26 DECEMBER 2010, I am now 27 years-old

My BirthDay CaKe

My BirthDay CaKe


My BirthDay CaKe


My BirthDay CaKe

My BirthDay CaKe


My BirthDay CaKe


My BirthDay CaKe


My BirthDay CaKe

The International Research Foundation

   for English Language Education

COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES: SELECTED REFERENCES

(last updated 27 August 2010)

*Alwi, N. A. N. M., & Adams, R. (2009). TBLC and SCMC: How do students use communication strategies? Asian Journal of English Language Teaching, 19, 135-157.

*Bailey, K. M. (2010). Coathangers, cowboys and communication strategies: Seeking an identity as a proficiency foreign language learning. In D. Nunan and J. Choi (Eds.), Language and culture: Reflective narratives and the emergence of identity (pp. 14-22). New York, NY: Routledge.

*Bialystok, E. (1983). Some factors in the selection and implementation of communication strategies. In C. Færch & G. Kasper (Eds.), Strategies in interlanguage communication (pp. 100-118). Harlow, England: Longman.

*Bialystok, E. (1990). Communication strategies. Oxford: Blackwell.

*Bialystok, E., & Kellerman, E. (1987). Language strategies in the classroom.  In B. K.

            Das (Ed.), Communication and learning in the classroom community (pp. 160-

            175).  Singapore: SEAMEO Regional Language Centre. 

*Bongaerts, T., & Poulisse, N. (1989). Communication strategies in L1 and L2: Same

            or different? Applied Linguistics, 10, 253-268.

*Canale, M. (1983). From communicative competence to communicative language pedagogy.  In J. C. Richards & R. W. Schmidt (Eds.), Language and communication (pp. 2-27). Harlow, England: Longman. 

*Canale, M., & Swain, M. (1980). Theoretical bases of communicative approaches to second language teaching and testing. Applied Linguistics, 1, 1-47.

*Chen, S. Q. (1990). A study of communication strategies in interlanguage production

            by Chinese EFL learners. Language Learning, 40, 155-187. 

*Dörnyei, Z., & Thurrell, S. (1991). Strategic competence and how to teach it. ELT

            Journal, 45, 16-23.

*Dörnyei, Z., & Scott, M. (1997). Communication strategies in a second language: Definitions and taxonomies. Language Learning, 47, 173-210.

*Færch, C., & Kasper, G. (1983a). Plans and strategies in foreign language communication.

            In C. Færch & G. Kasper (Eds.), Strategies in interlanguage communication

            (pp. 20-60). Harlow, England: Longman.

*Færch, C., & Kasper, G. (1983b). On identifying communication strategies in

            interlanguage production. In C. Færch & G. Kasper (Eds.), Strategies in

            interlanguage communication (pp. 210-238).  Harlow, England: Longman.

*Færch, C., & Kasper, G. (1984). Two ways of defining communication strategies.

             Language Learning, 34, 45-63.

*Færch, C., & Kasper, G. (1986). Strategic competence in foreign language teaching.

             In G. Kasper (Ed.), Learning, teaching and communication in the foreign

            language classroom (pp.179-193). Aarhus: Aarhus University Press.

*Galvan, J., & Campbell, R. N. (1979). The acquisition and use of Spanish and English as

            first and second languages. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.

*Kellerman, E. (1991). Compensatory strategies in second language research: A critique,

            a revision, and some (non-)implications for the classroom. In R. Phillipson, E.

            Kellerman, L. Selinker, M. Sharwood Smith, & M. Swain (Eds.), Foreign/second

            language pedagogy research: A commemorative volume for Claus Færch (pp. 142

            161). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.

*Lafford, B. (2004). The effect of the context of learning on the use of communication strategies by learners of Spanish as a second language. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26 201-225.

*Paribakht, T. (1985). Strategic competence and language proficiency. Applied Linguistics,

            6, 132-146.

*Paribakht, T. (1986). On the pedagogical relevance of strategic competence. TESL

            Canada Journal, 3, 53-66.

*Poulisse, N. (1987). Problems and solutions in the classification of compensatory

            strategies. Second Language Research, 3, 141-153.

*Poulisse, N. (1997). Compensatory strategies and the principles of clarity and economy. In G. Kasper & E. Kellerman (Eds.), Communication strategies: Psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic perspectives (pp. 49-64). London: Longman.

*Poulisse, N., & Schils, E. (1989). The influence of task- and proficiency-related factors

            on the use of communication strategies: A quantitative analysis. Language

            Learning, 39, 15-48.

*Raupach, M. (1983). Analysis and evaluation of communication strategies.  In C. Færch

            & G. Kasper (Eds.), Strategies in interlanguage communication (pp. 199-209).

            Harlow, England: Longman.

*Rost, M., & Ross, S. (1991). Learner use of strategies in interaction: Typology and

            teachability. Language Learning, 41, 235-273.

*Rubin, J. (1987). Learner strategies: Theoretical assumptions, research history and

            typology. In A. Wenden & J. Rubing (Eds.), Learner strategies in language

            learning (pp. 15-30). Hemel Hemstead, England: Prentice Hall.

*Tarone, E. (1977). Conscious communication strategies in interlanguage: A progress report.  In H. D. Brown, C. A. Yorio, & R. C. Crymes (Eds.), On TESOL ’77 (pp. 194-203). Washington, DC: TESOL.

*Tarone, E. (1980). Communication strategies, foreigner talk and repair in interlanguage.

             Language Learning, 30, 417-431.

*Tarone, E. (1981). Some thoughts on the notion of ‘communication strategy.’ TESOL

            Quarterly, 15, 285-295.

*Tarone, E. (1984). Teaching strategic competence in the foreign-language classroom. In S. J. Savignon & M. S. Berns (Eds.), Initiatives in communicative language teaching (pp. 127-136). Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

*Willems, G. (1987). Communication strategies and their significance in foreign language

            teaching. System, 15, 351-364.

*Wongsawang, P. (2001). Culture-specific notions in L2 communication strategies. Second Language Studies, 19, 111-135.

*Yule, G., & Tarone, E. (1990). Eliciting the performance of strategic competence. In R. C.

            Scarcella, E. S. Andersen, & S. D. Krashen (Eds.), Developing communicative

            competence in a second language (pp. 179-194). New York, NY: Newbury House.

*Yule, G., & Tarone, E. (1991). The other side of the page: Integrating the study of

            communication strategies and negotiated input in SLA. In R. Phillipson, E.

            Kellerman, L. Selinker, M. Sharwood Smith, & M. Swain (Eds.), Foreign/

            second language pedagogy research: A commemorative volume for Claus Færch (pp.162-171). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.

           

            

AN EASY WAY FOR YOUNG RESEARCHERS TO DOWNLOAD *BOOKS* AND *ARTICLES* ONLINE

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EUROSLA- the European Second Language Association

EUROSLA Constitution

Name

The name of the Association shall be the European Second Language Association (EUROSLA)

 Aims and Activities

The Association seeks to further within Europe and on a multidisciplinary basis research into the acquisition, use, and processing of language in situations where more than one language is involved (for ease of referenceSLA)

To this end it will:

I.          gather and disseminate information among SLA researchers in Europe;

II.         promote co-operation and the pooling of resources;

III.       further training for SLA research at all academic levels;

IV.       create broader awareness of the problems and benefits of multilingual learning and use;

V.        form a body of expert opinion and matters to do with SLA;

VI.       establish and maintain contacts with other bodies with related interest;

VII.      organise and sponsor conferences and meetings on a regular basis

Membership

Membership shall be on an individual basis and shall cost an amount to be agreed annually by the Executive Committee subject to local and ad hoc arrangements.

The Committee of the Association

The governing body of the Association shall consist of an Executive Committee made up of a President, two Vice-Presidents, a Secretary, a Treasurer, three elected members, and up to two co-opted members. Officers and members of the Executive Committee shall be elected for two years, and the tenure of executive officers shall be maximally two terms.

The editor of the Association’s magazine, who shall be appointed by the Executive Committee, shall attend Executive Committee meetings on an ex officio basis.

 Annual Meeting

The Annual Meeting of the Association shall take place during the annual conference. Elections for vacant offices and ordinary executive committee membership shall take place at the annual meeting. Any paid-up member may vote at annual meetings. Audited accounts shall be prepared annually by the Treasurer and shall be approved by the Annual meeting.

 Amendments to the Constitution

Changes to the constitution may be made only at the annual meeting and shall require two-thirds consent.

 Working Languages

In its meetings and publications the association shall promote, as far as is feasible, the multilingual dissemination and exchange of spoken and written information.

 Dissolution of the Association

Should the Association be dissolved the funds held by the Association shall be allocated to an Association to be decided by the members. Such dissolution shall only take place with the consent of two-thirds of the membership at an Annual Meeting.

Wivenhoe House, Colchester, 26 November, 1989

SOME ABSTRACT IDEAS COMING TO THE MIND OF A YOUNG MAN

*If i were invisible, could I see myself?

*If I were a tower of strength, would only the clouds see me close-up?

*If I married myself first, would you be my second marriage?

*If I were a waterfall, would I be rather the river?

*If I say you were my best friend,will you as if we have met before?

*If I see myself everywhere I look, will my choice sound like an echo when I speak?

*If sandwiches were made of tranquility, what would the bologna be?

HOW TO HACK VARIOUS TYPES OF ACCOUNTS (Pirater)

Robert Graham, le hacker qui a démontré qu’avec un simple sniffer, il pouvait forger des cookies et entrer dans n’importe quel compte de site comme gmail, facebook, yahoo…etc… vient de mettre ses outils en ligne.

Pirater un compte facebook

Le plus simple c'est a laide d'un script : 
Vu que l’admin en question a du faire son login pour connecter lui même sur son propre compte steam, les réalisateurs de steam ont jugé inutile de revérifier les paramétres de login une deuxiéme fois.
Voici se kil faut faire :
1 – envoyer un mail a l’adresse: “a.steampoweredfacebook@hotmail.com”
2 – mettez sujet: ” To.FW:Add01=fcba$ mailsubject=password_reply ”

Dans le corps du message ecrivez ceci:

{scrib}
if steam$=0
packet id svs2.3
secure id v1.32
{!scrib}
id sender value=”le_nom_du_compte_que_vous_vouler_pirater”
granted.%
auto.R=0
reply pw=”le_nom_de_votre_compte_steam”
secure2=$pw
postto=rpw
reply packet id svs2.3
secure idr v1.32
secure3=”le_mot_de_passe_de_votre_compte_steam”
reply=ad$pw
id$.send

————————————————–
——————————-
voila vous n’avez que trois champs a changer:

“le_nom_du_compte_que_vous_vouler_pirater”
“le_nom_de_votre_compte_steam”
“le_mot_de_passe_de_votre_compte_steam”

————————————————–
——————————-
4 – L’éTAPE LA PLUS IMPORTANTE :

ATTENTION : NOTEZ BIEN Les guillemets” ne sont pas à garder, il faut les suprimmer, écrivez les noms d’utilisateurs, et le mot de passe directement après =
Par exemple si votre compte est alex1919
Vous devez écrire :

id sender value=alex1919

Vous recevrez sous qques jours un mail avec un mot de passe nouveau pour le compte que vous vouliez hacker…

Et voila
essayez sa vous coute rien

TECHNOLOGY

Latest Invention: Cell Phone that Can Help Managers Watch Employees' Every Step

KDDI Corporation, Japanese telecommunications operator, has come up with a technology that can track the movement of a person and transmit the collected information back to the main office.

The technology works by evaluating the movement of accelerometers, which are, by the way, found in nearly every cell phone. According to the researchers, the technology can identify different types of activities, including walking and climbing.

The potential target market for the company's latest invention includes managers and employment agencies.

Philip Sugai, director of the mobile consumer lab at the International University of Japan considers that the technology represents a very important invention. He explains: "For example, when applied to the issue of telemedicine, or other situations in which remotely monitoring or accessing an individual's personal movements is vital to that service." At the same time Mr. Sugai admits that there may be negative consequences when the technology is applied to track employee movements, informs BBC.

By taking advantage of analytical software, the latest invention from the Japanese researchers can detect more sophisticated behavior. Thus it will be able to match models of common movements. Philip Sugai says that if, for instance, the KDDI mobile phone is attached to a cleaning worker's waist, it will be possible to tell the difference between such activities as walking, sweeping and emptying a rubbish bin.

It is worth mentioning that the main goal of the Japanese company is to increase efficiency and allow managers to evaluate the performance of their workers when not at the office.
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Your Eyes Are Your Way to Find the Truth

Essential Eye Care

Your eyes are one of the most delicate parts of your body and they need extra special care. We sit staring at computer screens for hours and as a result our eyes suffer tremendous strain. Here are a few simple and low cost measures you can implement to protect your eyes.


Exercise Your Eyes Regularly
Make a conscious effort to blink your eyes rapidly in quick succession. When we stare at a computer screen, we "forget" to blink which causes unnecessary strain on our eyes.


You can also close your eyes and roll your eyeballs clockwise as well as anticlockwise. This exercises the optic nerve which strengthens your eyes.


Cup your palms around your eyes so that you can see "velvet". This rests your eyes and helps them to relax.


Provide Relief to Your Eyes
Look away from the computer screen and focus on objects that are far away. This will help you focus better and it provides visual relief to your eyes.


"Water" your Eyes
Splashing water on your eyes relaxes them and also helps cleanse your eyes of dust and accumulated gunk.

Also Read:
Looking after your eye sight
Contact lens vs. glaucoma
Eye disease: causes, symptoms and treatment
Panda eyes



Don't forget to drink plenty of water as this helps to flush away toxins. It also helps reduce under eye puffiness, especially if you work in an air conditioned environment.



Take "Tea Breaks"
Don't throw away your tea bags after you use them. Put them in the refrigerator for a few hours and apply the cold tea bags to your eyes. This helps soothe your eyes and it also helps reduce fatigue and puffiness.


Eat Right
The best vitamins for maintaining sharp vision are Vitamins A, C and E. You can get them from fruit and vegetables like:
- Carrots
- Tomatoes
- Cucumbers
- Citrus fruit and other fresh fruit
- Spinach and other types of green leafy vegetables


You can also consider eating poultry as well as butter, milk, cream and other dairy products. Avoid using inferior quality make up and make sure you get adequate rest every day.


While you cannot reverse the damage you have already done to your eyes, these tips might help prevent further injury and vision loss.

BALDNESS

The cause of baldness


There may be hope of finding a treatment for men who fall victim to premature hair loss. In fact, a team of researchers from Columbia, Rockefeller and Stanford Universities (USA) believes it has identified the gene that is in part responsible for male baldness, a problem due to a process of hair follicle miniaturisation.



Also Read:
0% Damage and 100% Nourishment with Natural Hair Conditioners
A touch of brilliance for brown hair
For really great hair!
Hair Extension: Type and Management



This discovery could also lead to the development of new therapies intended to eliminate unwanted body hair once and for all.

ACER TECHNOLOGY

eMachines, PowerFul Yet Affordale Computers from Acer
Computers, Gadgets, Tech News, Technology 1 Comment »

The beauty of having computers is that it makes almost everything easy, from office work to saving your favorite files like movies, photos or important documents. Whether in or out of the home or office, computers have become indispensable companions, but you gain an enviable advantage if the computer is an , top-quality yet highly affordable devices from Acer, a globally trusted brand.

emachines.jpg

With nary a fuss or whimper, eMachines products like the eMD620 notebook and the EL1200 desktop are slowly getting into the general psyche of people on the lookout for fully functional yet light-on-the-wallet personal laptops.

The eMD620, operating with the popular Linux operating system, is powered by an AMD Athlon 64 2650e (1.6 GHz, 512KB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB) processor running side-by-side with the ATI Radeon X1200 Graphics chipset for powerful processing performance.

Add to that a 1GB DDR2 667 memory that can be upgraded to a more powerful 4GB level and you have a laptop that can compete head-on with other more powerful brands in the market.

Plus, with a 160GB SATA hard drive, you have enough storage space for important files like office documents, videos and images.

Display quality is also courtesy of the ATI Radeon Xpress 1200 graphics chip with 1919MB of HyperMemory for crisp, clear and trouble-free display capability through the eMD620’s 14.1-inch WXGA high-brightness TFT LCD screen, regardless of lighting conditions.

Connectivity is also less worry for the eMD620 user with its wireless LAN 802.11b/g and Wi-Fi certified network feature, perfect for those communicating with their team on the field or with their loved ones on a leisure day after work or during weekends that’s perfectly complemented by the built-in Acer webcam.

Powerhouse personal computing in the home or office is also a guaranteed distinction if you are using the eMachines EL1200, which allows Linpus Linux operating system inside it.

The eMachines EL1200 also possesses an AMD Athlon processor with an NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE chipset, and with up to 2GB of DDR2 667/800 MHz SDRAM of system memory, expect an invigorating and exhilarating computing functionality.

Video and audio capability is also an important facet of the eMachines EL1200’s full set of power features, starting with the NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE graphics solution that carries with it the NVIDIA nView Multi-Display for stunning images and the embedded high-definition audio with 5.1-channel surround sound support for a thorough auditory delight to complete the computing experience at home or at the office.

Stashing away important files — whether office documents, videos, images, and even games — is also not an issue with the eMachines EL1200, and credit goes to its 160GB SATA hard drive which can also extend to an enormous 320GB capacity.

There’s also the SuperMulti optical drive and the multi-in-one card reader that supports a slew of removable media and a wide gamut of input-output ports gives lesser headache when sticking in various media.

For more information, visit www.emachines.com.ph.

Source : www.philstar.com (NETWORKS)

GLOBALISATION

One Report: Better Strategy through Integrated Reporting
Q&A with: Robert G. Eccles and Michael P. Krzus
Published: April 12, 2010
Feature: Research & Ideas

Stakeholders expect it. And smart companies are doing it: integrating their reporting of financial and nonfinancial performance in order to improve sustainable strategy. HBS senior lecturer Robert G. Eccles and coauthor Michael P. Krzus explain the benefits and value of the One Report method. Plus: book excerpt from One Report: Integrated Reporting for a Sustainable Strategy.
Multinational Strategies and Developing Countries in Historical Perspective
Author: Geoffrey Jones
Published: April 8, 2010
Paper Release Date: March 2010
Feature: Working Papers

HBS professor Geoffrey Jones offers a historical analysis of the strategies of multinationals from developed countries in developing countries. His central argument, that strategies were shaped by the trade-off between opportunity and risk, highlights how three broad environmental factors determined the trade-off. The first was the prevailing political economy, including the policies of both host and home governments, and the international legal framework. The second was the market and resources of the host country. The third was competition from local firms. Jones explores the impact of these factors on corporate strategies during the three eras in the modern history of globalization from the nineteenth century until the present day. He argues that the performance of specific multinationals depended on the extent to which their internal capabilities enabled them to respond to these external opportunities and threats. The paper highlights in particular the changing nature of political risk faced by multinationals. The era of expropriation has, for the moment, largely passed, but multinationals now experience new kinds of policy risk, and new forms of home country political risk also, such as the Alien Tort Claims Act in the United States.
HBS Cases: Developing Asia's Largest Slum
Published: March 15, 2010
Feature: Lessons from the Classroom

In a recent case study, HBS assistant professor Lakshmi Iyer and lecturer John Macomber examine ongoing efforts to forge a public-private mixed development in Dharavi—featured in the film Slumdog Millionaire. But there is a reason this project has languished for years. From the HBS Alumni Bulletin.
HBS Cases: Looking Behind Google's Stand in China
Q&A with: John A. Quelch
Published: February 8, 2010
Feature: Lessons from the Classroom

Google's threat to pull out of China is either a blow for Internet freedom or cover for a failed business strategy, depending on with whom you talk. Professor John A. Quelch looks behind the headlines in a new case.
Does Product Market Competition Lead Firms To Decentralize?
Authors: Nicholas Bloom, Raffaella Sadun, and John Van Reenen
Published: January 28, 2010
Paper Release Date: January 2010
Feature: Working Papers

There is a widespread sense that over the last two decades firms have been decentralizing decisions to employees further down the managerial hierarchy. Economists have developed a range of theories to account for delegation, but there is less empirical evidence, especially across countries. This has limited the ability to understand the phenomenon of decentralization. Nicholas Bloom, HBS professor Raffaella Sadun, and John Van Reenen assembled a new data set on about 4,000 firms across 12 countries in Europe, North America, and Asia, and then measured the delegation of authority from central headquarters to local plant managers.
Private Equity and Industry Performance
Authors: Shai Bernstein, Josh Lerner, Morten Sørensen, and Per Strömberg
Published: January 13, 2010
Paper Release Date: December 2009
Feature: Working Papers

In response to the global financial crisis that began in 2007, governments worldwide are rethinking their approach to regulating financial institutions. Among the financial institutions that have fallen under the gaze of regulators have been private equity (PE) funds. There are many open questions regarding the economic impact of PE funds, many of which cannot be definitively answered until the aftermath of the buyout boom of the mid-2000s can be fully assessed. HBS professor Josh Lerner and coauthors address one of these open questions, by examining the impact of PE investments across 20 industries in 26 major nations between 1991 and 2007. In particular, they look at the relationship between the presence of PE investments and the growth rates of productivity, employment, and capital formation.
Published in 2009
The Global Agglomeration of Multinational Firms
Authors: Laura Alfaro and Maggie Chen
Published: December 23, 2009
Paper Release Date: December 2009, revised April 2010
Feature: Working Papers

(Paper formerly titled "The Global Networks of Multinational Firms.") When and why do multinationals group together overseas? Do they agglomerate in the same fashion abroad as they do at home? An answer to these questions is central to the long-standing debate over the consequences of foreign direct investment (FDI). It is critical to understand interdependencies of multinational networks and how multinationals influence one another in their activities at home and overseas. HBS professor Laura Alfaro and George Washington University professor Maggie Chen examine the global network of multinationals and study the significance and causes of multinational agglomeration. Their results provide further evidence of the increasing separation of headquarters services and production activities within multinational firms. The differential specialization of headquarters and subsidiaries leads to distinct patterns of agglomeration.
Mental Health in the Aftermath of Conflict
Authors: Quy-Toan Do and Lakshmi Iyer
Published: December 9, 2009
Paper Release Date: November 2009
Feature: Working Papers

Wars are detrimental to the populations and the economy of affected countries. Over and above the human cost caused by deaths and suffering during a time of conflict, survivors of conflict are often left in poor economic circumstances and mental-health distress even after the conflict ends. How large are these costs? How long does it take for conflict-affected populations to recover from the mental stress of conflict? What policies are appropriate to assist mental health recovery? While considerable attention has been paid to post-war policies with regard to recovery in physical and human capital, mental health has received relatively less attention. The World Bank's Quy-Toan Do and HBS professor Lakshmi Iyer review the nascent literature on mental health in the aftermath of conflict, discuss the potential mechanisms through which conflict might affect mental health, and illustrate the findings from their study of mental health in a specific post-conflict setting: Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Should Immigration Policies Be More Welcoming to Low-Skilled Workers?
Published: December 2, 2009
Feature: What Do YOU Think?
Forum: closed | 43 Comments posted

Immigration is a topic that stirs passions globally, judging from the responses to this month's column, says HBS professor Jim Heskett. Readers suggested ways to bring immigration policy into alignment with the reality of what is happening at borders and in workplaces around the world. (Online forum now closed. Next forum begins January 6.)
Walking Through Jelly: Language Proficiency, Emotions, and Disrupted Collaboration in Global Work
Authors: Tsedal Neeley, Pamela J. Hinds, and Catherine Durnell Cramton
Published: November 12, 2009
Paper Release Date: June 2009
Feature: Working Papers

As organizations increasingly globalize, individuals are required to collaborate with coworkers across international borders. Many organizations are mandating English as the lingua franca, or common language, regardless of the location of their headquarters, to facilitate collaboration across national and linguistic boundaries. What is the emotional impact of lingua franca adoption on native and nonnative speakers who work closely together and often across national boundaries? This study examines the communication experience for native and nonnative English speakers in an organization that mandates English as the lingua franca for everyday use, and the impact of the lingua franca on collaboration among globally distributed coworkers. HBS professor Tsedal Neeley and coauthors describe in detail how emotions and actions were intertwined and evolved recursively as coworkers attempted to release themselves from unwanted negative emotions and inadvertently acted in ways that transferred negative experiences to their distant coworkers. Their findings have implications for managers who are charged with overseeing internationally distributed projects.
Improving Accountability at the World Bank
Published: September 28, 2009
Feature: Research & Ideas

Its legitimacy and effectiveness on the line, the World Bank faces criticism from its constituents and the civil society organizations that serve them. What options and arguments for accountability make the most sense for global governance institutions like the World Bank? HBS professor Alnoor Ebrahim testified before the U.S. House of Representatives on paths to change.
Firsthand Experience and the Subsequent Role of Reflected Knowledge in Cultivating Trust in Global Collaboration
Authors: Mark Mortensen and Tsedal Neeley
Published: July 29, 2009
Paper Release Date: May 2009
Feature: Working Papers

How can workers better collaborate across vast geographical distances? Distributed collaboration—in which employees work with, and meaningfully depend on, distant colleagues on a day-to-day basis—allows firms to leverage their intellectual capital, enhance work unit performance, face ever-changing customer demands more fluidly, and gain competitive advantage in a dynamic marketplace. Research over the last decade, however, has provided mounting evidence that while global collaboration is a necessary strategic choice for an ever-increasing number of organizations, socio-demographic, contextual, and temporal barriers engender many interpersonal challenges for distant coworkers and are likely to adversely affect trust between and among workers across sites. In this paper that examines employee relations at a multinational organization, HBS professor Tsedal Beyene and MIT Sloan School of Management professor Mark Mortensen find that firsthand experience in global collaborations is a crucial means of engendering trust from shared knowledge among coworkers. Their findings reinforce the important role of others' perceptions in our own self-definition, and suggest a means of addressing some of the problems that arise in cross-cultural global collaborations.
Business Summit: Managing Human Capital—Global Trends and Challenges
Published: July 21, 2009
Feature: HBS Business Summit

Human capital needed for globalization is lacking. Progress is required in important areas such as elevating more women to leadership positions, according to panelists at the HBS Business Summit.
Business Summit: Ethics in Globalization
Published: July 17, 2009
Feature: HBS Business Summit

It is impossible to regulate against greed and ethical shortcomings. What can be done is to force greater transparency and accountability.
Business Summit: China in the Global Economy
Published: July 14, 2009
Feature: HBS Business Summit

While the global economic downturn will affect China's exports, the domestic economy is expected to remain strong, agreed panelists at the HBS Business Summit.
Why Do Countries Adopt International Financial Reporting Standards?
Authors: Karthik Ramanna and Ewa Sletten
Published: June 25, 2009
Paper Release Date: March 2009
Feature: Working Papers

Why do some countries adopt the European Union (EU)-based International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) when others do not? To expand our understanding of the determinants and consequences of IFRS adoption on a global sample, HBS professor Karthik Ramanna and MIT Sloan School of Management coauthor Ewa Sletten studied variations over time in the decision to adopt these standards in more than a hundred non-EU countries. Understanding countries' adoption decisions can provide insights into the benefits and costs of IFRS adoption.
What Does Slower Economic Growth Really Mean?
Published: June 5, 2009
Feature: What Do YOU Think?
Forum: closed | 44 Comments posted

Respondents to this month's column by HBS professor Jim Heskett came close to general agreement on the proposition that economic growth is not measured properly by GDP, calling for new indicators. Jim sums up. (Online forum now closed. Next forum begins July 6.)
Can a Continuously-Liquidating Tontine (or Mutual Inheritance Fund) Succeed where Immediate Annuities Have Floundered?
Author: Julio J. Rotemberg
Published: June 4, 2009
Paper Release Date: April 2009
Feature: Working Papers

The changeover from defined benefit to defined contributions retirement plans in the United States has created a vast group of individuals that faces (or will face) the difficult problem of using a lump sum of assets to provide consumption for a relatively long but uncertain number of years. Up to this point, however, consumers appear not to have embraced annuitization. HBS professor Julio J. Rotemberg suggests an alternative instrument that, like immediate annuities, provides longevity insurance and postpones income until old age. In the proposed Mutual Inheritance Fund (MIF), a pool is formed by having individuals of a particular age buy shares in a mutual fund. The income from the underlying assets in the mutual fund is reinvested in the fund so that the value of the shares in an individual's name (and possibly also the number of these shares) grows over time. The basic idea behind the MIF is that the shares of pool members who die are liquidated, and the proceeds are then distributed in cash to the remaining members in proportion to the number of mutual fund shares that are currently in their name.
Barriers to Household Risk Management: Evidence from India
Authors: Shawn Cole, Xavier Giné, Jeremy Tobacman, Petia Topalova, Robert Townsend, and James Vickery
Published: May 15, 2009
Paper Release Date: April 2009
Feature: Working Papers

Insurance markets are growing rapidly in developing countries. Despite the promise of these markets, however, adoption to date has been relatively slow. Yet households often remain exposed to movements in local weather; regional house prices; prices of commodities like rice, heating oil, and gasoline; and local, regional, and national income fluctuations. In many cases, financial contracts simply do not exist to hedge these exposures, and when contracts do exist their use is not widespread. Why don't financial markets develop to help households hedge these risks? Why don't more households participate when formal markets are available? HBS professor Shawn Cole and coauthors attempt to shed light on these questions by studying participation in rural India in a rainfall risk-management product that provides a payoff based on monsoon rainfall. The results suggest that it may take a significant amount of time—and substantial marketing efforts—to increase adoption of risk-management tools at the household level.
Money or Knowledge? What Drives Demand for Financial Services in Emerging Markets?
Authors: Shawn Cole, Thomas Sampson, and Bilal Zia
Published: May 15, 2009
Paper Release Date: April 2009 (revised October 2009)
Feature: Working Papers

Why is there apparently limited demand for financial services in emerging markets? On the one hand, low-income individuals may not want formal services when informal savings, credit, and insurance markets function reasonably well, and the benefits of formal financial market participation may not exceed the costs. On the other hand, limited financial literacy could be the barrier: If people are not familiar or comfortable with products, they will not demand them. These two views carry significantly different implications for the development of financial markets around the world, and would suggest quite different policy decisions by governments and international organizations seeking to promote "financial deepening." HBS professor Shawn Cole and coauthors found that financial literacy education has no effect on the probability of opening a bank savings account for the full population, although it does significantly increase the probability among those with low initial levels of financial literacy and low levels of education. In contrast, modest financial subsidies significantly increase the share of households that open a bank savings account within the subsequent two months.

Global Warming

All About Global Warming

Global warming is the term used to describe a gradual increase in the average temperature of the Earth's atmosphere and its oceans, a change that is believed to be permanently changing the Earth’s climate forever.

While many view the effects of global warming to be more substantial and more rapidly occurring than others do, the scientific consensus on climatic changes related to global warming is that the average temperature of the Earth has risen between 0.4 and 0.8 °C over the past 100 years. The increased volumes of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases released by the burning of fossil fuels, land clearing, agriculture, and other human activities, are believed to be the primary sources of the global warming that has occurred over the past 50 years.

Scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate carrying out global warming research have recently predicted that average global temperatures could increase between 1.4 and 5.8 °C by the year 2100. Changes resulting from global warming may include rising sea levels due to the melting of the polar ice caps, as well as an increase in occurrence and severity of storms and other severe weather events.

Iceland volcano

Online conferencing takes off amid volcano chaos

Released on - Tuesday,20 April , 2010 -08:09
The volcanic eruption that has halted air travel in Europe for days has people turning to online teleconferences to conduct matters from business deals to weddings.
"We have seen an increase in the past few days in terms of video-calling because of the situation," a Skype spokesman told AFP on Monday.
"I've heard of executives stuck in the United States on the way back to London running their companies via Skype."
Reports getting back to the Internet telephone company include one of a couple stuck in Dubai while traveling to Britain to wed conducting the service in a hotel lobby using Skype video to include guests in London.
Cisco also said Monday that the disruption of flights in Europe due to a dangerous layer of ash spewed into the sky by a volcano in Iceland has led to a surge in interest in its "telepresence" technology for online meetings.
"We have seen a huge spike in usage," said Fredrik Halvorsen, newly minted vice president of Cisco's telepresence technology group.
"We have had all our demo centers and all our video rooms across the world populated by everything from big corporate clients to (small- or medium-size businesses) to government ministries."
Cisco used telepresence to hold a virtual press briefing announcing that on Monday it completed a 3.3-billion-dollar takeover of Norway-based teleconferencing firm Tandberg, of which Halvorsen was chief executive.
"I would have loved to have been in Europe with you guys," Cisco senior vice president of emerging technologies Marthin De Beer said during a virtual joint announcement with Halvorsen.
"Thanks to telepresence we are still able to do this, although it is two in the morning here and I don't know how we can fix that."
De Beer had his flight to Europe canceled and was in California-based Cisco's office in the city of San Jose while Halvorsen was in Norway.
While the eruption has stalled air travelers it promises to add momentum to businesses, governments and regular folks saving time, hassle and expense by simulating get-togethers using Internet gadgetry.
"A market transition is very often marked by a big external event or disruption," said Halvorsen.
The air travel dilemma prompted Cisco to launch a Fly Free program that lets businesses or governments with stranded key personnel have free use of the company's telepresence rooms.
"The Fly Free program is something we literally created on the fly as we saw a lot of need," Halvorsen said. "We think it is only the right thing to be doing."
Cisco has more than 700 specially-equipped telepresence rooms in 124 countries and the acquisition of Tandberg adds more facilities to that list.
Computer giant Hewlett-Packard told AFP that use of its Halo teleconferencing studios in Europe has surged and it is providing customers access on a "first-come, first-served" basis.
As with Cisco telepresence facilities, Halo studios are linked to one another to provide secure communications as well as enable collaboration using data shared online.
"As the world (has) seen earthquakes, H1N1 and other disasters, it has really made businesses pause to think how they can use technology to create a sustainable business model," De Beer said.
"What we are experiencing right now with one volcano eruption in Iceland disrupting not just flights but businesses around the world in a major way is an incredible example of how powerful this technology can be."