Network Capital and Cooperation Patterns in the Working Groups of the Council of the EU

This working paper presents findings from a study of network capital and cooperation patterns in the working groups of the Council of the European Union. Two successive rounds of telephone interviews with Council working group representatives from all member states were conducted in 2003 and 2006. It is demonstrated that some member states have a consistently higher stock of network capital (having close ties to a large number of powerful cooperation partners) than others, over time and across policy fields. Size explains a lot of this variation, but there is also room for actor-based factors. For small states in particular inter-personal trust seems to have a positive effect. The findings also indicate that cooperation patterns in the Council working groups follow geographical patterns. The dominant North-South dimension is consistent across policy fields. Rather than having one 'core' the EU15 Council revolved around a North (the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK) and a South (France, Italy, Spain) center, connected by Germany. The 2004 enlargement did not change this pattern, but only added new groups of countries to the periphery around the two main centers. There is evidence to suggest that the geographical cooperation patterns are mainly driven by cultural factors, rather than economic interests or political ideologies.political science; COREPER; Council of Ministers; enlargement; power analysis; networks

Avian Genome Evolution - Gene Expression, Gene Divergence and Sexual Dimorphism

This study has focused on: (i) differences in how males and females use the genes in the genome, (ii) how sex chromosomes evolve and (iii) how the evolutionary rate of genes are affected by the chromosome on which they are located on and the gene expression level they experience. A large-scale microarray was developed for the zebra finch, Taeniopygia guttata and techniques were developed so that this microarray could also be used for wild passerine birds. Results from this thesis show that sexual dimorphism in gene expression is extensive in the brain of birds and that most genes involved in this sexual dimorphism is expressed at higher levels in males than in females and are located on the sex chromosome called the Z chromosome. Results further indicate that female birds dosage compensate to quite a high extent, a fact that has been questioned in recent studies. Dosage compensation is the process by which the sex with only one Z chromosome achieves gene expression on Z-linked genes that is balanced with gene expression from autosomal chromosomes, which are all present in the genome in two copies. Moreover, results from this study show that dosage compensation is more likely to be achieved for genes with low expression levels than for highly expressed genes on the Z chromosome. Furthermore, we have demonstrated that genes on the Z chromosome have very high evolutionary rates between species and that genes on large autosomal chromosomes evolve at a higher pace than on small chromosomes. We also find that genes with low gene expression levels evolve faster than other genes in the genome and results indicate that genes with medium high gene expression are the most conserved in birds. Moreover, genes on the Z chromosome which have higher expression in males than in females, so called male-biased genes, evolve faster than unbiased genes on the Z chromosome. Male-biased Z-linked genes were also shown to evolve at the same rates regardless of their gene expression level, a pattern which was not true for unbiased Z-linked genes or autosomal genes. Lastly, we have also identified a previously un-know sex-chromosome in birds. Gene expression analyses and linkage mapping shows that chromosome 4a, a regular autosome in the zebra finch, has become a neo-sex chromosome in warblers (Sylviidae). Our results indicate that the avian Z chromosome is highly likely to have played a large role in speciation and adaptive evolution in birds, and opens up for interesting comparisons with the well-studied sex chromosomes in for example mammals

The Puzzle of Transparency Reforms in the Council of the EU

I argue that the transparency reforms that have been implemented in the Council of the EU in the last decades are unlikely to change the perception of the Council as a non-transparent institution. My argument is based on three distinctions: the distinction between transparency (availability of information) and publicity (spread and reception of information); between transparency in process and transparency in rationale; and between plenary and committee decision-making arenas in legislatures. While national parliaments tend to have all these features, the Council of the EU only has two (transparency in process and committee decision-making). As a consequence, publishing ever more documents and detailed minutes of committee meetings is unlikely to strengthen the descriptive legitimacy of the Council. Furthermore, I argue that the democratic transparency problem is the reverse of what is most often argued: It is not the lack of transparency that causes a democratic deficit, but the (perceived) lack of a democratic infrastructure that makes more serious transparency reforms unthinkable to government representatives

Peningkatan Keterampilan Membaca Teks Bahasa Inggris Siswa Kelas XII SMA Negeri 2 Ponorogo Melalui Three-Stage Way

Membaca merupakan salah satu dari keterampilan bahasa Inggris yang wajib dipelajari oleh siswa. Membaca dipertimbangkan sebagai keterampilan berbahasa yang sangat penting karena dengan membaca, siswa mendapat banyak ilmu pengetahuan maupun informasi. Namun, siswa SMA Negeri 2 Ponorogo mengalami kesulitan dalam membaca teks bahasa Inggris yang dibuktikan dari rendahnya nilai ulangan. Untuk itu perlu dicari solusi untuk memecahkan masalah tersebut. Three-Satge Way dianggap cocok untuk mengatasi masalah tersebut. Secara umum, penelitian ini bertujuan untuk meningkatkan kemampuan membaca dengan menggunakan Three-Stage Way siswa kelas XII MIPA SMA 2 Ponorogo Tahun Pelajaran 2019/2020. Penelitian ini menggunakan rancangan penelitian tindakan kelas terdiri dari dua siklus. Pada masing-masing siklus dilakukan tahap perencanaan, pelaksanaan tindakan, pengamatan, dan refleksi. Subjek penelitian adalah siswa kelas XII MIPA 1 sebanyak 34 orang.  Penelitian ini dilakukan pada bulan September – Desember 2020. Teknik pengumpulan data dalam penelitian ini adalah observasi, kuesioner, dan test. Data dianalisis secara kualitatif. Hasil penelitan menunjukkan bahwa penggunaan Three-Stage Way pada materi teks news item pada siswa kelas XII IPA 1 SMA Negeri 2 Ponorogo dapat meningkatkan hasil belajar membaca teks bahasaInggris yang dapat diamati dari ketuntasan belajar peserta didik dari 62% pada siklus I menjadi 76,5% pada siklus II. Selain itu juga meningkatnya kualitas proses belajar yang tampak pada keaktifan peserta didik dalam menjawab pertanyaan dan mengeluarkan pendapat, keaktifan peserta didik dalam mengajukan pertanyaan dan ketepatan waktu menyelesaikan tugas. Dari hasil penelitian, dapat disimpulkan bahwa terdapat peningkatan hasil belajar membaca teks bahasa Inggris dengan menggunakan Three-Stage Way siswa kelas XII MIPA SMA Negeri 2 Ponorogo Tahun Pelajaran 2019/2020

The Role of Social Facilitation Theory on Consumer Decision Making: A Conceptual Framework

Social influence has been a topic of interest in consumer behavior. Researchers have shown that non-interactive social presence can influence consumer behavior. Does the presence of others affect consumer decision making too? Based on social facilitation theory, we propose that in a retail store setting, consumers take longer and make inaccurate decisions in the presence of non-interactive others if the decision making task is difficult (many different brands with different attribute levels are available) than if the decision task is easy. Personality trait, self-sufficiency, plays a moderating role in this relationship. The research has many managerial implications

Permohonan Isbat Nikah Bagi Poligami yang Tidak Dicatatkan

This research aims to examine the basic reasons for the judge's consideration of granting marriage isbat requests to unregistered polygamists. Is it appropriate for a judge to grant a request for isbat for a polygamous marriage that has not yet completed the administrative requirements. Types of normative legal research with a statutory approach. The results of the research show that the judge's consideration in the Religious Court Decision Number 161/PDT.G/2014/PA.TLG in granting the request for isbat marriage to polygamy was correct, but the judge ignored the administrative requirements that must be fulfilled by applicants for marriage isbat. In terms of procedures, there is no difference between polygamous marriage isbat and non-polygamous marriage isbat. However, the polygamy agreement has additional conditions. For this reason, Religious Court judges in their considerations must look at the fulfillment of these additional conditions as a basis for granting a request for marriage isbat for polygamy

Community Needs Assessment on Immigrant Bangladeshi Womens Mental Health

This case summary conducted by the Urban Institute and Sapna NYC, a community-based organization serving low-income Bangladeshi women through health and empowerment programs, explores the findings of a community needs assessment focused on the mental health challenges and needs of Bangladeshi immigrant women living in the Bronx, Queens, Manhattan, and Brooklyn and can help inform practice and policy in New York City. Data from our interviews indicated that the three major contributing factors to the mental health of women in our study were economic and financial insecurity, home life and social networks, and traumatic events. Based on these insights, we propose recommendations for policymakers and funders to better support the mental health of vulnerable and immigrant communities

Improving Students’ Reading Comprehension on Narrative Text Taught by Using Animation Video (A Classroom Action Research at Eleventh Grade Students of MA Nahdlatul Muslimin Kudus in Academic year 2013/2014)

Reading comprehension is an attempt to understand, evaluate, and also recognize the author’s ideas of reading text. Teaching reading needs more attention since most of foreign language learners, especially English have poor reading comprehension skill and most of the materials given by the teacher (in English or other subjects) are presented in written form, for example in handbook, handout, etc. So, reading activity much more relied on the learning and teaching process. It means that to understand the materials, the students must have the ability to look at and get the meaning of written text, that is called reading skill. Therefore , reading is very important to be taught to the students. The objectives of this study were: 1) to find out if animation video can improve the students’ reading comprehension on narrative textat eleventh grade students of MA Nahdlatul Muslimin Kudus in the academic year 2013/2014. 2) to get information about the responses of the students’ reading comprehension on narrative text at eleventh grade students of MA Nahdlatul Muslimin Kudus in the academic year 2013/2014 using animation video. This research uses classroom action research (CAR) design. It consisted of two cycles. Each cycle consisted of four steps, namely (1) planning, (2) acting, (3) observing, (4) reflecting. Cycle I was held on 4th and 11th May 2014. While cycle II was held on 18th and 24th May 2014. The subject of this research was the students of XI IPA 1 of MA Nahdlatul Muslimin Kudus in academic year 2013/2014. In collecting data, the writer used written test, observation sheet and questionnaire. The test was held on after the teaching reading narrative text by using animation video. The result of this research shows that the use of animation video can improve the students’ reading comprehension on narrative text at eleventh grade students of MA Nahdlatul Muslimin Kudus in academic year 2013/2014. The students’ average score improves from 69 in pre-cycle becomes 75.8 in cycle I and 87.5 in cycle II. From the result of observation sheet. It can be concluded that animation video was effective to teach narrative reading because of some reasons: 1) the students like to read English story, 2) the students were interested in the picture of the story in animation video, 3) the students could understand the story easily from the animation video pictures, 4) the students knew the meaning of the words in the story from the animation video pictures, 5) the students enjoyed the reading the story in animation video more than the story text

PENGEMBANGAN MEDIA VIDEO PEMBELAJARAN PADA MATA PELAJARAN KONSTRUKSI DAN UTILITAS GEDUNG DI SMK NEGERI 2 GARUT - JAWA BARAT

Penelitian pengembangan media video pembelajaran dilatar belakangi oleh pembelajaran pada mata pelajaran Konstruksi dan Utilitas Gedung (KUG) di SMKN 2 Garut seringkali masih menggunakan media visual statis dan tidak tersedia visualisasi 3D, sedangkan penggunaan media video masih menggunakan video dari youtube. Oleh karena itu, diperlukan pengembangan video pembelajaran pada mata pelajaran KUG dalam menunjang pembelajaran yang efektif dan efisien. Penelitian ini bertujuan mengembangkan media video pembelajaran serta mendeskripsikan implementasi video pembelajaran pada mata pelajaran KUG di kelas XI DPIB SMK Negeri 2 Garut. Penelitian ini bermanfaat dalam menambah pengetahuan mengenai video pembelajaran, meningkatkan pemahaman peserta didik terkait materi yang dipelajari, serta dapat dijadikan sumber atau referensi mengenai video pembelajaran bagi seluruh pihak terkait. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode penelitian dan pengembangan (R&D) dengan model 4D (Define, Design, Development, Disseminate). Video pembelajaran memiliki presentase kelayakan sebesar 90,40% untuk media dan 98,82% untuk materi yang termasuk kategori sangat layak. Pengembangan video pembelajaran dilakukan pada dua bagian yaitu, visual dan audio. Implementasi video pembelajaran berlangsung sangat baik berdasarkan persentase respon peserta didik 92,45% dan nilai rata-rata peserta didik 84,9 yang termasuk kategori sangat baik. Video pembelajaran ini berdampak terhadap hasil belajar peserta didik pada aspek kognitif dalam membantu pemahaman peserta didik dan aspek afektif dalam mendorong kemandirian peserta didik. ; Research on the development of learning video media is motivated by learning in the subject of Building Construction and Utilities (KUG) at SMKN 2 Garut often still uses static visual media and there is no 3D visualization available, while the use of video media still uses videos from YouTube. Therefore, it is necessary to develop learning videos in KUG subjects to support effective and efficient learning. This research aims to develop learning video media and describe the implementation of learning videos in KUG subjects in class XI DPIB SMK Negeri 2 Garut. This research is useful in increasing knowledge about learning videos, improving students' understanding of the material being studied, and can be used as a source or reference regarding learning videos for all related parties. This research uses the research and development (R&D) method with the 4D model (Define, Design, Development, Disseminate). The learning video has a feasibility percentage of 90.40% for media and 98.82% for material which is included in the very feasible category. Learning video development is carried out in two parts, namely, visual and audio. The implementation of learning videos is very good based on the percentage of student responses of 92.45% and the average score of 84.9 students which is included in the very good category. This learning video has an impact on students learning outcomes in the cognitive aspect in helping students understand and the affective aspect in encouraging students independence