ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
I have chosen a couple of articles pertaining to the bailout plan that is being implemented by Congress and the Federal Reserve in conjunction with the Treasury. The first article is “Dissecting the Bailout Plan” and the second one is “The US Economy’s Bottomless Pit”. Both these articles criticize some aspects of the bailout plan while lauding the other points. Overall, the tone and content of the articles are towards presenting a meaningful analysis of the current scenario. To begin with, a summary of the article about the bottomless pit is in order. The article lays out the premise that the bailouts being talked about include just about every segment of the economy and range from Wall Street Majors to Automotive giants as well. There is a wry irony that states that nowadays the numbers being talked about are in the range of trillions and a trillion is the new billion. Thus, there is severe criticism of the way in which “printing presses” are being turned on and this may not prove to be good for the economy in the long run as indebtedness to foreign creditors would grow to such heights that the US economy may not be able to sustain itself. As the article states, if only the US was not able to print money, the country would have been bankrupt many times over. The economic principle that the article is trying to address is that the US government should encourage the growth of savings and stimulate investment as a long term solution instead of blindly increasing the Federal Deficit in a desperate move to contain the crisis. Though painful in the short term, “A short-run reduction in GDP is a sacrifice the US must be willing to accept. If it swallows this medicine now, in the long run, it will have a sustainable rise in GDP as higher savings leads to increased capital investment, greater productivity, and eventually a lasting increase in consumption” (Schiff, 2008). The root cause of the current crisis is indiscriminate lending practices and the profligate nature of the US consumer is running up huge debts, be it in the form of credit cards or mortgages. Thus, unless the “shopped-out, saving-less” consumer is forced to change his or her ways the longer-term outlook for the US economy remains grim. I would like to apply the principles to the current issue by relying on the textbook concepts of savings and investment as a preclude to GDP growth rather than indulging in financial speculation and esoteric banking practices that trade in “virtual numbers” rather than a reliance on the manufacturing and other sectors that stimulate demand and contribute to sustainable GDP growth. In my view, overproduction and lack of aggregate demand lead to surpluses that can only be redeemed through an eve
What techniques are used by the group leader in an alcoholic anonymous (AA) meeting? Alcoholic Anonymous (AA) meeting is an international fellowship whose aim is to help alcoholics achieve sobriety (Yalom, 2005, p.58). In an AA meeting, the Chairperson or group leader opens the session with a preamble of Alcoholics Anonymous followed by brief introductory remarks. The leader then requests for a silent moment followed by recitations from the Serenity Prayer. Others prefer to read a chapter from the Big Book to help new members know how the AA works. Speakers selected beforehand then talk of their experiences before members discuss a chosen topic. The meeting closes with the observation of a moment of silence followed by a prayer or recitation from the Responsibility Declaration. Identify at least two (2) defense mechanisms used by group participants in an AA meeting? Give an example of the types of behavior observed that reflects each of the defense mechanisms. In an AA meeting, the members associated with a common intention to support each other to overcome alcoholism. This is a projective identification defense mechanism where the alcoholics identify with each other and believe that others are like oneself in an AA meeting (Boyd, 2008, p.146). This allows them to avoid a relapse into alcoholism once more. Participants of the AA meeting also employ sublimation defense mechanism to overcome the craving for alcohol. How did participants in an AA meeting describe patterns of interaction with their family members? Participants of AA meeting have improved social interaction with their family members. The AA meeting allows the participants to feel a sense of belonging. Participants who suffered communicative disorders like anger or low self-esteem feel confident after attending the AA meeting group therapy. What crisis situation did participants in an AA meeting describe as their reason for seeking help? Participants attending the AA had a severe alcoholic problem that if not managed could result in personality and psychiatric disorders like impulsivity that involves lack of gratification. They sought help from AA to help them achieve sobriety. Describe the observations of the social milieu in an AA meeting. The AA meeting offers social milieu that provides home group treatment plans, promotes self-governance and effective interactions among the members. As per AA’s customs, each group exists independently save for issues involving other group entities. The self-help groups in AA help solve alcohol-related problems affecting the members through informed group conscience. The group also reaches out to suffering alcoholics who need help. What can be learned from self-help groups in an AA meeting? The group therapy shown by AA meeting help members feel a renewed sense of purpose and also helps them to overcome social and personality disorders like anger or low self-esteem. What are people’s reactions /feeling about the AA meetings. In spite of the success of AA group therapy in h
Introduction Housing segregation involves the partitioning of neighborhoods depending on the ethnicity of the occupants. Propagation is enforced through biased housing options for the minority populations, offering poor housing conditions, and enforcing biased neighborhood legislations, among other ways. Consequently, the poor neighborhoods affect the education, health, and economic nature of the minority groups. Economically, access to credit markets and mortgage are hindrances to the minority populations when acquiring houses in safe neighborhoods (Iceland 7). Thus, this paper explains the concept of housing segregation, as well as describes how the concept relates to education, health, and economics. Housing Segregation According to Williams and Collins, segregation refers to the division of dwelling places by considering the ethnic orientation of the people (405). One study by Pager and Shepherd explains the production of housing segregation (188). The study utilizes an experiment on housing utilities by gathering audit data. The results show that there is some bias across some platforms regarding housing options for the minority population groups that are characterized by the Latinos, Asians, Blacks, and Native American communities. The study suggests that blacks go through adverse treatment, with a ratio of one to five, in their search for housing (Pager and Shepherd 188). The Hispanics also experience the same treatment in search of shelter, with a ratio of one to four (Pager and Shepherd 188). Ideally, housing discrimination for these communities was promoted through limited information concerning the available housing units. One way this was done was by availing inadequate financing options to minority populations who had the need to purchase a home. In case they still pursued their goal of buying their homes, despite all the odds, they would be steered to the poor neighborhoods and communities set aside for the minority populations. Eventually, the system worked to the detriment of the minority blacks while benefiting their white counterparts. For instance, the well-to-do black communities living in segregated neighborhoods suffer a poverty incident rate of 0.283 (Massey 336). On the other hand, the poor whites living in racially homogenous areas are significantly insulated from poverty, only suffering a poverty incident rate of 0.150 (Massey 336). There is a high level of housing discrimination in case the real estate or housing agent is located in a neighborhood that hosts the majority white population. It is likely that a black American individual will go through discrimination regarding housing information opportunities when looking for a home in a location that is dominated by the white community (Pager and Shepherd 1
Introduction In the history of the American governance, different Vice Presidents have held different powers with some being powerful and influential than others. This has caused a debate in the country regarding the source of the VP powers. The argument has been whether the power is in the VP office or the sitting president decides to share his/her powers with the vice president. This calls for the need to explore this situation and determine the source and nature of this power. This is a proposal for a research to dig deeper in this issue to determine and establish the powers of the Vice President in the government of the United States. Rationale for the Study Different vice presidents in the American government have portrayed varying powers with some being extremely influential and powerful than others. With the current Constitution, the powers vested in the office are clearly stated. However, history shows that some VPs have shown enormous powers under different sitting presidents. For example, Dick Cheney and Walter Mondale are two famous vice presidents who had enormous VP powers and made many decisions during the time [1] . On the other hand, Vice President Bush had minimal powers during the Ronald Reagan Administration. These observations therefore call for a research study to explore the unique powers of different vice presidents in the history of the United States. The most important thing is to explore how the Vice Presidents in the country receive and exercise such powers. Using the examples of Dick Cheney, Walter Mondale, and Bush, the study will analyze the source of the VP power in different governments led by different presidents [2] . This will establish if the sitting presidents decide to grant their powers to the Vice Presidents or the office has such powers. Research Questions The research will present meaningful solutions to this question: Does the Vice Presidency have power because the office has grown or the sitting president decides to tender power to the Vice President? The study will explain the Constitutional powers of the VP office and determine if the office has grown to become powerful or whether the sitting presidents willingly share power with the VPs. Discussions In this study, the key perspectives of the research question is whether the presidents decide to share their powers with the vice presidents, or whether the office of vice president have grown to become powerful within the last few decades. If that is so, the study will determine why they have been differences in power possessions by deferent VPs in the American history [3] . The findings will therefore explain why some VPs in the United States have shown enormous powers while ot
The process of communication is very important in every organization and this has led to the formulation of a number of managerial communication theories as well as concepts. The need to ensure that the strategies formulated by managers are successful in their implementation has increased the interest of different stakeholders in identifying the most effective communication theories and concepts. These are mainly supposed to ensure the clarity and efficiency of the process of relaying the information. Intercultural theories identify that there is a need to understand the cultural orientation of all the individuals in the organization, who may be responsible with the implementation of a new strategy (Guffey, 2007). This should ensure that all the individuals are aware of the particular stakes that they hold in the implementation process to ensure that the whole strategy is successful. This theory is closely related to the communication conflict resolution theories that identify that different personal needs between employees as well as other stakeholders in an organization may lead to conflicts during the strategy implementation process. The managers should, therefore, ensure that the process of communication satisfies these different needs to ensure that they are all aware of their role in the organization and in the implementation of the new
Introduction The Chinese real estate market has been growing at a rapid rate due to several factors. The first factor that is attributed to this rapid growth is the population of the country. According to Barnes and Scornavacca (2004), China is home to over 1.3 billion people, most of whom prefer staying in urban settings. This is about one-third of the world’s total population. This demonstrates the significance of the real estate market in this country. Another factor that has contributed to the growth of the real estate in China is the growth of the country’s economy. China is currently the second-largest economy in the world, only after the United States. This economy is projected to surpass that of the United States shortly (Barnes & Scornavacca 2004, p. 132). The country is currently ranked as one of the world’s leading manufacturers. Most of these manufacturing plants are located in major cities or upcoming urban centers. They employ a huge number of people. Business is booming in this country, specifically in these major cities. The international community is now turning to China for trade, and this makes it necessary to expand the real estate market to support business operations. Other industries such as tourism are also drawing people to China, causing increased demand in the products offered by the industry. Real estate firms have
Introduction Leedy and Ormrod (2005, p. 56) continued to pose that research is usually a procedure by which individuals attempt to find answers to questions systematically and with support of empirical facts. Research involves systematic investigation of an issue of interest or event to bring forth new knowledge (Marshall & Rossman 1999, 56). Research is a process of discovery that is well ordered and guided by specified procedures. This is a process that adheres to a given research protocol. In other words, a scientific research must take a specific form in terms of procedure. This paper will address issues related to scientific research such as methodologies, theoretical and conceptual literatures, and data analyses (Rubin & Rubin 2005, p.1). Scientific Research As earlier stated, research is related to collection of massive data. Scientific research is a technical term restricted to investigations that meet specific requirements. The investigations undertaken scientifically are guided by scientific philosophies. In other words, researchers try to situate research within the terrain of science. This implies that a scientific philosophy is combined with the method. Internationally, experts accept or discard research findings after subjecting them to certain scientific philosophies (Silverman 2001, p. 21). Globally, research is only guided by one conventional method, which is the scientific method. Emphasis is on how the research is planned and executed. Every research is carefully evaluated to establish the extent to which it adheres to the scientific procedures. The scientific community is made up of individuals who are well trained in the scientific methods in their own fields. This means that they have the expertise or the capacity to assess any research project and give a fair verdict in terms of quality. According to Kothari (2004, p. 13), scientific method is defined by various characteristics. For instance, a scientific method should rely on empirical evidence. This is the evidence obtained through the use or application of human senses. For example, a researcher may claim that he or she knows something because he or she observed it. Conversely, scientific method dismisses speculations. This implies that it is accurate and based on testable evidence. Moreover, scientific research seeks to capture the objective truth not a subjective fact. For this reason, young researchers are encouraged to control all forms of human biases in order to understand the social world accurately. It is factual that each human being has values and tastes. For instance, youths are affiliated to various political parties, religions, foods and ways of dressing. Kothari cautions that these values should not be transferred to the process of research. A researcher should always strive to be neutral. This could mean that he or she should make assumptions without considering personal opinions. Kothari continued to posit that scientific research resorts to probabilistic prediction of events that are likely to occur in a specified futu
Introduction With a customer base of 135 million, the Emirates Telecommunications Corporation based in the U.A.E, better known as Etisalat, has grown to become one of largest telecommunications companies in the world spanning several continents with an assortment of products and services ranging from mobile networks to internet service provision. The success of the company is in part due to its expansion into various global markets such as those in the Middle East, Africa, and various parts of the Asian continent. As indicated by Quisenberry & Griffith (2010,) frontier markets, especially those with few multinational corporations, are ideal locations for the creation of new business ventures due to the potential of becoming a market pioneer which is an enviable position for any company given that a well entrenched corporation within a particular market can in effect control a majority of the local market’s consumer base for many years (Quisenberry & Griffith, 2010). What you have to take into consideration is that despite the fact the company makes a annual revenue of $8.4 billion with $2.07 billion in yearly profits, the fact remains that as it ex
Performing quantitative research is impossible without gathering and analyzing appropriate data. However, the research process may become complicated due to possible confusion of population with a sample, since both notions can be erroneously perceived as a group subjected to research. Therefore, it is necessary to understand an important difference — while population refers to an entire group, the sample encompasses only a specific group selected within the population for research purposes. Consequently, sampling can be defined as a method used to select a required sample from the whole population. Several sampling methods are empirically distinguishable and can be used depending on the researcher’s needs. In general, all commonly used methods can be separated into two techniques — probability and non-probability sampling (Sharma, 2017). Probability sampling utilizes random selection from the population, which makes it more accurate, whereas non-probability sampling is based on judgment. Furthermore, probability-based methods can be divided into simple random sampling, systematic sampling, stratified sampling, and cluster sampling (Sharma, 2017). All these methods have their advantages and flaws — for instance, simple random, an independent selection of subjects, is easy and unbiased but limited to smaller populations. On the other hand, the method of cluster sampling is feasible for large populations since it uses naturally occurring groups as subjects (Sharma, 2017). However, it is also highly susceptible to selection bias and sampling errors. The same situation applies to various non-probability sampling schemes. Quota, purposive, self-selection, and snowball sampling offer certain advantages, such as speed, the possibility to make generalizations, or access to hidden populations (Sharma, 2017). However, this utility comes at the increased cost of research bias and sampling errors. Regardless of an appropriate sampling technique, one should understand that sample consists only of a fraction selected from the population. In this regard, sampling must be perceived as a means of extracting the necessary fraction from the whole group. Reference Sharma, G. (2017). Pros and cons of different sampling techniques. International Journal of Applied Research , 3 (7), 749-752.
Supersize Me is a 2004 American film produced and directed by Morgan Spurlock that explores the challenge of obesity in the United States. The food industry in the country has over the years been criticized for the role it plays in the unhealthy eating habits taken up by most people. In the wake of the movie being produced, Mcdonald’s had been accused of being a major contributor to the growing number of obesity cases in the country by selling unhealthy food to people. Spurlock is the main character in the movie, as he uses himself as an experiment to establish whether the allegations made against the food industry have any basis. The investigation requires Spurlock to eat three meals a day at McDonald’s for 30 days and ensure that he consumes every item contained in their menu. In addition, he is prohibited from ingesting anything that is not offered at the restaurant throughout the experiment. The most crucial part of the experiment is for Spurlock to accept any offers from the restaurant to supersize his meals. The first scenes in the movie show Spurlock preparing for the experiment by taking numerous tests to establish his physical and emotional states. He is checked by a cardiologist, a gastroenterologist who checks his gastrointestinal tract for any disease, a nutritionist, a personal trainer, as well as a general practitioner. The health care professionals predict that by the end of the experiment, Spurlock’s body will have experienced some negative effects. They believe that the results will clearly show the effects that fast foods have on the physical and mental state of consumers. Spurlock’s girlfriend, Alexandra Jamie