Decent Work in America: The 2005 Work Environment Index

What are the factors that make for a decent work environment and how do the conditions of work vary in different parts of the United States? To address these and similarly important questions in a clear and accessible way, we have developed a new approach for measuring the work environment on a state-bystate basis throughout the United States (including the District of Columbia) – the Work Environment Index (WEI). This is the first installment of the WEI, and we intend to update it every year. The WEI is a unique social indicator that brings together in one measure a range of factors that, in combination, define the quality of our working lives in the U.S. today. The WEI examines three basic dimensions of the U.S. work environment: job opportunities, job quality and workplace fairness. We rank the 50 states and the District of Columbia according to these three categories. Based on our measures of job opportunities, job quality, and workplace fairness, we find that, overall, Delaware offers the best relative work environment in the United States. Other states with high WEI rankings include New Hampshire, Minnesota, Vermont and Iowa. The states with the lowest WEI rankings are Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, Utah, South Carolina and Mississippi. Our state-by-state WEI ranking enables us to consider a crucial and widely-discussed issue: Do the states that provide a relatively decent work environment end up paying a penalty in terms of their overall economic climate? For example, do states that rank high according to the WEI score poorly in terms of their overall growth rate, the pace at which new businesses are being formed in the state, or their rate of new job creation? In fact, we find that overall economic conditions in states with a high WEI rank are at least as favorable, if not somewhat more favorable, than those with low WEI rankings. Along with this, we also find that poverty rates in states with high WEI rankings are consistently lower than states with low WEI rankings.labor, work environment, business climate, decent work, poverty, job growth, economic growth, business start-up

Doubts and Puzzles: Young Galeano Writing about New China during the Sino-Soviet Split

As a journalist of Uruguay’s Marcha weekly newspaper, Eduardo Galeano visited China in September 1963; he was warmly received by Chinese leaders including Premier Zhou Enlai. At first, Galeano published some experiences of his China visit in Marcha. In 1964, he published the complete journal of the trip, under the title of China, 1964: crónica de un desaf í o [“China 1964: Chronicle of a Challenge”]. Based on Chinese-language materials, this paper explores Galeano’s trip to China at that time and includes a close reading of Galeano’s travel notes. By analyzing his views on the New China, Socialism, and the Sino-Soviet Split, we will try to determine whether this China visit influenced his world view and cultural concepts. Como periodista del semanario uruguayo Marcha, Eduardo Galeano visitó China en septiembre de 1963 donde fue calurosamente recibido por los líderes chinos, incluido el Primer Ministro Zhou Enlai. Al principio, Galeano publicó algunas experiencias de su visita a China en Marcha. En 1964, publicó el diario completo del viaje bajo el título China, 1964: crónica de un desafío. Basado en materiales en chino, este artículo explora el viaje de Galeano e incluye una lectura detallada de sus notas. Por medio de un análisis de sus puntos de vista sobre la Nueva China, el socialismo y la ruptura sinosoviética, se intenta determinar si esta visita a China influyó en su visión del mundo y en sus conceptos culturales

Review: Guan Wei at Hanart T Z Gallery

This review is scripted in English. It was published in Asian Art News in 1996 (March/April issue). (Jerry Wu\u2723).https://digital.kenyon.edu/zhoudocs/1092/thumbnail.jp

Studies on compressive strength of sandy clay soil samples with different percentages of lime and nylon fibres

To develop economically feasible and durable methods of ground improvement are some of the major challenges faced by geotechnical engineers. Many commonly available stabilisers like lime, fly ash, rice husk ash has been used in many studies. These stabilisers are known to improve the compressive strength of soil. But in order to improve the tensile properties of soil and increase the ductility characteristics, fibres can be included along with the commonly used stabilisers. In this paper values of compressive strength of sandy clay soil treated with different concentrations of lime and nylon fibre is studied and compared with the values of untreated native soil. The compressive strength of soil increases with increase in lime content up to 10%. The compressive strength of soil also increases with nylon fibre inclusion up to a concentration of 0.3%. With further increase in nylon fibre content, compressive strength decreases in the studied samples. In the present study the difference in the increase in compressive strength shown by composites with random and horizontal layers of nylon fibres as inclusions appears to be very small. The present study concludes that a combination of lime and nylon fibre can be a better stabilizer for ground improvement. Keywords—unconfined compressive strength, lime, horizontal layer, nylon fibr