DETERMINATIONS OF NATURALIZATION AND ITS IMPACT ON EARNINGS

Many studies about the effects of naturalization on earnings do not account for the endogenous characteristic of naturalization. This study is concerned with the determinants of naturalization, its effect on earnings, and reversal causality between earnings and naturalization. Ordinary least squares (OLS), treatment effect model, and simultaneous equation model are used to estimate the effect of naturalization on earnings for U.S. immigrants. Using a treatment effect model, we find that naturalization has a much higher positive impact than the OLS method on earnings, but by employing a simultaneous equation model, the naturalization premium becomes closer to that of OLS. Also, we find that correcting the simultaneity problem between earnings and naturalization is much more important than orthogonalizing the naturalization variable using instruments

Second language English listening comprehension using different presentations of pictures and video cues

The study tested the effects of different presentations using pictures and video cues for improving listening comprehension of English news programs. Four experiments are reported, studying listening comprehension of English as a second/foreign language with 687 Korean secondary students. Comparisons on listening comprehension showed better performance with visual cues than with no visual cues. Listening comprehension with video cues was more successful than that with pictures. The advantage of the combination of verbal and visual information over the presentation of verbal information alone was in accord with dual coding theory. When contextual information presented using priming techniques was compared to using feedback and simultaneous presentations, listening comprehension was better using priming. In the comparison of feedback with simultaneous presentations, listening comprehension was improved more when pictures with headlines were presented using feedback than using simultaneous presentations. In contrast, no differences were found between feedback and simultaneous presentations when video cues with headlines were presented. Visual cues with headlines presented using priming might enable learners to activate prior knowledge or schemata to improve listening comprehension. Headlines presented at the beginning stage of listening were effective for listening comprehension. In addition, the effects of presentations were enlarged by adding headlines to visuals. Applying the priming presentation along with the enrichment of contextual cues resulted in improved listening comprehension. Less proficient students benefited relatively more from the contextual cues with headlines and pictorial cues for comprehending the news than more proficient students. In particular, for less proficient students, video cues with headlines were more helpful in listening comprehension than pictures with headlines. This was because more abundant visual cues such as paralinguistic cues were more likely to be provided in video than in picture formats. The best listening comprehension occurred when presenting pictorial cues with headlines using priming presentation. The present study concluded that more abundant pictorial cues were useful for improving listening comprehension. Headlines added to the pictorial cues improved performance, especially for less proficient students, who benefited relatively more. The pictorial cues with headlines presented using a 'priming' technique were most effective in improving listening comprehension, probably because they activated prior knowledge or schemata

A Factor-Augmented Vector Autoregression Analysis of Business Cycle Synchronization in East Asia and Implications for a Regional Currency Union

Debate continues over whether a monetary or currency union will be a viable alternative to the current exchange arrangements in East Asia. This paper adds to the literature by assessing the level of business cycle synchronization among 10 major East Asian economies which is considered a key precondition for a regional currency union. Unlike previous studies, this paper employs a factor-augmented vector autoregression model that characterizes a large set of 62 foreign and domestic variables simultaneously. Five common shocks are identified, and we examine how and to what extent these shocks affect each economy in the region. Empirical results indicate that the majority of East Asian economies exhibit similar responses to world and regional shocks. Of particular importance is the finding that individual gross domestic products (GDPs) are well synchronized in response to the two major determinants of world and regional GDP shocks. Overall, the evidence presents positively for consideration of a regional currency union in East Asia. Some suggestions are offered concerning steps to build a foundation towards the establishment of an East Asian currency union

Exploring Gender Differences on Generation Y’s Attitudes towards Green Practices in a Hotel

One of the early green measures, the Save the Earth campaign, has offered significant bottom-line savings for hotels since 1993. In the current economic recession, new green measures for emerging group of customers could offer another way of saving operating cost and conserving local environment for the hotel. As environmentally conscious Gen Yers become a frequent traveler segment, identifying green attributes they are willing to accept becomes vital. Thus, this study examines the attitudes of Gen Yers toward green practices and identifies green attributes that Gen Y males and females prefer. The results show significant differences in the attributes that each gender prefers, and offer segmentation guidelines and suggest specific environmental friendly services that would result in cost saving for Gen Yers. According to the results of a proposed model, hotel companies should make more efforts to promote their green practices to Gen Y hotel guests who are willing to pay more for them

The Relations of Morphological Awareness with Language and Literacy Skills Vary Depending on Orthographic Depth and Nature of Morphological Awareness

We examined the relation of morphological awareness with language and literacy skills, namely phonological awareness, orthographic awareness, vocabulary, word reading, spelling, text reading fluency, and reading comprehension. We also examined potential moderators of the relations (grade level, orthographic depth of language, receptive vs. productive morphological awareness, inflectional vs. derivational vs. compound morphological awareness, and L1/L2 status). After systematic search, a total of 232 articles (965 unique samples, N = 49,936 participants, and 2,765 effect sizes in 17 languages) met inclusion criteria. Morphological awareness was, on average, moderately related to phonological awareness (r =.41), orthographic awareness (r =.39), vocabulary (r =.50), word reading (r =.49), spelling (r =.48), text reading fluency (r =.53), and reading comprehension (r =.54). Importantly, morphological awareness had a stronger relation with word reading in orthographically deep languages (.52) than in orthographically shallow languages (.38). The relation with vocabulary was stronger for upper elementary grades than for primary grades. The magnitude of the relation also varied by the nature of morphological awareness: productive morphological awareness had a stronger relation with phonological awareness and vocabulary than receptive morphological awareness; derivational morphological awareness had a stronger relation with vocabulary and word reading compared to inflectional morphological awareness; and compound morphological awareness had a weaker relation with phonological awareness but a stronger relation with vocabulary compared to inflectional morphological awareness. These results underscore the importance of morphological awareness in language and literacy skills, and reveal a nuanced and precise picture of their relations

Renewable Biocomposite Properties and their Applications

Recently, with increasing environmental awareness and expanding global waste problems, eco-friendly biofillers have been recognized as a promising alternative to inorganic fillers in the reinforcement of thermoplastic and biodegradable plastics. Therefore, many industries are seeking more eco-friendly materials that will decrease the level of environmental contamination and economic cost. Bacteria cellulose, rice straw, rice husk, natural fiber, lignocellulose, cellulose, and paper sludge are renewable resources owing many beneficial properties; these materials were used to manufacture composite products such as sound absorbing wooden construction materials, interior of bathrooms, wood decks, window frames, decorative trim, automotive panels, and industrial and consumer applications. This chapter elucidates the different renewable biocomposite properties and their applications

Bacterial community analysis in upflow multilayer anaerobic reactor (UMAR) treating high-solids organic wastes

A novel anaerobic digestion configuration, the upflow multi-layer anaerobic reactor (UMAR), was developed to treat high-solids organic wastes. The UMAR was hypothesized to form multi-layer along depth due to the upflow plug flow; use of a recirculation system and a rotating distributor and baffles aimed to assist treating high-solids influent. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency and methane (CH4) production rate were 89% and 2.10 L CH4/L/day, respectively, at the peak influent COD concentration (110.4 g/L) and organic loading rate (7.5 g COD/L/day). The 454 pyrosequencing results clearly indicated heterogeneous distribution of bacterial communities at different vertical locations (upper, middle, and bottom) of the UMAR. Firmicutes was the dominant (>70%) phylum at the middle and bottom parts, while Deltaproteobacteria and Chloroflexi were only found in the upper part. Potential functions of the bacteria were discussed to speculate on their roles in the anaerobic performance of the UMAR system