Big data assessment on the operating characteristics of on-line taxis and thoughts on relevant policies

A double-dimensional big data assessment method on the characteristics of on-line taxi traffic operation is proposed to provide a scientific basis for carrying out the taxi industry reform and standardizing the on-line taxi hailing management work. Taking Shenzhen as an example, multi- source data such as on-line taxi license plate data, plate identification data and taxi （including on-line taxis） operation data are combined with the results of the stated preference （SP） survey on taxi operating characteristics to assess the overall operation characteristics of on-line taxis. The results show that the current on-line taxis in Shenzhen can be divided into three categories, that is, full-time on-line taxis, non- active on-line taxis and part-time on-line taxis, accounting for 4%, 55%, and 41%, respectively, of the total quantity. In terms of the characteristics of space-time operations, full-time on-line taxis have similar operating characteristics as those of traditional taxis; the operation of non-active on-line taxis and part-time on-line taxis coincides with commuting requirements during morning and evening peak hours. However, part-time on-line taxis operate for a much longer time period at night. Due to the convenient hailing and favorable price, on-line taxis have a significant impact on trip modes of citizens; and the substitution eflbct of on-line taxis on traditional buses and cruising taxis is obvious. It is beneficial for helping the government departments to objectively understand the development law of the on-line taxi industry and providing decision reference for the formulation of relevant management policies during the critical development stage of on-line taxi industry.

Characterizing motion types of G-band bright points in the quiet Sun

We study the motion of G-band bright points （GBPs） in the quiet Sun to obtain the characteristics of different motion types. A high resolution image sequence taken with the Hinode/Solar Optical Telescope （SOT） is used, and GBPs are automat- ically tracked by segmenting 3D evolutional structures in a space-time cube. After putting the GBPs that do not move during their lifetimes aside, the non-stationary GBPs are categorized into three types based on an index of their motion type. Most GBPs that move in straight or nearly straight lines are categorized as a straight mo- tion type, a few moving in rotary paths into rotary motion, and the others fall into a motion type we called erratic. The mean horizontal velocities are 2.18±0.08 km s-1, 1.63±0.09km s^-1 and 1.33±0.07 km s^-1 for straight, erratic and rotary motion types, respectively. We find that a GBP drifts at a higher and constant velocity during its whole life if it moves in a straight line. However, it has a lower and variational velocity if it moves on a rotary path. The diffusive process is ballistic-, super- and sub-diffusion for straight, erratic and rotary motion types, respectively. The corresponding diffusion index （γ） and coefficients （K） are 2.13±0.09 and 850±37km^2 s^-1, 1.82±0.07 and 331 ±24 km^2 s^-1, and 0.73±0.19 and 13±9 km^2 s^-1. In terms of direction of motion, it is homogeneous and isotropic, and usually persists between neighboring frames, no matter what motion type a GBP is classified as.

Evolution of isolated G-band bright points: size, intensity and velocity

We study the evolution pattern of isolated G-band bright points （GBPs） in terms of their size, intensity and velocity. Using a high resolution image sequence taken with the Hinode/Solar Optical Telescope （SOT）, we detect GBPs in each image by the Laplacian and Morphological Dilation algorithm, and track their evolutions by a 26-adjacent method in a three-dimensional space-time cube. For quantifying the evolution, we propose a quantification method based on lifetime normalization which aligns the different lifetimes to common stages. The quantification results show that, on average, the diameter of isolated GBPs changes from 166 to 173 km, then down to 165 km; the maximum intensity contrast changes from 1.012 to 1.027, then down to 1.011; however, the velocity changes from 1.709 to 1.593 km s-1, then up to 1.703 km s-i. The results indicate that the evolution follows a pattern such that the GBP is small, faint and fast-moving at the birth stage, becomes big, bright and slow-moving at the middle stage, then gets small, faint and fast-moving at the decay stage until disappearance. Although the differences are very small, a two-sample t-test is used to demonstrate there are significant differences in means between the distri- butions of the different stages. Furthermore, we quantify the relationship between the lifetimes of GBPs and their properties. It is found that there are positive correlations between the lifetimes and their sizes and intensities with correlation coefficients of 0.83 and 0.65, respectively; however, there is a negative correlation between the life- times and velocities with a correlation coefficient of-0.49. In summary, the longer the GBP persists, the bigger, brighter and slower it will be.

A search for double-peaked narrow emission line galaxies and AGNs in the LAMOST DR1

The Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope （LAMOST） has released more than two million spectra, which provide the opportunity to search for double-peaked narrow emission line （NEL） galaxies and active galactic nuclei （AGNs）. The double-peaked narrow-line profiles can be well modeled by two velocity components, respectively blueshifted and redshifted with respect to the sys- temic recession velocity. This paper presents 20 double-peaked NEL galaxies and AGNs found from LAMOST DR1 using a search method based on a multi-Gaussian fit of the narrow emission lines. Among them, ten have already been published by other authors, either listed as genuine double-peaked NEL objects or as asymmetric NEL objects, and the remaining ten are original discoveries. We discuss some pos- sible origins for the double-peaked narrow-line features, such as interaction between jet and narrow line regions, interaction with companion galaxies, and black hole bina- ries. Spatially resolved optical imaging and/or follow-up observations in other spectral bands are needed to further discuss the physical mechanisms at work.

Estimating Photometric Redshifts with Artificial Neural Networks and Multi-Parameters

We calculate photometric redshifts from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 2 （SDSS DR2） Galaxy Sample using artificial neural networks （ANNs）. Different input sets based on various parameters （e.g. magnitude, color index, flux information） are explored. Mainly, parameters from broadband photometry are utilized and their performances in redshift prediction are compared. While any parameter may be easily incorporated in the input, our results indicate that using the dereddened magnitudes often produces more accurate photometric redshifts than using the Petrosian magnitudes or model magnitudes as input, but the model magnitudes are superior to the Petrosian magnitudes. Also, better performance resuits when more effective parameters are used in the training set. The method is tested on a sample of 79 346 galaxies from the SDSS DR2. When using 19 parameters based on the dereddened magnitudes, the rms error in redshift estimation is σz = 0.020184. The ANN is highly competitive tool compared to the traditional template-fitting methods when a large and representative training set is available.

The Relationship Between Financial Reporting Standards （FRS） 139 and Audit Pricing： The Case of Malaysia

This study provides some insights for auditors to gauge the complexity of the financial statements verification process to comply with the ambiguous standard, namely, Financial Reporting Standards （FRS） 139 in Malaysia. Hence, the purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the adoption of FRS 139 and the audit fees charged to clients. The final sample consists of 1,050 finn-year observations covering the period from 2006 to 2008 from the non-financial companies listed on the Bursa Malaysia. In this study, the static panel data analysis is used to provide richer interpretation and a powerful understanding of the effect of standard adoption on audit pricing. The regression results from the random effects Generalized Least Squares （GLS） suggest that FRS 139 adoption has not significantly increased audit fees. The small number of observations for FRS 139 voluntary adoption is suspected to be the main limitation factor contributing to the insignificant result of the hypothesis. It is suggested that the limitation of small observations of FRS 139 voluntary adopters might be encountered during the period of mandatory adoption. Therefore, future research might investigate the impact of mandatory FRS 139 adoption.