’s ownership concentration affects the financial reporting quality in a cross-country setting.

This paper uses six accounting and auditing indicators to construct a comprehensive index to measure the country-level financial reporting quality.

The authors find a non-linear nature of the relationship between the national financial reporting quality and national ownership structure. Specifically, the relation is negative in a relatively spread ownership structure with no controlling shareholders, implying the entrenchment effects dominate. When ownership is highly concentrated, particularly with controlling shareholders whose interest is aligned with that of the firm, the relation turns to positive and alignment effects dominate.

The study is an important extension of prior research examining the financial reporting quality effect of ownership concentration. It enhances the understanding of the role of ownership concentration in determining a country’s financial reporting quality and has potential important policy implications for countries’ reformers and regulators who are concerned with the transparency of financial reporting and the quality of corporate governance.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the association between corporate governance (CG) mechanisms and the extensiveness of carbon disclosure.

This paper uses Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression model with data from 2009 to 2012 for largest Australian companies that voluntarily disclose their information to the carbon disclosure project.

The authors find that board independence, board diversity and managerial ownership are significantly correlated with the degree of carbon transparency, while the existence of environmental committee is not.

The findings of this paper should be useful for government and capital market regulators who concern the quality of CG and carbon actions. First, the evidence in this paper suggests that current CG practice that emphasize board diversity and independence seems encouraging an environment friendly decision and adopt carbon reduction initiatives. Second, however, the current version of CG codes need more stress on none financial goals that should help corporate executives to balance value enhancement vis-à-vis ecosystem protection. Finally, another implication for policy-makers is CG should be re-structured so as to motivate firms to pursue long-term sustainable development instead of taking short-sight view of firm performance.

This paper contributes in the increasing body of literature indicating that CG encourages a proactive corporate strategy in general and carbon disclosure in particular. The authors add new empirical evidence which has policy implication that CG should be improved so as to encourage executives to engage in more sustainable development and stakeholder long-term value protection.

This study aims to investigate why companies use the internal price of carbon (IPC) for carbon management.

The authors adopt sustainable transition management theory to design the research and explain the findings of empirical models. The sample includes companies that participated in the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) questionnaire survey, derived from 37 countries and regions for the period 2015–2018.

The results first reveal that transition management facilitates an upward adoption trend annually during the study period. Second, the authors find that the proxies for transition management are all correlated with the adoption of the IPC in the predicted direction. Third, the authors identify spatial patterns and driving factors for adoption of the IPC.

This study provides additional insight beyond the limited prior literature in this area. In particular, the findings regarding the influence of physical environment on climate-related decisions have not been documented in extant literature. IPC is expected to interact with and complement external price of carbon for climate change governance. Thus, the exploring results of the paper fill an important gap and pave the way for future study to examine emerging issues in the burgeoning field of carbon accounting for climate change.

Compares China‘s financial reporting systems before and after the reforms of 1993, which is seen as a dramatic turning point. Analyses the economic factors driving accounting reforms and examines in more detail the influence of the developing capital market and increasing foreign investment. Tabulates the differences between the format, contents and types of financial statements and disclosures and financial ratios, before and after reform. Gives examples of some remaining problems, summarizes the key features of the new system and urges Chinese accountants and policy makers to adjust Western principles and systems to the unique environment of China.

This paper aims to focus on how political resources and their correlation with business models affected the headquarters location decision making of successful private enterprises established in small cities.

The paper constructed a research model which included political resources and a business model as contributing factors; selected eight companies as the research object; and used cross‐case study method to explore the function of political resources and a business model to the headquarters location decision of private enterprises.

The special political environment during China's economic transformation created substantially different political resources between different regions and governments at different levels, which forced private enterprises to relocate their headquarters in order to chase political resources conveniently. The relevance of a business model and political resources determined the significantly different ways that private enterprises obtained political resources: enterprises which were highly dependent on local political resources found it difficult to make a decision regarding corporate headquarters relocation; those enterprises with a high political resources optimization capability would be driven by the pursuit of political resources to make their headquarters relocation decision; those enterprises with an inconspicuous connection between political resources and a business model would rather be “hermits” in a metropolis and relocate their headquarters.

This paper's research results would be conducive to further study of private enterprises' headquarters location decision making during China's economic transformation.

The paper indicates the importance of political resources and the relevance of corporate business models to the headquarters location decision of private enterprises; the paper further makes clear the status of political resources as an important factor in location theory.

Conservation of green space is crucial to the sustainable urban development of China. Nanjing is a central city in the Yangtze River Delta cluster in eastern China. Owing to urbanization, the green spaces in this city have been affected significantly in terms of their scale and structure. Assessing such changes can provide a basis for environmental protection measures and sustainable development. Using Landsat remote-sensing image data from 1998 and 2007, we constructed a distribution map of the patches of green spaces in Nanjing, and analyzed and assessed the changes in scale and spatial layout of the green spaces using various landscape metrics including CA, PLAND, PD, MPS, LPI, NP, PD, TE, ED, MPI, and LSI. Coinciding with a sharp increase in urban population, the area of green spaces in Nanjing decreased by 27.06% between 1998 and 2007. The patches of green space increased by 39%, and the average area per patch decreased by about 47.52%. Green space patches were found to be unevenly distributed among the districts of Nanjing. In urban areas, significant numbers of such patches were found primarily in various types of parks, while in suburban areas, they were concentrated mainly in the hilly forestlands. Green spaces exhibited tendencies towards fragmentation, miniaturization, and discretization.

China is conducting an open market policy and Chinese firms are seeking independent audit services. As a result, the Chinese accounting profession is expanding at a tremendous speed, and has played an important role in economic reform. However, Chinese auditing operates in a very different environment from those experienced in Western countries. Consequently, there is considerable concern about auditor independence in China. The purpose of this paper is to examine some reasons for a lack of independence in the Chinese audit profession. We critically review empirical evidence regarding auditor practice in China. We then make some suggestions that might improve auditor independence.