The dynamic tuning of terahertz (THz) electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) offers significant potential in rapidly changing THz regulation fields, such as the next generation wireless ...communication, switching, and sensing. In this work, we demonstrate a THz EIT metamaterial by combining a circular and a rectangular split-ring resonator (CSRR and RSRR) based on the bright-bright mode coupling. The introduction of graphene into the EIT structure enables active tuning, and reveals two distinct regulation mechanisms in the metal-graphene hybrid EIT metamaterial: 1. the internal coupling effect diminishes with the increase of the Fermi level in the CSRR-graphene integration; 2. the surface electric field undergoes redistribution in the RSRR-graphene integration. These two dynamic regulation mechanisms are well confirmed by the simulated electric field distribution. As a result, the transmittance within the EIT window of the hybrid metamaterial can be precisely modulated, exhibiting a significant modulation depth of >85%. Notably, the integration with graphene in the RSRR allows for simultaneous modulation of resonances on either side of the EIT peaks, which expands more THz modulation channels. This work enriches the design and implementation methods for active THz EIT and shows potential applications in THz dynamic application scenarios.
•A THz hybrid EIT metamaterial incorporates monolayer graphene is proposed.•This work achieves simultaneous modulation of the EIT-window and two adjacent bright modes.•The proposed structure has the advantages of active control, more modulation channels, and higher modulation depth.
Driven by pressures from multiple stakeholders, supply chain transparency (SCT) has emerged as a phenomenon of increased interest. To address concerns about practices and processes at point of origin ...locations for raw materials in global supply chains, blockchain technology (BCT) has the potential to enhance SCT. Supply chain research has started to advance the field's understanding of SCT, but many questions remain, including how SCT should be conceptualized, how firms can effectively facilitate it, and the benefits of providing it, especially when BCT is utilized. The gaps suggest the need for fundamental theoretical development about the resources and capabilities underlying the development, application, and derived value of SCT. This research designed a case study around a BCT implementation project between a small artisan coffee producer and a startup BCT service provider. Using the resource orchestration perspective, the findings result in theoretical insights about how the mechanisms in structuring, bundling, and leveraging processes operate to offer SCT to stakeholders, and the value creation derived as a result.
Differential privacy is at a turning point. Implementations have been successfully leveraged in private industry, the public sector, and academia in a wide variety of applications, allowing ...scientists, engineers, and researchers the ability to learn about populations of interest without specifically learning about these individuals. Because differential privacy allows us to quantify cumulative privacy loss, these differentially private systems will, for the first time, allow us to measure and compare the total privacy loss due to these personal data-intensive activities. Appropriately leveraged, this could be a watershed moment for privacy.
Like other technologies and techniques that allow for a range of instantiations, implementation details matter. When meaningfully implemented, differential privacy supports deep data-driven insights with minimal worst-case privacy loss. When not meaningfully implemented, differential privacy delivers privacy mostly in name. Using differential privacy to maximize learning while providing a meaningful degree of privacy requires judicious choices with respect to the privacy parameter epsilon, among other factors. However, there is little understanding of what is the optimal value of epsilon for a given system or classes of systems/purposes/data etc. or how to go about figuring it out.
To understand current differential privacy implementations and how organizations make these key choices in practice, we conducted interviews with practitioners to learn from their experiences of implementing differential privacy. We found no clear consensus on how to choose epsilon, nor is there agreement on how to approach this and other key implementation decisions. Given the importance of these implementation details there is a need for shared learning amongst the differential privacy community. To serve these purposes, we propose the creation of the Epsilon Registry—a publicly available communal body of knowledge about differential privacy implementations that can be used by various stakeholders to drive the identification and adoption of judicious differentially private implementations.
ABSTRACT We investigate whether aggressive tax planning firms have a less transparent information environment. Although tax planning provides expected tax savings, it can simultaneously increase the ...financial complexity of the organization. And to the extent that this greater financial complexity cannot be adequately clarified through communications with outside parties, such as investors and analysts, transparency problems can arise. Our investigation of the association between tax aggressiveness and information asymmetry, analysts' forecast errors, and earnings quality suggests that aggressive tax planning is associated with lower corporate transparency. We also find evidence that managers at tax-aggressive firms attempt to mitigate these transparency problems by increasing various tax-related disclosures. Overall, our results suggest that firms face a trade-off between tax benefits and financial transparency when choosing the aggressiveness of their tax planning. JEL Classifications: G30; H26; M41.
Towards platform observability Rieder, Bernhard; Hofmann, Jeanette
Internet policy review,
2020, Volume:
9, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
The growing power of digital platforms raises the question of democratic control or at least containment. In light of the transforming impact of platforms on markets, the public sphere, elections, ...and employment conditions, governments, and civil society alike are demanding more transparency and accountability. Shedding light on the principles and practices of algorithmic ordering promises to limit the power of platforms by subjecting their hidden operations to regulatory inspection. This article questions the popular image of an openable 'black box'. Based on a critical reflection on transparency as a panacea for curtailing platform power, we propose the concept of observability to deal more systematically with the problem of studying complex algorithmic systems. We set out three broad principles as regulatory guidelines for making platforms more accountable. These principles concern the normative and analytical scope, the empirical and temporal dimension, and the necessary capacities for learning and knowledge generation.
In this position paper, I argue that the main purpose of research is to discover and report on phenomena in a truthful manner. Once uncovered, these phenomena can have important implications for ...society. The utility of research depends on whether it makes a contribution because it is original or can add to cumulative research efforts, is rigorously and reliably done, and is able to inform basic or applied research and later policy. However, five serious “diseases” stifle the production of useful research. These diseases include: significosis, an inordinate focus on statistically significant results; neophilia, an excessive appreciation for novelty; theorrhea, a mania for new theory; arigorium, a deficiency of rigor in theoretical and empirical work; and finally, disjunctivitis, a proclivity to produce large quantities of redundant, trivial, and incoherent works. I surmise that these diseases have caused immense harm to science and have cast doubt on the role of science in society. I discuss what publication gatekeepers should do to eradicate these diseases, to stimulate the undertaking of more useful and impactful research, and to provide the needed incentives to better align the interests of researchers with those of the greater good. Finally, I highlight where technical improvements are needed to enhance research quality, and call on deeper reflection, transparency, and honesty in how we do research.
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•Fabrication of Ni-mesh network transparent electrode using cracked silica templated.•Growth of vertically aligned and intertwined Co(OH)2@Ni-mesh network by ...electrodeposition.•Co(OH)2@Ni-mesh exhibit an area capacitance of 22.9 mF/cm2 at 5 mV/s.•Device demonstrates high energy density ~0.42 μWh/cm2 at 8.33 μW/cm2 power density.
Pseudo-capacitive materials have attracted great attention as electrode materials for supercapacitor owing to their high specific capacitance, high energy densities, and high rate capability. However, performances of pseudo-capacitive materials as transparent flexible supercapacitors are limited due to their non-transparent characteristics and brittleness in nature. Herein, we report a scalable, low-cost, and opto-electrochemical tunable, high-performance core-shell Co(OH)2@Ni-mesh network transparent flexible supercapacitor electrode using a simple cracked silica template method in combination with metal deposition and electrochemical deposition technique. A seamless highly-conducting (~24 Ω/sq), transparent Ni-mesh network (~87%) was first fabricated using cracked silica template and etching method. In particular, a cracked silica template enables fabrication of a junction-less, high-aspect-ratio Ni-mesh network which substantially improves conductivity without considerably sacrificing transparency. The Ni-mesh network as flexible transparent current collector high pseudo-capacitive material, Co(OH)2 nanosheets were then electrodeposited over Ni-mesh network electrode. The growth of vertically aligned and intertwined Co(OH)2 nanosheets over Ni-mesh network electrodes results in high electrochemical performance of the electrode at high transparency. The core-shell Co(OH)2@Ni-mesh network electrode with the transparency of ~75% demonstrated an areal capacitance of 22.9 mF/cm2 at 5 mV/s scan rate, exhibiting excellent mechanical flexibility along with high rate capability. Moreover, the fabricated symmetric transparent flexible supercapacitor device exhibited a high areal cell capacitance of 5.32 mF/cm2 at 5 mV/s scan rate at a transparency of ~54%, showing high rate capability, long cycling stability, excellent mechanical bendability along with high energy density of 0.42 μWh/cm2 and power density of 8.33 μW/cm2.
Despite the ample literature on government transparency, our knowledge about how the vertical power structure of governments shapes local compliance with government transparency mandates is still ...limited. This study sets out to address this gap. Specifically, we investigate how the central government's environmental information disclosure (EID) signal and provincial governments’ conflicting signal of economic growth affect, independently and interactively, city governments’ compliance with central EID mandates in the center-province-city hierarchical structure in China. We argue that the central EID signal positively affects city compliance, while the provincial signal of economic growth reduces it. Moreover, the provincial signal of economic growth negatively moderates the impact of the central EID signal. Empirically, with a panel dataset for city-level governments from 2008 to 2018, we found robust evidence strongly supporting our theoretical hypotheses.
Points for practitioners
This research reveals the influences of the complex dynamics among governments at different levels on local compliance with government transparency mandates. The findings suggest that the maneuvers of middle-level governments in a multilevel power structure and the interactions among multiple conflicting policy goals should be taken seriously by practitioners when designing policies to promote government transparency reforms.