新年新思考

又是新的一年了，新的一年当有新的话题，当作新的思考。

五朵金花风云录

"远看剑阳蝶、近看奇花素、看准滇梅、登苍山奇蝶、到达黄金海岸"! 兰友石光麟君精通易理,为人风趣幽默,某日茶余突发奇想,顺口总结了以上的顺口溜.看似玩笑,其实已经将"滇兰五朵金花"收罗其中,一经说来便传了开去,成为市场上最为流行的话语.……

RESEARCH ON IMAGO SPACE OF VALLEY CITY——A Case Study of Lanzhou City

Currently domestic researches on urban imago space concentrate in a few cities that lie in the advanced region, such as Beijing, Guangzhou, Wuhan, etc., but in so far as those cities that lie in the northwest inland region, the research of this aspect is still few. In order to supplement a special example to the urban imago space theory and to validate former theory, this article studied the Lanzhou urban imago space. During the course of researching, authors adopted some investigating methods, such as visiting on the spot, photograph identification method and sketch map identification method etc. Using investigated data, this paper made an elementary research on urban imago space of Lanzhou, which is a typical valley city in the western China. The result of study indicated that the urban imago space of Lanzhou takes Xiguan Cross as its center (Lanzhou involves four districts of Chengguan, Qilihe, Anning and Xigu). In the process of recognition of urban imago space, the Huanghe (Yellow) River and mountains beside the city are the dominant factors and the main nodes of cognition. So the urban imago space of Lanzhou is quite different from that of plain cities. Interviewee did well in the spatial structure map, which was made up of mountainous land, river and main trunk roads,the group structure took profound impression on people.

Examination of Historical Data of the 1125 Lanzhou M 7.0 Earthquake and Analysis of Seismogenic Structure

Detailed examination of historical data of earthquakes and field investigations of loess landslide caused by the earthquake and tracing of active faults in Lanzhou area indicate that the Yijitanpu town, one of six towns of Jincheng city, was devastated by the 1125 Lanzhou earthquake. The citly is now located in the Vinylon Factory south of Hekou (River Mouth) in the Xigu district of Lanzhou city. We delermined that the six old towns mentioned in historical records lie in an area stretching from the south of Xigu district to Hekou in Lanzhou. This is consistent with the distribution of loess landslides caused by the earthquake, the extension of Holocene active faults, and the distribution of traces of the seismic rupture zone. A comprehensive analysis shows that the seismogenic structure for the 1125 Lanzhou M 7.0 earthquake should be the Xianshuigou fault segment at the western termination of the north-border active fault zone of the Maxianshan Mountains which are located in south of Lanzhou city with the distance of only 4 km.

After-market liquidity and IPOs underpricing： Evidence from Shari＇ah and non Shari＇ah-based firms

The underpricing of initial public offerings （IPOs） is generally explained with asymmetric information and risk. We complement these traditional explanations with a new theory proposed by Ellul and Pagano （2006） where investors worry also about the after-market illiquidity that may result from asymmetric information after the IPO. The less liquid the after-market is expected to be, the larger will be the IPO underpricing. The samples are the 41 IPOs carried out between 2001-2005. The samples are 7 Shari＇ah-based firms and 34 non Shariah-based firms. Shariah-based firms are those included in Jakarta Islamic Index （JII）, at least one period （one semester）. Regression results show that the relationship between after-market liquidity and underpricing is insignificant unless we use trading frequency as proxy for liquidity for non Shariah-based firms.

Daily Patterns in Stock Returns： Evidence From the New Zealand Stock Market

In this paper, we study day-of-the-week effects in stock retums across different industry sectors in the New Zealand market. Unlike other studies on this market, we examine weekday seasonality using daily stock return data of four market indexes and 16 industry sectors for the period from October 1, 1997 to April 16, 2009. We do not find significant Monday anomalies of the market index, large capitalization stock index and all industry sectors except for the property sector. Our finding is inconsistent with the literature on the New Zealand stock market. However, we find that the mid and small capitalization stocks have significant negative returns on Mondays than on other weekdays, which is consistent with the previous studies in some other markets.

Optimizing Urban Spatial Structure of Lanzhou Based on Geographic Concentration Method of Industries

Geographic concentration of industries is the regional- ized distribution of some industries in certain areas, which focuses on the ratio of a certain industry to the whole industries (He and Liu, 2006). In this paper we explore the improved M function of geographic concentration that adds the parameter of the number of firms according to the definition of geographic concentration of industries. The spatial distribution of the main manufacturing industries of Lanzhou urban area is evaluated based on it. The results of the evaluation imply that the spatial distribution of the main manufacturing industries is more concentrated than that of others in Lanzhou and it can absorb lots of labor forces. But the incidence, competition ability and density of the distribution of enterprises are different for each single sector, and enterprises with different production features are located closely. And three main problems are discovered. Finally, three countermeasures are put forward: locating the industrial enterprises in urban areas in a proper way through planning and policies; adjusting the industrial structure of the inner city; strengthening the local rearrangement of the existing industrial concentration areas.

Top Executive Turnover and Finn Performance Evidence From China

By using the data of the listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen stock market---a share market as a sample from 2003 to 2007 to analyze the relationship between corporation performance and top executive alteration, different succession modes get different efficiency. The result shows that： The decline of company performance will cause the top executive turnover, and that the possibility of top executive turnover in non-state-owned listed companies is higher than that of the state-owned companies. In the routine turnover sample, the performance level of the internal succession is better than that of the external succession. In the non-routine turnover sample, the results are reversed. For further analysis, the main sources of the improvement for performance are items of below-the-line and non-recurring profit and loss, rather than the company＇s operating revenue.

Understanding Everyday Homes of Urban Communities： The Case of Local Streets （Hawari） of Old Cairo

This paper aims at investigating architectural and urban heritage from the sociocultural point of view, which stands on the human asset of traditional sites such as the hawari of old Cairo. It analyzes the social practice of everyday life in one of the oldest Cairene hawari, Haret al Darb al Asfar. The focus is on architectural and spatial organization of outdoor and indoor spaces that coordinate the spatial practices of local community. A daily monitoring of people＇s activities and interviews was conducted in an investigation of how local people perceive their built environment between the house＇s interior and the outdoor shared space. It emerges that people construct their own field of private spheres according to complex patterns of daily activities that are not in line with the classical segregation between private and public in Islamic cities. This paper reports that the harah is basically a construct of social spheres that are organized spatially by the flexible development of individual buildings over time and in response to changes in individuals＇ needs and capabilities. In order to achieve sustainability in old urban quarters, the paper concludes, the focus should be directed towards the local organization of activities and a comprehensive upgrading of deteriorating buildings to match the changing needs of current population.

Notions of Free Market and Social Welfare in Islamic Economics

Trading and business in Islam has been identified as the second best profession after agriculture and Prophet Muhammad （PBUH） himself has been engaged in trading. The Islamic theory of market aims to provide optimization of returns and satisfaction for all stakeholders. It also seeks to make ＂free market＂ an instrument of promoting equity and social justice for the welfare of society. It combines tenants from the free market model as well as those in command market economy. Islamic economics identifies certain functional parameters for the efficient functioning of the market to achieve the optimization of returns and social welfare like absence of middle men, prohibition of hoarding, mode of finance free from interest and usury, taxation and other wealth redistribution instruments like Zakat and Khums, asset-based and risk-sharing partnerships and stakes, etc.. It essentially creates conditions for proper functioning of a competitive market as an instrument of economic progress and social equity. In Islamic economics, the role accorded to the state is to ensure that institutions are set up and vigilance officers are appointed which create the specified condition for the proper and fair functioning of the market and hence preventing what is identified as ＂market failure＂. The role of the state is to improve the functioning of the market as opposed to that of systematic intervention. This paper tries to examine the Islamic notions of ＂free market＂ in the traditional sources like Qur＇an, Hadees, the early texts of Islamic Jurisprudence, and contemporary writings on Islamic economic system and to make a comparative analysis with theories of market in capitalist and socialist frameworks. The paper will examine the extent to which Islamic notions of free market offer an alternative model to resolve the problems of growth, inequity, and risk management.

Determination of the Seismogenic Structure of the 1861 East of Pulandian M6.0 earthquake

The 1861 M6. 0 earthquake occurring in the east of Pulandian is another strong earthquake with M ≥ 6. 0 besides the 1975 Haicheng MT. 3 earthquake in the Liaodong peninsula. Through repeated investigations, the epicenter of the 1861 earthquake was located at Gupao, a village east of Pulandian. Based on the analyses of damage survey and precise location of modern instrumental earthquake data, the activity and seismic risk of the Jinzhou fault, Pulandian bay fault and the NW-trending Pulandian fault were analyzed. And by comparing the deep seismogenic environment between Pulandian and Haicheng, it is found that, as a neogenic active fault, the NW-trending fault, conjugated with the Jinzhou fault, has a higher seismic risk. The NW-trending fault is the seismogenic structure of the 1861 M6. 0 earthquake. And the Jinzhou fault, as a major fault in the Liaodong Peninsula, has controlled the seismicity of the region. The Pulandian bay fault is relatively inactive, with weak seismicity, and unrelated to the earthquake.

The Future Prospect for the Evolution of Islamic Banking in Turkey

In Turkey, banks having ＂Islamic＂ features that are long neglected have experienced strong business growth since 2003 that is just after the date of a moderate Islamic party which emerged victorious in parliamentary elections. While Turkey has only four ＂Islamic＂ banks, they capture more than 4% market share. The purpose of this research is to analyze the mechanisms that have allowed such a growth between 2002 （just after the financial crisis in 2001） and 2009, by comparing the results of activities of these four Islamic banks and find out possible opportunities that might exist in this sector. The results indicate that these institutions have a respectively higher risk-taking and internationally more fair open policy than the banks known as ＂conventional＂. While Bank Asya （the market leader of the participatory banks in Turkey） and Albaraka Turk capture the individual customers, the other two institutions that are TurkiyeFinans and Kuveyt Turk capture the commercial customers. In addition, the development of these institutions seems to be very difficult because of the lack of Turkish Sukuk in Turkish banking context having no adequate liquidity. Moreover, in its political context, leading actors in Turkish political and economic structure reject utterly the existence of Sharia Board. In fact, it is clear that the Turkish banking sector is an untapped potential market that could be easily converted into an opportunity by improving the regulatory framework and communication strategy for these institutions. Indeed, since the controversy still exists around the concept of secularism, which is an impediment to the development of these banks called ＂Islamic＂ in Turkey, there is a necessity for a communication strategy to break down prejudices and to become popular for Islamic finance sector, which is still known very poorly and superficially by general public in Turkey.

Seismic Risk Assessment and Maximum Magnitudes of Potential Earthquakes on Active Faults near Lanzhou City

The Zhuanglang river and Baiyin Baiyangshu river faults are late Quaternary faults near Lanzhou city, which pose a threat to the safety of the city. However, the cause of medium- strong earthquakes along the fault is rather complicated and even uncertain. It is important for us how to assess the magnitudes of maximum potential earthquakes and the seismic risk of the faults. The authors make reference to the method that Wen Xueze, et ai. （2007） developed to assess the magnitudes of maximum potential earthquakes in sub-areas of moderately and weakly active faults in the eastern Chinese Mainland, and brought forward an empirical relationship between the maximum magnitudes Mmax and the at/b values of the sub-areas＇ frequency- magnitude relationships in the Lanzhou area. By using this empirical relationship, the authors have estimated the upper-limits Mu of the Zhuanglang river and Baiyin Baiyangshu river active faults near Lanzhou city as Ms6.9 and 6.3, respectively. In addition, they have assessed the average interval recurrence time and the probabilities of destructive earthquakes on the faults.

Overcome Gentrification： New Dutch Urban Paradigms

The study is related to the city of Rotterdam, investigated in relation to the spatial changes caused by the massive immigration that took place since the 1940s and of which contemporary spatial planning is taking place. The urban regeneration program, promoted by the Municipality of Rotterdam, provided for the reconnection of the district to the urban dynamics of the city and the improvement of public spaces and private accommodation to encourage a process of social gentrification. The social challenges that characterize contemporary cities, especially caused by the violent immigration, have defined a new urban paradigm and new forms of collaboration; as urban planners, we must continue to promote the formation of inclusive, multi-faceted and multitasking cities that are able to capture the diversity of sociality that inhabits the strategic character that makes them different and unique and to experiment welfare and social governance models that allow the shared experience within the urban analyzed contexts; only by making the immigrants protagonists of sociality and of urban civilization can we build stainless cities that resist to climate change and above all to social changes.

Prices of Apartments in Relation to Noise Level in Poland

Acoustic climate of a given area ought to be a factor of considerable significance in investment processes in an urbanized area, especially in a residential real estate market, due to its extensive influence on the living standards of its inhabitants. In the following article, the authors have given an analysis of the residential market of housing units located in areas of acceptable and excessive noise levels in preselected regions of Poland. With this end in view, an entirely new source of information has been used in the research--an acoustic map which has been defined and applied to produce the outcome of the analysis. It allowed for the recognition of whether or not the noise level influences decisions made by investors existing in a local residential real estate market.

Paired Border Towns or TwinCities from Finland and China

This paper discusses cross-border cooperation at the level of urban socio-economic systems. Worldwide, cross-border urban cooperation has in several cases produced socio-economic and political coherence supported by various joint programs and efforts. However, the degree of coherence varies and seldom cre-ates socio-economically and politically tightly integrated "Twin-Cities" where the state border becomes highly transparent or ob-scure. Focusing on Finlan d and China, our aim is to identify whether the selected border towns represent coherent TwinCities or a more loose type of "paired border towns". The study uses an empirical examination of three Finnish towns (Helsinki, Tornio, Imatra) and their neighboring towns in Estonia, Sweden, and Rus-sia as a benchmark. Then, a comparative study is made regarding three Chinese cross-border cities facing Russia, Vietnam and Ka-zakhstan. We highlight the differences in cross-border integration from the viewpoint of shared public sector programs, cross-border enterprise relocation and networking, and integrated social sector in terms of labor market, education and shopping area.

Rethinking Iranian Urban Housing -- A Review on the Housing Attributes under the Current Development of Tehran

Housing in the private sector in the metropolitan of Tehran in the past decades has been very much tied to the economical considerations, The current urban and building standards and regulations are believed to have very much contributed to the undermining the many social, environmental and visual potentials of the neighborhoods and to what we face today as congested apartment atmosphere where and the monotonous character of most of the neighborhoods as a result of the very same plans and regulations applied to their development namely the setbacks, land coverage ratios and floor to land area ratios with no regard to the very different characters many of these neighborhoods once had, either traditional and long-established or scenic and natural. The purpose of this paper is to briefly review the current state and trend of urban housing in Tehran and search for practical measures to improve the environment and character of urban housing in the city.

The Public Private Partnership （PPP） as a Solution During the Period of Transformation of the Medical Services Market in Poland

The public private partnership （PPP） has functioned worldwide for more than 40 years now, and in different countries, it is developing at different speeds with varying degrees of success. The purpose of this article is to emphasize some standards of the PPP, in particular, within health services area which would guarantee a successful transformation process within the medical services market in Poland, and thus an appropriate division of financial and market risks among the public sectors, including local government sector and private partners within the health services area. Certainly, proper transformation solutions within that industry would significantly contribute to the stabilization of the local government＇s finance sector and higher resistance to the global financial crisis.

Investor Relations （IR） in Business Communication on the Example of Poland

This paper focuses on investor relations （IR） as an element of companies＇ communication with the external environment. It shows the place and role of IR in communication with the general market, and the stock exchange market in particular. The study is illustrated with an example of IR in Poland, a relatively new European Union （EU） member state and an emerging market. As can be seen, IR goes beyond the traditionally understood maintenance of communication with the capital market. It is also shown that the main role of IR ought to be the reduction of investment risk and enhancement of the companies＇ value, which is of particular significance in light of the current globalization of capital markets. It has been found that Polish companies, especially those listed on the Warsaw Securities Exchange （WSE）, commonly rely on IR as a means of communication with the environment. And yet, as the results of the analysis show, the quality of that communication is still far from satisfactory, despite efforts undertaken by various external entities to encourage more focus on the development of IR, or understanding of the company＇s relevant staff of its important role.