In the history of the Christian religion there may be no parallel to the Worldwide Church of God’s radical transformation from a marginal sect to a recognized denomination. Formed around Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986), the sect became one of the largest religious media ministries, offering the Plain Truth magazine and the World Tomorrow radio and television programs. After Armstrong’s death, the sect was headed by Joseph W. Tkach who, before his own death in 1996, reformed some beliefs and practices. He was succeeded by his son, Joseph Tkach, who renounced the sect’s dependence on Armstrong’s teachings. A significant issue in this transformation was the Worldwide Church of God’s adoption of the Christian Doctrine of the Holy Trinity. The cognitive developmental theories of Karl Helmut Reich, of Switzerland, outlined in his book Developing the Horizons of the Mind (Cambridge University Press, 2002), are related to the application of the idea of complementarity, drawn from quantum physics, to the resolution of paradoxical ideas , with some reference to the Doctrine of the Trinity. The focus of the research was on how these leaders, as change agents, were able to demonstrate development of their thinking, (as gauged by their understanding of the Trinity Doctrine) according to Reich’s stage theory. As the first study of this kind, the results were enlightening and raised hope about the ability of Reich’s theory to explain the phenomenon studied and also revealed progress in the transformation or conversion of Worldwide Church of God leaders. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・論文博士 / 博士(農学) / 乙第12896号 / 論農博第2810号 / 新制||農||1029(附属図書館) / 学位論文||H27||N4886(農学部図書室) / 31650 / (主査)教授 中坊 徹次, 准教授 田川 正朋, 准教授 豊原 治彦 / 学位規則第4条第2項該当 / Doctor of Agricultural Science / Kyoto University / DGAM

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The potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) crop serves as a staple food worldwide and is capable of reducing the world’s food shortages because unlike cereals and other agricultural crops, it is less affected by prices in the international markets. Research on alleviation of food crises suggested root and tuber crops such as potatoes to be the solution to the problem of food shortage. The crop is widely cultivated but is difficult to produce due to susceptibility to numerous pests and pathogenic organisms, as well as abiotic stresses. To control these pests and diseases, strategies to limit susceptibility to factors that interfere with the growth and development of plants, or breeding new varieties that are able to withstand stresses are being researched. Recent studies have shown that non essential nutrients such as Silicon (Si) are beneficial to plants in terms of yield, protection from fungal diseases and improved uptake of phosphorus. Since very little research has focused on the role of Si in improving potato production, three glasshouse pot trials were conducted at the Hatfield Experimental farm and Department of Plant Pathology glasshouses of the University of Pretoria to evaluate the effect of various soil amendments on potato yield and quality. The effect of these soil amendments on pH was also investigated as P-uptake and development of common scab in potatoes are pH dependent. The soil amendments consisted of different silicon sources and an agricultural lime. The Si sources were Calmasil slag (Middleburg) (30% Si- containing liming material), fly ash (50% Si nonliming material), and Si fume/ash (99% Si non-liming material). Agricultural lime (CaCO3) was included as a control. The purpose of the first two trials was to identify the most promising silicon-containing source for potato production, while the third trial evaluated the effect of this silicon source on soil pH and potato tuber yield. In all three trials, agricultural lime was used as a control. Due to the high demand for nutrients by the potato crop, other nutrient elements were added to the soil through fertigation every 7 to 14 days, depending on the growth stage of the plants. Plants were irrigated with distilled water when necessary to maintain an adequate moisture level i.e. moist but not too wet. Weekly observations on growth parameters were made. To select the most promising soil amendment, parameters such as leaf chlorophyll content, plant height, tuber number and mass (Fwt), fresh and dry weight (top growth) and change in soil pH were analyzed. Slag treated plants tended to produce tubers with higher mass and better appearance. In this study the highest increase in soil pH was observed in soil mixed with slag, compared to all the other silicon sources. Although there was no significant difference observed among treatments there was a distinct difference in plant growth between trials when soil was amended with lime and slag. Plants treated with slag tended to produce tubers that weigh more, whilst plants treated with lime grew taller and had the highest tuber number. There was a significant rise in soil pH from both lime and slag, which might have in turn influenced vegetative and tuber growth. / Dissertation (MInst(Agrar)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Plant Production and Soil Science / unrestricted

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This paper empirically tests a theory laid out in Scholes et al. (2015, p. 315) that the U.S. worldwide tax system reduces the incentive of U.S. parent companies to be tax aggressive in their foreign subsidiaries. Investors subject to a worldwide tax system pay taxes on their worldwide income, regardless of the origin thereof. Therefore, a U.S. investor pays the difference between the effective tax payment abroad and the higher U.S. statutory tax when profits are repatriated. In contrast, investors subject to territorial tax systems gain the full tax savings from being tax aggressive abroad. Our results show that U.S.-owned foreign subsidiaries have a by 1.2 percentage point higher average GAAP effective tax rate (ETR) compared to subsidiaries owned by foreign investors from countries with a territorial system. We contribute to the literature by showing a mechanism, other than cross-country profit shifting, why U.S. multinational companies have higher GAAP ETRs than multinationals subject to territorial tax systems. (authors' abstract) / Series: WU International Taxation Research Paper Series

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The current United States tax code regarding foreign sourced income is outdated for a heavily globalized and interconnected world. Multinationals have played certain games with the tax code to lower their domestic and foreign tax bill. This form of tax avoidance has real economic effects that are leading to non-optimal economic outcomes. This paper will begin by offering examples of how multinationals are avoiding taxes, especially in the pricing of intangible assets. Other countries have adopted different ways to tax foreign profits; notably most countries either have a worldwide non-deferral tax system or a territorial tax system. There are costs and benefits associated with both systems of taxation that must be considered before adoption. Ultimately, this paper will conclude that a territorial tax system combined with an overhaul of the current rules regarding transfer pricing will lead to a better economic outcome than the current U.S. system of taxation.

A substantial literature has evolved focusing on the synergies generated by the strategic alliances (SAs). In this dissertation, the author chooses Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide as the focal firm, and analyze the cases of SAs formed by its brands, including St.Regis, Westin, W Hotel and Element from year 2008 to 2010. First of all, this dissertation will discuss the development and the general condition of the hotel industry in the United States of America. And then present Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide by analyzing its position in its brands. Also, this dissertation introduces the partner firms and then infers the reasons of the SAs and the synergies created by them. At last, gives the readers suggestions from those cases. According to the overall analysis, there are 5 kinds synergies generated by SAs are shown as follow. (1) synergies generated by brand alliance (2) synergies generated by CSR (3) synergies generated by social relation network (4) synergies generated by market (5) synergies generated by complementary abilities The managers can employ the 5 categories of synergies constructed by this literature when deciding partners, scopes and types of SAs. The categories and the practical cases presented will provide more directions and aspects for reference.

A four-sector switchable WiMAX antenna, for indoor use in the 4.9 -5.0 GHz frequency bands, is presented. The prototype antenna is designed to provide a higher gain in a specified sector region. Furthermore, the radiation beam is electronically steerable to provide space diversity in four different sectors. Each sector of this antenna includes an array of two rectangular microstrip patches. The air gap between the bottom substrate of microstrip patches and the ground plane is increased to 3 mm, which can aid in accomplishing a high-gain and wideband design goal. A solid-state microwave switch is used to select one of the four sectors.