Exploring the Relationship Between Patent Forward Citation and Stock Return Rate Using Empirical Data of China Stock Market

A novel indicator called price-citation was proposed.Based on the company integrated patent database of China listed companies of common stocks(A-shares)with the stock price and the stock return rate data,more than two thousand of A-shares from 2017 to 2020 were selected.The effect of the traditional patent forward citation and the price-citation for discriminating the stock return rate was thoroughly analyzed via ANOVA.The A-shares of forward citation counts above the average showed higher stock return rate means than the A-shares having patents but receiving no forward citations.The price-citation,combining both the financial and patent attributes,defined as the multiplication of the current stock price and the currently receiving forward citation count,showed its excellence in discriminating the stock return rate.The A-shares of higher price-citation showed significantly higher stock return rate means while the A-shares of lower price-citation showed significantly lowest stock return rate means.The price-citation effect had not been changed by COVID-19 though COVID-19 affected the social and economic environment to a considerable extent in 2020.

Exploring Patent Effects on Higher Stock Price and Stock Return Rate-A Study in China Stock Market

Based on the valid patent data and stock price data of China A-shares,the patent effects of four patent species including the invention publication,the invention grant,the utility model grant,and the design grant,on the stock price and the stock return rate were analyzed via analysis of variance(ANOVA).It was proved that the A-shares having new patents of any patent species shown the higher stock price mean and the higher stock return rate mean than those A-shares having no new patents did.The A-shares having new design grants were found to show the highest stock price mean among the A-shares having new patents of any patent species.The A-shares in the group of top 25%patent count of either the invention publication or the invention grant shown the highest stock return rates mean than those A-shares in other groups of less patent count did.The invention grant,following the general concept,showed its excellent patent effect.The design grant,beyond the expectation,also showed patent effects on the higher stock price and the higher stock return rate.The finding would improve the state of the art in the patent valuation and the listing company evaluation.

Influence of rangeland protection and seasonal grazing on aboveground vegetation,forage quality and weight gain of small ruminants–a study in Thar Desert,Pakistan

The Thar Desert,Sindh,Pakistan is characterized by low productivity.Besides,economy is based on agriculture,livestock and mining,nevertheless,livestock graze freely on public and private land.The aim of this research was to determine biomass production and to evaluate the effects of continuous and seasonal grazing on protected and unprotected plots.A 45 ha protected rangeland area of Hurrabad in the Umerkot Thar desert was selected and divided into three blocks of 15 ha each.Blocks of the same size were also established in unprotected area.The data for vegetation biomass,canopy cover,forage nutrients and weight gain of animals in two seasons(spring and summer)was collected from both protected and unprotected sites.The results showed that biomass significantly increased in summer in both sites.However,the biomass values in protected sites were significantly higher.Similarly,the vegetation cover also seemed to increase in summer in both protected(90.7%±0.29%)and unprotected sites(39.2%±0.09%).The foliar concentrations of all nutrients varied significantly with season.The average final live-weight gain for does on the protected grazing sites during the 42-day period in spring and the 96 days after the monsoon was almost double that of does grazing on the unprotected site during 2016 and 2017(P<0.05).The study concludes that the protection of grazing lands during certain periods can lead to better production of vegetation and livestock and improve range conditions.

Vegetation Community Convergence of Pastoralists' Pasture at Different Economic Levels in Desert Steppe

Vegetation characteristics of pastoralist households’ pastures at different economic levels were quantiifed to compare the grassland conditions in Sunite Right Banner, Inner Mongolia, China in 2011 and 2012. The results showed that the heights of Stipa klemenzis and Cleistogenes songorica were similar among economic treatments. And the height of Allium polyrhizm had no signiifcant differences between high-economic-level （HEL） and low-economic-level （LEL） treatments. There were no signiifcant difference among treatments in the canopy cover of C. songorica. The densities of dominant species （S. klemenzis, C. songorica and A. polyrhizm） were signiifcantly similar among treatments. Aboveground community biomass in reference area （CK） was higher than that in other three treatments in 2011, but their biomass showed no signiifcant difference among three economic treatments;for 2012, biomass in HEL was higher than low-economic-level treatment （LEL）, while the biomass in middle-economic-level treatment （MEL） and CK was similar to that in HEL and LEL, respectively. Aboveground biomass of S. klemenzis and C. songorica was similar among treatments in both 2011 and 2012. Biomass of A. polyrhizum had no signiifcant difference between HEL and MEL. Households of LEL had rented out excess lands and those of HEL had leased their available lands thus resulting uniform utilization and convergence of pastoralist households’ pastures across all economic levels.

Ammonia emissions from soil under sheep grazing in Inner Mongolian grasslands of China

Ammonia （NH3） emission and redeposition play a major role in terrestrial nitrogen （N） cycles and can also cause environmental problems, such as changes in biodiversity, soil acidity, and eutrophication. Previous field grazing experiments showed inconsistent （positive, neutral, and negative） NH3 volatilization from soils in response to varying grazing intensities. However, it remains unclear whether, or to what extent, NH3 emissions from soil are affected by increasing grazing intensities in Inner Mongolian grasslands. Using a 5-year grazing experiment, we investigated the relationship between NH3 volatilization from soil and grazing pressure （0.0, 3.0, 6.0, and 9.0 sheep/hm2） from June to September of 2009 and 2010 via the vented-chamber method. The results show that soil NH3 volatilization was not significantly different at different grazing intensities in 2009, although it was higher at the highest stocking rate during 2010. There was no significant linear relationship between soil NH3 volatilization rates and soil NH4^-N, but soil NH3 volatilization rates were significantly related to soil water content and air temperature. Grazing intensities had no significant influence on soil NH3 volatilization. Soil NH3 emissions from June to Sep- tember （grazing period）, averaged over all grazing intensities, were 9.6±0.2 and 19.0±0.2 kg N/hm2 in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Moreover, linear equations describing monthly air temperature and precipitation showed a good fit to changes in soil NH3 emissions （r=0.506, P=0.014）. Overall, grazing intensities had less influence than that of climatic factors on soil NH3 emissions. Our findings provide new insights into the effects of grazing on NH3 volatili- zation from soil in Inner Mongolian grasslands, and have important implications for understanding N cycles in grassland ecosystems and for estimating soil NH3 emissions on a regional scale.

The efficiency of long-term straw return to sequester organic carbon in Northeast China＇s cropland

Black soil is one of the most precious soil resources on earth because it has abundant carbon stocks and a relatively high production capacity. However, decreasing organic matter after land reclamation, and the effects of long-term inputs of organic carbon have made it less fertile black soil in Northeast China. Straw return could be an effective method for improving soil organic carbon（SOC） sequestration in black soils. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether straw return effectively increases SOC sequestration. Long-term field experiments were conducted at three sites in Northeast China with varying latitudes and SOC densities. Study plots were subjected to three treatments： no fertilization（CK）; inorganic fertilization（NPK）; and NPK plus straw return（NPKS）. The results showed that the SOC stocks resulting from NPKS treatment were 4.0 and 5.7% higher than those from NPK treatment at two sites, but straw return did not significantly affect the SOC stocks at the third site. Furthermore, at higher SOC densities, the NPKS treatment resulted in significantly higher soil carbon sequestration rates（CSR） than the NPK treatment. The equilibrium value of the CSR for the NPKS treatment equated to cultivation times of 17, 11, and 8 years at the different sites. Straw return did not significantly increase the SOC stocks in regions with low SOC densities, but did enhance the C pool in regions with high SOC densities. These results show that there is strong regional variation in the effects of straw return on the SOC stocks in black soil in Northeast China. Additional cultivations and fertilization practices should be used when straw return is considered as an approach for the long-term improvement of the soil organic carbon pool.

Soil organic carbon stocks and belowground biomass in patches in heterogeneous grassland

Background:Selective grazing creates stable patches of contrasting sward height,thereby providing different growth conditions for the grass sward above and below ground and potentially affecting soil organic carbon(SOC)stocks.We hypothesized that the presence of patches leads to greater spatial variability in belowground biomass(BGB)and SOC stocks than occurs between pastures managed under different stocking intensities.Methods:A long-term grazing experiment consisting of three stocking intensities was used for this study.We studied BGB,SOC,and soil total nitrogen(Ntot)stocks in the 0-15 cm soil depth.Shannon diversity of plant species,soil bulk density,soil phosphorus,potassium,and magnesium contents were considered.Results:There were no significant effects of patch or stocking intensity on BGB,SOC,and Ntot stocks.Short patches had a greater Shannon diversity than tall patches(p<0.05)and plant-available nutrients in soil correlated positively with sward height(p<0.05).Conclusions:We conclude from the current results and previous studies that higher plant species diversity with lower soil nutrient contents in short-patch areas and higher nutrient contents together with light competition in tall-patch areas might balance each other out with respect to BGB and SOC stocks.

Sustainable management of Chinese grasslands—issues and knowledge

China has almost 400 Mhm^2 of grasslands,90% of which is considered degraded to varying degrees,on which 16 million herders depend for their livelihoods and many more indirectly, along the value-adding chain.Since 1950, average stocking rates across China have increased 4-fold. National policies have focused over recent decades on finding ways to rehabilitate the degraded grasslands, to sustain livestock production from them, and to improve the livelihoods of herder households, who are among the poorest people in China. A large collaborative program commenced in the early 2000 s to help find solutions to the sustainable management of grasslands.This paper summarizes key findings of many research projects, identifies where knowledge is weak and argues that the successful rehabilitation of grasslands will also require policies that provide incentives and support for herders as they move from a focus on survival to a focus on production of higher quality products, for which consumers are increasingly willing to pay. A key focus is to emphasize the improvement of animal production per head. When this is done, it naturally leads to lower stocking rates, which in turn provides the opportunities for grasslands to recover. Across a range of experiments, farm demonstrations and analyses using models, in Inner Mongolia and Gansu, a consistent result has been that a 50% reduction in stocking rates, improves net household income and starts the process of grassland rehabilitation.Rather than focusing on stocking rates, better management of grasslands could be achieved by maintaining the grasslands above critical values for herbage mass, values that help optimize botanical composition, reduce soil erosion, optimize animal growth rates and aid ecosystem functions. Managing to critical values for herbage mass is likely to be more effective than efforts to calculate sustainable stocking rates. An early summer rest is valuable for aiding grassland rehabilitation and summer productivity, but a total grazing ban(typically for 5 years)may not achieve its aims as evidence shows it may take 10–15 years to achieve a better grassland state. Lessdesirable plant species often increase in degraded grasslands that are rested and grazing can help manage those species. Surveys of herders indicate they have very mixed views on the benefits of total grazing bans that are unlikely to rehabilitate grasslands to an ideal botanical composition.The current objective is to work with grasslands that herders now have and optimize the existing composition.Grazing grasslands in winter results primarily in weight loss by animals and there is now evidence of how winter grazing reduces grassland growth in the next summer. It is better to keep animals in well-built sheds and feed them better, improved feeding through the cold months is required. In addition to the application of results from national programs designed to improve grasslands, it will be important to train herders as they move from survival to production, to foster the development of better markets for their livestock products, to devise better financial support for herder businesses and to revise land tenure arrangements so that herders can expand the area of land they graze on better terms than apply at present.