During this trip, and whilst we were recording data, there were problems which were encountered amongst methods, results and therefore the conclusions. The first one we came across was the longshore drift survey part.

Niral Patel 10D 2/12/04 Evaluation: During this trip, and whilst we were recording data, there were problems which were encountered amongst methods, results and therefore the conclusions. The first one we came across was the longshore drift survey part. The cork that was thrown into the sea was lost (poor methodology); therefore the results for this section were inaccurate as the direction/speed of the cork was not known with certainty making the results inaccurate. Because of this, the conclusion would have to be questioned as we are not able to draw a firm or accurate conclusion about the survey on longshore drift. A poor method was when we only received one cork and we were asked to record longshore drift data at two locations. This meant that only one of the two locations would be used, meaning that the results were not accurate overall making the conclusion questionable again for the longshore drift survey section. With the groyne measurements, the most accurate data available was not obtained due to safety reasons, because it would not be safe to climb onto a slippery groyne and take measurements, therefore the most accurate estimates of the groyne measurements were recorded. This was the fault in the method leading to inaccurate results as they were largely based on accurate as

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Applied sociological research skills

Applied sociological research skills Key terms Objectivity - A lack of bias, preconceptions or prejudice. Lack of bias = keeping your opinions and your values separate from what you're studying and try to look at the issue as scientifically as possible. (related to value freedom) Value freedom - Where the research of a sociologist ought to be carried without their beliefs and ideas influencing the project. (see also positivism) Ethical issues - Issues which have a moral dimension, such as the debates over euthanasia and abortion. It goes against the mores, norms and values of society as people see it as not the right thing. In research we need to be sensitive aware of peoples morals and values. Positivism - A view where phenomena should be studied in a scientific manner. To find out things for certain. Case study - strengths and weaknesses - A detailed in-depth study of a group or event. - Weakness - it is not representative of others which are similar to it - Strength - it is good to use as a hypothesis, an untested theory, for research that you may plan to do in the future. Methodological pluralism - Sampling methods / Sampling frame - strengths and weaknesses - A sampling method is how you plan to choose a sample from a population. The aim usually being to get a sample which is representative of the population. For example random sampling,

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Assess the relevance of metaphors to Human - Computer interaction from the perspective of the design

Assess the relevance of metaphors to Human - Computer interaction from the perspective of the design System metaphors appear to be attracting more and more attention and you often hear the term banded about in journals and conference proceedings. The aim of this essay is to examine the potential usefulness of metaphors to the users and designers of systems, concentrating, in particular, on the human-computer interface. It will hopefully be established whether system metaphors are phenomena worthy of serious thought or whether it is simply an empty term with no more than intuitive appeal which will be passed over and forgotten with time. The basic idea behind a metaphor is to understand a new concept in terms of one which is already familiar and understood. A well known metaphor is that of Rutherford's comparison of the hydrogen atom to the solar system. Lakoff and Johnson (1980) see language to be structured metaphorically and claim that this reflects the structure of thought processes in general: Metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but in thought and action (Lakoff & Johnson 1980, p3) Many teachers have used metaphor and analogy to facilitate their pupils learning and indeed analogy seems to be a central aspect of learning. Metaphors can be distinguished from models by the partial nature of the correspondence between the old and new concept.

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HCI (human-computer interaction).

HCI (human-computer interaction) Human-computer interaction is a field concerned with the design, evaluation and implementation of interactive computing systems for human use. It is a field concerned with many disciplines including computer graphics, the system part of computer science, operating systems, ergonomics, psychology, sociology and anthropology (interactions between technology, work, and organisation) and industrial design (interactive products). There are several physical and psychological factors that can boost the effectiveness of human-computer interaction. For effective interaction, comfort for the human is essential. Furniture should be comfortable and adjustable as poorly designed chairs are responsible for back trouble. Lighting should be the appropriate intensity as well as being positioned appropriately to avoid casting shadows. Computer screens should be positioned away from light sources such as windows to avoid glare, and windows should have blinds to control the brightness of the room. Psychological factors play a big role in human-computer interaction. Information is transported through the sense - Vision, hearing, touch, and movement. The eye is less sensitive to blue than red or green light. There are much fewer shades of blue that the eye can distinguish between than red or green. Thus, important information should not be displayed in

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Features of Quantitative Research.

Features of Quantitative Research According to Coolican (1990), quantification can be defined as the process of measuring on some numerical basis. Quantitative research tends to be numerical or categorical. This type of research aims to make predictions, establish facts and test hypothesis that have already been stated, that is, aims to find evidence which supports or does not support on existing hypothesis. Quantitative research normally involves large numbers of respondents, typically a hundred or more, and obtains results that are representative of the total population. Therefore, it is a form of research method that is considerably appropriate for generalization of descriptions. There are several main types of approaches to quantitative research (show as following) and these techniques are widely used in many substantive fields to study and explain individual differences and patterns of relationships among variables. > Correlational research aims to find out whether there is a relationship between two or more variables (Gay & Airasian, 1999). In any case, if a relationship is found, then its degree is identified by a number between -1.00 and +1.00 and this number is known as a correlation coefficient. For instance, when one variable increases and the other also increases, then the correlation in this case would be positive. On the other hand, if a correlation is

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Was the scientific revolution primarily one concerned with the solar system?

R. Jefferys November 2002 Was the scientific revolution primarily one concerned with the solar system? In the early modern period, scientific advancements paved the way for the findings, which we now take for granted, but back then were originally seen as a far more abstract concept. This was largely due to the work of men such as Galileo Galilei (1564 - 1642), Nicolaus Copernicus (1473 - 1543), Johannes Kepler (1571 - 1630), Tycho Brahe (1564 - 1601) and Ismael Boulliau (1605 - 1694) as well as others. Their work meant that whether it was believed or not originally, there was some sense of a revolution in the sciences giving us a greater understanding of the world in which we live. However the scientific revolution, which took place during the early modern period also signals something that has a far greater historical impact on the time. Whilst many may have predominantly looked skywards for answers to their questions, the revolution marked a new direction in renaissance thinking much closer to the ground. Whether it was the discoveries and new theories of the cosmos proposed by Copernicus or Galileo, or whether it was Gilbert's work on the magnet or even Bacon's work on learning, what came out of the scientific revolution was that the sciences rather than being their own separate entity were rather more inter-linked than originally thought. Therefore the scientific

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Hybrid electoral systems the Additional Member System (AMS).

Hybrid electoral systems The Additional Member System (AMS) Introduction Proportional representation is not a voting system but a general term covering a number of systems which deliver seats to a party in proportion to the number of votes it receives. The Additional Member System usually comes under the umbrella of proportional representation as it partly uses a variation of the party list system. The system is really a hybrid of two voting systems which combine to give a proportional result. The Additional Member System was created by the Allies as an electoral system for post-Nazi Germany and was intended to provide stable government. It is a hybrid of the FPTP system and the Party List system. The operation of the AMS system Two key points which characterise the system: . Each voter casts two votes at the same time - one for a constituency MP and the other for a party. 2. There are two different types of MPs elected - constituency MPs and the 'additional members' (those elected using the party lists). The voter casts one vote for a constituency MP. This process is identical to the FPTP system as it operates on a simple majority basis. The candidate with the most votes wins, even if they poll fewer than half of the vote. The second vote is cast for a party; and the voter may wish to vote for a party different from the one supported in

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  • Subject: Mathematical and Computer Sciences
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Dimensional Modeling

Dimensional Modeling (With modeled examples of Inventory Management and HR Processes) Submitted To. Mr. Imran Khan Course Supervisor Advance Databases Submitted By. Mr.Kamran Ellahi FA03-MS-0019 Mr.Mohd Hanif SP04-MS-0006 Introduction Business intelligence is the key achromous in today's competitive world of business and Data Warehousing the approach for achieving this level of intelligence about your business from your business. For years, data management people believed that there was only one real, persistent level of data - the operational level. All other data, while accepted, was derivable from this level. This is not true as there are several levels of data within an organization. The reason stems not from information technology (IT), but from business. Classically, there are three major levels of management and decision making within an organization: operational, tactical and strategic (figure 1). While these levels feed one another, they are essentially distinct. Operational data deals with day-to- day operations. Tactical data deals with medium-term decisions. Strategic data deals with long- term decisions. Decision making changes as one goes from level to level. At the operational level, decisions are structured. This means they are based on rules. (A credit card charge may not exceed the customer's credit limit.) At the tactical level, decisions

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A practical using SPSS

Practical One A sample of 83 students was measured for their physical characteristics. The variables were as follows, classified as either quantitative or categorical : Height - Quantitative Weight - Quantitative Armlen- - Quantitative Uarm - Quantitative Lowera - Quantitative Legl - Quantitative Waist - Quantitative Hip - Quantitative ethnicity Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid European 36 43.4 43.4 43.4 Asian 25 30.1 30.1 73.5 African 3 5.7 5.7 89.2 other 9 0.8 0.8 00.0 Total 83 00.0 00.0 Questions 2)i) The frequency table - The data shows the frequency and the percentage in the ethnicity sample. This also shows the highest and the lowest of both the frequency and percentage. Eg, European has a frequency of 36 and a percentage of 43.3, and the lowest is other ethnic groups of 9 and 10.8%. ii) Pie chart - Here the pie chart shows that the European ethnic group is large compared to other ethnic groups. This a visual reference as it contains no quantitative data. The pie chart also makes it easier to see which ethnic group is which by different colours. iii) Bar Charts - This Bar chart shows that the European ethnic group is the highest than any other ethnic group. It shows quantitative data by showing percentages. 3. A quick overview of the ethnicity is the best way to show a presentation, whereas

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Ethical Decision-Making

Decision Support Systems Sharon Robinson DBM 410 Decision support Systems SPICS1101 University of Phoenix- Clearwater Campus Joe Dobrinski, Jr. May 31, 2005 Workshop #5 Team Assignment Creating a Decision Support System Creating a Decision Support System (DSS) A DSS is an interactive, computer-based system, which has functions for giving a user modeling and data support, which is flexible and adaptable to varying needs in changing environments, with a supportive and easy to use interface, and which has been built to represent the necessary and sufficient problem and knowledge elements of the context it should support (MacDermant, 1998). The ultimate goal of collecting this data is to provide a foundation for business intelligence. Data is drawn from data warehouses, data marts, internal data (generated by business transactions), personal data (individual, subjective estimates, projections, opinions, judgments, etc.), external data (generated outside the organization, but relevant to the organization), economic data (competitive intelligence), and any other data needed for sound decisions. We can collect data manually, by instruments and sensors, scanning, or electronic transfer. The data is transformed into information and knowledge. Data analysis tools are then applied which will augment the decision makers' judgment with facts, analysis, and forecasts. Practical

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  • Subject: Mathematical and Computer Sciences
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