Invisible Labor: Job Satisfaction and Exploitation Among Female Domestic Workers in Pakistan

The aim of this research was to look at the levels of job satisfaction among female domestic workers in Lahore and its association with the exploitation they face at work. Paid domestic service is not a part of the formal economy of Pakistan, thus there is no legal or political framework protecting workers. Informal work raises domestic workers’ chances of facing exploitation during employment in various forms. Sociological research conducted in this subject is very minimal, which is why this research was important to assess the working conditions of female domestic workers and how satisfied did they feel with their jobs. Two-Factor Theory by Herzberg was used to identify the factors of exploitation that lead to either job satisfaction or dissatisfaction. This research is of quantitative nature using survey based approach by targeting 100 employed female domestic workers above the age of 18 currently residing in Lahore. Random sampling technique was decided to be used for data collection but later on snowball sampling technique was adopted. The hypothesis for this research was “Women working in domestic service, facing more exploitation, perceive less job satisfaction and vice versa.” Factor Analysis and Simple Linear Regression were used to analyze the results of this research

SISTEM INFORMASI GEOGRAFIS INVENTARISASI JALAN UNTUK MEMPREDIKSI TINGKAT KEMACETAN DAN TINGKAT KERUSAKAN JALAN (Studi Kasus : Kecamatan Lowokwaru Kota Malang)

Kerusakan jalan secara umum merupakan keadaan bangunan jalan yang tidak berfungsi, seperti segi teknis, manfaat, keselamatan, dan keseluruhan umum. Kerusakan jalan merupakan salah satu faktor yang dapat menyebabkan kemacetan di berbagai ruas jalan. Penelitian dilakukan di Kecamatan Lowokwaru Kota Malang dengan tujuan menganalisis prediksi tingkat kemacetan dan tingkat kerusakan jalan di Kecamatan Lowokwaru Kota Malang dan menentukan sebaran tingkat kemacetan dan tingkat kerusakan jalan di Kecamatan Lowokwaru Kota Malang. Data yang digunakan untuk menentukan tingkat kemacetan jalan berupa kapasitas jalan berdasarkan kinerja ruas jalan (LoS), jumlah persimpangan dan gang, jumlah petugas yang mengawasi lalu lintas, lebar jalan bahu jalan yang digunakan untuk tempat parkir. Dan data yang digunakan untuk menentukan tingkat kerusakan jalan berupa volume lalu lintas, kelas jalan, ketersediaan drainase jalan, tekstur tanah, kemiringan lereng, dan curah hujan. Metode yang digunakan adalah skoring parameter penyebab kemacetan dan kerusakan jalan dengan menggunakan analisis dalam SIG (overlay). Hasil penelitian berupa Peta Tingkat Kemacetan dan Peta Tingkat Kerusakan Jalan Kecamatan Lowokwaru Kota Malang skala 1:5000 yang terdiri dari dua kelas tingkat kemacetan dan kerusakan jalan, yaitu rendah dan sedang. Tingkat kemacetan jalan rendah sebanyak 60 ruas jalan dan tingkat kemacetan jalan sedang sebanyak 20 ruas jalan. Tingkat kerusakan jalan rendah sebanyak 59 ruas jalan dan tingkat kerusakan jalan sedang sebanyak 21 ruas jalan

Technical trading patterns: can they truly predict price movements and can they be exploited for excess returns?

Debate exists in financial markets over whether patterns exist in stock prices which can be used to predict future prices and to earn excess returns. Proponents of this idea, technical traders, view stock prices as following trends and exhibiting consistent patterns which can be exploited for gain. Fundamental analysts, however, believe that stock prices change only in response to the arrival of information which occurs randomly and does not generate any predictable patterns in stock prices. To fundamental analysts, consistent profit can only be gained if investors have access to information before everyone else and if they can correctly infer the effect of the news on market prices;Therefore, the question arises which view of the markets is more accurate. In an attempt to answer this question, this work will be separated into two parts. The first part will ask if predictable patterns in stock prices exist as technical traders surmise, or if these patterns are spurious as fundamental analysts would hypothesize. The second part will ask if profit can be consistently made according to the technical traders\u27 rules for pattern trading, or if these profits are inconsistent;To evaluate the first part, this work uses a Monte Carlo experiment to compare the number of times three technical trading patterns are found in four actual stock price series to the number of times these patterns are found in randomly-generated series chosen to mimic the actual stock series. The evidence shows that we cannot reject the hypothesis that these patterns occur as frequently in the random series as they occur in the actual stock series. This finding contradicts the beliefs of technical traders;To evaluate the second part, this work calculates the returns gained from following technical trading rules regarding the patterns. Total profit is calculated for each stock price series and each pattern assuming an investment of 1 million and each trading rule exploited. The evidence shows that we cannot reject the hypothesis that average returns from these trading rules are zero

Metal-induced sulfate adsorption by soils

Sulfate is present in soils as salts of various metals, and the different metals associated with sulfate may significantly affect its reactions on colloidal surfaces and consequently its mobility in soils. Four analytical methods, based on different principles, were evaluated for determination of sulfate in the presence of different counter-ions (metals) and in soil extracts obtained with 0.1 M LiCl, 0.15% CaCl[subscript]2, or 500 mg P L[superscript]-1 as Ca(H[subscript]2PO[subscript]4)[subscript]2. The recovery of sulfate associated with various mono-, di-, and tri-valent metals was quantitative by the methylene blue (MB) method. But, tri-valent metals, such as Al, In, La, and Sc, decreased the recovery of sulfate by the ion chromatographic (IC), turbidimetric (TD), and indirect Ba atomic absorption spectrophotometric (SP) methods. Among the four methods, the MB and IC methods were the most accurate and precise. Studies on the effect of the sulfate counter-ions (metals) on sulfate adsorption by four acid soils (two from Iowa, one from Chile, and one from Costa Rica) at various equilibrium solution pH (3.5-7.0) and two background electrolyte concentrations (1 and 10 mM NaCl) showed that sulfate adsorption was affected by point zero of charge (PZC) and was the greatest at the lowest pH values (ca. 3.5) and decreased with increasing the equilibrium solution pH and background electrolyte. Sulfate adsorption envelopes and isotherms for different sulfate forms were greatly affected by the type and charge of the sulfate counter-ion and, in general, followed the order: In[subscript]2(SO[subscript]4)[subscript]3 \u3e Al[subscript]2(SO[subscript]4)[subscript]3 \u3e CaSO[subscript]4 \u3e MgSO[subscript]4 \u3e Cs[subscript]2SO[subscript]4 \u3e K[subscript]2SO[subscript]4 \u3e (NH[subscript]4)[subscript]2SO[subscript]4. For the same valence of the sulfate counter-ion, sulfate adsorption increased with increasing ionic radius of the sulfate counter-ion. When its counter-ion was maintained at a constant concentration (12.0 mmol[subscript] c L[superscript]-1), sulfate adsorption was greater than when sulfate and its counter-ion were added at equivalent concentrations. Based on solubility diagrams and distribution coefficients (K[subscript] d) vs sulfate surface density ([sigma]) at maximum adsorption (X[subscript] m) relationships, precipitation reactions of metal sulfates were ruled out. The effects of the type and valence of the sulfate counter-ion on sulfate/metal adsorption ratios at various pH values and on the slopes of the linear relationships between sulfate and its counter-ion adsorbed were greater in soils with greater concentrations of hydrous Al and Fe oxides. The K[subscript] d values and the adsorption parameters of the one-surface and two-surface Langmuir equations for sulfate adsorption were greatly affected by the type, valence, and concentration of the sulfate counter-ion. Application of the three transformations of the Langmuir, a modified Langmuir, and the BET equations to the calculation of the sulfate adsorption parameters were compared

Upaya meningkatkan keterampilan menulis karangan cerita dengan menggunakan model pembelajaran Picture and Picture pada mauatan materi Bahasa Indonesia : Penelitian tindakan kelas di kelas II MI Miftahul Falah Kota Bandung

Penelitian ini dilakukan karena ditemukan dalam studi pendahuluan di kelas II MI Miftahul Falah Kota Bandung bahwa keterampilan menulis karangan cerita siswa rendah. Hal ini terbukti dengan belum tercapainya siswa dalam menguasai kemampuan menulis karangan cerita dengan nilai masih di bawah Kriteria Ketuntasan Minimal (KKM) pada pembelajaran tematik dengan muatan materi Bahasa Indonesia. Penyebab rendahnya keterampilan menulis karangan cerita siswa ini dikarenakan guru cenderung menggunakan metode pembelajaran yang berpusat pada guru, sehingga siswa kurang terlibat secara aktif dalam proses pembelajaran. Akibatnya, siswa tidak memiliki cukup kesempatan untuk mengembangkan keterampilan menulis cerita dalam muatan materi Bahasa Indonesia. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui (1) keterampilan siswa dalam menulis karangan cerita pada muatan materi Bahasa Indonesia sebelum menggunakan model pembelajaran Picture and Picture, (2) proses pembelajaran menulis karangan cerita pada muatan materi Bahasa Indonesia dengan menggunakan model pembelajaran Picture and Picture, (3) keterampilan siswa dalam menulis karangan cerita pada muatan materi Bahasa Indonesia setelah menggunakan model pembelajaran Picture and Picture. Kerangka berpikir dalam penelitain ini adalah pada kemampuan menulis cerita siswa yang masih rendah dan etelah menerapkan model pembelajaran Picture and Picture, terjadi peningkatan keterampilan siswa dalam menulis cerita yang dibuktikan dari peningkatan keterampilan menulis pada setiap tindakan. Metode penelitian yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah Penelitian Tindakan Kelas (PTK), yang dilakukan dalam dua siklus. Setiap siklus terdiri dari dua tindakan, dan setiap tindakan memiliki empat tahap, yaitu perencanaan, pelaksanaan, observasi, dan refleksi. Subjek dalam penelitian ini adalah 24 siswa kelas II MI Miftahul Falah Kota Bandung. Teknik pengumpulan data yang digunakan meliputi unjuk kerja berupa tes, observasi, dan dokumentasi. Hasil penelitian menunjukan bahwa pada pra siklus proses pembelajaran tanpa menggunakan model pembelajaran Picture and Picture rata-rata nilai siswa 47,13 dengan ketuntasan belajar klasikal 16,6%. Pada siklus I tindakan I memperoleh nilai rata-rata 56,67 dengan ketuntasan belajar klasikal 25%. Pada siklus I tindakan II memperoleh nilai rata-rata 67,96 dengan ketuntasan belajar klasikal 41,6%. Pada siklus II tindakan I memperoleh nilai rata-rata sebesar 72,91 dengan ketuntasan belajar klasikal 70,8%. Pada siklus II tindakan II memperoleh nilai rata-rata sebesar 77,29 dengan ketuntasan belajar klasikal 87,5%. Penelitian selesai jika ketuntasan belajar mencapai 85% atau lebih, maka seluruh siswa dinyatakan tuntas dalam belajar. Berdasarkan hasil yang diperoleh dapat disimpulkan bahwa model Picture and Picture dapat meningkatkan keterampilan menulis karangan cerita pada siswa kelas II MI Miftahul Falah Kota Bandung

Pengaruh Kualitas Produk, Harga, Service Scape, Kualitas Pelayanan dan Lokasi Terhadap Kepuasan Konsumen (Studi pada Konsumen Table Nine Kitchen Purwokerto)

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui dan menganalisis pengaruh variabel kualitas produk, harga, servicescape, kualitas pelayanan, dan lokasi terhadap kepuasan konsumen. Sampel dalam penelitian ini berjumlah 111 responden yang merupakan konsumen Table Nine Kitchen Purwokerto. Metode pemilihan sampel dalam penelitian menggunakan metode purposive sampling. Data kemudian dianalisis dengan analisis regresi berganda. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa secara parsial kualitas produk, servicescape, kualitas pelayanan, dan lokasi berpengaruh pada kepuasan konsumen. Sedangkan, variabel harga tidak berpengaruh pada kepuasan konsumen. Nilai koefisien determinasi adjusted r square sebesar 0,553 memiliki arti bahwa variabel kualitas produk, harga, servicescape, kualitas pelayanan, dan lokasi mampu mempengaruhi kepuasan konsumen sebesar 55,3%, sedangkan sisanya sebesar 44,7% dipengaruhi oleh variabel lain yang tidak diteliti dalam penelitian ini. Variabel dalam penelitian ini yang paling dominan yaitu kualitas produk

Prediction of Post-Operative Survival Expectancy in Thoracic Lung Cancer Surgery Using Extreme Learning Machine and SMOTE

Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer death globally. Thoracic surgery is a common treatment for patients with lung cancer. However, there are many risks and postoperative complications leading to death. In this study, we will predict life expectancy for lung cancer patients one year after thoracic surgery The data used is secondary data for lung cancer patients in 2007-2011. There are 470 data consisting of 70 death class data and 400 survival class data for one year after surgery. The algorithm used is Extreme learning machine (ELM) for classification, which tends to be fast in the learning process and has good generalization performance. Synthetic Minority Over-sampling (SMOTE) is used to solve the problem of imbalanced data. The proposed solution combines the benefits of using SMOTE for imbalanced data along with ELM. The results show ELM and SMOTE outperform other algorithms such as Naïve Bayes, Decision stump, J48, and Random Forest. The best results on ELM were obtained at 50 neurons with 89.1% accuracy, F-Measure 0.86, and ROC 0.794. In the combination of ELM and SMOTE, the accuracy is 85.22%, F-measure 0.864, and ROC 0.855 on neuron 45 using a data division proportion of 90:10. The test results show that the proposed method can significantly improve the performance of the ELM algorithm in overcoming class imbalance. The contribution of this study is to build a machine learning model with good performance so that it can be a support system for medical informatics experts and doctors in early detection to predict the life expectancy of lung cancer patients

Fumigant emission reductions with TIF warrant regulatory changes

With methyl bromide's phase-out, most growers have turned to alternative fumigants, particularly 1,3-dichloropropene (1,3-D) and chloropicrin. These alternatives are tightly regulated because they are classified as toxic air contaminants and volatile organic compounds; the latter combine with other substances to produce ground-level ozone (smog). Two ambient air monitoring studies were conducted to evaluate the potential of totally impermeable film (TIF) to reduce emissions from shank applications of chloropicrin and 1,3-D. In 2009, a study demonstrated that TIF reduced chloropicrin and 1,3-D peak emissions by 45% and 38%, respectively, but TIF did not reduce total emissions when it was cut after 6 days. In 2011, increasing the tarp period from 5 to 10 days decreased chloropicrin and 1,3-D peak emissions by 88% and 78%, and their total emissions by 64% and 43%, respectively. Concurrent dynamic flux chamber results corroborated the ambient air monitoring data. These studies provide regulatory agencies with mitigation measures that should allow continued fumigant use at efficacious application rates