Research Methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 5

Research Methods - Essay Example The independent variables negatively correlated with the dependent variable: number of MP3s, and age. The model is a poor model in explaining CD sales because the adjusted R2 is only 0.27. Nevertheless, the F-statistics is significant with a p-value of 0.001. This means that we can reject the null hypothesis that all coefficients of the independent variables of the model are simultaneously equal to zero. Thus, unless a better model is found, the model may be used on a provisional basis. For inferences to be appropriate, several assumptions are assumed to apply in multiple regressions (Gujarati 2004, p. 203), there are several assumptions involved in using linear regression. The most important of these are as follows: zero mean of residuals, no serial errors among residuals, homocedasticity, zero covariance between independent variable and residuals, absence of specification bias or the model is correctly specified, and no exact collinearity between the independent variables (Gujarati 2004, p. 203 and 204). Except for gender and age, all variables are able to provide a significant explanation on the value of the dependent variable. The variable â€Å"task control,† however, is able to explain at a significant level the dependent variable in Netherlands but not in the US. Except for tenure, the background variables are unable to provide a significant marginal contribution in explaining the value of the dependent variable. The variables task control environment control, and tenure consistently manifest a negative relationship and all are significantly related at p-value=0.10 with the dependent variable perceived work stress. That greater job control can significantly affect the perceived work stress is adequately supported in both regressions. However, I am uncomfortable that the both regression model can only explain not more than 25% of the variation

Features of Chinese Economic Development Article

Features of Chinese Economic Development - Article Example This paper critically reviews recent trends in economic policies by Chinese government, leading to a rapid economic development of the country in the last decades. Economic development is the measure of the progress of an economy. China is an Asian nation that has a unique economy. Reforms in China began in 1978 and since then the economic development has undergone various changes and implementations. Following these reforms between 1978 and 2005 the gross domestic product was on average 9.6% per year. China’s financial industry is of importance to the political system as they depend on the banking sector for funding. The financial reforms after 1997 involved formation of Communist Party Central Financial Work Commission. By establishing the CFWC, the Zhu Rongji government used Leninist political means to bolster the financial market integrity and reform. Zhu Rongji was a key economic policy maker in China. The CFWC served as a coordinating and planning body for regulatory bodies. It was dissolved and a Banking Regulatory Commissionestablished as a separate banking watchdog in autumn. The formation of Ministry of Information Industry in 1998 marked the beginning of reforms in the telecommunications industry. It was formally in charge of the entire information industry. China’s leadership governs key sectors whose assets and wealth contribute to the national economy through the State-owned Asset Supervision and Administration Commission. SASAC was established in 2003 and has since taken a regulatory role in China.

The Point Of View Of Stories

The Point Of View Of Stories The two short stories chosen ,The Gift of the Magi and The Lottery,written by Shirley Jackson, both have different points of views. They are both narrated in first-person narration which affects our response to what we read as the narrator doesnt look into the minds of its characters which leave the reader only seeing the situation through ones eyes. In The Gift of the Magi we see everything through the eyes of Della, however in the second essayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Short story The Gift of the Magi, by O. Henry, is a narrative piece about a young married couple, Della and Jim, who have very little money. Jim had suffered a pay cut, therefore the two have to work hard for everything for their earnings. On the day before Christmas, Della counted the money she had saved for months. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. Sadly, after a good long cry, she is determined to find a way to buy Jim the present he deserves for Christmas. Jim and Della have two possessions of the James Dillingham Youngs in which they both took a mighty pride. One is Jims gold watch, which has been passed to him from his grandfather. The other is Dellas lustrous hair falling down almost past her knees. As Della passes by a sign and reads: Mme. Sofronie. Hair Goods of All Kinds, she goes in to whom she sells her hair for twenty dollars. With that money, she tries to find something worthy of Jim, and in which she did, a platinum watch chain. O. Henry accomplishes several techniques in The Gift of the Magi that are representative to most of his other short stories. The story seems to be third person narrated. It is told in the third-person, and only follows Dellas perspective. We dont see what Jim is doing during the story, and once he does show up, he remains closed to us. Although the story focuses on Dellas point of view, is also shows us as the reader what she sees. It is like the narrator is in the story as a character that is just heard of, but never seen. By O. Henry doing this, it engages us and shares our insight thoughts on the Youngs situation. He uses a laid-back sort of expression such as took a mighty pride and breaks his story with a humorous tone such as forget the hashed metaphor. Della explains to Jim that in order for her to buy him his present she needed to sell her hair. Jim found it difficult to understand the situation but Della didnt understand why. He then takes from his pocket Dellas Christmas present, in which she opens it and finds a set of combs for her hair, which she had been admiring in a store window for a long time. Finally she understands why her husband was so shocked. They exchange their Christmas gifts; however, Jim does not pull out his watch to fit to the chain, as he had to sell his watch in order to buy Dellas combs. Both Della and Jim foolishly sacrifice their gifts and this is why they were called their most precious possessions. As in this story, O. Henry started of by introducing the first character Della telling details about setting that hint at plot. In the first paragraph, he opened it up by introducing Della and her money problem. He mentions her decisions that create a more strongly constructed plot which moves from introducing the story on to the surprise ending. The point of view of this short story does not exactly affect our response to what we have read. Well not mine anyway. If the story was written in another point of view, it would not make it as good as it already is as it would be focusing more on what is happening else where rather then showing us the love shared between two young adults whose gifts were given by the heart. They were wise and They are the magi. In the second story, The Lottery is written by Shirley Jackson. Its opening sequence is on a warm Junes day in a tradition town that is common among its nearby villages. In the story we come across some children, which arrive in the town and connect in boisterous play. Some of the boys create a great pile of stones in one corner of the square. The setting in The Lottery was described as relaxing and peaceful, as children were playing and adults were talking about day to day situations. This showed a happy setting distinction with the wild idea of the reality with the lottery. Jackson uses a narrative technique, where she tells the events in the story, which is de described as detached and objective  [1]  . The tone of the narrative helps us to recognise the originality of the barbaric acts that are caused amongst it. Shirley Jacksons The Lottery uses the third person point of view to tell a story about a village that celebrates a yearly event. The narrator provides us with minor details of a lottery taking place, but what interests us the most is that she leaves the most important details until the end, which leaves us hanging with thoughts and questions. The use of the third person point of view is a good way of telling this short story because it helps put together the surprise that happens in the end by hinting out bits of information to the reader through the actions and discussions of the villagers without giving away the final twist.

The Sun Never Sets on the English Language Essay -- Language

English has evolved in the last hundred years from being a fragment of the old Latin world to being widely spoken around the new world. Despite living in America, we see international meetings where leaders of many countries all speak English to communicate with each other. Is it possible that English has become the lingua franca and will continue into the future to be the global language? There are many sources that indicate that future can only hold English as its selected language. In the future we will have a variety of â€Å"Englishes† that will dominate global communication, and this will occur because the dominance of English is believed to be ‘inevitable’, practical to foreign nations, and finally it appeals to a multicultural perspective for a cosmopolitan society. Everywhere you look around the world you can find the English language. In The Mother Tongue: English & How it got that Way, Bill Bryson explains, â€Å"In Yugoslavia they speak five languages. In not one of them does the word stop exist, yet every stop sign in the country says just that† (Bryson 179). Around the world we see examples of countries that don’t natively speak English but use English as a marketing scheme. Further Bryson mentions, â€Å"†¦On the bottom of the eraser is a further message: ‘We are ecologically minded. This package will self-destruct in Mother Earth’. It is a product that was made in Japan solely for Japanese consumers, yet there is not a word of Japanese on it† (Bryson 180). We can see the rise in world distributors producing ‘English’ products as the world looking for a common language; it’s seen as trendy, and obviously something that the people want. With the history of English starting at relat ively the same time as the romance languages, it’s ... ... at Essex Conference." Essex Chronicle [Chelmsford] 15 Mar. 2012, News sec.: 34. Proquest. Web. 20 Mar. 2012. http://search.proquest.com.accarcproxy.mnpals.net/docview/928036123/1359728E7DD36B71E65/5?accountid=48834 Liston, Enjoli. "Say Hello to a New Language." The Independent [London] 18 Jan. 2012: 40. Proquest. Web. 20 Mar. 2012. http://search.proquest.com.accarcproxy.mnpals.net/docview/916426138/13597240297686A7755/5?accountid=48834 Zhang, Xiaohong, and Margaret Zeegers. "Redefining The Role Of English As A Foreign Language In The Curriculum In The Global Context." Changing English: Studies In Culture & Education 17.2 (2010): 177-187. Academic Search Premier. Web. 20 Mar. 2012. http://web.ebscohost.com.accarcproxy.mnpals.net/ehost/detail?sid=9cea4021-16db-43c9-96b8-6c68973bc7ad%40sessionmgr14&vid=1&hid=18&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=51624034

Quality Customer Service and IT

In times past quality service was not important to managers and staff that worked for the County of San Bernardino. However due to the proliferation of corruption and mismanagement taxpayers are demanding more for their dollar. It is a known fact that when local government is run efficiently more people can be put to work. The money saved from this can in turn be used to benefit the local cities. Civic improvements can be made instead of paying for people to sit at home. To create this quality service information technology needed to be implemented. This where the BAS or (Business Applications and Support) division enters the picture. The mission of BAS is to provide quality computer software support through a customer service oriented methodology. A while back, before ITSD, there were ASU (Automated Systems Unit) analysts who lead and coordinated automation projects. They would gather up the requests from the different SSG divisions/departments, do a preliminary analysis, write a work order stating the request and/or problem that was to be solved through automation. The work order would then find its way to ISD (Information Services Department) where it would be assigned to a programmer analyst who would do an in-depth analysis with the help of the ASU analyst and define the requirements for the automation project. The programming would begin and soon, a new program was created and deployed. The requests and problems soon began to multiply and expand until it was like a virtual snowstorm of requests, too many for one small unit to keep under control. Help arrived around 1990 in the form of the Automation Project Administrator – the first of the Automation Coordination Specialists gathered together to relieve some of the burden falling on ASU. The Automation Project Administrator soon gathered in a handful of Automation Coordination Specialists who took on much of the job of the initial analysis of automation requests and problem definition. They met with the users, defined the problem, wrote the initial work order, which then went to ASU to forward to ISD, and often worked with the ISD programmers. The two units, ASU and ACU, found themselves still unable to keep up with the many automation requests, particularly since ASU had years before branched out into computer hardware requisition and maintenance. Then came Information Technology and Support Division (ITSD). ASU and ACU merged into one entity, a small (but growing) and mighty automation division. ASU became Systems Operations and Support (SOS) and ACU became BAS – Business Applications and Support. The BAS Analysts do in-depth analyses of computer software requests, working with the users and their management, write detailed functionality and design specs and work with the programmers to make sure that the final product is what the user requested and will meet the needs of the department. Support nearly all software applications within SSG, including the TAD Mainframe Benefit Issuance System; GAPPS, CWS/CMS and a myriad of PC based applications as well as intranet/internet. A change in technology has occurred in the past, and will continue at increasing rate. What will we use in five short years, in ten years†¦. the future of office automation will be achieved by all of us working together. This is important in this day and age when quality customer service is the buzzword for all branches of civil service. The attached chart shows what the long-term plan is for the County of San Bernardino. These improvements will enable the line worker to put more people to work and less people on the public dole.

Rome’s Via Dei Fori Imperiali

Via dei Fori Imperiali Millions of tourists flock to the eternal city every year to look at the many beautiful and grandiose sites of Rome. What many might not realize is that in the 18th century Mussolini had a plan to restructure, and tear down many of important monuments that define Roman heritage, and he did just this. Benito Mussolini built the road known as Via dei Fori Imperiali in 1931-1933. Mussolini wanted a way to brand Rome with his distinct Fascist ideals.Via dei Fori Imperiali was first built with the idea that it would house many triumphal marches or parades. Mussolini also wanted to form a physical and symbolic link between Piazza Venezia, the headquarters of the fascist movement to the Roman Forum, the epitome of Roman power and strength, and all the way to the Colosseum. Many obstacles lay in Mussolini’s way, to start with many important and historic monuments but also little villages and houses that housed 746 of Rome’s poorest families.The dense amou nt of poor Romans living in the once- Alessandrino neighborhood, could not argue or protest against the tearing down of there homes precisely because they had no political power or even money to make any objection at the time. Apart from kicking thousands of people out of their homes, Mussolini also managed to destroy many millennia- old structures. To name a few Mussolini demolished the churches of San Lorenzo ai Monti and Santa Maria degli Angeli in Macello Martyrum. He also partially eradicated the forums of Caesar, Augustus, Trajan, Vespasian and Nerva.By building this road Mussolini completely changed the landscape of Rome, cutting completely the Forum area in two. Like many overbearing leaders Mussolini had the vision of creating a â€Å"new† Rome, one that had rid itself of the domineering aura of history. Mussolini wanted to make new open spaces that were not cluttered by history. He wanted to leave his own mark on the Country, and in his opinion the only way to do th is was to tear down thousands years of historic monuments and to displace thousands of people.Mussolini modeled himself on Julius Caesar, yet his role model was the first emperor Augustus. Mussolini admired the rulers of the ancient Roman Empire and strived to be like them yet with his arrogance he felt he needed to build bigger, better buildings than the Romans had built, he needed to make Rome the grandest it had ever been. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. http://www. heritage-key. com/rome/dei-fori-imperiali-mussolinis-fascist-route-through-rome